available by the ,bibliotheque nationale
 de ,france 7,bn,f_/,gallica7 at        
http3_/_/gallica4bnf4fr      ,,the      
,,works  ,,of  ,,the ,,right            
,,honourable  ,,edmund ,,burke   ,,in   
,,twelve ,,volumes  ,,volume ,,the      
,,fourth   ,illustration3 ,burke ,coat  
of ,arms4   ,,london ,,john ,c4 ,,nimmo 
#ad1 ,,king ,,william ,,street1         
,,strand1 ,w4,c4 ,,mdccclxxxvii         
,,contents ,,of ,,vol ,,iv4   ,,letter  
,,to ,a ,,member ,,of ,,the ,,national  
,,assembly1 ,,in ,,answer ,,to ,,some   
,,objections ,,to ,,his ,,book ,,on     
,,french ,,affairs                      
#a  ,,appeal ,,from ,,the ,,new ,,to    
,,the ,,old ,,whigs                     
#eg  ,,letter ,,to ,a ,,peer ,,of       
,,ireland ,,on ,,the ,,penal ,,laws     
,,against ,,irish ,,catholics           
#bag  ,,letter ,,to ,,sir ,,hercules    
,,langrishe1 ,,on ,,the ,,subject ,,of  
,,the ,,roman ,,catholics ,,of ,,ireland
                                        
#bda  ,,hints ,,for ,a ,,memorial ,,to  

,,be ,,delivered ,,to ,,monsieur ,,de   
,m4,m4             #cjg  ,,thoughts ,,on
 ,,french ,,affairs                     
#cac  ,,heads ,,for ,,consideration ,,on
 ,,the ,,present ,,state ,,of ,,affairs 
#cgi  ,,remarks ,,on ,,the ,,policy ,,of
 ,,the ,,allies ,,with ,,respect ,,to   
,,france3 ,,with ,,an ,,appendix        
#djc     ,a  ,,letter  ,,to  ,a ,,member
 ,,of ,,the ,,national ,,assembly1  ,,in
  ,,answer ,,to ,,some ,,objections ,,to
 ,,his ,,book ,,on ,,french ,,affairs4  
#agia4   ,sir1--,i had the honor to     
receive your letter of the #agth of     
,november last1 in which1 with some     
exceptions1 you are pleased to consider 
favorably the letter ,i have written on 
the affairs of ,france4 ,i shall ever   
accept any mark of approbation attended 
with instruction with more pleasure than
 general and unqualified praises4 ,the  
latter can serve only to flatter our    
vanity2 the former1 whilst it encourages
 us to proceed1 may help to improve us  
in our progress4  ,some of the errors   

you point out to me in my printed letter
 are really such4 ,one only ,i find to  
be material4 ,it is corrected in the    
edition which ,i take the liberty of    
sending to you4 ,as to the cavils which 
may be made on some part of my remarks  
with regard to the gradations in your   
new ,constitution1 you observe justly   
that they do not affect the substance of
 my objections4 ,whether there be a     
round more or less in the ladder of     
representation by which your workmen    
ascend from their parochial tyranny to  
their federal anarchy1 when the whole   
scale is false1 appears to me of little 
or no importance4  ,i published my      
thoughts on that ,constitution1 that my 
countrymen might be enabled to estimate 
the wisdom of the plans which were held 
out to their imitation4 ,i conceived    
that the true character of those plans  
would be best collected from the        
committee appointed to prepare them4 ,i 
thought that the scheme of their        
building would be better comprehended in

 the design of the architects than in   
the execution of the masons4 ,it was not
 worth my reader's while to occupy      
himself with the alterations by which   
bungling practice corrects absurd       
theory4 ,such an investigation would be 
endless3 because every day's past       
experience of impracticability has      
driven1 and every day's future          
experience will drive1 those men to new 
devices as exceptionable as the old1 and
 which are no otherwise worthy of       
observation than as they give a daily   
proof of the delusion of their promises 
and the falsehood of their professions4 
,had ,i followed all these changes1 my  
letter would have been only a gazette of
 their wanderings1 a journal of their   
march from error to error1 through a    
dry1 dreary desert1 unguided by the     
lights of ,heaven1 or by the contrivance
 which wisdom has invented to supply    
their place4  ,i am unalterably         
persuaded that the attempt to oppress1  
degrade1 impoverish1 confiscate1 and    

extinguish the original gentlemen and   
landed property of a whole nation cannot
 be justified under any form it may     
assume4 ,i am satisfied beyond a doubt1 
that the project of turning a great     
empire into a vestry1 or into a         
collection of vestries1 and of governing
 it in the spirit of a parochial        
administration1 is senseless and absurd1
 in any mode or with any qualifications4
 ,i can never be convinced that the     
scheme of placing the highest powers of 
the state in church-wardens and         
constables and other such officers1     
guided by the prudence of litigious     
attorneys and ,jew brokers1 and set in  
action by shameless women of the lowest 
condition1 by keepers of hotels1        
taverns1 and brothels1 by pert          
apprentices1 by clerks1 shop-boys1      
hair-dressers1 fiddlers1 and dancers on 
the stage1 7who1 in such a commonwealth 
as yours1 will in future overbear1 as   
already they have overborne1 the sober  
incapacity of dull1 uninstructed men1 of

 useful1 but laborious occupations17 can
 never be put into any shape that must  
not be both disgraceful and destructive4
 ,the whole of this project1 even if it 
were what it pretends to be1 and was not
 in reality the dominion1 through that  
disgraceful medium1 of half a dozen1 or 
perhaps fewer1 intriguing politicians1  
is so mean1 so low-minded1 so stupid a  
contrivance1 in point of wisdom1 as well
 as so perfectly detestable for its     
wickedness1 that ,i must always consider
 the correctives which might make it in 
any degree practicable to be so many new
 objections to it4  ,in that wretched   
state of things1 some are afraid that   
the authors of your miseries may be led 
to precipitate their further designs by 
the hints they may receive from the very
 arguments used to expose the absurdity 
of their system1 to mark the incongruity
 of its parts1 and its inconsistency    
with their own principles1--and that    
your masters may be led to render their 
schemes more consistent by rendering    

them more mischievous4 ,excuse the      
liberty which your indulgence authorizes
 me to take1 when ,i observe to you that
 such apprehensions as these would      
prevent all exertion of our faculties in
 this great cause of mankind4  ,a rash  
recourse to force is not to be justified
 in a state of real weakness4 ,such     
attempts bring on disgrace1 and in their
 failure discountenance and discourage  
more rational endeavors4 ,but reason is 
to be hazarded1 though it may be        
perverted by craft and sophistry2 for   
reason can suffer no loss nor shame1 nor
 can it impede any useful plan of future
 policy4 ,in the unavoidable uncertainty
 as to the effect1 which attends on     
every measure of human prudence1 nothing
 seems a surer antidote to the poison of
 fraud than its detection4 ,it is true1 
the fraud may be swallowed after this   
discovery1 and perhaps even swallowed   
the more greedily for being a detected  
fraud4 ,men sometimes make a point of   
honor not to be disabused2 and they had 

rather fall into an hundred errors than 
confess one4 ,but1 after all1 when      
neither our principles nor our          
dispositions1 nor1 perhaps1 our talents1
 enable us to encounter delusion with   
delusion1 we must use our best reason to
 those that ought to be reasonable      
creatures1 and to take our chance for   
the event4 ,we cannot act on these      
anomalies in the minds of men4 ,i do not
 conceive that the persons who have     
contrived these things can be made much 
the better or the worse for anything    
which can be said to them4 ,they are    
reason-proof4 ,here and there1 some men1
 who were at first carried away by wild1
 good intentions1 may be led1 when their
 first fervors are abated1 to join in a 
sober survey of the schemes into which  
they had been deluded4 ,to those only   
7and ,i am sorry to say they are not    
likely to make a large description7 we  
apply with any hope4 ,i may speak it    
upon an assurance almost approaching to 
absolute knowledge1 that nothing has    

been done that has not been contrived   
from the beginning1 even before the     
,states had assembled4 ,nulla nova mihi 
res inopinave surgit4 ,they are the same
 men and the same designs that they were
 from the first1 though varied in their 
appearance4 ,it was the very same animal
 that at first crawled about in the     
shape of a caterpillar that you now see 
rise into the air and expand his wings  
to the sun4  ,proceeding1 therefore1 as 
we are obliged to proceed1--that is1    
upon an hypothesis that we address      
rational men1--can false political      
principles be more effectually exposed  
than by demonstrating that they lead to 
consequences directly inconsistent with 
and subversive of the arrangements      
grounded upon them8 ,if this kind of    
demonstration is not permitted1 the     
process of reasoning called deductio ad 
absurdum1 which even the severity of    
geometry does not reject1 could not be  
employed at all in legislative          
discussions4 ,one of our strongest      

weapons against folly acting with       
authority would be lost4  ,you know1    
,sir1 that even the virtuous efforts of 
your patriots to prevent the ruin of    
your country have had this very turn    
given to them4 ,it has been said here1  
and in ,france too1 that the reigning   
usurpers would not have carried their   
tyranny to such destructive lengths1 if 
they had not been stimulated and        
provoked to it by the acrimony of your  
opposition4 ,there is a dilemma to which
 every opposition to successful iniquity
 must1 in the nature of things1 be      
liable4 ,if you lie still1 you are      
considered as an accomplice in the      
measures in which you silently          
acquiesce4 ,if you resist1 you are      
accused of provoking irritable power to 
new excesses4 ,the conduct of a losing  
party never appears right3 at least1 it 
never can possess the only infallible   
criterion of wisdom to vulgar           
judgments1--success4  ,the indulgence of
 a sort of undefined hope1 an obscure   

confidence1 that some lurking remains of
 virtue1 some degree of shame1 might    
exist in the breasts of the oppressors  
of ,france1 has been among the causes   
which have helped to bring on the common
 ruin of king and people4 ,there is no  
safety for honest men1 but by believing 
all possible evil of evil men1 and by   
acting with promptitude1 decision1 and  
steadiness on that belief4 ,i well      
remember1 at every epocha of this       
wonderful history1 in every scene of    
this tragic business1 that1 when your   
sophistic usurpers were laying down     
mischievous principles1 and even        
applying them in direct resolutions1 it 
was the fashion to say that they never  
intended to execute those declarations  
in their rigor4 ,this made men careless 
in their opposition1 and remiss in early
 precaution4 ,by holding out this       
fallacious hope1 the impostors deluded  
sometimes one description of men1 and   
sometimes another1 so that no means of  
resistance were provided against them1  

when they came to execute in cruelty    
what they had planned in fraud4  ,there 
are cases in which a man would be       
ashamed not to have been imposed on4    
,there is a confidence necessary to     
human intercourse1 and without which men
 are often more injured by their own    
suspicions than they would be by the    
perfidy of others4 ,but when men whom we
 know to be wicked impose upon us1 we   
are something worse than dupes4 ,when we
 know them1 their fair pretences become 
new motives for distrust4 ,there is one 
case1 indeed1 in which it would be      
madness not to give the fullest credit  
to the most deceitful of men1--that is1 
when they make declarations of hostility
 against us4  ,i find that some persons 
entertain other hopes1 which ,i confess 
appear more specious than those by which
 at first so many were deluded and      
disarmed4 ,they flatter themselves that 
the extreme misery brought upon the     
people by their folly will at last open 
the eyes of the multitude1 if not of    

their leaders4 ,much the contrary1 ,i   
fear4 ,as to the leaders in this system 
of imposture1--you know that cheats and 
deceivers never can repent4 ,the        
fraudulent have no resource but in      
fraud4 ,they have no other goods in     
their magazine4 ,they have no virtue or 
wisdom in their minds1 to which1 in a   
disappointment concerning the profitable
 effects of fraud and cunning1 they can 
retreat4 ,the wearing out of an old     
serves only to put them upon the        
invention of a new delusion4 ,unluckily1
 too1 the credulity of dupes is as      
inexhaustible as the invention of       
knaves4 ,they never give people         
possession2 but they always keep them in
 hope4 ,your state doctors do not so    
much as pretend that any good whatsoever
 has hitherto been derived from their   
operations1 or that the public has      
prospered in any one instance under     
their management4 ,the nation is sick1  
very sick1 by their medicines4 ,but the 
charlatan tells them that what is past  

cannot be helped2--they have taken the  
draught1 and they must wait its         
operation with patience2--that the first
 effects1 indeed1 are unpleasant1 but   
that the very sickness is a proof that  
the dose is of no sluggish              
operation2--that sickness is inevitable 
in all constitutional revolutions2--that
 the body must pass through pain to     
ease2--that the prescriber is not an    
empiric who proceeds by vulgar          
experience1 but one who grounds his     
practice#a on the sure rules of art1    
which cannot possibly fail4 ,you have   
read1 ,sir1 the last manifesto1 or      
mountebank's bill1 of the ,national     
,assembly4 ,you see their presumption in
 their promises is not lessened by all  
their failures in the performance4      
,compare this last address of the       
,assembly and the present state of your 
affairs with the early engagements of   
that body1 engagements which1 not       
content with declaring1 they solemnly   
deposed upon oath1--swearing lustily1   

that1 if they were supported1 they would
 make their country glorious and happy2 
and then judge whether those who can    
write such things1 or those who can bear
 to read them1 are of themselves to be  
brought to any reasonable course of     
thought or action4  ,as to the people at
 large1 when once these miserable sheep 
have broken the fold1 and have got      
themselves loose1 not from the          
restraint1 but from the protection1 of  
all the principles of natural authority 
and legitimate subordination1 they      
become the natural prey of impostors4   
,when they have once tasted of the      
flattery of knaves1 they can no longer  
endure reason1 which appears to them    
only in the form of censure and         
reproach4 ,great distress has never     
hitherto taught1 and whilst the world   
lasts it never will teach1 wise lessons 
to any part of mankind4 ,men are as much
 blinded by the extremes of misery as by
 the extremes of prosperity4 ,desperate 
situations produce desperate councils   

and desperate measures4 ,the people of  
,france1 almost generally1 have been    
taught to look for other resources than 
those which can be derived from order1  
frugality1 and industry4 ,they are      
generally armed2 and they are made to   
expect much from the use of arms4 ,nihil
 non arrogant armis4 ,besides this1 the 
retrograde order of society has         
something flattering to the dispositions
 of mankind4 ,the life of adventurers1  
gamesters1 gypsies1 beggars1 and robbers
 is not unpleasant4 ,it requires        
restraint to keep men from falling into 
that habit4 ,the shifting tides of fear 
and hope1 the flight and pursuit1 the   
peril and escape1 the alternate famine  
and feast of the savage and the thief1  
after a time2 render all course of slow1
 steady1 progressive1 unvaried          
occupation1 and the prospect only of a  
limited mediocrity at the end of long   
labor1 to the last degree tame1 languid1
 and insipid4 ,those who have been once 
intoxicated with power1 and have derived

 any kind of emolument from it1 even    
though but for one year1 never can      
willingly abandon it4 ,they may be      
distressed in the midst of all their    
power2 but they will never look to      
anything but power for their relief4    
,when did distress ever oblige a prince 
to abdicate his authority8 ,and what    
effect will it have upon those who are  
made to believe themselves a people of  
princes8  ,the more active and stirring 
part of the lower orders having got     
government and the distribution of      
plunder into their hands1 they will use 
its resources in each municipality to   
form a body of adherents4 ,these rulers 
and their adherents will be strong      
enough to overpower the discontents of  
those who have not been able to assert  
their share of the spoil4 ,the          
unfortunate adventurers in the cheating 
lottery of plunder will probably be the 
least sagacious or the most inactive and
 irresolute of the gang4 ,if1 on        
disappointment1 they should dare to     

stir1 they will soon be suppressed as   
rebels and mutineers by their brother   
rebels4 ,scantily fed for a while with  
the offal of plunder1 they will drop off
 by degrees2 they will be driven out of 
sight and out of thought2 and they will 
be left to perish obscurely1 like rats1 
in holes and corners4  ,from the forced 
repentance of invalid mutineers and     
disbanded thieves you can hope for no   
resource4 ,government itself1 which     
ought to constrain the more bold and    
dexterous of these robbers1 is their    
accomplice4 ,its arms1 its treasures1   
its all are in their hands4 ,judicature1
 which above all things should awe them1
 is their creature and their instrument4
 ,nothing seems to me to render your    
internal situation more desperate than  
this one circumstance of the state of   
your judicature4 ,many days are not     
passed since we have seen a set of men  
brought forth by your rulers for a most 
critical function4 ,your rulers brought 
forth a set of men1 steaming from the   

sweat and drudgery1 and all black with  
the smoke and soot1 of the forge of     
confiscation and robbery1--ardentis mass
 fuligine lippos1--a set of men brought 
forth from the trade of hammering arms  
of proof1 offensive and defensive1 in   
aid of the enterprises1 and for the     
subsequent protection1 of housebreakers1
 murderers1 traitors1 and               
malefactors1--men1 who had their minds  
seasoned with theories perfectly        
conformable to their practice1 and who  
had always laughed at possession and    
prescription1 and defied all the        
fundamental maxims of jurisprudence4 ,to
 the horror and stupefaction of all the 
honest part of this nation1 and indeed  
of all nations who are spectators1 we   
have seen1 on the credit of those very  
practices and principles1 and to carry  
them further into effect1 these very men
 placed on the sacred seat of justice in
 the capital city of your late kingdom4 
,we see that in future you are to be    
destroyed with more form and regularity4

 ,this is not peace3 it is only the     
introduction of a sort of discipline in 
their hostility4 ,their tyranny is      
complete in their justice2 and their    
lanterne is not half so dreadful as     
their court4  ,one would think1 that1   
out of common decency1 they would have  
given you men who had not been in the   
habit of trampling upon law and justice 
in the ,assembly1 neutral men1 or men   
apparently neutral1 for judges1 who are 
to dispose of your lives and fortunes4  
,cromwell1 when he attempted to legalize
 his power1 and to settle his conquered 
country in a state of order1 did not    
look for dispensers of justice in the   
instruments of his usurpation4 ,quite   
the contrary4 ,he sought out1 with great
 solicitude and selection1 and even from
 the party most opposite to his designs1
 men of weight and decorum of           
character1--men unstained with the      
violence of the times1 and with hands   
not fouled with confiscation and        
sacrilege3 for he chose an ,hale for his

 chief justice1 though he absolutely    
refused to take his civic oaths1 or to  
make any acknowledgment whatsoever of   
the legality of his government4         
,cromwell told this great lawyer1 that1 
since he did not approve his title1 all 
he required of him was to administer1 in
 a manner agreeable to his pure         
sentiments and unspotted character1 that
 justice without which human society    
cannot subsist1--that it was not his    
particular government1 but civil order  
itself1 which1 as a judge1 he wished him
 to support4 ,cromwell knew how to      
separate the institutions expedient to  
his usurpation from the administration  
of the public justice of his country4   
,for ,cromwell was a man in whom        
ambition had not wholly suppressed1 but 
only suspended1 the sentiments of       
religion1 and the love 7as far as it    
could consist with his designs7 of fair 
and honorable reputation4 ,accordingly1 
we are indebted to this act of his for  
the preservation of our laws1 which some

 senseless assertors of the rights of   
men were then on the point of entirely  
erasing1 as relics of feudality and     
barbarism4 ,besides1 he gave1 in the    
appointment of that man1 to that age1   
and to all posterity1 the most brilliant
 example of sincere and fervent piety1  
exact justice1 and profound             
jurisprudence4#b ,but these are not the 
things in which your philosophic        
usurpers choose to follow ,cromwell4    
,one would think1 that1 after an honest 
and necessary revolution1 7if they had a
 mind that theirs should pass for such17
 your masters would have imitated the   
virtuous policy of those who have been  
at the head of revolutions of that      
glorious character4 ,burnet tells us1   
that nothing tended to reconcile the    
,english nation to the government of    
,king ,william so much as the care he   
took to fill the vacant bishoprics with 
men who had attracted the public esteem 
by their learning1 eloquence1 and piety1
 and above all1 by their known          

moderation in the state4 ,with you1 in  
your purifying revolution1 whom have you
 chosen to regulate the ,church8 ,m4    
,mirabeau is a fine speaker1 and a fine 
writer1 and a fine--a very fine man2    
but1 really1 nothing gave more surprise 
to everybody here than to find him the  
supreme head of your ecclesiastical     
affairs4 ,the rest is of course4 ,your  
,assembly addresses a manifesto to      
,france1 in which they tell the people1 
with an insulting irony1 that they have 
brought the ,church to its primitive    
condition4 ,in one respect their        
declaration is undoubtedly true3 for    
they have brought it to a state of      
poverty and persecution4 ,what can be   
hoped for after this8 ,have not men1 7if
 they deserve the name17 under this new 
hope and head of the ,church1 been made 
bishops for no other merit than having  
acted as instruments of atheists8 for no
 other merit than having thrown the     
children's bread to dogs8 and1 in order 
to gorge the whole gang of usurers1     

peddlers1 and itinerant ,jew discounters
 at the corners of streets1 starved the 
poor of their ,christian flocks1 and    
their own brother pastors8 ,have not    
such men been made bishops to administer
 in temples in which 7if the patriotic  
donations have not already stripped them
 of their vessels7 the church-wardens   
ought to take security for the altar    
plate1 and not so much as to trust the  
chalice in their sacrilegious hands1 so 
long as ,jews have assignats on         
ecclesiastic plunder1 to exchange for   
the silver stolen from churches8  ,i am 
told that the very sons of such ,jew    
jobbers have been made bishops3 persons 
not to be suspected of any sort of      
,christian superstition1 fit colleagues 
to the holy prelate of ,autun1 and bred 
at the feet of that ,gamaliel4 ,we know 
who it was that drove the money-changers
 out of the temple4 ,we see1 too1 who it
 is that brings them in again4 ,we have 
in ,london very respectable persons of  
the ,jewish nation1 whom we will keep2  

but we have of the same tribe others of 
a very different                        
description1--housebreakers1 and        
receivers of stolen goods1 and forgers  
of paper currency1 more than we can     
conveniently hang4 ,these we can spare  
to ,france1 to fill the new episcopal   
thrones3 men well versed in swearing2   
and who will scruple no oath which the  
fertile genius of any of your reformers 
can devise4  ,in matters so ridiculous  
it is hard to be grave4 ,on a view of   
their consequences1 it is almost inhuman
 to treat them lightly4 ,to what a state
 of savage1 stupid1 servile             
insensibility must your people be       
reduced1 who can endure such proceedings
 in their ,church1 their state1 and     
their judicature1 even for a moment6    
,but the deluded people of ,france are  
like other madmen1 who1 to a miracle1   
bear hunger1 and thirst1 and cold1 and  
confinement1 and the chains and lash of 
their keeper1 whilst all the while they 
support themselves by the imagination   

that they are generals of armies1       
prophets1 kings1 and emperors4 ,as to a 
change of mind in those men1 who        
consider infamy as honor1 degradation as
 preferment1 bondage to low tyrants as  
liberty1 and the practical scorn and    
contumely of their upstart masters as   
marks of respect and homage1 ,i look    
upon it as absolutely impracticable4    
,these madmen1 to be cured1 must first1 
like other madmen1 be subdued4 ,the     
sound part of the community1 which ,i   
believe to be large1 but by no means the
 largest part1 has been taken by        
surprise1 and is disjointed1 terrified1 
and disarmed4 ,that sound part of the   
community must first be put into a      
better condition1 before it can do      
anything in the way of deliberation or  
persuasion4 ,this must be an act of     
power1 as well as of wisdom3 of power in
 the hands of firm1 determined patriots1
 who can distinguish the misled from    
traitors1 who will regulate the state   
7if such should be their fortune7 with a

 discriminating1 manly1 and provident   
mercy2 men who are purged of the surfeit
 and indigestion of systems1 if ever    
they have been admitted into the habit  
of their minds2 men who will lay the    
foundation of a real reform in effacing 
every vestige of that philosophy which  
pretends to have made discoveries in the
 ,terra ,australia of morality2 men who 
will fix the state upon these bases of  
morals and politics1 which are our old  
and immemorial1 and1 ,i hope1 will be   
our eternal possession4  ,this power1 to
 such men1 must come from without4 ,it  
may be given to you in pity3 for surely 
no nation ever called so pathetically on
 the compassion of all its neighbors4   
,it may be given by those neighbors on  
motives of safety to themselves4 ,never 
shall ,i think any country in ,europe to
 be secure1 whilst there is established 
in the very centre of it a state 7if so 
it may be called7 founded on principles 
of anarchy1 and which is in reality a   
college of armed fanatics1 for the      

propagation of the principles of        
assassination1 robbery1 rebellion1      
fraud1 faction1 oppression1 and impiety4
 ,mahomet1 hid1 as for a time he was1 in
 the bottom of the sands of ,arabia1 had
 his spirit and character been          
discovered1 would have been an object of
 precaution to provident minds4 ,what if
 he had erected his fanatic standard for
 the destruction of the ,christian      
religion in luce ,asi1 in the midst of  
the then noonday splendor of the then   
civilized world8 ,the princes of        
,europe1 in the beginning of this       
century1 did well not to suffer the     
monarchy of ,france to swallow up the   
others4 ,they ought not now1 in my      
opinion1 to suffer all the monarchies   
and commonwealths to be swallowed up in 
the gulf of this polluted anarchy4 ,they
 may be tolerably safe at present1      
because the comparative power of ,france
 for the present is little4 ,but times  
and occasions make dangers4 ,intestine  
troubles may arise in other countries4  

,there is a power always on the watch1  
qualified and disposed to profit of     
every conjuncture1 to establish its own 
principles and modes of mischief1       
wherever it can hope for success4 ,what 
mercy would these usurpers have on other
 sovereigns1 and on other nations1 when 
they treat their own king with such     
unparalleled indignities1 and so cruelly
 oppress their own countrymen8  ,the    
king of ,prussia1 in concurrence with   
us1 nobly interfered to save ,holland   
from confusion4 ,the same power1 joined 
with the rescued ,holland and with      
,great ,britain1 has put the ,emperor in
 the possession of the ,netherlands1 and
 secured1 under that prince1 from all   
arbitrary innovation1 the ancient1      
hereditary ,constitution of those       
provinces4 ,the chamber of ,wetzlar has 
restored the ,bishop of ,liege1 unjustly
 dispossessed by the rebellion of his   
subjects4 ,the king of ,prussia was     
bound by no treaty nor alliance of      
blood1 nor had any particular reasons   

for thinking the ,emperor's government  
would be more mischievous or more       
oppressive to human nature than that of 
the ,turk2 yet1 on mere motives of      
policy1 that prince has interposed1 with
 the threat of all his force1 to snatch 
even the ,turk from the pounces of the  
,imperial eagle4 ,if this is done in    
favor of a barbarous nation1 with a     
barbarous neglect of police1 fatal to   
the human race1--in favor of a nation by
 principle in eternal enmity with the   
,christian name1 a nation which will not
 so much as give the salutation of peace
 7,salam7 to any of us1 nor make any    
pact with any ,christian nation beyond a
 truce1--if this be done in favor of the
 ,turk1 shall it be thought either      
impolitic or unjust or uncharitable to  
employ the same power to rescue from    
captivity a virtuous monarch1 7by the   
courtesy of ,europe considered as ,most 
,christian17 who1 after an intermission 
of one hundred and seventy-five years1  
had called together the ,states of his  

kingdom to reform abuses1 to establish a
 free government1 and to strengthen his 
throne1--a monarch who1 at the very     
outset1 without force1 even without     
solicitation1 had given to his people   
such a ,magna ,charta of privileges as  
never was given by any king to any      
subjects8 ,is it to be tamely borne by  
kings who love their subjects1 or by    
subjects who love their kings1 that this
 monarch1 in the midst of these gracious
 acts1 was insolently and cruelly torn  
from his palace by a gang of traitors   
and assassins1 and kept in close prison 
to this very hour1 whilst his royal name
 and sacred character were used for the 
total ruin of those whom the laws had   
appointed him to protect8  ,the only    
offence of this unhappy monarch towards 
his people was his attempt1 under a     
monarchy1 to give them a free           
,constitution4 ,for this1 by an example 
hitherto unheard of in the world1 he has
 been deposed4 ,it might well disgrace  
sovereigns to take part with a deposed  

tyrant4 ,it would suppose in them a     
vicious sympathy4 ,but not to make a    
common cause with a just prince1        
dethroned by traitors and rebels1 who   
proscribe1 plunder1 confiscate1 and in  
every way cruelly oppress their         
fellow-citizens1 in my opinion is to    
forget what is due to the honor and to  
the rights of all virtuous and legal    
government4  ,i think the king of       
,france to be as much an object both of 
policy and compassion as the ,grand     
,seignior or his states4 ,i do not      
conceive that the total annihilation of 
,france 7if that could be effected7 is a
 desirable thing to ,europe1 or even to 
this its rival nation4 ,provident       
patriots did not think it good for ,rome
 that even ,carthage should be quite    
destroyed2 and he was a wise ,greek1    
wise for the general ,grecian interests1
 as well as a brave ,lacedmonian enemy  
and generous conqueror1 who did not     
wish1 by the destruction of ,athens1 to 
pluck out the other eye of ,greece4     

,however1 ,sir1 what ,i have here said  
of the interference of foreign princes  
is only the opinion of a private        
individual1 who is neither the          
representative of any state nor the     
organ of any party1 but who thinks      
himself bound to express his own        
sentiments with freedom and energy in a 
crisis of such importance to the whole  
human race4  ,i am not apprehensive1    
that1 in speaking freely on the subject 
of the king and queen of ,france1 ,i    
shall accelerate 7as you fear7 the      
execution of traitorous designs against 
them4 ,you are of opinion1 ,sir1 that   
the usurpers may1 and that they will1   
gladly lay hold of any pretext to throw 
off the very name of a king3 assuredly1 
,i do not wish ill to your king2 but    
better for him not to live 7he does not 
reign7 than to live the passive         
instrument of tyranny and usurpation4   
,i certainly meant to show1 to the best 
of my power1 that the existence of such 
an executive officer in such a system of

 republic as theirs is absurd in the    
highest degree4 ,but in demonstrating   
this1 to them1 at least1 ,i can have    
made no discovery4 ,they only held out  
the royal name to catch those ,frenchmen
 to whom the name of king is still      
venerable4 ,they calculate the duration 
of that sentiment2 and when they find it
 nearly expiring1 they will not trouble 
themselves with excuses for             
extinguishing the name1 as they have the
 thing4 ,they used it as a sort of      
navel-string to nourish their unnatural 
offspring from the bowels of royalty    
itself4 ,now that the monster can purvey
 for its own subsistence1 it will only  
carry the mark about it1 as a token of  
its having torn the womb it came from4  
,tyrants seldom want pretexts4 ,fraud is
 the ready minister of injustice2 and   
whilst the currency of false pretence   
and sophistic reasoning was expedient to
 their designs1 they were under no      
necessity of drawing upon me to furnish 
them with that coin4 ,but pretexts and  

sophisms have had their day1 and have   
done their work4 ,the usurpation no     
longer seeks plausibility3 it trusts to 
power4  ,nothing that ,i can say1 or    
that you can say1 will hasten them1 by a
 single hour1 in the execution of a     
design which they have long since       
entertained4 ,in spite of their solemn  
declarations1 their soothing addresses1 
and the multiplied oaths which they have
 taken and forced others to take1 they  
will assassinate the king when his name 
will no longer be necessary to their    
designs1--but not a moment sooner4 ,they
 will probably first assassinate the    
queen1 whenever the renewed menace of   
such an assassination loses its effect  
upon the anxious mind of an affectionate
 husband4 ,at present1 the advantage    
which they derive from the daily threats
 against her life is her only security  
for preserving it4 ,they keep their     
sovereign alive for the purpose of      
exhibiting him1 like some wild beast at 
a fair1--as if they had a ,bajazet in a 

cage4 ,they choose to make monarchy     
contemptible by exposing it to derision 
in the person of the most benevolent of 
their kings4  ,in my opinion their      
insolence appears more odious even than 
their crimes4 ,the horrors of the fifth 
and sixth of ,october were less         
detestable than the festival of the     
fourteenth of ,july4 ,there are         
situations 7,god forbid ,i should think 
that of the #eth and #fth of ,october   
one of them67 in which the best men may 
be confounded with the worst1 and in the
 darkness and confusion1 in the press   
and medley of such extremities1 it may  
not be so easy to discriminate the one  
from the other4 ,tho necessities created
 even by ill designs have their excuse4 
,they may be forgotten by others1 when  
the guilty themselves do not choose to  
cherish their recollection1 and1 by     
ruminating their offences1 nourish      
themselves1 through the example of their
 past1 to the perpetration of future    
crimes4 ,it is in the relaxation of     

security1 it is in the expansion of     
prosperity1 it is in the hour of        
dilatation of the heart1 and of its     
softening into festivity and pleasure1  
that the real character of men is       
discerned4 ,if there is any good in     
them1 it appears then or never4 ,even   
wolves and tigers1 when gorged with     
their prey1 are safe and gentle4 ,it is 
at such times that noble minds give all 
the reins to their good nature4 ,they   
indulge their genius even to            
intemperance1 in kindness to the        
afflicted1 in generosity to the         
conquered1--forbearing insults1         
forgiving injuries1 overpaying benefits4
 ,full of dignity themselves1 they      
respect dignity in all1 but they feel it
 sacred in the unhappy4 ,but it is then1
 and basking in the sunshine of         
unmerited fortune1 that low1 sordid1    
ungenerous1 and reptile souls swell with
 their hoarded poisons2 it is then that 
they display their odious splendor1 and 
shine out in the full lustre of their   

native villany and baseness4 ,it is in  
that season that no man of sense or     
honor can be mistaken for one of them4  
,it was in such a season1 for them of   
political ease and security1 though     
their people were but just emerged from 
actual famine1 and were ready to be     
plunged into a gulf of penury and       
beggary1 that your philosophic lords    
chose1 with an ostentatious pomp and    
luxury1 to feast an incredible number of
 idle and thoughtless people1 collected 
with art and pains from all quarters of 
the world4 ,they constructed a vast     
amphitheatre in which they raised a     
species of pillory4#c ,on this pillory  
they set their lawful king and queen1   
with an insulting figure over their     
heads4 ,there they exposed these objects
 of pity and respect to all good minds  
to the derision of an unthinking and    
unprincipled multitude1 degenerated even
 from the versatile tenderness which    
marks the irregular and capricious      
feelings of the populace4 ,that their   

cruel insult might have nothing wanting 
to complete it1 they chose the          
anniversary of that day in which they   
exposed the life of their prince to the 
most imminent dangers and the vilest    
indignities1 just following the instant 
when the assassins1 whom they had hired 
without owning1 first openly took up    
arms against their king1 corrupted his  
guards1 surprised his castle1 butchered 
some of the poor invalids of his        
garrison1 murdered his governor1 and1   
like wild beasts1 tore to pieces the    
chief magistrate of his capital city1 on
 account of his fidelity to his service4
  ,till the justice of the world is     
awakened1 such as these will go on1     
without admonition1 and without         
provocation1 to every extremity4 ,those 
who have made the exhibition of the     
fourteenth of ,july are capable of every
 evil4 ,they do not commit crimes for   
their designs2 but they form designs    
that they may commit crimes4 ,it is not 
their necessity1 but their nature1 that 

impels them4 ,they are modern           
philosophers1 which when you say of     
them1 you express everything that is    
ignoble1 savage1 and hard-hearted4      
,besides the sure tokens which are given
 by the spirit of their particular      
arrangements1 there are some            
characteristic lineaments in the general
 policy of your tumultuous despotism1   
which1 in my opinion1 indicate1 beyond a
 doubt1 that no revolution whatsoever in
 their disposition is to be expected3 ,i
 mean their scheme of educating the     
rising generation1 the principles which 
they intend to instil and the sympathies
 which they wish to form in the mind at 
the season in which it is the most      
susceptible4 ,instead of forming their  
young minds to that docility1 to that   
modesty1 which are the grace and charm  
of youth1 to an admiration of famous    
examples1 and to an averseness to       
anything which approaches to pride1     
petulance1 and self-conceit1 7distempers
 to which that time of life is of itself

 sufficiently liable17 they artificially
 foment these evil dispositions1 and    
even form them into springs of action4  
,nothing ought to be more weighed than  
the nature of books recommended by      
public authority4 ,so recommended1 they 
soon form the character of the age4     
,uncertain indeed is the efficacy1      
limited indeed is the extent1 of a      
virtuous institution4 ,but if education 
takes in vice as any part of its system1
 there is no doubt but that it will     
operate with abundant energy1 and to an 
extent indefinite4 ,the magistrate1 who 
in favor of freedom thinks himself      
obliged to suffer all sorts of          
publications1 is under a stricter duty  
than any other well to consider what    
sort of writers he shall authorize1 and 
shall recommend by the strongest of all 
sanctions1 that is1 by public honors and
 rewards4 ,he ought to be cautious how  
he recommends authors of mixed or       
ambiguous morality4 ,he ought to be     
fearful of putting into the hands of    

youth writers indulgent to the          
peculiarities of their own complexion1  
lest they should teach the humors of the
 professor1 rather than the principles  
of the science4 ,he ought1 above all1 to
 be cautious in recommending any writer 
who has carried marks of a deranged     
understanding3 for where there is no    
sound reason1 there can be no real      
virtue2 and madness is ever vicious and 
malignant4  ,the ,assembly proceeds on  
maxims the very reverse of these4 ,the  
,assembly recommends to its youth a     
study of the bold experimenters in      
morality4 ,everybody knows that there is
 a great dispute amongst their leaders1 
which of them is the best resemblance of
 ,rousseau4 ,in truth1 they all resemble
 him4 ,his blood they transfuse into    
their minds and into their manners4 ,him
 they study2 him they meditate2 him they
 turn over in all the time they can     
spare from the laborious mischief of the
 day or the debauches of the night4     
,rousseau is their canon of holy writ2  

in his life he is their canon of        
,polycletus2 he is their standard figure
 of perfection4 ,to this man and this   
writer1 as a pattern to authors and to  
,frenchmen1 the foundries of ,paris are 
now running for statues1 with the       
kettles of their poor and the bells of  
their churches4 ,if an author had       
written like a great genius on geometry1
 though his practical and speculative   
morals were vicious in the extreme1 it  
might appear that in voting the statue  
they honored only the geometrician4 ,but
 ,rousseau is a moralist or he is       
nothing4 ,it is impossible1 therefore1  
putting the circumstances together1 to  
mistake their design in choosing the    
author with whom they have begun to     
recommend a course of studies4  ,their  
great problem is1 to find a substitute  
for all the principles which hitherto   
have been employed to regulate the human
 will and action4 ,they find            
dispositions in the mind of such force  
and quality as may fit men1 far better  

than the old morality1 for the purposes 
of such a state as theirs1 and may go   
much further in supporting their power  
and destroying their enemies4 ,they have
 therefore chosen a selfish1 flattering1
 seductive1 ostentatious vice1 in the   
place of plain duty4 ,true humility1 the
 basis of the ,christian system1 is the 
low1 but deep and firm foundation of all
 real virtue4 ,but this1 as very painful
 in the practice1 and little imposing in
 the appearance1 they have totally      
discarded4 ,their object is to merge all
 natural and all social sentiment in    
inordinate vanity4 ,in a small degree1  
and conversant in little things1 vanity 
is of little moment4 ,when full-grown1  
it is the worst of vices1 and the       
occasional mimic of them all4 ,it makes 
the whole man false4 ,it leaves nothing 
sincere or trustworthy about him4 ,his  
best qualities are poisoned and         
perverted by it1 and operate exactly as 
the worst4 ,when your lords had many    
writers as immoral as the object of     

their statue 7such as ,voltaire and     
others7 they chose ,rousseau1 because in
 him that peculiar vice which they      
wished to erect into ruling virtue was  
by far the most conspicuous4  ,we have  
had the great professor and founder of  
the philosophy of vanity in ,england4   
,as ,i had good opportunities of knowing
 his proceedings almost from day to day1
 he left no doubt on my mind that he    
entertained no principle1 either to     
influence his heart or to guide his     
understanding1 but vanity4 ,with this   
vice he was possessed to a degree little
 short of madness4 ,it is from the same 
deranged1 eccentric vanity1 that this1  
the insane ,socrates of the ,national   
,assembly1 was impelled to publish a mad
 confession of his mad faults1 and to   
attempt a new sort of glory from        
bringing hardily to light the obscure   
and vulgar vices which we know may      
sometimes be blended with eminent       
talents4 ,he has not observed on the    
nature of vanity who does not know that 

it is omnivorous1--that it has no choice
 in its food1--that it is fond to talk  
even of its own faults and vices1 as    
what will excite surprise and draw      
attention1 and what will pass at worst  
for openness and candor4  ,it was this  
abuse and perversion1 which vanity makes
 even of hypocrisy1 which has driven    
,rousseau to record a life not so much  
as checkered or spotted here and there  
with virtues1 or even distinguished by a
 single good action4 ,it is such a life 
he chooses to offer to the attention of 
mankind4 ,it is such a life that1 with a
 wild defiance1 he flings in the face of
 his ,creator1 whom he acknowledges only
 to brave4 ,your ,assembly1 knowing how 
much more powerful example is found than
 precept1 has chosen this man 7by his   
own account without a single virtue7 for
 a model4 ,to him they erect their first
 statue4 ,from him they commence their  
series of honors and distinctions4  ,it 
is that new-invented virtue which your  
masters canonize that led their moral   

hero constantly to exhaust the stores of
 his powerful rhetoric in the expression
 of universal benevolence1 whilst his   
heart was incapable of harboring one    
spark of common parental affection4     
,benevolence to the whole species1 and  
want of feeling for every individual    
with whom the professors come in        
contact1 form the character of the new  
philosophy4 ,setting up for an unsocial 
independence1 this their hero of vanity 
refuses the just price of common labor1 
as well as the tribute which opulence   
owes to genius1 and which1 when paid1   
honors the giver and the receiver2 and  
then he pleads his beggary as an excuse 
for his crimes4 ,he melts with          
tenderness for those only who touch him 
by the remotest relation1 and then1     
without one natural pang1 casts away1 as
 a sort of offal and excrement1 the     
spawn of his disgustful amours1 and     
sends his children to the hospital of   
foundlings4 ,the bear loves1 licks1 and 
forms her young3 but bears are not      

philosophers4 ,vanity1 however1 finds   
its account in reversing the train of   
our natural feelings4 ,thousands admire 
the sentimental-writer2 the affectionate
 father is hardly known in his parish4  
,under this philosophic instructor in   
the ethics of vanity1 they have         
attempted in ,france a regeneration of  
the moral constitution of man4          
,statesmen like your present rulers     
exist by everything which is spurious1  
fictitious1 and false1--by everything   
which takes the man from his house1 and 
sets him on a stage1--which makes him up
 an artificial creature1 with painted1  
theatric sentiments1 fit to be seen by  
the glare of candle-light1 and formed to
 be contemplated at a due distance4     
,vanity is too apt to prevail in all of 
us1 and in all countries4 ,to the       
improvement of ,frenchmen1 it seems not 
absolutely necessary that it should be  
taught upon system4 ,but it is plain    
that the present rebellion was its      
legitimate offspring1 and it is piously 

fed by that rebellion with a daily dole4
  ,if the system of institution         
recommended by the ,assembly is false   
and theatric1 it is because their system
 of government is of the same character4
 ,to that1 and to that alone1 it is     
strictly conformable4 ,to understand    
either1 we must connect the morals with 
the politics of the legislators4 ,your  
practical philosophers1 systematic in   
everything1 have wisely began at the    
source4 ,as the relation between parents
 and children is the first among the    
elements of vulgar1 natural morality1#d 
they erect statues to a wild1 ferocious1
 low-minded1 hard-hearted father1 of    
fine general feelings1--a lover of his  
kind1 but a hater of his kindred4 ,your 
masters reject the duties of this vulgar
 relation1 as contrary to liberty1 as   
not founded in the social compact1 and  
not binding according to the rights of  
men2 because the relation is not1 of    
course1 the result of free              
election1--never so on the side of the  

children1 not always on the part of the 
parents4  ,the next relation which they 
regenerate by their statues to ,rousseau
 is that which is next in sanctity to   
that of a father4 ,they differ from     
those old-fashioned thinkers who        
considered pedagogues as sober and      
venerable characters1 and allied to the 
parental4 ,the moralists of the dark    
times prceptorem sancti voluere parentis
 esse loco4 ,in this age of light they  
teach the people that preceptors ought  
to be in the place of gallants4 ,they   
systematically corrupt a very           
corruptible race1 7for some time a      
growing nuisance amongst you17--a set of
 pert1 petulant literators1 to whom1    
instead of their proper1 but severe1    
unostentatious duties1 they assign the  
brilliant part of men of wit and        
pleasure1 of gay1 young1 military       
sparks1 and danglers at toilets4 ,they  
call on the rising generation in ,france
 to take a sympathy in the adventures   
and fortunes1 and they endeavor to      

engage their sensibility on the side1 of
 pedagogues who betray the most awful   
family trusts and vitiate their female  
pupils4 ,they teach the people that the 
debauchers of virgins1 almost in the    
arms of their parents1 may be safe      
inmates in their house1 and even fit    
guardians of the honor of those husbands
 who succeed legally to the office which
 the young literators had preoccupied   
without asking leave of law or          
conscience4  ,thus they dispose of all  
the family relations of parents and     
children1 husbands and wives4 ,through  
this same instructor1 by whom they      
corrupt the morals1 they corrupt the    
taste4 ,taste and elegance1 though they 
are reckoned only among the smaller and 
secondary morals1 yet are of no mean    
importance in the regulation of life4 ,a
 moral taste is not of force to turn    
vice into virtue2 but it recommends     
virtue with something like the          
blandishments of pleasure1 and it       
infinitely abates the evils of vice4    

,rousseau1 a writer of great force and  
vivacity1 is totally destitute of taste 
in any sense of the word4 ,your masters1
 who are his scholars1 conceive that all
 refinement has an aristocratic         
character4 ,the last age had exhausted  
all its powers in giving a grace and    
nobleness to our natural appetites1 and 
in raising them into a higher class and 
order than seemed justly to belong to   
them4 ,through ,rousseau1 your masters  
are resolved to destroy these           
aristocratic prejudices4 ,the passion   
called love has so general and powerful 
an influence1 it makes so much of the   
entertainment1 and indeed so much the   
occupation1 of that part of life which  
decides the character forever1 that the 
mode and the principles on which it     
engages the sympathy and strikes the    
imagination become of the utmost        
importance to the morals and manners of 
every society4 ,your rulers were well   
aware of this2 and in their system of   
changing your manners to accommodate    

them to their politics1 they found      
nothing so convenient as ,rousseau4     
,through him they teach men to love     
after the fashion of philosophers3 that 
is1 they teach to men1 to ,frenchmen1 a 
love without gallantry1--a love without 
anything of that fine flower of         
youthfulness and gentility which places 
it1 if not among the virtues1 among the 
ornaments of life4 ,instead of this     
passion1 naturally allied to grace and  
manners1 they infuse into their youth an
 unfashioned1 indelicate1 sour1 gloomy1 
ferocious medley of pedantry and        
lewdness1--of metaphysical speculations 
blended with the coarsest sensuality4   
,such is the general morality of the    
passions to be found in their famous    
philosopher1 in his famous work of      
philosophic gallantry1 the ,nouvelle    
loise4  ,when the fence from the        
gallantry of preceptors is broken down1 
and your families are no longer         
protected by decent pride and salutary  
domestic prejudice1 there is but one    

step to a frightful corruption4 ,the    
rulers in the ,national ,assembly are in
 good hopes that the females of the     
first families in ,france may become an 
easy prey to dancing-masters1 fiddlers1 
pattern-drawers1 friseurs1 and          
valets-de-chambre1 and other active     
citizens of that description1 who1      
having the entry into your houses1 and  
being half domesticated by their        
situation1 may be blended with you by   
regular and irregular relations4 ,by a  
law they have made these people their   
equals4 ,by adopting the sentiments of  
,rousseau they have made them your      
rivals4 ,in this manner these great     
legislators complete their plan of      
levelling1 and establish their rights of
 men on a sure foundation4  ,i am       
certain that the writings of ,rousseau  
lead directly to this kind of shameful  
evil4 ,i have often wondered how he     
comes to be so much more admired and    
followed on the ,continent than he is   
here4 ,perhaps a secret charm in the    

language may have its share in this     
extraordinary difference4 ,we certainly 
perceive1 and to a degree we feel1 in   
this writer1 a style glowing1 animated1 
enthusiastic1 at the same time that we  
find it lax1 diffuse1 and not in the    
best taste of composition1--all the     
members of the piece being pretty       
equally labored and expanded1 without   
any due selection or subordination of   
parts4 ,he is generally too much on the 
stretch1 and his manner has little      
variety4 ,we cannot rest upon1 any of   
his works1 though they contain          
observations which occasionally discover
 a considerable insight into human      
nature4 ,but his doctrines1 on the      
whole1 are so inapplicable to real life 
and manners1 that we never dream of     
drawing from them any rule for laws or  
conduct1 or for fortifying or           
illustrating anything by a reference to 
his opinions4 ,they have with us the    
fate of older paradoxes3--      ,cum    
ventum ad verum est1 sensus moresque    

repugnant1     ,atque ipsa utilitas1    
justi prope mater et qui4  ,perhaps bold
 speculations are more acceptable       
because more new to you than to us1 who 
have been1 long since satiated with     
them4 ,we continue1 as in the two last  
ages1 to read1 more generally than ,i   
believe is now done on the ,continent1  
the authors of sound antiquity4 ,these  
occupy our minds2 they give us another  
taste and turn2 and will not suffer us  
to be more than transiently amused with 
paradoxical morality4 ,it is not that ,i
 consider this writer as wholly         
destitute of just notions4 ,amongst his 
irregularities1 it must be reckoned that
 he is sometimes moral1 and moral in a  
very sublime strain4 ,but the general   
spirit and tendency of his works is     
mischievous1--and the more mischievous  
for this mixture3 for perfect depravity 
of sentiment is not reconcilable with   
eloquence2 and the mind 7though         
corruptible1 not complexionally vicious7
 would reject and throw off with disgust

 a lesson of pure and unmixed evil4     
,these writers make even virtue a pander
 to vice4  ,however1 ,i less consider   
the author than the system of the       
,assembly in perverting morality through
 his means4 ,this ,i confess makes me   
nearly despair of any attempt upon the  
minds of their followers1 through       
reason1 honor1 or conscience4 ,the great
 object of your tyrants is to destroy   
the gentlemen of ,france2 and for that  
purpose they destroy1 to the best of    
their power1 all the effect of those    
relations which may render considerable 
men powerful or even safe4 ,to destroy  
that order1 they vitiate the whole      
community4 ,that no means may exist of  
confederating against their tyranny1 by 
the false sympathies of this ,nouvelle  
loise they endeavor to subvert those    
principles of domestic trust and        
fidelity which form the discipline of   
social life4 ,they propagate principles 
by which every servant may think it1 if 
not his duty1 at least his privilege1 to

 betray his master4 ,by these           
principles1 every considerable father of
 a family loses the sanctuary of his    
house4 ,debet sua cuique domus esse     
perfugium tutissimum1 says the law1     
which your legislators have taken so    
much pains first to decry1 then to      
repeal4 ,they destroy all the           
tranquillity and security of domestic   
life3 turning the asylum of the house   
into a gloomy prison1 where the father  
of the family must drag out a miserable 
existence1 endangered in proportion to  
the apparent means of his safety1--where
 he is worse than solitary in a crowd of
 domestics1 and more apprehensive from  
his servants and inmates than from the  
hired1 bloodthirsty mob without doors   
who are ready to pull him to the        
lanterne4  ,it is thus1 and for the same
 end1 that they endeavor to destroy that
 tribunal of conscience which exists    
independently of edicts and decrees4    
,your despots govern by terror4 ,they   
know that he who fears ,god fears       

nothing else2 and therefore they        
eradicate from the mind1 through their  
,voltaire1 their ,helvtius1 and the rest
 of that infamous gang1 that only sort  
of fear which generates true courage4   
,their object is1 that their            
fellow-citizens may be under the        
dominion of no awe but that of their    
,committee of ,research and of their    
lanterne4  ,having found the advantage  
of assassination in the formation of    
their tyranny1 it is the grand resource 
in which they trust for the support of  
it4 ,whoever opposes any of their       
proceedings1 or is suspected of a design
 to oppose them1 is to answer it with   
his life1 or the lives of his wife and  
children4 ,this infamous1 cruel1 and    
cowardly practice of assassination they 
have the impudence to call merciful4    
,they boast that they operated their    
usurpation rather by terror than by     
force1 and that a few seasonable murders
 have prevented the bloodshed of many   
battles4 ,there is no doubt they will   

extend these acts of mercy whenever they
 see an occasion4 ,dreadful1 however1   
will be the consequences of their       
attempt to avoid the evils of war by the
 merciful policy of murder4 ,if1 by     
effectual punishment of the guilty1 they
 do not wholly disavow that practice1   
and the threat of it too1 as any part of
 their policy1 if ever a foreign prince 
enters into ,france1 he must enter it as
 into a country of assassins4 ,the mode 
of civilized war will not be practised3 
nor are the ,french who act on the      
present system entitled to expect it4   
,they whose known policy it is to       
assassinate every citizen whom they     
suspect to be discontented by their     
tyranny1 and to corrupt the soldiery of 
every open enemy1 must look for no      
modified hostility4 ,all war1 which is  
not battle1 will be military execution4 
,this will beget acts of retaliation    
from you2 and every retaliation will    
beget a new revenge4 ,the hell-hounds of
 war1 on all sides1 will be uncoupled   

and unmuzzled4 ,the new school of murder
 and barbarism set up in ,paris1 having 
destroyed 7so far as in it lies7 all the
 other manners and principles which have
 hitherto civilized ,europe1 will       
destroy also the mode of civilized war1 
which1 more than anything else1 has     
distinguished the ,christian world4     
,such is the approaching golden age     
which the ,virgil#e of your ,assembly   
has sung to his ,pollios6  ,in such a   
situation of your political1 your civil1
 and your social morals and manners1 how
 can you be hurt by the freedom of any  
discussion8 ,caution is for those who   
have something to lose4 ,what ,i have   
said1 to justify myself in not          
apprehending any ill consequence from a 
free discussion of the absurd           
consequences which flow from the        
relation of the lawful king to the      
usurped ,constitution1 will apply to my 
vindication with regard to the exposure 
,i have made of the state of the army   
under the same sophistic usurpation4    

,the present tyrants want no arguments  
to prove1 what they must daily feel1    
that no good army can exist on their    
principles4 ,they are in no want of a   
monitor to suggest to them the policy of
 getting rid of the army1 as well as of 
the king1 whenever they are in a        
condition to effect that measure4 ,what 
hopes may be entertained of your army   
for the restoration of your liberties ,i
 know not4 ,at present1 yielding        
obedience to the pretended orders of a  
king who1 they are perfectly apprised1  
has no will1 and who never can issue a  
mandate which is not intended1 in the   
first operation1 or in its certain      
consequences1 for his own destruction1  
your army seems to make one of the      
principal links in the chain of that    
servitude of anarchy by which a cruel   
usurpation holds an undone people at    
once in bondage and confusion4  ,you ask
 me what ,i think of the conduct of     
,general ,monk4 ,how this affects your  
case ,i cannot tell4 ,i doubt whether   

you possess in ,france any persons of a 
capacity to serve the ,french monarchy  
in the same manner in which ,monk served
 the monarchy of ,england4 ,the army    
which ,monk commanded had been formed by
 ,cromwell to a perfection of discipline
 which perhaps has never been exceeded4 
,that army was besides of an excellent  
composition4 ,the soldiers were men of  
extraordinary piety after their mode2 of
 the greatest regularity1 and even      
severity of manners2 brave in the field1
 but modest1 quiet1 and orderly in their
 quarters2 men who abhorred the idea of 
assassinating their officers or any     
other persons1 and who 7they at least   
who served in this island7 were firmly  
attached to those generals by whom they 
were well treated and ably commanded4   
,such an army1 once gained1 might be    
depended on4 ,i doubt much1 if you could
 now find a ,monk1 whether a ,monk could
 find in ,france such an army4  ,i      
certainly agree with you1 that in all   
probability we owe our whole            

,constitution to the restoration of the 
,english monarchy4 ,the state of things 
from which ,monk relieved ,england was1 
however1 by no means1 at that time1 so  
deplorable1 in any sense1 as yours is   
now1 and under the present sway is      
likely to continue4 ,cromwell had       
delivered ,england from anarchy4 ,his   
government1 though military and         
despotic1 had been regular and orderly4 
,under the iron1 and under the yoke1 the
 soil yielded its produce4 ,after his   
death the evils of anarchy were rather  
dreaded than felt4 ,every man was yet   
safe in his house and in his property4  
,but it must be admitted that ,monk     
freed this nation from great and just   
apprehensions both of future anarchy and
 of probable tyranny in some form or    
other4 ,the king whom he gave us was1   
indeed1 the very reverse of your        
benignant sovereign1 who1 in reward for 
his attempt to bestow liberty on his    
subjects1 languishes himself in prison4 
,the person given to us by ,monk was a  

man without any sense of his duty as a  
prince1 without any regard to the       
dignity of his crown1 without any love  
to his people1--dissolute1 false1 venal1
 and destitute of any positive good     
quality whatsoever1 except a pleasant   
temper1 and the manners of a gentleman4 
,yet the restoration of our monarchy1   
even in the person of such a prince1 was
 everything to us2 for without monarchy 
in ,england1 most certainly we never can
 enjoy either peace or liberty4 ,it was 
under this conviction that the very     
first regular step which we took1 on the
 ,revolution of #afhh1 was to fill the  
throne with a real king2 and even before
 it could be done in due form1 the      
chiefs of the nation did not attempt    
themselves to exercise authority so much
 as by interim4 ,they instantly         
requested the ,prince of ,orange to take
 the government on himself4 ,the throne 
was not effectively vacant for an hour4 
,your fundamental laws1 as well as ours1
 suppose a monarchy4 ,your zeal1 ,sir1  

in standing so firmly for it as you have
 done1 shows not only a sacred respect  
for your honor and fidelity1 but a      
well-informed attachment to the real    
welfare and true liberties of your      
country4 ,i have expressed myself ill1  
if ,i have given you cause to imagine   
that ,i prefer the conduct of those who 
have retired from this warfare to your  
behavior1 who1 with a courage and       
constancy almost supernatural1 have     
struggled against tyranny1 and kept the 
field to the last4 ,you see ,i have     
corrected the exceptionable part in the 
edition which ,i now send you4 ,indeed1 
in such terrible extremities as yours1  
it is not easy to say1 in a political   
view1 what line of conduct is the most  
advisable4 ,in that state of things1 ,i 
cannot bring myself severely to condemn 
persons who are wholly unable to bear so
 much as the sight of those men in the  
throne of legislation who are only fit  
to be the objects of criminal justice4  
,if fatigue1 if disgust1 if             

unsurmountable nausea drive them away   
from such spectacles1 ubi miseriarum    
pars non minima erat videre et aspici1  
,i cannot blame them4 ,he must have an  
heart of adamant who could hear a set of
 traitors puffed up with unexpected and 
undeserved power1 obtained by an        
ignoble1 unmanly1 and perfidious        
rebellion1 treating their honest        
fellow-citizens as rebels1 because they 
refused to bind them selves through     
their conscience1 against the dictates  
of conscience itself1 and had declined  
to swear an active compliance with their
 own ruin4 ,how could a man of common   
flesh and blood endure that those who   
but the other day had skulked unobserved
 in their antechambers1 scornfully      
insulting men illustrious in their rank1
 sacred in their function1 and venerable
 in their character1 now in decline of  
life1 and swimming on the wrecks of     
their fortunes1--that those miscreants  
should tell such men scornfully and     
outrageously1 after they had robbed them

 of all their property1 that it is more 
than enough1 if they are allowed what   
will keep them from absolute famine1 and
 that1 for the rest1 they must let their
 gray hairs fall over the plough1 to    
make out a scanty subsistence with the  
labor of their hands8 ,last1 and1 worst1
 who could endure to hear this          
unnatural1 insolent1 and savage         
despotism called liberty8 ,if1 at this  
distance1 sitting quietly by my fire1 ,i
 cannot read their decrees and speeches 
without indignation1 shall ,i condemn   
those who have fled from the actual     
sight and hearing of all these horrors8 
,no1 no6 mankind has no title to demand 
that we should be slaves to their guilt 
and insolence1 or that we should serve  
them in spite of themselves4 ,minds sore
 with the poignant sense of insulted    
virtue1 filled with high disdain against
 the pride of triumphant baseness1 often
 have it not in their choice to stand   
their ground4 ,their complexion 7which  
might defy the rack7 cannot go through  

such a trial4 ,something very high must 
fortify men to that proof4 ,but when ,i 
am driven to comparison1 surely ,i      
cannot hesitate for a moment to prefer  
to such men as are common those heroes  
who in the midst of despair perform all 
the tasks of hope1--who subdue their    
feelings to their duties1--who1 in the  
cause of humanity1 liberty1 and honor1  
abandon all the satisfactions of life1  
and every day incur a fresh risk of life
 itself4 ,do me the justice to believe  
that ,i never can prefer any fastidious 
virtue 7virtue still7 to the unconquered
 perseverance1 to the affectionate      
patience1 of those who watch day and    
night by the bedside of their delirious 
country1--who1 for their love to that   
dear and venerable name1 bear all the   
disgusts and all the buffets they       
receive from their frantic mother4 ,sir1
 ,i do look on you as true martyrs2 ,i  
regard you as soldiers who act far more 
in the spirit of our                    
,commander-in-,chief and the ,captain of

 our ,salvation than those who have left
 you3 though ,i must first bolt myself  
very thoroughly1 and know that ,i could 
do better1 before ,i can censure them4  
,i assure you1 ,sir1 that1 when ,i      
consider your unconquerable fidelity to 
your sovereign and to your country1--the
 courage1 fortitude1 magnanimity1 and   
long-suffering of yourself1 and the ,abb
 ,maury1 and of ,m4 ,cazals1 and of many
 worthy persons of all orders in your   
,assembly1--,i forget1 in the lustre of 
these great qualities1 that on your side
 has been displayed an eloquence so     
rational1 manly1 and convincing1 that no
 time or country1 perhaps1 has ever     
excelled4 ,but your talents disappear in
 my admiration of your virtues4  ,as to 
,m4 ,mounier and ,m4 ,lally1 ,i have    
always wished to do justice to their    
parts1 and their eloquence1 and the     
general purity of their motives4        
,indeed1 ,i saw very well1 from the     
beginning1 the mischiefs which1 with all
 these talents and good intentions1 they

 would do their country1 through their  
confidence in systems4 ,but their       
distemper was an epidemic malady4 ,they 
were young and inexperienced2 and when  
will young and inexperienced men learn  
caution and distrust of themselves8 ,and
 when will men1 young or old1 if        
suddenly raised to far higher power than
 that which absolute kings and emperors 
commonly enjoy1 learn anything like     
moderation8 ,monarchs1 in general1      
respect some settled order of things1   
which they find it difficult to move    
from its basis1 and to which they are   
obliged to conform1 even when there are 
no positive limitations to their power4 
,these gentlemen conceived that they    
were chosen to new-model the state1 and 
even the whole order of civil society   
itself4 ,no wonder that they entertained
 dangerous visions1 when the king's     
ministers1 trustees for the sacred      
deposit of the monarchy1 were so        
infected with the contagion of project  
and system 7,i can hardly think it black

 premeditated treachery7 that they      
publicly advertised for plans and       
schemes of government1 as if they were  
to provide for the rebuilding of an     
hospital that had been burned down4     
,what was this1 but to unchain the fury 
of rash speculation amongst a people of 
itself but too apt to be guided by a    
heated imagination and a wild spirit of 
adventure8  ,the fault of ,m4 ,mounier  
and ,m4 ,lally was very great2 but it   
was very general4 ,if those gentlemen   
stopped1 when they came to the brink of 
the gulf of guilt and public misery that
 yawned before them in the abyss of     
these dark and bottomless speculations1 
,i forgive their first error3 in that   
they were involved with many4 ,their    
repentance was their own4  ,they who    
consider ,mounier and ,lally as         
deserters must regard themselves as     
murderers and as traitors3 for from what
 else than murder and treason did they  
desert8 ,for my part1 ,i honor them for 
not having carried mistake into crime4  

,if1 indeed1 ,i thought that they were  
not cured by experience1 that they were 
not made sensible that those who would  
reform a state ought to assume some     
actual constitution of government which 
is to be reformed1--if they are not at  
length satisfied that it is become a    
necessary preliminary to liberty in     
,france1 to commence by the             
restablishment of order and property of 
every kind1 and1 through the            
restablishment of their monarchy1 of    
every one of the old habitual           
distinctions and classes of the         
state1--if they do not see that these   
classes are not to be confounded in     
order to be afterwards revived and      
separated1--if they are not convinced   
that the scheme of parochial and club   
governments takes up the state at the   
wrong end1 and is a low and senseless   
contrivance1 7as making the sole        
constitution of a supreme power17--,i   
should then allow that their early      
rashness ought to be remembered to the  

last moment of their lives4  ,you gently
 reprehend me1 because1 in holding out  
the picture of your disastrous          
situation1 ,i suggest no plan for a     
remedy4 ,alas6 ,sir1 the proposition of 
plans1 without an attention to          
circumstances1 is the very cause of all 
your misfortunes2 and never shall you   
find me aggravating1 by the infusion of 
any speculations of mine1 the evils     
which have arisen from the speculations 
of others4 ,your malady1 in this        
respect1 is a disorder of repletion4    
,you seem to think that my keeping back 
my poor ideas may arise from an         
indifference to the welfare of a foreign
 and sometimes an hostile nation4 ,no1  
,sir1 ,i faithfully assure you1 my      
reserve is owing to no such causes4 ,is 
this letter1 swelled to a second book1 a
 mark of national antipathy1 or even of 
national indifference8 ,i should act    
altogether in the spirit of the same    
caution1 in a similar state of our own  
domestic affairs4 ,if ,i were to venture

 any advice1 in any case1 it would be my
 best4 ,the sacred duty of an adviser   
7one of the most inviolable that exists7
 would lead me1 towards a real enemy1 to
 act as if my best friend were the party
 concerned4 ,but ,i dare not risk a     
speculation with no better view of your 
affairs than at present ,i can command2 
my caution is not from disregard1 but   
from solicitude for your welfare4 ,it is
 suggested solely from my dread of      
becoming the author of inconsiderate    
counsel4  ,it is not1 that1 as this     
strange series of actions has passed    
before my eyes1 ,i have not indulged my 
mind in a great variety of political    
speculations concerning them2 but1      
compelled by no such positive duty as   
does not permit me to evade an opinion1 
called upon by no ruling power1 without 
authority as ,i am1 and without         
confidence1 ,i should ill answer my own 
ideas of what would become myself1 or   
what would be serviceable to others1 if 
,i were1 as a volunteer1 to obtrude any 

project of mine upon a nation to whose  
circumstances ,i could not be sure it   
might be applicable4  ,permit me to say1
 that1 if ,i were as confident as ,i    
ought to be diffident in my own loose1  
general ideas1 ,i never should venture  
to broach them1 if but at twenty        
leagues' distance from the centre of    
your affairs4 ,i must see with my own   
eyes1 ,i must1 in a manner1 touch with  
my own hands1 not only the fixed1 but   
the momentary circumstances1 before ,i  
could venture to suggest any political  
project whatsoever4 ,i must know the    
power and disposition to accept1 to     
execute1 to persevere4 ,i must see all  
the aids and all the obstacles4 ,i must 
see the means of correcting the plan1   
where correctives would be wanted4 ,i   
must see the things2 ,i must see the    
men4 ,without a concurrence and         
adaptation of these to the design1 the  
very best speculative projects might    
become not only useless1 but            
mischievous4 ,plans must be made for    

men4 ,we cannot think of making men1 and
 binding ,nature to our designs4 ,people
 at a distance must judge ill of men4   
,they do not always answer to their     
reputation1 when you approach them4     
,nay1 the perspective varies1 and shows 
them quite otherwise than you thought   
them4 ,at a distance1 if we judge       
uncertainly of men1 we must judge worse 
of opportunities1 which continually vary
 their shapes and colors1 and pass away 
like clouds4 ,the ,eastern politicians  
never do anything without the opinion of
 the astrologers on the fortunate       
moment4 ,they are in the right1 if they 
can do no better2 for the opinion of    
fortune is something towards commanding 
it4 ,statesmen of a more judicious      
prescience look for the fortunate moment
 too2 but they seek it1 not in the      
conjunctions and oppositions of planets1
 but in the conjunctions and oppositions
 of men and things4 ,these form their   
almanac4  ,to illustrate the mischief of
 a wise plan1 without any attention to  

means and circumstances1 it is not      
necessary to go farther than to your    
recent history4 ,in the condition in    
which ,france was found three years ago1
 what better system could be proposed1  
what less even savoring of wild theory1 
what fitter to provide for all the      
exigencies whilst it reformed all the   
abuses of government1 than the          
convention of the ,states-,general8 ,i  
think nothing better could be imagined4 
,but ,i have censured1 and do still     
presume to censure1 your ,parliament of 
,paris for not having suggested to the  
king that this proper measure was of all
 measures the most critical and arduous1
 one in which the utmost circumspection 
and the greatest number of precautions  
were the most absolutely necessary4 ,the
 very confession that a government wants
 either amendment in its conformation or
 relief to great distress causes it to  
lose half its reputation1 and as great a
 proportion of its strength as depends  
upon that reputation4 ,it was therefore 

necessary first to put government out of
 danger1 whilst at its own desire it    
suffered such an operation as a general 
reform at the hands of those who were   
much more filled with a sense of the    
disease than provided with rational     
means of a cure4  ,it may be said that  
this care and these precautions were    
more naturally the duty of the king's   
ministers than that of the ,parliament4 
,they were so3 but every man must answer
 in his estimation for the advice he    
gives1 when he puts the conduct of his  
measure into hands who he does not know 
will execute his plans according to his 
ideas4 ,three or four ministers were not
 to be trusted with the being of the    
,french monarchy1 of all the orders1 and
 of all the distinctions1 and all the   
property of the kingdom4 ,what must be  
the prudence of those who could think1  
in the then known temper of the people  
of ,paris1 of assembling the ,states at 
a place situated as ,versailles8  ,the  
,parliament of ,paris did worse than to 

inspire this blind confidence into the  
king4 ,for1 as if names were things1    
they took no notice of 7indeed1 they    
rather countenanced7 the deviations1    
which were manifest in the execution1   
from the true ancient principles of the 
plan which they recommended4 ,these     
deviations 7as guardians of the ancient 
laws1 usages1 and ,constitution of the  
kingdom7 the ,parliament of ,paris ought
 not to have suffered1 without the      
strongest remonstrances to the throne4  
,it ought to have sounded the alarm to  
the whole nation1 as it had often done  
on things of infinitely less importance4
 ,under pretence of resuscitating the   
ancient ,constitution1 the ,parliament  
saw one of the strongest acts of        
innovation1 and the most leading in its 
consequences1 carried into effect before
 their eyes1--and an innovation through 
the medium of despotism3 that is1 they  
suffered the king's ministers to        
new-model the whole representation of   
the ,tiers tat1 and1 in a great measure1

 that of the clergy too1 and to destroy 
the ancient proportions of the orders4  
,these changes1 unquestionably1 the king
 had no right to make2 and here the     
,parliaments failed in their duty1 and1 
along with their country1 have perished 
by this failure4  ,what a number of     
faults have led to this multitude of    
misfortunes1 and almost all from this   
one source1--that of considering certain
 general maxims1 without attending to   
circumstances1 to times1 to places1 to  
conjunctures1 and to actors6 ,if we do  
not attend scrupulously to all these1   
the medicine of to-day becomes the      
poison of to-morrow4 ,if any measure was
 in the abstract better than another1 it
 was to call the ,states3 ea visa salus 
morientibus una4 ,certainly it had the  
appearance4 ,but see the consequences of
 not attending to critical moments1 of  
not regarding the symptoms which        
discriminate diseases1 and which        
distinguish constitutions1 complexions1 
and humors4      ,mox erat hoc ipsum    

exitio2 furiisque refecti     ,ardebant2
 ipsique suos1 jam morte sub gra1       
,discissos nudis laniabant dentibus     
artus4  ,thus the potion which was given
 to strengthen the ,constitution1 to    
heal divisions1 and to compose the minds
 of men1 became the source of debility1 
frenzy1 discord1 and utter dissolution4 
,in this1 perhaps1 ,i have answered1 ,i 
think1 another of your                  
questions1--,whether the ,british       
,constitution is adapted to your        
circumstances8 ,when ,i praised the     
,british ,constitution1 and wished it to
 be well studied1 ,i did not mean that  
its exterior form and positive          
arrangement should become a model for   
you or for any people servilely to copy4
 ,i meant to recommend the principles   
from which it has grown1 and the policy 
on which it has been progressively      
improved out of elements common to you  
and to us4 ,i am sure it is no visionary
 theory of mine4 ,it is not an advice   
that subjects you to the hazard of any  

experiment4 ,i believed the ancient     
principles to be wise in all cases of a 
large empire that would be free4 ,i     
thought you possessed our principles in 
your old forms in as great a perfection 
as we did originally4 ,if your ,states  
agreed 7as ,i think they did7 with your 
circumstances1 they were best for you4  
,as you had a ,constitution formed upon 
principles similar to ours1 my idea was1
 that you might have improved them as we
 have done1 conforming them to the state
 and exigencies of the times1 and the   
condition of property in your           
country1--having the conservation of    
that property1 and the substantial basis
 of your monarchy1 as principal objects 
in all your reforms4  ,i do not advise  
an ,house of ,lords to you4 ,your       
ancient course by representatives of the
 noblesse 7in your circumstances7       
appears to me rather a better           
institution4 ,i know1 that1 with you1 a 
set of men of rank have betrayed their  
constituents1 their honor1 their trust1 

their king1 and their country1 and      
levelled themselves with their footmen1 
that through this degradation they might
 afterwards put themselves above their  
natural equals4 ,some of these persons  
have entertained a project1 that1 in    
reward of this their black perfidy and  
corruption1 they may be chosen to give  
rise to a new order1 and to establish   
themselves into an ,house of ,lords4 ,do
 you think1 that1 under the name of a   
,british ,constitution1 ,i mean to      
recommend to you such ,lords1 made of   
such kind of stuff8 ,i do not1 however1 
include in this description all of those
 who are fond of this scheme4  ,if you  
were now to form such an ,house of      
,peers1 it would bear1 in my opinion1   
but little resemblance to ours1 in its  
origin1 character1 or the purposes which
 it might answer1 at the same time that 
it would destroy your true natural      
nobility4 ,but if you are not in a      
condition to frame a ,house of ,lords1  
still less are you capable1 in my       

opinion1 of framing anything which      
virtually and substantially could be    
answerable 7for the purposes of a       
stable1 regular government7 to our      
,house of ,commons4 ,that ,house is1    
within itself1 a much more subtle and   
artificial combination of parts and     
powers than people are generally aware  
of4 ,what knits it to the other members 
of the ,constitution1 what fits it to be
 at once the great support and the great
 control of government1 what makes it of
 such admirable service to that monarchy
 which1 if it limits1 it secures and    
strengthens1 would require a long       
discourse1 belonging to the leisure of a
 contemplative man1 not to one whose    
duty it is to join in communicating     
practically to the people the blessings 
of such a ,constitution4  ,your ,tiers  
tat was not in effect and substance an  
,house of ,commons4 ,you stood in       
absolute need of something else to      
supply the manifest defects in such a   
body as your ,tiers tat4 ,on a sober and

 dispassionate view of your old         
,constitution1 as connected with all the
 present circumstances1 ,i was fully    
persuaded that the crown1 standing as   
things have stood1 7and are likely to   
stand1 if you are to have any monarchy  
at all17 was and is incapable1 alone and
 by itself1 of holding a just balance   
between the two orders1 and at the same 
time of effecting the interior and      
exterior purposes of a protecting       
government4 ,i1 whose leading principle 
it is1 in a reformation of the state1 to
 make use of existing materials1 am of  
opinion that the representation of the  
clergy1 as a separate order1 was an     
institution which touched all the orders
 more nearly than any of them touched   
the other2 that it was well fitted to   
connect them1 and to hold a place in any
 wise monarchical commonwealth4 ,if ,i  
refer you to your original              
,constitution1 and think it1 as ,i do1  
substantially a good one1 ,i do not     
amuse you in this1 more than in other   

things1 with any inventions of mine4 ,a 
certain intemperance of intellect is the
 disease of the time1 and the source of 
all its other diseases4 ,i will keep    
myself as untainted by it as ,i can4    
,your architects build without a        
foundation4 ,i would readily lend an    
helping hand to any superstructure1 when
 once this is effectually secured1--but 
first ,i would say1   4  ,you think1    
,sir1 7and you might think rightly1 upon
 the first view of the theory17 that to 
provide for the exigencies of an empire 
so situated and so related as that of   
,france1 its king ought to be invested  
with powers very much superior to those 
which the king of ,england possesses    
under the letter of our ,constitution4  
,every degree of power necessary to the 
state1 and not destructive to the       
rational and moral freedom of           
individuals1 to that personal liberty   
and personal security which contribute  
so much to the vigor1 the prosperity1   
the happiness1 and the dignity of a     

nation1--every degree of power which    
does not suppose the total absence of   
all control and all responsibility on   
the part of ministers1--a king of       
,france1 in common sense1 ought to      
possess4 ,but whether the exact measure 
of authority assigned by the letter of  
the law to the king of ,great ,britain  
can answer to the exterior or interior  
purposes of the ,french monarchy is a   
point which ,i cannot venture to judge  
upon4 ,here1 both in the power given1   
and its limitations1 we have always     
cautiously felt our way4 ,the parts of  
our ,constitution have gradually1 and   
almost insensibly1 in a long course of  
time1 accommodated themselves to each   
other1 and to their common as well as to
 their separate purposes4 ,but this     
adaptation of contending parts1 as it   
has not been in ours1 so it can never be
 in yours1 or in any country1 the effect
 of a single instantaneous regulation1  
and no sound heads could ever think of  
doing it in that manner4  ,i believe1   

,sir1 that many on the ,continent       
altogether mistake the condition of a   
king of ,great ,britain4 ,he is a real  
king1 and not an executive officer4 ,if 
he will not trouble himself with        
contemptible details1 nor wish to       
degrade himself by becoming a party in  
little squabbles1 ,i am far from sure   
that a king of ,great ,britain1 in      
whatever concerns him as a king1 or     
indeed as a rational man1 who combines  
his public interest with his personal   
satisfaction1 does not possess a more   
real1 solid1 extensive power than the   
king of ,france was possessed of before 
this miserable revolution4 ,the direct  
power of the king of ,england is        
considerable4 ,his indirect1 and far    
more certain power1 is great indeed4 ,he
 stands in need of nothing towards      
dignity1--of nothing towards            
splendor1--of nothing towards           
authority1--of nothing at all towards   
consideration abroad4 ,when was it that 
a king of ,england wanted wherewithal to

 make him respected1 courted1 or perhaps
 even feared1 in every state in ,europe8
  ,i am constantly of opinion that your 
,states1 in three orders1 on the footing
 on which they stood in #afad1 were     
capable of being brought into a proper  
and harmonious combination with royal   
authority4 ,this constitution by        
,estates was the natural and only just  
representation of ,france4 ,it grew out 
of the habitual conditions1 relations1  
and reciprocal claims of men4 ,it grew  
out of the circumstances of the country1
 and out of the state of property4 ,the 
wretched scheme of your present masters 
is not to fit the ,constitution to the  
people1 but wholly to destroy           
conditions1 to dissolve relations1 to   
change the state of the nation1 and to  
subvert property1 in order to fit their 
country to their theory of a            
,constitution4  ,until you make out     
practically that great work1 a          
combination of opposing forces1 a work  
of labor long1 and endless praise1 the  

utmost caution ought to have been used  
in the reduction of the royal power1    
which alone was capable of holding      
together the comparatively heterogeneous
 mass of your ,states4 ,but at this day 
all these considerations are            
unseasonable4 ,to what end should we    
discuss the limitations of royal power8 
,your king is in prison4 ,why speculate 
on the measure and standard of liberty8 
,i doubt much1 very much indeed1 whether
 ,france is at all ripe for liberty on  
any standard4 ,men are qualified for    
civil liberty in exact proportion to    
their disposition to put moral chains   
upon their own appetites1--in proportion
 as their love to justice is above their
 rapacity1--in proportion as their      
soundness and sobriety of understanding 
is above their vanity and               
presumption1--in proportion as they are 
more disposed to listen to the counsels 
of the wise and good1 in preference to  
the flattery of knaves4 ,society cannot 
exist1 unless a controlling power upon  

will and appetite be placed somewhere2  
and the less of it there is within1 the 
more there must be without4 ,it is      
ordained in the eternal constitution of 
things1 that men of intemperate minds   
cannot be free4 ,their passions forge   
their fetters4  ,this sentence the      
prevalent part of your countrymen       
execute on themselves4 ,they possessed  
not long since what was next to freedom1
 a mild1 paternal monarchy4 ,they       
despised it for its weakness4 ,they were
 offered a well-poised1 free            
,constitution4 ,it did not suit their   
taste or their temper4 ,they carved for 
themselves3 they flew out1 murdered1    
robbed1 and rebelled4 ,they have        
succeeded1 and put over their country an
 insolent tyranny made up of cruel and  
inexorable masters1 and that1 too1 of a 
description hitherto not known in the   
world4 ,the powers and policies by which
 they have succeeded are not those of   
great statesmen or great military       
commanders1 but the practices of        

incendiaries1 assassins1 housebreakers1 
robbers1 spreaders of false news1       
forgers of false orders from authority1 
and other delinquencies1 of which       
ordinary justice takes cognizance4      
,accordingly1 the spirit of their rule  
is exactly correspondent to the means by
 which they obtained it4 ,they act more 
in the manner of thieves who have got   
possession of an house than of          
conquerors who have subdued a nation4   
,opposed to these1 in appearance1 but in
 appearance only1 is another band1 who  
call themselves the ,moderate4 ,these1  
if ,i conceive rightly of their conduct1
 are a set of men who approve heartily  
of the whole new ,constitution1 but wish
 to lay heavy on the most atrocious of  
those crimes by which this fine         
,constitution of theirs has been        
obtained4 ,they are a sort of people who
 affect to proceed as if they thought   
that men may deceive without fraud1 rob 
without injustice1 and overturn         
everything without violence4 ,they are  

men who would usurp the government of   
their country with decency and          
moderation4 ,in fact1 they are nothing  
more or better than men engaged in      
desperate designs with feeble minds4    
,they are not honest2 they are only     
ineffectual and unsystematic in their   
iniquity4 ,they are persons who want not
 the dispositions1 but the energy and   
vigor1 that is necessary for great evil 
machinations4 ,they find that in such   
designs they fall at best into a        
secondary rank1 and others take the     
place and lead in usurpation which they 
are not qualified to obtain or to hold4 
,they envy to their companions the      
natural fruit of their crimes2 they join
 to run them down with the hue and cry  
of mankind1 which pursues their common  
offences2 and then hope to mount into   
their places on the credit of the       
sobriety with which they show themselves
 disposed to carry on what may seem most
 plausible in the mischievous projects  
they pursue in common4 ,but these men   

are naturally despised by those who have
 heads to know1 and hearts that are able
 to go through the necessary demands of 
bold1 wicked enterprises4 ,they are     
naturally classed below the latter      
description1 and will only be used by   
them as inferior instruments4 ,they will
 be only the ,fairfaxes of your         
,cromwells4 ,if they mean honestly1 why 
do they not strengthen the arms of      
honest men to support their ancient1    
legal1 wise1 and free government1 given 
to them in the spring of #aghh1 against 
the inventions of craft and the theories
 of ignorance and folly8 ,if they do    
not1 they must continue the scorn of    
both parties1--sometimes the tool1      
sometimes the incumbrance of that whose 
views they approve1 whose conduct they  
decry4 ,these people are only made to be
 the sport of tyrants4 ,they never can  
obtain or communicate freedom4  ,you ask
 me1 too1 whether we have a ,committee  
of ,research4 ,no1 ,sir1--,god forbid6  
,it is the necessary instrument of      

tyranny and usurpation2 and therefore ,i
 do not wonder that it has had an early 
establishment under your present lords4 
,we do not want it4  ,excuse my length4 
,i have been somewhat occupied since ,i 
was honored with your letter2 and ,i    
should not have been able to answer it  
at all1 but for the holidays1 which have
 given me means of enjoying the leisure 
of the country4 ,i am called to duties  
which ,i am neither able nor willing to 
evade4 ,i must soon return to my old    
conflict with the corruptions and       
oppressions which have prevailed in our 
,eastern dominions4 ,i must turn myself 
wholly from those of ,france4  ,in      
,england we cannot work so hard as      
,frenchmen4 ,frequent relaxation is     
necessary to us4 ,you are naturally more
 intense in your application4 ,i did not
 know this part of your national        
character1 until ,i went into ,france in
 #aggc4 ,at present1 this your          
disposition to labor is rather increased
 than lessened4 ,in your ,assembly you  

do not allow yourselves a recess even on
 ,sundays4 ,we have two days in the     
week1 besides the festivals1 and besides
 five or six months of the summer and   
autumn4 ,this continued1 unremitted     
effort of the members of your ,assembly 
,i take to be one among the causes of   
the mischief they have done4 ,they who  
always labor can have no true judgment4 
,you never give yourselves time to cool4
 ,you can never survey1 from its proper 
point of sight1 the work you have       
finished1 before you decree its final   
execution4 ,you can never plan the      
future by the past4 ,you never go into  
the country1 soberly and dispassionately
 to observe the effect of your measures 
on their objects4 ,you cannot feel      
distinctly how far the people are       
rendered better and improved1 or more   
miserable and depraved1 by what you have
 done4 ,you cannot see with your own    
eyes the sufferings and afflictions you 
cause4 ,you know them but at a distance1
 on the statements of those who always  

flatter the reigning power1 and who1    
amidst their representations of the     
grievances1 inflame your minds against  
those who are oppressed4 ,these are     
amongst the effects of unremitted labor1
 when men exhaust their attention1 burn 
out their candles1 and are left in the  
dark4--,malo meorum negligentiam1 quam  
istorum obscuram diligentiam4  ,i have  
the honor1 c41  ,,edmund ,,burke4       
,,beaconsfield1 ,january #aith1 #agia4  
,,footnotes3  #a ,it is said in the last
 quackish address of the ,national      
,assembly to the people of ,france1 that
 they have not formed their arrangements
 upon vulgar practice1 but on a theory  
which cannot fail1--or something to that
 effect4  #b ,see ,burnet's ,life of    
,hale4  #c ,the pillory 7carcan7 in     
,england is generally made very high    
like that raised to exposing the king of
 ,france4  #d ,filiola tua te delectari 
ltor1 et prohari tibi  esse    3 etenim1
 si hc non est1 nulla potest homini esse
 ad hominem natur adjunctio3 qua        

sublata1 vit societas tollitur4 ,valete 
,patron ,rousseau et tui condiscipuli   
,l',assemble ,nationale--,cic4 ,ep4 ad  
,atticum4  #e ,mirabeau's speech        
concerning universal peace4     ,,an    
,,appeal  ,,from  ,,the ,,new ,,to ,,the
 ,,old ,,whigs1  ,,in ,,consequence ,,of
 ,,some ,,late  ,,discussions ,,in      
,,parliament  ,,relative ,,to ,,the     
,,reflections ,,on ,,the ,,french       
,,revolution4  #agia4                   
,,advertisement  ,,to ,,the ,,second    
,,edition4   ,there are some corrections
 in this edition1 which tend to render  
the sense less obscure in one or two    
places4 ,the order of the two last      
members is also changed1 and ,i believe 
for the better4 ,this change was made on
 the suggestion of a very learned       
person1 to the partiality of whose      
friendship ,i owe much2 to the severity 
of whose judgment ,i owe more4     ,,an 
,,appeal  ,,from  ,,the ,,new ,,to ,,the
 ,,old ,,whigs4   ,at ,mr4 ,burke's time
 of life1 and in his dispositions1      

petere honestam missionem was all he had
 to do with his political associates4   
,this boon they have not chosen to grant
 him4 ,with many expressions of         
good-will1 in effect they tell him he   
has loaded the stage too long4 ,they    
conceive it1 though an harsh1 yet a     
necessary office1 in full ,parliament to
 declare to the present age1 and to as  
late a posterity as shall take any      
concern in the proceedings of our day1  
that by one book he has disgraced the   
whole tenor of his life4--,thus they    
dismiss their old partner of the war4   
,he is advised to retire1 whilst they   
continue to serve the public upon wiser 
principles and under better auspices4   
,whether ,diogenes the ,cynic was a true
 philosopher cannot easily be           
determined4 ,he has written nothing4    
,but the sayings of his which are handed
 down by others are lively1 and may be  
easily and aptly applied on many        
occasions by those whose wit is not so  
perfect as their memory4 ,this ,diogenes

 7as every one will recollect7 was      
citizen of a little bleak town situated 
on the coast of the ,euxine1 and exposed
 to all the buffets of that inhospitable
 sea4 ,he lived at a great distance from
 those weather-beaten walls1 in ease and
 indolence1 and in the midst of literary
 leisure1 when he was informed that his 
townsmen had condemned him to be        
banished from ,sinope2 he answered      
coolly1 ,and ,i condemn them to live in 
,sinope4  ,the gentlemen of the party in
 which ,mr4 ,burke has always acted1 in 
passing upon him the sentence of        
retirement1#f have done nothing more    
than to confirm the sentence which he   
had long before passed upon himself4    
,when that retreat was choice1 which the
 tribunal of his peers inflict as       
punishment1 it is plain he does not     
think their sentence intolerably severe4
 ,whether they1 who are to continue in  
the ,sinope which shortly he is to      
leave1 will spend the long years1 which 
,i hope remain to them1 in a manner more

 to their satisfaction than he shall    
slide down1 in silence and obscurity1   
the slope of his declining days1 is best
 known to ,him who measures out years1  
and days1 and fortunes4  ,the quality of
 the sentence does not1 however1 decide 
on the justice of it4 ,angry friendship 
is sometimes as bad as calm enmity4 ,for
 this reason the cold neutrality of     
abstract justice is1 to a good and clear
 cause1 a more desirable thing than an  
affection liable to be any way          
disturbed4 ,when the trial is by        
friends1 if the decision should happen  
to be favorable1 the honor of the       
acquittal is lessened2 if adverse1 the  
condemnation is exceedingly embittered4 
,it is aggravated by coming from lips   
professing friendship1 and pronouncing  
judgment with sorrow and reluctance4    
,taking in the whole view of life1 it is
 more safe to live under the            
jurisdiction of severe1 but steady      
reason1 than under the empire of        
indulgent1 but capricious passion4 ,it  

is certainly well for ,mr4 ,burke that  
there are impartial men in the world4   
,to them ,i address myself1 pending the 
appeal which on his part is made from   
the living to the dead1 from the modern 
,whigs to the ancient4  ,the gentlemen1 
who1 in the name of the party1 have     
passed sentence on ,mr4 ,burke's book1  
in the light of literary criticism1 are 
judges above all challenge4 ,he did not1
 indeed1 flatter himself that as a      
writer he could claim the approbation of
 men whose talents1 in his judgment and 
in the public judgment1 approach to     
prodigies1 if ever such persons should  
be disposed to estimate the merit of a  
composition upon the standard of their  
own ability4  ,in their critical        
censure1 though ,mr4 ,burke may find    
himself humbled by it as a writer1 as a 
man1 and as an ,englishman1 he finds    
matter not only of consolation1 but of  
pride4 ,he proposed to convey to a      
foreign people1 not his own ideas1 but  
the prevalent opinions and sentiments of

 a nation1 renowned for wisdom1 and     
celebrated in all ages for a            
well-understood and well-regulated love 
of freedom4 ,this was the avowed purpose
 of the far greater part of his work4   
,as that work has not been ill received1
 and as his critics will not only admit1
 but contend1 that this reception could 
not be owing to any excellence in the   
composition capable of perverting the   
public judgment1 it is clear that he is 
not disavowed by the nation whose       
sentiments he had undertaken to         
describe4 ,his representation is        
authenticated by the verdict of his     
country4 ,had his piece1 as a work of   
skill1 been thought worthy of           
commendation1 some doubt might have been
 entertained of the cause of his        
success4 ,but the matter stands exactly 
as he wishes it4 ,he is more happy to   
have his fidelity in representation     
recognized by the body of the people    
than if he were to be ranked in point of
 ability 7and higher he could not be    

ranked7 with those whose critical       
censure he has had the misfortune to    
incur4  ,it is not from this part of    
their decision which the author wishes  
an appeal4 ,there are things which touch
 him more nearly4 ,to abandon them would
 argue1 not diffidence in his abilities1
 but treachery to his cause4 ,had his   
work been recognized as a pattern for   
dexterous argument and powerful         
eloquence1 yet1 if it tended to         
establish maxims or to inspire          
sentiments adverse to the wise and free 
,constitution of this kingdom1 he would 
only have cause to lament that it       
possessed qualities fitted to perpetuate
 the memory of his offence4 ,oblivion   
would be the only means of his escaping 
the reproaches of posterity4 ,but1 after
 receiving the common allowance due to  
the common weakness of man1 he wishes to
 owe no part of the indulgence of the   
world to its forgetfulness4 ,he is at   
issue with the party before the present1
 and1 if ever he can reach it1 before   

the coming generation4  ,the author1    
several months previous to his          
publication1 well knew that two         
gentlemen1 both of them possessed of the
 most distinguished abilities1 and of a 
most decisive authority in the party1   
had differed with him in one of the most
 material points relative to the ,french
 ,revolution3 that is1 in their opinion 
of the behavior of the ,french soldiery1
 and its revolt from its officers4 ,at  
the time of their public declaration on 
this subject1 he did not imagine the    
opinion of these two gentlemen had      
extended a great way beyond themselves4 
,he was1 however1 well aware of the     
probability that persons of their just  
credit and influence would at length    
dispose the greater number to an        
agreement with their sentiments1 and    
perhaps might induce the whole body to a
 tacit acquiescence in their            
declarations1 under a natural and not   
always an improper dislike of showing a 
difference with those who lead their    

party4 ,i will not deny that in general 
this conduct in parties is defensible2  
but within what limits the practice is  
to be circumscribed1 and with what      
exceptions the doctrine which supports  
it is to be received1 it is not my      
present purpose to define4 ,the present 
question has nothing to do with their   
motives2 it only regards the public     
expression of their sentiments4  ,the   
author is compelled1 however            
reluctantly1 to receive the sentence    
pronounced upon him in the ,house of    
,commons as that of the party4 ,it      
proceeded from the mouth of him who must
 be regarded as its authentic organ4 ,in
 a discussion which continued for two   
days1 no one gentleman of the opposition
 interposed a negative1 or even a doubt1
 in favor of him or his opinions4 ,if an
 idea consonant to the doctrine of his  
book1 or favorable to his conduct1 lurks
 in the minds of any persons in that    
description1 it is to be considered only
 as a peculiarity which they indulge to 

their own private liberty of thinking4  
,the author cannot reckon upon it4 ,it  
has nothing to do with them as members  
of a party4 ,in their public capacity1  
in everything that meets the public ear 
or public eye1 the body must be         
considered as unanimous4  ,they must    
have been animated with a very warm zeal
 against those opinions1 because they   
were under no necessity of acting as    
they did1 from any just cause of        
apprehension that the errors of this    
writer should be taken for theirs4 ,they
 might disapprove2 it was not necessary 
they should disavow him1 as they have   
done in the whole and in all the parts  
of his book2 because neither in the     
whole nor in any of the parts were they 
directly1 or by any implication1        
involved4 ,the author was known1 indeed1
 to have been warmly1 strenuously1 and  
affectionately1 against all allurements 
of ambition1 and all possibility of     
alienation from pride or personal pique 
or peevish jealousy1 attached to the    

,whig party4 ,with one of them he has   
had a long friendship1 which he must    
ever remember with a melancholy         
pleasure4 ,to the great1 real1 and      
amiable virtues1 and to the unequalled  
abilities of that gentleman1 he shall   
always join with his country in paying a
 just tribute of applause4 ,there are   
others in that party for whom1 without  
any shade of sorrow1 he bears as high a 
degree of love as can enter into the    
human heart1 and as much veneration as  
ought to be paid to human creatures2    
because he firmly believes that they are
 endowed with as many and as great      
virtues as the nature of man is capable 
of producing1 joined to great clearness 
of intellect1 to a just judgment1 to a  
wonderful temper1 and to true wisdom4   
,his sentiments with regard to them can 
never vary1 without subjecting him to   
the just indignation of mankind1 who are
 bound1 and are generally disposed1 to  
look up with reverence to the best      
patterns of their species1 and such as  

give a dignity to the nature of which we
 all participate4 ,for the whole of the 
party he has high respect4 ,upon a view1
 indeed1 of the composition of all      
parties1 he finds great satisfaction4   
,it is1 that1 in leaving the service of 
his country1 he leaves ,parliament      
without all comparison richer in        
abilities than he found it4 ,very solid 
and very brilliant talents distinguish  
the ministerial benches4 ,the opposite  
rows are a sort of seminary of genius1  
and have brought forth such and so great
 talents as never before 7amongst us at 
least7 have appeared together4 ,if their
 owners are disposed to serve their     
country1 7he trusts they are17 they are 
in a condition to render it services of 
the highest importance4 ,if1 through    
mistake or passion1 they are led to     
contribute to its ruin1 we shall at     
least have a consolation denied to the  
ruined country that adjoins us3 we shall
 not be destroyed by men of mean or     
secondary capacities4  ,all these       

considerations of party attachment1 of  
personal regard1 and of personal        
admiration rendered the author of the   
,reflections extremely cautious1 lest   
the slightest suspicion should arise of 
his having undertaken to express the    
sentiments even of a single man of that 
description4 ,his words at the outset of
 his ,reflections are these3--  ,in the 
first letter ,i had the honor to write  
to you1 and which at length ,i send1 ,i 
wrote neither for nor from any          
description of men2 nor shall ,i in     
this4 ,my errors1 if any1 are my own4   
,my reputation alone is to answer for   
them4 ,in another place he says1 7p4    
#abf1g7 ,i have no man's proxy4 ,i speak
 only from myself1 when ,i disclaim1 as 
,i do with all possible earnestness1 all
 communion with the actors in that      
triumph1 or with the admirers of it4    
,when ,i assert anything else1 as       
concerning the people of ,england1 ,i   
speak from observation1 not from        
authority4  ,to say1 then1 that the book

 did not contain the sentiments of their
 party is not to contradict the author  
or to clear themselves4 ,if the party   
had denied his doctrines to be the      
current opinions of the majority in the 
nation1 they would have put the question
 on its true issue4 ,there1 ,i hope and 
believe1 his censurers will find1 on the
 trial1 that the author is as faithful a
 representative of the general sentiment
 of the people of ,england1 as any      
person amongst them can be of the ideas 
of his own party4  ,the ,french         
,revolution can have no connection with 
the objects of any parties in ,england  
formed before the period of that event1 
unless they choose to imitate any of its
 acts1 or to consolidate any principles 
of that ,revolution with their own      
opinions4 ,the ,french ,revolution is no
 part of their original contract4 ,the  
matter1 standing by itself1 is an open  
subject of political discussion1 like   
all the other revolutions 7and there are
 many7 which have been attempted or     

accomplished in our age4 ,but if any    
considerable number of ,british         
subjects1 taking a factious interest in 
the proceedings of ,france1 begin       
publicly to incorporate themselves for  
the subversion of nothing short of the  
whole ,constitution of this kingdom1--to
 incorporate themselves for the utter   
overthrow of the body of its laws1 civil
 and ecclesiastical1 and with them of   
the whole system of its manners1 in     
favor of the new ,constitution and of   
the modern usages of the ,french        
nation1--,i think no party principle    
could bind the author not to express his
 sentiments strongly against such a     
faction4 ,on the contrary1 he was       
perhaps bound to mark his dissent1 when 
the leaders of the party were daily     
going out of their way to make public   
declarations in ,parliament1 which1     
notwithstanding the purity of their     
intentions1 had a tendency to encourage 
ill-designing men in their practices    
against our ,constitution4  ,the members

 of this faction leave no doubt of the  
nature and the extent of the mischief   
they mean to produce4 ,they declare it  
openly and decisively4 ,their intentions
 are not left equivocal4 ,they are put  
out of all dispute by the thanks which1 
formally and as it were officially1 they
 issue1 in order to recommend and to    
promote the circulation of the most     
atrocious and treasonable libels against
 all the hitherto cherished objects of  
the love and veneration of this people4 
,is it contrary to the duty of a good   
subject to reprobate such proceedings8  
,is it alien to the office of a good    
member of ,parliament1 when such        
practices increase1 and when the        
audacity of the conspirators grows with 
their impunity1 to point out in his     
place their evil tendency to the happy  
,constitution which he is chosen to     
guard8 ,is it wrong1 in any sense1 to   
render the people of ,england sensible  
how much they must suffer1 if1          
unfortunately1 such a wicked faction    

should become possessed in this country 
of the same power which their allies in 
the very next to us have so perfidiously
 usurped and so outrageously abused8 ,is
 it inhuman to prevent1 if possible1 the
 spilling their blood1 or imprudent to  
guard against the effusion of our own8  
,is it contrary to any of the honest    
principles of party1 or repugnant to any
 of the known duties of friendship1 for 
any senator respectfully and amicably to
 caution his brother members against    
countenancing1 by inconsiderate         
expressions1 a sort of proceeding which 
it is impossible they should            
deliberately approve8  ,he had          
undertaken to demonstrate1 by arguments 
which he thought could not be refuted1  
and by documents which he was sure could
 not be denied1 that no comparison was  
to be made between the ,british         
government and the ,french              
usurpation4--,that they who endeavored  
madly to compare them were by no means  
making the comparison of one good system

 with another good system1 which varied 
only in local and circumstantial        
differences2 much less that they were   
holding out to us a superior pattern of 
legal liberty1 which we might substitute
 in the place of our old1 and1 as they  
describe it1 superannuated              
,constitution4 ,he meant to demonstrate 
that the ,french scheme was not a       
comparative good1 but a positive        
evil4--,that the question did not at all
 turn1 as it had been stated1 on a      
parallel between a monarchy and a       
republic4 ,he denied that the present   
scheme of things in ,france did at all  
deserve the respectable name of a       
republic3 he had therefore no comparison
 between monarchies and republics to    
make4--,that what was done in ,france   
was a wild attempt to methodize anarchy1
 to perpetuate and fix disorder4 ,that  
it was a foul1 impious1 monstrous thing1
 wholly out of the course of moral      
,nature4 ,he undertook to prove that it 
was generated in treachery1 fraud1      

falsehood1 hypocrisy1 and unprovoked    
murder4--,he offered to make out that   
those who have led in that business had 
conducted themselves with the utmost    
perfidy to their colleagues in function1
 and with the most flagrant perjury both
 towards their king and their           
constituents3 to the one of whom the    
,assembly had sworn fealty2 and to the  
other1 when under no sort of violence or
 constraint1 they had sworn a full      
obedience to instructions4--,that1 by   
the terror of assassination1 they had   
driven away a very great number of the  
members1 so as to produce a false       
appearance of a majority4--,that this   
fictitious majority had fabricated a    
,constitution1 which1 as now it stands1 
is a tyranny far beyond any example that
 can be found in the civilized ,european
 world of our age2 that therefore the   
lovers of it must be lovers1 not of     
liberty1 but1 if they really understand 
its nature1 of the lowest and basest of 
all servitude4  ,he proposed to prove   

that the present state of things in     
,france is not a transient evil1        
productive1 as some have too favorably  
represented it1 of a lasting good2 but  
that the present evil is only the means 
of producing future and 7if that were   
possible7 worse evils4--,that it is not 
an undigested1 imperfect1 and crude     
scheme of liberty1 which may gradually  
be mellowed and ripened into an orderly 
and social freedom2 but that it is so   
fundamentally wrong as to be utterly    
incapable of correcting itself by any   
length of time1 or of being formed into 
any mode of polity of which a member of 
the ,house of ,commons could publicly   
declare his approbation4  ,if it had    
been permitted to ,mr4 ,burke1 he would 
have shown distinctly1 and in detail1   
that what the ,assembly calling itself  
,national had held out as a large and   
liberal toleration is in reality a cruel
 and insidious religious persecution1   
infinitely more bitter than any which   
had been heard of within this           

century4--,that it had a feature in it  
worse than the old persecutions4--,that 
the old persecutors acted1 or pretended 
to act1 from zeal towards some system of
 piety and virtue3 they gave strong     
preferences to their own2 and if they   
drove people from one religion1 they    
provided for them another1 in which men 
might take refuge and expect            
consolation4--,that their new           
persecution is not against a variety in 
conscience1 but against all conscience4 
,that it professes contempt towards its 
object2 and whilst it treats all        
religion with scorn1 is not so much as  
neutral about the modes3 it unites the  
opposite evils of intolerance and of    
indifference4  ,he could have proved    
that it is so far from rejecting tests1 
7as unaccountably had been asserted17   
that the ,assembly had imposed tests of 
a peculiar hardship1 arising from a     
cruel and premeditated pecuniary fraud3 
tests against old principles1 sanctioned
 by the laws1 and binding upon the      

conscience4--,that these tests were not 
imposed as titles to some new honor or  
some new benefit1 but to enable men to  
hold a poor compensation for their legal
 estates1 of which they had been        
unjustly deprived2 and as they had      
before been reduced from affluence to   
indigence1 so1 on refusal to swear      
against their conscience1 they are now  
driven from indigence to famine1 and    
treated with every possible degree of   
outrage1 insult1 and inhumanity4--,that 
these tests1 which their imposers well  
knew would not be taken1 were intended  
for the very purpose of cheating their  
miserable victims out of the            
compensation which the tyrannic         
impostors of the ,assembly had          
previously and purposely rendered the   
public unable to pay4 ,that thus their  
ultimate violence arose from their      
original fraud4  ,he would have shown   
that the universal peace and concord    
amongst nations1 which these common     
enemies to mankind had held out with the

 same fraudulent ends and pretences with
 which they had uniformly conducted     
every part of their proceeding1 was a   
coarse and clumsy deception1 unworthy to
 be proposed as an example1 by an       
informed and sagacious ,british senator1
 to any other country4--,that1 far from 
peace and good-will to men1 they        
meditated war against all other         
governments1 and proposed systematically
 to excite in them all the very worst   
kind of seditions1 in order to lead to  
their common destruction4--,that they   
had discovered1 in the few instances in 
which they have hitherto had the power  
of discovering it1 7as at ,avignon and  
in the ,comtat1 at ,cavaillon and at    
,carpentras17 in what a savage manner   
they mean to conduct the seditions and  
wars they have planned against their    
neighbors1 for the sake of putting      
themselves at the head of a             
confederation of republics as wild and  
as mischievous as their own4 ,he would  
have shown in what manner that wicked   

scheme was carried on in those places1  
without being directly either owned or  
disclaimed1 in hopes that the undone    
people should at length be obliged to   
fly to their tyrannic protection1 as    
some sort of refuge from their barbarous
 and treacherous hostility4 ,he would   
have shown from those examples that     
neither this nor any other society could
 be in safety as long as such a public  
enemy was in a condition to continue    
directly or indirectly such practices   
against its peace4--,that ,great        
,britain was a principal object of their
 machinations2 and that they had begun  
by establishing correspondences1        
communications1 and a sort of federal   
union with the factious here4--,that no 
practical enjoyment of a thing so       
imperfect and precarious as human       
happiness must be1 even under the very  
best of governments1 could be a security
 for the existence of these governments1
 during the prevalence of the principles
 of ,france1 propagated from that grand 

school of every disorder and every vice4
  ,he was prepared to show the madness  
of their declaration of the pretended   
rights of man1--the childish1 futility  
of some of their maxims1 the gross and  
stupid absurdity and the palpable       
falsity of others1 and the mischievous  
tendency of all such declarations to the
 well-being of men and of citizens and  
to the safety and prosperity of every   
just commonwealth4 ,he was prepared to  
show1 that1 in their conduct1 the       
,assembly had directly violated not only
 every sound principle of government1   
but every one1 without exception1 of    
their own false or futile maxims1 and   
indeed every rule they had pretended to 
lay down for their own direction4  ,in a
 word1 he was ready to show that those  
who could1 after such a full and fair   
exposure1 continue to countenance the   
,french insanity were not mistaken      
politicians1 but bad men2 but he thought
 that in this case1 as in many others1  
ignorance had been the cause of         

admiration4  ,these are strong          
assertions4 ,they required strong       
proofs4 ,the member who laid down these 
positions was and is ready to give1 in  
his place1 to each position decisive    
evidence1 correspondent to the nature   
and quality of the several allegations4 
,in order to judge on the propriety of  
the interruption given to ,mr4 ,burke1  
in his speech in the committee of the   
,quebec ,bill1 it is necessary to       
inquire1 ,first1 whether1 on general    
principles1 he ought to have been       
suffered to prove his allegations8      
,secondly1 whether the time he had      
chosen was so very unseasonable as to   
make his exercise of a parliamentary    
right productive of ill effects on his  
friends or his country8 ,thirdly1       
whether the opinions delivered in his   
book1 and which he had begun to         
expatiate upon that day1 were in        
contradiction to his former principles1 
and inconsistent with the general tenor 
of his public conduct8  ,they who have  

made eloquent panegyrics on the ,french 
,revolution1 and who think a free       
discussion so very advantageous in every
 case and under every circumstance1     
ought not1 in my opinion1 to have       
prevented their eulogies from being     
tried on the test of facts4 ,if their   
panegyric had been answered with an     
invective1 7bating the difference in    
point of eloquence17 the one would have 
been as good as the other3 that is1 they
 would both of them have been good for  
nothing4 ,the panegyric and the satire  
ought to be suffered to go to trial2 and
 that which shrinks from if must be     
contented to stand1 at best1 as a mere  
declamation4  ,i do not think ,mr4      
,burke was wrong in the course he took4 
,that which seemed to be recommended to 
him by ,mr4 ,pitt was rather to extol   
the ,english ,constitution than to      
attack the ,french4 ,i do not determine 
what would be best for ,mr4 ,pitt to do 
in his situation4 ,i do not deny that he
 may have good reasons for his reserve4 

,perhaps they might have been as good   
for a similar reserve on the part of    
,mr4 ,fox1 if his zeal had suffered him 
to listen to them4 ,but there were no   
motives of ministerial prudence1 or of  
that prudence which ought to guide a man
 perhaps on the eve of being minister1  
to restrain the author of the           
,reflections4 ,he is in no office under 
the crown2 he is not the organ of any   
party4  ,the excellencies of the        
,british ,constitution had already      
exercised and exhausted the talents of  
the best thinkers and the most eloquent 
writers and speakers that the world ever
 saw4 ,but in the present case a system 
declared to be far better1 and which    
certainly is much newer1 7to restless   
and unstable minds no small             
recommendation17 was held out to the    
admiration of the good people of        
,england4 ,in that case it was surely   
proper for those who had far other      
thoughts of the ,french ,constitution to
 scrutinize that plan which has been    

recommended to our imitation by active  
and zealous factions at home and abroad4
 ,our complexion is such1 that we are   
palled with enjoyment1 and stimulated   
with hope1--that we become less sensible
 to a long-possessed benefit from the   
very circumstance that it is become     
habitual4 ,specious1 untried1 ambiguous 
prospects of new advantage recommend    
themselves to the spirit of adventure   
which more or less prevails in every    
mind4 ,from this temper1 men and        
factions1 and nations too1 have         
sacrificed the good of which they had   
been in assured possession1 in favor of 
wild and irrational expectations4 ,what 
should hinder ,mr4 ,burke1 if he thought
 this temper likely at one time or other
 to prevail in our country1 from        
exposing to a multitude eager to game   
the false calculations of this lottery  
of fraud8  ,i allow1 as ,i ought to do1 
for the effusions which come from a     
general zeal for liberty4 ,this is to be
 indulged1 and even to be encouraged1 as

 long as the question is general4 ,an   
orator1 above all men1 ought to be      
allowed a full and free use of the      
praise of liberty4 ,a commonplace in    
favor of slavery and tyranny1 delivered 
to a popular assembly1 would indeed be a
 bold defiance to all the principles of 
rhetoric4 ,but in a question whether any
 particular ,constitution is or is not a
 plan of rational liberty1 this kind of 
rhetorical flourish in favor of freedom 
in general is surely a little out of its
 place4 ,it is virtually a begging of   
the question4 ,it is a song of triumph  
before the battle4  ,but ,mr4 ,fox does 
not make the panegyric of the new       
,constitution2 it is the destruction    
only of the absolute monarchy he        
commends4 ,when that nameless thing     
which has been lately set up in ,france 
was described as the most stupendous and
 glorious edifice of liberty which had  
been erected on the foundation of human 
integrity in any time or country1 it    
might at first have led the hearer into 

an opinion that the construction of the 
new fabric was an object of admiration1 
as well as the demolition of the old4   
,mr4 ,fox1 however1 has explained       
himself2 and it would be too like that  
captious and cavilling spirit which ,i  
so perfectly detest1 if ,i were to pin  
down the language of an eloquent and    
ardent mind to the punctilious exactness
 of a pleader4 ,then ,mr4 ,fox did not  
mean to applaud that monstrous thing    
which1 by the courtesy of ,france1 they 
call a ,constitution4 ,i easily believe 
it4 ,far from meriting the praises of a 
great genius like ,mr4 ,fox1 it cannot  
be approved by any man of common sense  
or common information4 ,he cannot admire
 the change of one piece of barbarism   
for another1 and a worse4 ,he cannot    
rejoice at the destruction of a         
monarchy1 mitigated by manners1         
respectful to laws and usages1 and      
attentive1 perhaps but too attentive1 to
 public opinion1 in favor of the tyranny
 of a licentious1 ferocious1 and savage 

multitude1 without laws1 manners1 or    
morals1 and which1 so far from          
respecting the general sense of mankind1
 insolently endeavors to alter all the  
principles and opinions which have      
hitherto guided and contained the world1
 and to force them into a conformity to 
their views and actions4 ,his mind is   
made to better things4  ,that a man     
should rejoice and triumph in the       
destruction of an absolute              
monarchy1--that in such an event he     
should overlook the captivity1 disgrace1
 and degradation of an unfortunate      
prince1 and the continual danger to a   
life which exists only to be            
endangered1--that he should overlook the
 utter ruin of whole orders and classes 
of men1 extending itself directly1 or in
 its nearest consequences1 to at least a
 million of our kind1 and to at least   
the temporary wretchedness of a whole   
community1--,i do not deny to be in some
 sort natural2 because1 when people see 
a political object which they ardently  

desire but in one point of view1 they   
are apt extremely to palliate or        
underrate the evils which may arise in  
obtaining it4 ,this is no reflection on 
the humanity of those persons4 ,their   
good-nature ,i am the last man in the   
world to dispute4 ,it only shows that   
they are not sufficiently informed or   
sufficiently considerate4 ,when they    
come to reflect seriously on the        
transaction1 they will think themselves 
bound to examine what the object is that
 has been acquired by all this havoc4   
,they will hardly assert that the       
destruction of an absolute monarchy is a
 thing good in itself1 without any sort 
of reference to the antecedent state of 
things1 or to consequences which result 
from the change1--without any           
consideration whether under its ancient 
rule a country was to a considerable    
degree flourishing and populous1 highly 
cultivated and highly commercial1 and   
whether1 under that domination1 though  
personal liberty had been precarious and

 insecure1 property at least was ever   
violated4 ,they cannot take the moral   
sympathies of the human mind along with 
them1 in abstractions separated from the
 good or evil condition of the state1   
from the quality of actions1 and the    
character of the actors4 ,none of us    
love absolute and uncontrolled monarchy2
 but we could not rejoice at the        
sufferings of a ,marcus ,aurelius or a  
,trajan1 who were absolute monarchs1 as 
we do when ,nero is condemned by the    
,senate to be punished more majorum2    
nor1 when that monster was obliged to   
fly with his wife ,sporus1 and to drink 
puddle1 were men affected in the same   
manner as when the venerable ,galba1    
with all his faults and errors1 was     
murdered by a revolted mercenary        
soldiery4 ,with such things before our  
eyes1 our feelings contradict our       
theories2 and when this is the case1 the
 feelings are true1 and the theory is   
false4 ,what ,i contend for is1 that1 in
 commending the destruction of an       

absolute monarchy1 all the circumstances
 ought not to be wholly overlooked1 as  
considerations fit only for shallow and 
superficial minds4 7,the words of ,mr4  
,fox1 or to that effect47  ,the         
subversion of a government1 to deserve  
any praise1 must be considered but as a 
step preparatory to the formation of    
something better1 either in the scheme  
of the government itself1 or in the     
persons who administer it1 or in both4  
,these events cannot in reason be       
separated4 ,for instance1 when we praise
 our ,revolution of #afhh1 though the   
nation in that act was on the defensive1
 and was justified in incurring all the 
evils of a defensive war1 we do not rest
 there4 ,we always combine with the     
subversion of the old government the    
happy settlement which followed4 ,when  
we estimate that ,revolution1 we mean to
 comprehend in our calculation both the 
value of the thing parted with and the  
value of the thing received in exchange4
  ,the burden of proof lies heavily on  

those who tear to pieces the whole frame
 and contexture of their country1 that  
they could find no other way of settling
 a government fit to obtain its rational
 ends1 except that which they have      
pursued by means unfavorable to all the 
present happiness of millions of people1
 and to the utter ruin of several       
hundreds of thousands4 ,in their        
political arrangements1 men have no     
right to put the well-being of the      
present generation wholly out of the    
question4 ,perhaps the only moral trust 
with any certainty in our hands is the  
care of our own time4 ,with regard to   
futurity1 we are to treat it like a     
ward4 ,we are not so to attempt an      
improvement of his fortune as to put the
 capital of his estate to any hazard4   
,it is not worth our while to discuss1  
like sophisters1 whether in no case some
 evil for the sake of some benefit is to
 be tolerated4 ,nothing universal can be
 rationally affirmed on any moral or any
 political subject4 ,pure metaphysical  

abstraction does not belong to these    
matters4 ,the lines of morality are not 
like the ideal lines of mathematics4    
,they are broad and deep as well as     
long4 ,they admit of exceptions2 they   
demand modifications4 ,these exceptions 
and modifications are not made by the   
process of logic1 but by the rules of   
prudence4 ,prudence is not only the     
first in rank of the virtues political  
and moral1 but she is the director1 the 
regulator1 the standard of them all4    
,metaphysics cannot live without        
definition2 but ,prudence is cautious   
how she defines4 ,our courts cannot be  
more fearful in suffering fictitious    
cases to be brought before them for     
eliciting their determination on a point
 of law than prudent moralists are in   
putting extreme and hazardous cases of  
conscience upon emergencies not         
existing4 ,without attempting1          
therefore1 to define1 what never can be 
defined1 the case of a revolution in    
government1 this1 ,i think1 may be      

safely affirmed1--that a sore and       
pressing evil is to be removed1 and that
 a good1 great in its amount and        
unequivocal in its nature1 must be      
probable almost to certainty1 before the
 inestimable price of our own morals and
 the well-being of a number of our      
fellow-citizens is paid for a           
revolution4 ,if ever we ought to be     
economists even to parsimony1 it is in  
the voluntary production of evil4 ,every
 revolution contains in it something of 
evil4  ,it must always be1 to those who 
are the greatest amateurs1 or even      
professors1 of revolutions1 a matter    
very hard to prove1 that the late       
,french government was so bad that      
nothing worse in the infinite devices of
 men could come in its place4 ,they who 
have brought ,france to its present     
condition ought to prove also1 by       
something better than prattling about   
the ,bastile1 that their subverted      
government was as incapable as the      
present certainly is of all improvement 

and correction4 ,how dare they to say so
 who have never made that experiment8   
,they are experimenters by their trade4 
,they have made an hundred others1      
infinitely more hazardous4  ,the        
,english admirers of the forty-eight    
thousand republics which form the       
,french federation praise them not for  
what they are1 but for what they are to 
become4 ,they do not talk as            
politicians1 but as prophets4 ,but in   
whatever character they choose to found 
panegyric on prediction1 it will be     
thought a little singular to praise any 
work1 not for its own merits1 but for   
the merits of something else which may  
succeed to it4 ,when any political      
institution is praised1 in spite of     
great and prominent faults of every     
kind1 and in all its parts1 it must be  
supposed to have something excellent in 
its fundamental principles4 ,it must be 
shown that it is right1 though          
imperfect1--that it is not only by      
possibility susceptible of improvement1 

but that it contains in it a principle  
tending to its melioration4  ,before    
they attempt to show this progression of
 their favorite work from absolute      
pravity to finished perfection1 they    
will find themselves engaged in a civil 
war with those whose cause they         
maintain4 ,what6 alter our sublime      
,constitution1 the glory of ,france1 the
 envy of the world1 the pattern for     
mankind1 the masterpiece of legislation1
 the collected and concentrated glory of
 this enlightened age8 ,have we not     
produced it ready-made and ready-armed1 
mature in its birth1 a perfect goddess  
of wisdom and of war1 hammered by our   
blacksmith midwives out of the brain of 
,jupiter himself8 ,have we not sworn our
 devout1 profane1 believing1 infidel    
people to an allegiance to this goddess1
 even before she had burst the dura     
mater1 and as yet existed only in       
embryo8 ,have we not solemnly declared  
this ,constitution unalterable by any   
future legislature8 ,have we not bound  

it on posterity forever1 though our     
abettors have declared that no one      
generation is competent to bind another8
 ,have we not obliged the members of    
every future ,assembly to qualify       
themselves for their seats by swearing  
to its conservation8  ,indeed1 the      
,french ,constitution always must be 7if
 a change is not made in all their      
principles and fundamental arrangements7
 a government wholly by popular         
representation4 ,it must be this or     
nothing4 ,the ,french faction considers 
as an usurpation1 as an atrocious       
violation of the indefensible rights of 
man1 every other description of         
government4 ,take it1 or leave it3 there
 is no medium4 ,let the irrefragable    
doctors fight out their own controversy 
in their own way and with their own     
weapons2 and when they are tired1 let   
them commence a treaty of peace4 ,let   
the plenipotentiary sophisters of       
,england settle with the diplomatic     
sophisters of ,france in what manner    

right is to be corrected by an infusion 
of wrong1 and how truth may be rendered 
more true by a due intermixture of      
falsehood4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,having sufficiently proved
 that nothing could make it generally   
improper for ,mr4 ,burke to prove what  
he had alleged concerning the object of 
this dispute1 ,i pass to the second     
question1 that is1 ,whether he was      
justified in choosing the committee on  
the ,quebec ,bill as the field for this 
discussion8 ,if it were necessary1 it   
might be shown that he was not the first
 to bring these discussions into        
,parliament1 nor the first to renew them
 in this session4 ,the fact is          
notorious4 ,as to the ,quebec ,bill1    
they were introduced into the debate    
upon that subject for two plain reasons3
 ,first1 that1 as he thought it then not
 advisable to make the proceedings of   
the factious societies the subject of a 
direct motion1 he had no other way open 
to him4 ,nobody has attempted to show   

that it was at all admissible into any  
other business before the ,house4 ,here 
everything was favorable4 ,here was a   
bill to form a new ,constitution for a  
,french province under ,english         
dominion4 ,the question naturally arose1
 whether we should settle that          
constitution upon ,english ideas1 or    
upon ,french4 ,this furnished an        
opportunity for examining into the value
 of the ,french ,constitution1 either   
considered as applicable to colonial    
government1 or in its own nature4 ,the  
bill1 too1 was in a committee4 ,by the  
privilege of speaking as often as he    
pleased1 he hoped in some measure to    
supply the want of support1 which he had
 but too much reason to apprehend4 ,in a
 committee it was always in his power to
 bring the questions from generalities  
to facts1 from declamation to           
discussion4 ,some benefit he actually   
received from this privilege4 ,these are
 plain1 obvious1 natural reasons for his
 conduct4 ,i believe they are the true1 

and the only true ones4  ,they who      
justify the frequent interruptions1     
which at length wholly disabled him from
 proceeding1 attribute their conduct to 
a very different interpretation of his  
motives4 ,they say1 that1 through       
corruption1 or malice1 or folly1 he was 
acting his part in a plot to make his   
friend ,mr4 ,fox pass for a republican1 
and thereby to prevent the gracious     
intentions of his sovereign from taking 
effect1 which at that time had begun to 
disclose themselves in his favor4#h     
,this is a pretty serious charge4 ,this1
 on ,mr4 ,burke's part1 would be        
something more than mistake1 something  
worse than formal irregularity4 ,any    
contumely1 any outrage1 is readily      
passed over1 by the indulgence which we 
all owe to sudden passion4 ,these things
 are soon forgot upon occasions in which
 all men are so apt to forget           
themselves4 ,deliberate injuries1 to a  
degree1 must be remembered1 because they
 require deliberate precautions to be   

secured against their return4  ,i am    
authorized to say for ,mr4 ,burke1 that 
he considers that cause assigned for the
 outrage offered to him as ten times    
worse than the outrage itself4 ,there is
 such a strange confusion of ideas on   
this subject1 that it is far more       
difficult to understand the nature of   
the charge than to refute it when       
understood4 ,mr4 ,fox's friends were1 it
 seems1 seized with a sudden panic      
terror lest he should pass for a        
republican4 ,i do not think they had any
 ground for this apprehension4 ,but let 
us admit they had4 ,what was there in   
the ,quebec ,bill1 rather than in any   
other1 which could subject him or them  
to that imputation8 ,nothing in a       
discussion of the ,french ,constitutions
 which might arise on the ,quebec ,bill1
 could tend to make ,mr4 ,fox pass for a
 republican1 except he should take      
occasion to extol that state of things  
in ,france which affects to be a        
republic or a confederacy of republics4 

,if such an encomium could make any     
unfavorable impression on the king's    
mind1 surely his voluntary panegyrics on
 that event1 not so much introduced as  
intruded into other debates1 with which 
they had little relation1 must have     
produced that effect with much more     
certainty and much greater force4 ,the  
,quebec ,bill1 at worst1 was only one of
 those opportunities carefully sought   
and industriously improved by himself4  
,mr4 ,sheridan had already brought forth
 a panegyric on the ,french system in a 
still higher strain1 with full as little
 demand from the nature of the business 
before the ,house1 in a speech too good 
to be speedily forgotten4 ,mr4 ,fox     
followed him without any direct call    
from the subject-matter1 and upon the   
same ground4 ,to canvass the merits of  
the ,french ,constitution on the ,quebec
 ,bill could not draw forth any opinions
 which were not brought forward before1 
with no small ostentation1 and with very
 little of necessity1 or perhaps of     

propriety4 ,what mode or what time of   
discussing the conduct of the ,french   
faction in ,england would not equally   
tend to kindle this enthusiasm1 and     
afford those occasions for panegyric1   
which1 far from shunning1 ,mr4 ,fox has 
always industriously sought8 ,he himself
 said1 very truly1 in the debate1 that  
no artifices were necessary to draw from
 him his opinions upon that subject4    
,but to fall upon ,mr4 ,burke for making
 an use1 at worst not more irregular1 of
 the same liberty1 is tantamount to a   
plain declaration that the topic of     
,franco is tabooed or forbidden ground  
to ,mr4 ,burke1 and to ,mr4 ,burke      
alone4 ,but surely ,mr4 ,fox is not a   
republican2 and what should hinder him1 
when such a discussion came on1 from    
clearing himself unequivocally 7as his  
friends say he had done near a fortnight
 before7 of all such imputations8       
,instead of being a disadvantage to him1
 he would have defeated all his enemies1
 and ,mr4 ,burke1 since he has thought  

proper to reckon him amongst them4  ,but
 it seems some newspaper or other had   
imputed to him republican principles1 on
 occasion of his conduct upon the       
,quebec ,bill4 ,supposing ,mr4 ,burke to
 have seen these newspapers1 7which is  
to suppose more than ,i believe to be   
true17 ,i would ask1 ,when did the      
newspapers forbear to charge ,mr ,fox1  
or ,mr4 ,burke himself1 with republican 
principles1 or any other principles     
which they thought could render both of 
them odious1 sometimes to one           
description of people1 sometimes to     
another8 ,mr4 ,burke1 since the         
publication of his pamphlet1 has been a 
thousand times charged in the newspapers
 with holding despotic principles4 ,he  
could not enjoy one moment of domestic  
quiet1 he could not perform the least   
particle of public duty1 if he did not  
altogether disregard the language of    
those libels4 ,but1 however his         
sensibility might be affected by such   
abuse1 it would in him have been thought

 a most ridiculous reason for shutting  
up the mouths of ,mr4 ,fox or ,mr4      
,sheridan1 so as to prevent their       
delivering their sentiments of the      
,french ,revolution1 that1 forsooth1 the
 newspapers had lately charged ,mr4     
,burke with being an enemy to liberty4  
,i allow that those gentlemen have      
privileges to which ,mr4 ,burke has no  
claim4 ,but their friends ought to plead
 those privileges1 and not to assign bad
 reasons1 on the principle of what is   
fair between man and man1 and thereby to
 put themselves on a level with those   
who can so easily refute them4 ,let them
 say at once that his reputation is of  
no value1 and that he has no call to    
assert it1--but that theirs is of       
infinite concern to the party and the   
public1 and to that consideration he    
ought to sacrifice all his opinions and 
all his feelings4  ,in that language ,i 
should hear a style correspondent to the
 proceeding1--lofty1 indeed1 but plain  
and consistent4 ,admit1 however1 for a  

moment1 and merely for argument1 that   
this gentleman had as good a right to   
continue as they had to begin these     
discussions2 in candor and equity they  
must allow that their voluntary descant 
in praise of the ,french ,constitution  
was as much an oblique attack on ,mr4   
,burke as ,mr4 ,burke's inquiry into the
 foundation of this encomium could      
possibly be construed into an imputation
 upon them4 ,they well knew that he felt
 like other men2 and of course he would 
think it mean and unworthy to decline   
asserting in his place1 and in the front
 of able adversaries1 the principles of 
what he had penned in his closet and    
without an opponent before him4 ,they   
could not but be convinced that         
declamations of this kind would rouse   
him1--that he must think1 coming from   
men of their calibre1 they were highly  
mischievous1--that they gave countenance
 to bad men and bad designs2 and though 
he was aware that the handling such     
matters in ,parliament was delicate1 yet

 he was a man very likely1 whenever1    
much against his will1 they were brought
 there1 to resolve that there they      
should be thoroughly sifted4 ,mr4 ,fox1 
early in the preceding session1 had     
public notice from ,mr4 ,burke of the   
light in which he considered every      
attempt to introduce the example of     
,france into the politics of this       
country1 and of his resolution to break 
with his host friends and to join with  
his worst enemies to prevent it4 ,he    
hoped that no such necessity would ever 
exist2 but in case it should1 his       
determination was made4 ,the party knew 
perfectly that he would at least defend 
himself4 ,he never intended to attack   
,mr4 ,fox1 nor did he attack him        
directly or indirectly4 ,his speech kept
 to its matter4 ,no personality was     
employed1 even in the remotest allusion4
 ,he never did impute to that gentleman 
any republican principles1 or any other 
bad principles or bad conduct           
whatsoever4 ,it was far from his words2 

it was far from his heart4 ,it must be  
remembered1 that1 notwithstanding the   
attempt of ,mr4 ,fox to fix on ,mr4     
,burke an unjustifiable change of       
opinion1 and the foul crime of teaching 
a set of maxims to a boy1 and           
afterwards1 when these maxims became    
adult in his mature age1 of abandoning  
both the disciple and the doctrine1 ,mr4
 ,burke never attempted1 in any one     
particular1 either to criminate or to   
recriminate4 ,it may be said that he had
 nothing of the kind in his power4 ,this
 he does not controvert4 ,he certainly  
had it not in his inclination4 ,that    
gentleman had as little ground for the  
charges which he was so easily provoked 
to make upon him4  ,the gentlemen of the
 party 7,i include ,mr4 ,fox7 have been 
kind enough to consider the dispute     
brought on by this business1 and the    
consequent separation of ,mr4 ,burke    
from their corps1 as a matter of regret 
and uneasiness4 ,i cannot be of opinion 
that by his exclusion they have had any 

loss at all4 ,a man whose opinions are  
so very adverse to theirs1 adverse1 as  
it was expressed1 as pole to pole1 so   
mischievously as well as so directly    
adverse that they found themselves under
 the necessity of solemnly disclaiming  
them in full ,parliament1--such a man   
must ever be to them a most unseemly and
 unprofitable incumbrance4 ,a coperation
 with him could only serve to embarrass 
them in all their councils4 ,they have  
besides publicly represented him as a   
man capable of abusing the docility and 
confidence of ingenuous youth1--and1 for
 a bad reason or for no reason1 of      
disgracing his whole public life by a   
scandalous contradiction of every one of
 his own acts1 writings1 and            
declarations4 ,if these charges be true1
 their exclusion of such a person from  
their body is a circumstance which does 
equal honor to their justice and their  
prudence4 ,if they express a degree of  
sensibility in being obliged to execute 
this wise and just sentence1 from a     

consideration of some amiable or some   
pleasant qualities which in his private 
life their former friend may happen to  
possess1 they add to the praise of their
 wisdom and firmness the merit of great 
tenderness of heart and humanity of     
disposition4  ,on their ideas1 the new  
,whig party have1 in my opinion1 acted  
as became them4 ,the author of the      
,reflections1 however1 on his part1     
cannot1 without great shame to himself1 
and without entailing everlasting       
disgrace on his posterity1 admit the    
truth or justice of the charges which   
have been made upon him1 or allow that  
he has in those ,reflections discovered 
any principles to which honest men are  
bound to declare1 not a shade or two of 
dissent1 but a total1 fundamental       
opposition4 ,he must believe1 if he does
 not mean wilfully to abandon his cause 
and his reputation1 that principles     
fundamentally at variance with those of 
his book are fundamentally false4 ,what 
those principles1 the antipodes to his1 

really are1 he can only discover from   
their contrariety4 ,he is very unwilling
 to suppose that the doctrines of some  
books lately circulated are the         
principles of the party2 though1 from   
the vehement declarations against his   
opinions1 he is at some loss how to     
judge otherwise4  ,for the present1 my  
plan does not render it necessary to say
 anything further concerning the merits 
either of the one set of opinions or the
 other4 ,the author would have discussed
 the merits of both in his place1 but he
 was not permitted to do so4         99 
99       99       99       99  ,i pass  
to the next head of charge1--,mr4       
,burke's inconsistency4 ,it is certainly
 a great aggravation of his fault in    
embracing false opinions1 that in doing 
so he is not supposed to fill up a void1
 but that he is guilty of a dereliction 
of opinions that are true and laudable4 
,this is the great gist of the charge   
against him4 ,it is not so much that he 
is wrong in his book 7that1 however1 is 

alleged also7 as that he has therein    
belied his whole life4 ,i believe1 if he
 could venture to value himself upon    
anything1 it is on the virtue of        
consistency that he would value himself 
the most4 ,strip him of this1 and you   
leave him naked indeed4  ,in the case of
 any man who had written something1 and 
spoken a great deal1 upon very          
multifarious matter1 during upwards of  
twenty-five years' public service1 and  
in as great a variety of important      
events as perhaps have ever happened in 
the same number of years1 it would      
appear a little hard1 in order to charge
 such a man with inconsistency1 to see  
collected by his friend a sort of digest
 of his sayings1 even to such as were   
merely sportive and jocular4 ,this      
digest1 however1 has been made1 with    
equal pains and partiality1 and without 
bringing out those passages of his      
writings which might tend to show with  
what restrictions any expressions quoted
 from him ought to have been understood4

 ,from a great statesman he did not     
quite expect this mode of inquisition4  
,if it only appeared in the works of    
common pamphleteers1 ,mr4 ,burke might  
safely trust to his reputation4 ,when   
thus urged1 he ought1 perhaps1 to do a  
little more4 ,it shall be as little as  
possible2 for ,i hope not much is       
wanting4 ,to be totally silent on his   
charges would not be respectful to ,mr4 
,fox4 ,accusations sometimes derive a   
weight from the persons who make them to
 which they are not entitled from their 
matter4  ,he who thinks that the        
,british ,constitution ought to consist 
of the three members1 of three very     
different natures1 of which it does     
actually consist1 and thinks it his duty
 to preserve each of those members in   
its proper place and with its proper    
proportion of power1 must 7as each shall
 happen to be attacked7 vindicate the   
three several parts on the several      
principles peculiarly belonging to them4
 ,he cannot assert the democratic part  

on the principles on which monarchy is  
supported1 nor can he support monarchy  
on the principles of democracy1 nor can 
he maintain aristocracy on the grounds  
of the one or of the other or of both4  
,all these he must support on grounds   
that are totally different1 though      
practically they may be1 and happily    
with us they are1 brought into one      
harmonious body4 ,a man could not be    
consistent in defending such various1   
and1 at first view1 discordant1 parts of
 a mixed ,constitution1 without that    
sort of inconsistency with which ,mr4   
,burke stands charged4  ,as any one of  
the great members of this ,constitution 
happens to be endangered1 he that is a  
friend to all of them chooses and       
presses the topics necessary for the    
support of the part attacked1 with all  
the strength1 the earnestness1 the      
vehemence1 with all the power of        
stating1 of argument1 and of coloring1  
which he happens to possess1 and which  
the case demands4 ,he is not to         

embarrass the minds of his hearers1 or  
to incumber or overlay his speech1 by   
bringing into view at once 7as if he    
were reading an academic lecture7 all   
that may and ought1 when a just occasion
 presents itself1 to be said in favor of
 the other members4 ,at that time they  
are out of the court2 there is no       
question concerning them4 ,whilst he    
opposes his defence on the part where   
the attack is made1 he presumes that for
 his regard to the just rights of all   
the rest he has credit in every candid  
mind4 ,he ought not to apprehend that   
his raising fences about popular        
privileges this day will infer that he  
ought on the next to concur with those  
who would pull down the throne2 because 
on the next he defends the throne1 it   
ought not to be supposed that he has    
abandoned the rights of the people4  ,a 
man1 who1 among various objects of his  
equal regard1 is secure of some1 and    
full of anxiety for the fate of others1 
is apt to go to much greater lengths in 

his preference of the objects of his    
immediate solicitude than ,mr4 ,burke   
has ever done4 ,a man so circumstanced  
often seems to undervalue1 to vilify1   
almost to reprobate and disown1 those   
that are out of danger4 ,this is the    
voice of ,nature and truth1 and not of  
inconsistency and false pretence4 ,the  
danger of anything very dear to us      
removes1 for the moment1 every other    
affection from the mind4 ,when ,priam   
had his whole thoughts employed on the  
body of his ,hector1 he repels with     
indignation1 and drives from him with a 
thousand reproaches1 his surviving sons1
 who with an officious piety crowded    
about him to offer their assistance4 ,a 
good critic 7there is no better than    
,mr4 ,fox7 would say that this is a     
masterstroke1 and marks a deep          
understanding of ,nature in the father  
of poetry4 ,he would despise a ,zolus   
who would conclude from this passage    
that ,homer meant to represent this man 
of affliction as hating or being        

indifferent and cold in his affections  
to the poor relics of his house1 or that
 he preferred a dead carcass to his     
living children4  ,mr4 ,burke does not  
stand in need of an allowance of this   
kind1 which1 if he did1 by candid       
critics ought to be granted to him4 ,if 
the principles of a mixed ,constitution 
be admitted1 he wants no more to justify
 to consistency everything he has said  
and done during the course of a         
political life just touching to its     
close4 ,i believe that gentleman has    
kept himself more clear of running into 
the fashion of wild1 visionary theories1
 or of seeking popularity through every 
means1 than any man perhaps ever did in 
the same situation4  ,he was the first  
man who1 on the hustings1 at a popular  
election1 rejected the authority of     
instructions from constituents1--or who1
 in any place1 has argued so fully      
against it4 ,perhaps the discredit into 
which that doctrine of compulsive       
instructions under our ,constitution is 

since fallen may be due in a great      
degree to his opposing himself to it in 
that manner and on that occasion4  ,the 
reforms in representation1 and the bills
 for shortening the duration of         
,parliaments1 he uniformly and steadily 
opposed for many years together1 in     
contradiction to many of his best       
friends4 ,these friends1 however1 in his
 better days1 when they had more to hope
 from his service and more to fear from 
his loss than now they have1 never chose
 to find any inconsistency between his  
acts and expressions in favor of liberty
 and his votes on those questions4 ,but 
there is a time for all things4         
,against the opinion of many friends1   
even against the solicitation of some of
 them1 he opposed those of the ,church  
clergy who had petitioned the ,house of 
,commons to be discharged from the      
subscription4 ,although he supported the
 ,dissenters in their petition for the  
indulgence which he had refused to the  
clergy of the ,established ,church1 in  

this1 as he was not guilty of it1 so he 
was not reproached with inconsistency4  
,at the same time he promoted1 and      
against the wish of several1 the clause 
that gave the ,dissenting teachers      
another subscription in the place of    
that which was then taken away4 ,neither
 at that time was the reproach of       
inconsistency brought against him4      
,people could then distinguish between a
 difference in conduct under a variation
 of circumstances and an inconsistency  
in principle4 ,it was not then thought  
necessary to be freed of him as of an   
incumbrance4  ,these instances1 a few   
among many1 are produced as an answer to
 the insinuation of his having pursued  
high popular courses which in his late  
book he has abandoned4 ,perhaps in his  
whole life he has never omitted a fair  
occasion1 with whatever risk to him of  
obloquy as an individual1 with whatever 
detriment to his interest as a member of
 opposition1 to assert the very same    
doctrines which appear in that book4 ,he

 told the ,house1 upon an important     
occasion1 and pretty early in his       
service1 that1 being warned by the ill  
effect of a contrary procedure in great 
examples1 he had taken his ideas of     
liberty very low in order that they     
should stick to him and that he might   
stick to them to the end of his life4   
,at popular elections the most rigorous 
casuists will remit a little of their   
severity4 ,they will allow to a         
candidate some unqualified effusions in 
favor of freedom1 without binding him to
 adhere to them in their utmost extent4 
,but ,mr4 ,burke put a more strict rule 
upon himself than most moralists would  
put upon others4 ,at his first offering 
himself to ,bristol1 where he was almost
 sure he should not obtain1 on that or  
any occasion1 a single ,tory vote1 7in  
fact1 he did obtain but one17 and rested
 wholly on the ,whig interest1 he       
thought himself bound to tell to the    
electors1 both before and after his     
election1 exactly what a representative 

they had to expect in him4  ,the        
distinguishing part of our              
,constitution1 he said1 is its liberty4 
,to preserve that liberty inviolate is  
the peculiar duty and proper trust of a 
member of the ,house of ,commons4 ,but  
the liberty1 the only liberty1 ,i mean  
is a liberty connected with order2 and  
that not only exists with order and     
virtue1 but cannot exist at all without 
them4 ,it inheres in good and steady    
government1 as in its substance and     
vital principle4  ,the liberty to which 
,mr4 ,burke declared himself attached is
 not ,french liberty4 ,that liberty is  
nothing but the rein given to vice and  
confusion4 ,mr4 ,burke was then1 as he  
was at the writing of his ,reflections1 
awfully impressed with the difficulties 
arising from the complex state of our   
,constitution and our empire1 and that  
it might require in different           
emergencies different sorts of          
exertions1 and the successive call upon 
all the various principles which uphold 

and justify it4 ,this will appear from  
what he said at the close of the poll4  
,to be a good member of ,parliament is1 
let me tell you1 no easy                
task1--especially at this time1 when    
there is so strong a disposition to run 
into the perilous extremes of servile   
compliance or wild popularity4 ,to unite
 circumspection with vigor is absolutely
 necessary1 but it is extremely         
difficult4 ,we are now members for a    
rich commercial city2 this city1        
however1 is but a part of a rich        
commercial nation1 the interests of     
which are various1 multiform1 and       
intricate4 ,we are members for that     
great nation1 which1 however1 is itself 
but part of a great empire1 extended by 
our virtue and our fortune to the       
farthest limits of the ,east and of the 
,west4 ,all these wide-spread interests 
must be considered1--must be            
compared1--must be reconciled1 if       
possible4 ,we are members for a free    
country2 and surely we all know that the

 machine of a free constitution is no   
simple thing1 but as intricate and as   
delicate as it is valuable4 ,we are     
members in a great and ancient          
,,monarchy2 and we must preserve        
religiously the true1 legal rights of   
the sovereign1 which form the key-stone 
that binds together the noble and       
well-constructed arch of our empire and 
our ,constitution4 ,a constitution made 
up of balanced powers must ever be a    
critical thing4 ,as such ,i mean to     
touch that part of it which comes within
 my reach4  ,in this manner ,mr4 ,burke 
spoke to his constituents seventeen     
years ago4 ,he spoke1 not like a        
partisan of one particular member of our
 ,constitution1 but as a person         
strongly1 and on principle1 attached to 
them all4 ,he thought these great and   
essential members ought to be preserved1
 and preserved each in its place1--and  
that the monarchy ought not only to be  
secured in its peculiar existence1 but  
in its preeminence too1 as the presiding

 and connecting principle of the whole4 
,let it be considered whether the       
language of his book1 printed in #agij1 
differs from his speech at ,bristol in  
#aggd4  ,with equal justice his opinions
 on the ,american war are introduced1 as
 if in his late work he had belied his  
conduct and opinions in the debates     
which arose upon that great event4 ,on  
the ,american war he never had any      
opinions which he has seen occasion to  
retract1 or which he has ever retracted4
 ,he1 indeed1 differs essentially from  
,mr4 ,fox as to the cause of that war4  
,mr4 ,fox has been pleased to say that  
the ,americans rebelled because they    
thought they had not enjoyed liberty    
enough4 ,this cause of the war1 from    
him1 ,i have heard of for the first     
time4 ,it is true that those who        
stimulated the nation to that measure   
did frequently urge this topic4 ,they   
contended that the ,americans had from  
the beginning aimed at                  
independence1--that from the beginning  

they meant wholly to throw off the      
authority of the crown1 and to break    
their connection with the parent        
country4 ,this ,mr4 ,burke never        
believed4 ,when he moved his second     
conciliatory proposition1 in the year   
#aggf1 he entered into the discussion of
 this point at very great length1 and1  
from nine several heads of presumption1 
endeavored to prove the charge upon that
 people not to be true4  ,if the        
principles of all he has said and wrote 
on the occasion be viewed with common   
temper1 the gentlemen of the party will 
perceive1 that1 on a supposition that   
the ,americans had rebelled merely in   
order to enlarge their liberty1 ,mr4    
,burke would have thought very          
differently of the ,american cause4     
,what might have been in the secret     
thoughts of some of their leaders it is 
impossible to say4 ,as far as a man so  
locked up as ,dr4 ,franklin could be    
expected to communicate his ideas1 ,i   
believe he opened them to ,mr4 ,burke4  

,it was1 ,i think1 the very day before  
he set out for ,america that a very long
 conversation passed between them1 and  
with a greater air of openness on the   
,doctor's side than ,mr4 ,burke had     
observed in him before4 ,in this        
discourse ,dr4 ,franklin lamented1 and  
with apparent sincerity1 the separation 
which he feared was inevitable between  
,great ,britain and her colonies4 ,he   
certainly spoke of it as an event which 
gave him the greatest concern4 ,america1
 he said1 would never again see such    
happy days as she had passed under the  
protection of ,england4 ,he observed1   
that ours was the only instance of a    
great empire in which the most distant  
parts and members had been as well      
governed as the metropolis and its      
vicinage1 but that the ,americans were  
going to lose the means which secured to
 them this rare and precious advantage4 
,the question with them was not1 whether
 they were to remain as they had been   
before the troubles1--for better1 he    

allowed1 they could not hope to be1--but
 whether they were to give up so happy a
 situation without a struggle4 ,mr4     
,burke had several other conversations  
with him about that time1 in none of    
which1 soured and exasperated as his    
mind certainly was1 did he discover any 
other wish in favor of ,america than for
 a security to its ancient condition4   
,mr4 ,burke's conversation with other   
,americans was large1 indeed1 and his   
inquiries extensive and diligent4       
,trusting to the result of all these    
means of information1 but trusting much 
more in the public presumptive          
indications ,i have just referred to1   
and to the reiterated solemn            
declarations of their ,assemblies1 he   
always firmly believed that they were   
purely on the defensive in that         
rebellion4 ,he considered the ,americans
 as standing at that time1 and in that  
controversy1 in the same relation to    
,england as ,england did to ,king ,james
 the ,second in #afhh4 ,he believed that

 they had taken up arms from one motive 
only3 that is1 our attempting to tax    
them without their consent1--to tax them
 for the purposes of maintaining civil  
and military establishments4 ,if this   
attempt of ours could have been         
practically established1 he thought1    
with them1 that their ,assemblies would 
become totally useless1--that1 under the
 system of policy which was then        
pursued1 the ,americans could have no   
sort of security for their laws or      
liberties1 or for any part of them1--and
 that the very circumstance of our      
freedom would have augmented the weight 
of their slavery4  ,considering the     
,americans on that defensive footing1 he
 thought ,great ,britain ought instantly
 to have closed with them by the repeal 
of the taxing act4 ,he was of opinion   
that our general rights over that       
country would have been preserved by    
this timely concession4#i ,when1 instead
 of this1 a ,boston ,port ,bill1 a      
,massachusetts ,charter ,bill1 a        

,fishery ,bill1 an ,intercourse ,bill1  
,i know not how many hostile bills1     
rushed out like so many tempests from   
all points of the compass1 and were     
accompanied first with great fleets and 
armies of ,english1 and followed        
afterwards with great bodies of foreign 
troops1 he thought that their cause grew
 daily better1 because daily more       
defensive1--and that ours1 because daily
 more offensive1 grew daily worse4 ,he  
therefore1 in two motions1 in two       
successive years1 proposed in           
,parliament many concessions beyond what
 he had reason to think in the beginning
 of the troubles would ever be seriously
 demanded4  ,so circumstanced1 he       
certainly never could and never did wish
 the colonists to be subdued by arms4   
,he was fully persuaded1 that1 if such  
should be the event1 they must be held  
in that subdued state by a great body of
 standing forces1 and perhaps of foreign
 forces4 ,he was strongly of opinion    
that such armies1 first victorious over 

,englishmen1 in a conflict for ,english 
constitutional rights and privileges1   
and afterwards habituated 7though in    
,america7 to keep an ,english people in 
a state of abject subjection1 would     
prove fatal in the end to the liberties 
of ,england itself2 that in the mean    
time this military system would lie as  
an oppressive burden upon the national  
finances2 that it would constantly breed
 and feed new discussions1 full of heat 
and acrimony1 leading possibly to a new 
series of wars2 and that foreign powers1
 whilst we continued in a state at once 
burdened and distracted1 must at length 
obtain a decided superiority over us4   
,on what part of his late publication1  
or on what expression that might have   
escaped him in that work1 is any man    
authorized to charge ,mr4 ,burke with a 
contradiction to the line of his conduct
 and to the current of his doctrines on 
the ,american war8 ,the pamphlet is in  
the hands of his accusers3 let them     
point out the passage1 if they can4     

,indeed1 the author has been well sifted
 and scrutinized by his friends4 ,he is 
even called to an account for every     
jocular and light expression4 ,a        
ludicrous picture which he made with    
regard to a passage in the speech of a  
late minister#aj has been brought up    
against him4 ,that passage contained a  
lamentation for the loss of monarchy to 
the ,americans1 after they had separated
 from ,great ,britain4 ,he thought it to
 be unseasonable1 ill-judged1 and       
ill-sorted with the circumstances of all
 the parties4 ,mr4 ,burke1 it seems1    
considered it ridiculous to lament the  
loss of some monarch or other to a rebel
 people1 at the moment they had forever 
quitted their allegiance to theirs and  
our sovereign1 at the time when they had
 broken off all connection with this    
nation and had allied themselves with   
its enemies4 ,he certainly must have    
thought it open to ridicule2 and now    
that it is recalled to his memory1 7he  
had1 ,i believe1 wholly forgotten the   

circumstance17 he recollects that he did
 treat it with some levity4 ,but is it a
 fair inference from a jest on this     
unseasonable lamentation1 that he was   
then an enemy to monarchy1 either in    
this or in any other country8 ,the      
contrary perhaps ought to be            
inferred1--if anything at all can be    
argued from pleasantries good or bad4   
,is it for this reason1 or for anything 
he has said or done relative to the     
,american war1 that he is to enter into 
an alliance offensive and defensive with
 every rebellion1 in every country1     
under every circumstance1 and raised    
upon whatever pretence8 ,is it because  
he did not wish the ,americans to be    
subdued by arms1 that he must be        
inconsistent with himself1 if he        
reprobates the conduct of those         
societies in ,england1 who1 alleging no 
one act of tyranny or oppression1 and   
complaining of no hostile attempt       
against our ancient laws1 rights1 and   
usages1 are now endeavoring to work the 

destruction of the crown of this        
kingdom1 and the whole of its           
,constitution8 ,is he obliged1 from the 
concessions he wished to be made to the 
colonies1 to keep any terms with those  
clubs and federations who hold out to   
us1 as a pattern for imitation1 the     
proceedings in ,france1 in which a king1
 who had voluntarily and formally       
divested himself of the right of        
taxation1 and of all other species of   
arbitrary power1 has been dethroned8 ,is
 it because ,mr4 ,burke wished to have  
,america rather conciliated than        
vanquished1 that he must wish well to   
the army of republics which are set up  
in ,france1--a country wherein not the  
people1 but the monarch1 was wholly on  
the defensive1 7a poor1 indeed1 and     
feeble defensive17 to preserve some     
fragments of the royal authority against
 a determined and desperate body of     
conspirators1 whose object it was1 with 
whatever certainty of crimes1 with      
whatever hazard of war1 and every other 

species of calamity1 to annihilate the  
whole of that authority1 to level all   
ranks1 orders1 and distinctions in the  
state1 and utterly to destroy property1 
not more by their acts than in their    
principles8  ,mr4 ,burke has been also  
reproached with an inconsistency between
 his late writings and his former       
conduct1 because he had proposed in     
,parliament several economical1 leading 
to several constitutional reforms4 ,mr4 
,burke thought1 with a majority of the  
,house of ,commons1 that the influence  
of the crown at one time was too great2 
but after his ,majesty had1 by a        
gracious message1 and several subsequent
 acts of ,parliament1 reduced it to a   
standard which satisfied ,mr4 ,fox      
himself1 and1 apparently at least1      
contented whoever wished to go farthest 
in that reduction1 is ,mr4 ,burke to    
allow that it would be right for us to  
proceed to indefinite lengths upon that 
subject8 that it would therefore be     
justifiable in a people owing allegiance

 to a monarchy1 and professing to       
maintain it1 not to reduce1 but wholly  
to take away all prerogative and all    
influence whatsoever8 ,must his having  
made1 in virtue of a plan of economical 
regulation1 a reduction of the influence
 of the crown compel him to allow that  
it would be right in the ,french or in  
us to bring a king to so abject a state 
as in function not to be so respectable 
as an under-sheriff1 but in person not  
to differ from the condition of a mere  
prisoner8 ,one would think that such a  
thing as a medium had never been heard  
of in the moral world4  ,this mode of   
arguing from your having done any thing 
in a certain line to the necessity of   
doing every thing has political         
consequences of other moment than those 
of a logical fallacy4 ,if no man can    
propose any diminution or modification  
of an invidious or dangerous power or   
influence in government1 without        
entitling friends turned into           
adversaries to argue him into the       

destruction of all prerogative1 and to a
 spoliation of the whole patronage of   
royalty1 ,i do not know what can more   
effectually deter persons of sober minds
 from engaging in any reform1 nor how   
the worst enemies to the liberty of the 
subject could contrive any method more  
fit to bring all correctives on the     
power of the crown into suspicion and   
disrepute4  ,if1 say his accusers1 the  
dread of too great influence in the     
crown of ,great ,britain could justify  
the degree of reform which he adopted1  
the dread of a return under the         
despotism of a monarchy might justify   
the people of ,france in going much     
further1 and reducing monarchy to its   
present nothing4--,mr4 ,burke does not  
allow that a sufficient argument ad     
hominem is inferable from these         
premises4 ,if the horror of the excesses
 of an absolute monarchy furnishes a    
reason for abolishing it1 no monarchy   
once absolute 7all have been so at one  
period or other7 could ever be limited4 

,it must be destroyed2 otherwise no way 
could be found to quiet the fears of    
those who were formerly subjected to    
that sway4 ,but the principle of ,mr4   
,burke's proceeding ought to lead him to
 a very different conclusion1--to this  
conclusion1--that a monarchy is a thing 
perfectly susceptible of reform1        
perfectly susceptible of a balance of   
power1 and that1 when reformed and      
balanced1 for a great country it is the 
best of all governments4 ,the example of
 our country might have led ,france1 as 
it has led him1 to perceive that        
monarchy is not only reconcilable to    
liberty1 but that it may be rendered a  
great and stable security to its        
perpetual enjoyment4 ,no correctives    
which he proposed to the power of the   
crown could lead him to approve of a    
plan of a republic 7if so it may be     
reputed7 which has no correctives1 and  
which he believes to be incapable of    
admitting any4 ,no principle of ,mr4    
,burke's conduct or writings obliged him

 from consistency to become an advocate 
for an exchange of mischiefs2 no        
principle of his could compel him to    
justify the setting up in the place of a
 mitigated monarchy a new and far more  
despotic power1 under which there is no 
trace of liberty1 except what appears in
 confusion and in crime4  ,mr4 ,burke   
does not admit that the faction         
predominant in ,france have abolished   
their monarchy1 and the orders of their 
state1 from any dread of arbitrary power
 that lay heavy on the minds of the     
people4 ,it is not very long since he   
has been in that country4 ,whilst there 
he conversed with many descriptions of  
its inhabitants4 ,a few persons of rank 
did1 he allows1 discover strong and     
manifest tokens of such a spirit of     
liberty as might be expected one day to 
break all bounds4 ,such gentlemen have  
since had more reason to repent of their
 want of foresight than ,i hope any of  
the same class will ever have in this   
country4 ,but this spirit was far from  

general1 even amongst the gentlemen4 ,as
 to the lower orders1 and those little  
above them1 in whose name the present   
powers domineer1 they were far from     
discovering any sort of dissatisfaction 
with the power and prerogatives of the  
crown4 ,that vain people were rather    
proud of them3 they rather despised the 
,english for not having a monarch       
possessed of such high and perfect      
authority4 ,they had felt nothing from  
lettres de cachet4 ,the ,bastile could  
inspire no horrors into them4 ,this was 
a treat for their betters4 ,it was by   
art and impulse1 it was by the sinister 
use made of a season of scarcity1 it was
 under an infinitely diversified        
succession of wicked pretences wholly   
foreign to the question of monarchy or  
aristocracy1 that this light people were
 inspired with their present spirit of  
levelling4 ,their old vanity was led by 
art to take another turn3 it was dazzled
 and seduced by military liveries1      
cockades1 and epaulets1 until the       

,french populace was led to become the  
willing1 but still the proud and        
thoughtless1 instrument and victim of   
another domination4 ,neither did that   
people despise or hate or fear their    
nobility3 on the contrary1 they valued  
themselves on the generous qualities    
which distinguished the chiefs of their 
nation4  ,so far as to the attack on    
,mr4 ,burke in consequence of his       
reforms4  ,to show that he has in his   
last publication abandoned those        
principles of liberty which have given  
energy to his youth1 and in spite of his
 censors will afford repose and         
consolation to his declining age1 those 
who have thought proper in ,parliament  
to declare against his book ought to    
have produced something in it which     
directly or indirectly militates with   
any rational plan of free government4   
,it is something extraordinary1 that    
they whose memories have so well served 
them with regard to light and ludicrous 
expressions1 which years had consigned  

to oblivion1 should not have been able  
to quote a single passage in a piece so 
lately published1 which contradicts     
anything he has formerly ever said in a 
style either ludicrous or serious4 ,they
 quote his former speeches and his      
former votes1 but not one syllable from 
the book4 ,it is only by a collation of 
the one with the other that the alleged 
inconsistency can be established4 ,but  
as they are unable to cite any such     
contradictory passage1 so neither can   
they show anything in the general       
tendency and spirit of the whole work   
unfavorable to a rational and generous  
spirit of liberty2 unless a warm        
opposition to the spirit of levelling1  
to the spirit of impiety1 to the spirit 
of proscription1 plunder1 murder1 and   
cannibalism1 be adverse to the true     
principles of freedom4  ,the author of  
that book is supposed to have passed    
from extreme to extreme2 but he has     
always kept himself in a medium4 ,this  
charge is not so wonderful4 ,it is in   

the nature of things1 that they who are 
in the centre of a circle should appear 
directly opposed to those who view them 
from any part of the circumference4 ,in 
that middle point1 however1 he will     
still remain1 though he may hear people 
who themselves run beyond ,aurora and   
the ,ganges cry out that he is at the   
extremity of the ,west4  ,in the same   
debate ,mr4 ,burke was represented by   
,mr4 ,fox as arguing in a manner which  
implied that the ,british ,constitution 
could not be defended1 but by abusing   
all republics ancient and modern4 ,he   
said nothing to give the least ground   
for such a censure4 ,he never abused all
 republics4 ,he has never professed     
himself a friend or an enemy to         
republics or to monarchies in the       
abstract4 ,he thought that the          
circumstances and habits of every       
country1 which it is always perilous and
 productive of the greatest calamities  
to force1 are to decide upon the form of
 its government4 ,there is nothing in   

his nature1 his temper1 or his faculties
 which should make him an enemy to any  
republic1 modern or ancient4 ,far from  
it4 ,he has studied the form and spirit 
of republics very early in life2 he has 
studied them with great attention1 and  
with a mind undisturbed by affection or 
prejudice4 ,he is1 indeed1 convinced    
that the science of government would be 
poorly cultivated without that study4   
,but the result in his mind from that   
investigation has been and is1 that     
neither ,england nor ,france1 without   
infinite detriment to them1 as well in  
the event as in the experiment1 could be
 brought into a republican form2 but    
that everything republican which can be 
introduced with safety into either of   
them must be built upon a               
monarchy1--built upon a real1 not a     
nominal monarchy1 as its essential      
basis2 that all such institutions1      
whether aristocratic or democratic1 must
 originate from their crown1 and in all 
their proceedings must refer to it2 that

 by the energy of that mainspring alone 
those republican parts must be set in   
action1 and from thence must derive     
their whole legal effect1 7as amongst us
 they actually do17 or the whole will   
fall into confusion4 ,these republican  
members have no other point but the     
crown in which they can possibly unite4 
,this is the opinion expressed in ,mr4  
,burke's book4 ,he has never varied in  
that opinion since he came to years of  
discretion4 ,but surely1 if at any time 
of his life he had entertained other    
notions1 7which1 however1 he has never  
held or professed to hold17 the horrible
 calamities brought upon a great people 
by the wild attempt to force their      
country into a republic might be more   
than sufficient to undeceive his        
understanding1 and to free it forever   
from such destructive fancies4 ,he is   
certain that many1 even in ,france1 have
 been made sick of their theories by    
their very success in realizing them4   
,to fortify the imputation of a         

desertion from his principles1 his      
constant attempts to reform abuses have 
been brought forward4 ,it is true1 it   
has been the business of his strength to
 reform abuses in government1 and his   
last feeble efforts are employed in a   
struggle against them4 ,politically he  
has lived in that element2 politically  
he will die in it4 ,before he departs1  
,i will admit for him that he deserves  
to have all his titles of merit brought 
forth1 as they have been1 for grounds of
 condemnation1 if one word justifying or
 supporting abuses of any sort is to be 
found in that book which has kindled so 
much indignation in the mind of a great 
man4 ,on the contrary1 it spares no     
existing abuse4 ,its very purpose is to 
make war with abuses1--not1 indeed1 to  
make war with the dead1 but with those  
which live1 and flourish1 and reign4    
,the purpose for which the abuses of    
government are brought into view forms a
 very material consideration in the mode
 of treating them4 ,the complaints of a 

friend are things very different from   
the invectives of an enemy4 ,the charge 
of abuses on the late monarchy of       
,france was not intended to lead to its 
reformation1 but to justify its         
destruction4 ,they who have raked into  
all history for the faults of kings1 and
 who have aggravated every fault they   
have found1 have acted consistently1    
because they acted as enemies4 ,no man  
can be a friend to a tempered monarchy  
who bears a decided hatred to monarchy  
itself4 ,he1 who1 at the present time1  
is favorable or even fair to that       
system1 must act towards it as towards a
 friend with frailties who is under the 
prosecution of implacable foes4 ,i think
 it a duty1 in that case1 not to inflame
 the public mind against the obnoxious  
person by any exaggeration of his       
faults4 ,it is our duty rather to       
palliate his errors and defects1 or to  
cast them into the shade1 and           
industriously to bring forward any good 
qualities that he may happen to possess4

 ,but when the man is to be amended1 and
 by amendment to be preserved1 then the 
line of duty takes another direction4   
,when his safety is effectually provided
 for1 it then becomes the office of a   
friend to urge his faults and vices with
 all the energy of enlightened          
affection1 to paint them in their most  
vivid colors1 and to bring the moral    
patient to a better habit4 ,thus ,i     
think with regard to individuals2 thus  
,i think with regard to ancient and     
respected governments and orders of men4
 ,a spirit of reformation is never more 
consistent with itself than when it     
refuses to be rendered the means of     
destruction4  ,i suppose that enough is 
said upon these heads of accusation4    
,one more ,i had nearly forgotten1 but  
,i shall soon dispatch it4 ,the author  
of the ,reflections1 in the opening of  
the last ,parliament1 entered on the    
journals of the ,house of ,commons a    
motion for a remonstrance to the crown1 
which is substantially a defence of the 

preceding ,parliament1 that had been    
dissolved under displeasure4 ,it is a   
defence of ,mr4 ,fox4 ,it is a defence  
of the ,whigs4 ,by what connection of   
argument1 by what association of ideas1 
this apology for ,mr4 ,fox and his party
 is by him and them brought to criminate
 his and their apologist1 ,i cannot     
easily divine4 ,it is true that ,mr4    
,burke received no previous             
encouragement from ,mr4 ,fox1 nor any   
the least countenance or support1 at the
 time when the motion was made1 from him
 or from any gentleman of the           
party1--one only excepted1 from whose   
friendship1 on that and on other        
occasions1 he derives an honor to which 
he must be dull indeed to be            
insensible4#aa ,if that remonstrance1   
therefore1 was a false or feeble defence
 of the measures of the party1 they were
 in no wise affected by it4 ,it stands  
on the journals4 ,this secures to it a  
permanence which the author cannot      
expect to any other work of his4 ,let it

 speak for itself to the present age and
 to all posterity4 ,the party had no    
concern in it2 and it can never be      
quoted against them4 ,but in the late   
debate it was produced1 not to clear the
 party from an improper defence in which
 they had no share1 but for the kind    
purpose of insinuating an inconsistency 
between the principles of ,mr4 ,burke's 
defence of the dissolved ,parliament and
 those on which he proceeded in his late
 ,reflections on ,france4  ,it requires 
great ingenuity to make out such a      
parallel between the two cases as to    
found a charge of inconsistency in the  
principles assumed in arguing the one   
and the other4 ,what relation had ,mr4  
,fox's ,india ,bill to the ,constitution
 of ,france8 ,what relation had that    
,constitution to the question of right  
in an ,house of ,commons to give or to  
withhold its confidence from ministers1 
and to state that opinion to the crown8 
,what had this discussion to do with    
,mr4 ,burke's idea in #aghd of the ill  

consequences which must in the end arise
 to the crown from setting up the       
commons at large as an opposite interest
 to the commons in ,parliament8 ,what   
has this discussion to do with a        
recorded warning to the people of their 
rashly forming a precipitate judgment   
against their representatives8 ,what had
 ,mr4 ,burke's opinion of the danger of 
introducing new theoretic language1     
unknown to the records of the kingdom1  
and calculated to excite vexatious      
questions1 into a ,parliamentary        
proceeding1 to do with the ,french      
,assembly1 which defies all precedent1  
and places its whole glory in realizing 
what had been thought the most visionary
 theories8 ,what had this in common with
 the abolition of the ,french monarchy1 
or with the principles upon which the   
,english ,revolution was justified1--a  
,revolution in which ,parliament1 in all
 its acts and all its declarations1     
religiously adheres to the form of sound
 words1 without excluding from private  

discussions such terms of art as may    
serve to conduct an inquiry for which   
none but private persons are            
responsible8 ,these were the topics of  
,mr4 ,burke's proposed remonstrance2 all
 of which topics suppose the existence  
and mutual relation of our three        
estates1--as well as the relation of the
 ,east ,india ,company to the crown1 to 
,parliament1 and to the peculiar laws1  
rights1 and usages of the people of     
,hindostan4 ,what reference1 ,i say1 had
 these topics to the ,constitution of   
,france1 in which there is no king1 no  
lords1 no commons1 no ,india ,company to
 injure or support1 no ,indian empire to
 govern or oppress8 ,what relation had  
all or any of these1 or any question    
which could arise between the           
prerogatives of the crown and the       
privileges of ,parliament1 with the     
censure of those factious persons in    
,great ,britain whom ,mr4 ,burke states 
to be engaged1 not in favor of privilege
 against prerogative1 or of prerogative 

against privilege1 but in an open       
attempt against our crown and our       
,parliament1 against our ,constitution  
in ,church and ,state1 against all the  
parts and orders which compose the one  
and the other8  ,no persons were more   
fiercely active against ,mr4 ,fox1 and  
against the measures of the ,house of   
,commons dissolved in #aghd1 which ,mr4 
,burke defends in that remonstrance1    
than several of those revolution-makers 
whom ,mr4 ,burke condemns alike in his  
remonstrance and in his book4 ,these    
revolutionists1 indeed1 may be well     
thought to vary in their conduct4 ,he   
is1 however1 far from accusing them1 in 
this variation1 of the smallest degree  
of inconsistency4 ,he is persuaded that 
they are totally indifferent at which   
end they begin the demolition of the    
,constitution4 ,some are for commencing 
their operations with the destruction of
 the civil powers1 in order the better  
to pull down the ecclesiastical1--some  
wish to begin with the ecclesiastical1  

in order to facilitate the ruin of the  
civil2 some would destroy the ,house of 
,commons through the crown1 some the    
crown through the ,house of ,commons1   
and some would overturn both the one and
 the other through what they call the   
people4 ,but ,i believe that this       
injured writer will think it not at all 
inconsistent with his present duty or   
with his former life strenuously to     
oppose all the various partisans of     
destruction1 let them begin where or    
when or how they will4 ,no man would set
 his face more determinedly against     
those who should attempt to deprive     
them1 or any description of men1 of the 
rights they possess4 ,no man would be   
more steady in preventing them from     
abusing those rights to the destruction 
of that happy order under which they    
enjoy them4 ,as to their title to       
anything further1 it ought to be        
grounded on the proof they give of the  
safety with which power may be trusted  
in their hands4 ,when they attempt      

without disguise1 not to win it from our
 affections1 but to force it from our   
fears1 they show1 in the character of   
their means of obtaining it1 the use    
they would make of their dominion4 ,that
 writer is too well read in men not to  
know how often the desire and design of 
a tyrannic domination lurks in the claim
 of an extravagant liberty4 ,perhaps in 
the beginning it always displays itself 
in that manner4 ,no man has ever        
affected power which he did not hope    
from the favor of the existing          
government in any other mode4         99
       99       99       99       99    
,the attacks on the author's consistency
 relative to ,france are 7however       
grievous they may be to his feelings7 in
 a great degree external to him and to  
us1 and comparatively of little moment  
to the people of ,england4 ,the         
substantial charge upon him is          
concerning his doctrines relative to the
 ,revolution of #afhh4 ,here it is that 
they who speak in the name of the party 

have thought proper to censure him the  
most loudly and with the greatest       
asperity4 ,here they fasten1 and1 if    
they are right in their fact1 with      
sufficient judgment in their selection4 
,if he be guilty in this point1 he is   
equally blamable1 whether he is         
consistent or not4 ,if he endeavors to  
delude his countrymen by a false        
representation of the spirit of that    
leading event1 and of the true nature   
and tenure of the government formed in  
consequence of it1 he is deeply         
responsible1 he is an enemy to the free 
,constitution of the kingdom4 ,but he is
 not guilty in any sense4 ,i maintain   
that in his ,reflections he has stated  
the ,revolution and the ,settlement upon
 their true principles of legal reason  
and constitutional policy4  ,his        
authorities are the acts and            
declarations of ,parliament1 given in   
their proper words4 ,so far as these go1
 nothing can be added to what he has    
quoted4 ,the question is1 whether he has

 understood them rightly4 ,i think they 
speak plain enough4 ,but we must now see
 whether he proceeds with other         
authority than his own constructions1   
and1 if he does1 on what sort of        
authority he proceeds4 ,in this part1   
his defence will not be made by         
argument1 but by wager of law4 ,he takes
 his compurgators1 his vouchers1 his    
guaranties1 along with him4 ,i know that
 he will not be satisfied with a        
justification proceeding on general     
reasons of policy4 ,he must be defended 
on party grounds1 too1 or his cause is  
not so tenable as ,i wish it to appear4 
,it must be made out for him not only   
that in his construction of these public
 acts and monuments he conforms himself 
to the rules of fair1 legal1 and logical
 interpretation1 but it must be proved  
that his construction is in perfect     
harmony with that of the ancient ,whigs1
 to whom1 against the sentence of the   
modern1 on his part1 ,i here appeal4    
,this ,july it will be twenty-six       

years#ab since he became connected with 
a man whose memory will ever be precious
 to ,englishmen of all parties1 as long 
as the ideas of honor and virtue1 public
 and private1 are understood and        
cherished in this nation4 ,that memory  
will be kept alive with particular      
veneration by all rational and honorable
 ,whigs4 ,mr4 ,burke entered into a     
connection with that party through that 
man1 at an age far from raw and         
immature1--at those years when men are  
all they are ever likely to             
become1--when he was in the prime and   
vigor of his life1--when the powers of  
his understanding1 according to their   
standard1 were at the best1 his memory  
exercised1 his judgment formed1 and his 
reading much fresher in the recollection
 and much readier in the application    
than now it is4 ,he was at that time as 
likely as most men to know what were    
,whig and what were ,tory principles4   
,he was in a situation to discern what  
sort of ,whig principles they           

entertained with whom it was his wish to
 form an eternal connection4 ,foolish he
 would have been at that time of life   
7more foolish than any man who          
undertakes a public trust would be      
thought7 to adhere to a cause which he1 
amongst all those who were engaged in   
it1 had the least sanguine hopes of as a
 road to power4  ,there are who         
remember1 that1 on the removal of the   
,whigs in the year #agff1 he was as free
 to choose another connection as any man
 in the kingdom4 ,to put himself out of 
the way of the negotiations which were  
then carrying on very eagerly and       
through many channels with the ,earl of 
,chatham1 he went to ,ireland very soon 
after the change of ministry1 and did   
not return until the meeting of         
,parliament4 ,he was at that time free  
from anything which looked like an      
engagement4 ,he was further free at the 
desire of his friends2 for1 the very day
 of his return1 the ,marquis of         
,rockingham wished him to accept an     

employment under the new system4 ,he    
believes he might have had such a       
situation2 but again he cheerfully took 
his fate with the party4  ,it would be a
 serious imputation upon the prudence of
 my friend1 to have made even such      
trivial sacrifices as it was in his     
power to make for principles which he   
did not truly embrace or did not        
perfectly understand4 ,in either case   
the folly would have been great4 ,the   
question now is1 whether1 when he first 
practically professed ,whig principles1 
he understood what principles he        
professed1 and whether in his book he   
has faithfully expressed them4  ,when he
 entered into the ,whig party1 he did   
not conceive that they pretended to any 
discoveries4 ,they did not affect to be 
better ,whigs than those were who lived 
in the days in which principle was put  
to the test4 ,some of the ,whigs of     
those days were then living4 ,they were 
what the ,whigs had been at the         
,revolution1--what they had been during 

the reign of ,queen ,anne1--what they   
had been at the accession of the present
 royal family4  ,what they were at those
 periods is to be seen4 ,it rarely      
happens to a party to have the          
opportunity of a clear1 authentic1      
recorded declaration of their political 
tenets upon the subject of a great      
constitutional event like that of the   
,revolution4 ,the ,whigs had that       
opportunity1--or to speak more properly1
 they made it4 ,the impeachment of ,dr4 
,sacheverell was undertaken by a ,whig  
ministry and a ,whig ,house of ,commons1
 and carried on before a prevalent and  
steady majority of ,whig peers4 ,it was 
carried on for the express purpose of   
stating the true grounds and principles 
of the ,revolution1--what the ,commons  
emphatically called their foundation4   
,it was carried on for the purpose of   
condemning the principles on which the  
,revolution was first opposed and       
afterwards calumniated1 in order1 by a  
juridical sentence of the highest       

authority1 to confirm and fix ,whig     
principles1 as they had operated both in
 the resistance to ,king ,james and in  
the subsequent settlement1 and to fix   
them in the extent and with the         
limitations with which it was meant they
 should be understood by posterity4 ,the
 ministers and managers for the ,commons
 were persons who had1 many of them1 an 
active share in the ,revolution4 ,most  
of them had seen it at an age capable of
 reflection4 ,the grand event1 and all  
the discussions which led to it and     
followed it1 were then alive in the     
memory and conversation of all men4 ,the
 managers for the ,commons must be      
supposed to have spoken on that subject 
the prevalent ideas of the leading party
 in the ,commons1 and of the ,whig      
ministry4 ,undoubtedly they spoke also  
their own private opinions2 and the     
private opinions of such men are not    
without weight4 ,they were not          
umbratiles doctores1 men who had studied
 a free ,constitution only in its       

anatomy and upon dead systems4 ,they    
knew it alive and in action4  ,in this  
proceeding the ,whig principles1 as     
applied to the ,revolution and          
,settlement1 are to be found1 or they   
are to be found nowhere4 ,i wish the    
,whig readers of this ,appeal first to  
turn to ,mr4 ,burke's ,reflections1 from
 page #bj to page #ej1ac and then to    
attend to the following extracts from   
the trial of ,dr4 ,sacheverell4 ,after  
this1 they will consider two things3    
first1 whether the doctrine in ,mr4     
,burke's ,reflections be consonant to   
that of the ,whigs of that period2 and1 
secondly1 whether they choose to abandon
 the principles which belonged to the   
progenitors of some of them1 and to the 
predecessors of them all1 and to learn  
new principles of ,whiggism1 imported   
from ,france1 and disseminated in this  
country from ,dissenting pulpits1 from  
,federation societies1 and from the     
pamphlets1 which 7as containing the     
political creed of those synods7 are    

industriously circulated in all parts of
 the two kingdoms4 ,this is their       
affair1 and they will make their option4
  ,these new ,whigs hold that the       
sovereignty1 whether exercised by one or
 many1 did not only originate from the  
people1 7a position not denied nor worth
 denying or assenting to17 but that in  
the people the same sovereignty         
constantly and unalienably resides2 that
 the people may lawfully depose kings1  
not only for misconduct1 but without any
 misconduct at all2 that they may set up
 any new fashion of government for      
themselves1 or continue without any     
government1 at their pleasure2 that the 
people are essentially their own rule1  
and their will the measure of their     
conduct2 that the tenure of magistracy  
is not a proper subject of contract1    
because magistrates have duties1 but no 
rights2 and that1 if a contract de facto
 is made with them in one age1 allowing 
that it binds at all1 it only binds     
those who are immediately concerned in  

it1 but does not pass to posterity4     
,these doctrines concerning the people  
7a term which they are far from         
accurately defining1 but by which1 from 
many circumstances1 it is plain enough  
they mean their own faction1 if they    
should grow1 by early arming1 by        
treachery1 or violence1 into the        
prevailing force7 tend1 in my opinion1  
to the utter subversion1 not only of all
 government1 in all modes1 and to all   
stable securities to rational freedom1  
but to all the rules and principles of  
morality itself4  ,i assert that the    
ancient ,whigs held doctrines totally   
different from those ,i have last       
mentioned4 ,i assert1 that the          
foundations laid down by the ,commons1  
on the trial of ,dr4 ,sacheverell1 for  
justifying the ,revolution of #afhh1 are
 the very same laid down in ,mr4        
,burke's ,reflections1--that is to say1 
a breach of the original contrast1      
implied and expressed in the            
,constitution of this country1 as a     

scheme of government fundamentally and  
inviolably fixed in ,king1 ,lords1 and  
,commons2--that the fundamental         
subversion of this ancient              
,constitution1 by one of its parts1     
having been attempted1 and in effect    
accomplished1 justified the             
,revolution2--that it was justified only
 upon the necessity of the case1 as the 
only means left for the recovery of that
 ancient ,constitution formed by the    
original contract of the ,british state1
 as well as for the future preservation 
of the same government4 ,these are the  
points to be proved4  ,a general opening
 to the charge against ,dr4 ,sacheverell
 was made by the attorney-general1 ,sir 
,john ,montague2 but as there is nothing
 in that opening speech which tends very
 accurately to settle the principle upon
 which the ,whigs proceeded in the      
prosecution1 7the plan of the speech not
 requiring it17 ,i proceed to that of   
,mr4 ,lechmere1 the manager1 who spoke  
next after him4 ,the following are      

extracts1 given1 not in the exact order 
in which they stand in the printed      
trial1 but in that which is thought most
 fit to bring the ideas of the ,whig    
,commons distinctly under our view4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,mr4 ,lechmere#ad  ,it becomes an       
indispensable duty upon us1 who appear  
in the name and on the behalf of all the
 commons of ,great ,britain1 not only to
 demand your ,lordships' justice on such
 a criminal1 ,dr4 ,sacheverell1 but     
clearly and openly to assert our        
foundations4  ,sidenote3 ,that the terms
 of our ,constitution imply and express 
an original contract4  ,sidenote3 ,that 
the contract is mutual consent1 and     
binding at all times upon the parties4  
,sidenote3 ,the mixed ,constitution     
uniformly preserved for many ages1 and  
is a proof of the contract4  ,the nature
 of our ,constitution is that of a      
limited monarchy1 wherein the supreme   
power is communicated and divided       
between ,queen1 ,lords1 and ,commons1   

though the executive power and          
administration be wholly in the crown4  
,the terms of such a ,constitution do   
not only suppose1 but express1 an       
original contract between the crown and 
the people1 by which that supreme power 
was 7by mutual consent1 and not by      
accident7 limited and lodged in more    
hands than one4 ,and the uniform        
preservation of such a ,constitution for
 so many ages1 without any fundamental  
change1 demonstrates to your ,lordships 
the continuance of the same contract4   
,sidenote3 ,laws the common measure to  
,king and subject4  ,sidenote3 ,case of 
fundamental injury1 and breach of       
original contract4  ,the consequences of
 such a frame of government are obvious3
 ,that the laws are the rule to both1   
the common measure of the power of the  
crown and of the obedience of the       
subject2 and if the executive part      
endeavors the subversion and total      
destruction of the government1 the      
original contract is thereby broke1 and 

the right of allegiance ceases that part
 of the government thus fundamentally   
injured hath a right to save or recover 
that ,constitution in which it had an   
original interest4  ,sidenote3 ,words   
necessary means selected with caution4  
,the necessary means 7which is the      
phrase used by the ,commons in their    
first article7 words made choice of by  
them with the greatest caution4 ,those  
means are described 7in the preamble to 
their charge7 to be1 that glorious      
enterprise which his late ,majesty      
undertook1 with an armed force1 to      
deliver this kingdom from ,popery and   
arbitrary power2 the concurrence of many
 subjects of the realm1 who came over   
with him in that enterprise1 and of many
 others1 of all ranks and orders1 who   
appeared in arms in many parts of the   
kingdom in aid of that enterprise4      
,these were the means that brought about
 the ,revolution2 and which the act that
 passed soon after1 declaring the rights
 and liberties of the subject1 and      

settling the succession of the crown1   
intends1 when his late ,majesty is      
therein called the glorious instrument  
of delivering the kingdom2 and which the
 ,commons1 in the last part of their    
first article1 express by the word      
resistance4  ,sidenote3 ,regard of the  
,commons to their allegiance to the     
crown1 and to the ancient ,constitution4
  ,but the ,commons1 who will never be  
unmindful of the allegiance of the      
subjects to the crown of this realm1    
judged it highly incumbent upon them1   
out of regard to the safety of her      
,majesty's person and government1 and   
the ancient and legal ,constitution of  
this kingdom1 to call that resistance   
the necessary means2 thereby plainly    
founding that power1 of right and       
resistance1 which was exercised by the  
people at the time of the happy         
,revolution1 and which the duties of    
self-preservation and religion called   
them to1 upon the ,,necessity of the    
case1 and at the same time effectually  

securing her ,majesty's government1 and 
the due allegiance of all her subjects4 
,sidenote3 ,all ages have the same      
interest in preservation of the         
contract1 and the same ,constitution4   
,the nature of such an original contract
 of government proves that there is not 
only a power in the people1 who have    
inherited its freedom1 to assert their  
own title to it1 but they are bound in  
duty to transmit the same ,constitution 
to their posterity also4         99     
99       99       99       99  ,mr4     
,lechmere made a second speech4         
,notwithstanding the clear and          
satisfactory manner in which he         
delivered himself in his first1 upon    
this arduous question1 he thinks himself
 bound again distinctly to assert the   
same foundation1 and to justify the     
,revolution on the case of necessity    
only1 upon principles perfectly         
coinciding with those laid down in ,mr4 
,burke's letter on the ,french affairs4 
99       99       99       99       99  

,mr4 ,lechmere4  ,sidenote3 ,the        
,commons strictly confine their ideas of
 a revolution to necessity alone and    
self-defence4  ,sidenote ,a3 ,n4,b4 ,the
 remark implies1 that allegiance would  
be insecure without this restriction4   
,your ,lordships were acquainted1 in    
opening the charge1 with how great      
caution1 and with what unfeigned regard 
to her ,majesty and her government1 and 
to the duty and allegiance of her       
subjects1 the ,commons made choice of   
the words necessary means to express the
 resistance that was made use of to     
bring about the ,revolution1 and with   
the condemning of which the ,doctor is  
charged by this article3 not doubting   
but that the honor and justice of that  
resistance1 from the necessity of that  
case1 and to which alone we have        
strictly confined ourselves1 when duly  
considered1 would confirm and           
strengthen,a and be understood to be an 
effectual security of the allegiance of 
the subject to the crown of this realm1 

in every other case where there is not  
the same necessity2 and that the right  
of the people to self-defence1 and      
preservation of their liberties1 by     
resistance as their last remedy1 is the 
result of a case of such ,,necessity    
,,only1 and by which the ,,original     
,,contract between king and people is   
broke4 ,this was the principle laid down
 and carried through all that was said  
with respect to ,,allegiance2 and on    
,,which ,,foundation1 in the name and on
 the behalf of all the commons of ,great
 ,britain1 we assert and justify that   
resistance by which the late happy      
,revolution was brought about4  ,it     
appears to your ,lordships and the      
world1 that breaking the original       
contract between king and people were   
the words made choice of by that ,house 
of ,commons1 7the ,house of ,commons    
which originated the ,declaration of    
,right17 with the greatest deliberation 
and judgment1 and approved of by your   
,lordships1 in that first and           

fundamental step made towards the       
re-establishment of the government1     
which had received so great a shock from
 the evil counsels which had been given 
to that unfortunate prince4         99  
99       99       99       99  ,sir     
,john ,hawles1 another of the managers1 
follows the steps of his brethren1      
positively affirming the doctrine of    
non-resistance to government to be the  
general moral1 religious1 and political 
rule for the subject1 and justifying the
 ,revolution on the same principle with 
,mr4 ,burke1--that is1 as an exception  
from necessity4 ,indeed1 he carries the 
doctrine on the general idea of         
non-resistance much further than ,mr4   
,burke has done1 and full as far as it  
can perhaps be supported by any duty of 
perfect obligation1 however noble and   
heroic it may be in many cases to suffer
 death rather than disturb the          
tranquillity of our country4         99 
99       99       99       99  ,sir     
,john ,hawles4#ae  ,certainly it must be

 granted1 that the doctrine that        
commands obedience to the supreme power1
 though in things contrary to ,nature1  
even to suffer death1 which is the      
highest injustice that can be done a    
man1 rather than make an opposition to  
the supreme power is reasonable#af1     
because the death of one or some few    
private persons is a less evil than     
disturbing the whole government2 that   
law must needs be understood to forbid  
the doing or saying anything to disturb 
the government1 the rather because the  
obeying that law cannot be pretended to 
be against ,nature3 and the ,doctor's   
refusing to obey that implicit law is   
the reason for which he is now          
prosecuted2 though he would have it     
believed that the reason he is now      
prosecuted was for the doctrine he      
asserted of obedience to the supreme    
power2 which he might have preached as  
long as he had pleased1 and the ,commons
 would have taken no offence at it1 if  
he had stopped there1 and not have taken

 upon him1 on that pretence or occasion1
 to have cast odious colors upon the    
,revolution4         99       99        
99       99       99  ,general ,stanhope
 was among the managers4 ,he begins his 
speech by a reference to the opinion of 
his fellow-managers1 which he hoped had 
put beyond all doubt the limits and     
qualifications that the ,commons had    
placed to their doctrines concerning the
 ,revolution2 yet1 not satisfied with   
this general reference1 after condemning
 the principle of non-resistance1 which 
is asserted in the sermon without any   
exception1 and stating1 that1 under the 
specious pretence of preaching a        
peaceable doctrine1 ,sacheverell and the
 ,jacobites meant1 in reality1 to excite
 a rebellion in favor of the ,pretender1
 he explicitly limits his ideas of      
resistance with the boundaries laid down
 by his colleagues1 and by ,mr4 ,burke4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,general ,stanhope4  ,sidenote3 ,rights 
of the subject and the crown equally    

legal4  ,the ,constitution of ,england  
is founded upon compact2 and the        
subjects of this kingdom have1 in their 
several public and private capacities1  
as legal a title to what are their      
rights by law as a prince to the        
possession of his crown4  ,sidenote3    
,justice of resistance founded on       
necessity4  ,your ,lordships1 and most  
that hear me1 are witnesses1 and must   
remember the necessities of those times 
which brought about the ,revolution3    
that no other remedy was left to        
preserve our religion and liberties2    
that resistance was necessary1 and      
consequently just4  ,had the ,doctor1 in
 the remaining part of his sermon1      
preached up peace1 quietness1 and the   
like1 and shown how happy we are under  
her ,majesty's administration1 and      
exhorted obedience to it1 he had never  
been called to answer a charge at your  
,lordships' bar4 ,but the tenor of all  
his subsequent discourse is one         
continued invective against the         

government4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,mr4 ,walpole       
7afterwards ,sir ,robert7 was one of the
 managers on this occasion4 ,he was an  
honorable man and a sound ,whig4 ,he was
 not1 as the ,jacobites and discontented
 ,whigs of his time have represented    
him1 and as ill-informed people still   
represent him1 a prodigal and corrupt   
minister4 ,they charged him1 in their   
libels and seditious conversations1 as  
having first reduced corruption to a    
system4 ,such was their cant4 ,but he   
was far from governing by corruption4   
,he governed by party attachments4 ,the 
charge of systematic corruption is less 
applicable to him1 perhaps1 than to any 
minister who ever served the crown for  
so great a length of time4 ,he gained   
over very few from the opposition4      
,without being a genius of the first    
class1 he was an intelligent1 prudent1  
and safe minister4 ,he loved peace1 and 
he helped to communicate the same       
disposition to nations at least as      

warlike and restless as that in which he
 had the chief direction of affairs4    
,though he served a master who was fond 
of martial fame1 he kept all the        
establishments very low4 ,the land tax  
continued at two shillings in the pound 
for the greater part of his             
administration4 ,the other impositions  
were moderate4 ,the profound repose1 the
 equal liberty1 the firm protection of  
just laws1 during the long period of his
 power1 were the principal causes of    
that prosperity which afterwards took   
such rapid strides towards perfection1  
and which furnished to this nation      
ability to acquire the military glory   
which it has since obtained1 as well as 
to bear the burdens1 the cause and      
consequence of that warlike reputation4 
,with many virtues1 public and private1 
he had his faults2 but his faults were  
superficial4 ,a careless1 coarse1 and   
over-familiar style of discourse1       
without sufficient regard to persons or 
occasions1 and an almost total want of  

political decorum1 were the errors by   
which he was most hurt in the public    
opinion1 and those through which his    
enemies obtained the greatest advantage 
over him4 ,but justice must be done4    
,the prudence1 steadiness1 and vigilance
 of that man1 joined to the greatest    
possible lenity in his character and his
 politics1 preserved the crown to this  
royal family1 and1 with it1 their laws  
and liberties to this country4 ,walpole 
had no other plan of defence for the    
,revolution than that of the other      
managers1 and of ,mr4 ,burke2 and he    
gives full as little countenance to any 
arbitrary attempts1 on the part of      
restless and factious men1 for framing  
new governments according to their      
fancies4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,mr4 ,walpole4  ,sidenote3 
,case of resistance out of the law1 and 
the highest offence4  ,sidenote3 ,utmost
 necessity justifies it4  ,resistance is
 nowhere enacted to be legal1 but       
subjected1 by all the laws now in being1

 to the greatest penalties4 ',tis what  
is not1 cannot1 nor ought ever to be    
described1 or affirmed in any positive  
law1 to be excusable2 when1 and upon    
what never-to-be-expected occasions1 it 
may be exercised1 no man can foresee2   
and ought never to be thought of1 but   
when an utter subversion of the laws of 
the realm threatens the whole frame of a
 ,constitution1 and no redress can      
otherwise be hoped for4 ,it therefore   
does and ought forever to stand1 in the 
eye and letter of the law1 as the       
highest offence4 ,but because any man1  
or party of men1 may not1 out of folly  
or wantonness1 commit treason1 or make  
their own discontents1 ill principles1  
or disguised affections to another      
interest1 a pretence to resist the      
supreme power1 will it follow from      
thence that the utmost necessity ought  
not to engage a nation in its own       
defence for the preservation of the     
whole8         99       99       99     
99       99  ,sir ,joseph ,jekyl was1 as

 ,i have always heard and believed1 as  
nearly as any individual could be1 the  
very standard of ,whig principles in his
 age4 ,he was a learned and an able man2
 full of honor1 integrity1 and public   
spirit2 no lover of innovation2 nor     
disposed to change his solid principles 
for the giddy fashion of the hour4 ,let 
us hear this ,whig4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,sir ,joseph      
,jekyl4  ,sidenote3 ,commons do not     
state the limits of submission4         
,sidenote3 ,to secure the laws1 the only
 aim of the ,revolution4  ,in clearing  
up and vindicating the justice of the   
,revolution1 which was the second thing 
proposed1 it is far from the intent of  
the ,commons to state the limits and    
bounds of the subject's submission to   
the sovereign4 ,that which the law hath 
been wisely silent in1 the ,commons     
desire to be silent in too2 nor will    
they put any case of a justifiable      
resistance1 but that of the ,revolution 
only3 and they persuade themselves that 

the doing right to that resistance will 
be so far from promoting popular license
 or confusion1 that it will have a      
contrary effect1 and be a means of      
settling men's minds in the love of and 
veneration for the laws2 to rescue and  
secure which was the ,,only aim and     
intention of those concerned in that    
resistance4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,dr4 ,sacheverell's 
counsel defended him on this principle1 
namely1--that1 whilst he enforced from  
the pulpit the general doctrine of      
non-resistance1 he was not obliged to   
take notice of the theoretic limits     
which ought to modify that doctrine4    
,sir ,joseph ,jekyl1 in his reply1      
whilst he controverts its application to
 the ,doctor's defence1 fully admits and
 even enforces the principle itself1 and
 supports the ,revolution of #afhh1 as  
he and all the managers had done before1
 exactly upon the same grounds on which 
,mr4 ,burke has built1 in his           
,reflections on the ,french ,revolution4

         99       99       99       99  
99  ,sir ,joseph ,jekyl4  ,sidenote3    
,blamable to state the bounds of        
non-resistance4  ,sidenote3 ,resistance 
lawful only in case of extreme and      
obvious necessity4  ,if the ,doctor had 
pretended to have stated the particular 
bounds and limits of non-resistance1 and
 told the people in what cases they     
might or might not resist1 he would have
 been much to blame2 nor was one word   
said in the articles1 or by the         
managers1 as if that was expected from  
him2 but1 on the contrary1 we have      
insisted that in ,,no case can          
resistance be lawful1 but in case of    
,,extreme ,,necessity1 and where the    
,constitution can't otherwise be        
preserved2 and such necessity ought to  
be plain and obvious to the sense and   
judgment of the whole nation3 and this  
was the case at the ,revolution4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,the counsel for ,doctor ,sacheverell1  
in defending their client1 were driven  

in reality to abandon the fundamental   
principles of his doctrine1 and to      
confess that an exception to the general
 doctrine of passive obedience and      
non-resistance did exist in the case of 
the ,revolution4 ,this the managers for 
the ,commons considered as having gained
 their cause1 as their having obtained  
the whole of what they contended for4   
,they congratulated themselves and the  
nation on a civil victory as glorious   
and as honorable as any that had        
obtained in arms during that reign of   
triumphs4  ,sir ,joseph ,jekyl1 in his  
reply to ,harcourt1 and the other great 
men who conducted the cause for the     
,tory side1 spoke in the following      
memorable terms1 distinctly stating the 
whole of what the ,whig ,house of       
,commons contended for1 in the name of  
all their constituents4         99      
99       99       99       99  ,sir     
,joseph ,jekyl4  ,sidenote3 ,necessity  
creates an exception1 and the           
,revolution a case of necessity1 the    

utmost extent of the demand of the      
,commons4  ,my ,lords1 the concessions  
7the concessions of ,sacheverell's      
counsel7 are these3 ,that necessity     
creates an exception to the general rule
 of submission to the prince2 that such 
exception is understood or implied in   
the laws that require such submission2  
and that the case of the ,revolution was
 a case of necessity4  ,these are       
concessions so ample1 and do so fully   
answer the drift of the ,commons in this
 article1 and are to the utmost extent  
of their meaning in it1 that ,i can't   
forbear congratulating them upon this   
success of their impeachment1--that in  
full ,parliament1 this erroneous        
doctrine of unlimited non-resistance is 
given up and disclaimed4 ,and may it    
not1 in after ages1 be an addition to   
the glories of this bright reign1 that  
so many of those who are honored with   
being in her ,majesty's service have    
been at your ,lordships' bar thus       
successfully contending for the national

 rights of her people1 and proving they 
are not precarious or remediless8  ,but 
to return to these concessions3 ,i must 
appeal to your ,lordships1 whether they 
are not a total departure from the      
,doctor's answer4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,i now proceed to 
show that the ,whig managers for the    
,commons meant to preserve the          
government on a firm foundation1 by     
asserting the perpetual validity of the 
settlement then made1 and its coercive  
power upon posterity4 ,i mean to show   
that they gave no sort of countenance to
 any doctrine tending to impress the    
people 7taken separately from the       
legislature1 which includes the crown7  
with an idea that they had acquired a   
moral or civil competence to alter1     
without breach of the original compact  
on the part of the king1 the succession 
to the crown1 at their pleasure1--much  
less that they had acquired any right1  
in the case of such an event as caused  
the ,revolution1 to set up any new form 

of government4 ,the author of the       
,reflections1 ,i believe1 thought that  
no man of common understanding could    
oppose to this doctrine the ordinary    
sovereign power as declared in the act  
of ,queen ,anne3 that is1 that the kings
 or queens of the realm1 with the       
consent of ,parliament1 are competent to
 regulate and to settle the succession  
of the crown4 ,this power is and ever   
was inherent in the supreme sovereignty1
 and was not1 as the political divines  
vainly talk1 acquired by the            
,revolution4 ,it is declared in the old 
statute of ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,such a   
power must reside in the complete       
sovereignty of every kingdom2 and it is 
in fact exercised in all of them4 ,but  
this right of competence in the         
legislature1 not in the people1 is by   
the legislature itself to be exercised  
with sound discretion3 that is to say1  
it is to be exercised or not1 in        
conformity to the fundamental principles
 of this government1 to the rules of    

moral obligation1 and to the faith of   
pacts1 either contained in the nature of
 the transaction or entered into by the 
body corporate of the kingdom1--which   
body in juridical construction never    
dies1 and in fact never loses its       
members at once by death4  ,whether this
 doctrine is reconcilable to the modern 
philosophy of government ,i believe the 
author neither knows nor cares1 as he   
has little respect for any of that sort 
of philosophy4 ,this may be because his 
capacity and knowledge do not reach to  
it4 ,if such be the case1 he cannot be  
blamed1 if he acts on the sense of that 
incapacity2 he cannot be blamed1 if1 in 
the most arduous and critical questions 
which can possibly arise1 and which     
affect to the quick the vital parts of  
our ,constitution1 he takes the side    
which leans most to safety and          
settlement2 that he is resolved not to  
be wise beyond what is written in the   
legislative record and practice2 that1  
when doubts arise on them1 he endeavors 

to interpret one statute by another1 and
 to reconcile them all to established1  
recognized morals1 and to the general1  
ancient1 known policy of the laws of    
,england4 ,two things are equally       
evident3 the first is1 that the         
legislature possesses the power of      
regulating the succession of the crown2 
the second1 that in the exercise of that
 right it has uniformly acted as if     
under the restraints which the author   
has stated4 ,that author makes what the 
ancients call mos majorum not indeed his
 sole1 but certainly his principal rule 
of policy1 to guide his judgment in     
whatever regards our laws4 ,uniformity  
and analogy can be preserved in them by 
this process only4 ,that point being    
fixed1 and laying fast hold of a strong 
bottom1 our speculations may swing in   
all directions without public detriment1
 because they will ride with sure       
anchorage4  ,in this manner these things
 have been always considered by our     
ancestors4 ,there are some1 indeed1 who 

have the art of turning the very acts of
 ,parliament which were made for        
securing the hereditary succession in   
the present royal family1 by rendering  
it penal to doubt of the validity of    
those acts of ,parliament1 into an      
instrument for defeating all their ends 
and purposes1--but upon grounds so very 
foolish that it is not worth while to   
take further notice of such sophistry4  
,to prevent any unnecessary subdivision1
 ,i shall here put together what may be 
necessary to show the perfect agreement 
of the ,whigs with ,mr4 ,burke in his   
assertions1 that the ,revolution made no
 essential change in the constitution of
 the monarchy1 or in any of its ancient1
 sound1 and legal principles2 that the  
succession was settled in the ,hanover  
family1 upon the idea and in the mode of
 an hereditary succession qualified with
 ,protestantism2 that it was not settled
 upon elective principles1 in any sense 
of the word elective1 or under any      
modification or description of election 

whatsoever2 but1 on the contrary1 that  
the nation1 after the ,revolution1      
renewed by a fresh compact the spirit of
 the original compact of the state1     
binding itself1 both in its existing    
members and all its posterity1 to adhere
 to the settlement of an hereditary     
succession in the ,protestant line1     
drawn from ,james the ,first1 as the    
stock of inheritance4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,sir     
,john ,hawles4  ,sidenote3 ,necessity of
 settling the right of the crown1 and   
submission to the settlement4  ,if he   
,dr4 ,sacheverell is of the opinion he  
pretends1 ,i can't imagine how it comes 
to pass that he that pays that deference
 to the supreme power has preached so   
directly contrary to the determinations 
of the supreme power in this government1
 he very well knowing that the          
lawfulness of the ,revolution1 and of   
the means whereby it was brought about1 
has already been determined by the      
aforesaid acts of ,parliament1--and do  

it in the worst manner that he could    
invent4 ,for questioning the right to   
the crown here in ,england has procured 
the shedding of more blood and caused   
more slaughter than all the other       
matters tending to disturbances in the  
government put together4 ,if1 therefore1
 the doctrine which the ,apostles had   
laid down was only to continue the peace
 of the world1 as thinking the death of 
some few particular persons better to be
 borne with than a civil war1 sure it is
 the highest breach of that law to      
question the first principles of this   
government4  ,if the ,doctor had been   
contented with the liberty he took of   
preaching up the duty of passive        
obedience in the most extensive manner  
he had thought fit1 and would have      
stopped there1 your ,lordships would not
 have had the trouble in relation to him
 that you now have2 but it is plain that
 he preached up his absolute and        
unconditional obedience1 not to continue
 the peace and tranquillity of this     

nation1 but to set the subjects at      
strife1 and to raise a war in the bowels
 of this nation3 and it is for this that
 he is now prosecuted2 though he would  
fain have it believed that the          
prosecution was for preaching the       
peaceable doctrine of absolute          
obedience4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,sir ,joseph ,jekyl4       
,sidenote3 ,whole frame of government   
restored unhurt1 on the ,revolution4    
,the whole tenor of the administration  
then in being was agreed to by all to be
 a total departure from the             
,constitution4 ,the nation was at that  
time united in that opinion1 all but the
 criminal part of it4 ,and as the nation
 joined in the judgment of their        
disease1 so they did in the remedy4     
,they saw there was no remedy left but  
the last2 and when that remedy took     
place1 the whole frame of the government
 was restored entire and unhurt4#ag     
,this showed the excellent temper the   
nation was in at that time1 that1 after 

such provocations from an abuse of the  
regal power1 and such a convulsion1 no  
one part of the ,constitution was       
altered1 or suffered the least damage2  
but1 on the contrary1 the whole received
 new life and vigor4         99       99
       99       99       99  ,the ,tory 
counsel for ,dr4 ,sacheverell having    
insinuated that a great and essential   
alteration in the ,constitution had been
 wrought by the ,revolution1 ,sir       
,joseph ,jekyl is so strong on this     
point1 that he takes fire even at the   
insinuation of his being of such an     
opinion4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,sir ,joseph ,jekyl4       
,sidenote3 ,no innovation at the        
,revolution4  ,if the ,doctor instructed
 his counsel to insinuate that there was
 any innovation in the ,constitution    
wrought by the ,revolution1 it is an    
addition to his crime4 ,the ,revolution 
did not introduce any innovation2 it was
 a restoration of the ancient           
fundamental ,constitution of the        

kingdom1 and giving it its proper force 
and energy4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,the                
,solicitor-,general1 ,sir ,robert ,eyre1
 distinguishes expressly the case of the
 ,revolution1 and its principles1 from a
 proceeding at pleasure1 on the part of 
the people1 to change their ancient     
,constitution1 and to frame a new       
government for themselves4 ,he          
distinguishes it with the same care from
 the principles of regicide and         
republicanism1 and the sorts of         
resistance condemned by the doctrines of
 the ,church of ,england1 and which     
ought to be condemned by the doctrines  
of all churches professing              
,christianity4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,mr4              
,solicitor-,general1 ,sir ,robert ,eyre4
  ,sidenote3 ,revolution no precedent   
for voluntary cancelling allegiance4    
,sidenote3 ,revolution not like the case
 of ,charles the ,first4  ,the          
resistance at the ,revolution1 which was

 founded in unavoidable necessity1 could
 be no defence to a man that was        
attacked for asserting that the people  
might cancel their allegiance at        
pleasure1 or dethrone and murder their  
sovereign by a judiciary sentence4 ,for 
it can never be inferred1 from the      
lawfulness of resistance at a time when 
a total subversion of the government    
both in ,church and ,state was intended1
 that a people may take up arms and call
 their sovereign to account at pleasure2
 and therefore1 since the ,revolution   
could be of no service in giving the    
least color for asserting any such      
wicked principle1 the ,doctor could     
never intend to put it into the mouths  
of those new preachers and new          
politicians for a defence1--unless it be
 his opinion that the resistance at the 
,revolution can bear any parallel with  
the execrable murder of the royal       
martyr1 so justly detested by the whole 
nation4  ,sidenote3 ,sacheverell's      
doctrine intended to bring an odium on  

the ,revolution4  ,sidenote3 ,true      
defence of the ,revolution an absolute  
necessity4  ',tis plain that the ,doctor
 is not impeached for preaching a       
general doctrine1 and enforcing the     
general duty of obedience1 but for      
preaching against an excepted case after
 he has stated the exception4 ,he is not
 impeached for preaching the general    
doctrine of obedience1 and the utter    
illegality of resistance upon any       
pretence whatsoever1 but because1 having
 first laid down the general doctrine as
 true1 without any exception1 he states 
the excepted case1 the ,revolution1 in  
express terms1 as an objection1 and then
 assumes the consideration of that      
excepted case1 denies there was any     
resistance in the ,revolution1 and      
asserts that to impute resistance to the
 ,revolution would cast black and odious
 colors upon it4 ,this1 my ,lords1 is   
not preaching the doctrine of           
non-resistance in the general terms used
 by the ,homilies and the fathers of the

 ,church1 where cases of necessity may  
be understood to be excepted by a tacit 
implication1 as the counsel have        
allowed1--but is preaching directly     
against the resistance at the           
,revolution1 which1 in the course of    
this debate1 has been all along admitted
 to be necessary and just1 and can have 
no other meaning than to bring a        
dishonor upon the ,revolution1 and an   
odium upon those great and illustrious  
persons1 those friends to the monarchy  
and the ,church1 that assisted in       
bringing it about4 ,for had the ,doctor 
intended anything else1 he would have   
treated the case of the ,revolution in a
 different manner1 and have given it the
 true and fair answer3 he would have    
said that the resistance at the         
,revolution was of absolute necessity1  
and the only means left to revive the   
,constitution1 and must be therefore    
taken as an excepted case1 and could    
never come within the reach or intention
 of the general doctrine of the ,church4

  ,your ,lordships take notice on what  
grounds the ,doctor continues to assert 
the same position in his answer4 ,but is
 it not most evident that the general   
exhortations to be met with in the      
,homilies of the ,church of ,england1   
and such like declarations in the       
statutes of the kingdom1 are meant only 
as rules for the civil obedience of the 
subject to the legal administration of  
the supreme power in ordinary cases8    
,and it is equally absurd to construe   
any words in a positive law to authorize
 the destruction of the whole1 as to    
expect that ,king1 ,lords1 and ,commons 
should1 in express terms of law1 declare
 such an ultimate resort as the right of
 resistance1 at a time when the case    
supposes that the force of all law is   
ceased4#ah  ,sidenote3 ,commons abhor   
whatever shakes the submission of       
posterity to the settlement of the      
crown4  ,the ,commons must always       
resent1 with the utmost detestation and 
abhorrence1 every position that may     

shake the authority of that act of      
,parliament whereby the crown is settled
 upon her ,majesty1 and whereby the     
,lords ,spiritual and ,temporal and     
,commons do1 in the name of all the     
people of ,england1 most humbly and     
faithfully submit themselves1 their     
heirs and posterities1 to her ,majesty1 
which this general principle of absolute
 non-resistance must certainly shake4   
,for1 if the resistance at the          
,revolution was illegal1 the ,revolution
 settled in usurpation1 and this act can
 have no greater force and authority    
than an act passed under a usurper4     
,and the ,commons take leave to observe1
 that the authority of this             
,parliamentary settlement is a matter of
 the greatest consequence to maintain1  
in a case where the hereditary right to 
the crown is contested4  ,it appears by 
the several instances mentioned in the  
act declaring the rights and liberties  
of the subject and settling the         
succession of the crown1 that at the    

time of the ,revolution there was a     
total subversion of the constitution of 
government both in ,church and ,state1  
which is a case that the laws of        
,england could never suppose1 provide   
for1 or have in view4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,sir     
,joseph ,jekyl1 so often quoted1        
considered the preservation of the      
monarchy1 and of the rights and         
prerogatives of the crown1 as essential 
objects with all sound ,whigs1 and that 
they were bound not only to maintain    
them1 when injured or invaded1 but to   
exert themselves as much for their      
restablishment1 if they should happen to
 be overthrown by popular fury1 as any  
of their own more immediate and popular 
rights and privileges1 if the latter    
should be at any time subverted by the  
crown4 ,for this reason he puts the     
cases of the ,revolution1 and the       
,restoration exactly upon the same      
footing4 ,he plainly marks1 that it was 
the object of all honest men not to     

sacrifice one part of the ,constitution 
to another1 and much more1 not to       
sacrifice any of them to visionary      
theories of the rights of man1 but to   
preserve our whole inheritance in the   
,constitution1 in all its members and   
all its relations1 entire and           
unimpaired1 from generation to          
generation4 ,in this ,mr4 ,burke exactly
 agrees with him4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,sir ,joseph      
,jekyl4  ,sidenote3 ,what are the rights
 of the people4  ,sidenote3 ,restoration
 and ,revolution4  ,sidenote3 ,people   
have an equal interest in the legal     
rights of the crown and of their own4   
,nothing is plainer than that the people
 have a right to the laws and the       
,constitution4 ,this right the nation   
hath asserted1 and recovered out of the 
hands of those who had dispossessed them
 of it at several times4 ,there are of  
this two famous instances in the        
knowledge of the present age3 ,i mean   
that of the ,restoration1 and that of   

the ,revolution3 in both these great    
events were the regal power and the     
rights of the people recovered4 ,and it 
is hard to say in which the people have 
the greatest interest2 for the ,commons 
are sensible that there it not one legal
 power belonging to the crown1 but they 
have an interest in it2 and ,i doubt not
 but they will always be as careful to  
support the rights of the crown as their
 own privileges4         99       99    
99       99       99  ,the other ,whig  
managers regarded 7as he did7 the       
overturning of the monarchy by a        
republican faction with the very same   
horror and detestation with which they  
regarded the destruction of the         
privileges of the people by an arbitrary
 monarch4         99       99       99  
99       99  ,mr4 ,lechmere1  ,sidenote3
 ,constitution recovered at the         
,restoration and ,revolution4  ,speaking
 of our ,constitution1 states it as a   
,constitution which happily recovered   
itself1 at the ,restoration1 from the   

confusions and disorders which the      
horrid and detestable proceedings of    
faction and usurpation had thrown it    
into1 and which after many convulsions  
and struggles was providentially saved  
at the late happy ,revolution1 and by   
the many good laws passed since that    
time stands now upon a firmer           
foundation1 together with the most      
comfortable prospect of security to all 
posterity by the settlement of the crown
 in the ,protestant line4         99    
99       99       99       99  ,i mean  
now to show that the ,whigs 7if ,sir    
,joseph ,jekyl was one1 and if he spoke 
in conformity to the sense of the ,whig 
,house of ,commons1 and the ,whig       
ministry who employed him7 did carefully
 guard against any presumption that     
might arise from the repeal of the      
non-resistance oath of ,charles the     
,second1 as if at the ,revolution the   
ancient principles of our government    
were at all changed1 or that republican 
doctrines were countenanced1 or any     

sanction given to seditious proceedings 
upon general undefined ideas of         
misconduct1 or for changing the form of 
government1 or for resistance upon any  
other ground than the necessity so often
 mentioned for the purpose of           
self-preservation4 ,it will show still  
more clearly the equal care of the then 
,whigs to prevent either the regal power
 from being swallowed up on pretence of 
popular rights1 or the popular rights   
from being destroyed on pretence of     
regal prerogatives4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,sir ,joseph      
,jekyl4  ,sidenote3 ,mischief of        
broaching antimonarchical principles4   
,sidenote3 ,two cases of resistance3 one
 to preserve the crown1 the other the   
rights of the subject4  ,further1 ,i    
desire it may be considered1 these      
legislators 7the legislators who framed 
the non-resistance oath of ,charles the 
,second7 were guarding against the      
consequences of those pernicious and    
antimonarchical principles which had    

been broached a little before in this   
nation1 and those large declarations in 
favor of non-resistance were made to    
encounter or obviate the mischief of    
those principles1--as appears by the    
preamble to the fullest of those acts1  
which is the ,militia ,act1 in the #acth
 and #adth of ,king ,charles the        
,second4 ,the words of that act are     
these3 ,and during the late usurped     
governments1 many evil and rebellious   
principles have been instilled into the 
minds of the people of this kingdom1    
which may break forth1 unless prevented1
 to the disturbance of the peace and    
quiet thereof3 ,be it therefore enacted1
 c4 ,here your ,lordships may see the   
reason that inclined those legislators  
to express themselves in such a manner  
against resistance4 ,they had seen the  
regal rights swallowed up under the     
pretence of popular ones3 and it is no  
imputation on them1 that they did not   
then foresee a quite different case1 as 
was that of the ,revolution1 where1     

under the pretence of regal authority1 a
 total subversion of the rights of the  
subject was advanced1 and in a manner   
effected4 ,and this may serve to show   
that it was not the design of those     
legislators to condemn resistance1 in a 
case of absolute necessity1 for         
preserving the ,constitution1 when they 
were guarding against principles which  
had so lately destroyed it4  ,sidenote3 
,non-resistance oath not repealed       
because 7with the restriction of        
necessity7 it was false1 but to prevent 
false interpretations4  ,as to the truth
 of the doctrine in this declaration    
which was repealed1 ,i'll admit it to be
 as true as the ,doctor's counsel assert
 it1--that is1 with an exception of     
cases of necessity3 and it was not      
repealed because it was false1          
understanding it with that restriction2 
but it was repealed because it might be 
interpreted in an unconfined sense1 and 
exclusive of that restriction1 and1     
being so understood1 would reflect on   

the justice of the ,revolution3 and this
 the legislature had at heart1 and were 
very jealous of1 and by this repeal of  
that declaration gave a ,parliamentary  
or legislative admonition against       
asserting this doctrine of              
non-resistance in an unlimited sense4   
,sidenote3 ,general doctrine of         
non-resistance godly and wholesome2 not 
bound to state explicitly the           
exceptions4  ,though the general        
doctrine of non-resistance1 the doctrine
 of the ,church of ,england1 as stated  
in her ,homilies1 or elsewhere          
delivered1 by which the general duty of 
subjects to the higher powers is taught1
 be owned to be1 as unquestionably it   
is1 a godly and wholesome               
doctrine1--though this general doctrine 
has been constantly inculcated by the   
reverend fathers of the ,church1 dead   
and living1 and preached by them as a   
preservative against the ,popish        
doctrine of deposing princes1 and as the
 ordinary rule of obedience1--and though

 the same doctrine has been preached1   
maintained1 and avowed by our most      
orthodox and able divines from the time 
of the ,reformation1--and how innocent a
 man soever ,dr4 ,sacheverell had been1 
if1 with an honest and well-meant zeal1 
he had preached the same doctrine in the
 same general terms in which he found it
 delivered by the ,apostles of ,christ1 
as taught by the ,homilies and the      
reverend fathers of our ,church1 and1 in
 imitation of those great examples1 had 
only pressed the general duty of        
obedience1 and the illegality of        
resistance1 without taking notice of any
 exception1 c4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,another of the   
managers for the ,house of ,commons1    
,sir ,john ,holland1 was not less       
careful in guarding against a confusion 
of the principles of the ,revolution    
with any loose1 general doctrines of a  
right in the individual1 or even in the 
people1 to undertake for themselves1 on 
any prevalent1 temporary opinions of    

convenience or improvement1 any         
fundamental change in the ,constitution1
 or to fabricate a new government for   
themselves1 and thereby to disturb the  
public peace1 and to unsettle the       
ancient ,constitution of this kingdom4  
99       99       99       99       99  
,sir ,john ,holland4  ,sidenote3        
,submission to the sovereign a          
conscientious duty1 except in cases of  
necessity4  ,the ,commons would not be  
understood as if they were pleading for 
a licentious resistance1 as if subjects 
were left to their good-will and        
pleasure when they are to obey and when 
to resist4 ,no1 my ,lords1 they know    
they are obliged by all the ties of     
social creatures and ,christians1 for   
wrath and conscience' sake1 to submit to
 their sovereign4 ,the ,commons do not  
abet humorsome1 factious arms3 they aver
 them to be rebellions4 ,but yet they   
maintain that that resistance at the    
,revolution1 which was so necessary1 was
 lawful and just from that necessity4   

,sidenote3 ,right of resistance how to  
be understood4  ,these general rules of 
obedience may1 upon a real necessity1   
admit a lawful exception2 and such a    
necessary exception we assert the       
,revolution to be4  ',tis with this view
 of necessity1 only absolute necessity  
of preserving our laws1 liberties1 and  
religion1--'tis with this limitation1   
that we desire to be understood1 when   
any of us speak of resistance in        
general4 ,the necessity of the          
resistance at the ,revolution was at    
that time obvious to every man4         
99       99       99       99       99  
,i shall conclude these extracts with a 
reference to the ,prince of ,orange's   
,declaration1 in which he gives the     
nation the fullest assurance that in his
 enterprise he was far from the         
intention of introducing any change     
whatever in the fundamental law and     
,constitution of the state4 ,he         
considered the object of his enterprise 
not to be a precedent for further       

revolutions1 but that it was the great  
end of his expedition to make such      
revolutions1 so far as human power and  
wisdom could provide1 unnecessary4      
99       99       99       99       99  
,extracts from the ,prince of ,orange's 
,declaration4  ,all magistrates1 who    
have been unjustly turned out1 shall    
forthwith resume their former           
employments2 as well as all the boroughs
 of ,england shall return again to their
 ancient prescriptions and charters1    
and1 more particularly1 that the ancient
 charter of the great and famous city of
 ,london shall again be in force2 and   
that the writs for the members of       
,parliament shall be addressed to the   
proper officers1 according to law and   
custom4  ,and for the doing of all other
 things which the two ,houses of        
,parliament shall find necessary for the
 peace1 honor1 and safety of the nation1
 so that there may be no more danger of 
the nation's falling1 at any time       
hereafter1 under arbitrary government4  

99       99       99       99       99  
,extract from the ,prince of ,oranges   
,additional ,declaration4  ,sidenote3   
,principal nobility and gentry well     
affected to the ,church and crown1      
security against the design of          
innovation4  ,we are confident that no  
persons can have such hard thoughts of  
us as to imagine that we have any other 
design in this undertaking than to      
procure a settlement of the religion and
 of the liberties and properties of the 
subjects upon so sure a foundation that 
there may be no danger of the nation's  
relapsing into the like miseries at any 
time hereafter4 ,and as the forces that 
we have brought along with us are       
utterly disproportioned to that wicked  
design of conquering the nation1 if we  
were capable of intending it1 so the    
great numbers of the principal nobility 
and gentry1 that are men of eminent     
quality and estates1 and persons of     
known integrity and zeal1 both for the  
religion and government of ,england1    

many of them1 also being distinguished  
by their constant fidelity to the crown1
 who do both accompany us in this       
expedition and have earnestly solicited 
us to it1 will cover us from all such   
malicious insinuations4         99      
99       99       99       99  ,in the  
spirit1 and1 upon one occasion1 in the  
words1#ai of this ,declaration1 the     
statutes passed in that reign made such 
provisions for preventing these dangers1
 that scarcely anything short of        
combination of ,king1 ,lords1 and       
,commons1 for the destruction of the    
liberties of the nation1 can in any     
probability make us liable to similar   
perils4 ,in that dreadful1 and1 ,i hope1
 not to be looked-for case1 any opinion 
of a right to make revolutions1 grounded
 on this precedent1 would be but a poor 
resource4 ,dreadful1 indeed1 would be   
our situation6         99       99      
99       99       99  ,these are the    
doctrines held by the ,whigs of the     
,revolution1 delivered with as much     

solemnity1 and as authentically at      
least1 as any political dogmas were ever
 promulgated from the beginning of the  
world4 ,if there be any difference      
between their tenets and those of ,mr4  
,burke1 it is1 that the old ,whigs      
oppose themselves still more strongly   
than he does against the doctrines which
 are now propagated with so much        
industry by those who would be thought  
their successors4  ,it will be said1    
perhaps1 that the old ,whigs1 in order  
to guard themselves against popular     
odium1 pretended to assert tenets       
contrary to those which they secretly   
held4 ,this1 if true1 would prove1 what 
,mr4 ,burke has uniformly asserted1 that
 the extravagant doctrines which he     
meant to expose were disagreeable to the
 body of the people1--who1 though they  
perfectly abhor a despotic government1  
certainly approached more nearly to the 
love of mitigated monarchy than to      
anything which bears the appearance even
 of the best republic4 ,but if these old

 ,whigs deceived the people1 their      
conduct was unaccountable indeed4 ,they 
exposed their power1 as every one       
conversant in history knows1 to the     
greatest peril1 for the propagation of  
opinions which1 on this hypothesis1 they
 did not hold4 ,it is a new kind of     
martyrdom4 ,this supposition does as    
little credit to their integrity as     
their wisdom3 it makes them at once     
hypocrites and fools4 ,i think of those 
great men very differently4 ,i hold them
 to have been1 what the world thought   
them1 men of deep understanding1 open   
sincerity1 and clear honor4 ,however1 be
 that matter as it may1 what these old  
,whigs pretended to be ,mr4 ,burke is4  
,this is enough for him4  ,i do1 indeed1
 admit1 that1 though ,mr4 ,burke has    
proved that his opinions were those of  
the old ,whig party1 solemnly declared  
by one ,house1 in effect and substance  
by both ,houses of ,parliament1 this    
testimony standing by itself will form  
no proper defence for his opinions1 if  

he and the old ,whigs were both of them 
in the wrong4 ,but it is his present    
concern1 not to vindicate these old     
,whigs1 but to show his agreement with  
them4 ,he appeals to them as judges3 he 
does not vindicate them as culprits4 ,it
 is current that these old politicians  
knew little of the rights of men1--that 
they lost their way by groping about in 
the dark1 and fumbling among rotten     
parchments and musty records4 ,great    
lights1 they say1 are lately obtained in
 the world2 and ,mr4 ,burke1 instead of 
shrouding himself in exploded ignorance1
 ought to have taken advantage of the   
blaze of illumination which has been    
spread about him4 ,it may be so4 ,the   
enthusiasts of this time1 it seems1 like
 their predecessors in another faction  
of fanaticism1 deal in lights4 ,hudibras
 pleasantly says of them1 they          
,have lights1 where better eyes are     
blind1--      ,as pigs are said to see  
the wind4  ,the author of the           
,reflections has heard a great deal     

concerning the modern lights1 but he has
 not yet had the good fortune to see    
much of them4 ,he has read more than he 
can justify to anything but the spirit  
of curiosity1 of the works of these     
illuminators of the world4 ,he has      
learned nothing from the far greater    
number of them than a full certainty of 
their shallowness1 levity1 pride1       
petulance1 presumption1 and ignorance4  
,where the old authors whom he has read1
 and the old men whom he has conversed  
with1 have left him in the dark1 he is  
in the dark still4 ,if others1 however1 
have obtained any of this extraordinary 
light1 they will use it to guide them in
 their researches and their conduct4 ,i 
have only to wish that the nation may be
 as happy and as prosperous under the   
influence of the new light as it has    
been in the sober shade of the old      
obscurity4 ,as to the rest1 it will be  
difficult for the author of the         
,reflections to conform to the          
principles of the avowed leaders of the 

party1 until they appear otherwise than 
negatively4 ,all we can gather from them
 is this1--that their principles are    
diametrically opposite to his4 ,this is 
all that we know from authority4 ,their 
negative declaration obliges me to have 
recourse to the books which contain     
positive doctrines4 ,they are1 indeed1  
to those ,mr4 ,burke holds diametrically
 opposite2 and if it be true 7as the    
oracles of the party have said1 ,i hope 
hastily7 that their opinions differ so  
widely1 it should seem they are the most
 likely to form the creed of the modern 
,whigs4         99       99       99    
99       99  ,i have stated what were   
the avowed sentiments of the old ,whigs1
 not in the way of argument1 but        
narratively4 ,it is but fair to set     
before the reader1 in the same simple   
manner1 the sentiments of the modern1 to
 which they spare neither pains nor     
expense to make proselytes4 ,i choose   
them from the books upon which most of  
that industry and expenditure in        

circulation have been employed2 ,i      
choose them1 not from those who speak   
with a politic obscurity1 not from those
 who only controvert the opinions of the
 old ,whigs1 without advancing any of   
their own1 but from those who speak     
plainly and affirmatively4 ,the ,whig   
reader may make his choice between the  
two doctrines4  ,the doctrine1 then1    
propagated by these societies1 which    
gentlemen think they ought to be very   
tender in discouraging1 as nearly as    
possible in their own words1 is as      
follows3 ,that in ,great ,britain we are
 not only without a good ,constitution1 
but that we have no                     
,constitution2--that1 though it is much 
talked about1 no such thing as a        
,constitution exists or ever did exist1 
and consequently that the people have a 
,constitution yet to form2--that since  
,william the ,conqueror the country has 
never yet regenerated itself1 and is    
therefore without a ,constitution2--that
 where it cannot be produced in a       

visible form there is none2--that a     
,constitution is a thing antecedent to  
government2 and that the ,constitution  
of a country is not the act of its      
government1 but of a people constituting
 a government2--that everything in the  
,english government is the reverse of   
what it ought to be1 and what it is said
 to be in ,england2--that the right of  
war and peace resides in a metaphor     
shown at the ,tower for sixpence or a   
shilling apiece2--that it signifies not 
where the right resides1 whether in the 
crown or in ,parliament2 war is the     
common harvest of those who participate 
in the division and expenditure of      
public money2--that the portion of      
liberty enjoyed in ,england is just     
enough to enslave a country more        
productively than by despotism4  ,so far
 as to the general state of the ,british
 ,constitution4--,as to our ,house of   
,lords1 the chief virtual representative
 of our aristocracy1 the great ground   
and pillar of security to the landed    

interest1 and that main link by which it
 is connected with the law and the      
crown1 these worthy societies are       
pleased to tell us1 that1 whether we    
view aristocracy before1 or behind1 or  
sideways1 or any way else1 domestically 
or publicly1 it is still a              
monster2--that aristocracy in ,france   
had one feature less in its countenance 
than what it has in some other          
countries3 it did not compose a body of 
hereditary legislators2 it was not a    
corporation of aristocracy 7for such1 it
 seems1 that profound legislator1 ,m4 de
 ,la ,fayette1 describes the ,house of  
,peers72--that it is kept up by family  
tyranny and injustice2--that there is an
 unnatural unfitness in aristocracy to  
be legislators for a nation2--that their
 ideas of distributive justice are      
corrupted at the very source2 they begin
 life by trampling on all their younger 
brothers and sisters1 and relations of  
every kind1 and are taught and educated 
so to do2--that the idea of an          

hereditary legislator is as absurd as an
 hereditary mathematician2--that a body 
holding themselves unaccountable to     
anybody ought to be trusted by          
nobody2--that it is continuing the      
uncivilized principles of governments   
founded in conquest1 and the base idea  
of man having a property in man1 and    
governing him by a personal right2--that
 aristocracy has a tendency to          
degenerate the human species1 c41 c4    
,as to our law of primogeniture1 which  
with few and inconsiderable exceptions  
is the standing law of all our landed   
inheritance1 and which without question 
has a tendency1 and ,i think a most     
happy tendency1 to preserve a character 
of consequence1 weight1 and prevalent   
influence over others in the whole body 
of the landed interest1 they call loudly
 for its destruction4 ,they do this for 
political reasons that are very         
manifest4 ,they have the confidence to  
say1 that it is a law against every law 
of ,nature1 and ,nature herself calls   

for its destruction4 ,establish family  
justice1 and aristocracy falls4 ,by the 
aristocratical law of primogenitureship1
 in a family of six children1 five are  
exposed4 ,aristocracy has never but one 
child4 ,the rest are begotten to be     
devoured4 ,they are thrown to the       
cannibal for prey1 and the natural      
parent prepares the unnatural repast4   
,as to the ,house of ,commons1 they     
treat it far worse than the ,house of   
,lords or the crown have been ever      
treated4 ,perhaps they thought they had 
a greater right to take this amicable   
freedom with those of their own family4 
,for many years it has been the         
perpetual theme of their invectives4    
,mockery1 insult1 usurpation1 are       
amongst the best names they bestow upon 
it4 ,they damn it in the mass1 by       
declaring that it does not arise out of 
the inherent rights of the people1 as   
the ,national ,assembly does in ,france1
 and whose name designates its original4
  ,of the charters and corporations1 to 

whose rights a few years ago these      
gentlemen were so tremblingly alive1    
they say1 that1 when the people of      
,england come to reflect upon them1 they
 will1 like ,france1 annihilate those   
badges of oppression1 those traces of a 
conquered nation4  ,as to our monarchy1 
they had formerly been more tender of   
that branch of the ,constitution1 and   
for a good reason4 ,the laws had guarded
 against all seditious attacks upon it  
with a greater degree of strictness and 
severity4 ,the tone of these gentlemen  
is totally altered since the ,french    
,revolution4 ,they now declaim as       
vehemently against the monarchy as on   
former occasions they treacherously     
flattered and soothed it4  ,when we     
survey the wretched condition of man    
under the monarchical and hereditary    
systems of government1 dragged from his 
home by one power1 or driven by another1
 and impoverished by taxes more than by 
enemies1 it becomes evident that those  
systems are bad1 and that a general     

revolution in the principle and         
construction of governments is          
necessary4  ,what is government more    
than the management of the affairs of a 
nation8 ,it is not1 and from its nature 
cannot be1 the property of any          
particular man or family1 but of the    
whole community1 at whose expense it is 
supported2 and though by force or       
contrivance it has been usurped into an 
inheritance1 the usurpation cannot alter
 the right of things4 ,sovereignty1 as a
 matter of right1 appertains to the     
nation only1 and not to any individual2 
and a nation has at all times an        
inherent indefeasible right to abolish  
any form of government it finds         
inconvenient1 and establish such as     
accords with its interest1 disposition1 
and happiness4 ,the romantic and        
barbarous distinction of men into kings 
and subjects1 though it may suit the    
condition of courtiers1 cannot that of  
citizens1 and is exploded by the        
principle upon which governments are now

 founded4 ,every citizen is a member of 
the sovereignty1 and1 as such1 can      
acknowledge no personal subjection1 and 
his obedience can be only to the laws4  
,warmly recommending to us the example  
of ,prance1 where they have destroyed   
monarchy1 they say1--  ,monarchical     
sovereignty1 the enemy of mankind1 and  
the source of misery1 is abolished2 and 
sovereignty itself is restored to its   
natural and original place1 the nation4 
,were this the case throughout ,europe1 
the cause of wars would be taken away4  
,but1 after all1 what is this metaphor  
called a crown8 or rather1 what is      
monarchy8 ,is it a thing1 or is it a    
name1 or is it a fraud8 ,is it 'a       
contrivance of human wisdom1' or of     
human craft1 to obtain money from a     
nation under specious pretences8 ,is it 
a thing necessary to a nation8 ,if it   
is1 in what does that necessity consist1
 what services does it perform1 what is 
its business1 and what are its merits8  
,doth the virtue consist in the metaphor

 or in the man8 ,doth the goldsmith that
 makes the crown make the virtue also8  
,doth it operate like ,fortunatus's     
wishing-cap or ,harlequin's wooden      
sword8 ,doth it make a man a conjurer8  
,in fine1 what is it8 ,it appears to be 
a something going much out of fashion1  
falling into ridicule1 and rejected in  
some countries both as unnecessary and  
expensive4 ,in ,america it is considered
 as an absurdity2 and in ,france it has 
so far declined1 that the goodness of   
the man and the respect for his personal
 character are the only things that     
preserve the appearance of its          
existence4  ,mr4 ,burke talks about what
 he calls an hereditary crown1 as if it 
were some production of ,nature1--or as 
if1 like time1 it had a power to        
operate1 not only independently1 but in 
spite of man1--or as if it were a thing 
or a subject universally consented to4  
,alas6 it has none of those properties1 
but is the reverse of them all4 ,it is a
 thing in imagination1 the propriety of 

which is more than doubted1 and the     
legality of which in a few years will be
 denied4  ,if ,i ask the farmer1 the    
manufacturer1 the merchant1 the         
tradesman1 and down through all the     
occupations of life to the common       
laborer1 what service monarchy is to    
him1 he can give me no answer4 ,if ,i   
ask him what monarchy is1 he believes it
 is something like a sinecure4  ,the    
,french ,constitution says1 that the    
right of war and peace is in the nation4
 ,where else should it reside1 but in   
those who are to pay the expense8  ,in  
,england1 this right is said to reside  
in a metaphor1 shown at the ,tower for  
sixpence or a shilling apiece3 so are   
the lions2 and it would be a step nearer
 to reason to say it resided in them1   
for any inanimate metaphor is no more   
than a hat or a cap4 ,we can all see the
 absurdity of worshipping ,aaron's      
molten calf1 or ,nebuchadnezzar's golden
 image2 but why do men continue to      
practise themselves the absurdities they

 despise in others8  ,the ,revolution   
and ,hanover succession had been objects
 of the highest veneration to the old   
,whigs4 ,they thought them not only     
proofs of the sober and steady spirit of
 liberty which guided their ancestors1  
but of their wisdom and provident care  
of posterity4 ,the modern ,whigs have   
quite other notions of these events and 
actions4 ,they do not deny that ,mr4    
,burke has given truly the words of the 
acts of ,parliament which secured the   
succession1 and the just sense of them4 
,they attack not him1 but the law4  ,mr 
,burke 7say they7 has done some service1
 not to his cause1 but to his country1  
by bringing those clauses into public   
view4 ,they serve to demonstrate how    
necessary it is at all times to watch   
against the attempted encroachment of   
power1 and to prevent its running to    
excess4 ,it is somewhat extraordinary1  
that the offence for which ,james the   
,second was expelled1 that of setting up
 power by assumption1 should be         

re-acted1 under another shape and form1 
by the ,parliament that expelled him4   
,it shows that the rights of man were   
but imperfectly understood at the       
,revolution2 for certain it is1 that the
 right which that ,parliament set up by 
assumption 7for by delegation it had it 
not1 and could not have it1 because none
 could give it7 over the persons and    
freedom of posterity forever1 was of the
 same tyrannical unfounded kind which   
,james attempted to set up over the     
,parliament and the nation1 and for     
which he was expelled4 ,the only        
difference is1 7for in principle they   
differ not17 that the one was an usurper
 over the living1 and the other over the
 unborn2 and as the one has no better   
authority to stand upon than the other1 
both of them must be equally null and   
void1 and of no effect4  ,as the        
estimation of all things is by          
comparison1 the ,revolution of #afhh1   
however from circumstances it may have  
been exalted beyond its value1 will find

 its level4 ,it is already on the wane1 
eclipsed by the enlarging orb of reason 
and the luminous ,revolutions of        
,america and ,france4 ,in less than     
another century1 it will go1 as well as 
,mr4 ,burke's labors1 'to the family    
vault of all the ,capulets4' ,mankind   
will then scarcely believe that a       
country calling itself free would send  
to ,holland for a man and clothe him    
with power on purpose to put themselves 
in fear of him1 and give him almost a   
million sterling a year for leave to    
submit themselves and their posterity   
like bondmen and bondwomen forever4     
,mr4 ,burke having said that the king   
holds his crown in contempt of the      
choice of the ,revolution ,society1 who 
individually or collectively have not   
7as most certainly they have not7 a vote
 for a king amongst them1 they take     
occasion from thence to infer that the  
king who does not hold his crown by     
election despises the people4  ',the    
king of ,england1' says he1 'holds his  

crown' 7for it does not belong to the   
nation1 according to ,mr4 ,burke7 'in   
contempt of the choice of the           
,revolution ,society1' c4  ,as to who is
 king in ,england or elsewhere1 or      
whether there is any king at all1 or    
whether the people choose a ,cherokee   
chief or a ,hessian hussar for a king1  
it is not a matter that ,i trouble      
myself about1--be that to themselves2   
but with respect to the doctrine1 so far
 as it relates to the rights of men and 
nations1 it is as abominable as anything
 ever uttered in the most enslaved      
country under heaven4 ,whether it sounds
 worse to my ear1 by not being          
accustomed to hear such despotism1 than 
what it does to the ear of another      
person1 ,i am not so well a judge of2   
but of its abominable principle ,i am at
 no loss to judge4  ,these societies of 
modern ,whigs push their insolence as   
far as it can go4 ,in order to prepare  
the minds of the people for treason and 
rebellion1 they represent the king as   

tainted with principles of despotism1   
from the circumstance of his having     
dominions in ,germany4 ,in direct       
defiance of the most notorious truth1   
they describe his government there to be
 a despotism2 whereas it is a free      
,constitution1 in which the states of   
the ,electorate have their part in the  
government3 and this privilege has never
 been infringed by the king1 or1 that ,i
 have heard of1 by any of his           
predecessors4 ,the ,constitution of the 
,electoral dominions has1 indeed1 a     
double control1 both from the laws of   
the ,empire and from the privileges of  
the country4 ,whatever rights the king  
enjoys as ,elector have been always     
parentally exercised1 and the calumnies 
of these scandalous societies have not  
been authorized by a single complaint of
 oppression4  ,when ,mr4 ,burke says    
that 'his ,majesty's heirs and          
successors1 each in their time and      
order1 will come to the crown with the  
same contempt of their choice with which

 his ,majesty has succeeded to that he  
wears1' it is saying too much even to   
the humblest individual in the country1 
part of whose daily labor goes towards  
making up the million sterling a year   
which the country gives the person it   
styles a king4 ,government with         
insolence is despotism2 but when        
contempt is added1 it becomes worse2 and
 to pay for contempt is the excess of   
slavery4 ,this species of government    
comes from ,germany1 and reminds me of  
what one of the ,brunswick soldiers told
 me1 who was taken prisoner by the      
,americans in the late war4 ',ah6' said 
he1 ',america is a fine free country3 it
 is worth the people's fighting for4 ,i 
know the difference by knowing my own3  
in my country1 if the prince says1 ,eat 
straw we eat straw4' ,god help that     
country1 thought ,i1 be it ,england1 or 
elsewhere1 whose liberties are to be    
protected by ,german principles of      
government and princes of ,brunswick6   
,it is somewhat curious to observe1     

that1 although the people of ,england   
have been in the habit of talking about 
kings1 it is always a foreign house of  
kings1--hating foreigners1 yet governed 
by them4 ,it is now the ,house of       
,brunswick1 one of the petty tribes of  
,germany4  ,if government be what ,mr4  
,burke describes it1 'a contrivance of  
human wisdom1' ,i might ask him if      
wisdom was at such a low ebb in ,england
 that it was become necessary to import 
it from ,holland and from ,hanover8 ,but
 ,i will do the country the justice to  
say1 that was not the case2 and even if 
it was1 it mistook the cargo4 ,the      
wisdom of every country1 when properly  
exerted1 is sufficient for all its      
purposes2 and there could exist no more 
real occasion in ,england to have sent  
for a ,dutch ,stadtholder or a ,german  
,elector than there was in ,america to  
have done a similar thing4 ,if a country
 does not understand its own affairs1   
how is a foreigner to understand them1  
who knows neither its laws1 its manners1

 nor its language8 ,if there existed a  
man so transcendently wise above all    
others that his wisdom was necessary to 
instruct a nation1 some reason might be 
offered for monarchy2 but when we cast  
our eyes about a country1 and observe   
how every part understands its own      
affairs1 and when we look around the    
world1 and see1 that1 of all men in it1 
the race of kings are the most          
insignificant in capacity1 our reason   
cannot fail to ask us1 ,what are those  
men kept for8#bj         99       99    
99       99       99  ,these are the    
notions which1 under the idea of ,whig  
principles1 several persons1 and among  
them persons of no mean mark1 have      
associated themselves to propagate4 ,i  
will not attempt in the smallest degree 
to refute them4 ,this will probably be  
done 7if such writings shall be thought 
to deserve any other than the refutation
 of criminal justice7 by others1 who may
 think with ,mr4 ,burke4 ,he has        
performed his part4  ,i do not wish to  

enter very much at large into the       
discussions which diverge and ramify in 
all ways from this productive subject4  
,but there is one topic upon which ,i   
hope ,i shall be excused in going a     
little beyond my design4 ,the factions  
now so busy amongst us1 in order to     
divest men of all love for their        
country1 and to remove from their minds 
all duty with regard to the state1      
endeavor to propagate an opinion1 that  
the people1 in forming their            
commonwealth1 have by no means parted   
with their power over it4 ,this is an   
impregnable citadel1 to which these     
gentlemen retreat1 whenever they are    
pushed by the battery of laws and usages
 and positive conventions4 ,indeed1 it  
is such1 and of so great force1 that all
 they have done in defending their      
outworks is so much time and labor      
thrown away4 ,discuss any of their      
schemes1 their answer is1 ,it is the act
 of the people1 and that is sufficient4 
,are we to deny to a majority of the    

people the right of altering even the   
whole frame of their society1 if such   
should be their pleasure8 ,they may     
change it1 say they1 from a monarchy to 
a republic to-day1 and to-morrow back   
again from a republic to a monarchy2 and
 so backward and forward as often as    
they like4 ,they are masters of the     
commonwealth1 because in substance they 
are themselves the commonwealth4 ,the   
,french ,revolution1 say they1 was the  
act of the majority of the people2 and  
if the majority of any other people1 the
 people of ,england1 for instance1 wish 
to make the same change1 they have the  
same right4  ,just the same1            
undoubtedly4 ,that is1 none at all4     
,neither the few nor the many have a    
right to act merely by their will1 in   
any matter connected with duty1 trust1  
engagement1 or obligation4 ,the         
,constitution of a country being once   
settled upon some compact1 tacit or     
expressed1 there is no power existing of
 force to alter it1 without the breach  

of the covenant1 or the consent of all  
the parties4 ,such is the nature of a   
contract4 ,and the votes of a majority  
of the people1 whatever their infamous  
flatterers may teach in order to corrupt
 their minds1 cannot alter the moral any
 more than they can alter the physical  
essence of things4 ,the people are not  
to be taught to think lightly of their  
engagements to their governors2 else    
they teach governors to think lightly of
 their engagements towards them4 ,in    
that kind of game1 in the end1 the      
people are sure to be losers4 ,to       
flatter them into a contempt of faith1  
truth1 and justice is to ruin them2 for 
in these virtues consists their whole   
safety4 ,to flatter any man1 or any part
 of mankind1 in any description1 by     
asserting that in engagements he or they
 are free1 whilst any other human       
creature is bound1 is ultimately to vest
 the rule of morality in the pleasure of
 those who ought to be rigidly submitted
 to it1--to subject the sovereign reason

 of the world to the caprices of weak   
and giddy men4  ,but1 as no one of us   
men can dispense with public or private 
faith1 or with any other tie of moral   
obligation1 so neither can any number of
 us4 ,the number engaged in crimes1     
instead of turning them into laudable   
acts1 only augments the quantity and    
intensity of the guilt4 ,i am well aware
 that men love to hear of their power1  
but have an extreme disrelish to be told
 of their duty4 ,this is of course2     
because every duty is a limitation of   
some power4 ,indeed1 arbitrary power is 
so much to the depraved taste of the    
vulgar1 of the vulgar of every          
description1 that almost all the        
dissensions which lacerate the          
commonwealth are not concerning the     
manner in which it is to be exercised1  
but concerning the hands in which it is 
to be placed4 ,somewhere they are       
resolved to have it4 ,whether they      
desire it to be vested in the many or   
the few depends with most men upon the  

chance which they imagine they          
themselves may have of partaking in the 
exercise of that arbitrary sway1 in the 
one mode or in the other4  ,it is not   
necessary to teach men to thirst after  
power4 ,but it is very expedient that by
 moral instruction they should be       
taught1 and by their civil constitutions
 they should be compelled1 to put many  
restrictions upon the immoderate        
exercise of it1 and the inordinate      
desire4 ,the best method of obtaining   
these two great points forms the        
important1 but at the same time the     
difficult problem to the true statesman4
 ,he thinks of the place in which       
political power is to be lodged with no 
other attention than as it may render   
the more or the less practicable its    
salutary restraint and its prudent      
direction4 ,for this reason1 no         
legislator1 at any period of the world1 
has willingly placed the seat of active 
power in the hands of the multitude2    
because there it admits of no control1  

no regulation1 no steady direction      
whatsoever4 ,the people are the natural 
control on authority2 but to exercise   
and to control together is contradictory
 and impossible4  ,as the exorbitant    
exercise of power cannot1 under popular 
sway1 be effectually restrained1 the    
other great object of political         
arrangement1 the means of abating an    
excessive desire of it1 is in such a    
state still worse provided for4 ,the    
democratic commonwealth is the foodful  
nurse of ambition4 ,under the other     
forms it meets with many restraints4    
,whenever1 in states which have had a   
democratic basis1 the legislators have  
endeavored to put restraints upon       
ambition1 their methods were as violent 
as in the end they were ineffectual1--as
 violent1 indeed1 as any the most       
jealous despotism could invent4 ,the    
ostracism could not very long save      
itself1 and much less the state which it
 was meant to guard1 from the attempts  
of ambition1--one of the natural1       

inbred1 incurable distempers of a       
powerful democracy4  ,but to return from
 this short digression1--which1 however1
 is not wholly foreign to the question  
of the effect of the will of the        
majority upon the form or the existence 
of their society4 ,i cannot too often   
recommend it to the serious             
consideration of all men who think civil
 society to be within the province of   
moral jurisdiction1 that1 if we owe to  
it any duty1 it is not subject to our   
will4 ,duties are not voluntary4 ,duty  
and will are even contradictory terms4  
,now1 though civil society might be at  
first a voluntary act1 7which in many   
cases it undoubtedly was17 its          
continuance is under a permanent        
standing covenant1 coexisting with the  
society2 and it attaches upon every     
individual of that society1 without any 
formal act of his own4 ,this is         
warranted by the general practice1      
arising out of the general sense of     
mankind4 ,men without their choice      

derive benefits from that association2  
without their choice they are subjected 
to duties in consequence of these       
benefits2 and without their choice they 
enter into a virtual obligation as      
binding as any that is actual4 ,look    
through the whole of life and the whole 
system of duties4 ,much the strongest   
moral obligations are such as were never
 the results of our option4 ,i allow1   
that1 if no ,supreme ,ruler exists1 wise
 to form1 and potent to enforce1 the    
moral law1 there is no sanction to any  
contract1 virtual or even actual1       
against the will of prevalent power4 ,on
 that hypothesis1 let any set of men be 
strong enough to set their duties at    
defiance1 and they cease to be duties   
any longer4 ,we have but this one appeal
 against irresistible power1--      ,si 
genus humanum et mortalia temnitis arma1
     ,at sperate ,deos memores fandi    
atque nefandi4  ,taking it for granted  
that ,i do not write to the disciples of
 the ,parisian philosophy1 ,i may assume

 that the awful ,author of our being is 
the ,author of our place in the order of
 existence1--and that1 having disposed  
and marshalled us by a divine tactic1   
not according to our will1 but according
 to ,his1 ,he has in and by that        
disposition virtually subjected us to   
act the part which belongs to the place 
assigned us4 ,we have obligations to    
mankind at large1 which are not in      
consequence of any special voluntary    
pact4 ,they arise from the relation of  
man to man1 and the relation of man to  
,god1 which relations are not matters of
 choice4 ,on the contrary1 the force of 
all the pacts which we enter into with  
any particular person or number of      
persons amongst mankind depends upon    
those prior obligations4 ,in some cases 
the subordinate relations are voluntary1
 in others they are necessary1--but the 
duties are all compulsive4 ,when we     
marry1 the choice is voluntary1 but the 
duties are not matter of choice3 they   
are dictated by the nature of the       

situation4 ,dark and inscrutable are the
 ways by which we come into the world4  
,the instincts which give rise to this  
mysterious process of ,nature are not of
 our making4 ,but out of physical       
causes1 unknown to us1 perhaps          
unknowable1 arise moral duties1 which1  
as we are able perfectly to comprehend1 
we are bound indispensably to perform4  
,parents may not be consenting to their 
moral relation2 but1 consenting or not1 
they are bound to a long train of       
burdensome duties towards those with    
whom they have never made a convention  
of any sort4 ,children are not          
consenting to their relation2 but their 
relation1 without their actual consent1 
binds them to its duties1--or rather it 
implies their consent1 because the      
presumed consent of every rational      
creature is in unison with the          
predisposed order of things4 ,men come  
in that manner into a community with the
 social state of their parents1 endowed 
with all the benefits1 loaded with all  

the duties of their situation4 ,if the  
social ties and ligaments1 spun out of  
those physical relations which are the  
elements of the commonwealth1 in most   
cases begin1 and always continue1       
independently of our will1 so1 without  
any stipulation on our own part1 are we 
bound by that relation called our       
country1 which comprehends 7as it has   
been well said7 all the charities of    
all4#ba ,nor are we left without        
powerful instincts to make this duty as 
dear and grateful to us as it is awful  
and coercive4 ,our country is not a     
thing of mere physical locality4 ,it    
consists1 in a great measure1 in the    
ancient order into which we are born4   
,we may have the same geographical      
situation1 but another country2 as we   
may have the same country in another    
soil4 ,the place that determines our    
duty to our country is a social1 civil  
relation4  ,these are the opinions of   
the author whose cause ,i defend4 ,i lay
 them down1 not to enforce them upon    

others by disputation1 but as an account
 of his proceedings4 ,on them he acts2  
and from them he is convinced that      
neither he1 nor any man1 or number of   
men1 have a right 7except what          
necessity1 which is out of and above all
 rule1 rather imposes than bestows7 to  
free themselves from that primary       
engagement into which every man born    
into a community as much contracts by   
his being born into it as he contracts  
an obligation to certain parents by his 
having been derived from their bodies4  
,the place of every man determines his  
duty4 ,if you ask1 ,quem te ,deus esse  
jussit8 you will be answered when you   
resolve this other question1 ,humana qua
 parte locatus es in re8#bb  ,i admit1  
indeed1 that in morals1 as in all things
 else1 difficulties will sometimes      
occur4 ,duties will sometimes cross one 
another4 ,then questions will arise1    
which of them is to be placed in        
subordination8 which of them may be     
entirely superseded8 ,these doubts give 

rise to that part of moral science      
called casuistry1 which though necessary
 to be well studied by those who would  
become expert in that learning1 who aim 
at becoming what ,i think ,cicero       
somewhere calls artifices officiorum1 it
 requires a very solid and              
discriminating judgment1 great modesty  
and caution1 and much sobriety of mind  
in the handling2 else there is a danger 
that it may totally subvert those       
offices which it is its object only to  
methodize and reconcile4 ,duties1 at    
their extreme bounds1 are drawn very    
fine1 so as to become almost evanescent4
 ,in that state some shade of doubt will
 always rest on these questions1 when   
they are pursued with great subtilty4   
,but the very habit of stating these    
extreme cases is not very laudable or   
safe2 because1 in general1 it is not    
right to turn our duties into doubts4   
,they are imposed to govern our conduct1
 not to exercise our ingenuity2 and     
therefore our opinions about them ought 

not to be in a state of fluctuation1 but
 steady1 sure1 and resolved4  ,amongst  
these nice1 and therefore dangerous     
points of casuistry1 may be reckoned the
 question so much agitated in the       
present hour1--,whether1 after the      
people have discharged themselves of    
their original power by an habitual     
delegation1 no occasion can possibly    
occur which may justify the resumption  
of it8 ,this question1 in this latitude1
 is very hard to affirm or deny3 but ,i 
am satisfied that no occasion can       
justify such a resumption1 which would  
not equally authorize a dispensation    
with any other moral duty1 perhaps with 
all of them together4 ,however1 if in   
general it be not easy to determine     
concerning the lawfulness of such       
devious proceedings1 which must be ever 
on the edge of crimes1 it is far from   
difficult to foresee the perilous       
consequences of the resuscitation of    
such a power in the people4 ,the        
practical consequences of any political 

tenet go a great way in deciding upon   
its value4 ,political problems do not   
primarily concern truth or falsehood4   
,they relate to good or evil4 ,what in  
the result is likely to produce evil is 
politically false2 that which is        
productive of good1 politically true4   
,believing it1 therefore1 a question at 
least arduous in the theory1 and in the 
practice very critical1 it would become 
us to ascertain as well as we can what  
form it is that our incantations are    
about to call up from darkness and the  
sleep of ages4 ,when the supreme        
authority of the people is in question1 
before we attempt to extend or to       
confine it1 we ought to fix in our      
minds1 with some degree of distinctness1
 an idea of what it is we mean1 when we 
say1 the ,,people4  ,in a state of rude 
,nature there is no such thing as a     
people4 ,a number of men in themselves  
have no collective capacity4 ,the idea  
of a people is the idea of a            
corporation4 ,it is wholly artificial1  

and made1 like all other legal fictions1
 by common agreement4 ,what the         
particular nature of that agreement was 
is collected from the form into which   
the particular society has been cast4   
,any other is not their covenant4 ,when 
men1 therefore1 break up the original   
compact or agreement which gives its    
corporate form and capacity to a state1 
they are no longer a people1--they have 
no longer a corporate existence1--they  
have no longer a legal coactive force to
 bind within1 nor a claim to be         
recognized abroad4 ,they are a number of
 vague1 loose individuals1 and nothing  
more4 ,with them all is to begin again4 
,alas6 they little know how many a weary
 step is to be taken before they can    
form themselves into a mass which has a 
true politic personality4  ,we hear     
much1 from men who have not acquired    
their hardiness of assertion from the   
profundity of their thinking1 about the 
omnipotence of a majority1 in such a    
dissolution of an ancient society as    

hath taken place in ,france4 ,but       
amongst men so disbanded there can be no
 such thing as majority or minority1 or 
power in any one person to bind another4
 ,the power of acting by a majority1    
which the gentlemen theorists seem to   
assume so readily1 after they have      
violated the contract out of which it   
has arisen1 7if at all it existed17 must
 be grounded on two assumptions3 first1 
that of an incorporation produced by    
unanimity2 and secondly1 an unanimous   
agreement that the act of a mere        
majority 7say of one7 shall pass with   
them and with others as the act of the  
whole4  ,we are so little affected by   
things which are habitual1 that we      
consider this idea of the decision of a 
majority as if it were a law of our     
original nature4 ,but such constructive 
whole1 residing in a part only1 is one  
of the most violent fictions of positive
 law that ever has been or can be made  
on the principles of artificial         
incorporation4 ,out of civil society    

,nature knows nothing of it2 nor are    
men1 even when arranged according to    
civil order1 otherwise than by very long
 training1 brought at all to submit to  
it4 ,the mind is brought far more easily
 to acquiesce in the proceedings of one 
man1 or a few1 who act under a general  
procuration for the state1 than in the  
vote of a victorious majority in        
councils in which every man has his     
share in the deliberation4 ,for there   
the beaten party are exasperated and    
soured by the previous contention1 and  
mortified by the conclusive defeat4     
,this mode of decision1 where wills may 
be so nearly equal1 where1 according to 
circumstances1 the smaller number may be
 the stronger force1 and where apparent 
reason may be all upon one side1 and on 
the other little else than impetuous    
appetite1--all this must be the result  
of a very particular and special        
convention1 confirmed afterwards by long
 habits of obedience1 by a sort of      
discipline in society1 and by a strong  

hand1 vested with stationary1 permanent 
power to enforce this sort of           
constructive general will4 ,what organ  
it is that shall declare the corporate  
mind is so much a matter of positive    
arrangement1 that several states1 for   
the validity of several of their acts1  
have required a proportion of voices    
much greater than that of a mere        
majority4 ,these proportions are so     
entirely governed by convention that in 
some cases the minority decides4 ,the   
laws in many countries to condemn       
require more than a mere majority2 less 
than an equal number to acquit4 ,in our 
judicial trials we require unanimity    
either to condemn or to absolve4 ,in    
some incorporations one man speaks for  
the whole2 in others1 a few4 ,until the 
other day1 in the ,constitution of      
,poland unanimity was required to give  
validity to any act of their great      
national council or diet4 ,this         
approaches much more nearly to rude     
,nature than the institutions of any    

other country4 ,such1 indeed1 every     
commonwealth must be1 without a positive
 law to recognize in a certain number   
the will of the entire body4  ,if men   
dissolve their ancient incorporation in 
order to regenerate their community1 in 
that state of things each man has a     
right1 if he pleases1 to remain an      
individual4 ,any number of individuals1 
who can agree upon it1 have an undoubted
 right to form themselves into a state  
apart and wholly independent4 ,if any of
 these is forced into the fellowship of 
another1 this is conquest and not       
compact4 ,on every principle which      
supposes society to be in virtue of a   
free covenant1 this compulsive          
incorporation must be null and void4    
,as a people can have no right to a     
corporate capacity without universal    
consent1 so neither have they a right to
 hold exclusively any lands in the name 
and title of a corporation4 ,on the     
scheme of the present rulers in our     
neighboring country1 regenerated as they

 are1 they have no more right to the    
territory called ,france than ,i have4  
,i have a right to pitch my tent in any 
unoccupied place ,i can find for it2 and
 ,i may apply to my own maintenance any 
part of their unoccupied soil4 ,i may   
purchase the house or vineyard of any   
individual proprietor who refuses his   
consent 7and most proprietors have1 as  
far as they dared1 refused it7 to the   
new incorporation4 ,i stand in his      
independent place4 ,who are these       
insolent men1 calling themselves the    
,french nation1 that would monopolize   
this fair domain of ,nature8 ,is it     
because they speak a certain jargon8 ,is
 it their mode of chattering1 to me     
unintelligible1 that forms their title  
to my land8 ,who are they who claim by  
prescription and descent from certain   
gangs of banditti called ,franks1 and   
,burgundians1 and ,visigoths1 of whom ,i
 may have never heard1 and ninety-nine  
out of an hundred of themselves         
certainly never have heard1 whilst at   

the very time they tell me that         
prescription and long possession form no
 title to property8 ,who are they that  
presume to assert that the land which ,i
 purchased of the individual1 a natural 
person1 and not a fiction of state1     
belongs to them1 who in the very        
capacity in which they make their claim 
can exist only as an imaginary being1   
and in virtue of the very prescription  
which they reject and disown8 ,this mode
 of arguing might be pushed into all the
 detail1 so as to leave no sort of      
doubt1 that1 on their principles1 and on
 the sort of footing on which they have 
thought proper to place themselves1 the 
crowd of men1 on the other side of the  
,channel1 who have the impudence to call
 themselves a people1 can never be the  
lawful1 exclusive possessors of the     
soil4 ,by what they call reasoning      
without prejudice1 they leave not one   
stone upon another in the fabric of     
human society4 ,they subvert all the    
authority which they hold1 as well as   

all that which they have destroyed4  ,as
 in the abstract it is perfectly clear1 
that1 out of a state of civil society1  
majority and minority are relations     
which can have no existence1 and that1  
in civil society1 its own specific      
conventions in each corporation         
determine what it is that constitutes   
the people1 so as to make their act the 
signification of the general will1--to  
come to particulars1 it is equally clear
 that neither in ,france nor in ,england
 has the original or any subsequent     
compact of the state1 expressed or      
implied1 constituted a majority of men1 
told by the head1 to be the acting      
people of their several communities4    
,and ,i see as little of policy or      
utility as there is of right1 in laying 
down a principle that a majority of men 
told by the head are to be considered as
 the people1 and that as such their will
 is to be law4 ,what policy can there be
 found in arrangements made in defiance 
of every political principle8 ,to enable

 men to act with the weight and         
character of a people1 and to answer the
 ends for which they are incorporated   
into that capacity1 we must suppose them
 7by means immediate or consequential7  
to be in that state of habitual social  
discipline in which the wiser1 the more 
expert1 and the more opulent conduct1   
and by conducting enlighten and protect1
 the weaker1 the less knowing1 and the  
less provided with the goods of fortune4
 ,when the multitude are not under this 
discipline1 they can scarcely be said to
 be in civil society4 ,give once a      
certain constitution of things which    
produces a variety of conditions and    
circumstances in a state1 and there is  
in ,nature and reason a principle which1
 for their own benefit1 postpones1 not  
the interest1 but the judgment1 of those
 who are numero plures1 to those who are
 virtute et honore majores4 ,numbers in 
a state 7supposing1 which is not the    
case in ,france1 that a state does      
exist7 are always of consideration1--but

 they are not the whole consideration4  
,it is in things more serious than a    
play1 that it may be truly said1 ,satis 
est equitem mihi plaudere4  ,a true     
natural aristocracy is not a separate   
interest in the state1 or separable from
 it4 ,it is an essential integrant part 
of any large body rightly constituted4  
,it is formed out of a class of         
legitimate presumptions1 which1 taken as
 generalities1 must be admitted for     
actual truths4 ,to be bred in a place of
 estimation2 to see nothing low and     
sordid from one's infancy2 to be taught 
to respect one's self2 to be habituated 
to the censorial inspection of the      
public eye2 to look early to public     
opinion2 to stand upon such elevated    
ground as to be enabled to take a large 
view of the wide-spread and infinitely  
diversified combinations of men and     
affairs in a large society2 to have     
leisure to read1 to reflect1 to         
converse2 to be enabled to draw the     
court and attention of the wise and     

learned1 wherever they are to be found2 
to be habituated in armies to command   
and to obey2 to be taught to despise    
danger in the pursuit of honor and duty2
 to be formed to the greatest degree of 
vigilance1 foresight1 and               
circumspection1 in a state of things in 
which no fault is committed with        
impunity and the slightest mistakes draw
 on the most ruinous consequences2 to be
 led to a guarded and regulated conduct1
 from a sense that you are considered as
 an instructor of your fellow-citizens  
in their highest concerns1 and that you 
act as a reconciler between ,god and    
man2 to be employed as an administrator 
of law and justice1 and to be thereby   
amongst the first benefactors to        
mankind2 to be a professor of high      
science1 or of liberal and ingenuous    
art2 to be amongst rich traders1 who    
from their success are presumed to have 
sharp and vigorous understandings1 and  
to possess the virtues of diligence1    
order1 constancy1 and regularity1 and to

 have cultivated an habitual regard to  
commutative justice3 these are the      
circumstances of men that form what ,i  
should call a natural aristocracy1      
without which there is no nation4  ,the 
state of civil society which necessarily
 generates this aristocracy is a state  
of ,nature1--and much more truly so than
 a savage and incoherent mode of life4  
,for man is by nature reasonable2 and he
 is never perfectly in his natural      
state1 but when he is placed where      
reason may be best cultivated and most  
predominates4 ,art is man's nature4 ,we 
are as much1 at least1 in a state of    
,nature in formed manhood as in immature
 and helpless infancy4 ,men1 qualified  
in the manner ,i have just described1   
form in ,nature1 as she operates in the 
common modification of society1 the     
leading1 guiding1 and governing part4   
,it is the soul to the body1 without    
which the man does not exist4 ,to give1 
therefore1 no more importance1 in the   
social order1 to such descriptions of   

men than that of so many units is a     
horrible usurpation4  ,when great       
multitudes act together1 under that     
discipline of ,nature1 ,i recognize the 
,,people4 ,i acknowledge something that 
perhaps equals1 and ought always to     
guide1 the sovereignty of convention4   
,in all things the voice of this grand  
chorus of national harmony ought to have
 a mighty and decisive influence4 ,but  
when you disturb this harmony1--when you
 break up this beautiful order1 this    
array of truth and ,nature1 as well as  
of habit and prejudice1--when you       
separate the common sort of men from    
their proper chieftains1 so as to form  
them into an adverse army1--,i no longer
 know that venerable object called the  
people in such a disbanded race of      
deserters and vagabonds4 ,for a while   
they may be terrible1 indeed1--but in   
such a manner as wild beasts are        
terrible4 ,the mind owes to them no sort
 of submission4 ,they are1 as they have 
always been reputed1 rebels4 ,they may  

lawfully be fought with1 and brought    
under1 whenever an advantage offers4    
,those who attempt by outrage and       
violence to deprive men of any advantage
 which they hold under the laws1 and to 
destroy the natural order of life1      
proclaim war against them4  ,we have    
read in history of that furious         
insurrection of the common people in    
,france called the ,jacquerie3 for this 
is not the first time that the people   
have been enlightened into treason1     
murder1 and rapine4 ,its object was to  
extirpate the gentry4 ,the ,captal de   
,buch1 a famous soldier of those days1  
dishonored the name of a gentleman and  
of a man by taking1 for their cruelties1
 a cruel vengeance on these deluded     
wretches3 it was1 however1 his right and
 his duty to make war upon them1 and    
afterwards1 in moderation1 to bring them
 to punishment for their rebellion2     
though in the sense of the ,french      
,revolution1 and of some of our clubs1  
they were the people1--and were truly   

so1 if you will call by that appellation
 any majority of men told by the head4  
,at a time not very remote from the same
 period 7for these humors never have    
affected one of the nations without some
 influence on the other7 happened       
several risings of the lower commons in 
,england4 ,these insurgents were        
certainly the majority of the           
inhabitants of the counties in which    
they resided2 and ,cade1 ,ket1 and      
,straw1 at the head of their national   
guards1 and fomented by certain traitors
 of high rank1 did no more than exert1  
according to the doctrines of ours and  
the ,parisian societies1 the sovereign  
power inherent in the majority4  ,we    
call the time of those events a dark    
age4 ,indeed1 we are too indulgent to   
our own proficiency4 ,the ,abb ,john    
,ball understood the rights of man as   
well as the ,abb ,grgoire4 ,that        
reverend patriarch of sedition1 and     
prototype of our modern preachers1 was  
of opinion1 with the ,national          

,assembly1 that all the evils which have
 fallen upon men had been caused by an  
ignorance of their having been born and 
continued equal as to their rights4 ,had
 the populace been able to repeat that  
profound maxim1 all would have gone     
perfectly well with them4 ,no tyranny1  
no vexation1 no oppression1 no care1 no 
sorrow1 could have existed in the world4
 ,this would have cured them like a     
charm for the tooth-ache4 ,but the      
lowest wretches1 in their most ignorant 
state1 were able at all times to talk   
such stuff2 and yet at all times have   
they suffered many evils and many       
oppressions1 both before and since the  
republication by the ,national ,assembly
 of this spell of healing potency and   
virtue4 ,the enlightened ,dr4 ,ball1    
when he wished to rekindle the lights   
and fires of his audience on this point1
 chose for the test the following       
couplet3--      ,when ,adam delved and  
,eve span1     ,who was then the        
gentleman8  ,of this sapient maxim1     

however1 ,i do not give him for the     
inventor4 ,it seems to have been handed 
down by tradition1 and had certainly    
become proverbial2 but whether then     
composed or only applied1 thus much must
 be admitted1 that in learning1 sense1  
energy1 and comprehensiveness1 it is    
fully equal to all the modern           
dissertations on the equality of        
mankind3 and it has one advantage over  
them1--that it is in rhyme4#bc  ,there  
is no doubt but that this great teacher 
of the rights of man decorated his      
discourse on this valuable text with    
lemmas1 theorems1 scholia1 corollaries1 
and all the apparatus of science1 which 
was furnished in as great plenty and    
perfection out of the dogmatic and      
polemic magazines1 the old horse-armory 
of the ,schoolmen1 among whom the ,rev4 
,dr4 ,ball was bred1 as they can be     
supplied from the new arsenal at        
,hackney4 ,it was1 no doubt1 disposed   
with all the adjutancy of definition and
 division1 in which 7,i speak it with   

submission7 the old marshals were as    
able as the modern martinets4 ,neither  
can we deny that the philosophic        
auditory1 when they had once obtained   
this knowledge1 could never return to   
their former ignorance1 or after so     
instructive a lecture be in the same    
state of mind as if they had never heard
 it4#bd ,but these poor people1 who were
 not to be envied for their knowledge1  
but pitied for their delusion1 were not 
reasoned1 7that was impossible17 but    
beaten1 out of their lights4 ,with their
 teacher they were delivered over to the
 lawyers1 who wrote in their blood the  
statutes of the land1 as harshly1 and in
 the same sort of ink1 as they and their
 teachers had written the rights of man4
  ,our doctors of the day are not so    
fond of quoting the opinions of this    
ancient sage as they are of imitating   
his conduct3 first1 because it might    
appear that they are not as great       
inventors as they would be thought2 and 
next1 because1 unfortunately for his    

fame1 he was not successful4 ,it is a   
remark liable to as few exceptions as   
any generality can be1 that they who    
applaud prosperous folly and adore      
triumphant guilt have never been known  
to succor or even to pity human weakness
 or offence1 when they become subject to
 human vicissitude1 and meet with       
punishment instead of obtaining power4  
,abating for their want of sensibility  
to the sufferings of their associates1  
they are not so much in the wrong2 for  
madness and wickedness are things foul  
and deformed in themselves1 and stand in
 need of all the coverings and trappings
 of fortune to recommend them to the    
multitude4 ,nothing can be more         
loathsome in their naked nature4        
,aberrations like these1 whether ancient
 or modern1 unsuccessful or prosperous1 
are things of passage4 ,they furnish no 
argument for supposing a multitude told 
by the head to be the people4 ,such a   
multitude can have no sort of title to  
alter the seat of power in the society1 

in which it ever ought to be the        
obedient1 and not the ruling or         
presiding part4 ,what power may belong  
to the whole mass1 in which mass the    
natural aristocracy1 or what by         
convention is appointed to represent and
 strengthen it1 acts in its proper      
place1 with its proper weight1 and      
without being subjected to violence1 is 
a deeper question4 ,but in that case1   
and with that concurrence1 ,i should    
have much doubt whether any rash or     
desperate changes in the state1 such as 
we have seen in ,france1 could ever be  
effected4  ,i have said that in all     
political questions the consequences of 
any assumed rights are of great moment  
in deciding upon their validity4 ,in    
this point of view let us a little      
scrutinize the effects of a right in the
 mere majority of the inhabitants of any
 country of superseding and altering    
their government at pleasure4  ,the sum 
total of every people is composed of its
 units4 ,every individual must have a   

right to originate what afterwards is to
 become the act of the majority4        
,whatever he may lawfully originate he  
may lawfully endeavor to accomplish4 ,he
 has a right1 therefore1 in his own     
particular1 to break the ties and       
engagements which bind him to the       
country in which he lives2 and he has a 
right to make as many converts to his   
opinions1 and to obtain as many         
associates in his designs1 as he can    
procure3 for how can you know the       
dispositions of the majority to destroy 
their government1 but by tampering with 
some part of the body8 ,you must begin  
by a secret conspiracy1 that you may end
 with a national confederation4 ,the    
mere pleasure of the beginner must be   
the sole guide2 since the mere pleasure 
of others must be the sole ultimate     
sanction1 as well as the sole actuating 
principle in every part of the progress4
 ,thus1 arbitrary will 7the last        
corruption of ruling power7 step by step
 poisons the heart of every citizen4 ,if

 the undertaker fails1 he has the       
misfortune of a rebel1 but not the      
guilt4 ,by such doctrines1 all love to  
our country1 all pious veneration and   
attachment to its laws and customs1 are 
obliterated from our minds2 and nothing 
can result from this opinion1 when grown
 into a principle1 and animated by      
discontent1 ambition1 or enthusiasm1 but
 a series of conspiracies and seditions1
 sometimes ruinous to their authors1    
always noxious to the state4 ,no sense  
of duty can prevent any man from being a
 leader or a follower in such           
enterprises4 ,nothing restrains the     
tempter2 nothing guards the tempted4    
,nor is the new state1 fabricated by    
such arts1 safer than the old4 ,what can
 prevent the mere will of any person1   
who hopes to unite the wills of others  
to his own1 from an attempt wholly to   
overturn it8 ,it wants nothing but a    
disposition to trouble the established  
order1 to give a title to the           
enterprise4  ,when you combine this     

principle of the right to change a fixed
 and tolerable constitution of things at
 pleasure with the theory and practice  
of the ,french ,assembly1 the political1
 civil1 and moral irregularity are1 if  
possible1 aggravated4 ,the ,assembly    
have found another road1 and a far more 
commodious1 to the destruction of an old
 government1 and the legitimate         
formation of a new one1 than through the
 previous will of the majority of what  
they call the people4 ,get1 say they1   
the possession of power by any means you
 can into your hands2 and then1 a       
subsequent consent 7what they call an   
address of adhesion7 makes your         
authority as much the act of the people 
as if they had conferred upon you       
originally that kind and degree of power
 which without their permission you had 
seized upon4 ,this is to give a direct  
sanction to fraud1 hypocrisy1 perjury1  
and the breach of the most sacred trusts
 that can exist between man and man4    
,what can sound with such horrid        

discordance in the moral ear as this    
position1--that a delegate with limited 
powers may break his sworn engagements  
to his constituent1 assume an authority1
 never committed to him1 to alter all   
things at his pleasure1 and then1 if he 
can persuade a large number of men to   
flatter him in the power he has usurped1
 that he is absolved in his own         
conscience1 and ought to stand acquitted
 in the eyes of mankind8 ,on this       
scheme1 the maker of the experiment must
 begin with a determined perjury4 ,that 
point is certain4 ,he must take his     
chance for the expiatory addresses4     
,this is to make the success of villany 
the standard of innocence4  ,without    
drawing on1 therefore1 very shocking    
consequences1 neither by previous       
consent1 nor by subsequent ratification 
of a mere reckoned majority1 can any set
 of men attempt to dissolve the state at
 their pleasure4 ,to apply this to our  
present subject4 ,when the several      
orders1 in their several bailliages1 had

 met in the year #aghi1 7such of them1  
,i mean1 as had met peaceably and       
constitutionally17 to choose and to     
instruct their representatives1 so      
organized and so acting1 7because they  
were organized and were acting according
 to the conventions which made them a   
people17 they were the people of        
,france4 ,they had a legal and a natural
 capacity to be considered as that      
people4 ,but observe1 whilst they were  
in this state1 that is1 whilst they were
 a people1 in no one of their           
instructions did they charge or even    
hint at any of those things which have  
drawn upon the usurping ,assembly and   
their adherents the detestation of the  
rational and thinking part of mankind4  
,i will venture to affirm1 without the  
least apprehension of being contradicted
 by any person who knows the then state 
of ,france1 that1 if any one of the     
changes were proposed1 which form the   
fundamental parts of their ,revolution1 
and compose its most distinguishing     

acts1 it would not have had one vote in 
twenty thousand in any order4 ,their    
instructions purported the direct       
contrary to all those famous proceedings
 which are defended as the acts of the  
people4 ,had such proceedings been      
expected1 the great probability is1 that
 the people would then have risen1 as to
 a man1 to prevent them4 ,the whole     
organization of the ,assembly was       
altered1 the whole frame of the kingdom 
was changed1 before these things could  
be done4 ,it is long to tell1 by what   
evil arts of the conspirators1 and by   
what extreme weakness and want of       
steadiness in the lawful government1    
this equal usurpation on the rights of  
the prince and people1 having first     
cheated1 and then offered violence to   
both1 has been able to triumph1 and to  
employ with success the forged signature
 of an imprisoned sovereign1 and the    
spurious voice of dictated addresses1 to
 a subsequent ratification of things    
that had never received any previous    

sanction1 general or particular1        
expressed or implied1 from the nation1  
7in whatever sense that word is taken17 
or from any part of it4  ,after the     
weighty and respectable part of the     
people had been murdered1 or driven by  
the menaces of murder from their houses1
 or were dispersed in exile into every  
country in ,europe1--after the soldiery 
had been debauched from their           
officers1--after property had lost its  
weight and consideration1 along with its
 security1--after voluntary clubs and   
associations of factious and            
unprincipled men were substituted in the
 place of all the legal corporations of 
the kingdom arbitrarily                 
dissolved1--after freedom had been      
banished from those popular meetings#be 
whose sole recommendation is            
freedom1--after it had come to that pass
 that no dissent dared to appear in any 
of them1 but at the certain price of    
life1--after even dissent had been      
anticipated1 and assassination became as

 quick as suspicion1--such pretended    
ratification by addresses could be no   
act of what any lover of the people     
would choose to call by their name4 ,it 
is that voice which every successful    
usurpation1 as well as this before us1  
may easily procure1 even without making 
7as these tyrants have made7 donatives  
from the spoil of one part of the       
citizens to corrupt the other4  ,the    
pretended rights of man1 which have made
 this havoc1 cannot be the rights of the
 people4 ,for to be a people1 and to    
have these rights1 are things           
incompatible4 ,the one supposes the     
presence1 the other the absence1 of a   
state of civil society4 ,the very       
foundation of the ,french commonwealth  
is false and self-destructive2 nor can  
its principles be adopted in any        
country1 without the certainty of       
bringing it to the very same condition  
in which ,france is found4 ,attempts are
 made to introduce them into every      
nation in ,europe4 ,this nation1 as     

possessing the greatest influence1 they 
wish most to corrupt1 as by that means  
they are assured the contagion must     
become general4 ,i hope1 therefore1 ,i  
shall be excused1 if ,i endeavor to     
show1 as shortly as the matter will     
admit1 the danger of giving to them1    
either avowedly or tacitly1 the smallest
 countenance4  ,there are times and     
circumstances in which not to speak out 
is at least to connive4 ,many think it  
enough for them1 that the principles    
propagated by these clubs and societies1
 enemies to their country and its       
,constitution1 are not owned by the     
modern ,whigs in ,parliament1 who are so
 warm in condemnation of ,mr4 ,burke and
 his book1 and of course of all the     
principles of the ancient1              
constitutional ,whigs of this kingdom4  
,certainly they are not owned4 ,but are 
they condemned with the same zeal as    
,mr4 ,burke and his book are condemned8 
,are they condemned at all8 ,are they   
rejected or discountenanced in any way  

whatsoever8 ,is any man who would fairly
 examine into the demeanor and          
principles of those societies1 and that 
too very moderately1 and in the way     
rather of admonition than of punishment1
 is such a man even decently treated8   
,is he not reproached as if in          
condemning such principles he had belied
 the conduct of his whole life1         
suggesting that his life had been       
governed by principles similar to those 
which he now reprobates8 ,the ,french   
system is in the mean time1 by many     
active agents out of doors1 rapturously 
praised2 the ,british ,constitution is  
coldly tolerated4 ,but these            
,constitutions are different both in the
 foundation and in the whole            
superstructure2 and it is plain that you
 cannot build up the one but on the     
ruins of the other4 ,after all1 if the  
,french be a superior system of liberty1
 why should we not adopt it8 ,to what   
end are our praises8 ,is excellence held
 out to us only that we should not copy 

after it8 ,and what is there in the     
manners of the people1 or in the climate
 of ,france1 which renders that species 
of republic fitted for them1 and        
unsuitable to us8 ,a strong and marked  
difference between the two nations ought
 to be shown1 before we can admit a     
constant1 affected panegyric1 a         
standing1 annual commemoration1 to be   
without any tendency to an example4     
,but the leaders of party will not go   
the length of the doctrines taught by   
the seditious clubs4 ,i am sure they do 
not mean to do so4 ,god forbid6 ,perhaps
 even those who are directly carrying on
 the work of this pernicious foreign    
faction do not all of them intend to    
produce all the mischiefs which must    
inevitably follow from their having any 
success in their proceedings4 ,as to    
leaders in parties1 nothing is more     
common than to see them blindly led4    
,the world is governed by go-betweens4  
,these go-betweens influence the persons
 with whom they carry on the            

intercourse1 by stating their own sense 
to each of them as the sense of the     
other2 and thus they reciprocally master
 both sides4 ,it is first buzzed about  
the ears of leaders1 that their friends 
without doors are very eager for some   
measure1 or very warm about some        
opinion1--that you must not be too rigid
 with them4 ,they are useful persons1   
and zealous in the cause4 ,they may be a
 little wrong1 but the spirit of liberty
 must not be damped2 and by the         
influence you obtain from some degree of
 concurrence with them at present1 you  
may be enabled to set them right        
hereafter4  ,thus the leaders are at    
first drawn to a connivance with        
sentiments and proceedings often totally
 different from their serious and       
deliberate notions4 ,but their          
acquiescence answers every purpose4     
,with no better than such powers1 the   
go-betweens assume a new representative 
character4 ,what at best was but an     
acquiescence is magnified into an       

authority1 and thence into a desire on  
the part of the leaders2 and it is      
carried down as such to the subordinate 
members of parties4 ,by this artifice   
they in their turn are led into measures
 which at first1 perhaps1 few of them   
wished at all1 or at least did not      
desire vehemently or systematically4    
,there is in all parties1 between the   
principal leaders in ,parliament and the
 lowest followers out of doors1 a middle
 sort of men1 a sort of equestrian      
order1 who1 by the spirit of that middle
 situation1 are the fittest for         
preventing things from running to       
excess4 ,but indecision1 though a vice  
of a totally different character1 is the
 natural accomplice of violence4 ,the   
irresolution and timidity of those who  
compose this middle order often prevents
 the effect of their controlling        
situation4 ,the fear of differing with  
the authority of leaders on the one     
hand1 and of contradicting the desires  
of the multitude on the other1 induces  

them to give a careless and passive     
assent to measures in which they never  
were consulted2 and thus things proceed1
 by a sort of activity of inertness1    
until whole bodies1 leaders1 middle-men1
 and followers1 are all hurried1 with   
every appearance and with many of the   
effects of unanimity1 into schemes of   
politics1 in the substance of which no  
two of them were ever fully agreed1 and 
the origin and authors of which1 in this
 circular mode of communication1 none of
 them find it possible to trace4 ,in my 
experience1 ,i have seen much of this in
 affairs which1 though trifling in      
comparison to the present1 were yet of  
some importance to parties2 and ,i have 
known them suffer by it4 ,the sober part
 give their sanction1 at first through  
inattention and levity2 at last they    
give it through necessity4 ,a violent   
spirit is raised1 which the presiding   
minds after a time find it impracticable
 to stop at their pleasure1 to control1 
to regulate1 or even to direct4  ,this  

shows1 in my opinion1 how very quick and
 awakened all men ought to be1 who are  
looked up to by the public1 and who     
deserve that confidence1 to prevent a   
surprise on their opinions1 when dogmas 
are spread and projects pursued by which
 the foundations of society may be      
affected4 ,before they listen even to   
moderate alterations in the government  
of their country1 they ought to take    
care that principles are not propagated 
for that purpose which are too big for  
their object4 ,doctrines limited in     
their present application1 and wide in  
their general principles1 are never     
meant to be confined to what they at    
first pretend4 ,if ,i were to form a    
prognostic of the effect of the present 
machinations on the people from their   
sense of any grievance they suffer under
 this ,constitution1 my mind would be at
 ease4 ,but there is a wide difference  
between the multitude1 when they act    
against their government from a sense of
 grievance or from zeal for some        

opinions4 ,when men are thoroughly      
possessed with that zeal1 it is         
difficult to calculate its force4 ,it is
 certain that its power is by no means  
in exact proportion to its              
reasonableness4 ,it must always have    
been discoverable by persons of         
reflection1 but it is now obvious to the
 world1 that a theory concerning        
government may become as much a cause of
 fanaticism as a dogma in religion4     
,there is a boundary to men's passions1 
when they act from feeling2 none when   
they are under the influence of         
imagination4 ,remove a grievance1 and1  
when men act from feeling1 you go a     
great way towards quieting a commotion4 
,but the good or bad conduct of a       
government1 the protection men have     
enjoyed or the oppression they have     
suffered under it1 are of no sort of    
moment1 when a faction1 proceeding upon 
speculative grounds1 is thoroughly      
heated against its form4 ,when a man is 
from system furious against monarchy or 

episcopacy1 the good conduct of the     
monarch or the bishop has no other      
effect than further to irritate the     
adversary4 ,he is provoked at it as     
furnishing a plea for preserving the    
thing which he wishes to destroy4 ,his  
mind will be heated as much by the sight
 of a sceptre1 a mace1 or a verge1 as if
 he had been daily bruised and wounded  
by these symbols of authority4 ,mere    
spectacles1 mere names1 will become     
sufficient causes to stimulate the      
people to war and tumult4  ,some        
gentlemen are not terrified by the      
facility with which government has been 
overturned in ,france4 ,the people of   
,france1 they say1 had nothing to lose  
in the destruction of a bad             
,constitution2 but1 though not the best 
possible1 we have still a good stake in 
ours1 which will hinder us from         
desperate risks4 ,is this any security  
at all against those who seem to        
persuade themselves1 and who labor to   
persuade others1 that our ,constitution 

is an usurpation in its origin1 unwise  
in its contrivance1 mischievous in its  
effects1 contrary to the rights of man1 
and in all its parts a perfect nuisance8
 ,what motive has any rational man1 who 
thinks in that manner1 to spill his     
blood1 or even to risk a shilling of his
 fortune1 or to waste a moment of his   
leisure1 to preserve it8 ,if he has any 
duty relative to it1 his duty is to     
destroy it4 ,a ,constitution on         
sufferance is a ,constitution condemned4
 ,sentence is already passed upon it4   
,the execution is only delayed4 ,on the 
principles of these gentlemen1 it       
neither has nor ought to have any       
security4 ,so far as regards them1 it is
 left naked1 without friends1 partisans1
 assertors1 or protectors4  ,let us     
examine into the value of this security 
upon the principles of those who are    
more sober1--of those who think1 indeed1
 the ,french ,constitution better1 or at
 least as good as the ,british1 without 
going to all the lengths of the warmer  

politicians in reprobating their own4   
,their security amounts in reality to   
nothing more than this1--that the       
difference between their republican     
system and the ,british limited monarchy
 is not worth a civil war4 ,this        
opinion1 ,i admit1 will prevent people  
not very enterprising in their nature   
from an active undertaking against the  
,british ,constitution4 ,but it is the  
poorest defensive principle that ever   
was infused into the mind of man against
 the attempts of those who will         
enterprise4 ,it will tend totally to    
remove from their minds that very terror
 of a civil war which is held out as our
 sole security4 ,they who think so well 
of the ,french ,constitution certainly  
will not be the persons to carry on a   
war to prevent their obtaining a great  
benefit1 or at worst a fair exchange4   
,they will not go to battle in favor of 
a cause in which their defeat might be  
more advantageous to the public than    
their victory4 ,they must at least      

tacitly abet those who endeavor to make 
converts to a sound opinion2 they must  
discountenance those who would oppose   
its propagation4 ,in proportion as by   
these means the enterprising party is   
strengthened1 the dread of a struggle is
 lessened4 ,see what an encouragement   
this is to the enemies of the           
,constitution6 ,a few assassinations and
 a very great destruction of property we
 know they consider as no real obstacles
 in the way of a grand political change4
 ,and they will hope1 that here1 if     
antimonarchical opinions gain ground as 
they have done in ,france1 they may1 as 
in ,france1 accomplish a revolution     
without a war4  ,they who think so well 
of the ,french ,constitution cannot be  
seriously alarmed by any progress made  
by its partisans4 ,provisions for       
security are not to be received from    
those who think that there is no danger4
 ,no6 there is no plan of security to be
 listened to but from those who         
entertain the same fears with           

ourselves1--from those who think that   
the thing to be secured is a great      
blessing1 and the thing against which we
 would secure it a great mischief4      
,every person of a different opinion    
must be careless about security4  ,i    
believe the author of the ,reflections1 
whether he fears the designs of that set
 of people with reason or not1 cannot   
prevail on himself to despise them4 ,he 
cannot despise them for their numbers1  
which1 though small1 compared with the  
sound part of the community1 are not    
inconsiderable3 he cannot look with     
contempt on their influence1 their      
activity1 or the kind of talents and    
tempers which they possess1 exactly     
calculated for the work they have in    
hand and the minds they chiefly apply   
to4 ,do we not see their most           
considerable and accredited ministers1  
and several of their party of weight and
 importance1 active in spreading        
mischievous opinions1 in giving sanction
 to seditious writings1 in promoting    

seditious anniversaries8 and what part  
of their description has disowned them  
or their proceedings8 ,when men1        
circumstanced as these are1 publicly    
declare such admiration of a foreign    
,constitution1 and such contempt of our 
own1 it would be1 in the author of the  
,reflections1 thinking as he does of the
 ,french ,constitution1 infamously to   
cheat the rest of the nation to their   
ruin to say there is no danger4  ,in    
estimating danger1 we are obliged to    
take into our calculation the character 
and disposition of the enemy into whose 
hands we may chance to fall4 ,the genius
 of this faction is easily discerned1 by
 observing with what a very different   
eye they have viewed the late foreign   
revolutions4 ,two have passed before    
them3 that of ,france1 and that of      
,poland4 ,the state of ,poland was such1
 that there could scarcely exist two    
opinions1 but that a reformation of its 
,constitution1 even at some expense of  
blood1 might be seen without much       

disapprobation4 ,no confusion could be  
feared in such an enterprise2 because   
the establishment to be reformed was    
itself a state of confusion4 ,a king    
without authority2 nobles without union 
or subordination2 a people without arts1
 industry1 commerce1 or liberty2 no     
order within1 no defence without2 no    
effective public force1 but a foreign   
force1 which entered1 a naked country at
 will1 and disposed of everything at    
pleasure4 ,here was a state of things   
which seemed to invite1 and might       
perhaps justify1 bold enterprise and    
desperate experiment4 ,but in what      
manner was this chaos brought into      
order8 ,the means were as striking to   
the imagination as satisfactory to the  
reason and soothing to the moral        
sentiments4 ,in contemplating that      
change1 humanity has everything to      
rejoice and to glory in1--nothing to be 
ashamed of1 nothing to suffer4 ,so far  
as it has gone1 it probably is the most 
pure and defecated public good which    

ever has been conferred on mankind4 ,we 
have seen anarchy and servitude at once 
removed2 a throne strengthened for the  
protection of the people1 without       
trenching on their liberties2 all       
foreign cabal banished1 by changing the 
crown from elective to hereditary2 and  
what was a matter of pleasing wonder1 we
 have seen a reigning king1 from an     
heroic love to his country1 exerting    
himself with all the toil1 the          
dexterity1 the management1 the intrigue1
 in favor of a family of strangers1 with
 which ambitious men labor for the      
aggrandizement of their own4 ,ten       
millions of men in a way of being freed 
gradually1 and therefore safely to      
themselves and the state1 not from civil
 or political chains1 which1 bad as they
 are1 only fetter the mind1 but from    
substantial personal bondage4           
,inhabitants of cities1 before without  
privileges1 placed in the consideration 
which belongs to that improved and      
connecting situation of social life4    

,one of the most proud1 numerous1 and   
fierce bodies of nobility and gentry    
ever known in the world arranged only in
 the foremost rank of free and generous 
citizens4 ,not one man incurred loss or 
suffered degradation4 ,all1 from the    
king to the day-laborer1 were improved  
in their condition4 ,everything was kept
 in its place and order2 but in that    
place and order everything was bettered4
 ,to add to this happy wonder1 this     
unheard-of conjunction of wisdom and    
fortune1 not one drop of blood was      
spilled2 no treachery2 no outrage2 no   
system of slander more cruel than the   
sword2 no studied insults on religion1  
morals1 or manners2 no spoil2 no        
confiscation2 no citizen beggared2 none 
imprisoned2 none exiled3 the whole was  
effected with a policy1 a discretion1 an
 unanimity and secrecy1 such as have    
never been before known on any occasion2
 but such wonderful conduct was reserved
 for this glorious conspiracy in favor  
of the true and genuine rights and      

interests of men4 ,happy people1 if they
 know to proceed as they have begun6    
,happy prince1 worthy to begin with     
splendor or to close with glory a race  
of patriots and of kings1 and to leave  
,a name1 which every wind to heaven     
would bear1     ,which men to speak1 and
 angels joy to hear6  ,to finish        
all1--this great good1 as in the instant
 it is1 contains in it the seeds of all 
further improvement1 and may be         
considered as in a regular progress1    
because founded on similar principles1  
towards the stable excellence of a      
,british ,constitution4  ,here was a    
matter for congratulation and for       
festive remembrance through ages4 ,here 
moralists and divines might indeed relax
 in their temperance1 to exhilarate     
their humanity4 ,but mark the character 
of our faction4 ,all their enthusiasm is
 kept for the ,french ,revolution4 ,they
 cannot pretend that ,france had stood  
so much in need of a change as ,poland4 
,they cannot pretend that ,poland has   

not obtained a better system of liberty 
or of government than it enjoyed before4
 ,they cannot assert that the ,polish   
,revolution cost more dearly than that  
of ,france to the interests and feelings
 of multitudes of men4 ,but the cold and
 subordinate light in which they look   
upon the one1 and the pains they take to
 preach up the other of these           
,revolutions1 leave us no choice in     
fixing on their motives4 ,both          
,revolutions profess liberty as their   
object2 but in obtaining this object the
 one proceeds from anarchy to order1 the
 other from order to anarchy4 ,the first
 secures its liberty by establishing its
 throne2 the other builds its freedom on
 the subversion of its monarchy4 ,in the
 one1 their means are unstained by      
crimes1 and their settlement favors     
morality2 in the other1 vice and        
confusion are in the very essence of    
their pursuit1 and of their enjoyment4  
,the circumstances in which these two   
events differ must cause the difference 

we make in their comparative estimation4
 ,these turn the scale with the         
societies in favor of ,france4 ,ferrum  
est quod amant4 ,the frauds1 the        
violences1 the sacrileges1 the havoc and
 ruin of families1 the dispersion and   
exile of the pride and flower of a great
 country1 the disorder1 the confusion1  
the anarchy1 the violation of property1 
the cruel murders1 the inhuman          
confiscations1 and in the end the       
insolent domination of bloody1          
ferocious1 and senseless clubs1--these  
are the things which they love and      
admire4 ,what men admire and love they  
would surely act4 ,let us see what is   
done in ,france2 and then let us        
undervalue any the slightest danger of  
falling into the hands of such a        
merciless and savage faction6  ,but the 
leaders of the factious societies are   
too wild to succeed in this their       
undertaking4 ,i hope so4 ,but supposing 
them wild and absurd1 is there no danger
 but from wise and reflecting men8      

,perhaps the greatest mischiefs that    
have happened in the world have happened
 from persons as wild as those we think 
the wildest4 ,in truth1 they are the    
fittest beginners of all great changes4 
,why encourage men in a mischievous     
proceeding1 because their absurdity may 
disappoint their malice8--,but noticing 
them may give them consequence4         
,certainly4 ,but they are noticed2 and  
they are noticed1 not with reproof1 but 
with that kind of countenance which is  
given by an apparent concurrence 7not a 
real one1 ,i am convinced7 of a great   
party in the praises of the object which
 they hold out to imitation4  ,but ,i   
hear a language still more              
extraordinary1 and indeed of such a     
nature as must suppose or leave us at   
their mercy4 ,it is this3--,you know    
their promptitude in writing1 and their 
diligence in caballing2 to write1 speak1
 or act against them will only stimulate
 them to new efforts4 ,this way of      
considering the principle of their      

conduct pays but a poor compliment to   
these gentlemen4 ,they pretend that     
their doctrines are infinitely          
beneficial to mankind2 but it seems they
 would keep them to themselves1 if they 
were not greatly provoked4 ,they are    
benevolent from spite4 ,their oracles   
are like those of ,proteus1 7whom some  
people think they resemble in many      
particulars17 who never would give his  
responses1 unless you used him as ill as
 possible4 ,these cats1 it seems1 would 
not give out their electrical light     
without having their backs well rubbed4 
,but this is not to do them perfect     
justice4 ,they are sufficiently         
communicative4 ,had they been quiet1 the
 propriety of any agitation of topics on
 the origin and primary rights of       
government1 in opposition to their      
private sentiments1 might possibly be   
doubted4 ,but1 as it is notorious that  
they were proceeding as fast and as far 
as time and circumstances would admit1  
both in their discussions and           

cabals1--as it is not to be denied that 
they had opened a correspondence with a 
foreign faction the most wicked the     
world ever saw1 and established         
anniversaries to commemorate the most   
monstrous1 cruel1 and perfidious of all 
the proceedings of that faction1--the   
question is1 whether their conduct was  
to be regarded in silence1 lest our     
interference should render them         
outrageous4 ,then let them deal as they 
please with the ,constitution4 ,let the 
lady be passive1 lest the ravisher      
should be driven to force4 ,resistance  
will only increase his desires4 ,yes1   
truly1 if the resistance be feigned and 
feeble4 ,but they who are wedded to the 
,constitution will not act the part of  
wittols4 ,they will drive such seducers 
from the house on the first appearance  
of their love-letters and offered       
assignations4 ,but if the author of the 
,reflections1 though a vigilant1 was not
 a discreet guardian of the             
,constitution1 let them who have the    

same regard to it show themselves as    
vigilant and more skilful in repelling  
the attacks of seduction or violence4   
,their freedom from jealousy is         
equivocal1 and may arise as well from   
indifference to the object as from      
confidence in her virtue4  ,on their    
principle1 it is the resistance1 and not
 the assault1 which produces the danger4
 ,i admit1 indeed1 that1 if we estimated
 the danger by the value of the         
writings1 it would be little worthy of  
our attention3 contemptible these       
writings are in every sense4 ,but they  
are not the cause1 they are the         
disgusting symptoms of a frightful      
distemper4 ,they are not otherwise of   
consequence than as they show the evil  
habit of the bodies from whence they    
come4 ,in that light the meanest of them
 is a serious thing4 ,if1 however1 ,i   
should underrate them1 and if the truth 
is1 that they are not the result1 but   
the cause1 of the disorders ,i speak of1
 surely those who circulate operative   

poisons1 and give to whatever force they
 have by their nature the further       
operation of their authority and        
adoption1 are to be censured1 watched1  
and1 if possible1 repressed4  ,at what  
distance the direct danger from such    
factions may be it is not easy to fix4  
,an adaptation of circumstances to      
designs and principles is necessary4    
,but these cannot be wanting for any    
long time1 in the ordinary course of    
sublunary affairs4 ,great discontents   
frequently arise in the best constituted
 governments from causes which no human 
wisdom can foresee and no human power   
can prevent4 ,they occur at uncertain   
periods1 but at periods which are not   
commonly far asunder4 ,governments of   
all kinds are administered only by men2 
and great mistakes1 tending to inflame  
these discontents1 may concur4 ,the     
indecision of those who happen to rule  
at the critical time1 their supine      
neglect1 or their precipitate and       
ill-judged attention1 may aggravate the 

public misfortunes4 ,in such a state of 
things1 the principles1 now only sown1  
will shoot out and vegetate in full     
luxuriance4 ,in such circumstances the  
minds of the people become sore and     
ulcerated4 ,they are put out of humor   
with all public men and all public      
parties2 they are fatigued with their   
dissensions2 they are irritated at their
 coalitions2 they are made easily to    
believe 7what much pains are taken to   
make them believe7 that all oppositions 
are factious1 and all courtiers base and
 servile4 ,from their disgust at men1   
they are soon led to quarrel with their 
frame of government1 which they presume 
gives nourishment to the vices1 real or 
supposed1 of those who administer in it4
 ,mistaking malignity for sagacity1 they
 are soon led to cast off all hope from 
a good administration of affairs1 and   
come to think that all reformation      
depends1 not on a change of actors1 but 
upon an alteration in the machinery4    
,then will be felt the full effect of   

encouraging doctrines which tend to make
 the citizens despise their             
,constitution4 ,then will be felt the   
plenitude of the mischief of teaching   
the people to believe that all ancient  
institutions are the results of         
ignorance1 and that all prescriptive    
government is in its nature usurpation4 
,then will be felt1 in all its energy1  
the danger of encouraging a spirit of   
litigation in persons of that immature  
and imperfect state of knowledge which  
serves to render them susceptible of    
doubts1 but incapable of their solution4
 ,then will be felt1 in all its         
aggravation1 the pernicious consequence 
of destroying all docility in the minds 
of those who are not formed for finding 
their own way in the labyrinths of      
political theory1 and are made to reject
 the clew and to disdain the guide4     
,then will be felt1 and too late will be
 acknowledged1 the ruin which follows   
the disjoining of religion from the     
state1 the separation of morality from  

policy1 and the giving conscience no    
concern and no coactive or coercive     
force in the most material of all the   
social ties1 the principle of our       
obligations to government4  ,i know1    
too1 that1 besides this vain1           
contradictory1 and self-destructive     
security which some men derive from the 
habitual attachment of the people to    
this ,constitution1 whilst they suffer  
it with a sort of sportive acquiescence 
to be brought into contempt before their
 faces1 they have other grounds for     
removing all apprehension from their    
minds4 ,they are of opinion that there  
are too many men of great hereditary    
estates and influence in the kingdom to 
suffer the establishment of the         
levelling system which has taken place  
in ,france4 ,this is very true1 if1 in  
order to guide the power which now      
attends their property1 these men       
possess the wisdom which is involved in 
early fear4 ,but if1 through a supine   
security1 to which such fortunes are    

peculiarly liable1 they neglect the use 
of their influence in the season of     
their power1 on the first derangement of
 society the nerves of their strength   
will be cut4 ,their estates1 instead of 
being the means of their security1 will 
become the very causes of their danger4 
,instead of bestowing influence1 they   
will excite rapacity4 ,they will be     
looked to as a prey4  ,such will be the 
impotent condition of those men of great
 hereditary estates1 who indeed dislike 
the designs that are carried on1 but    
whose dislike is rather that of         
spectators than of parties that may be  
concerned in the catastrophe of the     
piece4 ,but riches do not in all cases  
secure even an inert and passive        
resistance4 ,there are always in that   
description men whose fortunes1 when    
their minds are once vitiated by passion
 or by evil principle1 are by no means a
 security from their actually taking    
their part against the public           
tranquillity4 ,we see to what low and   

despicable passions of all kinds many   
men in that class are ready to sacrifice
 the patrimonial estates which might be 
perpetuated in their families with      
splendor1 and with the fame of          
hereditary benefactors to mankind1 from 
generation to generation4 ,do we not see
 how lightly people treat their         
fortunes1 when under the influence of   
the passion of gaming8 ,the game of     
ambition or resentment will be played by
 many of the rich and great as          
desperately1 and with as much blindness 
to the consequences1 as any other game4 
,was he a man of no rank or fortune who 
first set on foot the disturbances which
 have ruined ,france8 ,passion blinded  
him to the consequences1 so far as they 
concerned himself2 and as to the        
consequences with regard to others1 they
 were no part of his consideration1--nor
 ever will be with those who bear any   
resemblance to that virtuous patriot and
 lover of the rights of man4  ,there is 
also a time of insecurity1 when         

interests of all sorts become objects of
 speculation4 ,then it is that their    
very attachment to wealth and importance
 will induce several persons of opulence
 to list themselves and even to take a  
lead with the party which they think    
most likely to prevail1 in order to     
obtain to themselves consideration in   
some new order or disorder of things4   
,they may be led to act in this manner1 
that they may secure some portion of    
their own property1 and perhaps to      
become partakers of the spoil of their  
own order4 ,those who speculate on      
change always make a great number among 
people of rank and fortune1 as well as  
amongst the low and the indigent4  ,what
 security against all this8--,all human 
securities are liable to uncertainty4   
,but if anything bids fair for the      
prevention of so great a calamity1 it   
must consist in the use of the ordinary 
means of just influence in society1     
whilst those means continue unimpaired4 
,the public judgment ought to receive a 

proper direction4 ,all weighty men may  
have their share in so good a work4 ,as 
yet1 notwithstanding the strutting and  
lying independence of a braggart        
philosophy1 ,nature maintains her       
rights1 and great names have great      
prevalence4 ,two such men as ,mr4 ,pitt 
and ,mr4 ,fox1 adding to their authority
 in a point in which they concur even by
 their disunion in everything else1     
might frown these wicked opinions out of
 the kingdom4 ,but if the influence of  
either of them1 or the influence of men 
like them1 should1 against their serious
 intentions1 be otherwise perverted1    
they may countenance opinions which 7as 
,i have said before1 and could wish over
 and over again to press7 they may in   
vain attempt to control4 ,in their      
theory1 these doctrines admit no limit1 
no qualification whatsoever4 ,no man can
 say how far he will go1 who joins with 
those who are avowedly going to the     
utmost extremities4 ,what security is   
there for stopping short at all in these

 wild conceits8 ,why1 neither more nor  
less than this1--that the moral         
sentiments of some few amongst them do  
put some check on their savage theories4
 ,but let us take care4 ,the moral      
sentiments1 so nearly connected with    
early prejudice as to be almost one and 
the same thing1 will assuredly not live 
long under a discipline which has for   
its basis the destruction of all        
prejudices1 and the making the mind     
proof against all dread of consequences 
flowing from the pretended truths that  
are taught by their philosophy4  ,in    
this school the moral sentiments must   
grow weaker and weaker every day4 ,the  
more cautious of these teachers1 in     
laying down their maxims1 draw as much  
of the conclusion as suits1 not with    
their premises1 but with their policy4  
,they trust the rest to the sagacity of 
their pupils4 ,others1 and these are the
 most vaunted for their spirit1 not only
 lay down the same premises1 but boldly 
draw the conclusions1 to the destruction

 of our whole ,constitution in ,church  
and ,state4 ,but are these conclusions  
truly drawn8 ,yes1 most certainly4      
,their principles are wild and wicked2  
but let justice be done even to frenzy  
and villany4 ,these teachers are        
perfectly systematic4 ,no man who       
assumes their grounds can tolerate the  
,british ,constitution in ,church or    
,state4 ,these teachers profess to scorn
 all mediocrity1--to engage for         
perfection1--to proceed by the simplest 
and shortest course4 ,they build their  
politics1 not on convenience1 but on    
truth2 and they profess to conduct men  
to certain happiness by the assertion of
 their undoubted rights4 ,with them     
there is no compromise4 ,all other      
governments are usurpations1 which      
justify and even demand resistance4     
,their principles always go to the      
extreme4 ,they who go with the          
principles of the ancient ,whigs1 which 
are those contained in ,mr4 ,burke's    
book1 never can go too far4 ,they may1  

indeed1 stop short of some hazardous and
 ambiguous excellence1 which they will  
be taught to postpone to any reasonable 
degree of good they may actually        
possess4 ,the opinions maintained in    
that book never can lead to an extreme1 
because their foundation is laid in an  
opposition to extremes4 ,the foundation 
of government is there laid1 not in     
imaginary rights of men1 7which at best 
is a confusion of judicial with civil   
principles17 but in political           
convenience1 and in human               
nature1--either as that nature is       
universal1 or as it is modified by local
 habits and social aptitudes4 ,the      
foundation of government 7those who have
 read that book will recollect7 is laid 
in a provision for our wants and in a   
conformity to our duties3 it is to      
purvey for the one1 it is to enforce the
 other4 ,these doctrines do of          
themselves gravitate to a middle point1 
or to some point near a middle4 ,they   
suppose1 indeed1 a certain portion of   

liberty to be essential to all good     
government2 but they infer that this    
liberty is to be blended into the       
government1 to harmonize with its forms 
and its rules1 and to be made           
subordinate to its end4 ,those who are  
not with that book are with its         
opposite2 for there is no medium besides
 the medium itself4 ,that medium is not 
such because it is found there1 but it  
is found there because it is conformable
 to truth and ,nature4 ,in this we do   
not follow the author1 but we and the   
author travel together upon the same    
safe and middle path4  ,the theory      
contained in his book is not to furnish 
principles for making a new             
,constitution1 but for illustrating the 
principles of a ,constitution already   
made4 ,it is a theory drawn from the    
fact of our government4 ,they who oppose
 it are bound to show that his theory   
militates with that fact2 otherwise1    
their quarrel is not with his book1 but 
with the ,constitution of their country4

 ,the whole scheme of our mixed         
,constitution is to prevent any one of  
its principles from being carried as far
 as1 taken by itself1 and theoretically1
 it would go4 ,allow that to be the true
 policy of the ,british system1 then    
most of the faults with which that      
system stands charged will appear to be1
 not imperfections into which it has    
inadvertently fallen1 but excellencies  
which it has studiously sought4 ,to     
avoid the perfections of extreme1 all   
its several parts are so constituted as 
not alone to answer their own several   
ends1 but also each to limit and control
 the others2 insomuch that1 take which  
of the principles you please1 you will  
find its operation checked and stopped  
at a certain point4 ,the whole movement 
stands still rather than that any part  
should proceed beyond its boundary4     
,from thence it results that in the     
,british ,constitution there is a       
perpetual treaty and compromise going   
on1 sometimes openly1 sometimes with    

less observation4 ,to him who           
contemplates the ,british ,constitution1
 as to him who contemplates the         
subordinate material world1 it will     
always be a matter of his most curious  
investigation to discover the secret of 
this mutual limitation4                 
,finita potestas denique cuique         
,quanam sit ratione1 atque alte terminus
 hrens8  ,they who have acted1 as in    
,france they have done1 upon a scheme   
wholly different1 and who aim at the    
abstract and unlimited perfection of    
power in the popular part1 can be of no 
service to us in any of our political   
arrangements4 ,they who in their        
headlong career have overpassed the goal
 can furnish no example to those who aim
 to go no further4 ,the temerity of such
 speculators is no more an example than 
the timidity of others4 ,the one sort   
scorns the right2 the other fears it2   
both miss it4 ,but those who by violence
 go beyond the barrier are without      
question the most mischievous2 because1 

to go beyond it1 they overturn and      
destroy it4 ,to say they have spirit is 
to say nothing in their praise4 ,the    
untempered spirit of madness1 blindness1
 immorality1 and impiety deserves no    
commendation4 ,he that sets his house on
 fire because his fingers are           
frost-bitten can never be a fit         
instructor in the method of providing   
our habitations with a cheerful and     
salutary warmth4 ,we want no foreign    
examples to rekindle in us the flame of 
liberty4 ,the example of our own        
ancestors is abundantly sufficient to   
maintain the spirit of freedom in its   
full vigor1 and to qualify it in all its
 exertions4 ,the example of a wise1     
moral1 well-natured1 and well-tempered  
spirit of freedom is that alone which   
can be useful to us1 or in the least    
degree reputable or safe4 ,our fabric is
 so constituted1 one part of it bears so
 much on the other1 the parts are so    
made for one another1 and for nothing   
else1 that to introduce any foreign     

matter into it is to destroy it4  ,what 
has been said of the ,roman ,empire is  
at least as true of the ,british        
,constitution3--,octingentorum annorum  
fortuna disciplinaque compages hc       
coaluit2 qu convelli sine convellentium 
exitio non potest4 ,this ,british       
,constitution has not been struck out at
 an heat by a set of presumptuous men1  
like the ,assembly of pettifoggers run  
mad in ,paris4      ',tis not the hasty 
product of a day1     ,but the          
well-ripened fruit of wise delay4  ,it  
is the result of the thoughts of many   
minds in many ages4 ,it is no simple1 no
 superficial thing1 nor to be estimated 
by superficial understandings4 ,an      
ignorant man1 who is not fool enough to 
meddle with his clock1 is1 however1     
sufficiently confident to think he can  
safely take to pieces and put together1 
at his pleasure1 a moral machine of     
another guise1 importance1 and          
complexity1 composed of far other wheels
 and springs and balances and           

counteracting and coperating powers4    
,men little think how immorally they act
 in rashly meddling with what they do   
not understand4 ,their delusive good    
intention is no sort of excuse for their
 presumption4 ,they who truly mean well 
must be fearful of acting ill4 ,the     
,british ,constitution may have its     
advantages pointed out to wise and      
reflecting minds1 but it is of too high 
an order of excellence to be adapted to 
those which are common4 ,it takes in too
 many views1 it makes too many          
combinations1 to be so much as          
comprehended by shallow and superficial 
understandings4 ,profound thinkers will 
know it in its reason and spirit4 ,the  
less inquiring will recognize it in     
their feelings and their experience4    
,they will thank ,god they have a       
standard1 which1 in the most essential  
point of this great concern1 will put   
them on a par with the most wise and    
knowing4  ,if we do not take to our aid 
the foregone studies of men reputed     

intelligent and learned1 we shall be    
always beginners4 ,but men must learn   
somewhere2 and the new teachers mean no 
more than what they effect1 as far as   
they succeed1--that is1 to deprive men  
of the benefit of the collected wisdom  
of mankind1 and to make them blind      
disciples of their own particular       
presumption4 ,talk to these deluded     
creatures 7all the disciples and most of
 the masters7 who are taught to think   
themselves so newly fitted up and       
furnished1 and you will find nothing in 
their houses but the refuse of ,knaves' 
,acre1--nothing but the rotten stuff1   
worn out in the service of delusion and 
sedition in all ages1 and which1 being  
newly furbished up1 patched1 and        
varnished1 serves well enough for those 
who1 being unacquainted with the        
conflict which has always been          
maintained between the sense and the    
nonsense of mankind1 know nothing of the
 former existence and the ancient       
refutation of the same follies4 ,it is  

near two thousand years since it has    
been observed that these devices of     
ambition1 avarice1 and turbulence were  
antiquated4 ,they are1 indeed1 the most 
ancient of all commonplaces3            
commonplaces sometimes of good and      
necessary causes2 more frequently of the
 worst1 but which decide upon neither4  
,eadem semper causa1 libido et avaritia1
 et mutandarum rerum amor4 ,ceterum     
libertas et speciosa nomina pretexuntur2
 nec quisquam alienum servitium1 et     
dominationem sibi concupivit1 ut non    
eadem ista vocabula usurparet4          
,rational and experienced men tolerably 
well know1 and have always known1 how to
 distinguish between true and false     
liberty1 and between the genuine        
adherence and the false pretence to what
 is true4 ,but none1 except those who   
are profoundly studied1 can comprehend  
the elaborate contrivance of a fabric   
fitted to unite private and public      
liberty with public force1 with order1  
with peace1 with justice1 and1 above    

all1 with the institutions formed for   
bestowing permanence and stability1     
through ages1 upon this invaluable      
whole4  ,place1 for instance1 before    
your eyes such a man as ,montesquieu4   
,think of a genius not born in every    
country or every time3 a man gifted by  
,nature with a penetrating1 aquiline    
eye1--with a judgment prepared with the 
most extensive erudition1--with an      
,herculean robustness of mind1 and      
nerves not to be broken with labor1--a  
man who could spend twenty years in one 
pursuit4 ,think of a man like the       
universal patriarch in ,milton 7who had 
drawn up before him in his prophetic    
vision the whole series of the          
generations which were to issue from his
 loins73 a man capable of placing in    
review1 after having brought together   
from the ,east1 the ,west1 the ,north1  
and the ,south1 from the coarseness of  
the rudest barbarism to the most refined
 and subtle civilization1 all the       
schemes of government which had ever    

prevailed amongst mankind1 weighing1    
measuring1 collating1 and comparing them
 all1 joining fact with theory1 and     
calling into council1 upon all this     
infinite assemblage of things1 all the  
speculations which have fatigued the    
understandings of profound reasoners in 
all times4 ,let us then consider1 that  
all these were but so many preparatory  
steps to qualify a man1 and such a man1 
tinctured with no national prejudice1   
with no domestic affection1 to admire1  
and to hold out to the admiration of    
mankind1 the ,constitution of ,england4 
,and shall we ,englishmen revoke to such
 a suit8 ,shall we1 when so much more   
than he has produced remains still to be
 understood and admired1 instead of     
keeping ourselves in the schools of real
 science1 choose for our teachers men   
incapable of being taught1--whose only  
claim to know is1 that they have never  
doubted1--from whom we can learn nothing
 but their own indocility1--who would   
teach us to scorn what in the silence of

 our hearts we ought to adore8          
,different from them are all the great  
critics4 ,they have taught us one       
essential rule4 ,i think the excellent  
and philosophic artist1 a true judge1 as
 well as a perfect follower of ,nature1 
,sir ,joshua ,reynolds1 has somewhere   
applied it1 or something like it1 in his
 own profession4 ,it is this3 that1 if  
ever we should find ourselves disposed  
not to admire those writers or artists  
7,livy and ,virgil1 for instance1       
,raphael or ,michael ,angelo7 whom all  
the learned had admired1 not to follow  
our own fancies1 but to study them1     
until we know how and what we ought to  
admire2 and if we cannot arrive at this 
combination of admiration with          
knowledge1 rather to believe that we are
 dull than that the rest of the world   
has been imposed on4 ,it is as good a   
rule1 at least1 with regard to this     
admired ,constitution4 ,we ought to     
understand it according to our measure1 
and to venerate where we are not able   

presently to comprehend4  ,such admirers
 were our fathers1 to whom we owe this  
splendid inheritance4 ,let us improve it
 with zeal1 but with fear4 ,let us      
follow our ancestors1 men not without a 
rational1 though without an exclusive   
confidence in themselves1--who1 by      
respecting the reason of others1 who1 by
 looking backward as well as forward1 by
 the modesty as well as by the energy of
 their minds1 went on insensibly drawing
 this ,constitution nearer and nearer to
 its perfection1 by never departing from
 its fundamental principles1 nor        
introducing any amendment which had not 
a subsisting root in the laws1          
,constitution1 and usages of the        
kingdom4 ,let those who have the trust  
of political or of natural authority    
ever keep watch against the desperate   
enterprises of innovation3 let even     
their benevolence be fortified and      
armed4 ,they have before their eyes the 
example of a monarch insulted1 degraded1
 confined1 deposed2 his family          

dispersed1 scattered1 imprisoned2 his   
wife insulted to his face1 like the     
vilest of the sex1 by the vilest of all 
populace2 himself three times dragged by
 these wretches in an infamous triumph2 
his children torn from him1 in violation
 of the first right of ,nature1 and     
given into the tuition of the most      
desperate and impious of the leaders of 
desperate and impious clubs2 his        
revenues dilapidated and plundered2 his 
magistrates murdered2 his clergy        
proscribed1 persecuted1 famished2 his   
nobility degraded in their rank1 undone 
in their fortunes1 fugitives in their   
persons2 his armies corrupted and       
ruined2 his whole people impoverished1  
disunited1 dissolved2 whilst through the
 bars of his prison1 and amidst the     
bayonets of his keepers1 he hears the   
tumult of two conflicting factions1     
equally wicked and abandoned1 who agree 
in principles1 in dispositions1 and in  
objects1 but who tear each other to     
pieces about the most effectual means of

 obtaining their common end3 the one    
contending to preserve for a while his  
name1 and his person1 the more easily to
 destroy the royal authority1--the other
 clamoring to cut off the name1 the     
person1 and the monarchy together1 by   
one sacrilegious execution4 ,all this   
accumulation of calamity1 the greatest  
that ever fell upon one man1 has fallen 
upon his head1 because he had left his  
virtues unguarded by caution1--because  
he was not taught1 that1 where power is 
concerned1 he who will confer benefits  
must take security against ingratitude4 
,i have stated the calamities which have
 fallen upon a great prince and nation1 
because they were not alarmed at the    
approach of danger1 and because1 what   
commonly happens to men surprised1 they 
lost all resource when they were caught 
in it4 ,when ,i speak of danger1 ,i     
certainly mean to address myself to     
those who consider the prevalence of the
 new ,whig doctrines as an evil4  ,the  
,whigs of this day have before them1 in 

this ,appeal1 their constitutional      
ancestors2 they have the doctors of the 
modern school4 ,they will choose for    
themselves4 ,the author of the          
,reflections has chosen for himself4 ,if
 a new order is coming on1 and all the  
political opinions must pass away as    
dreams1 which our ancestors have        
worshipped as revelations1 ,i say for   
him1 that he would rather be the last   
7as certainly he is the least7 of that  
race of men than the first and greatest 
of those who have coined to themselves  
,whig principles from a ,french die1    
unknown to the impress of our fathers in
 the ,constitution4  ,,footnotes3  #f   
,newspaper intelligence ought always to 
be received with some degree of caution4
 ,i do not know that the following      
paragraph is founded on any authority2  
but it comes with an air of authority4  
,the paper is professedly in the        
interest of the modern ,whigs1 and under
 their direction4 ,the paragraph is not 
disclaimed on their part4 ,it professes 

to be the decision of those whom its    
author calls the great and firm body of 
the ,whigs of ,england4 ,who are the    
,whigs of a different composition1 which
 the promulgator of the sentence        
considers as composed of fleeting and   
unsettled particles1 ,i know not1 nor   
whether there be any of that            
description4 ,the definitive sentence of
 the great and firm body of the ,whigs  
of ,england 7as this paper gives it out7
 is as follows3--  ,the great and firm  
body of the ,whigs of ,england1 true to 
their principles1 have decided on the   
dispute between ,mr4 ,fox and ,mr4      
,burke2 and the former is declared to   
have maintained the pure doctrines by   
which they are bound together1 and upon 
which they have invariably acted4 ,the  
consequence is1 that ,mr4 ,burke retires
 from ,parliament4--,morning ,chronicle1
 ,may #ab1 #agia4  #g ,reflections1 c41 
#ast ed41 ,london1 ,j4 ,dodsley1        
#agij4--,works1 ,vol4 ,,iii4 p4 #cdc1 in
 the present edition4  #h ,to explain   

this1 it will be necessary to advert to 
a paragraph which appeared in a paper in
 the minority interest some time before 
this debate4 ,a very dark intrigue has  
lately been discovered1 the authors of  
which are well known to us2 but until   
the glorious day shall come when it will
 not be a ,,libel to tell the ,,truth1  
we must not be so regardless of our own 
safety as to publish their names4 ,we   
will1 however1 state the fact1 leaving  
it to the ingenuity of our readers to   
discover what we dare not publish4      
,since the business of the armament     
against ,russia has been under          
discussion1 a great personage has been  
heard to say1 'that he was not so wedded
 to ,mr4 ,,pitt as not to be very       
willing to give his confidence to ,mr4  
,,fox1 if the latter should be able1 in 
a crisis like the present1 to conduct   
the government of the country with      
greater advantage to the public4'  ,this
 patriotic declaration immediately      
alarmed the swarm of courtly insects    

that live only in the sunshine of       
ministerial favor4 ,it was thought to be
 the forerunner of the dismission of    
,mr4 ,pitt1 and every engine was set at 
work for the purpose of preventing such 
an event4 ,the principal engine employed
 on this occasion was ,,calumny4 ,it was
 whispered in the ear of a great        
personage1 that ,mr4 ,fox was the last  
man in ,england to be trusted by a      
,,king1 because he was by ,,principle a 
,,republican1 and consequently an enemy 
to ,,monarchy4  ,in the discussion of   
the ,quebec ,bill which stood for       
yesterday1 it was the intention of some 
persons to connect with this subject the
 ,french ,revolution1 in hopes that ,mr4
 ,fox would be warmed by a collision    
with ,mr4 ,burke1 and induced to defend 
that ,revolution1 in which so much power
 was taken from1 and so little left in  
the crown4  ,had ,mr4 ,fox fallen into  
the snare1 his speech on the occasion   
would have been laid before a great     
personage1 as a proof that a man who    

could defend such a revolution might be 
a very good republican1 but could not   
possibly be a friend to monarchy4  ,but 
those who laid the snare were           
disappointed2 for ,mr4 ,fox1 in the     
short conversation which took place     
yesterday in the ,house of ,commons1    
said1 that he confessedly had thought   
favorably of the ,french ,revolution1   
but that most certainly he never had1   
either in ,parliament or out of         
,parliament1 professed or defended      
republican principles4--,argus1 ,april  
#bb;d1 #agia4  ,mr4 ,burke cannot answer
 for the truth nor prove the falsehood  
of the story given by the friends of the
 party in this paper4 ,he only knows    
that an opinion of its being well or ill
 authenticated had no influence on his  
conduct4 ,he meant only1 to the best of 
his power1 to guard the public against  
the ill designs of factions out of      
doors4 ,what ,mr4 ,burke did in         
,parliament could hardly have been      
intended to draw ,mr4 ,fox into any     

declarations unfavorable to his         
principles1 since 7by the account of    
those who are his friends7 he had long  
before effectually prevented the success
 of any such scandalous designs4 ,mr4   
,fox's friends have themselves done away
 that imputation on ,mr4 ,burke4  #i    
,see his speech on ,american ,taxation1 
the #aith of ,april1 #aggd4  #aj ,lord  
,lansdowne4  #aa ,mr4 ,windham4  #ab    
,july #agth1 #agfe4  #ac ,works1 ,vol4  
,,iii4 pp4 #bea-bgf1 present edition4   
#ad ,state ,trials1 ,vol4 ,v4 p4 #fea4  
#ae ,page #fgf4  #af ,the words         
necessary to the completion of the      
sentence are wanting in the printed     
trial--but the construction of the      
sentence1 as well as the foregoing part 
of the speech1 justify the insertion of 
some such supplemental words as the     
above4  #ag ,what we did was1 in truth  
and substance1 and in a constitutional  
light1 a revolution1 not made1 but      
prevented4 ,we took solid securities2 we
 settled doubtful questions2 we         

corrected anomalies in our law4 ,in the 
stable1 fundamental parts of our        
,constitution we made no                
revolution1--no1 nor any alteration at  
all4 ,we did not impair the monarchy4   
,perhaps it might be shown that we      
strengthened it very considerably4 ,the 
nation kept the same ranks1 the same    
orders1 the same privileges1 the same   
franchises1 the same rules for property1
 the same subordinations1 the same order
 in the law1 in the revenue1 and in the 
magistracy1--the same lords1 the same   
commons1 the same corporations1 the same
 electors4--,mr4 ,burke's ,speech in the
 ,house of ,commons1 #ith ,february1    
#agij4--;,it appears how exactly he     
coincides in everything with ,sir       
,joseph ,jekyl4  #ah ,see ,reflections1 
pp4 #db1 #dc4--,works1 ,vol4 ,,iii4 p4  
#bgj1 present edition4  #ai ,declaration
 of ,right4  #bj ,vindication of the    
,rights of ,man1 recommended by the     
several societies4  #ba ,omnes omnium   
charitates patria una                   

complectitur4--,cic4  #bb ,a few lines  
in ,persius contain a good summary of   
all the objects of moral investigation1 
and hint the result of our inquiry3     
,there human will has no place4         
,quid sumus8 et quidnam victuri         
gignimur8 ordo     ,quis datus8 et met  
quis mollis flexus1 et unde8     ,quis  
modus argento8 ,quid fas optare8 ,quid  
asper     ,utile nummus habet8 ,patri   
charisque propinquis     ,quantum       
elargiri debet8 ,quem te ,deus esse     
,jussit8 et humana qua parte locatus es 
in re8    #bc ,it is no small loss to   
the world1 that the whole of this       
enlightened and philosophic sermon1     
preached to two hundred thousand        
national guards assembled at ,blackheath
 7a number probably equal to the sublime
 and majestic ,fdration of the #adth of 
,july1 #agij1 in the ,champ de ,mars7 is
 not preserved4 ,a short abstract is1   
however1 to be found in ,walsingham4 ,i 
have added it here for the edification  
of the modern ,whigs1 who may possibly  

except this precious little fragment    
from their general contempt of ancient  
learning4  ,ut su doctrin plures        
inficeret1 ad le ,blackheth 7ubi ducenta
 millia hominum communium fuere simul   
congregata7 hujuscemodi sermonem est    
exorsus4      ,whan ,adam dalfe and ,eve
 span1      ,who was than a gentleman8  
,continuansque sermonem inceptum1       
nitebatur per verba proverbii1 quod pro 
themate sumpserat1 introducere et       
probare1 ab initio omnes pares creatos a
 natur1 servitutem per injustam         
oppressionem nequam hominum introductam 
contra ,dei voluntatem1 quia si ,deo    
placuisset servos cresse1 utique in     
principio mundi constituisset1 quis     
servus1 quisve dominus futurus fuisset4 
,considerarent igitur jam tempus a ,deo 
datum eis1 in quo 7deposito servitutis  
jugo diutius7 possent1 si vellent1      
libertate diu concupit gaudere4         
,quapropter monuit ut essent viri       
cordati1 et amore boni patrisfamilias   
excolentis agrum suum1 et extirpantis ac

 resecantis noxia gramina qu fruges     
solent opprimere1 et ipsi in prsenti    
facere festinarent4 ,prim majores regni 
dominos occidendo4 ,deinde juridicos1   
justiciarios1 et juratores patri        
perimendo4 ,postrem quoscunque scirent  
in posterum communitati nocivos         
tollerent de terr su1 sic demum et pacem
 sibimet parerent et securitatem in     
futurum4 ,si sublatis majoribus esset   
inter eos qua libertas1 eadem nobilitas1
 par dignitas1 similisque potestas4     
,here is displayed at once the whole of 
the grand arcanum pretended to be found 
out by the ,national ,assembly1 for     
securing future happiness1 peace1 and   
tranquillity4 ,there seems1 however1 to 
be some doubt whether this venerable    
protomartyr of philosophy was inclined  
to carry his own declaration of the     
rights of men more rigidly into practice
 than the ,national ,assembly           
themselves4 ,he was1 like them1 only    
preaching licentiousness to the populace
 to obtain power for himself1 if we may 

believe what is subjoined by the        
historian4  ,cumque hc et plura alia    
deliramenta 7think of this old fool's   
calling all the wise maxims of the      
,french ,academy deliramenta67          
prdicsset1 commune vulgus cum tanto     
favore prosequitur1 ut exclamarent eum  
archiepiscopum futurum1 et regni        
cancellarium4 ,whether he would have    
taken these situations under these      
names1 or would have changed the whole  
nomenclature of the ,state and ,church1 
to be understood in the sense of the    
,revolution1 is not so certain4 ,it is  
probable that he would have changed the 
names and kept the substance of power4  
,we find1 too1 that they had in those   
days their society for constitutional   
information1 of which the ,reverend     
,john ,ball was a conspicuous member1   
sometimes under his own name1 sometimes 
under the feigned name of ,john ,schep4 
,besides him it consisted 7as ,knyghton 
tells us7 of persons who went by the    
real or fictitious names of ,jack       

,mylner1 ,tom ,baker1 ,jack ,straw1     
,jack ,trewman1 ,jack ,carter1 and      
probably of many more4 ,some of the     
choicest flowers of the publications    
charitably written and circulated by    
them gratis are upon record in          
,walsingham and ,knyghton3 and ,i am    
inclined to prefer the pithy and        
sententious brevity of these bulletins  
of ancient rebellion before the loose   
and confused prolixity of the modern    
advertisements of constitutional        
information4 ,they contain more good    
morality and less bad politics1 they had
 much more foundation in real           
oppression1 and they have the           
recommendation of being much better     
adapted to the capacities of those for  
whose instruction they were intended4   
,whatever laudable pains the teachers of
 the present day appear to take1 ,i     
cannot compliment them so far as to     
allow that they have succeeded in       
writing down to the level of their      
pupils1 the members of the sovereign1   

with half the ability of ,jack ,carter  
and the ,reverend ,john ,ball4 ,that my 
readers may judge for themselves1 ,i    
shall give them1 one or two specimens4  
,the first is an address from the       
,reverend ,john ,ball1 under his nom de 
guerre of ,john ,schep4 ,i know not     
against what particular guyle in borough
 the writer means to caution the people2
 it may have been only a general cry    
against rotten boroughs1 which it was   
thought convenient1 then as now1 to make
 the first pretext1 and place at the    
head of the list of grievances4  ,,john 
,,schep4  ,iohn ,schep sometime seint   
,mary priest of ,yorke1 and now of      
,colchester1 greeteth well ,iohn        
,namelesse1 and ,iohn the ,miller1 and  
,iohn ,carter1 and biddeth them that    
they beware of guyle in borough1 and    
stand together in ,gods name1 and       
biddeth ,piers ,ploweman goe to his     
werke1 and chastise well ,hob the       
robber1 probably the king1 and take with
 you ,iohn ,trewman1 and all his        

fellows1 and no moe4      ,iohn the     
,miller hath yground smal1 small1 small3
      ,the kings sonne of heauen shal   
pay for all4      ,beware or ye be woe1 
,know your frende fro your foe1         
,haue ynough1 and say hoe3      ,and do 
wel and better1  flee sinne1      ,and  
seeke peace and holde you therin1   so  
biddeth ,iohn ,trewman  all his         
fellowes4  ,the reader has perceived1   
from the last lines of this curious     
state-paper1 how well the ,national     
,assembly has copied its union of the   
profession of universal peace with the  
practice of murder and confusion1 and   
the blast of the trumpet of sedition in 
all nations4 ,he will in the following  
constitutional paper observe how well1  
in their enigmatical style1 like the    
,assembly and their abettors1 the old   
philosophers proscribe all hereditary   
distinction1 and bestow it only on      
virtue and wisdom1 according to their   
estimation of both4 ,yet these people   
are supposed never to have heard of the 

rights of man6  ,,jack ,,mylner4  ,jakke
 ,mylner asket help to turne his mylne  
aright4      ,he hath grounden smal     
smal1      ,the ,kings sone of heven he 
schal pay for alle4  ,loke thy mylne go 
a rygt1 with the fours sayles1 and the  
post stande in steadfastnesse4          
,with rygt and with mygt1      ,with    
skyl and with wylle1      ,lat mygt     
helpe rygt1      ,and skyl go before    
wille1      ,and rygt before mygt3      
,than goth oure mylne aryght4      ,and 
if mygt go before ryght1      ,and wylle
 before skylle2      ,than is oure mylne
 mys a dygt4  ,,jack ,,carter understood
 perfectly the doctrine of looking to   
the end1 with an indifference to the    
means1 and the probability of much good 
arising from great evil4  ,jakke ,carter
 pryes yowe alle that ye make a gode    
ende of that ye hane begunnen1 and doth 
wele and ay bettur and bettur3 for at   
the even men heryth the day4 ,for if the
 ende be wele1 than is alle wele4 ,lat  
,peres the ,plowman my brother duelle at

 home and dygt us corne1 and ,i will go 
with yowe and helpe that y may to dygte 
youre mete and youre drynke1 that ye    
none fayle3 lokke that ,hobbe robbyoure 
be wele chastysed for lesyng of youre   
grace3 for ye have gret nede to take    
,god with yowe in alle yours dedes4 ,for
 nowe is tyme to be war4  #bd ,see the  
wise remark on this subject in the      
,defence of ,rights of ,man1 circulated 
by the societies4  #be ,the primary     
assemblies4     ,a  ,,letter  ,,to  ,a  
,,peer ,,of ,,ireland  ,,on ,,the       
,,penal ,,laws ,,against ,,irish        
,,catholics1  ,,previous ,,to  ,,the    
,,late ,,repeal ,,of ,a ,,part ,,thereof
 ,,in ,,the ,,session ,,of ,,the ,,irish
 ,,parliament1 ,,held ,a4,d4 #aghb4     
,,charles ,,street1 ,,london1 ,feb4 #ba1
 #aghb   ,my ,lord1--,i am obliged to   
your ,lordship for your communication of
 the heads of ,mr4 ,gardiner's bill4 ,i 
had received it1 in an earlier stage of 
its progress1 from ,mr4 ,braughall2 and 
,i am still in that gentleman's debt1 as

 ,i have not made him the proper return 
for the favor he has done me4 ,business1
 to which ,i was more immediately       
called1 and in which my sentiments had  
the weight of one vote1 occupied me     
every moment since ,i received his      
letter4 ,this first morning which ,i can
 call my own ,i give with great         
cheerfulness to the subject on which    
your ,lordship has done me the honor of 
desiring my opinion4  ,i have read the  
heads of the bill1 with the amendments4 
,your ,lordship is too well acquainted  
with men1 and with affairs1 to imagine  
that any true judgment can be formed on 
the value of a great measure of policy  
from the perusal of a piece of paper4   
,at present ,i am much in the dark with 
regard to the state of the country which
 the intended law is to be applied to4  
,it is not easy for me to determine     
whether or no it was wise 7for the sake 
of expunging the black letter of laws   
which1 menacing as they were in the     
language1 were every day fading into    

disuse7 solemnly to reaffirm the        
principles and to reenact the provisions
 of a code of statutes by which you are 
totally excluded from ,,the ,,privileges
 ,,of ,,the ,,commonwealth1 from the    
highest to the lowest1 from the most    
material of the civil professions1 from 
the army1 and even from education1 where
 alone education is to be had4#bf       
,whether this scheme of indulgence1     
grounded at once on contempt and        
jealousy1 has a tendency gradually to   
produce something better and more       
liberal1 ,i cannot tell1 for want of    
having the actual map of the country4   
,if this should be the case1 it was     
right in you to accept it1 such as it   
is4 ,but if this should be one of the   
experiments which have sometimes been   
made before the temper of the nation was
 ripe for a real reformation1 ,i think  
it may possibly have ill effects1 by    
disposing the penal matter in a more    
systematic order1 and thereby fixing a  
permanent bar against any relief that is

 truly substantial4 ,the whole merit or 
demerit of the measure depends upon the 
plans and dispositions of those by whom 
the act was made1 concurring with the   
general temper of the ,protestants of   
,ireland1 and their aptitude to admit in
 time of some part of that equality     
without which you never can be          
,,fellow-,,citizens4 ,of all this ,i am 
wholly ignorant4 ,all my correspondence 
with men of public importance in        
,ireland has for some time totally      
ceased4 ,on the first bill for the      
relief of the ,,roman ,,catholics of    
,ireland1 ,i was1 without any call of   
mine1 consulted both on your side of the
 water and on this4 ,on the present     
occasion1 ,i have not heard a word from 
any man in office1 and know as little of
 the intentions of the ,british         
government as ,i know of the temper of  
the ,irish ,parliament4 ,i do not find  
that any opposition was made by the     
principal persons of the minority in the
 ,house of ,commons1 or that any is     

apprehended from them in the ,house of  
,lords4 ,the whole of the difficulty    
seems to lie with the principal men in  
government1 under whose protection this 
bill is supposed to be brought in4 ,this
 violent opposition and cordial support1
 coming from one and the same quarter1  
appears to me something mysterious1 and 
hinders me from being able to make any  
clear judgment of the merit of the      
present measure1 as compared with the   
actual state of the country and the     
general views of government1 without    
which one can say nothing that may not  
be very erroneous4  ,to look at the bill
 in the abstract1 it is neither more nor
 less than a renewed act of ,,universal1
 ,,unmitigated1 ,,indispensable1        
,,exceptionless ,,disqualification4     
,one would imagine that a bill          
inflicting such a multitude of          
incapacities had followed on the heels  
of a conquest made by a very fierce     
enemy1 under the impression of recent   
animosity and resentment4 ,no man1 on   

reading that bill1 could imagine he was 
reading an act of amnesty and           
indulgence1 following a recital of the  
good behavior of those who are the      
objects of it1--which recital stood at  
the head of the bill1 as it was first   
introduced1 but1 ,i suppose for its     
incongruity with the body of the piece1 
was afterwards omitted4 ,this ,i say on 
memory4 ,it1 however1 still recites the 
oath1 and that ,catholics ought to be   
considered as good and loyal subjects to
 his ,majesty1 his crown and government4
 ,then follows an universal exclusion of
 those ,,good and ,,loyal subjects from 
every 7even the lowest7 office of trust 
and profit1--from any vote at an        
election1--from any privilege in a town 
corporate1--from being even a freeman of
 such a corporation1--from serving on   
grand juries1--from a vote at a         
vestry1--from having a gun in his       
house1--from being a barrister1         
attorney1 or solicitor1 c41 c41 c4      
,this has surely much more the air of a 

table of proscription than an act of    
grace4 ,what must we suppose the laws   
concerning those good subjects to have  
been1 of which this is a relaxation8 ,i 
know well that there is a cant language 
current1 about the difference between an
 exclusion from employments1 even to the
 most rigorous extent1 and an exclusion 
from the natural benefits arising from a
 man's own industry4 ,i allow1 that1    
under some circumstances1 the difference
 is very material in point of justice1  
and that there are considerations which 
may render it advisable for a wise      
government to keep the leading parts of 
every branch of civil and military      
administration in hands of the best     
trust2 but a total exclusion from the   
commonwealth is a very different thing4 
,when a government subsists 7as         
governments formerly did7 on an estate  
of its own1 with but few and            
inconsiderable revenues drawn from the  
subject1 then the few officers which    
existed in such establishments were     

naturally at the disposal of that       
government1 which paid the salaries out 
of its own coffers3 there an exclusive  
preference could hardly merit the name  
of proscription4 ,almost the whole      
produce of a man's industry at that time
 remained in his own purse to maintain  
his family4 ,but times alter1 and the   
whole estate of government is from      
private contribution4 ,when a very great
 portion of the labor of individuals    
goes to the state1 and is by the state  
again refunded to individuals1 through  
the medium of offices1 and in this      
circuitous progress from the private to 
the public1 and from the public again to
 the private fund1 the families from    
whom the revenue is taken are           
indemnified1 and an equitable balance   
between the government and the subject  
is established4 ,but if a great body of 
the people who contribute to this state 
lottery are excluded from all the       
prizes1 the stopping the circulation    
with regard to them may be a most cruel 

hardship1 amounting in effect to being  
double and treble taxed2 and it will be 
felt as such to the very quick1 by all  
the families1 high and low1 of those    
hundreds of thousands who are denied    
their chance in the returned fruits of  
their own industry4 ,this is the thing  
meant by those who look upon the public 
revenue only as a spoil1 and will       
naturally wish to have as few as        
possible concerned in the division of   
the booty4 ,if a state should be so     
unhappy as to think it cannot subsist   
without such a barbarous proscription1  
the persons so proscribed ought to be   
indemnified by the remission of a large 
part of their taxes1 by an immunity from
 the offices of public burden1 and by an
 exemption from being pressed into any  
military or naval service4  ,common     
sense and common justice dictate this at
 least1 as some sort of compensation to 
a people for their slavery4 ,how many   
families are incapable of existing1 if  
the little offices of the revenue and   

little military commissions are denied  
them6 ,to deny them at home1 and to make
 the happiness of acquiring some of them
 somewhere else felony or high treason1 
is a piece of cruelty1 in which1 till   
very lately1 ,i did not suppose this age
 capable of persisting4 ,formerly a     
similarity of religion made a sort of   
country for a man in some quarter or    
other4 ,a refugee for religion was a    
protected character4 ,now the reception 
is cold indeed2 and therefore1 as the   
asylum abroad is destroyed1 the hardship
 at home is doubled4 ,this hardship is  
the more intolerable because the        
professions are shut up4 ,the ,church is
 so of course4 ,much is to be said on   
that subject1 in regard to them1 and to 
the ,protestant ,dissenters4 ,but that  
is a chapter by itself4 ,i am sure ,i   
wish well to that ,church1 and think its
 ministers among the very best citizens 
of your country4 ,however1 such as it   
is1 a great walk in life is forbidden   
ground to seventeen hundred thousand of 

the inhabitants of ,ireland4 ,why are   
they excluded from the law8 ,do not they
 expend money in their suits8 ,why may  
not they indemnify themselves1 by       
profiting1 in the persons of some1 for  
the losses incurred by others8 ,why may 
not they have persons of confidence1    
whom they may1 if they please1 employ in
 the agency of their affairs8 ,the      
exclusion from the law1 from grand      
juries1 from sheriffships and           
under-sheriffships1 as well as from     
freedom in any corporation1 may subject 
them to dreadful hardships1 as it may   
exclude them wholly from all that is    
beneficial and expose them to all that  
is mischievous in a trial by jury4 ,this
 was manifestly within my own           
observation1 for ,i was three times in  
,ireland from the year #agfj to the year
 #agfg1 where ,i had sufficient means of
 information concerning the inhuman     
proceedings 7among which were many cruel
 murders1 besides an infinity of        
outrages and oppressions unknown before 

in a civilized age7 which prevailed     
during that period1 in consequence of a 
pretended conspiracy among ,roman       
,catholics against the king's           
government4 ,i could dilate upon the    
mischiefs that may happen1 from those   
which have happened1 upon this head of  
disqualification1 if it were at all     
necessary4  ,the head of exclusion from 
votes for members of ,parliament is     
closely connected with the former4 ,when
 you cast your eye on the statute-book1 
you will see that no ,catholic1 even in 
the ferocious acts of ,queen ,anne1 was 
disabled from voting on account of his  
religion4 ,the only conditions required 
for that privilege were the oaths of    
allegiance and abjuration1--both oaths  
relative to a civil concern4 ,parliament
 has since added another oath of the    
same kind2 and yet a ,house of ,commons1
 adding to the securities of government 
in proportion as its danger is          
confessedly lessened1 and professing    
both confidence and indulgence1 in      

effect takes away the privilege left by 
an act full of jealousy and professing  
persecution4  ,the taking away of a vote
 is the taking away the shield which the
 subject has1 not only against the      
oppression of power1 but that worst of  
all oppressions1 the persecution of     
private society and private manners4 ,no
 candidate for ,parliamentary influence 
is obliged to the least attention       
towards them1 either in cities or       
counties4 ,on the contrary1 if they     
should become obnoxious to any bigoted  
or malignant people amongst whom they   
live1 it will become the interest of    
those who court popular favor to use the
 numberless means which always reside in
 magistracy and influence to oppress    
them4 ,the proceedings in a certain     
county in ,munster1 during the          
unfortunate period ,i have mentioned1   
read a strong lecture on the cruelty of 
depriving men of that shield on account 
of their speculative opinions4 ,the     
,protestants of ,ireland feel well and  

naturally on the hardship of being bound
 by laws in the enacting of which they  
do not directly or indirectly vote4 ,the
 bounds of these matters are nice1 and  
hard to be settled in theory1 and       
perhaps they have been pushed too far4  
,but how they can avoid the necessary   
application of the principles they use  
in their disputes with others to their  
disputes with their fellow-citizens1 ,i 
know not4  ,it is true1 the words of    
this act do not create a disability2 but
 they clearly and evidently suppose it4 
,there are few ,catholic freeholders to 
take the benefit of the privilege1 if   
they were permitted to partake it2 but  
the manner in which this very right in  
freeholders at large is defended is not 
on the idea that the freeholders do     
really and truly represent the people1  
but that1 all people being capable of   
obtaining freeholds1 all those who by   
their industry and sobriety merit this  
privilege have the means of arriving at 
votes4 ,it is the same with the         

corporations4  ,the laws against foreign
 education are clearly the very worst   
part of the old code4 ,besides your     
laity1 you have the succession of about 
four thousand clergymen to provide for4 
,these1 having no lucrative objects in  
prospect1 are taken very much out of the
 lower orders of the people4 ,at home   
they have no means whatsoever provided  
for their attaining a clerical          
education1 or indeed any education at   
all4 ,when ,i was in ,paris1 about seven
 years ago1 ,i looked at everything1 and
 lived with every kind of people1 as    
well as my time admitted4 ,i saw there  
the ,irish college of the ,lombard1     
which seemed to me a very good place of 
education1 under excellent orders and   
regulations1 and under the government of
 a very prudent and learned man 7the    
late ,dr4 ,kelly74 ,this college was    
possessed of an annual fixed revenue of 
more than a thousand pound a year1 the  
greatest part of which had arisen from  
the legacies and benefactions of persons

 educated in that college1 and who had  
obtained promotions in ,france1 from the
 emolument of which promotions they made
 this grateful return4 ,one in          
particular ,i remember1 to the amount of
 ten thousand livres annually1 as it is 
recorded on the donor's monument in     
their chapel4  ,it has been the custom  
of poor persons in ,ireland to pick up  
such knowledge of the ,latin tongue as1 
under the general discouragements1 and  
occasional pursuits of magistracy1 they 
were able to acquire2 and receiving     
orders at home1 were sent abroad to     
obtain a clerical education4 ,by        
officiating in petty chaplainships1 and 
performing now and then certain offices 
of religion for small gratuities1 they  
received the means of maintaining       
themselves until they were able to      
complete their education4 ,through such 
difficulties and discouragements1 many  
of them have arrived at a very          
considerable proficiency1 so as to be   
marked and distinguished abroad4 ,these 

persons afterwards1 by being sunk in the
 most abject poverty1 despised and      
ill-treated by the higher orders among  
,protestants1 and not much better       
esteemed or treated even by the few     
persons of fortune of their own         
persuasion1 and contracting the habits  
and ways of thinking of the poor and    
uneducated1 among whom they were obliged
 to live1 in a few years retained little
 or no traces of the talents and        
acquirements which distinguished them in
 the early periods of their lives4 ,can 
we with justice cut them off from the   
use of places of education founded for  
the greater part from the economy of    
poverty and exile1 without providing    
something that is equivalent at home8   
,whilst this restraint of foreign and   
domestic education was part of an       
horrible and impious system of          
servitude1 the members were well fitted 
to the body4 ,to render men patient     
under a deprivation of all the rights of
 human nature1 everything which could   

give them a knowledge or feeling of     
those rights was rationally forbidden4  
,to render humanity fit to be insulted1 
it was fit that it should be degraded4  
,but when we profess to restore men to  
the capacity for property1 it is equally
 irrational and unjust to deny them the 
power of improving their minds as well  
as their fortunes4 ,indeed1 ,i have ever
 thought the prohibition of the means of
 improving our rational nature to be the
 worst species of tyranny that the      
insolence and perverseness of mankind   
ever dared to exercise4 ,this goes to   
all men1 in all situations1 to whom     
education can be denied4  ,your         
,lordship mentions a proposal which came
 from my friend1 the ,provost1 whose    
benevolence and enlarged spirit ,i am   
perfectly convinced of1--which is1 the  
proposal of erecting a few sizarships in
 the college1 for the education 7,i     
suppose7 of ,roman ,catholic            
clergymen4#bg ,he certainly meant it    
well2 but1 coming from such a man as he 

is1 it is a strong instance of the      
danger of suffering any description of  
men to fall into entire contempt4 ,the  
charities intended for them are not     
perceived to be fresh insults2 and the  
true nature of their wants and          
necessities being unknown1 remedies     
wholly unsuitable to the nature of their
 complaint are provided for them4 ,it is
 to feed a sick ,gentoo with beef broth1
 and to foment his wounds with brandy4  
,if the other parts of the university   
were open to them1 as well on the       
foundation as otherwise1 the offering of
 sizarships would be a proportioned part
 of a general kindness4 ,but when       
everything liberal is withheld1 and only
 that which is servile is permitted1 it 
is easy to conceive upon what footing   
they must be in such a place4  ,mr4     
,hutchinson must well know the regard   
and honor ,i have for him2 and he cannot
 think my dissenting from him in this   
particular arises from a disregard of   
his opinion3 it only shows that ,i think

 he has lived in ,ireland4 ,to have any 
respect for the character and person of 
a ,popish priest there--oh1 'tis an     
uphill work indeed6 ,but until we come  
to respect what stands in a respectable 
light with others1 we are very deficient
 in the temper which qualifies us to    
make any laws and regulations about     
them3 it even disqualifies us from being
 charitable to them with any effect or  
judgment4  ,when we are to provide for  
the education of any body of men1 we    
ought seriously to consider the         
particular functions they are to perform
 in life4 ,a ,roman ,catholic clergyman 
is the minister of a very ritual        
religion1 and by his profession subject 
to many restraints4 ,his life is a life 
full of strict observances2 and his     
duties are of a laborious nature towards
 himself1 and of the highest possible   
trust towards others4 ,the duty of      
confession alone is sufficient to set in
 the strongest light the necessity of   
his having an appropriated mode of      

education4 ,the theological opinions and
 peculiar rites of one religion never   
can be properly taught in universities  
founded for the purposes and on the     
principles of another which in many     
points are directly opposite4 ,if a     
,roman ,catholic clergyman1 intended for
 celibacy and the function of           
confession1 is not strictly bred in a   
seminary where these things are         
respected1 inculcated1 and enforced1 as 
sacred1 and not made the subject of     
derision and obloquy1 he will be ill    
fitted for the former1 and the latter   
will be indeed in his hands a terrible  
instrument4  ,there is a great          
resemblance between1 the whole frame and
 constitution of the ,greek and ,latin  
,churches4 ,the secular clergy in the   
former1 by being married1 living under  
little restraint1 and having no         
particular education suited to their    
function1 are universally fallen into   
such contempt that they are never       
permitted to aspire to the dignities of 

their own ,church4 ,it is not held      
respectful to call them ,papas1 their   
true and ancient appellation1 but those 
who wish to address them with civility  
always call them ,hieromonachi4 ,in     
consequence of this disrespect1 which ,i
 venture to say1 in such a ,church1 must
 be the consequence of a secular life1 a
 very great degeneracy from reputable   
,christian manners has taken place      
throughout almost the whole of that     
great member of the ,christian ,church4 
,it was so with the ,latin ,church1     
before the restraint on marriage4 ,even 
that restraint gave rise to the greatest
 disorders before the ,council of       
,trent1 which1 together with the        
emulation raised and the good examples  
given by the ,reformed churches1        
wherever they were in view of each      
other1 has brought on that happy        
amendment which we see in the ,latin    
communion1 both at home and abroad4     
,the ,council of ,trent has wisely      
introduced the discipline of seminaries1

 by which priests are not trusted for a 
clerical institution even to the severe 
discipline of their colleges1 but1 after
 they pass through them1 are frequently1
 if not for the greater part1 obliged to
 pass through peculiar methods1 having  
their particular ritual function in     
view4 ,it is in a great measure to this1
 and to similar methods used in foreign 
education1 that the ,roman ,catholic    
clergy of ,ireland1 miserably provided  
for1 living among low and ill-regulated 
people1 without any discipline of       
sufficient force to secure good manners1
 have been prevented from becoming an   
intolerable nuisance to the country1    
instead of being1 as ,i conceive they   
generally are1 a very great service to  
it4  ,the ministers of ,protestant      
churches require a different mode of    
education1 more liberal1 and more fit   
for the ordinary intercourse of life4   
,that religion having little hold on the
 minds of people by external ceremonies 
and extraordinary observances1 or       

separate habits of living1 the clergy   
make up the deficiency by cultivating   
their minds with all kinds of ornamental
 learning1 which the liberal provision  
made in ,england and ,ireland for the   
parochial clergy1 7to say nothing of the
 ample ,church preferments1 with little 
or no duties annexed17 and the          
comparative lightness of parochial      
duties1 enables the greater part of them
 in some considerable degree to         
accomplish4  ,this learning1 which ,i   
believe to be pretty general1 together  
with an higher situation1 and more      
chastened by the opinion of mankind1    
forms a sufficient security for the     
morals of the established clergy1 and   
for their sustaining their clerical     
character with dignity4 ,it is not      
necessary to observe1 that all these    
things are1 however1 collateral to their
 function1 and that1 except in          
preaching1 which may be and is supplied1
 and often best supplied1 out of printed
 books1 little else is necessary for a  

,protestant minister than to be able to 
read the ,english language1--,i mean for
 the exercise of his function1 not to   
the qualification of his admission to   
it4 ,but a ,popish parson in ,ireland   
may do very well without any            
considerable classical erudition1 or any
 proficiency in pure or mixed           
mathematics1 or any knowledge of civil  
history4 ,even if the ,catholic clergy  
should possess those acquisitions1 as at
 first many of them do1 they soon lose  
them in the painful course of           
professional and parochial duties3 but  
they must have all the knowledge1 and1  
what is to them more important than the 
knowledge1 the discipline1 necessary to 
those duties4 ,all modes of education   
conducted by those whose minds are cast 
in another mould1 as ,i may say1 and    
whose original ways of thinking are     
formed upon the reverse pattern1 must be
 to them not only useless1 but          
mischievous4 ,just as ,i should suppose 
the education in a ,popish              

ecclesiastical seminary would be ill    
fitted for a ,protestant clergyman4 ,to 
educate a ,catholic priest in a         
,protestant seminary would be much      
worse4 ,the ,protestant educated amongst
 ,catholics has only something to       
reject3 what he keeps may be useful4    
,but a ,catholic parish priest learns   
little for his peculiar purpose and duty
 in a ,protestant college4  ,all this1  
my ,lord1 ,i know very well1 will pass  
for nothing with those who wish that the
 ,popish clergy should be illiterate1   
and in a situation to produce contempt  
and detestation4 ,their minds are wholly
 taken up with party squabbles1 and ,i  
have neither leisure nor inclination to 
apply any part of what ,i have to say to
 those who never think of religion or of
 the commonwealth in any other light    
than as they tend to the prevalence of  
some faction in either4 ,i speak on a   
supposition that there is a disposition 
to take the state in the condition in   
which it is found1 and to improve it in 

that state to the best advantage4       
,hitherto the plan for the government of
 ,ireland has been to sacrifice the     
civil prosperity of the nation to its   
religious improvement4 ,but if people in
 power there are at length come to      
entertain other ideas1 they will        
consider the good order1 decorum1       
virtue1 and morality of every           
description of men among them as of     
infinitely greater importance than the  
struggle 7for it is nothing better7 to  
change those descriptions by means which
 put to hazard objects which1 in my poor
 opinion1 are of more importance to     
religion and to the state than all the  
polemical matter which has been agitated
 among men from the beginning of the    
world to this hour4  ,on this idea1 an  
education fitted to each order and      
division of men1 such as they are found1
 will be thought an affair rather to be 
encouraged than discountenanced2 and    
until institutions at home1 suitable to 
the occasions and necessities of the    

people1 are established1 and which are  
armed1 as they are abroad1 with         
authority to coerce the young men to be 
formed in them by a strict and severe   
discipline1 the means they have at      
present of a cheap and effectual        
education in other countries should not 
continue to be prohibited by penalties  
and modes of inquisition not fit to be  
mentioned to ears that are organized to 
the chaste sounds of equity and justice4
  ,before ,i had written thus far1 ,i   
heard of a scheme of giving to the      
,castle the patronage of the presiding  
members of the ,catholic clergy4 ,at    
first ,i could scarcely credit it2 for  
,i believe it is the first time that the
 presentation to other people's alms has
 been desired in any country4 ,if the   
state provides a suitable maintenance   
and temporality for the governing       
members of the ,irish ,roman ,catholic  
,church1 and for the clergy under them1 
,i should think the project1 however    
improper in other respects1 to be by no 

means unjust4 ,but to deprive a poor    
people1 who maintain a second set of    
clergy1 out of the miserable remains of 
what is left after taxing and tithing1  
to deprive them of the disposition of   
their own charities among their own     
communion1 would1 in my opinion1 be an  
intolerable hardship4 ,never were the   
members of one religious sect fit to    
appoint the pastors to another4 ,those  
who have no regard for their welfare1   
reputation1 or internal quiet will not  
appoint such as are proper4 ,the        
seraglio of ,constantinople is as       
equitable as we are1 whether ,catholics 
or ,protestants1--and where their own   
sect is concerned1 full as religious4   
,but the sport which they make of the   
miserable dignities of the ,greek       
,church1 the little factions of the     
harem to which they make them           
subservient1 the continual sale to which
 they expose and rexpose the same       
dignity1 and by which they squeeze all  
the inferior orders of the clergy1 is   

7for ,i have had particular means of    
being acquainted with it7 nearly equal  
to all the other oppressions together1  
exercised by ,mussulmen over the unhappy
 members of the ,oriental ,church4 ,it  
is a great deal to suppose that even the
 present ,castle would nominate bishops 
for the ,roman ,church of ,ireland with 
a religious regard for its welfare4     
,perhaps they cannot1 perhaps they dare 
not do it4  ,but suppose them to be as  
well inclined as ,i know that ,i am to  
do the ,catholics all kind of justice1  
,i declare ,i would not1 if it were in  
my power1 take that patronage on myself4
 ,i know ,i ought not to do it4 ,i      
belong to another community1 and it     
would be intolerable usurpation for me  
to affect such authority1 where ,i      
conferred no benefit1 or even if ,i did 
confer 7as in some degree the seraglio  
does7 temporal advantages4 ,but allowing
 that the present ,castle finds itself  
fit to administer the government of a   
church which they solemnly forswear1 and

 forswear with very hard words and many 
evil epithets1 and that as often as they
 qualify themselves for the power which 
is to give this very patronage1 or to   
give anything else that they            
desire1--yet they cannot insure         
themselves that a man like the late     
,lord ,chesterfield will not succeed to 
them4 ,this man1 while he was duping the
 credulity of ,papists with fine words  
in private1 and commending their good   
behavior during a rebellion in ,great   
,britain1 7as it well deserved to be    
commended and rewarded17 was capable of 
urging penal laws against them in a     
speech from the throne1 and of          
stimulating with provocatives the       
wearied and half-exhausted bigotry of   
the then ,parliament of ,ireland4 ,they 
set to work1 but they were at a loss    
what to do2 for they had already almost 
gone through every contrivance which    
could waste the vigor of their country3 
but1 after much struggle1 they produced 
a child of their old age1 the shocking  

and unnatural act about marriages1 which
 tended to finish the scheme for making 
the people not only two distinct parties
 forever1 but keeping them as two       
distinct species in the same land4 ,mr4 
,gardiner's humanity was shocked at it1 
as one of the worst parts of that truly 
barbarous system1 if one could well     
settle the preference1 where almost all 
the parts were outrages on the rights of
 humanity and the laws of ,nature4      
,suppose an atheist1 playing the part of
 a bigot1 should be in power again in   
that country1 do you believe that he    
would faithfully and religiously        
administer the trust of appointing      
pastors to a church which1 wanting every
 other support1 stands in tenfold need  
of ministers who will be dear to the    
people committed to their charge1 and   
who will exercise a really paternal     
authority amongst them8 ,but if the     
superior power was always in a          
disposition to dispense conscientiously1
 and like an upright trustee and        

guardian of these rights which he holds 
for those with whom he is at variance1  
has he the capacity and means of doing  
it8 ,how can the ,lord-,lieutenant form 
the least judgment of their merits1 so  
as to discern which of the ,popish      
priests is fit to be made a bishop8 ,it 
cannot be3 the idea is ridiculous4 ,he  
will hand them over to lords-lieutenant 
of counties1 justices of the peace1 and 
other persons1 who1 for the purpose of  
vexing and turning to derision this     
miserable people1 will pick out the     
worst and most obnoxious they can find  
amongst the clergy to set over the rest4
 ,whoever is complained against by his  
brother will be considered as           
persecuted2 whoever is censured by his  
superior will be looked upon as         
oppressed2 whoever is careless in his   
opinions and loose in his morals will be
 called a liberal man1 and will be      
supposed to have incurred hatred because
 he was not a bigot4 ,informers1        
tale-bearers1 perverse and obstinate    

men1 flatterers1 who turn their back    
upon their flock and court the          
,protestant gentlemen of the country1   
will be the objects of preferment4 ,and 
then ,i run no risk in foretelling that 
whatever order1 quiet1 and morality you 
have in the country will be lost4 ,a    
,popish clergy who are not restrained by
 the most austere subordination will    
become a nuisance1 a real public        
grievance of the heaviest kind1 in any  
country that entertains them2 and       
instead of the great benefit which      
,ireland does and has long derived from 
them1 if they are educated without any  
idea of discipline and obedience1 and   
then put under bishops who do not owe   
their station to their good opinion1 and
 whom they cannot respect1 that nation  
will see disorders1 of which1 bad as    
things are1 it has yet no idea4 ,i do   
not say this1 as thinking the leading   
men in ,ireland would exercise this     
trust worse than others4 ,not at all4   
,no man1 no set of men living are fit to

 administer the affairs or regulate the 
interior economy of a church to which   
they are enemies4  ,as to government1 if
 ,i might recommend a prudent caution to
 them1 it would be1 to innovate as      
little as possible1 upon speculation1 in
 establishments from which1 as they     
stand1 they experience no material      
inconvenience to the repose of the      
country1--quieta non movere4  ,i could  
say a great deal more2 but ,i am tired1 
and am afraid your ,lordship is tired   
too4 ,i have not sat to this letter a   
single quarter of an hour without       
interruption4 ,it has grown long1 and   
probably contains many repetitions1 from
 my total want of leisure to digest and 
consolidate my thoughts2 and as to my   
expressions1 ,i could wish to be able   
perhaps to measure them more exactly4   
,but my intentions are fair1 and ,i     
certainly mean to offend nobody4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,thinking over this matter more         
maturely1 ,i see no reason for altering 

my opinion in any part4 ,the act1 as far
 as it goes1 is good undoubtedly4 ,it   
amounts1 ,i think1 very nearly to a     
toleration1 with respect to religious   
ceremonies2 but it puts a new bolt on   
civil rights1 and rivets it to the old  
one in such a manner1 that neither1 ,i  
fear1 will be easily loosened4 ,what ,i 
could have wished would be1 to see the  
civil advantages take the lead2 the     
other1 of a religious toleration1 ,i    
conceive1 would follow1 7in a manner17  
of course4 ,from what ,i have observed1 
it is pride1 arrogance1 and a spirit of 
domination1 and not a bigoted spirit of 
religion1 that has caused and kept up   
those oppressive statutes4 ,i am sure ,i
 have known those who have oppressed    
,papists in their civil rights          
exceedingly indulgent to them in their  
religious ceremonies1 and who really    
wished them to continue ,catholics1 in  
order to furnish pretences for          
oppression4 ,these persons never saw a  
man 7by converting7 escape out of their 

power1 but with grudging and regret4 ,i 
have known men to whom ,i am not        
uncharitable in saying 7though they are 
dead7 that they would have become       
,papists in order to oppress            
,protestants1 if1 being ,protestants1 it
 was not in their power to oppress      
,papists4 ,it is injustice1 and not a   
mistaken conscience1 that has been the  
principle of persecution1--at least1 as 
far as it has fallen under my           
observation4--,however1 as ,i began1 so 
,i end4 ,i do not know the map of the   
country4 ,mr4 ,gardiner1 who conducts   
this great and difficult work1 and those
 who support him1 are better judges of  
the business than ,i can pretend to be1 
who have not set my foot in ,ireland    
these sixteen years4 ,i have been given 
to understand that ,i am not considered 
as a friend to that country2 and ,i know
 that pains have been taken to lessen   
the credit that ,i might have had there4
         99       99       99       99  
99  ,i am so convinced of the weakness  

of interfering in any business1 without 
the opinion of the people in whose      
business ,i interfere1 that ,i do not   
know how to acquit myself of what ,i    
have now done4  ,i have the honor to be1
 with high regard and esteem1 my ,lord1 
,your ,lordship's most obedient  ,and   
humble servant1 c4  ,,edmund ,,burke4   
,,footnotes3  #bf ,the sketch of the    
bill sent to ,mr4 ,burke1 along with the
 repeal of some acts1 reaffirmed many   
others in the penal code4 ,it was       
altered afterwards1 and the clauses     
reaffirming the incapacities left out2  
but they all still exist1 and are in    
full force4  #bg ,it appears that ,mr4  
,hutchinson meant this only as one of   
the means for their relief in point of  
education4     ,a  ,,letter  ,,to  ,,sir
 ,,hercules ,,langrishe1 ,,bart41       
,m4,p41  ,,on ,,the ,,subject ,,of      
,,the ,,roman ,,catholics ,,of          
,,ireland1  ,,the ,,propriety ,,of      
,,admitting ,,them ,,to ,,the ,,elective
 ,,franchise1 ,,consistently ,,with     

,,the ,,principles ,,of ,,the           
,,constitution1 ,,as ,,established ,,at 
,,the ,,revolution4  #agib4   ,my ,dear 
,sir1--,your remembrance of me1 with    
sentiments of so much kindness1 has     
given me the most sincere satisfaction4 
,it perfectly agrees with the friendly  
and hospitable reception which my son   
and ,i received from you some time      
since1 when1 after an absence of        
twenty-two years1 ,i had the happiness  
of embracing you1 among my few surviving
 friends4  ,i really imagined that ,i   
should not again interest myself in any 
public business4 ,i had1 to the best of 
my moderate faculties1 paid my club to  
the society which ,i was born in some   
way or other to serve2 and ,i thought ,i
 had a right to put on my night-gown and
 slippers1 and wish a cheerful evening  
to the good company ,i must leave       
behind4 ,but if our resolutions of vigor
 and exertion are so often broken or    
procrastinated in the execution1 ,i     
think we may be excused1 if we are not  

very punctual in fulfilling our         
engagements to indolence and inactivity4
 ,i have1 indeed1 no power of action1   
and am almost a cripple even with regard
 to thinking2 but you descend with force
 into the stagnant pool1 and you cause  
such a fermentation as to cure at least 
one impotent creature of his lameness1  
though it cannot enable him either to   
run or to wrestle4  ,you see by the     
paper#bh ,i take that ,i am likely to be
 long1 with malice prepense4 ,you have  
brought under my view a subject always  
difficult1 at present critical4 ,it has 
filled my thoughts1 which ,i wish to lay
 open to you with the clearness and     
simplicity which your friendship demands
 from me4 ,i thank you for the          
communication of your ideas4 ,i should  
be still more pleased1 if they had been 
more your own4 ,what you hint ,i believe
 to be the case3 that1 if you had not   
deferred to the judgment of others1 our 
opinions would not differ more          
materially at this day than they did    

when we used to confer on the same      
subject so many years ago4 ,if ,i still 
persevere in my old opinions1 it is no  
small comfort to me that it is not with 
regard to doctrines properly yours that 
,i discover my indocility4  ,the case   
upon which your letter of the #ajth of  
,december turns is hardly before me with
 precision enough to enable me to form  
any very certain judgment upon it4 ,it  
seems to be some plan of further        
indulgence proposed for the ,catholics  
of ,ireland4 ,you observe1 that your    
general principles are not changed1 but 
that times and circumstances are        
altered4 ,i perfectly agree with you1   
that times and circumstances1 considered
 with reference to the public1 ought    
very much to govern our conduct1--though
 ,i am far from slighting1 when applied 
with discretion to those circumstances1 
general principles and maxims of policy4
 ,i cannot help observing1 however1 that
 you have said rather less upon the     
inapplicability of your own old         

principles to the circumstances that are
 likely to influence your conduct       
against these principles than of the    
general maxims of state1 which ,i can   
very readily believe not to have great  
weight with you personally4  ,in my     
present state of imperfect information1 
you will pardon the errors into which ,i
 may easily fall4 ,the principles you   
lay down are1 that the ,roman ,catholics
 should enjoy everything under the      
state1 but should not be the state      
itself4 ,and you add1 that1 when you    
exclude them from being a part of the   
state1 you rather conform to the spirit 
of the age than to any abstract         
doctrine2 but you consider the          
,constitution as already                
established1--that our state is         
,protestant4 ,it was declared so at the 
,revolution4 ,it was so provided in the 
acts for settling the succession of the 
crown3--the king's coronation oath was  
enjoined in order to keep it so4 ,the   
king1 as first magistrate of the state1 

is obliged to take the oath of          
abjuration1#bi and to subscribe the     
,declaration2 and by laws subsequent1   
every other magistrate and member of the
 state1 legislative and executive1 are  
bound under the same obligation4  ,as to
 the plan to which these maxims are     
applied1 ,i cannot speak1 as ,i told    
you1 positively about it3 because       
neither from your letter1 nor from any  
in formation ,i have been able to       
collect1 do ,i find anything settled1   
either on the part of the ,roman        
,catholics themselves1 or on that of any
 persons who may wish to conduct their  
affairs in ,parliament4 ,but if ,i have 
leave to conjecture1 something is in    
agitation towards admitting them1 under 
certain qualifications1 to have some    
share in the election of members of     
,parliament4 ,this ,i understand is the 
scheme of those who are entitled to come
 within your description of persons of  
consideration1 property1 and            
character1--and firmly attached to the  

king and ,constitution1 as by law       
established1 with a grateful sense of   
your former concessions1 and a patient  
reliance on the benignity of ,parliament
 for the further mitigation of the laws 
that still affect them4--,as to the low1
 thoughtless1 wild1 and profligate1 who 
have joined themselves with those of    
other professions1 but of the same      
character1 you are not to imagine that  
for a moment ,i can suppose them to be  
met with anything else than the manly   
and enlightened energy of a firm        
government1 supported by the united     
efforts of all virtuous men1 if ever    
their proceedings should become so      
considerable as to demand its notice4 ,i
 really think that such associations    
should be crushed in their very         
commencement4  ,setting1 therefore1 this
 case out of the question1 it becomes an
 object of very serious consideration1  
whether1 because wicked men of various  
descriptions are engaged in seditious   
courses1 the rational1 sober1 and       

valuable part of one description should 
not be indulged in their sober and      
rational expectations4 ,you1 who have   
looked deeply into the spirit of the    
,popery laws1 must be perfectly sensible
 that a great part of the present       
mischief which we abhor in common 7if it
 at all exists7 has arisen from them4   
,their declared object was1 to reduce   
the ,catholics of ,ireland to a         
miserable populace1 without property1   
without estimation1 without education4  
,the professed object was1 to deprive   
the few men1 who1 in spite of those     
laws1 might hold or obtain any property 
amongst them1 of all sort of influence  
or authority over the rest4 ,they       
divided the nation into two distinct    
bodies1 without common interest1        
sympathy1 or connection4 ,one of these  
bodies was to possess all the           
franchises1 all the property1 all the   
education3 the other was to be composed 
of drawers of water and cutters of turf 
for them4 ,are we to be astonished1     

when1 by the efforts of so much violence
 in conquest1 and so much policy in     
regulation1 continued without           
intermission for near an hundred years1 
we had reduced them to a mob1 that1     
whenever they came to act at all1 many  
of them would act exactly like a mob1   
without temper1 measure1 or foresight8  
,surely it might be just now a matter of
 temperate discussion1 whether you ought
 not to apply a remedy to the real cause
 of the evil4 ,if the disorder you speak
 of be real and considerable1 you ought 
to raise an aristocratic interest1 that 
is1 an interest of property and         
education1 amongst them1--and to        
strengthen1 by every prudent means1 the 
authority and influence of men of that  
description4 ,it will deserve your best 
thoughts1 to examine whether this can be
 done without giving such persons the   
means of demonstrating to the rest that 
something more is to be got by their    
temperate conduct than can be expected  
from the wild and senseless projects of 

those who do not belong to their body1  
who have no interest in their           
well-being1 and only wish to make them  
the dupes of their turbulent ambition4  
,if the absurd persons you mention find 
no way of providing for liberty1 but by 
overturning this happy ,constitution1   
and introducing a frantic democracy1 let
 us take care how we prevent better     
people from any rational expectations of
 partaking in the benefits of that      
,constitution as it stands4 ,the maxims 
you establish cut the matter short4     
,they have no sort of connection with   
the good or the ill behavior of the     
persons who seek relief1 or with the    
proper or improper means by which they  
seek it4 ,they form a perpetual bar to  
all pleas and to all expectations4  ,you
 begin by asserting1 that the ,catholics
 ought to enjoy all things under the    
state1 but that they ought not to be the
 state3 a position which1 ,i believe1 in
 the latter part of it1 and in the      
latitude there expressed1 no man of     

common sense has ever thought proper to 
dispute2 because the contrary implies   
that the state ought to be in them      
exclusively4 ,but before you have       
finished the line1 you express yourself 
as if the other member of your          
proposition1 namely1 that they ought not
 to be a part of the state1 were        
necessarily included in the             
first1--whereas ,i conceive it to be as 
different as a part is from the whole1  
that is1 just as different as possible4 
,i know1 indeed1 that it is common with 
those who talk very differently from    
you1 that is1 with heat and animosity1  
to confound those things1 and to argue  
the admission of the ,catholics into    
any1 however minute and subordinate1    
parts of the state1 as a surrender into 
their hands of the whole government of  
the kingdom4 ,to them ,i have nothing at
 all to say4  ,wishing to proceed with a
 deliberative spirit and temper in so   
very serious a question1 ,i shall       
attempt to analyze1 as well as ,i can1  

the principles you lay down1 in order to
 fit them for the grasp of an           
understanding so little comprehensive as
                                        
mine4--,state1--,protestant1--,revolutio
n4 ,these are terms which1 if not well  
explained1 may lead us into many errors4
 ,in the word ,state ,i conceive there  
is much ambiguity4 ,the state is        
sometimes used to signify the whole     
commonwealth1 comprehending all its     
orders1 with the several privileges     
belonging to each4 ,sometimes it        
signifies only the higher and ruling    
part of the commonwealth1 which we      
commonly call the ,government4 ,in the  
first sense1 to be under the state1 but 
not the state itself1 nor any part of   
it1 that is1 to be nothing at all in the
 commonwealth1 is a situation perfectly 
intelligible1--but to those who fill    
that situation1 not very pleasant1 when 
it is understood4 ,it is a state of     
civil servitude1 by the very force of   
the definition4 ,servorum non est       

respublica is a very old and a very true
 maxim4 ,this servitude1 which makes men
 subject to a state without being       
citizens1 may be more or less tolerable 
from many circumstances2 but these      
circumstances1 more or less favorable1  
do not alter the nature of the thing4   
,the mildness by which absolute masters 
exercise their dominion leaves them     
masters still4 ,we may talk a little    
presently of the manner in which the    
majority of the people of ,ireland 7the 
,catholics7 are affected by this        
situation1 which at present undoubtedly 
is theirs1 and which you are of opinion 
ought so to continue forever4  ,in the  
other sense of the word ,state1 by which
 is understood the ,supreme ,government 
only1 ,i must observe this upon the     
question3 that to exclude whole classes 
of men entirely from this part of       
government cannot be considered as      
absolute slavery4 ,it only implies a    
lower and degraded state of citizenship3
 such is 7with more or less strictness7 

the condition of all countries in which 
an hereditary nobility possess the      
exclusive rule4 ,this may be no bad mode
 of government1--provided that the      
personal authority of individual nobles 
be kept in due bounds1 that their cabals
 and factions are guarded against with a
 severe vigilance1 and that the people  
7who have no share in granting their own
 money7 are subjected to but light      
impositions1 and are otherwise treated  
with attention1 and with indulgence to  
their humors and prejudices4  ,the      
republic of ,venice is one of those     
which strictly confines all the great   
functions and offices1 such as are truly
 stale functions and state offices1 to  
those who by hereditary right or        
admission are noble ,venetians4 ,but    
there are many offices1 and some of them
 not mean nor unprofitable1 7that of    
,chancellor is one17 which are reserved 
for the cittadini4 ,of these all        
citizens of ,venice are capable4 ,the   
inhabitants of the terra firma1 who are 

mere subjects of conquest1 that is1 as  
you express it1 under the state1 but not
 a part of it1 are not1 however1        
subjects in so very rigorous a sense as 
not to be capable of numberless         
subordinate employments4 ,it is1 indeed1
 one of the advantages attending the    
narrow bottom of their aristocracy1     
7narrow as compared with their acquired 
dominions1 otherwise broad enough17 that
 an exclusion from such employments     
cannot possibly be made amongst their   
subjects4 ,there are1 besides1          
advantages in states so constituted1 by 
which those who are considered as of an 
inferior race are indemnified for their 
exclusion from the government1 and from 
nobler employments4 ,in all these       
countries1 either by express law1 or by 
usage more operative1 the noble castes  
are almost universally1 in their turn1  
excluded from commerce1 manufacture1    
farming of land1 and in general from all
 lucrative civil professions4 ,the      
nobles have the monopoly of honor2 the  

plebeians a monopoly of all the means of
 acquiring wealth4 ,thus some sort of a 
balance is formed among conditions2 a   
sort of compensation is furnished to    
those who1 in a limited sense1 are      
excluded from the government of the     
state4  ,between the extreme of a total 
exclusion1 to which your maxim goes1 and
 an universal unmodified capacity1 to   
which the fanatics pretend1 there are   
many different degrees and stages1 and a
 great variety of temperaments1 upon    
which prudence may give full scope to   
its exertions4 ,for you know that the   
decisions of prudence 7contrary to the  
system of the insane reasoners7 differ  
from those of judicature2 and that      
almost all the former are determined on 
the more or the less1 the earlier or the
 later1 and on a balance of advantage   
and inconvenience1 of good and evil4    
,in all considerations which turn upon  
the question of vesting or continuing   
the state solely and exclusively in some
 one description of citizens1 prudent   

legislators will consider how far the   
general form and principles of their    
commonwealth render it fit to be cast   
into an oligarchical shape1 or to remain
 always in it4 ,we know that the        
government of ,ireland 7the same as the 
,british7 is not in its constitution    
wholly aristocratical2 and as it is not 
such in its form1 so neither is it in   
its spirit4 ,if it had been inveterately
 aristocratical1 exclusions might be    
more patiently submitted to4 ,the lot of
 one plebeian would be the lot of all2  
and an habitual reverence and admiration
 of certain families might make the     
people content to see government wholly 
in hands to whom it seemed naturally to 
belong4 ,but our ,constitution has a    
plebeian member1 which forms an         
essential integrant part of it4 ,a      
plebeian oligarchy is a monster2 and no 
people1 not absolutely domestic or      
predial slaves1 will long endure it4    
,the ,protestants of ,ireland are not   
alone sufficiently the people to form a 

democracy2 and they are too numerous to 
answer the ends and purposes of an      
aristocracy4 ,admiration1 that first    
source of obedience1 can be only the    
claim or the imposture of the few4 ,i   
hold it to be absolutely impossible for 
two millions of plebeians1 composing    
certainly a very clear and decided      
majority in that class1 to become so far
 in love with six or seven hundred      
thousand of their fellow-citizens 7to   
all outward appearance plebeians like   
themselves1 and many of them tradesmen1 
servants1 and otherwise inferior to some
 of them7 as to see with satisfaction1  
or even with patience1 an exclusive     
power vested in them1 by which          
constitutionally they become the        
absolute masters1 and1 by the manners   
derived from their circumstances1 must  
be capable of exercising upon them1     
daily and hourly1 an insulting and      
vexatious superiority4 ,neither are the 
majority of the ,irish indemnified 7as  
in some aristocracies7 for this state of

 humiliating vassalage 7often inverting 
the nature of things and relations7 by  
having the lower walks of industry      
wholly abandoned to them4 ,they are     
rivalled1 to say the least of the       
matter1 in every laborious and lucrative
 course of life2 while every franchise1 
every honor1 every trust1 every place1  
down to the very lowest and least       
confidential1 7besides whole            
professions17 is reserved for the master
 caste4  ,our ,constitution is not made 
for great1 general1 and proscriptive    
exclusions2 sooner or later it will     
destroy them1 or they will destroy the  
,constitution4 ,in our ,constitution    
there has always been a difference      
between a franchise and an office1 and  
between the capacity for the one and for
 the other4 ,franchises were supposed to
 belong to the subject1 as a subject1   
and not as a member of the governing    
part of the state4 ,the policy of       
government has considered them as things
 very different2 for1 whilst ,parliament

 excluded by the test acts 7and for a   
while these test acts were not a dead   
letter1 as now they are in ,england7    
,protestant ,dissenters from all civil  
and military employments1 they never    
touched their right of voting for       
members of ,parliament or sitting in    
either ,house3 a point ,i state1 not as 
approving or condemning1 with regard to 
them1 the measure of exclusion from     
employments1 but to prove that the      
distinction has been admitted in        
legislature1 as1 in truth1 it is founded
 in reason4  ,i will not here examine   
whether the principles of the ,british  
the ,irish ,constitution be wise or not4
 ,i must assume that they are1 and that 
those who partake the franchises which  
make it partake of a benefit4 ,they who 
are excluded from votes 7under proper   
qualifications inherent in the          
,constitution that gives them7 are      
excluded1 not from the state1 but from  
the ,british ,constitution4 ,they cannot
 by any possibility1 whilst they hear   

its praises continually rung in their   
ears1 and are present at the declaration
 which is so generally and so bravely   
made by those who possess the privilege1
 that the best blood in their veins     
ought to be shed to preserve their share
 in it1--they1 the disfranchised part1  
cannot1 ,i say1 think themselves in an  
happy state1 to be utterly excluded from
 all its direct and all its             
consequential advantages4 ,the popular  
part of the ,constitution must be to    
them by far the most odious part of it4 
,to them it is not an actual1 and1 if   
possible1 still less a virtual          
representation4 ,it is1 indeed1 the     
direct contrary4 ,it is power unlimited 
placed in the hands of an adverse       
description because it is an adverse    
description4 ,and if they who compose   
the privileged body have not an         
interest1 they must but too frequently  
have motives of pride1 passion1         
petulance1 peevish jealousy1 or tyrannic
 suspicion1 to urge them to treat the   

excluded people with contempt and rigor4
  ,this is not a mere theory2 though1   
whilst men are men1 it is a theory that 
cannot be false4 ,i do not desire to    
revive all the particulars in my memory2
 ,i wish them to sleep forever2 but it  
is impossible ,i should wholly forget   
what happened in some parts of ,ireland1
 with very few and short intermissions1 
from the year #agfa to the year #agff1  
both inclusive4 ,in a country of        
miserable police1 passing from the      
extremes of laxity to the extremes of   
rigor1 among a neglected and therefore  
disorderly populace1 if any disturbance 
or sedition1 from any grievance real or 
imaginary1 happened to arise1 it was    
presently perverted from its true       
nature1 often criminal enough in itself 
to draw upon it a severe1 appropriate   
punishment3 it was metamorphosed into a 
conspiracy against the state1 and       
prosecuted as such4 ,amongst the        
,catholics1 as being by far the most    
numerous and the most wretched1 all     

sorts of offenders against the laws must
 commonly be found4 ,the punishment of  
low people for the offences usual among 
low people would warrant no inference   
against any descriptions of religion or 
of politics4 ,men of consideration from 
their age1 their profession1 or their   
character1 men of proprietary landed    
estates1 substantial renters1 opulent   
merchants1 physicians1 and titular      
bishops1 could not easily be suspected  
of riot in open day1 or of nocturnal    
assemblies for the purpose of pulling   
down hedges1 making breaches in         
park-walls1 firing barns1 maiming       
cattle1 and outrages of a similar       
nature1 which characterize the disorders
 of an oppressed or a licentious        
populace4 ,but when the evidence given  
on the trial for such misdemeanors      
qualified them as overt acts of high    
treason1 and when witnesses were found  
7such witnesses as they were7 to depose 
to the taking of oaths of allegiance by 
the rioters to the king of ,france1 to  

their being paid by his money1 and      
embodied and exercised under his        
officers1 to overturn the state for the 
purposes of that potentate1--in that    
case1 the rioters might 7if the witness 
was believed7 be supposed only the      
troops1 and persons more reputable the  
leaders and commanders1 in such a       
rebellion4 ,all classes in the obnoxious
 description1 who could not be suspected
 of the lower crime of riot1 might be   
involved in the odium1 in the suspicion1
 and sometimes in the punishment1 of a  
higher and far more criminal species of 
offence4 ,these proceedings did not     
arise from any one of the ,popery laws  
since repealed1 but from this           
circumstance1 that1 when it answered the
 purposes of an election party or a     
malevolent person of influence to forge 
such plots1 the people had no           
protection4 ,the people of that         
description have no hold on the         
gentlemen who aspire to be popular      
representatives4 ,the candidates neither

 love nor respect nor fear them1        
individually or collectively4 ,i do not 
think this evil 7an evil amongst a      
thousand others7 at this day entirely   
over2 for ,i conceive ,i have lately    
seen some indication of a disposition   
perfectly similar to the old one1--that 
is1 a disposition to carry the          
imputation of crimes from persons to    
descriptions1 and wholly to alter the   
character and quality of the offences   
themselves4  ,this universal exclusion  
seems to me a serious evil1--because    
many collateral oppressions1 besides    
what ,i have just now stated1 have      
arisen from it4 ,in things of this      
nature it would not be either easy or   
proper to quote chapter and verse2 but  
,i have great reason to believe1        
particularly since the ,octennial ,act1 
that several have refused at all to let 
their lands to ,roman ,catholics1       
because it would so far disable them    
from promoting such interests in        
counties as they were inclined to favor4

 ,they who consider also the state of   
all sorts of tradesmen1 shopkeepers1 and
 particularly publicans in towns1 must  
soon discern the disadvantages under    
which those labor who have no votes4 ,it
 cannot be otherwise1 whilst the spirit 
of elections and the tendencies of human
 nature continue as they are4 ,if       
property be artificially separated from 
franchise1 the franchise must in some   
way or other1 and in some proportion1   
naturally attract property to it4 ,many 
are the collateral disadvantages1       
amongst a privileged people1 which must 
attend on those who have no privileges4 
,among the rich1 each individual1 with  
or without a franchise1 is of           
importance2 the poor and the middling   
are no otherwise so than as they obtain 
some collective capacity1 and can be    
aggregated to some corps4 ,if legal ways
 are not found1 illegal will be resorted
 to2 and seditious clubs and            
confederacies1 such as no man living    
holds in greater horror than ,i do1 will

 grow and flourish1 in spite1 ,i am     
afraid1 of anything which can be done to
 prevent the evil4 ,lawful enjoyment is 
the surest method to prevent unlawful   
gratification4 ,where there is property1
 there will be less theft2 where there  
is marriage1 there will always be less  
fornication4  ,i have said enough of the
 question of state1 as it affects the   
people merely as such4 ,but it is       
complicated with a political question   
relative to religion1 to which it is    
very necessary ,i should say            
something1--because the term            
,protestant1 which you apply1 is too    
general for the conclusions which one of
 your accurate understanding would wish 
to draw from it1 and because a great    
deal of argument will depend on the use 
that is made of that term4  ,it is not a
 fundamental part of the settlement at  
the ,revolution that the state should be
 ,protestant without any qualification  
of the term4 ,with a qualification it is
 unquestionably true2 not in all its    

latitude4 ,with the qualification1 it   
was true before the ,revolution4 ,our   
predecessors in legislation were not so 
irrational 7not to say impious7 as to   
form an operose ecclesiastical          
establishment1 and even to render the   
state itself in some degree subservient 
to it1 when their religion 7if such it  
might be called7 was nothing but a mere 
negation of some other1--without any    
positive idea1 either of doctrine1      
discipline1 worship1 or morals1 in the  
scheme which they professed themselves1 
and which they imposed upon others1 even
 under penalties and incapacities4 ,no6 
,no6 ,this never could have been done1  
even by reasonable atheists4 ,they who  
think religion of no importance to the  
state have abandoned it to the          
conscience or caprice of the individual2
 they make no provision for it          
whatsoever1 but leave every club to     
make1 or not1 a voluntary contribution  
towards its support1 according to their 
fancies4 ,this would be consistent4 ,the

 other always appeared to me to be a    
monster of contradiction and absurdity4 
,it was for that reason1 that1 some     
years ago1 ,i strenuously opposed the   
clergy who petitioned1 to the number of 
about three hundred1 to be freed from   
the subscription to the ,thirty-,nine   
,articles1 without proposing to         
substitute any other in their place4    
,there never has been a religion of the 
state 7the few years of the ,parliament 
only excepted7 but that of the          
,episcopal ,church of ,england3 the     
,episcopal ,church of ,england1 before  
the ,reformation1 connected with the see
 of ,rome2 since then1 disconnected1 and
 protesting against some of her         
doctrines1 and against the whole of her 
authority1 as binding in our national   
church3 nor did the fundamental laws of 
this kingdom 7in ,ireland it has been   
the same7 ever know1 at any period1 any 
other church as an object of            
establishment1--or1 in that light1 any  
other ,protestant religion4 ,nay1 our   

,protestant toleration itself1 at the   
,revolution1 and until within a few     
years1 required a signature of          
thirty-six1 and a part of the           
thirty-seventh1 out of the ,thirty-,nine
 ,articles4 ,so little idea had they at 
the ,revolution of establishing         
,protestantism indefinitely1 that they  
did not indefinitely tolerate it under  
that name4 ,i do not mean to praise that
 strictness1 where nothing more than    
merely religious toleration is          
concerned4 ,toleration1 being a part of 
moral and political prudence1 ought to  
be tender and large4 ,a tolerant        
government ought not to be too          
scrupulous in its investigations1 but   
may bear without blame1 not only very   
ill-grounded doctrines1 but even many   
things that are positively vices1 where 
they are adulta et prvalida4 ,the good  
of the commonwealth is the rule which   
rides over the rest2 and to this every  
other must completely submit4  ,the     
,church of ,scotland knows as little of 

,protestantism undefined as the ,church 
of ,england and ,ireland do4 ,she has by
 the articles of union secured to       
herself the perpetual establishment of  
the ,confession of ,faith1 and the      
,presbyterian ,church government4 ,in   
,england1 even during the troubled      
interregnum1 it was not thought fit to  
establish a negative religion2 but the  
,parliament settled the ,presbyterian as
 the ,church discipline1 the ,directory 
as the rule of public worship1 and the  
,westminster ,catechism as the institute
 of faith4 ,this is to show that at no  
time was the ,protestant religion1      
undefined1 established here or anywhere 
else1 as ,i believe4 ,i am sure1 that1  
when the three religions were           
established in ,germany1 they were      
expressly characterized and declared to 
be the ,evangelic1 the ,reformed1 and   
the ,catholic2 each of which has its    
confession of faith and its settled     
discipline3 so that you always may know 
the best and the worst of them1 to      

enable you to make the most of what is  
good1 and to correct or to qualify or to
 guard against whatever may seem evil or
 dangerous4  ,as to the coronation oath1
 to which you allude1 as opposite to    
admitting a ,roman ,catholic to the use 
of any franchise whatsoever1 ,i cannot  
think that the king would be perjured1  
if he gave his assent to any regulation 
which ,parliament might think fit to    
make with regard to that affair4 ,the   
king is bound by law1 as clearly        
specified in several acts of            
,parliament1 to be in communion with the
 ,church of ,england4 ,it is a part of  
the tenure by which he holds his crown2 
and though no provision was made till   
the ,revolution1 which could be called  
positive and valid in law1 to ascertain 
this great principle1 ,i have always    
considered it as in fact fundamental1   
that the king of ,england should be of  
the ,christian religion1 according to   
the national legal church for the time  
being4 ,i conceive it was so before the 

,reformation4 ,since the ,reformation it
 became doubly necessary2 because the   
king is the head of that church1 in some
 sort an ecclesiastical person1--and it 
would be incongruous and absurd to have 
the head of the ,church of one faith1   
and the members of another4 ,the king   
may inherit the crown as a ,protestant2 
but he cannot hold it1 according to law1
 without being a ,protestant of the     
,church of ,england4  ,before we take it
 for granted that the king is bound by  
his coronation oath not to admit any of 
his ,catholic subjects to the rights and
 liberties which ought to belong to them
 as ,englishmen1 7not as religionists17 
or to settle the conditions or          
proportions of such admission by an act 
of ,parliament1 ,i wish you to place    
before your eyes that oath itself1 as it
 is settled in the act of ,william and  
,mary4  ,will you to the utmost of your 
power maintain       #a                 
#b                 #c the laws of ,god1 
the true profession of the ,gospel1     

#d and the ,protestant ,reformed        
,religion established by                
#e law8 ,and will you preserve unto the 
bishops and clergy of this realm1 and to
 the churches committed to their charge1
 all such rights and privileges as by   
law do or shall appertain unto them1 or 
any of them8--,all this ,i promise to   
do4  ,here are the coronation           
engagements of the king4 ,in them ,i do 
not find one word to preclude his       
,majesty from consenting to any         
arrangement which ,parliament may make  
with regard to the civil privileges of  
any part of his subjects4  ,it may not  
be amiss1 on account of the light which 
it will throw on this discussion1 to    
look a little more narrowly into the    
matter of that oath1--in order to       
discover how far it has hitherto        
operated1 or how far in future it ought 
to operate1 as a bar to any proceedings 
of the crown and ,parliament in favor of
 those against whom it may be supposed  
that the king has engaged to support the

 ,protestant ,church of ,england in the 
two kingdoms in which it is established 
by law4 ,first1 the king swears he will 
maintain to the utmost of his power the 
laws of ,god4 ,i suppose it means the   
natural moral laws4--,secondly1 he      
swears to maintain the true profession  
of the ,gospel4 ,by which ,i suppose is 
understood affirmatively the ,christian 
religion4--,thirdly1 that he will       
maintain the ,protestant reformed       
religion4 ,this leaves me no power of   
supposition or conjecture2 for that     
,protestant reformed religion is defined
 and described by the subsequent words1 
established by law2 and in this         
instance1 to define it beyond all       
possibility of doubt1 he swears to      
maintain the bishops and clergy1 and the
 churches committed to their charge1 in 
their rights present and future4  ,the  
oath as effectually prevents the king   
from doing anything to the prejudice of 
the ,church1 in favor of sectaries1     
,jews1 ,mahometans1 or plain avowed     

infidels1 as if he should do the same   
thing in favor of the ,catholics4 ,you  
will see that it is the same ,protestant
 ,church1 so described1 that the king is
 to maintain and communicate with1      
according to the ,act of ,settlement of 
the #abth and #acth of ,william the     
,third4 ,the act of the #eth of ,anne1  
made in prospect of the ,union1 is      
entitled1 ,an act for securing the      
,church of ,england as by law           
established4 ,it meant to guard the     
,church implicitly against any other    
mode of ,protestant religion which might
 creep in by means of the ,union4 ,it   
proves beyond all doubt1 that the       
legislature did not mean to guard the   
,church on one part only1 and to leave  
it defenceless and exposed upon every   
other4 ,this church1 in that act1 is    
declared to be fundamental and essential
 forever1 in the ,constitution of the   
,united ,kingdom1 so far as ,england is 
concerned2 and ,i suppose1 as the law   
stands1 even since the independence1 it 

is so in ,ireland4  ,all this shows that
 the religion which the king is bound to
 maintain has a positive part in it1 as 
well as a negative1--and that the       
positive part of it 7in which we are in 
perfect agreement with the ,catholics   
and with the ,church of ,scotland7 is   
infinitely the most valuable and        
essential4 ,such an agreement we had    
with ,protestant ,dissenters in         
,england1 of those descriptions who came
 under the ,toleration ,act of ,king    
,william and ,queen ,mary3 an act coeval
 with the ,revolution2 and which ought1 
on the principles of the gentlemen who  
oppose the relief to the ,catholics1 to 
have been held sacred and unalterable4  
,whether we agree with the present      
,protestant ,dissenters in the points at
 the ,revolution held essential and     
fundamental among ,christians1 or in any
 other fundamental1 at present it is    
impossible for us to know3 because1 at  
their own very earnest desire1 we have  
repealed the ,toleration ,act of        

,william and ,mary1 and discharged them 
from the signature required by that act2
 and because1 for the far greater part1 
they publicly declare against all manner
 of confessions of faith1 even the      
,consensus4  ,for reasons forcible      
enough at all times1 but at this time   
particularly forcible with me1 ,i dwell 
a little the longer upon this matter1   
and take the more pains1 to put us both 
in mind that it was not settled at the  
,revolution that the state should be    
,protestant1 in the latitude of the     
term1 but in a defined and limited sense
 only1 and that in that sense only the  
king is sworn to maintain it4 ,to       
suppose that the king has sworn with his
 utmost power to maintain what it is    
wholly out of his power to discover1 or 
which1 if he could discover1 he might   
discover to consist of things directly  
contradictory to each other1 some of    
them perhaps impious1 blasphemous1 and  
seditious upon principle1 would be not  
only a gross1 but a most mischievous    

absurdity4 ,if mere dissent from the    
,church of ,rome be a merit1 he that    
dissents the most perfectly is the most 
meritorious4 ,in many points we hold    
strongly with that church4 ,he that     
dissents throughout with that church    
will dissent with the ,church of        
,england1 and then it will be a part of 
his merit that he dissents with         
ourselves3 a whimsical species of merit 
for any set of men to establish4 ,we    
quarrel to extremity with those who we  
know agree with us in many things2 but  
we are to be so malicious even in the   
principle of our friendships1 that we   
are to cherish in our bosom those who   
accord with us in nothing1 because1     
whilst they despise ourselves1 they     
abhor1 even more than we do1 those with 
whom we have some disagreement4 ,a man  
is certainly the most perfect           
,protestant who protests against the    
whole ,christian religion4 ,whether a   
person's having no ,christian religion  
be a title to favor1 in exclusion to the

 largest description of ,christians1 who
 hold all the doctrines of              
,christianity1 though holding along with
 them some errors and some              
superfluities1 is rather more than any  
man1 who has not become recreant and    
apostate from his baptism1 will1 ,i     
believe1 choose to affirm4 ,the         
countenance given from a spirit of      
controversy to that negative religion   
may by degrees encourage light and      
unthinking people to a total            
indifference to everything positive in  
matters of doctrine1 and1 in the end1 of
 practice too4 ,if continued1 it would  
play the game of that sort of active1   
proselytizing1 and persecuting atheism  
which is the disgrace and calamity of   
our time1 and which we see to be as     
capable of subverting a government as   
any mode can be of misguided zeal for   
better things4  ,now let us fairly see  
what course has been taken relative to  
those against whom1 in part at least1   
the king has sworn to maintain a church1

 positive in its doctrine and its       
discipline4 ,the first thing done1 even 
when the oath was fresh in the mouth of 
the sovereigns1 was to give a toleration
 to ,protestant ,dissenters whose       
doctrines they ascertained4 ,as to the  
mere civil privileges which the         
,dissenters held as subjects before the 
,revolution1 these were not touched at  
all4 ,the laws have fully permitted1 in 
a qualification for all offices1 to such
 ,dissenters1 an occasional conformity3 
a thing ,i believe singular1 where tests
 are admitted4 ,the act1 called the     
,test ,act1 itself1 is1 with regard to  
them1 grown to be hardly anything more  
than a dead letter4 ,whenever the       
,dissenters cease by their conduct to   
give any alarm to the government1 in    
,church and ,state1 ,i think it very    
probable that even this matter1 rather  
disgustful than inconvenient to them1   
may be removed1 or at least so modified 
as to distinguish the qualification to  
those offices which really guide the    

state from those which are merely       
instrumental1 or that some other and    
better tests may be put in their place4 
,so far as to ,england4 ,in ,ireland you
 have outran us4 ,without waiting for an
 ,english example1 you have totally1 and
 without any modification whatsoever1   
repealed the test as to ,protestant     
,dissenters4 ,not having the repealing  
act by me1 ,i ought not to say          
positively that there is no exception in
 it2 but if it be what ,i suppose it is1
 you know very well that a ,jew in      
religion1 or a ,mahometan1 or even a    
public1 declared atheist and blasphemer1
 is perfectly qualified to be           
,lord-,lieutenant1 a lord-justice1 or   
even keeper of the king's conscience1   
and by virtue of his office 7if with you
 it be as it is with us7 administrator  
to a great part of the ecclesiastical   
patronage of the crown4  ,now let us    
deal a little fairly4 ,we must admit    
that ,protestant ,dissent was one of the
 quarters from which danger was         

apprehended at the ,revolution1 and     
against which a part of the coronation  
oath was peculiarly directed4 ,by this  
unqualified repeal you certainly did not
 mean to deny that it was the duty of   
the crown to preserve the ,church       
against ,protestant ,dissenters2 or     
taking this to be the true sense of the 
two ,revolution acts of ,king ,william1 
and of the previous and subsequent      
,union acts of ,queen ,anne1 you did not
 declare by this most unqualified       
repeal1 by which you broke down all the 
barriers1 not invented1 indeed1 but     
carefully preserved1 at the             
,revolution1--you did not then and by   
that proceeding declare that you had    
advised the king to perjury towards ,god
 and perfidy towards the ,church4 ,no6  
far1 very far from it6 ,you never would 
have done it1 if you did not think it   
could be done with perfect repose to the
 royal conscience1 and perfect safety to
 the national established religion4 ,you
 did this upon a full consideration of  

the circumstances of your country4 ,now1
 if circumstances required it1 why      
should it be contrary to the king's     
oath1 his ,parliament judging on those  
circumstances1 to restore to his        
,catholic people1 in such measure and   
with such modifications as the public   
wisdom shall think proper to add1 some  
part in these franchises which they     
formerly had held without any limitation
 at all1 and which1 upon no sort of     
urgent reason at the time1 they were    
deprived of8 ,if such means can with any
 probability be shown1 from             
circumstances1 rather to add strength to
 our mixed ecclesiastical and secular   
,constitution than to weaken it1 surely 
they are means infinitely to be         
preferred to penalties1 incapacities1   
and proscriptions1 continued from       
generation to generation4 ,they are     
perfectly consistent with the other     
parts of the coronation oath1 in which  
the king swears to maintain the laws of 
,god and the true profession of the     

,gospel1 and to govern the people       
according to the statutes in ,parliament
 agreed upon1 and the laws and customs  
of the realm4 ,in consenting to such a  
statute1 the crown would act at least as
 agreeable to the laws of ,god1 and to  
the true profession of the ,gospel1 and 
to the laws and customs of the kingdom1 
as ,george the ,first did1 when he      
passed the statute which took from the  
body of the people everything which to  
that hour1 and even after the monstrous 
acts of the #bnd and #hth of ,anne1 7the
 objects of our common hatred17 they    
still enjoyed inviolate4  ,it is hard to
 distinguish with the last degree of    
accuracy what laws are fundamental1 and 
what not4 ,however1 there is a          
distinction between them1 authorized by 
the writers on jurisprudence1 and       
recognized in some of our statutes4 ,i  
admit the acts of ,king ,william and    
,queen ,anne to be fundamental1 but they
 are not the only fundamental laws4 ,the
 law called ,magna ,charta1 by which it 

is provided that no man shall be        
disseised of his liberties and free     
customs but by the judgment of his peers
 or the laws of the land1 7meaning      
clearly1 for some proved crime tried and
 adjudged17 ,i take to be a fundamental 
law4 ,now1 although this ,magna ,charta1
 or some of the statutes establishing   
it1 provide that that law shall be      
perpetual1 and all statutes contrary to 
it shall be void1 yet ,i cannot go so   
far as to deny the authority of statutes
 made in defiance of ,magna ,charta and 
all its principles4 ,this1 however1 ,i  
will say1--that it is a very venerable  
law1 made by very wise and learned men1 
and that the legislature1 in their      
attempt to perpetuate it1 even against  
the authority of future ,parliaments1   
have shown their judgment that it is    
fundamental1 on the same grounds and in 
the same manner that the act of the     
fifth of ,anne has considered and       
declared the establishment of the       
,church of ,england to be fundamental4  

,magna ,charta1 which secured these     
franchises to the subjects1 regarded the
 rights of freeholders in counties to be
 as much a fundamental part of the      
,constitution as the establishment of   
the ,church of ,england was thought     
either at that time1 or in the act of   
,king ,william1 or in the act of ,queen 
,anne4  ,the churchmen who led in that  
transaction certainly took care of the  
material interest of which they were the
 natural guardians4 ,it is the first    
article of ,magna ,charta1 that the     
,church of ,england shall be free1 c1 c4
 ,but at that period1 churchmen and     
barons and knights took care of the     
franchises and free customs of the      
people1 too4 ,those franchises are part 
of the ,constitution itself1 and        
inseparable from it4 ,it would be a very
 strange thing1 if there should not only
 exist anomalies in our laws1 a thing   
not easy to prevent1 but that the       
fundamental parts of the ,constitution  
should be perpetually and irreconcilably

 at variance with each other4 ,i cannot 
persuade myself that the lovers of our  
church are not as able to find effectual
 ways of reconciling its safety with the
 franchises of the people as the        
ecclesiastics of the thirteenth century 
were able to do2 ,i cannot conceive how 
anything worse can be said of the       
,protestant religion of the ,church of  
,england than this1--that1 wherever it  
is judged proper to give it a legal     
establishment1 it becomes necessary to  
deprive the body of the people1 if they 
adhere to their old opinions1 of their  
liberties and of all their free customs1
 and to reduce them to a state of civil 
servitude4  ,there is no man on earth1  
,i believe1 more willing than ,i am to  
lay it down as a fundamental of the     
,constitution1 that the ,church of      
,england should be united and even      
identified with it2 but1 allowing this1 
,i cannot allow that all laws of        
regulation1 made from time to time1 in  
support of that fundamental law1 are of 

course equally fundamental and equally  
unchangeable4 ,this would be to confound
 all the branches of legislation and of 
jurisprudence4 ,the crown and the       
personal safety of the monarch are      
fundamentals in our ,constitution3 yet  
,i hope that no man regrets that the    
rabble of statutes got together during  
the reign of ,henry the ,eighth1 by     
which treasons are multiplied with so   
prolific an energy1 have been all       
repealed in a body2 although they were  
all1 or most of them1 made in support of
 things truly fundamental in our        
,constitution4 ,so were several of the  
acts by which the crown exercised its   
supremacy3 such as the act of ,elizabeth
 for making the high commission courts1 
and the like2 as well as things made    
treason in the time of ,charles the     
,second4 ,none of this species of       
secondary and subsidiary laws have been 
held fundamental4 ,they have yielded to 
circumstances2 particularly where they  
were thought1 even in their             

consequences1 or obliquely1 to affect   
other fundamentals4 ,how much more1     
certainly1 ought they to give way1 when1
 as in our case1 they affect1 not here  
and there1 in some particular point1 or 
in their consequence1 but universally1  
collectively1 and directly1 the         
fundamental franchises of a people equal
 to the whole inhabitants of several    
respectable kingdoms and states3 equal  
to the subjects of the kings of         
,sardinia or of ,denmark2 equal to those
 of the ,united ,netherlands2 and more  
than are to be found in all the states  
of ,switzerland4 ,this way of           
proscribing men by whole nations1 as it 
were1 from all the benefits of the      
,constitution to which they were born1  
,i never can believe to be politic or   
expedient1 much less necessary for the  
existence of any state or church in the 
world4 ,whenever ,i shall be convinced1 
which will be late and reluctantly1 that
 the safety of the ,church is utterly   
inconsistent with all the civil rights  

whatsoever of the far larger part of the
 inhabitants of our country1 ,i shall be
 extremely sorry for it2 because ,i     
shall think the ,church to be truly in  
danger4 ,it is putting things into the  
position of an ugly alternative1 into   
which ,i hope in ,god they never will be
 put4  ,i have said most of what occurs 
to me on the topics you touch upon1     
relative to the religion of the king1   
and his coronation oath4 ,i shall       
conclude the observations which ,i      
wished to submit to you on this point by
 assuring you that ,i think you the most
 remote that can be conceived from the  
metaphysicians of our times1 who are the
 most foolish of men1 and who1 dealing  
in universals and essences1 see no      
difference between more and less1--and  
who of course would think that the      
reason of the law which obliged the king
 to be a communicant of the ,church of  
,england would be as valid to exclude a 
,catholic from being an exciseman1 or to
 deprive a man who has five hundred a   

year1 under that description1 from      
voting on a par with a factitious       
,protestant ,dissenting freeholder of   
forty shillings4  ,recollect1 my dear   
friend1 that it was a fundamental       
principle in the ,french monarchy1      
whilst it stood1 that the state should  
be ,catholic2 yet the ,edict of ,nantes 
gave1 not a full ecclesiastical1 but a  
complete civil establishment1 with      
places of which only they were capable1 
to the ,calvinists of ,france1--and     
there were very few employments1 indeed1
 of which they were not capable4 ,the   
world praised the ,cardinal de          
,richelieu1 who took the first          
opportunity to strip them of their      
fortified places and cautionary towns4  
,the same world held and does hold in   
execration 7so far as that business is  
concerned7 the memory of ,louis the     
,fourteenth1 for the total repeal of    
that favorable edict2 though the talk of
 fundamental laws1 established religion1
 religion of the prince1 safety to the  

state1 c41 c41 was then as largely held1
 and with as bitter a revival of the    
animosities of the civil confusions     
during the struggles between the        
parties1 as now they can be in ,ireland4
  ,perhaps there are persons who think  
that the same reason does not hold1 when
 the religious relation of the sovereign
 and subject is changed2 but they who   
have their shop full of false weights   
and measures1 and who imagine that the  
adding or taking away the name of       
,protestant or ,papist1 ,guelph or      
,ghibelline1 alters all the principles  
of equity1 policy1 and prudence1 leave  
us no common data upon which we can     
reason4 ,i therefore pass by all this1  
which on you will make no impression1 to
 come to what seems to be a serious     
consideration in your mind3 ,i mean the 
dread you express of reviewing1 for the 
purpose of altering1 the principles of  
the ,revolution4 ,this is an interesting
 topic1 on which ,i will1 as fully as   
your leisure and mine permits1 lay      

before you the ideas ,i have formed4    
,first1 ,i cannot possibly confound in  
my mind all the things which were done  
at the ,revolution with the principles  
of the ,revolution4 ,as in most great   
changes1 many things were done from the 
necessities of the time1 well or ill    
understood1 from passion or from        
vengeance1 which were not only not      
perfectly agreeable to its principles1  
but in the most direct contradiction to 
them4 ,i shall not think that the       
deprivation of some millions of people  
of all the rights of citizens1 and all  
interest in the ,constitution1 in and to
 which they were born1 was a thing      
conformable to the declared principles  
of the ,revolution4 ,this ,i am sure is 
true relatively to ,england 7where the  
operation of these anti-principles      
comparatively were of little extent72   
and some of our late laws1 in repealing 
acts made immediately after the         
,revolution1 admit that some things then
 done were not done in the true spirit  

of the ,revolution4 ,but the ,revolution
 operated differently in ,england and   
,ireland1 in many1 and these essential  
particulars4 ,supposing the principles  
to have been altogether the same in both
 kingdoms1 by the application of those  
principles to very different objects the
 whole spirit of the system was changed1
 not to say reversed4 ,in ,england it   
was the struggle of the great body of   
the people for the establishment of     
their liberties1 against the efforts of 
a very small faction1 who would have    
oppressed them4 ,in ,ireland it was the 
establishment of the power of the       
smaller number1 at the expense of the   
civil liberties and properties of the   
far greater part1 and at the expense of 
the political liberties of the whole4   
,it was1 to say the truth1 not a        
revolution1 but a conquest3 which is not
 to say a great deal in its favor4 ,to  
insist on everything done in ,ireland at
 the ,revolution would be to insist on  
the severe and jealous policy of a      

conqueror1 in the crude settlement of   
his new acquisition1 as a permanent rule
 for its future government4 ,this no    
power1 in no country that ever ,i heard 
of1 has done or professed to do1--except
 in ,ireland2 where it is done1 and     
possibly by some people will be         
professed4 ,time has1 by degrees1 in all
 other places and periods1 blended and  
coalited the conquered with the         
conquerors4 ,so1 after some time1 and   
after one of the most rigid conquests   
that we read of in history1 the ,normans
 softened into the ,english4 ,i wish you
 to turn your recollection to the fine  
speech of ,cerealis to the ,gauls1 made 
to dissuade them from revolt4 ,speaking 
of the ,romans1--,nos quamvis toties    
lacessiti1 jure victori id solum vobis  
addidimus1 quo pacem tueremur3 nam neque
 quies gentium sine armis1 neque arma   
sine stipendiis1 neque stipendia sine   
tributis haberi queant4 ,caetera in     
communi sita sunt3 ipsi plerumque       
nostris exercitibus praesidetis3 ipsi   

has aliasque provincias regitis3 nil    
separatum clausumve4 ,proinde pacem et  
urbem1 quam victores victique eodem jure
 obtinemus1 amate1 colite4 ,you will    
consider whether the arguments used by  
that ,roman to these ,gauls would apply 
to the case in ,ireland1--and whether   
you could use so plausible a preamble to
 any severe warning you might think it  
proper to hold out to those who should  
resort to sedition1 instead of          
supplication1 to obtain any object that 
they may pursue with the governing      
power4  ,for a much longer period than  
that which had sufficed to blend the    
,romans with the nation to which of all 
others they were the most adverse1 the  
,protestants settled in ,ireland        
considered themselves in no other light 
than that of a sort of a colonial       
garrison1 to keep the natives in        
subjection to the other state of ,great 
,britain4 ,the whole spirit of the      
,revolution in ,ireland was that of not 
the mildest conqueror4 ,in truth1 the   

spirit of those proceedings did not     
commence at that era1 nor was religion  
of any kind their primary object4 ,what 
was done was not in the spirit of a     
contest between two religious factions1 
but between two adverse nations4 ,the   
statutes of ,kilkenny show that the     
spirit of the ,popery laws1 and some    
even of their actual provisions1 as     
applied between ,englishry and ,irishry1
 had existed in that harassed country   
before the words ,protestant and ,papist
 were heard of in the world4 ,if we read
 ,baron ,finglas1 ,spenser1 and ,sir    
,john ,davies1 we cannot miss the true  
genius and policy of the ,english       
government there before the ,revolution1
 as well as during the whole reign of   
,queen ,elizabeth4 ,sir ,john ,davies   
boasts of the benefits received by the  
natives1 by extending to them the       
,english law1 and turning the whole     
kingdom into shire ground4 ,but the     
appearance of things alone was changed4 
,the original scheme was never deviated 

from for a single hour4 ,unheard-of     
confiscations were made in the northern 
parts1 upon grounds of plots and        
conspiracies1 never proved upon their   
supposed authors4 ,the war of chicane   
succeeded to the war of arms and of     
hostile statutes2 and a regular series  
of operations was carried on1           
particularly from ,chichester's time1 in
 the ordinary courts of justice1 and by 
special commissions and                 
inquisitions1--first under pretence of  
tenures1 and then of titles in the      
crown1 for the purpose of the total     
extirpation of the interest of the      
natives in their own soil1--until this  
species of subtle ravage1 being carried 
to the last excess of oppression and    
insolence under ,lord ,strafford1 it    
kindled the flames of that rebellion    
which broke out in #afda4 ,by the issue 
of that war1 by the turn which the ,earl
 of ,clarendon gave to things at the    
,restoration1 and by the total reduction
 of the kingdom of ,ireland in #afia1   

the ruin of the native ,irish1 and1 in a
 great measure1 too1 of the first races 
of the ,english1 was completely         
accomplished4 ,the new ,english interest
 was settled with as solid a stability  
as anything in human affairs can look   
for4 ,all the penal laws of that        
unparalleled code of oppression1 which  
were made after the last event1 were    
manifestly the effects of national      
hatred and scorn towards a conquered    
people1 whom the victors delighted to   
trample upon and were not at all afraid 
to provoke4 ,they were not the effect of
 their fears1 but of their security4    
,they who carried on this system looked 
to the irresistible force of ,great     
,britain for their support in their acts
 of power4 ,they were quite certain that
 no complaints of the natives would be  
heard on this side of the water with any
 other sentiments than those of contempt
 and indignation4 ,their cries served   
only to augment their torture4 ,machines
 which could answer their purposes so   

well must be of an excellent            
contrivance4 ,indeed1 in ,england1 the  
double name of the complainants1 ,irish 
and ,papists1 7it would be hard to say  
which singly was the most odious17 shut 
up the hearts of every one against them4
 ,whilst that temper prevailed1 7and it 
prevailed in all its force to a time    
within our memory17 every measure was   
pleasing and popular just in proportion 
as it tended to harass and ruin a set of
 people who were looked upon as enemies 
to ,god and man1 and1 indeed1 as a race 
of bigoted savages who were a disgrace  
to human nature itself4  ,however1 as   
the ,english in ,ireland began to be    
domiciliated1 they began also to        
recollect that they had a country4 ,the 
,english interest1 at first by faint and
 almost insensible degrees1 but at      
length openly and avowedly1 became an   
independent ,irish interest1--full as   
independent as it could ever have been  
if it had continued in the persons of   
the native ,irish2 and it was maintained

 with more skill and more consistency   
than probably it would have been in     
theirs4 ,with their views1 the          
,anglo-,irish changed their maxims3 it  
was necessary to demonstrate to the     
whole people that there was something1  
at least1 of a common interest1 combined
 with the independency1 which was to    
become the object of common exertions4  
,the mildness of government produced the
 first relaxation towards the ,irish2   
the necessities1 and1 in part1 too1 the 
temper that predominated at this great  
change1 produced the second and the most
 important of these relaxations4        
,english government and ,irish          
legislature felt jointly the propriety  
of this measure4 ,the ,irish ,parliament
 and nation became independent4  ,the   
true revolution to you1 that which most 
intrinsically and substantially         
resembled the ,english ,revolution of   
#afhh1 was the ,irish ,revolution of    
#aghb4 ,the ,irish ,parliament of #aghb 
bore little resemblance to that which   

sat in that kingdom after the period of 
the first of these revolutions4 ,it bore
 a much nearer resemblance to that which
 sat under ,king ,james4 ,the change of 
the ,parliament in #aghb from the       
character of the ,parliament which1 as a
 token of its indignation1 had burned   
all the journals indiscriminately of the
 former ,parliament in the              
,council-,chamber1 was very visible4    
,the address of ,king ,william's        
,parliament1 the ,parliament which      
assembled after the ,revolution1 amongst
 other causes of complaint 7many of them
 sufficiently just7 complains of the    
repeal by their predecessors of         
,poynings's law1--no absolute idol with 
the ,parliament of #aghb4  ,great       
,britain1 finding the ,anglo-,irish     
highly animated with a spirit which had 
indeed shown itself before1 though with 
little energy and many interruptions1   
and therefore suffered a multitude of   
uniform precedents to be established    
against it1 acted1 in my opinion1 with  

the greatest temperance and wisdom4 ,she
 saw that the disposition of the leading
 part of the nation would not permit    
them to act any longer the part of a    
garrison4 ,she saw that true policy did 
not require that they ever should have  
appeared in that character2 or if it had
 done so formerly1 the reasons had now  
ceased to operate4 ,she saw that the    
,irish of her race were resolved to     
build their ,constitution and their     
politics upon another bottom4 ,with     
those things under her view1 she        
instantly complied with the whole of    
your demands1 without any reservation   
whatsoever4 ,she surrendered that       
boundless superiority1 for the          
preservation of which1 and the          
acquisition1 she had supported the      
,english colonies in ,ireland for so    
long a time1 and at so vast an expense  
7according to the standard of those     
ages7 of her blood and treasure4  ,when 
we bring before us the matter which     
history affords for our selection1 it is

 not improper to examine the spirit of  
the several precedents which are        
candidates for our choice4 ,might it not
 be as well for your statesmen1 on the  
other side of the water1 to take an     
example from this latter and surely more
 conciliatory revolution1 as a pattern  
for your conduct towards your own       
fellow-citizens1 than from that of      
#afhh1 when a paramount sovereignty over
 both you and them was more loftily     
claimed and more sternly exerted than at
 any former or at any subsequent period8
 ,great ,britain in #aghb rose above the
 vulgar ideas of policy1 the ordinary   
jealousies of state1 and all the        
sentiments of national pride and        
national ambition4 ,if she had been more
 disposed 7than1 ,i thank ,god for it1  
she was7 to listen to the suggestions of
 passion than to the dictates of        
prudence1 she might have urged the      
principles1 the maxims1 the policy1 the 
practice of the ,revolution1 against the
 demands of the leading description in  

,ireland1 with full as much plausibility
 and full as good a grace as any amongst
 them can possibly do against the       
supplications of so vast and extensive a
 description of their own people4  ,a   
good deal1 too1 if the spirit of        
domination and exclusion had prevailed  
in ,england1 might have been excepted   
against some of the means then employed 
in ,ireland1 whilst her claims were in  
agitation4 ,they were at least as much  
out of ordinary course as those which   
are now objected against admitting your 
people to any of the benefits of an     
,english ,constitution4 ,most certainly1
 neither with you nor here was any one  
ignorant of what was at that time said1 
written1 and done4 ,but on all sides we 
separated the means from the end3 and we
 separated the cause of the moderate and
 rational from the ill-intentioned and  
seditious1 which on such occasions are  
so frequently apt to march together4 ,at
 that time1 on your part1 you were not  
afraid to review what was done at the   

,revolution of #afhh1 and what had been 
continued during the subsequent         
flourishing period of the ,british      
empire4 ,the change then made was a     
great and fundamental alteration4 ,in   
the execution1 it was an operose        
business on both sides of the water4 ,it
 required the repeal of several laws1   
the modification of many1 and a new     
course to be given to an infinite number
 of legislative1 judicial1 and official 
practices and usages in both kingdoms4  
,this did not frighten any of us4 ,you  
are now asked to give1 in some moderate 
measure1 to your fellow-citizens1 what  
,great ,britain gave to you without any 
measure at all4 ,yet1 notwithstanding   
all the difficulties at the time1 and   
the apprehensions which some very       
well-meaning people entertained1 through
 the admirable temper in which this     
revolution 7or restoration in the nature
 of a revolution7 was conducted in both 
kingdoms1 it has hitherto produced no   
inconvenience to either2 and ,i trust1  

with the continuance of the same temper1
 that it never will4 ,i think that this 
small1 inconsiderable change1 7relative 
to an exclusive statute not made at the 
,revolution17 for restoring the people  
to the benefits from which the green    
soreness of a civil war had not excluded
 them1 will be productive of no sort of 
mischief whatsoever4 ,compare what was  
done in #aghb with what is wished in    
#agib2 consider the spirit of what has  
been done at the several periods of     
reformation2 and weigh maturely whether 
it be exactly true that conciliatory    
concessions are of good policy only in  
discussions between nations1 but that   
among descriptions in the same nation   
they must always be irrational and      
dangerous4 ,what have you suffered in   
your peace1 your prosperity1 or1 in what
 ought ever to be dear to a nation1 your
 glory1 by the last act by which you    
took the property of that people under  
the protection of the laws8 ,what       
reasons have you to dread the           

consequences of admitting the people    
possessing that property to some share  
in the protection of the ,constitution8 
,i do not mean to trouble you with      
anything to remove the objections1 ,i   
will not call them arguments1 against   
this measure1 taken from a ferocious    
hatred to all that numerous description 
of ,christians4 ,it would be to pay a   
poor compliment to your understanding or
 your heart4 ,neither your religion nor 
your politics consist in odd1 perverse  
antipathies4 ,you are not resolved to   
persevere in proscribing from the       
,constitution so many millions of your  
countrymen1 because1 in contradiction to
 experience and to common sense1 you    
think proper to imagine that their      
principles are subversive of common     
human society4 ,to that ,i shall only   
say1 that whoever has a temper which can
 be gratified by indulging himself in   
these good-natured fancies ought to do a
 great deal more4 ,for an exclusion from
 the privileges of ,british subjects is 

not a cure for so terrible a distemper  
of the human mind as they are pleased to
 suppose in their countrymen4 ,i rather 
conceive a participation in those       
privileges to be itself a remedy for    
some mental disorders4  ,as little shall
 ,i detain you with matters that can as 
little obtain admission into a mind like
 yours3 such as the fear1 or pretence of
 fear1 that1 in spite of your own power 
and the trifling power of ,great        
,britain1 you may be conquered by the   
,pope2 or that this commodious bugbear  
7who is of infinitely more use to those 
who pretend to fear than to those who   
love him7 will absolve his ,majesty's   
subjects from their allegiance1 and send
 over the ,cardinal of ,york to rule you
 as his viceroy2 or that1 by the        
plenitude of his power1 he will take    
that fierce tyrant1 the king of the     
,french1 out of his jail1 and arm that  
nation 7which on all occasions treats   
his ,holiness so very politely7 with his
 bulls and pardons1 to invade poor old  

,ireland1 to reduce you to ,popery and  
slavery1 and to force the free-born1    
naked feet of your people into the      
wooden shoes of that arbitrary monarch4 
,i do not believe that discourses of    
this kind are held1 or that anything    
like them will be held1 by any who walk 
about without a keeper4 ,yet ,i confess1
 that1 on occasions of this nature1 ,i  
am the most afraid of the weakest       
reasonings1 because they discover the   
strongest passions4 ,these things will  
never be brought out in definite        
propositions4 ,they would not prevent   
pity towards any persons2 they would    
only cause it for those who were capable
 of talking in such a strain4 ,but ,i   
know1 and am sure1 that such ideas as no
 man will distinctly produce to another1
 or hardly venture to bring in any plain
 shape to his own mind1 he will utter in
 obscure1 ill-explained doubts1         
jealousies1 surmises1 fears1 and        
apprehensions1 and that in such a fog   
they will appear to have a good deal of 

size1 and will make an impression1 when1
 if they were clearly brought forth and 
defined1 they would meet with nothing   
but scorn and derision4  ,there is      
another way of taking an objection to   
this concession1 which ,i admit to be   
something more plausible1 and worthy of 
a more attentive examination4 ,it is1   
that this numerous class of people is   
mutinous1 disorderly1 prone to sedition1
 and easy to be wrought upon by the     
insidious arts of wicked and designing  
men2 that1 conscious of this1 the sober1
 rational1 and wealthy part of that     
body1 who are totally of another        
character1 do by no means desire any    
participation for themselves1 or for any
 one else of their description1 in the  
franchises of the ,british              
,constitution4  ,i have great doubt of  
the exactness of any part of this       
observation4 ,but let us admit that the 
body of the ,catholics are prone to     
sedition1 7of which1 as ,i have said1 ,i
 entertain much doubt17 is it possible  

that any fair observer or fair reasoner 
can think of confining this description 
to them only8 ,i believe it to be       
possible for men to be mutinous and     
seditious who feel no grievance1 but ,i 
believe no man will assert seriously1   
that1 when people are of a turbulent    
spirit1 the best way to keep them in    
order is to furnish them with something 
substantial to complain of4  ,you       
separate1 very properly1 the sober1     
rational1 and substantial part of their 
description from the rest4 ,you give1 as
 you ought to do1 weight only to the    
former4 ,what ,i have always thought of 
the matter is this1--that the most poor1
 illiterate1 and uninformed creatures   
upon earth are judges of a practical    
oppression4 ,it is a matter of feeling2 
and as such persons generally have felt 
most of it1 and are not of an           
over-lively sensibility1 they are the   
best judges of it4 ,but for the real    
cause1 or the appropriate remedy1 they  
ought never to be called into council   

about the one or the other4 ,they ought 
to be totally shut out3 because their   
reason is weak2 because1 when once      
roused1 their passions are ungoverned2  
because they want information2 because  
the smallness of the property which     
individually they possess renders them  
less attentive to the consequence of the
 measures they adopt in affairs of      
moment4 ,when ,i find a great cry       
amongst the people who speculate little1
 ,i think myself called seriously to    
examine into it1 and to separate the    
real cause from the ill effects of the  
passion it may excite1 and the bad use  
which artful men may make of an         
irritation of the popular mind4 ,here we
 must be aided by persons of a contrary 
character2 we must not listen to the    
desperate or the furious3 but it is     
therefore necessary for us to           
distinguish who are the really indigent 
and the really intemperate4 ,as to the  
persons who desire this part in the     
,constitution1 ,i have no reason to     

imagine that they are men who have      
nothing to lose and much to look for in 
public confusion4 ,the popular meeting  
from which apprehensions have been      
entertained has assembled4 ,i have      
accidentally had conversation with two  
friends of mine who know something of   
the gentleman who was put into the chair
 upon that occasion3 one of them has had
 money transactions with him2 the other1
 from curiosity1 has been to see his    
concerns3 they both tell me he is a man 
of some property3 but you must be the   
best judge of this1 who by your office  
are likely to know his transactions4    
,many of the others are certainly       
persons of fortune2 and all1 or most1   
fathers of families1 men in respectable 
ways of life1 and some of them far from 
contemptible1 either for their          
information1 or for the abilities which 
they have shown in the discussion of    
their interests4 ,what such men think it
 for their advantage to acquire ought   
not1 prima facie1 to be considered as   

rash or heady or incompatible with the  
public safety or welfare4  ,i admit1    
that men of the best fortunes and       
reputations1 and of the best talents and
 education too1 may by accident show    
themselves furious and intemperate in   
their desires4 ,this is a great         
misfortune1 when it happens2 for the    
first presumptions are undoubtedly in   
their favor4 ,we have two standards of  
judging1 in this case1 of the sanity and
 sobriety of any proceedings1--of       
unequal certainty1 indeed1 but neither  
of them to be neglected3 the first is by
 the value of the object sought2 the    
next is by the means through which it is
 pursued4  ,the object pursued by the   
,catholics is1 ,i understand1 and have  
all along reasoned as if it were so1 in 
some degree or measure to be again      
admitted to the franchises of the       
,constitution4 ,men are considered as   
under some derangement of their         
intellects1 when they see good and evil 
in a different light from other         

men1--when they choose nauseous and     
unwholesome food1 and reject such as to 
the rest of the world seems pleasant and
 is known to be nutritive4 ,i have      
always considered the ,british          
,constitution not to be a thing in      
itself so vicious as that none but men  
of deranged understanding and turbulent 
tempers could desire a share in it3 on  
the contrary1 ,i should think very      
indifferently of the understanding and  
temper of any body of men who did not   
wish to partake of this great and       
acknowledged benefit4 ,i cannot think   
quite so favorably either of the sense  
or temper of those1 if any such there   
are1 who would voluntarily persuade     
their brethren that the object is not   
fit for them1 or they for the object4   
,whatever may be my thoughts concerning 
them1 ,i am quite sure that they who    
hold such language must forfeit all     
credit with the rest4 ,this is          
infallible1--if they conceive any       
opinion of their judgment1 they cannot  

possibly think them their friends4      
,there is1 indeed1 one supposition which
 would reconcile the conduct of such    
gentlemen to sound reason1 and to the   
purest affection towards their          
fellow-sufferers3 it is1 that they act  
under the impression of a well-grounded 
fear for the general interest4 ,if they 
should be told1 and should believe the  
story1 that1 if they dare attempt to    
make their condition better1 they will  
infallibly make it worse1--that1 if they
 aim at obtaining liberty1 they will    
have their slavery doubled1--that their 
endeavor to put themselves upon anything
 which approaches towards an equitable  
footing with their fellow-subjects will 
be considered as an indication of a     
seditious and rebellious                
disposition1--such a view of things     
ought perfectly to restore the          
gentlemen1 who so anxiously dissuade    
their countrymen from wishing a         
participation with the privileged part  
of the people1 to the good opinion of   

their fellows4 ,but what is to them a   
very full justification is not quite so 
honorable to that power from whose      
maxims and temper so good a ground of   
rational terror is furnished4 ,i think  
arguments of this kind will never be    
used by the friends of a government     
which ,i greatly respect1 or by any of  
the leaders of an opposition whom ,i    
have the honor to know and the sense to 
admire4 ,i remember ,polybius tells us1 
that1 during his captivity in ,italy as 
a ,peloponnesian hostage1 he solicited  
old ,cato to intercede with the ,senate 
for his release1 and that of his        
countrymen3 this old politician told him
 that he had better continue in his     
present condition1 however irksome1 than
 apply again to that formidable         
authority for their relief2 that he     
ought to imitate the wisdom of his      
countryman ,ulysses1 who1 when he was   
once out of the den of the ,cyclops1 had
 too much sense to venture again into   
the same cavern4 ,but ,i conceive too   

high an opinion of the ,irish           
legislature to think that they are to   
their fellow-citizens what the grand    
oppressors of mankind were to a people  
whom the fortune of war had subjected to
 their power4 ,for though ,cato could   
use such a parallel with regard to his  
,senate1 ,i should really think it      
nothing short of impious to compare an  
,irish ,parliament to a den of ,cyclops4
 ,i hope the people1 both here and with 
you1 will always apply to the ,house of 
,commons with becoming modesty1 but at  
the same time with minds unembarrassed  
with any sort of terror4  ,as to the    
means which the ,catholics employ to    
obtain this object1 so worthy of sober  
and rational minds1 ,i do admit that    
such means may be used in the pursuit of
 it as may make it proper for the       
legislature1 in this case1 to defer     
their compliance until the demandants   
are brought to a proper sense of their  
duty4 ,a concession in which the        
governing power of our country loses its

 dignity is dearly bought even by him   
who obtains his object4 ,all the people 
have a deep interest in the dignity of  
,parliament4 ,but as the refusal of     
franchises which are drawn out of the   
first vital stamina of the ,british     
,constitution is a very serious thing1  
we ought to be very sure that the manner
 and spirit of the application is       
offensive and dangerous indeed1 before  
we ultimately reject all applications of
 this nature4 ,the mode of application1 
,i hear1 is by petition4 ,it is the     
manner in which all the sovereign powers
 of the world are approached2 and ,i    
never heard 7except in the case of      
,james the ,second7 that any prince     
considered this manner of supplication  
to be contrary to the humility of a     
subject or to the respect due to the    
person or authority of the sovereign4   
,this rule1 and a correspondent         
practice1 are observed from the ,grand  
,seignior down to the most petty prince 
or republic in ,europe4  ,you have sent 

me several papers1 some in print1 some  
in manuscript4 ,i think ,i had seen all 
of them1 except the formula of          
association4 ,i confess they appear to  
me to contain matter mischievous1 and   
capable of giving alarm1 if the spirit  
in which they are written should be     
found to make any considerable progress4
 ,but ,i am at a loss to know how to    
apply them as objections to the case now
 before us4 ,when ,i find that the      
,general ,committee which acts for the  
,roman ,catholics in ,dublin prefers the
 association proposed in the written    
draught you have sent me to a respectful
 application in ,parliament1 ,i shall   
think the persons who sign such a paper 
to be unworthy of any privilege which   
may be thought fit to be granted1 and   
that such men ought1 by name1 to be     
excepted from any benefit under the     
,constitution to which they offer this  
violence4 ,but ,i do not find that this 
form of a seditious league has been     
signed by any person whatsoever1 either 

on the part of the supposed projectors1 
or on the part of those whom it is      
calculated to seduce4 ,i do not find1 on
 inquiry1 that such a thing was         
mentioned1 or even remotely alluded to1 
in the general meeting of the ,catholics
 from which so much violence was        
apprehended4 ,i have considered the     
other publications1 signed by           
individuals on the part of certain      
societies1--,i may mistake1 for ,i have 
not the honor of knowing them           
personally1 but ,i take ,mr4 ,butler and
 ,mr4 ,tandy not to be ,catholics1 but  
members of the ,established ,church4    
,not one that ,i recollect of these     
publications1 which you and ,i equally  
dislike1 appears to be written by       
persons of that persuasion4 ,now1 if1   
whilst a man is dutifully soliciting a  
favor from ,parliament1 any person      
should choose in an improper manner to  
show his inclination towards the cause  
depending1 and if that must destroy the 
cause of the petitioner1 then1 not only 

the petitioner1 but the legislature     
itself1 is in the power of any weak     
friend or artful enemy that the         
supplicant or that the ,parliament may  
have4 ,a man must be judged by his own  
actions only4 ,certain ,protestant      
,dissenters make seditious propositions 
to the ,catholics1 which it does not    
appear that they have yet accepted4 ,it 
would be strange that the tempter should
 escape all punishment1 and that he who1
 under circumstances full of seduction  
and full of provocation1 has resisted   
the temptation should incur the penalty4
 ,you know1 that1 with regard to the    
,dissenters1 who are stated to be the   
chief movers in this vile scheme of     
altering the principles of election to a
 right of voting by the head1 you are   
not able 7if you ought even to wish such
 a thing7 to deprive them of any part of
 the franchises and privileges which    
they hold on a footing of perfect       
equality with yourselves4 ,they may do  
what they please with constitutional    

impunity2 but the others cannot even    
listen with civility to an invitation   
from them to an ill-judged scheme of    
liberty1 without forfeiting forever all 
hopes of any of those liberties which we
 admit to be sober and rational4  ,it is
 known1 ,i believe1 that the greater as 
well as the sounder part of our excluded
 countrymen have not adopted the wild   
ideas and wilder engagements which have 
been held out to them1 but have rather  
chosen to hope small and safe           
concessions from the legal power than   
boundless objects from trouble and      
confusion4 ,this mode of action seems to
 me to mark men of sobriety1 and to     
distinguish them from those who are     
intemperate1 from circumstance or from  
nature4 ,but why do they not instantly  
disclaim and disavow those who make such
 advances to them8 ,in this1 too1 in my 
opinion1 they show themselves no less   
sober and circumspect4 ,in the present  
moment nothing short of insanity could  
induce them to take such a step4 ,pray  

consider the circumstances4 ,disclaim1  
says somebody1 all union with the       
,dissenters2--right4--,but when this    
your injunction is obeyed1 shall ,i     
obtain the object which ,i solicit from 
you8--,oh1 no1 nothing at all like      
it6--,but1 in punishing us1 by an       
exclusion from the ,constitution through
 the great gate1 for having been invited
 to enter into it by a postern1 will you
 punish by deprivation of their         
privileges1 or mulet in any other way1  
those who have tempted us8--,far from   
it2--we mean to preserve all their      
liberties and immunities1 as our        
life-blood4 ,we mean to cultivate them1 
as brethren whom we love and            
respect2--with you we have no           
fellowship4 ,we can bear with patience  
their enmity to ourselves2 but their    
friendship with you we will not endure4 
,but mark it well6 ,all our quarrels    
with them are always to be revenged upon
 you4 ,formerly1 it is notorious that we
 should have resented with the highest  

indignation your presuming to show any  
ill-will to them4 ,you must not suffer  
them1 now1 to show any good-will to you4
 ,know--and take it once for all--that  
it is1 and ever has been1 and ever will 
be1 a fundamental maxim in our politics1
 that you are not to have any part or   
shadow or name of interest whatever in  
our state2 that we look upon you as     
under an irreversible outlawry from our 
,constitution1--as perpetual and        
unalliable aliens4  ,such1 my dear ,sir1
 is the plain nature of the argument    
drawn from the ,revolution maxims1      
enforced by a supposed disposition in   
the ,catholics to unite with the        
,dissenters4 ,such it is1 though it were
 clothed in never such bland and civil  
forms1 and wrapped up1 as a poet says1  
in a thousand artful folds of sacred    
lawn4 ,for my own part1 ,i do not know  
in what manner to shape such arguments1 
so as to obtain admission for them into 
a rational understanding4 ,everything of
 this kind is to be reduced at last to  

threats of power4 ,i cannot say1 ,v     
victis6 and then throw the sword into   
the scale4 ,i have no sword2 and if ,i  
had1 in this case1 most certainly1 ,i   
would not use it as a makeweight in     
political reasoning4  ,observe1 on these
 principles1 the difference between the 
procedure of the ,parliament and the    
,dissenters towards the people in       
question4 ,one employs courtship1 the   
other force4 ,the ,dissenters offer     
bribes1 the ,parliament nothing but the 
front ngatif of a stern and forbidding  
authority4 ,a man may be very wrong in  
his ideas of what is good for him4 ,but 
no man affronts me1 nor can therefore   
justify my affronting him1 by offering  
to make me as happy as himself1         
according to his own ideas of happiness4
 ,this the ,dissenters do to the        
,catholics4 ,you are on the different   
extremes4 ,the ,dissenters offer1 with  
regard to constitutional rights and     
civil advantages of all sorts1          
everything2 you refuse everything4 ,with

 them1 there is boundless1 though not   
very assured hope2 with you1 a very sure
 and very unqualified despair4 ,the     
terms of alliance from the ,dissenters  
offer a representation of the commons1  
chosen out of the people by the head4   
,this is absurdly and dangerously large1
 in my opinion2 and that scheme of      
election is known to have been at all   
times perfectly odious to me4 ,but ,i   
cannot think it right of course to      
punish the ,irish ,roman ,catholics by  
an universal exclusion1 because others1 
whom you would not punish at all1       
propose an universal admission4 ,i      
cannot dissemble to myself1 that1 in    
this very kingdom1 many persons who are 
not in the situation of the ,irish      
,catholics1 but who1 on the contrary1   
enjoy the full benefit of the           
,constitution as it stands1 and some of 
whom1 from the effect of their fortunes1
 enjoy it in a large measure1 had some  
years ago associated to procure great   
and undefined changes 7they considered  

them as reforms7 in the popular part of 
the ,constitution4 ,our friend1 the late
 ,mr4 ,flood1 7no slight man17 proposed 
in his place1 and in my hearing1 a      
representation not much less extensive  
than this1 for ,england1--in which every
 house was to be inhabited by a voter1  
in addition to all the actual votes by  
other titles 7some of the corporate7    
which we know do not require a house or 
a shed4 ,can ,i forget that a person of 
the very highest rank1 of very large    
fortune1 and of the first class of      
ability1 brought a bill into the ,house 
of ,lords1 in the head-quarters of      
aristocracy1 containing identically the 
same project for the supposed adoption  
of which by a club or two it is thought 
right to extinguish all hopes in the    
,roman ,catholics of ,ireland8 ,i cannot
 say it was very eagerly embraced or    
very warmly pursued4 ,but the ,lords    
neither did disavow the bill1 nor treat 
it with any disregard1 nor express any  
sort of disapprobation of its noble     

author1 who has never lost1 with king or
 people1 the least degree of the respect
 and consideration which so justly      
belongs to him4  ,i am not at all       
enamored1 as ,i have told you1 with this
 plan of representation2 as little do ,i
 relish any bandings or associations for
 procuring it4 ,but if the question was 
to be put to you and me1--,universal    
popular representation1 or none at all  
for us and ours1--we should find        
ourselves in a very awkward position4 ,i
 do not like this kind of dilemmas1     
especially when they are practical4     
,then1 since our oldest fundamental laws
 follow1 or rather couple1 freehold with
 franchise1--since no principle of the  
,revolution shakes these                
liberties1--since the oldest and one of 
the best monuments of the ,constitution 
demands for the ,irish the privilege    
which they supplicate1--since the       
principles of the ,revolution coincide  
with the declarations of the ,great     
,charter1--since the practice of the    

,revolution1 in this point1 did not     
contradict its principles1--since1 from 
that event1 twenty-five years had       
elapsed1 before a domineering party1 on 
a party principle1 had ventured to      
disfranchise1 without any proof         
whatsoever of abuse1 the greater part of
 the community1--since the king's       
coronation oath does not stand in his   
way to the performance of his duty to   
all his subjects1--since you have given 
to all other ,dissenters these          
privileges without limit which are      
hitherto withheld without any limitation
 whatsoever from the ,catholics1--since 
no nation in the world has ever been    
known to exclude so great a body of men 
7not born slaves7 from the civil state1 
and all the benefits of its             
,constitution1--the whole question comes
 before ,parliament as a matter for its 
prudence4 ,i do not put the thing on a  
question of right4 ,that discretion1    
which in judicature is well said by     
,lord ,coke to be a crooked cord1 in    

legislature is a golden rule4           
,supplicants ought not to appear too    
much in the character of litigants4 ,if 
the subject thinks so highly and        
reverently of the sovereign authority as
 not to claim anything of right1 so that
 it may seem to be independent of the   
power and free choice of its            
government1--and if the sovereign1 on   
his part1 considers the advantages of   
the subjects as their right1 and all    
their reasonable wishes as so many      
claims1--in the fortunate conjunction of
 these mutual dispositions are laid the 
foundations of a happy and prosperous   
commonwealth4 ,for my own part1 desiring
 of all things that the authority of the
 legislature under which ,i was born1   
and which ,i cherish1 not only with a   
dutiful awe1 but with a partial and     
cordial affection1 to be maintained in  
the utmost possible respect1 ,i never   
will suffer myself to suppose that at   
bottom their discretion will be found to
 be at variance with their justice4     

,the whole being at discretion1 ,i beg  
leave just to suggest some matters for  
your consideration3--,whether the       
government in ,church or ,state is      
likely to be more secure by continuing  
causes of grounded discontent to a very 
great number 7say two millions7 of the  
subjects8 or whether the ,constitution1 
combined and balanced as it is1 will be 
rendered more solid by depriving so     
large a part of the people of all       
concern or interest or share in its     
representation1 actual or virtual8 ,i   
here mean to lay an emphasis on the word
 virtual4 ,virtual representation is    
that in which there is a communion of   
interests and a sympathy in feelings and
 desires between those who act in the   
name of any description of people and   
the people in whose name they act1      
though the trustees are not actually    
chosen by them4 ,this is virtual        
representation4 ,such a representation  
,i think to be in many cases even better
 than the actual4 ,it possesses most of 

its advantages1 and is free from many of
 its inconveniences2 it corrects the    
irregularities in the literal           
representation1 when the shifting       
current of human affairs or the acting  
of public interests in different ways   
carry it obliquely from its first line  
of direction4 ,the people may err in    
their choice2 but common interest and   
common sentiment are rarely mistaken4   
,but this sort of virtual representation
 cannot have a long or sure existence1  
if it has not a substratum in the       
actual4 ,the member must have some      
relation to the constituent4 ,as things 
stand1 the ,catholic1 as a ,catholic1   
and belonging to a description1 has no  
virtual relation to the                 
representative1--but the contrary4      
,there is a relation in mutual          
obligation4 ,gratitude may not always   
have a very lasting power2 but the      
frequent recurrence of an application   
for favors will revive and refresh it1  
and will necessarily produce some degree

 of mutual attention4 ,it will produce1 
at least1 acquaintance4 ,the several    
descriptions of people will not be kept 
so much apart as they now are1 as if    
they were not only separate nations1 but
 separate species4 ,the stigma and      
reproach1 the hideous mask will be taken
 off1 and men will see each other as    
they are4 ,sure ,i am that there have   
been thousands in ,ireland who have     
never conversed with a ,roman ,catholic 
in their whole lives1 unless they       
happened to talk to their gardener's    
workmen1 or to ask their way1 when they 
had lost it in their sports1--or1 at    
best1 who had known them only as        
footmen1 or other domestics1 of the     
second and third order3 and so averse   
were they1 some time ago1 to have them  
near their persons1 that they would not 
employ even those who could never find  
their way beyond the stable4 ,i well    
remember a great1 and in many respects a
 good man1 who advertised for a         
blacksmith1 but at the same time added1 

he must be a ,protestant4 ,it is        
impossible that such a state of things1 
though natural goodness in many persons 
will undoubtedly make exceptions1 must  
not produce alienation on the one side  
and pride and insolence on the other4   
,reduced to a question of discretion1   
and that discretion exercised solely    
upon what will appear best for the      
conservation of the state on its present
 basis1 ,i should recommend it to your  
serious thoughts1 whether the narrowing 
of the foundation is always the best way
 to secure the building8 ,the body of   
disfranchised men will not be perfectly 
satisfied to remain always in that      
state4 ,if they are not satisfied1 you  
have two millions of subjects in your   
bosom full of uneasiness3 not that they 
cannot overturn the ,act of ,settlement1
 and put themselves and you under an    
arbitrary master2 or that they are not  
permitted to spawn a hydra of wild      
republics1 on principles of a pretended 
natural equality in man2 but because you

 will not suffer them to enjoy the      
ancient1 fundamental1 tried advantages  
of a ,british ,constitution1--that you  
will not permit them to profit of the   
protection of a common father or the    
freedom of common citizens1 and that the
 only reason which can be assigned for  
this disfranchisement has a tendency    
more deeply to ulcerate their minds than
 the act of exclusion itself4 ,what the 
consequence of such feelings must be it 
is for you to look to4 ,to warn is not  
to menace4  ,i am far from asserting    
that men will not excite disturbances   
without just cause4 ,i know that such an
 assertion is not true4 ,but neither is 
it true that disturbances have never    
just complaints for their origin4 ,i am 
sure that it is hardly prudent to       
furnish them with such causes of        
complaint as every man who thinks the   
,british ,constitution a benefit may    
think at least colorable and plausible4 
,several are in dread of the manuvres of
 certain persons among the ,dissenters1 

who turn this ill humor to their own ill
 purposes4 ,you know1 better than ,i    
can1 how much these proceedings of      
certain among the ,dissenters are to be 
feared4 ,you are to weigh1 with the     
temper which is natural to you1 whether 
it may be for the safety of our         
establishment that the ,catholics should
 be ultimately persuaded that they have 
no hope to enter into the ,constitution 
but through the ,dissenters4  ,think    
whether this be the way to prevent or   
dissolve factious combinations against  
the ,church or the ,state4 ,reflect     
seriously on the possible consequences  
of keeping in the heart of your country 
a bank of discontent1 every hour        
accumulating1 upon which every          
description of seditious men may draw at
 pleasure4 ,they whose principles of    
faction will dispose them to the        
establishment of an arbitrary monarchy  
will find a nation of men who have no   
sort of interest in freedom1 but who    
will have an interest in that equality  

of justice or favor with which a wise   
despot must view all his subjects who do
 not attack the foundations of his      
power4 ,love of liberty itself may1 in  
such men1 become the means of           
establishing an arbitrary domination4   
,on the other hand1 they who wish for a 
democratic republic will find a set of  
men who have no choice between civil    
servitude and the entire ruin of a mixed
 ,constitution4  ,suppose the people of 
,ireland divided into three parts4 ,of  
these1 7,i speak within compass17 two   
are ,catholic2 of the remaining third1  
one half is composed of ,dissenters4    
,there is no natural union between those
 descriptions4 ,it may be produced4 ,if 
the two parts ,catholic be driven into a
 close confederacy with half the third  
part of ,protestants1 with a view to a  
change in the ,constitution in ,church  
or ,state or both1 and you rest the     
whole of their security on a handful of 
gentlemen1 clergy1 and their            
dependents1--compute the strength you   

have in ,ireland1 to oppose to grounded 
discontent1 to capricious innovation1 to
 blind popular fury1 and to ambitious1  
turbulent intrigue4  ,you mention that  
the minds of some gentlemen are a good  
deal heated1 and that it is often said1 
that1 rather than submit to such        
persons1 having a share in their        
franchises1 they would throw up their   
independence1 and precipitate an union  
with ,great ,britain4 ,i have heard a   
discussion concerning such an union     
amongst all sorts of men ever since ,i  
remember anything4 ,for my own part1 ,i 
have never been able to bring my mind to
 anything clear and decisive upon the   
subject4 ,there cannot be a more arduous
 question4 ,as far as ,i can form an    
opinion1 it would not be for the mutual 
advantage of the two kingdoms4 ,persons1
 however1 more able than ,i am think    
otherwise4 ,but whatever the merits of  
this union may be1 to make it a menace1 
it must be shown to be an evil1 and an  
evil more particularly to those who are 

threatened with it than to those who    
hold it out as a terror4 ,i really do   
not see how this threat of an union can 
operate1 or that the ,catholics are more
 likely to be losers by that measure    
than the churchmen4  ,the humors of the 
people1 and of politicians too1 are so  
variable in themselves1 and are so much 
under the occasional influence of some  
leading men1 that it is impossible to   
know what turn the public mind here     
would take on such an event4 ,there is  
but one thing certain concerning it4    
,great divisions and vehement passions  
would precede this union1 both on the   
measure itself and on its terms2 and    
particularly1 this very question of a   
share in the representation for the     
,catholics1 from whence the project of  
an union originated1 would form a       
principal part in the discussion2 and in
 the temper in which some gentlemen seem
 inclined to throw themselves1 by a sort
 of high1 indignant passion1 into the   
scheme1 those points would not be       

deliberated with all possible calmness4 
,from my best observation1 ,i should    
greatly doubt1 whether1 in the end1     
these gentlemen would obtain their      
object1 so as to make the exclusion of  
two millions of their countrymen a      
fundamental article in the union4 ,the  
demand would be of a nature quite       
unprecedented4 ,you might obtain the    
union2 and yet a gentleman1 who1 under  
the new union establishment1 would      
aspire to the honor of representing his 
county1 might possibly be as much       
obliged1 as he may fear to be under the 
old separate establishment1 to the      
unsupportable mortification of asking   
his neighbors1 who have a different     
opinion concerning the elements in the  
sacrament1 for their votes4  ,i believe1
 nay1 ,i am sure1 that the people of    
,great ,britain1 with or without an     
union1 might be depended upon1 in oases 
of any real danger1 to aid the          
government of ,ireland1 with the same   
cordiality as they would support their  

own1 against any wicked attempts to     
shake the security of the happy         
,constitution in ,church and ,state4    
,but before ,great ,britain engages in  
any quarrel1 the cause of the dispute   
would certainly be a part of her        
consideration4 ,if confusions should    
arise in that kingdom from too steady an
 attachment to a proscriptive1          
monopolizing system1 and from the       
resolution of regarding the franchise1  
and in it the security of the subject1  
as belonging rather to religious        
opinions than to civil qualification and
 civil conduct1 ,i doubt whether you    
might quite certainly reckon on         
obtaining an aid of force from hence for
 the support of that system4 ,we might  
extend your distractions to this country
 by taking part in them4 ,england will  
be indisposed1 ,i suspect1 to send an   
army for the conquest of ,ireland4 ,what
 was done in #aghb is a decisive proof  
of her sentiments of justice and        
moderation4 ,she will not be fond of    

making another ,american war in         
,ireland4 ,the principles of such a war 
would but too much resemble the former  
one4 ,the well-disposed and the         
ill-disposed in ,england would 7for     
different reasons perhaps7 be equally   
averse to such an enterprise4 ,the      
confiscations1 the public auctions1 the 
private grants1 the plantations1 the    
transplantations1 which formerly        
animated so many adventurers1 even among
 sober citizens1 to such ,irish         
expeditions1 and which possibly might   
have animated some of them to the       
,american1 can have no existence in the 
case that we suppose4  ,let us form a   
supposition1 7no foolish or ungrounded  
supposition17 that1 in an age when men  
are infinitely more disposed to heat    
themselves with political than religious
 controversies1 the former should       
entirely prevail1 as we see that in some
 places they have prevailed1 over the   
latter1--and that the ,catholics of     
,ireland1 from the courtship paid them  

on the one hand1 and the high tone of   
refusal on the other1 should1 in order  
to enter into all the rights of         
subjects1 all become ,protestant        
,dissenters1 and1 as the others do1 take
 all your oaths4 ,they would all obtain 
their civil objects2 and the change1 for
 anything ,i know to the contrary1 7in  
the dark as ,i am about the ,protestant 
,dissenting tenets17 might be of use to 
the health of their souls4 ,but what    
security our ,constitution1 in ,church  
or ,state1 could derive from that event1
 ,i cannot possibly discern4 ,depend    
upon it1 it is as true as ,nature is    
true1 that1 if you force them out of the
 religion of habit1 education1 or       
opinion1 it is not to yours they will   
ever go4 ,shaken in their minds1 they   
will go to that where the dogmas are    
fewest1--where they are the most        
uncertain1--where they lead them the    
least to a consideration of what they   
have abandoned4 ,they will go to that   
uniformly democratic system to whose    

first movements they owed their         
emancipation4 ,i recommend you seriously
 to turn this in your mind4 ,believe    
that it requires your best and maturest 
thoughts4 ,take what course you         
please1--union or no union2 whether the 
people remain ,catholics or become      
,protestant ,dissenters1 sure it is that
 the present state of monopoly cannot   
continue4  ,if ,england were animated1  
as ,i think she is not1 with her former 
spirit of domination1 and with the      
strong theological hatred which she once
 cherished for that description of her  
fellow-,christians and fellow-subjects1 
,i am yet convinced1 that1 after the    
fullest success in a ruinous struggle1  
you would be obliged to abandon that    
monopoly4 ,we were obliged to do this1  
even when everything promised success1  
in the ,american business4 ,if you      
should make this experiment at last1    
under the pressure of any necessity1 you
 never can do it well4 ,but if1 instead 
of falling into a passion1 the leading  

gentlemen of the country themselves     
should undertake the business           
cheerfully1 and with hearty affection   
towards it1 great advantages would      
follow4 ,what is forced cannot be       
modified3 but here you may measure your 
concessions4  ,it is a consideration of 
great moment1 that you make the desired 
admission without altering the system of
 your representation in the smallest    
degree or in any part4 ,you may leave   
that deliberation of a ,parliamentary   
change or reform1 if ever you should    
think fit to engage in it1 uncomplicated
 and unembarrassed with the other       
question4 ,whereas1 if they are mixed   
and confounded1 as some people attempt  
to mix and confound them1 no one can    
answer for the effects on the           
,constitution itself4  ,there is another
 advantage in taking up this business   
singly and by an arrangement for the    
single object4 ,it is that you may      
proceed by degrees4 ,we must all obey   
the great law of change4 ,it is the most

 powerful law of ,nature1 and the means 
perhaps of its conservation4 ,all we can
 do1 and that human wisdom can do1 is to
 provide that the change shall proceed  
by insensible degrees4 ,this has all the
 benefits which may be in change1       
without any of the inconveniences of    
mutation4 ,everything is provided for as
 it arrives4 ,this mode will1 on the one
 hand1 prevent the unfixing old         
interests at once3 a thing which is apt 
to breed a black and sullen discontent  
in those who are at once dispossessed of
 all their influence and consideration4 
,this gradual course1 on the other side1
 will prevent men long under depression 
from being intoxicated with a large     
draught of new power1 which they always 
abuse with a licentious insolence4 ,but1
 wishing1 as ,i do1 the change to be    
gradual and cautious1 ,i would1 in my   
first steps1 lean rather to the side of 
enlargement than restriction4  ,it is   
one excellence of our ,constitution1    
that all our rights of provincial       

election regard rather property than    
person4 ,it is another1 that the rights 
which approach more nearly to the       
personal are most of them corporate1 and
 suppose a restrained and strict        
education of seven years in some useful 
occupation4 ,in both cases the practice 
may have slid from the principle4 ,the  
standard of qualification in both cases 
may be so low1 or not so judiciously    
chosen1 as in some degree to frustrate  
the end4 ,but all this is for your      
prudence in the case before you4 ,you   
may rise a step or two the qualification
 of the ,catholic voters4 ,but if you   
were to-morrow to put the ,catholic     
freeholder on the footing of the most   
favored forty-shilling ,protestant      
,dissenter1 you know1 that1 such is the 
actual state of ,ireland1 this would not
 make a sensible alteration in almost   
any one election in the kingdom4 ,the   
effect in their favor1 even defensively1
 would be infinitely slow4 ,but it would
 be healing2 it would be satisfactory   

and protecting4 ,the stigma would be    
removed4 ,by admitting settled1         
permanent substance in lieu of the      
numbers1 you would avoid the great      
danger of our time1 that of setting up  
number against property4 ,the numbers   
ought never to be neglected1 because    
7besides what is due to them as men7    
collectively1 though not individually1  
they have great property3 they ought to 
have1 therefore1 protection2 they ought 
to have security2 they ought to have    
even consideration3 but they ought not  
to predominate4  ,my dear ,sir1 ,i have 
nearly done4 ,i meant to write you a    
long letter3 ,i have written a long     
dissertation4 ,i might have done it     
earlier and better4 ,i might have been  
more forcible and more clear1 if ,i had 
not been interrupted as ,i have been2   
and this obliges me not to write to you 
in my own hand4 ,though my hand but     
signs it1 my heart goes with what ,i    
have written4 ,since ,i could think at  
all1 those have been my thoughts4 ,you  

know that thirty-two years ago they were
 as fully matured in my mind as they are
 now4 ,a letter of mine to ,lord        
,kenmare1 though not by my desire1 and  
full of lesser mistakes1 has been       
printed in ,dublin4 ,it was written ten 
or twelve years ago1 at the time when ,i
 began the employment1 which ,i have not
 yet finished1 in favor of another      
distressed people1 injured by those who 
have vanquished them1 or stolen a       
dominion over them4 ,it contained my    
sentiments then3 you will see how far   
they accord with my sentiments now4     
,time has more and more confirmed me in 
them all4 ,the present circumstances fix
 them deeper in my mind4  ,i voted last 
session1 if a particular vote could be  
distinguished in unanimity1 for an      
establishment of the ,church of ,england
 conjointly with the establishment1     
which was made some years before by act 
of ,parliament1 of the ,roman ,catholic1
 in the ,french conquered country of    
,canada4 ,at the time of making this    

,english ecclesiastical establishment1  
we did not think it necessary for its   
safety to destroy the former ,gallican  
,church settlement4 ,in our first act we
 settled a government altogether        
monarchical1 or nearly so4 ,in that     
system1 the ,canadian ,catholics were   
far from being deprived of the          
advantages or distinctions1 of any kind1
 which they enjoyed under their former  
monarchy4 ,it is true that some people1 
and amongst them one eminent divine1    
predicted at that time that by this step
 we should lose our dominions in        
,america4 ,he foretold that the ,pope   
would send his indulgences hither2 that 
the ,canadians would fall in with       
,france1 would declare independence1 and
 draw or force our colonies into the    
same design4 ,the independence happened 
according to his prediction2 but in     
directly the reverse order4 ,all our    
,english ,protestant colonies revolted4 
,they joined themselves to ,france2 and 
it so happened that ,popish ,canada was 

the only place which preserved its      
fidelity1 the only place in which       
,france got no footing1 the only peopled
 colony which now remains to ,great     
,britain4 ,vain are all the prognostics 
taken from ideas and passions1 which    
survive the state of things which gave  
rise to them4 ,when last year we gave a 
popular representation to the same      
,canada by the choice of the            
landholders1 and an aristocratic        
representation at the choice of the     
crown1 neither was the choice of the    
crown nor the election of the           
landholders limited by a consideration  
of religion4 ,we had no dread for the   
,protestant ,church which we settled    
there1 because we permitted the ,french 
,catholics1 in the utmost latitude of   
the description1 to be free subjects4   
,they are good subjects1 ,i have no     
doubt2 but ,i will not allow that any   
,french ,canadian ,catholics are better 
men or better citizens than the ,irish  
of the same communion4 ,passing from the

 extremity of the ,west to the extremity
 almost of the ,east1 ,i have been many 
years 7now entering into the twelfth7   
employed in supporting the rights1      
privileges1 laws1 and immunities of a   
very remote people4 ,i have not as yet  
been able to finish my task4 ,i have    
struggled through much discouragement   
and much opposition1 much obloquy1 much 
calumny1 for a people with whom ,i have 
no tie but the common bond of mankind4  
,in this ,i have not been left alone4   
,we did not fly from our undertaking    
because the people are ,mahometans or   
,pagans1 and that a great majority of   
the ,christians amongst them are        
,papists4 ,some gentlemen in ,ireland1  
,i dare say1 have good reasons for what 
they may do1 which do not occur to me4  
,i do not presume to condemn them2 but1 
thinking and acting as ,i have done     
towards those remote nations1 ,i should 
not know how to show my face1 here or in
 ,ireland1 if ,i should say that all the
 ,pagans1 all the ,mussulmen1 and even  

all the ,papists1 7since they must form 
the highest stage in the climax of      
evil17 are worthy of a liberal and      
honorable condition1 except those of one
 of the descriptions1 which forms the   
majority of the inhabitants of the      
country in which you and ,i were born4  
,if such are the ,catholics of ,ireland1
 ill-natured and unjust people1 from our
 own data1 may be inclined not to think 
better of the ,protestants of a soil    
which is supposed to infuse into its    
sects a kind of venom unknown in other  
places4  ,you hated the old system as   
early as ,i did4 ,your first juvenile   
lance was broken against that giant4 ,i 
think you were even the first who       
attacked the grim phantom4 ,you have an 
exceedingly good understanding1 very    
good humor1 and the best heart in the   
world4 ,the dictates of that temper and 
that heart1 as well as the policy       
pointed out by that understanding1 led  
you to abhor the old code4 ,you abhorred
 it1 as ,i did1 for its vicious         

perfection4 ,for ,i must do it justice3 
it was a complete system1 full of       
coherence and consistency1 well digested
 and well composed in all its parts4 ,it
 was a machine of wise and elaborate    
contrivance1 and as well fitted for the 
oppression1 impoverishment1 and         
degradation of a people1 and the        
debasement1 in them1 of human nature    
itself1 as ever proceeded from the      
perverted ingenuity of man4 ,it is a    
thing humiliating enough1 that we are   
doubtful of the effect of the medicines 
we compound1--we are sure of our        
poisons4 ,my opinion ever was1 7in which
 ,i heartily agree with those that      
admired the old code17 that it was so   
constructed1 that1 if there was once a  
breach in any essential part of it1 the 
ruin of the whole1 or nearly of the     
whole1 was1 at some time or other1 a    
certainty4 ,for that reason ,i honor and
 shall forever honor and love you1 and  
those who first caused it to stagger1   
crack1 and gape4 ,others may finish2 the

 beginners have the glory2 and1 take    
what part you please at this hour1 7,i  
think you will take the best17 your     
first services will never be forgotten  
by a grateful country4 ,adieu6 ,present 
my best regards to those ,i know1--and  
as many as ,i know in our country ,i    
honor4 ,there never was so much ability1
 nor1 ,i believe1 virtue in it4 ,they   
have a task worthy of both4 ,i doubt not
 they will perform it1 for the stability
 of the ,church and ,state1 and for the 
union and the separation of the people3 
for the union of the honest and         
peaceable of all sects2 for their       
separation from all that is             
ill-intentioned and seditious in any of 
them4  ,,beaconsfield1 ,,january #c1    
#agib4  ,,footnotes3  #bh ,the letter is
 written on folio sheets4  #bi ,a small 
error of fact as to the abjuration oath1
 but of no importance in the argument4  
,,hints ,,for ,a ,,memorial  ,,to ,,be  
,,delivered ,,to  ,,monsieur ,,de ,m4,m4
  ,,written ,,in ,,the ,,early ,,part   

,,of #agia   ,the ,king1 my master1 from
 his sincere desire of keeping up a good
 correspondence with his ,most          
,christian ,majesty and the ,french     
nation1 has for some time beheld with   
concern the condition into which that   
sovereign and nation have fallen4       
,notwithstanding the reality and the    
warmth of those sentiments1 his         
,britannic ,majesty has hitherto        
forborne in any manner to take part in  
their affairs1 in hopes that the common 
interest of king and subjects would     
render all parties sensible of the      
necessity of settling their government  
and their freedom upon principles of    
moderation1 as the only means of        
securing permanence to both those       
blessings1 as well as internal and      
external tranquillity to the kingdom of 
,france1 and to all ,europe4  ,his      
,britannic ,majesty finds1 to his great 
regret1 that his hopes have not been    
realized4 ,he finds that confusions and 
disorders have rather increased than    

diminished1 and that they now threaten  
to proceed to dangerous extremities4    
,in this situation of things1 the same  
regard to a neighboring sovereign living
 in friendship with ,great ,britain1 the
 same spirit of good-will to the kingdom
 of ,france1 the same regard to the     
general tranquillity1 which have caused 
him to view with concern the growth and 
continuance of the present disorders1   
have induced the ,king of ,great        
,britain to interpose his good offices  
towards a reconcilement of those unhappy
 differences4 ,this his ,majesty does   
with the most cordial regard to the good
 of all descriptions concerned1 and with
 the most perfect sincerity1 wholly     
removing from his royal mind all memory 
of every circumstance which might impede
 him in the execution of a plan of      
benevolence which he has so much at     
heart4  ,his ,majesty1 having always    
thought it his greatest glory that he   
rules over a people perfectly and       
solidly1 because soberly1 rationally1   

and legally free1 can never be supposed 
to proceed in offering thus his royal   
mediation1 but with an unaffected desire
 and full resolution to consider the    
settlement of a free constitution in    
,france as the very basis of any        
agreement between the sovereign and     
those of his subjects who are unhappily 
at variance with him1--to guaranty it to
 them1 if it should be desired1 in the  
most solemn and authentic manner1 and to
 do all that in him lies to procure the 
like guaranty from other powers4  ,his  
,britannic ,majesty1 in the same manner1
 assures the ,most ,christian ,king that
 he knows too well and values too highly
 what is due to the dignity and rights  
of crowned heads1 and to the implied    
faith of treaties which have always been
 made with the crown of ,france1 ever to
 listen to any proposition by which that
 monarchy shall be despoiled of all its 
rights1 so essential for the support of 
the consideration of the prince and the 
concord and welfare of the people4  ,if1

 unfortunately1 a due attention should  
not be paid to these his ,majesty's     
benevolent and neighborly offers1 or if 
any circumstances should prevent the    
,most ,christian ,king from acceding 7as
 his ,majesty has no doubt he is well   
disposed to do7 to this healing         
mediation in favor of himself and all   
his subjects1 his ,majesty has commanded
 me to take leave of this court1 as not 
conceiving it to be suitable to the     
dignity of his crown1 and to what he    
owes to his faithful people1 any longer 
to keep a public minister at the court  
of a sovereign who is not in possession 
of his own liberty4     ,,thoughts  ,,on
  ,,french ,,affairs1  ,,etc41 ,,etc4   
,,written ,,in ,,december1 #agia4       
,,thoughts ,,on ,,french ,,affairs4     
,in all our transactions with ,france1  
and at all periods1 we have treated with
 that state on the footing of a         
monarchy4 ,monarchy was considered in   
all the external relations of that      
kingdom with every power in ,europe as  

its legal and constitutional government1
 and that in which alone its federal    
capacity was vested4  ,sidenote3        
,montmorin's ,letter4  ,it is not yet a 
year since ,monsieur de ,montmorin      
formally1 and with as little respect as 
can be imagined to the king1 and to all 
crowned heads1 announced a total        
,revolution in that country4 ,he has    
informed the ,british ministry that its 
frame of government is wholly           
altered1--that he is one of the         
ministers of the new system1--and1 in   
effect1 that the king is no longer his  
master1 7nor does he even call him      
such17 but the first of the ministers1  
in the new system4  ,sidenote3          
,acceptance of the ,constitution        
ratified4  ,the second notification was 
that of the king's acceptance of the new
 ,constitution1 accompanied with        
fanfaronades in the modern style of the 
,french bureaus3 things which have much 
more the air and character of the saucy 
declamations of their clubs than the    

tone of regular office4  ,it has not    
been very usual to notify to foreign    
courts anything concerning the internal 
arrangements of any state4 ,in the      
present case1 the circumstance of these 
two notifications1 with the observations
 with which they are attended1 does not 
leave it in the choice of the sovereigns
 of ,christendom to appear ignorant     
either of this ,french ,revolution or   
7what is more important7 of its         
principles4  ,we know1 that1 very soon  
after this manifesto of ,monsieur de    
,montmorin1 the king of ,france1 in     
whose name it was made1 found himself   
obliged to fly1 with his whole          
family1--leaving behind him a           
declaration in which he disavows and    
annuls that ,constitution1 as having    
been the effect of force on his person  
and usurpation on his authority4 ,it is 
equally notorious1 that this unfortunate
 prince was1 with many circumstances of 
insult and outrage1 brought back        
prisoner by a deputation of the         

pretended ,national ,assembly1 and      
afterwards suspended by their authority 
from his government4 ,under equally     
notorious constraint1 and under menaces 
of total deposition1 he has been        
compelled to accept what they call a    
,constitution1 and to agree to whatever 
else the usurped power which holds him  
in confinement thinks proper to impose4 
,his nest brother1 who had fled with    
him1 and his third brother1 who had fled
 before him1 all the princes of his     
blood who remained faithful to him1 and 
the flower of his magistracy1 his       
clergy1 and his nobility1 continue in   
foreign countries1 protesting against   
all acts done by him in his present     
situation1 on the grounds upon which he 
had himself protested against them at   
the time of his flight1--with this      
addition1 that they deny his very       
competence 7as on good grounds they may7
 to abrogate the royalty1 or the ancient
 constitutional orders of the kingdom4  
,in this protest they are joined by     

three hundred of the late ,assembly     
itself1 and1 in effect1 by a great part 
of the ,french nation4 ,the new         
government 7so far as the people dare to
 disclose their sentiments7 is          
disdained1 ,i am persuaded1 by the      
greater number1--who1 as ,m4 de ,la     
,fayette complains1 and as the truth is1
 have declined to take any share in the 
new elections to the ,national          
,assembly1 either as candidates or      
electors4  ,in this state of things1    
7that is1 in the case of a divided      
kingdom17 by the law of nations1#cj     
,great ,britain1 like every other power1
 is free to take any part she pleases4  
,she may decline1 with more or less     
formality1 according to her discretion1 
to acknowledge this new system2 or she  
may recognize it as a government de     
facto1 setting aside all discussion of  
its original legality1 and considering  
the ancient monarchy as at an end4 ,the 
law of nations leaves our court open to 
its choice4 ,we have no direction but   

what is found in the well-understood    
policy of the king and kingdom4  ,this  
declaration of a new species of         
government1 on new principles1 7such it 
professes itself to be17 is a real      
crisis in the politics of ,europe4 ,the 
conduct which prudence ought to dictate 
to ,great ,britain will not depend 7as  
hitherto our connection or quarrel with 
other states has for some time depended7
 upon merely external relations1 but in 
a great measure also upon the system    
which we may think it right to adopt for
 the internal government of our own     
country4  ,if it be our policy to       
assimilate our government to that of    
,france1 we ought to prepare for this   
change by encouraging the schemes of    
authority established there4 ,we ought  
to wink at the captivity and deposition 
of a prince with whom1 if not in close  
alliance1 we were in friendship4 ,we    
ought to fall in with the ideas of      
,monsieur ,montmorin's circular         
manifesto1 and to do business of course 

with the functionaries who act under the
 new power by which that king to whom   
his ,majesty's minister has been sent to
 reside has been deposed and imprisoned4
 ,on that idea we ought also to withhold
 all sorts of direct or indirect        
countenance from those who are treating 
in ,germany for the restablishment of   
the ,french monarchy and the ancient    
orders of that state4 ,this conduct is  
suitable to this policy4  ,the question 
is1 whether this policy be suitable to  
the interests of the crown and subjects 
of ,great ,britain4 ,let us1 therefore1 
a little consider the true nature and   
probable effects of the ,revolution     
which1 in such a very unusual manner1   
has been twice diplomatically announced 
to his ,majesty4  ,sidenote3 ,difference
 between this ,revolution and others4   
,there have been many internal          
revolutions in the government of        
countries1 both as to persons and forms1
 in which the neighboring states have   
had little or no concern4 ,whatever the 

government might be with respect to     
those persons and those forms1 the      
stationary interests of the nation      
concerned have most commonly influenced 
the new governments in the same manner  
in which they influenced the old2 and   
the revolution1 turning on matter of    
local grievance or of local             
accommodation1 did not extend beyond its
 territory4  ,sidenote3 ,nature of the  
,french ,revolution4  ,the present      
,revolution in ,france seems to me to be
 quite of another character and         
description1 and to bear little         
resemblance or analogy to any of those  
which have been brought about in        
,europe1 upon principles merely         
political4 ,it is a ,revolution of      
doctrine and theoretic dogma4 ,it has a 
much greater resemblance to those       
changes which have been made upon       
religious grounds1 in which a spirit of 
proselytism makes an essential part4    
,the last revolution of doctrine and    
theory which has happened in ,europe is 

the ,reformation4 ,it is not for my     
purpose to take any notice here of the  
merits of that revolution1 but to state 
one only of its effects4  ,sidenote3    
,its effects4  ,that effect was1 to     
introduce other interests into all      
countries than those which arose from   
their locality and natural              
circumstances4 ,the principle of the    
,reformation was such as1 by its        
essence1 could not be local or confined 
to the country in which it had its      
origin4 ,for instance1 the doctrine of  
,justification by ,faith or by ,works1  
which was the original basis of the     
,reformation1 could not have one of its 
alternatives true as to ,germany and    
false as to every other country4        
,neither are questions of theoretic     
truth and falsehood governed by         
circumstances any more than by places4  
,on that occasion1 therefore1 the spirit
 of proselytism expanded itself with    
great elasticity upon all sides3 and    
great divisions were everywhere the     

result4  ,these divisions1 however in   
appearance merely dogmatic1 soon became 
mixed with the political2 and their     
effects were rendered much more intense 
from this combination4 ,europe was for a
 long time divided into two great       
factions1 under the name of ,catholic   
and ,protestant1 which not only often   
alienated state from state1 but also    
divided almost every state within       
itself4 ,the warm parties in each state 
were more affectionately attached to    
those of their own doctrinal interest in
 some other country than to their       
fellow-citizens or to their natural     
government1 when they or either of them 
happened to be of a different           
persuasion4 ,these factions1 wherever   
they prevailed1 if they did not         
absolutely destroy1 at least weakened   
and distracted the locality of          
patriotism4 ,the public affections came 
to have other motives and other ties4   
,it would be to repeat the history of   
the two last centuries to exemplify the 

effects of this revolution4  ,although  
the principles to which it gave rise did
 not operate with a perfect regularity  
and constancy1 they never wholly ceased 
to operate4 ,few wars were made1 and few
 treaties were entered into1 in which   
they did not come in for some part4     
,they gave a color1 a character1 and    
direction to all the politics of        
,europe4  ,sidenote3 ,new system of     
politics4  ,these principles of internal
 as well as external division and       
coalition are but just now extinguished4
 ,but they who will examine into the    
true character and genius of some late  
events must be satisfied that other     
sources of faction1 combining parties   
among the inhabitants of different      
countries into one connection1 are      
opened1 and that from these sources are 
likely to arise effects full as         
important as those which had formerly   
arisen from the jarring interests of the
 religious sects4 ,the intention of the 
several actors in the change in ,france 

is not a matter of doubt4 ,it is very   
openly professed4  ,in the modern world1
 before this time1 there has been no    
instance of this spirit of general      
political faction1 separated from       
religion1 pervading several countries1  
and forming a principle of union between
 the partisans in each4 ,but the thing  
is not less in human nature4 ,the       
ancient world has furnished a strong and
 striking instance of such a ground for 
faction1 full as powerful and full as   
mischievous as our spirit of religions  
system had ever been1 exciting in all   
the states of ,greece 7,european and    
,asiatic7 the most violent animosities  
and the most cruel and bloody           
persecutions and proscriptions4 ,these  
ancient factions in each commonwealth of
 ,greece connected themselves with those
 of the same description in some other  
states2 and secret cabals and public    
alliances were carried on and made1 not 
upon a conformity of general political  
interests1 but for the support and      

aggrandizement of the two leading states
 which headed the aristocratic and      
democratic factions4 ,for as1 in later  
times1 the king of ,spain was at the    
head of a ,catholic1 and the king of    
,sweden of a ,protestant interest1      
7,france1 though ,catholic1 acting      
subordinately to the latter17 in the    
like manner the ,lacedemonians were     
everywhere at the head of the           
aristocratic interests1 and the         
,athenians of the democratic4 ,the two  
leading powers kept alive a constant    
cabal and conspiracy in every state1 and
 the political dogmas concerning the    
constitution of a republic were the     
great instruments by which these leading
 states chose to aggrandize themselves4 
,their choice was not unwise2 because   
the interest in opinions1 7merely as    
opinions1 and without any experimental  
reference to their effects17 when once  
they take strong hold of the mind1      
become the most operative of all        
interests1 and indeed very often        

supersede every other4  ,i might further
 exemplify the possibility of a         
political sentiment running through     
various states1 and combining factions  
in them1 from the history of the ,middle
 ,ages in the ,guelfs and ,ghibellines4 
,these were political factions          
originally in favor of the ,emperor and 
the ,pope1 with no mixture of religious 
dogmas3 or if anything religiously      
doctrinal they had in them originally1  
it very soon disappeared2 as their first
 political objects disappeared also1    
though the spirit remained4 ,they became
 no more than names to distinguish      
factions3 but they were not the less    
powerful in their operation1 when they  
had no direct point of doctrine1 either 
religious or civil1 to assert4 ,for a   
long time1 however1 those factions gave 
no small degree of influence to the     
foreign chiefs in every commonwealth in 
which they existed4 ,i do not mean to   
pursue further the track of these       
parties4 ,i allude to this part of      

history only as it furnishes an instance
 of that species of faction which broke 
the locality of public affections1 and  
united descriptions of citizens more    
with strangers than with their          
countrymen of different opinions4       
,sidenote3 ,french fundamental          
principle4  ,the political dogma1 which1
 upon the new ,french system1 is to     
unite the factions of different nations1
 is this3 ,that the majority1 told by   
the head1 of the taxable people in every
 country1 is the perpetual1 natural1    
unceasing1 indefeasible sovereign2 that 
this majority is perfectly master of the
 form as well as the administration of  
the state1 and that the magistrates1    
under whatever names they are called1   
are only functionaries to obey the      
orders 7general as laws or particular as
 decrees7 which that majority may make2 
that this is the only natural           
government2 that all others are tyranny 
and usurpation4  ,sidenote3 ,practical  
project4  ,in order to reduce this dogma

 into practice1 the republicans in      
,france1 and their associates in other  
countries1 make it always their         
business1 and often their public        
profession1 to destroy all traces of    
ancient establishments1 and to form a   
new commonwealth in each country1 upon  
the basis of the ,french ,rights of     
,man4 ,on the principle of these rights1
 they mean to institute in every        
country1 and as it were the germ of the 
whole1 parochial governments1 for the   
purpose of what they call equal         
representation4 ,from them is to grow1  
by some media1 a general council and    
representative of all the parochial     
governments4 ,in that representative is 
to be vested the whole national         
power1--totally abolishing hereditary   
name and office1 levelling all          
conditions of men1 7except where money  
must make a difference17 breaking all   
connection between territory and        
dignity1 and abolishing every species of
 nobility1 gentry1 and ,church          

establishments3 all their priests and   
all their magistrates being only        
creatures of election and pensioners at 
will4  ,knowing how opposite a permanent
 landed interest is to that scheme1 they
 have resolved1 and it is the great     
drift of all their regulations1 to      
reduce that description of men to a mere
 peasantry for the sustenance of the    
towns1 and to place the true effective  
government in cities1 among the         
tradesmen1 bankers1 and voluntary clubs 
of bold1 presuming young                
persons1--advocates1 attorneys1         
notaries1 managers of newspapers1 and   
those cabals of literary men called     
academies4 ,their republic is to have a 
first functionary1 7as they call him17  
under the name of ,king1 or not1 as they
 think fit4 ,this officer1 when such an 
officer is permitted1 is1 however1      
neither in fact nor name to be          
considered as sovereign1 nor the people 
as his subjects4 ,the very use of these 
appellations is offensive to their ears4

  ,sidenote3 ,partisans of the ,french  
system4  ,this system1 as it has first  
been realized1 dogmatically as well as  
practically1 in ,france1 makes ,france  
the natural head of all factions formed 
on a similar principle1 wherever they   
may prevail1 as much as ,athens was the 
head and settled ally of all democratic 
factions1 wherever they existed4 ,the   
other system has no head4  ,this system 
has very many partisans in every country
 in ,europe1 but particularly in        
,england1 where they are already formed 
into a body1 comprehending most of the  
,dissenters of the three leading        
denominations4 ,to these are readily    
aggregated all who are ,dissenters in   
character1 temper1 and disposition1     
though not belonging to any of their    
congregations3 that is1 all the restless
 people who resemble them1 of all ranks 
and all parties1--,whigs1 and even      
,tories2 the whole race of half-bred    
speculators2 all the ,atheists1 ,deists1
 and ,socinians2 all those who hate the 

clergy and envy the nobility2 a good    
many among the moneyed people2 the ,east
 ,indians almost to a man1 who cannot   
bear to find that their present         
importance does not bear a proportion to
 their wealth4 ,these latter have united
 themselves into one great1 and1 in my  
opinion1 formidable club1#ca which1     
though now quiet1 may be brought into   
action with considerable unanimity and  
force4  ,formerly1 few1 except the      
ambitious great or the desperate and    
indigent1 were to be feared as          
instruments in revolutions4 ,what has   
happened in ,france teaches us1 with    
many other things1 that there are more  
causes than have commonly been taken    
into our consideration1 by which        
government may be subverted4 ,the       
moneyed men1 merchants1 principal       
tradesmen1 and men of letters 7hitherto 
generally thought the peaceable and even
 timid part of society7 are the chief   
actors in the ,french ,revolution4 ,but 
the fact is1 that1 as money increases   

and circulates1 and as the circulation  
of news in politics and letters becomes 
more and more diffused1 the persons who 
diffuse this money and this intelligence
 become more and more important4 ,this  
was not long undiscovered4 ,views of    
ambition were in ,france1 for the first 
time1 presented to these classes of men3
 objects in the state1 in the army1 in  
the system of civil offices of every    
kind4 ,their eyes were dazzled with this
 new prospect4 ,they were1 as it were1  
electrified1 and made to lose the       
natural spirit of their situation4 ,a   
bribe1 great without example in the     
history of the world1 was held out to   
them1--the whole government of a very   
large kingdom4  ,sidenote3 ,grounds of  
security supposed for ,england4         
,sidenote3 ,literary ,interest4         
,sidenote3 ,moneyed interest4  ,there   
are several who are persuaded that the  
same thing cannot happen in ,england1   
because here 7they say7 the occupations 
of merchants1 tradesmen1 and            

manufacturers are not held as degrading 
situations4 ,i once thought that the low
 estimation in which commerce was held  
in ,france might be reckoned among the  
causes of the late ,revolution2 and ,i  
am still of opinion that the exclusive  
spirit of the ,french nobility did      
irritate the wealthy of other classes4  
,but ,i found long since1 that persons  
in trade and business were by no means  
despised in ,france in the manner ,i had
 been taught to believe4 ,as to men of  
letters1 they were so far from being    
despised or neglected1 that there was no
 country1 perhaps1 in the universe1 in  
which they were so highly esteemed1     
courted1 caressed1 and even feared3     
tradesmen naturally were not so much    
sought in society1 7as not furnishing so
 largely to the fund of conversation as 
they do to the revenues of the state17  
but the latter description got forward  
every day4 ,m4 ,bailly1 who made himself
 the popular mayor on the rebellion of  
the ,bastile1 and is a principal actor  

in the revolt1 before the change        
possessed a pension or office under the 
crown of six hundred pound ,english a   
year1--for that country1 no contemptible
 provision2 and this he obtained solely 
as a man of letters1 and on no other    
title4 ,as to the moneyed men1 whilst   
the monarchy continued1 there is no     
doubt1 that1 merely as such1 they did   
not enjoy the privileges of nobility2   
but nobility was of so easy an          
acquisition1 that it was the fault or   
neglect of all of that description who  
did not obtain its privileges1 for their
 lives at least1 in virtue of office4   
,it attached under the royal government 
to an innumerable multitude of places1  
real and nominal1 that were vendible2   
and such nobility were as capable of    
everything as their degree of influence 
or interest could make them1--that is1  
as nobility of no considerable rank or  
consequence4 ,m4 ,necker1 so far from   
being a ,french gentleman1 was not so   
much as a ,frenchman born1 and yet we   

all know the rank in which he stood on  
the day of the meeting of the ,states4  
,sidenote3 ,mercantile interest4  ,as to
 the mere matter of estimation of the   
mercantile or any other class1 this is  
regulated by opinion and prejudice4 ,in 
,england1 a security against the envy of
 men in these classes is not so very    
complete as we may imagine4 ,we must not
 impose upon ourselves4 ,what           
institutions and manners together had   
done in ,france manners alone do here4  
,it is the natural operation of things1 
where there exists a crown1 a court1    
splendid orders of knighthood1 and an   
hereditary nobility1--where there exists
 a fixed1 permanent1 landed gentry1     
continued in greatness and opulence by  
the law of primogeniture1 and by a      
protection given to family              
settlements1--where there exists a      
standing army and navy1--where there    
exists a ,church establishment1 which   
bestows on learning and parts an        
interest combined with that of religion 

and the state2--in a country where such 
things exist1 wealth1 new in its        
acquisition1 and precarious in its      
duration1 can never rank first1 or even 
near the first3 though wealth has its   
natural weight further than as it is    
balanced and even preponderated amongst 
us1 as amongst other nations1 by        
artificial institutions and opinions    
growing out of them4 ,at no period in   
the history of ,england have so few     
peers been taken out of trade or from   
families newly created by commerce4 ,in 
no period has so small a number of noble
 families entered into the              
counting-house4 ,i can call to mind but 
one in all ,england1 and his is of near 
fifty years' standing4 ,be that as it   
may1 it appears plain to me1 from my    
best observation1 that envy and ambition
 may1 by art1 management1 and           
disposition1 be as much excited amongst 
these descriptions of men in ,england as
 in any other country1 and that they are
 just as capable of acting a part in any

 great change4  ,sidenote3 ,progress of 
the ,french spirit4--,its course4  ,what
 direction the ,french spirit of        
proselytism is likely to take1 and in   
what order it is likely to prevail in   
the several parts of ,europe1 it is not 
easy to determine4 ,the seeds are sown  
almost everywhere1 chiefly by newspaper 
circulations1 infinitely more           
efficacious and extensive than ever they
 were4 ,and they are a more important   
instrument than generally is imagined4  
,they are a part of the reading of all2 
they are the whole of the reading of the
 far greater number4 ,there are thirty  
of them in ,paris alone4 ,the language  
diffuses them more widely than the      
,english1--though the ,english1 too1 are
 much read4 ,the writers of these       
papers1 indeed1 for the greater part1   
are either unknown or in contempt1 but  
they are like a battery1 in which the   
stroke of any one ball produces no great
 effect1 but the amount of continual    
repetition is decisive4 ,let us only    

suffer any person to tell us his story1 
morning and evening1 but for one        
twelvemonth1 and he will become our     
master4  ,all those countries in which  
several states are comprehended under   
some general geographical description1  
and loosely united by some federal      
constitution1--countries of which the   
members are small1 and greatly          
diversified in their forms of           
government1 and in the titles by which  
they are held1--these countries1 as it  
might be well expected1 are the         
principal objects of their hopes and    
machinations4 ,of these1 the chief are  
,germany and ,switzerland2 after them1  
,italy has its place1 as in             
circumstances somewhat similar4         
,sidenote3 ,germany4  ,as to ,germany1  
7in which1 from their relation to the   
,emperor1 ,i comprehend the ,belgic     
,provinces17 it appears to me to be1    
from several circumstances1 internal and
 external1 in a very critical situation2
 and the laws and liberties of the      

,empire are by no means secure from the 
contagion of the ,french doctrines and  
the effect of ,french intrigues1 or from
 the use which two of the greater       
,german powers may make of a general    
derangement to the general detriment4 ,i
 do not say that the ,french do not mean
 to bestow on these ,german states      
liberties1 and laws too1 after their    
mode2 but those are not what have       
hitherto been understood as the laws and
 liberties of the ,empire4 ,these exist 
and have always existed under the       
principles of feodal tenure and         
succession1 under imperial              
constitutions1 grants and concessions of
 sovereigns1 family compacts1 and public
 treaties1 made under the sanction1 and 
some of them guarantied by the sovereign
 powers of other nations1 and           
particularly the old government of      
,france1 the author and natural support 
of the ,treaty of ,westphalia4          
,sidenote3 ,ecclesiastical state4  ,in  
short1 the ,germanic body is a vast mass

 of heterogeneous states1 held together 
by that heterogeneous body of old       
principles which formed the public law  
positive and doctrinal4 ,the modern laws
 and liberties1 which the new power in  
,france proposes to introduce into      
,germany1 and to support with all its   
force of intrigue and of arms1 is of a  
very different nature1 utterly          
irreconcilable with the first1 and      
indeed fundamentally the reverse of it3 
,i mean the rights and liberties of the 
man1 the droit de l'homme4 ,that this   
doctrine has made an amazing progress in
 ,germany there cannot be a shadow of   
doubt4 ,they are infected by it along   
the whole course of the ,rhine1 the     
,maese1 the ,moselle1 and in the greater
 part of ,suabia and ,franconia4 ,it is 
particularly prevalent amongst all the  
lower people1 churchmen and laity1 in   
the dominions of the ,ecclesiastical    
,electors4 ,it is not easy to find or to
 conceive governments more mild and     
indulgent than these ,church            

sovereignties2 but good government is as
 nothing1 when the rights of man take   
possession of the mind4 ,indeed1 the    
loose rein held over the people in these
 provinces must be considered as one    
cause of the facility with which they   
lend themselves to any schemes of       
innovation1 by inducing them to think   
lightly of their governments1 and to    
judge of grievances1 not by feeling1 but
 by imagination4  ,sidenote3 ,balance of
 ,germany4  ,it is in these ,electorates
 that the first impressions of ,france  
are likely to be made2 and if they      
succeed1 it is over with the ,germanic  
body1 as it stands at present4 ,a great 
revolution is preparing in ,germany1 and
 a revolution1 in my opinion1 likely to 
be more decisive upon the general fate  
of nations than that of ,france         
itself1--other than as in ,france is to 
be found the first source of all the    
principles which are in any way likely  
to distinguish the troubles and         
convulsions of our age4 ,if ,europe does

 not conceive the independence and the  
equilibrium of the ,empire to be in the 
very essence of the system of balanced  
power in ,europe1 and if the scheme of  
public law1 or mass of laws1 upon which 
that independence and equilibrium are   
founded1 be of no leading consequence as
 they are preserved or destroyed1 all   
the politics of ,europe for more than   
two centuries have been miserably       
erroneous4  ,sidenote3 ,prussia and     
,emperor4  ,if the two great leading    
powers of ,germany do not regard this   
danger 7as apparently they do not7 in   
the light in which it presents itself so
 naturally1 it is because they are      
powers too great to have a social       
interest4 ,that sort of interest belongs
 only to those whose state of weakness  
or mediocrity is such as to give them   
greater cause of apprehension from what 
may destroy them than of hope from      
anything by which they may be           
aggrandized4  ,as long as those two     
princes are at variance1 so long the    

liberties of ,germany are safe4 ,but if 
ever they should so far understand one  
another as to be persuaded that they    
have a more direct and more certainly   
defined interest in a proportioned      
mutual aggrandizement than in a         
reciprocal reduction1 that is1 if they  
come to think that they are more likely 
to be enriched by a division of spoil   
than to be rendered secure by keeping to
 the old policy of preventing others    
from being spoiled by either of them1   
from that moment the liberties of       
,germany are no more4  ,that a junction 
of two in such a scheme is neither      
impossible nor improbable is evident    
from the partition of ,poland in #aggc1 
which was effected by such a junction as
 made the interposition of other nations
 to prevent it not easy4 ,their         
circumstances at that time hindered any 
other three states1 or indeed any two1  
from taking measures in common to       
prevent it1 though ,france was at that  
time an existing power1 and had not yet 

learned to act upon a system of politics
 of her own invention4 ,the geographical
 position of ,poland was a great        
obstacle to any movements of ,france in 
opposition to this1 at that time1       
unparalleled league4 ,to my certain     
knowledge1 if ,great ,britain had at    
that time been willing to concur in     
preventing the execution of a project so
 dangerous in the example1 even         
exhausted as ,france then was by the    
preceding war1 and under a lazy and     
unenterprising prince1 she would have at
 every risk taken an active part in this
 business4 ,but a languor with regard to
 so remote an interest1 and the         
principles and passions which were then 
strongly at work at home1 were the      
causes why ,great ,britain would not    
give ,france any encouragement in such  
an enterprise4 ,at that time1 however1  
and with regard to that object1 in my   
opinion1 ,great ,britain and ,france had
 a common interest4  ,sidenote3         
,possible project of the ,emperor and   

king of ,prussia4  ,but the position of 
,germany is not like that of ,poland1   
with regard to ,france1 either for good 
or for evil4 ,if a conjunction between  
,prussia and the ,emperor should be     
formed for the purpose of secularizing  
and rendering hereditary the            
,ecclesiastical ,electorates and the    
,bishopric of ,mnster1 for settling two 
of them on the children of the ,emperor1
 and uniting ,cologne and ,mnster to the
 dominions of the king of ,prussia on   
the ,rhine1 or if any other project of  
mutual aggrandizement should be in      
prospect1 and that1 to facilitate such a
 scheme1 the modern ,french should be   
permitted and encouraged to shake the   
internal and external security of these 
,ecclesiastical ,electorates1 ,great    
,britain is so situated that she could  
not with any effect set herself in      
opposition to such a design4 ,her       
principal arm1 her marine1 could here be
 of no sort of use4  ,sidenote3 ,to be  
resisted only by ,france4  ,france1 the 

author of the ,treaty of ,westphalia1 is
 the natural guardian of the            
independence and balance of ,germany4   
,great ,britain 7to say nothing of the  
king's concern as one of that august    
body7 has a serious interest in         
preserving it2 but1 except through the  
power of ,france1 acting upon the common
 old principles of state policy1 in the 
case we have supposed1 she has no sort  
of means of supporting that interest4   
,it is always the interest of ,great    
,britain that the power of ,france      
should be kept within the bounds of     
moderation4 ,it is not her interest that
 that power should be wholly annihilated
 in the system of ,europe4 ,though at   
one time through ,france the            
independence of ,europe was endangered1 
it is1 and ever was1 through her alone  
that the common liberty of ,germany can 
be secured against the single or the    
combined ambition of any other power4   
,in truth1 within this century the      
aggrandizement of other sovereign houses

 has been such that there has been a    
great change in the whole state of      
,europe2 and other nations as well as   
,france may become objects of jealousy  
and apprehension4  ,sidenote3 ,new      
principles of alliance4  ,in this state 
of things1 a new principle of alliances 
and wars is opened4 ,the ,treaty of     
,westphalia is1 with ,france1 an        
antiquated fable4 ,the rights and       
liberties she was bound to maintain are 
now a system of wrong and tyranny which 
she is bound to destroy4 ,her good and  
ill dispositions are shown by the same  
means4 ,to communicate peaceably the    
rights of men is the true mode of her   
showing her friendship2 to force        
sovereigns to submit to those rights is 
her mode of hostility4 ,so that1 either 
as friend or foe1 her whole scheme has  
been1 and is1 to throw the ,empire into 
confusion2 and those statesmen who      
follow the old routine of politics may  
see in this general confusion1 and in   
the danger of the lesser princes1 an    

occasion1 as protectors or enemies1 of  
connecting their territories to one or  
the other of the two great ,german      
powers4 ,they do not take into          
consideration that the means which they 
encourage1 as leading to the event they 
desire1 will with certainty not only    
ravage and destroy the ,empire1 but1 if 
they should for a moment seem to        
aggrandize the two great houses1 will   
also establish principles and confirm   
tempers amongst the people which will   
preclude the two sovereigns from the    
possibility of holding what they        
acquire1 or even the dominions which    
they have inherited4 ,it is on the side 
of the ,ecclesiastical ,electorates that
 the dikes raised to support the ,german
 liberty first will give way4           
,sidenote3 ,geneva4  ,sidenote3 ,savoy4 
,the ,french have begun their general   
operations by seizing upon those        
territories of the ,pope the situation  
of which was the most inviting to the   
enterprise4 ,their method of doing it   

was by exciting sedition and spreading  
massacre and desolation through these   
unfortunate places1 and then1 under an  
idea of kindness and protection1        
bringing forward an antiquated title of 
the crown of ,france1 and annexing      
,avignon and the two cities of the      
,comtat1 with their territory1 to the   
,french republic4 ,they have made an    
attempt on ,geneva1 in which they very  
narrowly failed of success4 ,it is known
 that they hold out from time to time   
the idea of uniting all the other       
provinces of which ,gaul was anciently  
composed1 including ,savoy on the other 
side1 and on this side bounding         
themselves by the ,rhine4  ,sidenote3   
,switzerland4  ,sidenote3 ,old ,french  
maxims the security of its independence4
  ,as to ,switzerland1 it is a country  
whose long union1 rather than its       
possible division1 is the matter of     
wonder4 ,here ,i know they entertain    
very sanguine hopes4 ,the aggregation to
 ,france of the democratic ,swiss       

republics appears to them to be a work  
half done by their very form2 and it    
might seem to them rather an increase of
 importance to these little             
commonwealths than a derogation from    
their independency or a change in the   
manner of their government4 ,upon any   
quarrel amongst the ,cantons1 nothing is
 more likely than such an event4 ,as to 
the aristocratic republics1 the general 
clamor and hatred which the ,french     
excite against the very name1 7and with 
more facility and success than against  
monarchs17 and the utter impossibility  
of their government making any sort of  
resistance against an insurrection1     
where they have no troops1 and the      
people are all armed and trained1 render
 their hopes in that quarter far indeed 
from unfounded4 ,it is certain that the 
republic of ,bern thinks itself obliged 
to a vigilance next to hostile1 and to  
imprison or expel all the ,french whom  
it finds in its territories4 ,but1      
indeed1 those aristocracies1 which      

comprehend whatever is considerable1    
wealthy1 and valuable in ,switzerland1  
do now so wholly depend upon opinion1   
and the humor of their multitude1 that  
the lightest puff of wind is sufficient 
to blow them down4 ,if ,france1 under   
its ancient regimen1 and upon the       
ancient principles of policy1 was the   
support of the ,germanic ,constitution1 
it was much more so of that of          
,switzerland1 which almost from the very
 origin of that confederacy rested upon 
the closeness of its connection with    
,france1 on which the ,swiss ,cantons   
wholly reposed themselves for the       
preservation of the parts of their body 
in their respective rights and permanent
 forms1 as well as for the maintenance  
of all in their general independency4   
,switzerland and ,germany are the first 
objects of the new ,french politicians4 
,when ,i contemplate what they have done
 at home1 which is1 in effect1 little   
less than an amazing conquest1 wrought  
by a change of opinion1 in a great part 

7to be sure far from altogether7 very   
sudden1 ,i cannot help letting my       
thoughts run along with their designs1  
and1 without attending to geographical  
order1 to consider the other states of  
,europe1 so far as they may be any way  
affected by this astonishing            
,revolution4 ,if early steps are not    
taken in some way or other to prevent   
the spreading of this influence1 ,i     
scarcely think any of them perfectly    
secure4  ,sidenote3 ,italy4  ,sidenote3 
,lombardy4  ,italy is divided1 as       
,germany and ,switzerland are1 into many
 smaller states1 and with some          
considerable diversity as to forms of   
government2 but as these divisions and  
varieties in ,italy are not so          
considerable1 so neither do ,i think the
 danger altogether so imminent there as 
in ,germany and ,switzerland4 ,savoy ,i 
know that the ,french consider as in a  
very hopeful way1 and ,i believe not at 
all without reason4 ,they view it as an 
old member of the kingdom of ,france1   

which may be easily reunited in the     
manner and on the principles of the     
reunion of ,avignon4 ,this country      
communicates with ,piedmont2 and as the 
king of ,sardinia's dominions were long 
the key of ,italy1 and as such long     
regarded by ,france1 whilst ,france     
acted on her old maxims1 and with views 
on ,italy1--so1 in this new ,french     
empire of sedition1 if once she gets    
that key into her hands1 she can easily 
lay open the barrier which hinders the  
entrance of her present politics into   
that inviting region4 ,milan1 ,i am     
sure1 nourishes great disquiets2 and if 
,milan should stir1 no part of ,lombardy
 is secure to the present               
possessors1--whether the ,venetian or   
the ,austrian4 ,genoa is closely        
connected with ,france4  ,sidenote3     
,bourbon princes in ,italy4  ,the first 
prince of the ,house of ,bourbon has    
been obliged to give himself up entirely
 to the new system1 and to pretend even 
to propagate it with all zeal3 at least1

 that club of intriguers who assemble at
 the ,feuillants1 and whose cabinet     
meets at ,madame de ,stal's1 and makes  
and directs all the ministers1 is the   
real executive government of ,france4   
,the ,emperor is perfectly in concert1  
and they will not long suffer any prince
 of the ,house of ,bourbon to keep by   
force the ,french emissaries out of     
their dominions2 nor whilst ,france has 
a commerce with them1 especially through
 ,marseilles1 7the hottest focus of     
sedition in ,france17 will it be long   
possible to prevent the intercourse or  
the effects4  ,naples has an old1       
inveterate disposition to republicanism1
 and 7however for some time past quiet7 
is as liable to explosion as its own    
,vesuvius4 ,sicily1 ,i think1 has these 
dispositions in full as strong a degree4
 ,in neither of these countries exists  
anything which very well deserves the   
name of government or exact police4     
,sidenote3 ,ecclesiastical ,state4  ,in 
the ,states of the ,church1             

notwithstanding their strictness in     
banishing the ,french out of that       
country1 there are not wanting the seeds
 of a revolution4 ,the spirit of        
nepotism prevails there nearly as strong
 as ever4 ,every ,pope of course is to  
give origin or restoration to a great   
family by the means of large donations4 
,the foreign revenues have long been    
gradually on the decline1 and seem now  
in a manner dried up4 ,to supply this   
defect1 the resource of vexatious and   
impolitic jobbing at home1 if anything1 
is rather increased than lessened4      
,various well-intended1 but             
ill-understood practices1 some of them  
existing1 in their spirit at least1 from
 the time of the old ,roman ,empire1    
still prevail2 and that government is as
 blindly attached to old abusive customs
 as others are wildly disposed to all   
sorts of innovations and experiments4   
,these abuses were less felt whilst the 
,pontificate drew riches from abroad1   
which in some measure counterbalanced   

the evils of their remiss and jobbish   
government at home4 ,but now it can     
subsist only on the resources of        
domestic management2 and abuses in that 
management of course will be more       
intimately and more severely felt4  ,in 
the midst of the apparently torpid      
languor of the ,ecclesiastical ,state1  
those who have had opportunity of a near
 observation have seen a little rippling
 in that smooth water1 which indicates  
something alive under it4 ,there is in  
the ,ecclesiastical ,state a personage  
who seems capable of acting 7but with   
more force and steadiness7 the part of  
the tribune ,rienzi4 ,the people1 once  
inflamed1 will not be destitute of a    
leader4 ,they have such an one already  
in the ,cardinal or ,archbishop         
,boncompagni4 ,he is1 of all men1 if ,i 
am not ill-informed1 the most turbulent1
 seditious1 intriguing1 bold1 and       
desperate4 ,he is not at all made for a 
,roman of the present day4 ,i think he  
lately held the first office of their   

state1 that of ,great ,chamberlain1     
which is equivalent to ,high ,treasurer4
 ,at present he is out of employment1   
and in disgrace4 ,if he should be       
elected ,pope1 or even come to have any 
weight with a new ,pope1 he will        
infallibly conjure up a democratic      
spirit in that country4 ,he may1 indeed1
 be able to effect it without these     
advantages4 ,the nest interregnum will  
probably show more of him4 ,there may be
 others of the same character1 who have 
not come to my knowledge4 ,this much is 
certain1--that the ,roman people1 if    
once the blind reverence they bear to   
the sanctity of the ,pope1 which is     
their only bridle1 should relax1 are    
naturally turbulent1 ferocious1 and     
headlong1 whilst the police is          
defective1 and the government feeble and
 resourceless beyond all imagination4   
,sidenote3 ,spain  ,as to ,spain1 it is 
a nerveless country4 ,it does not       
possess the use1 it only suffers the    
abuse1 of a nobility4 ,for some time1   

and even before the settlement of the   
,bourbon dynasty1 that body has been    
systematically lowered1 and rendered    
incapable by exclusion1 and for         
incapacity excluded from affairs4 ,in   
this circle the body is in a manner     
annihilated2 and so little means have   
they of any weighty exertion either to  
control or to support the crown1 that1  
if they at all interfere1 it is only by 
abetting desperate and mobbish          
insurrections1 like that at ,madrid1    
which drove ,squillace from his place4  
,florida ,blanca is a creature of       
office1 and has little connection and no
 sympathy with that body4  ,as to the   
clergy1 they are the only thing in      
,spain that looks like an independent   
order2 and they are kept in some respect
 by the ,inquisition1 the sole1 but     
unhappy resource of public tranquillity 
and order now remaining in ,spain4 ,as  
in ,venice1 it is become mostly an      
engine of state1--which1 indeed1 to a   
degree1 it has always been in ,spain4   

,it wars no longer with ,jews and       
heretics3 it has no such war to carry   
on4 ,its great object is1 to keep       
atheistic and republican doctrines from 
making their way in that kingdom4 ,no   
,french book upon any subject can enter 
there which does not contain such       
matter4 ,in ,spain1 the clergy are of   
moment from their influence1 but at the 
same time with the envy and jealousy    
that attend great riches and power4     
,though the crown has by management with
 the ,pope got a very great share of the
 ecclesiastical revenues into its own   
hands1 much still remains to them4      
,there will always be about that court  
those who look out to a farther division
 of the ,church property as a resource1 
and to be obtained by shorter methods   
than those of negotiations with the     
clergy and their chief4 ,but at present 
,i think it likely that they will stop1 
lest the business should be taken out of
 their hands1--and lest that body1 in   
which remains the only life that exists 

in ,spain1 and is not a fever1 may with 
their property lose all the influence   
necessary to preserve the monarchy1 or1 
being poor and desperate1 may employ    
whatever influence remains to them as   
active agents in its destruction4       
,sidenote3 ,castile different from      
,catalonia and ,aragon4  ,the           
,castilians have still remaining a good 
deal of their old character1 their      
gravedad1 lealtad1 and el temor de      
,dios2 but that character neither is1   
nor ever was1 exactly true1 except of   
the ,castilians only4 ,the several      
kingdoms which compose ,spain have1     
perhaps1 some features which run through
 the whole2 but they are in many        
particulars as different as nations who 
go by different names3 the ,catalans1   
for instance1 and the ,aragonians too1  
in a great measure1 have the spirit of  
the ,miquelets1 and much more of        
republicanism than of an attachment to  
royalty4 ,they are more in the way of   
trade and intercourse with ,france1 and1

 upon the least internal movement1 will 
disclose and probably let loose a spirit
 that may throw the whole ,spanish      
monarchy into convulsions4  ,it is a    
melancholy reflection1 that the spirit  
of melioration which has been going on  
in that part of ,europe1 more or less1  
during this century1 and the various    
schemes very lately on foot for further 
advancement1 are all put a stop to at   
once4 ,reformation certainly is nearly  
connected with innovation2 and where    
that latter comes in for too large a    
share1 those who undertake to improve   
their country may risk their own safety4
 ,in times where the correction1 which  
includes the confession1 of an abuse1 is
 turned to criminate the authority which
 has long suffered it1 rather than to   
honor those who would amend it1 7which  
is the spirit of this malignant ,french 
distemper17 every step out of the common
 course becomes critical1 and renders it
 a task full of peril for princes of    
moderate talents to engage in great     

undertakings4 ,at present the only      
safety of ,spain is the old national    
hatred to the ,french4 ,how far that can
 be depended upon1 if any great ferments
 should be excited1 it is impossible to 
say4  ,as to ,portugal1 she is out of   
the high-road of these politics4 ,i     
shall1 therefore1 not divert my thoughts
 that way1 but return again to the      
,north of ,europe1 which at present     
seems the part most interested1 and     
there it appears to me that the ,french 
speculation on the ,northern countries  
may be valued in the following or some  
such manner4  ,sidenote3 ,denmark4      
,sidenote3 ,sweden4  ,denmark and       
,norway do not appear to furnish any of 
the materials of a democratic           
revolution1 or the dispositions to it4  
,denmark can only be consequentially    
affected by anything done in ,prance2   
but of ,sweden ,i think quite otherwise4
 ,the present power in ,sweden is too   
new a system1 and too green and too sore
 from its late ,revolution1 to be       

considered as perfectly assured4 ,the   
king1 by his astonishing activity1 his  
boldness1 his decision1 his ready       
versatility1 and by rousing and         
employing the old military spirit of    
,sweden1 keeps up the top with continual
 agitation and lashing4 ,the moment it  
ceases to spin1 the royalty is a dead   
bit of box4 ,whenever ,sweden is quiet  
externally for some time1 there is great
 danger that all the republican elements
 she contains will be animated by the   
new ,french spirit1 and of this ,i      
believe the king is very sensible4      
,sidenote3 ,russia4  ,the ,russian      
government is of all others the most    
liable to be subverted by military      
seditions1 by court conspiracies1 and   
sometimes by headlong rebellions of the 
people1 such as the turbinating movement
 of ,pugatchef4 ,it is not quite so     
probable that in any of these changes   
the spirit of system may mingle1 in the 
manner it has done in ,france4 ,the     
,muscovites are no great speculators2   

but ,i should not much rely on their    
uninquisitive disposition1 if any of    
their ordinary motives to sedition      
should arise4 ,the little catechism of  
the ,rights of ,men is soon learned2 and
 the inferences are in the passions4    
,sidenote3 ,poland4  ,sidenote3 ,saxony4
  ,poland1 from one cause or other1 is  
always unquiet4 ,the new ,constitution  
only serves to supply that restless     
people with new means1 at least new     
modes1 of cherishing their turbulent    
disposition4 ,the bottom of the         
character is the same4 ,it is a great   
question1 whether the joining that crown
 with the ,electorate of ,saxony will   
contribute most to strengthen the royal 
authority of ,poland or to shake the    
ducal in ,saxony4 ,the ,elector is a    
,catholic2 the people of ,saxony are1   
six sevenths at the very least1         
,protestants4 ,he must continue a       
,catholic1 according to the ,polish law1
 if he accepts that crown4 ,the pride of
 the ,saxons1 formerly flattered by     

having a crown in the house of their    
prince1 though an honor which cost them 
dear1--the ,german probity1 fidelity1   
and loyalty1--the weight of the         
,constitution of the ,empire under the  
,treaty of ,westphalia1--the good temper
 and good-nature of the princes of the  
,house of ,saxony1 had formerly removed 
from the people all apprehension with   
regard to their religion1 and kept them 
perfectly quiet1 obedient1 and even     
affectionate4 ,the ,seven ,years' ,war  
made some change in the minds of the    
,saxons4 ,they did not1 ,i believe1     
regret the loss of what might be        
considered almost as the succession to  
the crown of ,poland1 the possession of 
which1 by annexing them to a foreign    
interest1 had often obliged them to act 
an arduous part1 towards the support of 
which that foreign interest afforded no 
proportionable strength4 ,in this very  
delicate situation of their political   
interests1 the speculations of the      
,french and ,german ,economists1 and the

 cabals1 and the secret1 as well as     
public doctrines of the                 
,illuminatenorden1 and ,freemasons1 have
 made a considerable progress in that   
country2 and a turbulent spirit1 under  
color of religion1 but in reality       
arising from the ,french rights of man1 
has already shown itself1 and is ready  
on every occasion to blaze out4  ,the   
present ,elector is a prince of a safe  
and quiet temper1 of great prudence and 
goodness4 ,he knows1 that1 in the actual
 state of things1 not the power and     
respect belonging to sovereigns1 but    
their very existence1 depends on a      
reasonable frugality4 ,it is very       
certain that not one sovereign in       
,europe can either promise for the      
continuance of his authority in a state 
of indigence and insolvency1 or dares to
 venture on a new imposition to relieve 
himself4 ,without abandoning wholly the 
ancient magnificence of his court1 the  
,elector has conducted his affairs with 
infinitely more economy than any of his 

predecessors1 so as to restore his      
finances beyond what was thought        
possible from the state in which the    
,seven ,years' ,war had left ,saxony4   
,saxony1 during the whole of that       
dreadful period1 having been in the     
hands of an exasperated enemy1 rigorous 
by resentment1 by nature1 and by        
necessity1 was obliged to bear in a     
manner the whole burden of the war2 in  
the intervals when their allies         
prevailed1 the inhabitants of that      
country were not better treated4  ,the  
moderation and prudence of the present  
,elector1 in my opinion1 rather1        
perhaps1 respites the troubles than     
secures the peace of the ,electorate4   
,the offer of the succession to the     
crown of ,poland is truly critical1     
whether he accepts or whether he        
declines it4 ,if the ,states will       
consent to his acceptance1 it will add  
to the difficulties1 already great1 of  
his situation between the king of       
,prussia and the ,emperor4--,but these  

thoughts lead me too far1 when ,i mean  
to speak only of the interior condition 
of these princes4 ,it has always1       
however1 some necessary connection with 
their foreign politics4  ,sidenote3     
,holland4  ,with regard to ,holland1 and
 the ruling party there1 ,i do not think
 it at all tainted1 or likely to be so1 
except by fear1--or that it is likely to
 be misled1 unless indirectly and       
circuitously4 ,but the predominant party
 in ,holland is not ,holland4 ,the      
suppressed faction1 though suppressed1  
exists4 ,under the ashes1 the embers of 
the late commotions are still warm4 ,the
 anti-,orange party has from the day of 
its origin been ,french1 though         
alienated in some degree for some time1 
through the pride and folly of ,louis   
the ,fourteenth4 ,it will ever hanker   
after a ,french connection2 and now that
 the internal government in ,france has 
been assimilated in so considerable a   
degree to that which the immoderate     
republicans began so very lately to     

introduce into ,holland1 their          
connection1 as still more natural1 will 
be more desired4 ,i do not well         
understand the present exterior politics
 of the ,stadtholder1 nor the treaty    
into which the newspapers say he has    
entered for the ,states with the        
,emperor4 ,but the ,emperor's own       
politics with regard to the ,netherlands
 seem to me to be exactly calculated to 
answer the purpose of the ,french       
,revolutionists4 ,he endeavors to crush 
the aristocratic party1 and to nourish  
one in avowed connection with the most  
furious democratists in ,france4  ,these
 ,provinces in which the ,french game is
 so well played they consider as part of
 the old ,french ,empire3 certainly they
 were amongst the oldest parts of it4   
,these they think very well situated1 as
 their party is well disposed to a      
reunion4 ,as to the greater nations1    
they do not aim at making a direct      
conquest of them1 but1 by disturbing    
them through a propagation of their     

principles1 they hope to weaken1 as they
 will weaken them1 and to keep them in  
perpetual alarm and agitation1 and thus 
render all their efforts against them   
utterly impracticable1 whilst they      
extend the dominion of their sovereign  
anarchy on all sides4  ,sidenote3       
,england4  ,as to ,england1 there may be
 some apprehension from vicinity1 from  
constant communication1 and from the    
very name of liberty1 which1 as it ought
 to be very dear to us1 in its worst    
abuses carries something seductive4 ,it 
is the abuse of the first and best of   
the objects which we cherish4 ,i know   
that many1 who sufficiently dislike the 
system of ,france1 have yet no          
apprehensions of its prevalence here4 ,i
 say nothing to the ground of this      
security in the attachment of the people
 to their ,constitution1 and their      
satisfaction in the discreet portion of 
liberty which it measures out to them4  
,upon this ,i have said all ,i have to  
say1 in the ,appeal ,i have published4  

,that security is something1 and not    
inconsiderable2 but if a storm arises1  
,i should not much rely upon it4        
,sidenote3 ,objection to the stability  
of the ,french system4  ,there are other
 views of things which may be used to   
give us a perfect 7though in my opinion 
a delusive7 assurance of our own        
security4 ,the first of these is from   
the weakness and rickety nature of the  
new system in the place of its first    
formation4 ,it is thought that the      
monster of a commonwealth cannot        
possibly live1--that at any rate the ill
 contrivance of their fabric will make  
it fall in pieces of itself1--that the  
,assembly must be bankrupt1--and that   
this bankruptcy will totally destroy    
that system from the contagion of which 
apprehensions are entertained4  ,for my 
part ,i have long thought that one great
 cause of the stability of this wretched
 scheme of things in ,france was an     
opinion that it could not stand1 and    
therefore that all external measures to 

destroy it were wholly useless4         
,sidenote3 ,bankruptcy4  ,as to the     
bankruptcy1 that event has happened long
 ago1 as much as it is ever likely to   
happen4 ,as soon as a nation compels a  
creditor to take paper currency in      
discharge of his debt1 there is a       
bankruptcy4 ,the compulsory paper has in
 some degree answered1--not because     
there was a surplus from ,church lands1 
but because faith has not been kept with
 the clergy4 ,as to the holders of the  
old funds1 to them the payments will be 
dilatory1 but they will be made2 and    
whatever may be the discount on paper1  
whilst paper is taken1 paper will be    
issued4  ,sidenote3 ,resources4  ,as to 
the rest1 they have shot out three      
branches of revenue to supply all those 
which they have destroyed3 that is1 the 
,universal ,register of all             
,transactions1 the heavy and universal  
,stamp ,duty1 and the new ,territorial  
,impost1 levied chiefly on the reduced  
estates of the gentlemen4 ,these        

branches of the revenue1 especially as  
they take assignats in payment1 answer  
their purpose in a considerable degree1 
and keep up the credit of their paper3  
for1 as they receive it in their        
treasury1 it is in reality funded upon  
all their taxes and future resources of 
all kinds1 as well as upon the ,church  
estates4 ,as this paper is become in a  
manner the only visible maintenance of  
the whole people1 the dread of a        
bankruptcy is more apparently connected 
with the delay of a counter-revolution  
than with the duration of this republic2
 because the interest of the new        
republic manifestly leans upon it1 and1 
in my opinion1 the counter-revolution   
cannot exist along with it4 ,the above  
three projects ruined some ministers    
under the old government1 merely for    
having conceived them4 ,they are the    
salvation of the present rulers4  ,as   
the ,assembly has laid a most unsparing 
and cruel hand on all men who have lived
 by the bounty1 the justice1 or the     

abuses of the old government1 they have 
lessened many expenses4 ,the royal      
establishment1 though excessively and   
ridiculously great for their scheme of  
things1 is reduced at least one half2   
the estates of the king's brothers1     
which under the ancient government had  
been in truth royal revenues1 go to the 
general stock of the confiscation2 and  
as to the crown lands1 though under the 
monarchy they never yielded two hundred 
and fifty thousand a year1 by many they 
are thought at least worth three times  
as much4  ,as to the ecclesiastical     
charge1 whether as a compensation for   
losses1 or a provision for religion1 of 
which they made at first a great parade1
 and entered into a solemn engagement in
 favor of it1 it was estimated at a much
 larger sum than they could expect from 
the ,church property1 movable or        
immovable3 they are completely bankrupt 
as to that article4 ,it is just what    
they wish2 and it is not productive of  
any serious inconvenience4 ,the         

non-payment produces discontent and     
occasional sedition2 but is only by fits
 and spasms1 and amongst the country    
people1 who are of no consequence4      
,these seditions furnish new pretexts   
for non-payment to the ,church          
establishment1 and help the ,assembly   
wholly to get rid of the clergy1 and    
indeed of any form of religion1 which is
 not only their real1 but avowed object4
  ,sidenote3 ,want of money how         
supplied4  ,they are embarrassed1       
indeed1 in the highest degree1 but not  
wholly resourceless4 ,they are without  
the species of money4 ,circulation of   
money is a great convenience1 but a     
substitute for it may be found4 ,whilst 
the great objects of production and     
consumption1 corn1 cattle1 wine1 and the
 like1 exist in a country1 the means of 
giving them circulation1 with more or   
less convenience1 cannot be wholly      
wanting4 ,the great confiscation of the 
,church and of the crown lands1 and of  
the appanages of the princes1 for the   

purchase of all which their paper is    
always received at par1 gives means of  
continually destroying and continually  
creating2 and this perpetual destruction
 and renovation feeds the speculative   
market1 and prevents1 and will prevent1 
till that fund of confiscation begins to
 fail1 a total depreciation4  ,sidenote3
 ,moneyed interest not necessary to     
them4  ,but all consideration of public 
credit in ,france is of little avail at 
present4 ,the action1 indeed1 of the    
moneyed interest was of absolute        
necessity at the beginning of this      
,revolution2 but the ,french republic   
can stand without any assistance from   
that description of men1 which1 as      
things are now circumstanced1 rather    
stands in need of assistance itself from
 the power which alone substantially    
exists in ,france3 ,i mean the several  
districts and municipal republics1 and  
the several clubs which direct all their
 affairs and appoint all their          
magistrates4 ,this is the power now     

paramount to everything1 even to the    
,assembly itself called ,national and   
that to which tribunals1 priesthood1    
laws1 finances1 and both descriptions of
 military power are wholly subservient1 
so far as the military power of either  
description yields obedience to any name
 of authority4  ,the world of           
contingency and political combination is
 much larger than we are apt to imagine4
 ,we never can say what may or may not  
happen1 without a view to all the actual
 circumstances4 ,experience1 upon other 
data than those1 is of all things the   
most delusive4 ,prudence in new cases   
can do nothing on grounds of retrospect4
 ,a constant vigilance and attention to 
the train of things as they successively
 emerge1 and to act on what they direct1
 are the only sure courses4 ,the        
physician that let blood1 and by        
blood-letting cured one kind of plague1 
in the next added to its ravages4 ,that 
power goes with property is not         
universally true1 and the idea that the 

operation of it is certain and          
invariable may mislead us very fatally4 
,sidenote3 ,power separated from        
property4  ,whoever will take an        
accurate view of the state of those     
republics1 and of the composition of the
 present ,assembly deputed by them1 7in 
which ,assembly there are not quite     
fifty persons possessed of an income    
amounting to #ajjl4 sterling yearly17   
must discern clearly1 that the political
 and civil power of ,france is wholly   
separated from its property of every    
description1 and of course that neither 
the landed nor the moneyed interest     
possesses the smallest weight or        
consideration in the direction of any   
public concern4 ,the whole kingdom is   
directed by the refuse of its chicane1  
with the aid of the bustling1           
presumptuous young clerks of            
counting-houses and shops1 and some     
intermixture of young gentlemen of the  
same character in the several towns4    
,the rich peasants are bribed with      

,church lands2 and the poorer of that   
description are1 and can be1 counted for
 nothing4 ,they may rise in ferocious1  
ill-directed tumults1--but they can only
 disgrace themselves and signalize the  
triumph of their adversaries4           
,sidenote3 ,effects of the rota4  ,the  
truly active citizens1 that is1 the     
above descriptions1 are all concerned in
 intrigue respecting the various objects
 in their local or their general        
government4 ,the rota1 which the ,french
 have established for their ,national   
,assembly1 holds out the highest objects
 of ambition to such vast multitudes as 
in an unexampled measure to widen the   
bottom of a new species of interest     
merely political1 and wholly unconnected
 with birth or property4 ,this scheme of
 a rota1 though it enfeebles the state1 
considered as one solid body1 and indeed
 wholly disables it from acting as such1
 gives a great1 an equal1 and a         
diffusive strength to the democratic    
scheme4 ,seven hundred and fifty people1

 every two years raised to the supreme  
power1 has already produced at least    
fifteen hundred bold1 acting            
politicians3 a great number for even so 
great a country as ,france4 ,these men  
never will quietly settle in ordinary   
occupations1 nor submit to any scheme   
which must reduce them to an entirely   
private condition1 or to the exercise of
 a steady1 peaceful1 but obscure and    
unimportant industry4 ,whilst they sit  
in the ,assembly1 they are denied       
offices of trust and profit1--but their 
short duration makes this no restraint3 
during their probation and              
apprenticeship they are all salaried    
with an income to the greatest part of  
them immense2 and after they have passed
 the novitiate1 those who take any sort 
of lead are placed in very lucrative    
offices1 according to their influence   
and credit1 or appoint those who divide 
their profits with them4  ,this supply  
of recruits to the corps of the highest 
civil ambition goes on with a regular   

progression4 ,in very few years it must 
amount to many thousands4 ,these1       
however1 will be as nothing in          
comparison to the multitude of municipal
 officers1 and officers of district and 
department1 of all sorts1 who have      
tasted of power and profit1 and who     
hunger for the periodical return of the 
meal4 ,to these needy agitators1 the    
glory of the state1 the general wealth  
and prosperity of the nation1 and the   
rise or fall of public credit are as    
dreams2 nor have arguments deduced from 
these topics any sort of weight with    
them4 ,the indifference with which the  
,assembly regards the state of their    
colonies1 the only valuable part of the 
,french commerce1 is a full proof how   
little they are likely to be affected by
 anything but the selfish game of their 
own ambition1 now universally diffused4 
,sidenote3 ,impracticability of         
resistance4  ,it is true1 amidst all    
these turbulent means of security to    
their system1 very great discontents    

everywhere prevail4 ,but they only      
produce misery to those who nurse them  
at home1 or exile1 beggary1 and in the  
end confiscation1 to those who are so   
impatient as to remove from them4 ,each 
municipal republic has a ,committee1 or 
something in the nature of a ,committee 
of ,research4 ,in these petty republics 
the tyranny is so near its object that  
it becomes instantly acquainted with    
every act of every man4 ,it stifles     
conspiracy in its very first movements4 
,their power is absolute and            
uncontrollable4 ,no stand can be made   
against it4 ,these republics are besides
 so disconnected1 that very little      
intelligence of what happens in them is 
to be obtained beyond their own bounds1 
except by the means of their clubs1 who 
keep up a constant correspondence1 and  
who give what color they please to such 
facts as they choose to communicate out 
of the track of their correspondence4   
,they all have some sort of             
communication1 just as much or as little

 as they please1 with the centre4 ,by   
this confinement of all communication to
 the ruling faction1 any combination1   
grounded on the abuses and discontents  
in one1 scarcely can reach the other4   
,there is not one man1 in any one place1
 to head them4 ,the old government had  
so much abstracted the nobility from the
 cultivation of provincial interest1    
that no man in ,france exists1 whose    
power1 credit1 or consequence extends to
 two districts1 or who is capable of    
uniting them in any design1 even if any 
man could assemble ten men together     
without being sure of a speedy lodging  
in a prison4 ,one must not judge of the 
state of ,france by what has been       
observed elsewhere4 ,it does not in the 
least resemble any other country4       
,analogical reasoning from history or   
from recent experience in other places  
is wholly delusive4  ,in my opinion1    
there never was seen so strong a        
government internally as that of the    
,french municipalities4 ,if ever any    

rebellion can arise against the present 
system1 it must begin1 where the        
,revolution which gave birth to it did1 
at the capital4 ,paris is the only place
 in which there is the least freedom of 
intercourse4 ,but even there1 so many   
servants as any man has1 so many spies  
and irreconcilable domestic enemies4    
,sidenote3 ,gentlemen are fugitives4    
,but that place being the chief seat of 
the power and intelligence of the ruling
 faction1 and the place of occasional   
resort for their fiercest spirits1 even 
there a revolution is not likely to have
 anything to feed it4 ,the leaders of   
the aristocratic party have been drawn  
out of the kingdom by order of the      
princes1 on the hopes held out by the   
,emperor and the king of ,prussia at    
,pilnitz2 and as to the democratic      
factions in ,paris1 amongst them there  
are no leaders possessed of an influence
 for any other purpose but that of      
maintaining the present state of things4
 ,the moment they are seen to warp1 they

 are reduced to nothing4 ,they have no  
attached army1--no party that is at all 
personal4  ,it is not to be imagined1   
because a political system is1 under    
certain aspects1 very unwise in its     
contrivance1 and very mischievous in its
 effects1 that it therefore can have no 
long duration4 ,its very defects may    
tend to its stability1 because they are 
agreeable to its nature4 ,the very      
faults in the ,constitution of ,poland  
made it last2 the veto which destroyed  
all its energy preserved its life4 ,what
 can be conceived so monstrous as the   
republic of ,algiers1 and that no less  
strange republic of the ,mamelukes in   
,egypt8 ,they are of the worst form     
imaginable1 and exercised in the worst  
manner1 yet they have existed as a      
nuisance on the earth for several       
hundred years4  ,sidenote3 ,conclusions4
  ,from all these considerations1 and   
many more that crowd upon me1 three     
conclusions have long since arisen in my
 mind4  ,first1 that no counter         

revolution is to be expected in ,france 
from internal causes solely4  ,secondly1
 that1 the longer the present system    
exists1 the greater will be its         
strength1 the greater its power to      
destroy discontents at home1 and to     
resist all foreign attempts in favor of 
these discontents4  ,thirdly1 that1 as  
long as it exists in ,france1 it will be
 the interest of the managers there1 and
 it is in the very essence of their     
plan1 to disturb and distract all other 
governments1 and their endless          
succession of restless politicians will 
continually stimulate them to new       
attempts4  ,sidenote3 ,proceedings of   
princes2 defensive plans4  ,princes are 
generally sensible that this is their   
common cause2 and two of them have made 
a public declaration of their opinion to
 this effect4 ,against this common      
danger1 some of them1 such as the king  
of ,spain1 the king of ,sardinia1 and   
the republic of ,bern1 are very diligent
 in using defensive measures4  ,if they 

were to guard against an invasion from  
,france1 the merits of this plan of a   
merely defensive resistance might be    
supported by plausible topics2 but as   
the attack does not operate against     
these countries externally1 but by an   
internal corruption1 7a sort of dry     
rot17 they who pursue this merely       
defensive plan against a danger which   
the plan itself supposes to be serious  
cannot possibly escape it4 ,for it is in
 the nature of all defensive measures to
 be sharp and vigorous under the        
impressions of the first alarm1 and to  
relax by degrees1 until at length the   
danger1 by not operating instantly1     
comes to appear as a false alarm1--so   
much so1 that the next menacing         
appearance will look less formidable1   
and will be less provided against4 ,but 
to those who are on the offensive it is 
not necessary to be always alert4       
,possibly it is more their interest not 
to be so4 ,for their unforeseen attacks 
contribute to their success4  ,sidenote3

 ,the ,french party how composed4  ,in  
the mean time a system of ,french       
conspiracy is gaining ground in every   
country4 ,this system1 happening to be  
founded on principles the most delusive 
indeed1 but the most flattering to the  
natural propensities of the unthinking  
multitude1 and to the speculations of   
all those who think1 without thinking   
very profoundly1 must daily extend its  
influence4 ,a predominant inclination   
towards it appears in all those who have
 no religion1 when otherwise their      
disposition leads them to be advocates  
even for despotism4 ,hence ,hume1 though
 ,i cannot say that he does not throw   
out some expressions of disapprobation  
on the proceedings of the levellers in  
the reign of ,richard the ,second1 yet  
affirms that the doctrines of ,john     
,ball were conformable to the ideas of  
primitive equality which are engraven in
 the hearts of all men4  ,boldness      
formerly was not the character of       
atheists as such4 ,they were even of a  

character nearly the reverse2 they were 
formerly like the old ,epicureans1      
rather an unenterprising race4 ,but of  
late they are grown active1 designing1  
turbulent1 and seditious4 ,they are     
sworn enemies to kings1 nobility1 and   
priesthood4 ,we have seen all the       
,academicians at ,paris1 with           
,condorcet1 the friend and correspondent
 of ,priestley1 at their head1 the most 
furious of the extravagant republicans4 
,sidenote3 ,condorcet4  ,the late       
,assembly1 after the last captivity of  
the king1 had actually chosen this      
,condorcet1 by a majority on the ballot1
 for preceptor to the ,dauphin1 who was 
to be taken out of the hands and        
direction of his parents1 and to be     
delivered over to this fanatic atheist  
and furious democratic republican4 ,his 
untractability to these leaders1 and his
 figure in the club of ,jacobins1 which 
at that time they wished to bring under1
 alone prevented that part of the       
arrangement1 and others in the same     

style1 from being carried into          
execution4 ,whilst he was candidate for 
this office1 he produced his title to it
 by promulgating the following ideas of 
the title of his royal pupil to the     
crown4 ,in a paper written by him1 and  
published with his name1 against the    
restablishment even of the appearance of
 monarchy under any qualifications1 he  
says3--  ,sidenote3 ,doctrine of the    
,french4  ,jusqu' ce moment1 ils        
l',assemble ,nationale n'ont rien prjug 
encore4 ,en se rservant de nommer un    
gouverneur au ,dauphin1 ils n'ont pas   
prononc que cet enfant dt rgner1 mais   
seulement qu'il tait possible que la    
,constitution l'y destint2 ils ont voulu
 que l'ducation effat tout ce que les   
prestiges du trne ont pu lui inspirer de
 prjugs sur les droits prtendus de sa   
naissance2 qu'elle lui ft connatre de   
bonne heure et l'galit naturelle des    
hommes et la souverainet du peuple2     
qu'elle lui apprt  ne pas oublier que   
c'est du peuple qu'il tiendra le titre  

de ,roi1 et que le peuple n'a pas mme le
 droit de renoncer  celui de l'en       
dpouiller4  ,ils ont voulu que cette    
ducation le rendt galement digne1 par   
ses lumires et ses vertus1 de recevoir  
avec rsignation le fardeau dangereux    
d'une couronne1 ou de la dposer avec    
joie entre les mains de ses frres2 qu'il
 sentt que le devoir et la gloire du roi
 d'un peuple libre sont de hter le      
moment de n'tre plus qu'un citoyen      
ordinaire4  ,ils ont voulu que          
l'inutilit d'un roi1 la ncessit de      
chercher les moyens de remplacer un     
pouvoir fond sur des illusions1 ft une  
des premires vrits offertes  sa raison2 
l'obligation d'y concourir lui-mme1 un  
des premiers devoirs de sa morale2 et le
 dsir de n'tre plus affranchi du joug de
 la loi par une injurieuse inviolabilit1
 le premier sentiment de son cur4 ,ils  
n'ignorent pas que dans ce moment il    
s'agit bien moins de former un roi que  
de lui apprendre  savoir  vouloir ne    
plus l'tre4#cb  ,such are the sentiments

 of the man who has occasionally filled 
the chair of the ,national ,assembly1   
who is their perpetual secretary1 their 
only standing officer1 and the most     
important by far4 ,he leads them to     
peace or war4 ,he is the great theme of 
the republican faction in ,england4     
,these ideas of ,m4 ,condorcet are the  
principles of those to whom kings are to
 intrust their successors and the       
interests of their succession4 ,this man
 would be ready to plunge the poniard in
 the heart of his pupil1 or to whet the 
axe for his neck4 ,of all men1 the most 
dangerous is a warm1 hot-headed1 zealous
 atheist4 ,this sort of man aims at     
dominion1 and his means are the words he
 always has in his mouth1--,l'galit     
naturelle des hommes1 et la souverainet 
du peuple4  ,all former attempts1       
grounded on these rights of men1 had    
proved unfortunate4 ,the success of this
 last makes a mighty difference in the  
effect of the doctrine4 ,here is a      
principle of a nature to the multitude  

the most seductive1 always existing     
before their eyes as a thing feasible in
 practice4 ,after so many failures1 such
 an enterprise1 previous to the ,french 
experiment1 carried ruin to the         
contrivers1 on the face of it2 and if   
any enthusiast was so wild as to wish to
 engage in a scheme of that nature1 it  
was not easy for him to find followers3 
now there is a party almost in all      
countries1 ready-made1 animated with    
success1 with a sure ally in the very   
centre of ,europe4 ,there is no cabal so
 obscure in any place1 that they do not 
protect1 cherish1 foster1 and endeavor  
to raise it into importance at home and 
abroad4 ,from the lowest1 this intrigue 
will creep up to the highest4 ,ambition1
 as well as enthusiasm1 may find its    
account in the party and in the         
principle4  ,sidenote3 ,character of    
ministers4  ,the ministers of other     
kings1 like those of the king of        
,france1 7not one of whom was perfectly 
free from this guilt1 and some of whom  

were very deep in it17 may themselves be
 the persons to foment such a           
disposition and such a faction4         
,hertzberg1 the king of ,prussia's late 
minister1 is so much of what is called a
 philosopher1 that he was of a faction  
with that sort of politicians in        
everything1 and in every place4 ,even   
when he defends himself from the        
imputation of giving extravagantly into 
these principles1 he still considers the
 ,revolution of ,france as a great      
public good1 by giving credit to their  
fraudulent declaration of their         
universal benevolence and love of peace4
 ,nor are his ,prussian ,majesty's      
present ministers at all disinclined to 
the same system4 ,their ostentatious    
preamble to certain late edicts         
demonstrates 7if their actions had not  
been sufficiently explanatory of their  
cast of mind7 that they are deeply      
infected with the same distemper of     
dangerous1 because plausible1 though    
trivial and shallow1 speculation4       

,ministers1 turning their backs on the  
reputation which properly belongs to    
them1 aspire at the glory of being      
speculative writers4 ,the duties of     
these two situations are in general     
directly opposite to each other4        
,speculators ought to be neutral4 ,a    
minister cannot be so4 ,he is to support
 the interest of the public as connected
 with that of his master4 ,he is his    
master's trustee1 advocate1 attorney1   
and steward1--and he is not to indulge  
in any speculation which contradicts    
that character1 or even detracts from   
its efficacy4 ,necker had an extreme    
thirst for this sort of glory2 so had   
others2 and this pursuit of a misplaced 
and misunderstood reputation was one of 
the causes of the ruin of these         
ministers1 and of their unhappy1 master4
 ,the ,prussian ministers in foreign    
courts have 7at least not long since7   
talked the most democratic language with
 regard to ,prance1 and in the most     
unmanaged terms4  ,sidenote3 ,corps     

diplomatique4  ,the whole corps         
diplomatique1 with very few exceptions1 
leans that way4 ,what cause produces in 
them a turn of mind which at first one  
would think unnatural to their situation
 it is not impossible to explain4 ,the  
discussion would1 however1 be somewhat  
long and somewhat invidious4 ,the fact  
itself is indisputable1 however they may
 disguise it to their several courts4   
,this disposition is gone to so very    
great a length in that corps1 in itself 
so important1 and so important as       
furnishing the intelligence which sways 
all cabinets1 that1 if princes and      
states do not very speedily attend with 
a vigorous control to that source of    
direction and information1 very serious 
evils are likely to befall them4        
,sidenote3 ,sovereigns--their           
dispositions4  ,but1 indeed1 kings are  
to guard against the same sort of       
dispositions in themselves4 ,they are   
very easily alienated from all the      
higher orders of their subjects1 whether

 civil or military1 laic or             
ecclesiastical4 ,it is with persons of  
condition that sovereigns chiefly come  
into contact4 ,it is from them that they
 generally experience opposition to     
their will4 ,it is with their pride and 
impracticability that princes are most  
hurt4 ,it is with their servility and   
baseness that they are most commonly    
disgusted4 ,it is from their humors and 
cabals that they find their affairs most
 frequently troubled and distracted4    
,but of the common people1 in pure      
monarchical governments1 kings know     
little or nothing2 and therefore being  
unacquainted with their faults1 7which  
are as many as those of the great1 and  
much more decisive in their effects1    
when accompanied with power17 kings     
generally regard them with tenderness   
and favor1 and turn their eyes towards  
that description of their subjects1     
particularly when hurt by opposition    
from the higher orders4 ,it was thus    
that the king of ,france 7a perpetual   

example to all sovereigns7 was ruined4  
,i have it from very sure information1  
7and it was1 indeed1 obvious enough1    
from the measures which were taken      
previous to the assembly of the ,states 
and afterwards17 that the king's        
counsellors had filled him with a strong
 dislike to his nobility1 his clergy1   
and the corps of his magistracy4 ,they  
represented to him1 that he had tried   
them all severally1 in several ways1 and
 found them all untractable3 that he had
 twice called an assembly 7the          
,notables7 composed of the first men of 
the clergy1 the nobility1 and the       
magistrates2 that he had himself named  
every one member in those assemblies1   
and that1 though so picked out1 he had  
not1 in this their collective state1    
found them more disposed to a compliance
 with his will than they had been       
separately2 that there remained for him1
 with the least prospect of advantage to
 his authority in the ,states-,general1 
which were to be composed of the same   

sorts of men1 but not chosen by him1    
only the ,tiers tat3 in this alone he   
could repose any hope of extricating    
himself from his difficulties1 and of   
settling him in a clear and permanent   
authority4 ,they represented1 7these are
 the words of one of my informants17    
that the royal authority1 compressed    
with the weight of these aristocratic   
bodies1 full of ambition and of faction1
 when once unloaded1 would rise of      
itself1 and occupy its natural place    
without disturbance or control2 that the
 common people would protect1 cherish1  
and support1 instead of crushing it4    
,the people 7it was said7 could         
entertain no objects of ambition2 they  
were out of the road of intrigue and    
cabal1 and could possibly have no other 
view than the support of the mild and   
parental authority by which they were   
invested1 for the first time            
collectively1 with real importance in   
the state1 and protected in their       
peaceable and useful employments4       

,sidenote3 ,king of ,france4  ,this     
unfortunate king 7not without a large   
share of blame to himself7 was deluded  
to his ruin by a desire to humble and   
reduce his nobility1 clergy1 and big    
corporate magistracy3 not that ,i       
suppose he meant wholly to eradicate    
these bodies1 in the manner since       
effected by the democratic power2 ,i    
rather believe that even ,necker's      
designs did not go to that extent4 ,with
 his own hand1 however1 ,louis the      
,sixteenth pulled down the pillars which
 upheld his throne2 and this he did1    
because he could not bear the           
inconveniences which are attached to    
everything human1--because he found     
himself cooped up1 and in durance1 by   
those limits which ,nature prescribes to
 desire and imagination1 and was taught 
to consider as low and degrading that   
mutual dependence which ,providence has 
ordained that all men should have on one
 another4 ,he is not at this minute1    
perhaps1 cured of the dread of the power

 and credit like to be acquired by those
 who would save and rescue him4 ,he     
leaves those who suffer in his cause to 
their fate1--and hopes1 by various mean1
 delusive intrigues1 in which ,i am     
afraid he is encouraged from abroad1 to 
regain1 among traitors and regicides1   
the power he has joined to take from his
 own family1 whom he quietly sees       
proscribed before his eyes1 and called  
to answer to the lowest of his rebels1  
as the vilest of all criminals4         
,sidenote3 ,emperor4  ,it is to be hoped
 that the ,emperor may be taught better 
things by this fatal example4 ,but it is
 sure that he has advisers who endeavor 
to fill him with the ideas which have   
brought his brother-in-law to his       
present situation4 ,joseph the ,second  
was far gone in this philosophy1 and    
some1 if not most1 who serve the        
,emperor1 would kindly initiate him into
 all the mysteries of this freemasonry4 
,they would persuade him to look on the 
,national ,assembly1 not with the hatred

 of an enemy1 but the jealousy of a     
rival4 ,they would make him desirous of 
doing1 in his own dominions1 by a royal 
despotism1 what has been done in ,france
 by a democratic4 ,rather than abandon  
such enterprises1 they would persuade   
him to a strange alliance between those 
extremes4 ,their grand object being now1
 as in his brother's time1 at any rate  
to destroy the higher orders1 they think
 he cannot compass this end1 as         
certainly he cannot1 without elevating  
the lower4 ,by depressing the one and by
 raising the other they hope in the     
first place to increase his treasures   
and his army2 and with these common     
instruments of royal power they flatter 
him that the democracy1 which they help 
in his name to create1 will give him but
 little trouble4 ,in defiance of the    
freshest experience1 which might show   
him that old impossibilities are become 
modern probabilities1 and that the      
extent to which evil principles may go1 
when left to their own operation1 is    

beyond the power of calculation1 they   
will endeavor to persuade him that such 
a democracy is a thing which cannot     
subsist by itself2 that in whose ever   
hands the military command is placed1 he
 must be1 in the necessary course of    
affairs1 sooner or later the master2 and
 that1 being the master of various      
unconnected countries1 he may keep them 
all in order by employing a military    
force which to each of them is foreign4 
,this maxim1 too1 however formerly      
plausible1 will not now hold water4     
,this scheme is full of intricacy1 and  
may cause him everywhere to lose the    
hearts of his people4 ,these counsellors
 forget that a corrupted army was the   
very cause of the ruin of his           
brother-in-law1 and that he is himself  
far from secure from a similar          
corruption4  ,sidenote3 ,brabant4       
,instead of reconciling himself heartily
 and bon fide1 according to the most    
obvious rules of policy1 to the ,states 
of ,brabant1 as they are constituted1   

and who in the present state of things  
stand on the same foundation with the   
monarchy itself1 and who might have been
 gained with the greatest facility1 they
 have advised him to the most unkingly  
proceeding which1 either in a good or in
 a bad light1 has ever been attempted4  
,under a pretext taken from the spirit  
of the lowest chicane1 they have        
counselled him wholly to break the      
public faith1 to annul the amnesty1 as  
well as the other conditions through    
which he obtained an entrance into the  
,provinces of the ,netherlands under the
 guaranty of ,great ,britain and        
,prussia4 ,he is made to declare his    
adherence to the indemnity in a criminal
 sense1 but he is to keep alive in his  
own name1 and to encourage in others1 a 
civil process in the nature of an action
 of damages for what has been suffered  
during the troubles4 ,whilst he keeps up
 this hopeful lawsuit in view of the    
damages he may recover against          
individuals1 he loses the hearts of a   

whole people1 and the vast subsidies    
which his ancestors had been used to    
receive from them4  ,sidenote3          
,emperor's conduct with regard to       
,france4  ,this design once admitted    
unriddles the mystery of the whole      
conduct of the ,emperor's ministers with
 regard to ,france4 ,as soon as they saw
 the life of the king and queen of      
,france no longer1 as they thought1 in  
danger1 they entirely changed their plan
 with regard to the ,french nation4 ,i  
believe that the chiefs of the          
,revolution 7those who led the          
constituting ,assembly7 have contrived1 
as far as they can do it1 to give the   
,emperor satisfaction on this head4 ,he 
keeps a continual tone and posture of   
menace to secure this his only point4   
,but it must be observed1 that he all   
along grounds his departure from the    
engagement at ,pilnitz to the princes on
 the will and actions of the king and   
the majority of the people1 without any 
regard to the natural and constitutional

 orders of the state1 or to the opinions
 of the whole ,house of ,bourbon4       
,though it is manifestly under the      
constraint of imprisonment and the fear 
of death that this unhappy man has been 
guilty of all those humilities which    
have astonished mankind1 the advisers of
 the ,emperor will consider nothing but 
the physical person of ,louis1 which1   
even in his present degraded and        
infamous state1 they regard as of       
sufficient authority to give a complete 
sanction to the persecution and utter   
ruin of all his family1 and of every    
person who has shown any degree of      
attachment or fidelity to him or to his 
cause1 as well as competent to destroy  
the whole ancient constitution and frame
 of the ,french monarchy4  ,the present 
policy1 therefore1 of the ,austrian     
politicians is1 to recover despotism    
through democracy1--or1 at least1 at any
 expense1 everywhere to ruin the        
description of men who are everywhere   
the objects of their settled and        

systematic aversion1 but more especially
 in the ,netherlands4 ,compare this with
 the ,emperor's refusing at first all   
intercourse with the present powers in  
,france1 with his endeavoring to excite 
all ,europe against them1 and then1 his 
not only withdrawing all assistance and 
all countenance from the fugitives who  
had been drawn by his declarations from 
their houses1 situations1 and military  
commissions1 many even from the means of
 their very existence1 but treating them
 with every species of insult and       
outrage4  ,combining this unexampled    
conduct in the ,emperor's advisers with 
the timidity 7operating as perfidy7 of  
the king of ,france1 a fatal example is 
held out to all subjects1 tending to    
show what little support1 or even       
countenance1 they are to expect from    
those for whom their principle of       
fidelity may induce them to risk life   
and fortune4 ,the ,emperor's advisers   
would not for the world rescind one of  
the acts of this or of the late ,french 

,assembly2 nor do they wish anything    
better at present for their master's    
brother of ,france than that he should  
really be1 as he is nominally1 at the   
head of the system of persecution of    
religion and good order1 and of all     
descriptions of dignity1 natural and    
instituted3 they only wish all this done
 with a little more respect to the      
king's person1 and with more appearance 
of consideration for his new subordinate
 office1--in hopes1 that1 yielding      
himself for the present to the persons  
who have effected these changes1 he may 
be able to game for the rest hereafter4 
,on no other principles than these can  
the conduct of the court of ,vienna be  
accounted for4 ,the subordinate court of
 ,brussels talks the language of a club 
of ,feuillants and ,jacobins4           
,sidenote3 ,moderate party4  ,in this   
state of general rottenness among       
subjects1 and of delusion and false     
politics in princes1 comes a new        
experiment4 ,the king of ,france is in  

the hands of the chiefs of the regicide 
faction1--the ,barnaves1 ,lameths1      
,fayettes1 ,prigords1 ,duports1         
,robespierres1 ,camuses1 c41 c41 c4     
,they who had imprisoned1 suspended1 and
 conditionally deposed him are his      
confidential counsellors4 ,the next     
desperate of the desperate rebels call  
themselves the moderate party4 ,they are
 the chiefs of the first ,assembly1 who 
are confederated to support their power 
during their suspension from the        
present1 and to govern the existent body
 with as sovereign a sway as they had   
done the last4 ,they have1 for the      
greater part1 succeeded2 and they have  
many advantages towards procuring their 
success in future4 ,just before the     
close of their regular power1 they      
bestowed some appearance of prerogatives
 on the king1 which in their first plans
 they had refused to him1--particularly 
the mischievous1 and1 in his situation1 
dreadful prerogative of a veto4 ,this   
prerogative1 7which they hold as their  

bit in the mouth of the ,national       
,assembly for the time being17 without  
the direct assistance of their club1 it 
was impossible for the king to show even
 the desire of exerting with the        
smallest effect1 or even with safety to 
his person4 ,however1 by playing1       
through this veto1 the ,assembly against
 the king1 and the king against the     
,assembly1 they have made themselves    
masters of both4 ,in this situation1    
having destroyed the old government by  
their sedition1 they would preserve as  
much of order as is necessary for the   
support of their own usurpation4        
,sidenote3 ,french ambassador4  ,it is  
believed that this1 by far the worst    
party of the miscreants of ,france1 has 
received direct encouragement from the  
counsellors who betray the ,emperor4    
,thus strengthened by the possession of 
the captive king1 7now captive in his   
mind as well as in body17 and by a good 
hope of the ,emperor1 they intend to    
send their ministers to every court in  

,europe1--having sent before them such a
 denunciation of terror and superiority 
to every nation without exception as has
 no example in the diplomatic world4    
,hitherto the ministers to foreign      
courts had been of the appointment of   
the sovereign of ,france previous to the
 ,revolution2 and1 either from          
inclination1 duty1 or decorum1 most of  
them were contented with a merely       
passive obedience to the new power4 ,at 
present1 the king1 being entirely in the
 hands of his jailors1 and his mind     
broken to his situation1 can send none  
but the enthusiasts of the system1--men 
framed by the secret committee of the   
,feuillants1 who meet in the house of   
,madame de ,stal1 ,m4 ,necker's         
daughter4 ,such is every man whom they  
have talked of sending hither4 ,these   
ministers will be so many spies and     
incendiaries1 so many active emissaries 
of democracy4 ,their houses will become 
places of rendezvous here1 as everywhere
 else1 and centres of cabal for whatever

 is mischievous and malignant in this   
country1 particularly among those of    
rank and fashion4 ,as the minister of   
the ,national ,assembly will be admitted
 at this court1 at least with his usual 
rank1 and as entertainments will be     
naturally given and received by the     
king's own ministers1 any attempt to    
discountenance the resort of other      
people to that minister would be        
ineffectual1 and indeed absurd1 and full
 of contradiction4 ,the women who come  
with these ambassadors will assist in   
fomenting factions amongst ours1 which  
cannot fail of extending the evil4 ,some
 of them ,i hear are already arrived4   
,there is no doubt they will do as much 
mischief as they can4  ,sidenote3       
,connection of clubs4  ,whilst the      
public ministers are received under the 
general law of the communication between
 nations1 the correspondences between   
the factious clubs in ,france and ours  
will be1 as they now are1 kept up2 but  
this pretended embassy will be a closer1

 more steady1 and more effectual link   
between the partisans of the new system 
on both sides of the water4 ,i do not   
mean that these ,anglo-,gallic clubs in 
,london1 ,manchester1 c41 are not       
dangerous in a high degree4 ,the        
appointment of festive anniversaries has
 ever in the sense of mankind been held 
the best method of keeping alive the    
spirit of any institution4 ,we have one 
settled in ,london2 and at the last of  
them1 that of the #adth of ,july1 the   
strong discountenance of government1 the
 unfavorable time of the year1 and the  
then uncertainty of the disposition of  
foreign powers1 did not hinder the      
meeting of at least nine hundred people1
 with good coats on their backs1 who    
could afford to pay half a guinea a head
 to show their zeal for the new         
principles4 ,they were with great       
difficulty1 and all possible address1   
hindered from inviting the ,french      
ambassador4 ,his real indisposition1    
besides the fear of offending any party1

 sent him out of town4 ,but when our    
court shall have recognized a government
 in ,france founded on the principles   
announced in ,montmorin's letter1 how   
can the ,french ambassador be frowned   
upon for an attendance on those meetings
 wherein the establishment of the       
government he represents is celebrated8 
,an event happened a few days ago1 which
 in many particulars was very           
ridiculous2 yet1 even from the ridicule 
and absurdity of the proceedings1 it    
marks the more strongly the spirit of   
the ,french ,assembly3 ,i mean the      
reception they have given to the ,frith 
,street ,alliance4 ,this1 though the    
delirium of a low1 drunken alehouse     
club1 they have publicly announced as a 
formal alliance with the people of      
,england1 as such ordered it to be      
presented to their king1 and to be      
published in every province in ,france4 
,this leads1 more directly and with much
 greater force than any proceeding with 
a regular and rational appearance1 to   

two very material considerations4       
,first1 it shows that they are of       
opinion that the current opinions of the
 ,english have the greatest influence on
 the minds of the people in ,france1 and
 indeed of all the people in ,europe1   
since they catch with such astonishing  
eagerness at every the most trifling    
show of such opinions in their favor4   
,next1 and what appears to me to be full
 as important1 it shows that they are   
willing publicly to countenance1 and    
even to adopt1 every factious conspiracy
 that can be formed in this nation1     
however low and base in itself1 in order
 to excite in the most miserable        
wretches here an idea of their own      
sovereign importance1 and to encourage  
them to look up to ,france1 whenever    
they may be matured into something of   
more force1 for assistance in the       
subversion of their domestic government4
 ,this address of the alehouse club was 
actually proposed and accepted by the   
,assembly as an alliance4 ,the procedure

 was in my opinion a high misdemeanor in
 those who acted thus in ,england1 if   
they were not so very low and so very   
base that no acts of theirs can be      
called high1 even as a description of   
criminality2 and the ,assembly1 in      
accepting1 proclaiming1 and publishing  
this forged alliance1 has been guilty of
 a plain aggression1 which would justify
 our court in demanding a direct        
disavowal1 if our policy should not lead
 us to wink at it4  ,whilst ,i look over
 this paper to have it copied1 ,i see a 
manifesto of the ,assembly1 as a        
preliminary to a declaration of war     
against the ,german princes on the      
,rhine4 ,this manifesto contains the    
whole substance of the ,french politics 
with regard to foreign states4 ,they    
have ordered it to be circulated amongst
 the people in every country of         
,europe1--even previously to its        
acceptance by the king1 and his new     
privy council1 the club of the          
,feuillants4 ,therefore1 as a summary of

 their policy avowed by themselves1 let 
us consider some of the circumstances   
attending that piece1 as well as the    
spirit and temper of the piece itself4  
,sidenote3 ,declaration against the     
,emperor4  ,it was preceded by a speech 
from ,brissot1 full of unexampled       
insolence towards all the sovereign     
states of ,germany1 if not of ,europe4  
,the ,assembly1 to express their        
satisfaction in the sentiments which it 
contained1 ordered it to be printed4    
,this ,brissot had been in the lowest   
and basest employ under the deposed     
monarchy1--a sort of thief-taker1 or spy
 of police1--in which character he acted
 after the manner of persons in that    
description4 ,he had been employed by   
his master1 the ,lieutenant de ,police1 
for a considerable time in ,london1 in  
the same or some such honorable         
occupation4 ,the ,revolution1 which has 
brought forward all merit of that kind1 
raised him1 with others of a similar    
class and disposition1 to fame and      

eminence4 ,on the ,revolution he became 
a publisher of an infamous newspaper1   
which he still continues4 ,he is        
charged1 and ,i believe justly1 as the  
first mover of the troubles in          
,hispaniola4 ,there is no wickedness1 if
 ,i am rightly informed1 in which he is 
not versed1 and of which he is not      
perfectly capable4 ,his quality of      
news-writer1 now an employment of the   
first dignity in ,france1 and his       
practices and principles1 procured his  
election into the ,assembly1 where he is
 one of the leading members4 ,m4        
,condorcet produced on the same day a   
draught of a declaration to the king1   
which the ,assembly published before it 
was presented4  ,condorcet 7though no   
marquis1 as he styled himself before the
 ,revolution7 is a man of another sort  
of birth1 fashion1 and occupation from  
,brissot1--but in every principle1 and  
every disposition to the lowest as well 
as the highest and most determined      
villanies1 fully his equal4 ,he seconds 

,brissot in the ,assembly1 and is at    
once his coadjutor and his rival in a   
newspaper1 which1 in his own name1 and  
as successor to ,m4 ,garat1 a member    
also of the ,assembly1 he has just set  
up in that empire of gazettes4          
,condorcet was chosen to draw the first 
declaration presented by the ,assembly  
to the king1 as a threat to the ,elector
 of ,treves1 and the other princes on   
the ,rhine4 ,in that piece1 in which    
both ,feuillants and ,jacobins          
concurred1 they declared publicly1 and  
most proudly and insolently1 the        
principle on which they mean to proceed 
in their future disputes with any of the
 sovereigns of ,europe2 for they say1   
that it is not with fire and sword they 
mean to attack their territories1 but by
 what will be more dreadful to them1 the
 introduction of liberty4--,i have not  
the paper by me1 to give the exact      
words1 but ,i believe they are nearly as
 ,i state them4--,dreadful1 indeed1 will
 be their hostility1 if they should be  

able to carry it on according to the    
example of their modes of introducing   
liberty4 ,they have shown a perfect     
model of their whole design1 very       
complete1 though in little4 ,this gang  
of murderers and savages have wholly    
laid waste and utterly ruined the       
beautiful and happy country of the      
,comtat ,venaissin and the city of      
,avignon4 ,this cruel and treacherous   
outrage the sovereigns of ,europe1 in my
 opinion1 with a great mistake of their 
honor and interest1 have permitted1 even
 without a remonstrance1 to be carried  
to the desired point1 on the principles 
on which they are now themselves        
threatened in their own states2 and     
this1 because1 according to the poor and
 narrow spirit now in fashion1 their    
brother sovereign1 whose subjects have  
been thus traitorously and inhumanly    
treated in violation of the law of      
,nature and of nations1 has a name      
somewhat different from theirs1 and1    
instead of being styled ,king1 or ,duke1

 or ,landgrave1 is usually called ,pope4
  ,sidenote3 ,state of the ,empire4     
,the ,electors of ,treves and ,mentz    
were frightened with the menace of a    
similar mode of war4 ,the ,assembly1    
however1 not thinking that the ,electors
 of ,treves and ,mentz had done enough  
under their first terror1 have again    
brought forward ,condorcet1 preceded by 
,brissot1 as ,i have just stated4 ,the  
declaration1 which they have ordered now
 to be circulated in all countries1 is  
in substance the same as the first1 but 
still more insolent1 because more full  
of detail4 ,there they have the         
impudence to state that they aim at no  
conquest3 insinuating that all the old1 
lawful powers of the world had each made
 a constant1 open profession of a design
 of subduing his neighbors4 ,they add1  
that1 if they are provoked1 their war   
will be directed only against those who 
assume to be masters2 but to the people 
they will bring peace1 law1 liberty1 c1 
c4 ,there is not the least hint that    

they consider those whom they call      
persons assuming to be matters to be the
 lawful government of their country1 or 
persons to be treated with the least    
management or respect4 ,they regard them
 as usurpers and enslavers of the       
people4 ,if ,i do not mistake1 they are 
described by the name of tyrants in     
,condorcet's first draught4 ,i am sure  
they are so in ,brissot's speech1       
ordered by the ,assembly to be printed  
at the same time and for the same       
purposes4 ,the whole is in the same     
strain1 full of false philosophy and    
false rhetoric1--both1 however1         
calculated to captivate and influence   
the vulgar mind1 and to excite sedition 
in the countries in which it is ordered 
to be circulated4 ,indeed1 it is such1  
that1 if any of the lawful1 acknowledged
 sovereigns of ,europe had publicly     
ordered such a manifesto to be          
circulated in the dominions of another1 
the ambassador of that power would      
instantly be ordered to quit every court

 without an audience4  ,sidenote3       
,effect of fear on the sovereign powers4
  ,the powers of ,europe have a pretext 
for concealing their fears1 by saying   
that this language is not used by the   
king2 though they well know that there  
is in effect no such person1--that the  
,assembly is in reality1 and by that    
king is acknowledged to be1 the         
master1--that what he does is but matter
 of formality1--and that he can neither 
cause nor hinder1 accelerate nor retard1
 any measure whatsoever1 nor add to nor 
soften the manifesto which the ,assembly
 has directed to be published1 with the 
declared purpose of exciting mutiny and 
rebellion in the several countries      
governed by these powers4 ,by the       
generality also of the menaces contained
 in this paper1 7though infinitely      
aggravating the outrage17 they hope to  
remove from each power separately the   
idea of a distinct affront4 ,the persons
 first pointed at by the menace are     
certainly the princes of ,germany1 who  

harbor the persecuted ,house of ,bourbon
 and the nobility of ,france2 the       
declaration1 however1 is general1 and   
goes to every state with which they may 
have a cause of quarrel4 ,but the terror
 of ,france has fallen upon all nations4
 ,a few months since all sovereigns     
seemed disposed to unite against her2 at
 present they all seem to combine in her
 favor4 ,at no period has the power of  
,france ever appeared with so formidable
 an aspect4 ,in particular the liberties
 of the ,empire can have nothing more   
than an existence the most tottering and
 precarious1 whilst ,france exists with 
a great power of fomenting rebellion1   
and the greatest in the weakest1--but   
with neither power nor disposition to   
support the smaller states in their     
independence against the attempts of the
 more powerful4  ,i wind up all in a    
full conviction within my own breast1   
and the substance of which ,i must      
repeat over and over again1 that the    
state of ,france is the first           

consideration in the politics of        
,europe1 and of each state1 externally  
as well as internally considered4  ,most
 of the topics ,i have used are drawn   
from fear and apprehension4 ,topics     
derived from fear or addressed to it    
are1 ,i well know1 of doubtful          
appearance4 ,to be sure1 hope is in     
general the incitement to action4 ,alarm
 some men1--you do not drive them to    
provide for their security2 you put them
 to a stand2 you induce them1 not to    
take measures to prevent the approach of
 danger1 but to remove so unpleasant an 
idea from their minds2 you persuade them
 to remain as they are1 from a new fear 
that their activity may bring on the    
apprehended mischief before its time4 ,i
 confess freely that this evil sometimes
 happens from an overdone precaution2   
but it is when the measures are rash1   
ill-chosen1 or ill-combined1 and the    
effects rather of blind terror than of  
enlightened foresight4 ,but the few to  
whom ,i wish to submit my thoughts are  

of a character which will enable them to
 see danger without astonishment1 and to
 provide against it without perplexity4 
,to what lengths this method of         
circulating mutinous manifestoes1 and of
 keeping emissaries of sedition in every
 court under the name of ambassadors1 to
 propagate the same principles and to   
follow the practices1 will go1 and how  
soon they will operate1 it is hard to   
say2 but go on it will1 more or less    
rapidly1 according to events1 and to the
 humor of the time4 ,the princes menaced
 with the revolt of their subjects1 at  
the same time that they have            
obsequiously obeyed the sovereign       
mandate of the new ,roman senate1 have  
received with distinction1 in a public  
character1 ambassadors from those who in
 the same act had circulated the        
manifesto of sedition in their          
dominions4 ,this was the only thing     
wanting to the degradation and disgrace 
of the ,germanic body4  ,the ambassadors
 from the rights of man1 and their      

admission into the diplomatic system1 ,i
 hold to be a new era in this business4 
,it will be the most important step yet 
taken to affect the existence of        
sovereigns1 and the higher classes of   
life3 ,i do not mean to exclude its     
effects upon all classes2 but the first 
blow is aimed at the more prominent     
parts in the ancient order of things4   
,what is to be done8  ,it would be      
presumption in me to do more than to    
make a case4 ,many things occur4 ,but as
 they1 like all political measures1     
depend on dispositions1 tempers1 means1 
and external circumstances1 for all     
their effect1 not being well assured of 
these1 ,i do not know how to let loose  
any speculations of mine on the subject4
 ,the evil is stated1 in my opinion1 as 
it exists4 ,the remedy must be where    
power1 wisdom1 and information1 ,i hope1
 are more united with good intentions   
than they can be with me4 ,i have done  
with this subject1 ,i believe1 forever4 
,it has given me many anxious moments   

for the two last years4 ,if a great     
change is to be made in human affairs1  
the minds of men will be fitted to it1  
the general opinions and feelings will  
draw that way4 ,every fear1 every hope1 
will forward it2 and then they who      
persist in opposing this mighty current 
in human affairs will appear rather to  
resist the decrees of ,providence itself
 than the mere designs of men4 ,they    
will not be resolute and firm1 but      
perverse and obstinate4  ,,footnotes3   
#cj ,see ,vattel1 ,b4 ,,ii4 c4 #d1 sect 
#ef1 and ,b4 ,,iii4 c #ah1 sect4 #bif4  
#ca ,originally called the ,bengal      
,club2 but since opened to persons from 
the other ,presidencies1 for the purpose
 of consolidating the whole ,indian     
interest4  #cb ,until now1 they the     
,national ,assembly have prejudged      
nothing4 ,reserving to themselves a     
right to appoint a preceptor to the     
,dauphin1 they did not declare that this
 child was to reign1 but only that      
possibly the ,constitution might destine

 him to it3 they willed1 that1 while    
education should efface from his mind   
all the prejudices arising from the     
delusions of the throne respecting his  
pretended birthright1 it should also    
teach him not to forget that it is from 
the people he is to receive the title of
 ,king1 and that the people do not even 
possess the right of giving up their    
power to take it from him4  ,they willed
 that this education should render him  
worthy1 by his knowledge and by his     
virtues1 both to receive with submission
 the dangerous burden of a crown1 and to
 resign it with pleasure into the hands 
of his brethren2 that he should be      
conscious that the hastening of that    
moment when he is to be only a common   
citizen constitutes the duty and the    
glory of a king of a free people4  ,they
 willed that the uselessness of a king1 
the necessity of seeking means to       
establish something in lieu of a power  
founded on illusions1 should be one of  
the first truths offered to his reason2 

the obligation of conforming himself to 
this1 the first of his moral duties2 and
 the desire of no longer being freed    
from the yoke of the law by an injurious
 inviolability1 the first and chief     
sentiment of his heart4 ,they are not   
ignorant that in the present moment the 
object is less to form a king than to   
teach him that he should know how to    
wish no longer to be such4     ,,heads  
,,for ,,consideration  ,,on ,,the       
,,present ,,state ,,of ,,affairs4       
,,written ,,in ,,november1 #agib4       
,that ,france by its mere geographical  
position1 independently of every other  
circumstance1 must affect every state of
 ,europe3 some of them immediately1 all 
of them through mediums not very remote4
  ,that the standing policy of this     
kingdom ever has been to watch over the 
external proceedings of ,france1        
7whatever form the interior government  
of that kingdom might take17 and to     
prevent the extension of its dominion or
 its ruling influence over other states4

  ,that there is nothing in the present 
internal state of things in ,france     
which alters the national policy with   
regard to the exterior relations of that
 country4  ,that there are1 on the      
contrary1 many things in the internal   
circumstances of ,france 7and perhaps of
 this country1 too7 which tend to       
fortify the principles of that          
fundamental policy1 and which render the
 active assertion of those principles   
more pressing at this than at any former
 time4  ,that1 by a change effected in  
about three weeks1 ,france has been able
 to penetrate into the heart of         
,germany1 to make an absolute conquest  
of ,savoy1 to menace an immediate       
invasion of the ,netherlands1 and to awe
 and overbear the whole ,helvetic body1 
which is in a most perilous situation3  
the great aristocratic ,cantons having1 
perhaps1 as much or more to dread from  
their own people1 whom they arm1 but do 
not choose or dare to employ1 as from   
the foreign enemy1 which against all    

public faith has butchered their troops 
serving by treaty in ,france4 ,to this  
picture it is hardly necessary to add   
the means by which ,prance has been     
enabled to effect all this1--namely1 the
 apparently entire destruction of one of
 the largest and certainly the highest  
disciplined and best appointed army ever
 seen1 headed by the first military     
sovereign in ,europe1 with a captain    
under him of the greatest renown2 and   
that without a blow given or received on
 any side4 ,this state of things seems  
to me1 even if it went no further1 truly
 serious4  ,circumstances have enabled  
,france to do all this by land4 ,on the 
other element she has begun to exert    
herself2 and she must succeed in her    
designs1 if enemies very different from 
those she has hitherto had to encounter 
do not resist her4  ,she has fitted out 
a naval force1 now actually at sea1 by  
which she is enabled to give law to the 
whole ,mediterranean4 ,it is known as a 
fact1 7and if not so known1 it is in the

 nature of things highly probable17 that
 she proposes the ravage of the         
,ecclesiastical ,state and the pillage  
of ,rome1 as her first object2 that nest
 she means to bombard ,naples1--to awe1 
to humble1 and thus to command1 all     
,italy1--to force it to a nominal       
neutrality1 but to a real               
dependence1--to compel the ,italian     
princes and republics to admit the free 
entrance of the ,french commerce1 an    
open intercourse1 and1 the sure         
concomitant of that intercourse1 the    
affiliated societies1 in a manner       
similar to those she has established at 
,avignon1 the ,comtat1 ,chambry1        
,london1 ,manchester1 c1 c41 which are  
so many colonies planted in all these   
countries1 for extending the influence  
and securing the dominion of the ,french
 republic4  ,that there never has been  
hitherto a period in which this kingdom 
would have suffered a ,french fleet to  
domineer in the ,mediterranean1 and to  
force ,italy to submit to such terms as 

,france would think fit to impose1--to  
say nothing of what has been done upon  
land in support of the same system4 ,the
 great object for which we preserved    
,minorca1 whilst we could keep it1 and  
for which we still retain ,gibraltar1   
both at a great expense1 was1 and is1 to
 prevent the predominance of ,france    
over the ,mediterranean4  ,thus far as  
to the certain and immediate effect of  
that armament upon the ,italian ,states4
 ,the probable effect which that        
armament1 and the other armaments       
preparing at ,toulon and other ports1   
may have upon ,spain1 on the side of the
 ,mediterranean1 is worthy of the       
serious attention of the ,british       
councils4  ,that it is most probable1 we
 may say in a manner certain1 that1 if  
there should be a rupture between       
,france and ,spain1 ,france will not    
confine her offensive piratical         
operations against ,spain to her efforts
 in the ,mediterranean2 on which side1  
however1 she may grievously affect      

,spain1 especially if she excites       
,morocco and ,algiers1 which undoubtedly
 she will1 to fall upon that power4     
,that she will fit out armaments upon   
the ocean1 by which the flota itself may
 be intercepted1 and thus the treasures 
of all ,europe1 as well as the largest  
and surest resources of the ,spanish    
monarchy1 may be conveyed into ,france1 
and become powerful instruments for the 
annoyance of all her neighbors4  ,that  
she makes no secret of her designs4     
,that1 if the inward and outward bound  
flota should escape1 still ,france has  
more and better means of dissevering    
many of the provinces in the ,west and  
,east ,indies from the state of ,spain  
than ,holland had1 when she succeeded in
 the same attempt4 ,the ,french marine  
resembles not a little the old armaments
 of the ,flibustiers1 which about a     
century back1 in conjunction with       
pirates of our nation1 brought such     
calamities upon the ,spanish colonies4  
,they differ only in this1--that the    

present piratical force is out of all   
measure and comparison greater3 one     
hundred and fifty ships of the line and 
frigates being ready-built1 most of them
 in a manner new1 and all applicable in 
different ways to that service4         
,privateers and ,moorish corsairs       
possess not the best seamanship1 and    
very little discipline1 and indeed can  
make no figure in regular service2 but  
in desperate adventures1 and animated   
with a lust of plunder1 they are truly  
formidable4  ,that the land forces of   
,france are well adapted to concur with 
their marine in conjunct expeditions of 
this nature4 ,in such expeditions1      
enterprise supplies the want of         
discipline1 and perhaps more than       
supplies it4 ,both for this1 and for    
other service1 7however contemptible    
their military is in other respects17   
one arm is extremely good1 the          
engineering and artillery branch4 ,the  
old officer corps in both being composed
 for the greater part of those who were 

not gentlemen1 or gentlemen newly such1 
few have abandoned the service1 and the 
men are veterans1 well enough           
disciplined1 and very expert4 ,in this  
piratical way they must make war with   
good advantage4 ,they must do so1 even  
on the side of ,flanders1 either        
offensively or defensively4 ,this shows 
the difference between the policy of    
,louis the ,fourteenth1 who built a wall
 of brass about his kingdom1 and that of
 ,joseph the ,second1 who premeditatedly
 uncovered his whole frontier4  ,that   
,spain1 from the actual and expected    
prevalence of ,french power1 is in a    
most perilous situation1--perfectly     
dependent on the mercy of that republic4
 ,if ,austria is broken1 or even        
humbled1 she will not dare to dispute   
its mandates4  ,in the present state of 
things1 we have nothing at all to dread 
from the power of ,spain by sea or by   
land1 or from any rivalry in commerce4  
,that we have much to dread from the    
connections into which ,spain may be    

forced4  ,from the circumstances of her 
territorial possessions1 of her         
resources1 and the whole of her civil   
and political state1 we may be          
authorized safely and with undoubted    
confidence to affirm that  ,spain is not
 a substantive power4  ,that she must   
lean on ,france or on ,england4  ,that  
it is as much for the interest of ,great
 ,britain to prevent the predominancy of
 a ,french interest in that kingdom as  
if ,spain were a province of the crown  
of ,great ,britain1 or a state actually 
dependent on it1--full as much so as    
ever ,portugal was reputed to be4 ,this 
is a dependency of much greater value2  
and its destruction1 or its being       
carried to any other dependency1 of much
 more serious misfortune4  ,one of these
 two things must happen3 either ,spain  
must submit to circumstances and take   
such conditions as ,france will impose1 
or she must engage in hostilities along 
with the ,emperor and the king of       
,sardinia4  ,if ,spain should be forced 

or awed into a treaty with the republic 
of ,france1 she must open her ports and 
her commerce1 as well as the land       
communication for the ,french laborers1 
who were accustomed annually to gather  
in the harvest in ,spain4 ,indeed1 she  
must grant a free communication for     
travellers and traders through her whole
 country4 ,in that case it is not       
conjectural1 it is certain1 the clubs   
will give law in the provinces2         
,bourgoing1 or some such miscreant1 will
 give law at ,madrid4  ,in this ,england
 may acquiesce1 if she pleases2 and     
,france will conclude a triumphant peace
 with ,spain under her absolute         
dependence1 with a broad highway into   
that1 and into every state of ,europe4  
,she actually invites ,great ,britain to
 divide with her the spoils of the ,new 
,world1 and to make a partition of the  
,spanish monarchy4 ,clearly1 it is      
better to do so than to suffer ,france  
to possess those spoils and that        
territory alone2 which1 without doubt1  

unresisted by us1 she is altogether as  
able as she is willing to do4  ,this    
plan is proposed by the ,french in the  
way in which they propose all their     
plans1--and in the only way in which1   
indeed1 they can propose them1 where    
there is no regular communication       
between his ,majesty and their republic4
  ,what they propose is a plan4 ,it is a
 plan also to resist their predatory    
project4 ,to remain quiet1 and to suffer
 them to make their own use of a naval  
power before our face1 so as to awe and 
bully ,spain into a submissive peace1 or
 to drive them into a ruinous war1      
without any measure on our part1 ,i fear
 is no plan at all4  ,however1 if the   
plan of coperation which ,france        
desires1 and which her affiliated       
societies here ardently wish and are    
constantly writing up1 should not be    
adopted1 and the war between the        
,emperor and ,france should continue1 ,i
 think it not at all likely that ,spain 
should not be drawn into the quarrel4   

,in that case1 the neutrality of        
,england will be a thing absolutely     
impossible4 ,the time only is the       
subject of deliberation4  ,then the     
question will be1 whether we are to     
defer putting ourselves into a posture  
for the common defence1 either by       
armament1 or negotiation1 or both1 until
 ,spain is actually attacked1--that is1 
whether our court will take a decided   
part for ,spain1 whilst ,spain1 on her  
side1 is yet in a condition to act with 
whatever degree of vigor she may have1  
whilst that vigor is yet                
unexhausted1--or whether we shall       
connect ourselves with her broken       
fortunes1 after she shall have received 
material blows1 and when we shall have  
the whole slow length of that always    
unwieldy and ill-constructed1 and then  
wounded and crippled body1 to drag after
 us1 rather than to aid us4 ,whilst our 
disposition is uncertain1 ,spain will   
not dare to put herself in such a state 
of defence as will make her hostility   

formidable or her neutrality            
respectable4  ,if the decision is such  
as the solution of this question 7,i    
take it to be the true question7        
conducts to1 no time is to be lost4 ,but
 the measures1 though prompt1 ought not 
to be rash and indigested4 ,they ought  
to be well chosen1 well combined1 and   
well pursued4 ,the system must be       
general2 but it must be executed1 not   
successively1 or with interruption1 but 
all together1 uno flatu1 in one melting1
 and one mould4  ,for this purpose we   
must put ,europe before us1 which       
plainly is1 just now1 in all its parts1 
in a state of dismay1 derangement1 and  
confusion1 and1 very possibly amongst   
all its sovereigns1 full of secret      
heartburning1 distrust1 and mutual      
accusation4 ,perhaps it may labor under 
worse evils4 ,there is no vigor         
anywhere1 except the distempered vigor  
and energy of ,france4 ,that country has
 but too much life in it1 when          
everything around is so disposed to     

tameness and languor4 ,the very vices of
 the ,french system at home tend to give
 force to foreign exertions4 ,the       
generals must join the armies4 ,they    
must lead them to enterprise1 or they   
are likely to perish by their hands4    
,thus1 without law or government of her 
own1 ,france gives law to all the       
governments in ,europe4  ,this great    
mass of political matter must have been 
always under the view of thinkers for   
the public1 whether they act in office  
or not4 ,amongst events1 even the late  
calamitous events were in the book of   
contingency4 ,of course they must have  
been in design1 at least1 provided for4 
,a plan which takes in as many as       
possible of the states concerned will   
rather tend to facilitate and simplify a
 rational scheme for preserving ,spain  
7if that were our sole1 as ,i think it  
ought to be our principal object7 than  
to delay and perplex it4  ,if we should 
think that a provident policy 7perhaps  
now more than provident1 urgent and     

necessary7 should lead us to act1 we    
cannot take measures as if nothing had  
been done4 ,we must see the faults1 if  
any1 which have conducted to the present
 misfortunes3 not for the sake of       
criticism1 military or political1 or    
from the common motives of blaming      
persons and counsels which have not been
 successful1 but in order1 if we can1 to
 administer some remedy to these        
disasters1 by the adoption of plans more
 bottomed in principle1 and built on    
with more discretion4 ,mistakes may be  
lessons4  ,there seem1 indeed1 to have  
been several mistakes in the political  
principles on which the war was entered 
into1 as well as in the plans upon which
 it was conducted1--some of them very   
fundamental1 and not only visibly1 but  
,i may say palpably erroneous2 and ,i   
think him to have less than the         
discernment of a very ordinary          
statesman1 who could not foresee1 from  
the very beginning1 unpleasant          
consequences from those plans1 though   

not the unparalleled disgraces and      
disasters which really did attend them3 
for they were1 both principles and      
measures1 wholly new and out of the     
common course1 without anything         
apparently very grand in the conception 
to justify this total departure from all
 rule4  ,for1 in the first place1 the   
united sovereigns very much injured     
their cause by admitting that they had  
nothing to do with the interior         
arrangements of ,france1--in            
contradiction to the whole tenor of the 
public law of ,europe1 and to the       
correspondent practice of all its       
states1 from the time we have any       
history of them4 ,in this particular1   
the two ,german courts seem to have as  
little consulted the publicists of      
,germany as their own true interests1   
and those of all the sovereigns of      
,germany and ,europe4 ,this admission of
 a false principle in the law of nations
 brought them into an apparent          
contradiction1 when they insisted on the

 restablishment of the royal authority  
in ,france4 ,but this confused and      
contradictory proceeding gave rise to a 
practical error of worse consequence4   
,it was derived from one and the same   
root3 namely1 that the person of the    
monarch of ,france was everything2 and  
the monarchy1 and the intermediate      
orders of the state1 by which the       
monarchy was upheld1 were nothing4 ,so  
that1 if the united potentates had      
succeeded so far as to restablish the   
authority of that king1 and that he     
should be so ill-advised as to confirm  
all the confiscations1 and to recognize 
as a lawful body and to class himself   
with that rabble of murderers1 7and     
there wanted not persons who would so   
have advised him17 there was nothing in 
the principle or in the proceeding of   
the united powers to prevent such an    
arrangement4  ,an expedition to free a  
brother sovereign from prison was       
undoubtedly a generous and chivalrous   
undertaking4 ,but the spirit and        

generosity would not have been less1 if 
the policy had been more profound and   
more comprehensive1--that is1 if it had 
taken in those considerations and those 
persons by whom1 and1 in some measure1  
for whom1 monarchy exists4 ,this would  
become a bottom for a system of solid   
and permanent policy1 and of operations 
conformable to that system4  ,the same  
fruitful error was the cause why nothing
 was done to impress the people of      
,france 7so far as we can at all        
consider the inhabitants of ,france as a
 people7 with an idea that the          
government was ever to be really        
,french1 or indeed anything else than   
the nominal government of a monarch1 a  
monarch absolute as over them1 but whose
 sole support was to arise from foreign 
potentates1 and who was to be kept on   
his throne by ,german forces1--in short1
 that the king of ,france was to be a   
viceroy to the ,emperor and the king of 
,prussia4  ,it was the first time that  
foreign powers1 interfering in the      

concerns of a nation divided into       
parties1 have thought proper to thrust  
wholly out of their councils1 to        
postpone1 to discountenance1 to reject1 
and1 in a manner1 to disgrace1 the party
 whom those powers came to support4 ,the
 single person of a king cannot be a    
party4 ,woe to the king who is himself  
his party6 ,the royal party1 with the   
king or his representatives at its head1
 is the royal cause4 ,foreign powers    
have hitherto chosen to give to such    
wars as this the appearance of a civil  
contest1 and not that of an hostile     
invasion4 ,when the ,spaniards1 in the  
sixteenth century1 sent aids to the     
chiefs of the ,league1 they appeared as 
allies to that league1 and to the       
imprisoned king 7the ,cardinal de       
,bourbon7 which that league had set up4 
,when the ,germans came to the aid of   
the ,protestant princes1 in the same    
series of civil wars1 they came as      
allies4 ,when the ,english came to the  
aid of ,henry the ,fourth1 they appeared

 as allies to that prince4 ,so did the  
,french always1 when they intermeddled  
in the affairs of ,germany3 they came to
 aid a party there4 ,when the ,english  
and ,dutch intermeddled in the          
succession of ,spain1 they appeared as  
allies to the ,emperor1 ,charles the    
,sixth4 ,in short1 the policy has been  
as uniform as its principles were       
obvious to an ordinary eye4  ,according 
to all the old principles of law and    
policy1 a regency ought to have been    
appointed by the ,french princes of the 
blood1 nobles1 and parliaments1 and then
 recognized by the combined powers4     
,fundamental law and ancient usage1 as  
well as the clear reason of the thing1  
have always ordained it during an       
imprisonment of the king of ,france3 as 
in the case of ,john1 and of ,francis   
the ,first4 ,a monarchy ought not to be 
left a moment without a representative  
having an interest in the succession4   
,the orders of the state ought also to  
have been recognized in those amongst   

whom alone they existed in freedom1 that
 is1 in the emigrants4  ,thus1 laying   
down a firm foundation on the           
recognition of the authorities of the   
kingdom of ,france1 according to ,nature
 and to its fundamental laws1 and not   
according to the novel and inconsiderate
 principles of the usurpation which the 
united powers were come to extirpate1   
the king of ,prussia and the ,emperor1  
as allies of the ancient kingdom of     
,france1 would have proceeded with      
dignity1 first1 to free the monarch1 if 
possible1--if not1 to secure the        
monarchy as principal in the design2 and
 in order to avoid all risks to that    
great object1 7the object of other ages 
than the present1 and of other countries
 than that of ,france17 they would of   
course avoid proceeding with more haste 
or in a different manner than what the  
nature of such an object required4      
,adopting this1 the only rational       
system1 the rational mode of proceeding 
upon it was to commence with an         

effective siege of ,lisle1 which the    
,french generals must have seen taken   
before their faces1 or be forced to     
fight4 ,a plentiful country of friends1 
from whence to draw supplies1 would have
 been behind them2 a plentiful country  
of enemies1 from whence to force        
supplies1 would have been before them4  
,good towns were always within reach to 
deposit their hospitals and magazines4  
,the march from ,lisle to ,paris is     
through a less defensible country1 and  
the distance is hardly so great as from 
,longwy to ,paris4  ,if the old politic 
and military ideas had governed1 the    
advanced guard would have been formed of
 those who best knew the country and had
 some interest in it1 supported by some 
of the best light troops and light      
artillery1 whilst the grand solid body  
of an army disciplined to perfection    
proceeded leisurely1 and in close       
connection with all its stores1         
provisions1 and heavy cannon1 to support
 the expedite body in case of           

misadventure1 or to improve and complete
 its success4  ,the direct contrary of  
all this was put in practice4 ,in       
consequence of the original sin of this 
project1 the army of the ,french princes
 was everywhere thrown into the rear1   
and no part of it brought forward to the
 last moment1 the time of the           
commencement of the secret negotiation4 
,this naturally made an ill impression  
on the people1 and furnished an occasion
 for the rebels at ,paris to give out   
that the faithful subjects of the king  
were distrusted1 despised1 and abhorred 
by his allies4 ,the march was directed  
through a skirt of ,lorraine1 and thence
 into a part of ,champagne1 the ,duke of
 ,brunswick leaving all the strongest   
places behind him1--leaving also behind 
him the strength of his artillery1--and 
by this means giving a superiority to   
the ,french1 in the only way in which   
the present ,france is able to oppose a 
,german force4  ,in consequence of the  
adoption of those false politics1 which 

turned everything on the king's sole and
 single person1 the whole plan of the   
war was reduced to nothing but a coup de
 main1 in order to set that prince at   
liberty4 ,if that failed1 everything was
 to be given up4  ,the scheme of a coup 
de main might 7under favorable          
circumstances7 be very fit for a        
partisan at the head of a light corps1  
by whose failure nothing material would 
be deranged4 ,but for a royal army of   
eighty thousand men1 headed by a king in
 person1 who was to march an hundred and
 fifty miles through an enemy's         
country1--surely1 this was a plan       
unheard of4  ,although this plan was not
 well chosen1 and proceeded upon        
principles altogether ill-judged and    
impolitic1 the superiority of the       
military force might in a great degree  
have supplied the defects1 and furnished
 a corrective to the mistakes4 ,the     
greater probability was1 that the ,duke 
of ,brunswick would make his way to     
,paris over the bellies of the rabble of

 drunkards1 robbers1 assassins1 rioters1
 mutineers1 and half-grown boys1 under  
the ill-obeyed command of a theatrical1 
vaporing1 reduced captain of cavalry1   
who opposed that great commander and    
great army4 ,but--,diis aliter visum4   
,he began to treat1--the winds blew and 
the rains beat1--the house fell1 because
 it was built upon sand1--and great was 
the fall thereof4 ,this march was not an
 exact copy of either of the two marches
 made by the ,duke of ,parma into       
,france4  ,there is some secret4        
,sickness and weather may defeat an army
 pursuing a wrong plan3 not that ,i     
believe the sickness to have been so    
great as it has been reported2 but there
 is a great deal of superfluous         
humiliation in this business1 a perfect 
prodigality of disgrace4 ,some          
advantage1 real or imaginary1 must      
compensate to a great sovereign and to a
 great general for so immense a loss of 
reputation4 ,longwy1 situated as it is1 
might 7one should think7 be evacuated   

without a capitulation with a republic  
just proclaimed by the king of ,prussia 
as an usurping and rebellious body4 ,he 
was not far from ,luxembourg4 ,he might 
have taken away the obnoxious ,french in
 his flight4 ,it does not appear to have
 been necessary that those magistrates  
who declared for their own king1 on the 
faith and under the immediate protection
 of the king of ,prussia1 should be     
delivered over to the gallows4 ,it was  
not necessary that the emigrant nobility
 and gentry who served with the king of 
,prussia's army1 under his immediate    
command1 should be excluded from the    
cartel1 and given up to be hanged as    
rebels4 ,never was so gross and so cruel
 a breach of the public faith1 not with 
an enemy1 but with a friend4 ,dumouriez 
has dropped very singular hints4        
,custine has spoken out more broadly4   
,these accounts have never been         
contradicted4 ,they tend to make an     
eternal rupture between the powers4 ,the
 ,french have given out1 that the ,duke 

of ,brunswick endeavored to negotiate   
some name and place for the captive     
king1 amongst the murderers and         
proscribers of those who have lost their
 all for his cause4 ,even this has not  
been denied4  ,it is singular1 and1     
indeed1 a thing1 under all its          
circumstances1 inconceivable1 that      
everything should by the ,emperor be    
abandoned to the king of ,prussia4 ,that
 monarch was considered as principal4   
,in the nature of things1 as well as in 
his position with regard to the war1 he 
was only an ally1 and a new ally1 with  
crossing interests in many particulars1 
and of a policy rather uncertain4 ,at   
best1 and supposing him to act with the 
greatest fidelity1 the ,emperor and the 
,empire to him must be but secondary    
objects4 ,countries out of ,germany must
 affect him in a still more remote      
manner4 ,france1 other than from the    
fear of its doctrinal principles1 can to
 him be no object at all4 ,accordingly1 
the ,rhine1 ,sardinia1 and the ,swiss   

are left to their fate4 ,the king of    
,prussia has no direct and immediate    
concern with ,france2 consequentially1  
to be sure1 a great deal3 but the       
,emperor touches ,france directly in    
many parts2 he is a near neighbor to    
,sardinia1 by his ,milanese territories2
 he borders on ,switzerland2 ,cologne1  
possessed by his uncle1 is between      
,mentz1 ,treves1 and the king of        
,prussia's territories on the ,lower    
,rhine4 ,the ,emperor is the natural    
guardian of ,italy and ,germany1--the   
natural balance against the ambition of 
,france1 whether republican or          
monarchical4 ,his ministers and his     
generals1 therefore1 ought to have had  
their full share in every material      
consultation1--which ,i suspect they had
 not4 ,if he has no minister capable of 
plans of policy which comprehend the    
superintendency of a war1 or no general 
with the least of a political head1     
things have been as they must be4       
,however1 in all the parts of this      

strange proceeding there must be a      
secret4  ,it is probably known to       
ministers4 ,i do not mean to penetrate  
into it4 ,my speculations on this head  
must be only conjectural4 ,if the king  
of ,prussia1 under the pretext or on the
 reality of some information relative to
 ill practice on the part of the court  
of ,vienna1 takes advantage of his being
 admitted into the heart of the         
,emperor's dominions in the character of
 an ally1 afterwards to join the common 
enemy1 and to enable ,france to seize   
the ,netherlands1 and to reduce and     
humble the ,empire1 ,i cannot conceive1 
upon every principle1 anything more     
alarming for this country1 separately1  
and as a part of the general system4    
,after all1 we may be looking in vain in
 the regions of politics for what is    
only the operation of temper and        
character upon accidental circumstances4
 ,but ,i never knew accidents to decide 
the whole of any great business2 and ,i 
never knew temper to act1 but that some 

system of politics agreeable to its     
peculiar spirit was blended with it1    
strengthened it1 and got strength from  
it4 ,therefore the politics can hardly  
be put out of the question4  ,great     
mistakes have been committed3 at least  
,i hope so4 ,if there have been none1   
the case in future is desperate4 ,i have
 endeavored to point out some of those  
which have occurred to me1 and most of  
them very early4  ,whatever may be the  
cause of the present state of things1 on
 a full and mature view and comparison  
of the historical matter1 of the        
transactions that have passed before our
 eyes1 and of the future prospect1 ,i   
think ,i am authorized to form an       
opinion without the least hesitation4   
,that there never was1 nor is1 nor ever 
will be1 nor ever can be1 the least     
rational hope of making an impression on
 ,france by any ,continental powers1 if 
,england is not a part1 is not the      
directing part1 is not the soul1 of the 
whole confederacy against it4  ,this1 so

 far as it is an anticipation of future1
 is grounded on the whole tenor of      
former history4 ,in speculation it is to
 be accounted for on two plain          
principles4  ,first1 ,that ,great       
,britain is likely to take a more fair  
and equal part in the alliance than the 
other powers1 as having less of crossing
 interest or perplexed discussion with  
any of them4  ,secondly1 ,because       
,france cannot have to deal with any of 
these ,continental sovereigns1 without  
their feeling that nation1 as a maritime
 power1 greatly superior to them all put
 together1--a force which is only to be 
kept in check by ,england4  ,england1   
except during the eccentric aberration  
of ,charles the ,second1 has always     
considered it as her duty and interest  
to take her place in such a confederacy4
 ,her chief disputes must ever be with  
,france2 and if ,england shows herself  
indifferent and unconcerned1 when these 
powers are combined against the         
enterprises of ,france1 she is to look  

with certainty for the same indifference
 on the part of these powers1 when she  
may be at war with that nation4 ,this   
will tend totally to disconnect this    
kingdom from the system of ,europe1 in  
which if she ought not rashly to meddle1
 she ought never wholly to withdraw     
herself from it4  ,if1 then1 ,england is
 put in motion1 whether by a            
consideration of the general safety1 or 
of the influence of ,france upon ,spain1
 or by the probable operations of this  
new system on the ,netherlands1 it must 
embrace in its project the whole as much
 as possible1 and the part it takes     
ought to be as much as possible a       
leading and presiding part4  ,i         
therefore beg leave to suggest1--       
,first1 ,that a minister should         
forthwith be sent to ,spain1 to         
encourage that court to persevere in the
 measures they have adopted against     
,france1--to make a close alliance and  
guaranty of possessions1 as against     
,france1 with that power1--and1 whilst  

the formality of the treaty is pending1 
to assure them of our protection1       
postponing any lesser disputes to       
another occasion4  ,secondly1 ,to assure
 the court of ,vienna of our desire to  
enter into our ancient connections with 
her1 and to support her effectually in  
the war which ,france has declared      
against her4  ,thirdly1 ,to animate the 
,swiss and the king of ,sardinia to take
 a part1 as the latter once did on the  
principles of the ,grand ,alliance4     
,fourthly1 ,to put an end to our        
disputes with ,russia1 and mutually to  
forget the past4 ,i believe1 if she is  
satisfied of this oblivion1 she will    
return to her old sentiments with regard
 to this court1 and will take a more    
forward part in this business than any  
other power4  ,fifthly1 ,if what has    
happened to the king of ,prussia is only
 in consequence of a sort of panic or of
 levity1 and an indisposition to        
persevere long in one design1 the       
support and concurrence of ,russia will 

tend to steady him1 and to give him     
resolution4 ,if he be ill-disposed1 with
 that power on his back1 and without one
 ally in ,europe1 ,i conceive he will   
not be easily led to derange the plan4  
,sixthly1 ,to use the joint influence of
 our court1 and of our then allied      
powers1 with ,holland1 to arm as fully  
as she can by sea1 and to make some     
addition by land4  ,seventhly1 ,to      
acknowledge the king of ,france's next  
brother 7assisted by such a council and 
such representatives of the kingdom of  
,france as shall be thought proper7     
regent of ,france1 and to send that     
prince a small supply of money1 arms1   
clothing1 and artillery4  ,eighthly1 ,to
 give force to these negotiations1 an   
instant naval armament ought to be      
adopted1--one squadron for the          
,mediterranean1 another for the         
,channel4 ,the season is                
convenient1--most of our trade being1 as
 ,i take it1 at home4  ,after speaking  
of a plan formed upon the ancient policy

 and practice of ,great ,britain and of 
,europe1 to which this is exactly       
conformable in every respect1 with no   
deviation whatsoever1 and which is1 ,i  
conceive1 much more strongly called for 
by the present circumstances than by any
 former1 ,i must take notice of another1
 which ,i hear1 but cannot persuade     
myself to believe1 is in agitation4     
,this plan is grounded upon the very    
same view of things which is here       
stated1--namely1 the danger to all      
sovereigns1 and old republics1 from the 
prevalence of ,french power and         
influence4  ,it is1 to form a congress  
of all the ,european powers for the     
purpose of a general defensive alliance1
 the objects of which should be1--      
,first1 ,the recognition of this new    
republic1 7which they well know is      
formed on the principles and for the    
declared purpose of the destruction of  
all kings17 and1 whenever the heads of  
this new republic shall consent to      
release the royal captives1 to make     

peace with them4  ,secondly1 ,to defend 
themselves with their joint forces      
against the open aggressions1 or the    
secret practices1 intrigues1 and        
writings1 which are used to propagate   
the ,french principles4  ,it is easy to 
discover from whose shop this commodity 
comes4 ,it is so perfectly absurd1 that1
 if that or anything like it meets with 
a serious entertainment in any cabinet1 
,i should think it the effect of what is
 called a judicial blindness1 the       
certain forerunner of the destruction of
 all crowns and kingdoms4  ,an offensive
 alliance1 in which union is preserved  
by common efforts in common dangers     
against a common active enemy1 may      
preserve its consistency1 and may       
produce for a given time some           
considerable effect3 though this is not 
easy1 and for any very long period can  
hardly be expected4 ,but a defensive    
alliance1 formed of long discordant     
interests1 with innumerable discussions 
existing1 having no one pointed object  

to which it is directed1 which is to be 
held together with an unremitted        
vigilance1 as watchful in peace as in   
war1 is so evidently impossible1 is such
 a chimera1 is so contrary to human     
nature and the course of human affairs1 
that ,i am persuaded no person in his   
senses1 except those whose country1     
religion1 and sovereign are deposited in
 the ,french funds1 could dream of it4  
,there is not the slightest petty       
boundary suit1 no difference between a  
family arrangement1 no sort of          
misunderstanding or cross purpose       
between the pride and etiquette of      
courts1 that would not entirely disjoint
 this sort of alliance1 and render it as
 futile in its effects as it is feeble  
in its principle4 ,but when we consider 
that the main drift of that defensive   
alliance must be to prevent the         
operation of intrigue1 mischievous      
doctrine1 and evil example1 in the      
success of unprovoked rebellion1        
regicide1 and systematic assassination  

and massacre1 the absurdity of such a   
scheme becomes quite lamentable4 ,open  
the communication with ,france1 and the 
rest follows of course4  ,how far the   
interior circumstances of this country  
support what is said with regard to its 
foreign polities must be left to bettor 
judgments4 ,i am sure the ,french       
faction here is infinitely strengthened 
by the success of the assassins on the  
other side of the water4 ,this evil in  
the heart of ,europe must be extirpated 
from that centre1 or no part of the     
circumference can be free from the      
mischief which radiates from it1 and    
which will spread1 circle beyond circle1
 in spite of all the little defensive   
precautions which can be employed       
against it4  ,i do not put my name to   
these hints submitted to the            
consideration of reflecting men4 ,it is 
of too little importance to suppose the 
name of the writer could add any weight 
to the state of things contained in this
 paper4 ,that state of things presses   

irresistibly on my judgment1 and it     
lies1 and has long lain1 with a heavy   
weight upon my mind4 ,i cannot think    
that what is done in ,france is         
beneficial to the human race4 ,if it    
were1 the ,english ,constitution ought  
no more to stand against it than the    
ancient ,constitution of the kingdom in 
which the new system prevails4 ,i       
thought it the duty of a man not        
unconcerned for the public1 and who is a
 faithful subject to the king1          
respectfully to submit this state of    
facts1 at this new step in the progress 
of the ,french arms and politics1 to his
 ,majesty1 to his confidential servants1
 and to those persons who1 though not in
 office1 by their birth1 their rank1    
their fortune1 their character1 and     
their reputation for wisdom1 seem to me 
to have a large stake in the stability  
of the ancient order of things4  ,,bath1
 ,november #e1 #agib4     ,,remarks     
,,on  ,,the ,,policy ,,of ,,the ,,allies
  ,,with ,,respect ,,to ,,france4       

,,begun ,,in ,,october1 #agic4     ,,on 
,,the ,,policy ,,of ,,the ,,allies4     
,as the proposed manifesto is1 ,i       
understand1 to promulgate to the world  
the general idea of a plan for the      
regulation of a great kingdom1 and      
through the regulation of that kingdom  
probably to decide the fate of ,europe  
forever1 nothing requires a more serious
 deliberation with regard to the time of
 making it1 the circumstances of those  
to whom it is addressed1 and the matter 
it is to contain4  ,as to the time1     
7with the due diffidence in my own      
opinion17 ,i have some doubts whether it
 is not rather unfavorable to the       
issuing any manifesto with regard to the
 intended government of ,france1 and for
 this reason3 that it is 7upon the      
principal point of our attack7 a time of
 calamity and defeat4 ,manifestoes of   
this nature are commonly made when the  
army of some sovereign enters into the  
enemy's country in great force1 and     
under the imposing authority of that    

force employs menaces towards those whom
 he desires to awe1 and makes promises  
to those whom he wishes to engage in his
 favor4  ,as to a party1 what has been  
done at ,toulon leaves no doubt that the
 party for which we declare must be that
 which substantially declares for       
royalty as the basis of the government4 
,as to menaces1 nothing1 in my opinion1 
can contribute more effectually to lower
 any sovereign in the public estimation1
 and to turn his defeats into disgraces1
 than to threaten in a moment of        
impotence4 ,the second manifesto of the 
,duke of ,brunswick appeared1 therefore1
 to the world to be extremely ill-timed4
 ,however1 if his menaces in that       
manifesto had been seasonable1 they were
 not without an object4 ,great crimes   
then apprehended1 and great evils then  
impending1 were to be prevented4 ,at    
this time1 every act which early menaces
 might possibly have prevented is done4 
,punishment and vengeance alone         
remain1--and ,god forbid that they      

should ever be forgotten6 ,but the      
punishment of enormous offenders will   
not be the less severe1 or the less     
exemplary1 when it is not threatened at 
a moment when we have it not in our     
power to execute our threats4 ,on the   
other side1 to pass by proceedings of   
such a nefarious nature1 in all kinds1  
as have been carried on in ,france1     
without any signification of resentment1
 would be in effect to ratify them1 and 
thus to become accessaries after the    
fact in all those enormities which it is
 impossible to repeat or think of       
without horror4 ,an absolute silence    
appears to me to be at this time the    
only safe course4  ,the second usual    
matter of manifestoes is composed of    
promises to those who cooperate with our
 designs4 ,these promises depend in a   
great measure1 if not wholly1 on the    
apparent power of the person who makes  
them to fulfil his engagements4 ,a time 
of disaster on the part of the promiser 
seems not to add much to the dignity of 

his person or to the effect of his      
offers4 ,one would hardly wish to seduce
 any unhappy persons to give the last   
provocation to a merciless tyranny1     
without very effectual means of         
protecting them4  ,the time1 therefore1 
seems 7as ,i said7 not favorable to a   
general manifesto1 on account of the    
unpleasant situation of our affairs4    
,however1 ,i write in a changing scene1 
when a measure very imprudent to-day may
 be very proper to-morrow4 ,some great  
victory may alter the whole state of the
 question1 so far as it regards our     
power of fulfilling any engagement we   
may think fit to make4  ,but there is   
another consideration of far greater    
importance for all the purposes of this 
manifesto4 ,the public1 and the parties 
concerned1 will look somewhat to the    
disposition of the promiser indicated by
 his conduct1 as well as to his power of
 fulfilling his engagements4  ,speaking 
of this nation as part of a general     
combination of powers1 are we quite sure

 that others can believe us to be       
sincere1 or that we can be even fully   
assured of our own sincerity1 in the    
protection of those who shall risk their
 lives for the restoration of monarchy  
in ,france1 when the world sees that    
those who are the natural1 legal1       
constitutional representatives of that  
monarchy1 if it has any1 have not had   
their names so much as mentioned in any 
one public act1 that in no way whatever 
are their persons brought forward1 that 
their rights have not been expressly or 
implicitly allowed1 and that they have  
not been in the least consulted on the  
important interests they have at stake8 
,on the contrary1 they are kept in a    
state of obscurity and contempt1 and in 
a degree of indigence at times bordering
 on beggary4 ,they are1 in fact1 little 
less prisoners in the village of ,hanau 
than the royal captives who are locked  
up in the tower of the ,temple4 ,what is
 this1 according to the common          
indications which guide the judgment of 

mankind1 but1 under the pretext of      
protecting the crown of ,france1 in     
reality to usurp it8  ,i am also very   
apprehensive that there are other       
circumstances which must tend to weaken 
the force of our declarations4 ,no      
partiality to the allied powers can     
prevent great doubts on the fairness of 
our intentions as supporters of the     
crown of ,france1 or of the true        
principles of legitimate government in  
opposition to ,jacobinism1 when it is   
visible that the two leading orders of  
the state of ,france1 who are now the   
victims1 and who must always be the true
 and sole supports of monarchy in that  
country1 are1 at best1 in some of their 
descriptions1 considered only as objects
 of charity1 and others are1 when       
employed1 employed only as mercenary    
soldiers1--that they are thrown back out
 of all reputable service1 are in a     
manner disowned1 considered as nothing  
in their own cause1 and never once      
consulted in the concerns of their king1

 their country1 their laws1 their       
religion1 and their property4 ,we even  
affect to be ashamed of them4 ,in all   
our proceedings we carefully avoid the  
appearance of being of a party with     
them4 ,in all our ideas of treaty we do 
not regard them as what they are1 the   
two leading orders of the kingdom4 ,if  
we do not consider them in that light1  
we must recognize the savages by whom   
they have been ruined1 and who have     
declared war upon ,europe1 whilst they  
disgrace and persecute human nature1 and
 openly defy the ,god that made them1 as
 real proprietors of ,france4  ,i am    
much afraid1 too1 that we shall scarcely
 be believed fair supporters of lawful  
monarchy against ,jacobinism1 so long as
 we continue to make and to observe     
cartels with the ,jacobins1 and on fair 
terms exchange prisoners with them1     
whilst the ,royalists1 invited to our   
standard1 and employed under our public 
faith against the ,jacobins1 if taken by
 that savage faction1 are given up to   

the executioner without the least       
attempt whatsoever at reprisal4 ,for    
this we are to look at the king of      
,prussia's conduct1 compared with his   
manifestoes about a twelvemonth ago4    
,for this we are to look at the         
capitulations of ,mentz and             
,valenciennes1 made in the course of the
 present campaign4 ,by those two        
capitulations the ,christian ,royalists 
were excluded from any participation in 
the cause of the combined powers4 ,they 
were considered as the outlaws of       
,europe4 ,two armies were in effect sent
 against them4 ,one of those armies     
7that which surrendered ,mentz7 was very
 near overpowering the ,christians of   
,poitou1 and the other 7that which      
surrendered at ,valenciennes7 has       
actually crushed the people whom        
oppression and despair had driven to    
resistance at ,lyons1 has massacred     
several thousands of them in cold blood1
 pillaged the whole substance of the    
place1 and pursued their rage to the    

very houses1 condemning that noble city 
to desolation1 in the unheard-of manner 
we have seen it devoted4  ,it is1 then1 
plain1 by a conduct which overturns a   
thousand declarations1 that we take the 
,royalists of ,france only as an        
instrument of some convenience in a     
temporary hostility with the ,jacobins1 
but that we regard those atheistic and  
murderous barbarians as the bon fide    
possessors of the soil of ,france4 ,it  
appears1 at least1 that we consider them
 as a fair government de facto1 if not  
de jure1 a resistance to which1 in favor
 of the king of ,prance1 by any man who 
happened to be born within that country1
 might equitably be considered by other 
nations as the crime of treason4  ,for  
my part1 ,i would sooner put my hand    
into the fire than sign an invitation to
 oppressed men to fight under my        
standard1 and then1 on every sinister   
event of war1 cruelly give them up to be
 punished as the basest of traitors1 as 
long as ,i had one of the common enemy  

in my hands to be put to death in order 
to secure those under my protection1 and
 to vindicate the common honor of       
sovereigns4 ,we hear nothing of this    
kind of security in favor of those whom 
we invite to the support of our cause4  
,without it1 ,i am not a little         
apprehensive that the proclamations of  
the combined powers might 7contrary to  
their intention1 no doubt7 be looked    
upon as frauds1 and cruel traps laid for
 their lives4  ,so far as to the        
correspondence between our declarations 
and our conduct3 let the declaration be 
worded as it will1 the conduct is the   
practical comment by which1 and which   
alone1 it can be understood4 ,this      
conduct1 acting on the declaration1     
leaves a monarchy without a monarch1 and
 without any representative or trustee  
for the monarch and the monarchy4 ,it   
supposes a kingdom without states and   
orders1 a territory without proprietors1
 and faithful subjects who are to be    
left to the fate of rebels and traitors4

  ,the affair of the establishment of a 
government is a very difficult          
undertaking for foreign powers to act in
 as principals2 though as auxiliaries   
and mediators it has been not at all    
unusual1 and may be a measure full of   
policy and humanity and true dignity4   
,the first thing we ought to do1        
supposing us not giving the law as      
conquerors1 but acting as friendly      
powers applied to for counsel and       
assistance in the settlement of a       
distracted country1 is well to consider 
the composition1 nature1 and temper of  
its objects1 and particularly of those  
who actually do or who ought to exercise
 power in that state4 ,it is material to
 know who they are1 and how constituted1
 whom we consider as the people of      
,france4  ,the next consideration is1   
through whom our arrangements are to be 
made1 and on what principles the        
government we propose is to be          
established4  ,the first question on the
 people is this3 ,whether we are to     

consider the individuals now actually in
 ,france1 numerically taken and arranged
 into ,jacobin clubs1 as the body       
politic1 constituting the nation of     
,france1--or whether we consider the    
original individual proprietors of      
lands1 expelled since the ,revolution1  
and the states and the bodies politic1  
such as the colleges of justice called  
,parliaments1 the corporations1 noble   
and not noble1 of bailliages and towns  
and cities1 the bishops and the clergy1 
as the true constituent parts of the    
nation1 and forming the legally         
organized parts of the people of        
,france4  ,in this serious concern it is
 very necessary that we should have the 
most distinct ideas annexed to the terms
 we employ2 because it is evident that  
an abuse of the term people has been the
 original1 fundamental cause of those   
evils1 the cure of which1 by war and    
policy1 is the present object of all the
 states of ,europe4  ,if we consider the
 acting power in ,prance1 in any legal  

construction of public law1 as the      
people1 the question is decided in favor
 of the republic one and indivisible4   
,but we have decided for monarchy4 ,if  
so1 we have a king and subjects2 and    
that king and subjects have rights and  
privileges which ought to be supported  
at home3 for ,i do not suppose that the 
government of that kingdom can or ought 
to be regulated by the arbitrary mandate
 of a foreign confederacy4  ,as to the  
faction exercising power1 to suppose    
that monarchy can be supported by       
principled regicides1 religion by       
professed atheists1 order by clubs of   
,jacobins1 property by committees of    
proscription1 and jurisprudence by      
revolutionary tribunals1 is to be       
sanguine in a degree of which ,i am     
incapable4 ,on them ,i decide1 for      
myself1 that these persons are not the  
legal corporation of ,france1 and that  
it is not with them we can 7if we would7
 settle the government of ,france4      
,since1 then1 we have decided for       

monarchy in that kingdom1 we ought also 
to settle who is to be the monarch1 who 
is to be the guardian of a minor1 and   
how the monarch and monarchy is to be   
modified and supported2 if the monarch  
is to be elected1 who the electors are  
to be1--if hereditary1 what order is    
established1 corresponding with an      
hereditary monarchy1 and fitted to      
maintain it2 who are to modify it in its
 exercise2 who are to restrain its      
powers1 where they ought to be limited1 
to strengthen them1 where they are to be
 supported1 or1 to enlarge them1 where  
the object1 the time1 and the           
circumstances may demand their          
extension4 ,these are things which1 in  
the outline1 ought to be made distinct  
and clear2 for if they are not1         
7especially with regard to those great  
points1 who are the proprietors of the  
soil1 and what is the corporation of the
 kingdom17 there is nothing to hinder   
the complete establishment of a ,jacobin
 republic1 7such as that formed in #agij

 and #agia17 under the name of a        
,dmocratie ,royale4 ,jacobinism does not
 consist in the having or not having a  
certain pageant under the name of a     
king1 but in taking the people as equal 
individuals1 without any corporate name 
or description1 without attention to    
property1 without division of powers1   
and forming the government of delegates 
from a number of men so constituted1--in
 destroying or confiscating property1   
and bribing the public creditors1 or the
 poor1 with the spoils1 now of one part 
of the community1 now of another1       
without regard to prescription or       
possession4  ,i hope no one can be so   
very blind as to imagine that monarchy  
can be acknowledged and supported in    
,france upon any other basis than that  
of its property1 corporate and          
individual1--or that it can enjoy a     
moment's permanence or security upon any
 scheme of things which sets aside all  
the ancient corporate capacities and    
distinctions of the kingdom1 and        

subverts the whole fabric of its ancient
 laws and usages1 political1 civil1 and 
religious1 to introduce a system founded
 on the supposed rights of man1 and the 
absolute equality of the human race4    
,unless1 therefore1 we declare clearly  
and distinctly in favor of the          
restoration of property1 and confide to 
the hereditary property of the kingdom  
the limitation and qualifications of its
 hereditary monarchy1 the blood and     
treasure of ,europe is wasted for the   
establishment of ,jacobinism in ,france4
 ,there is no doubt that ,danton and    
,robespierre1 ,chaumette and ,barre1    
that ,condorcet1 that ,thomas ,paine1   
that ,la ,fayette1 and the ex-,bishop of
 ,autun1 the ,abb ,grgoire1 with all the
 gang of the ,sieyses1 the ,henriots1   
and the ,santerres1 if they could secure
 themselves in the fruits of their      
rebellion and robbery1 would be         
perfectly indifferent1 whether the most 
unhappy of all infants1 whom by the     
lessons of the shoemaker1 his governor  

and guardian1 they are training up      
studiously and methodically to be an    
idiot1 or1 what is worse1 the most      
wicked and base of mankind1 continues to
 receive his civic education in the     
,temple or the ,tuileries1 whilst they1 
and such as they1 really govern the     
kingdom4  ,it cannot be too often and   
too strongly inculcated1 that monarchy  
and property must1 in ,france1 go       
together1 or neither can exist4 ,to     
think of the possibility of the         
existence of a permanent and hereditary 
royalty1 where nothing else is          
hereditary or permanent in point either 
of personal or corporate dignity1 is a  
ruinous chimera1 worthy of the ,abb     
,sieys1 and those wicked fools1 his     
associates1 who usurped power by the    
murders of the #aith of ,july and the   
#fth of ,october1 #aghi1 and who brought
 forth the monster which they called    
,dmocratie ,royale1 or the              
,constitution4  ,i believe that most    
thinking men would prefer infinitely    

some sober and sensible form of a       
republic1 in which there was no mention 
at all of a king1 but which held out    
some reasonable security to property1   
life1 and personal freedom1 to a scheme 
of tilings like this ,dmocratie ,royale1
 founded on impiety1 immorality1        
fraudulent currencies1 the confiscation 
of innocent individuals1 and the        
pretended rights of man1--and which1 in 
effect1 excluding the whole body of the 
nobility1 clergy1 and landed property of
 a great nation1 threw everything into  
the hands of a desperate set of obscure 
adventurers1 who led to every mischief a
 blind and bloody band of sans-culottes4
 ,at the head1 or rather at the tail1 of
 this system was a miserable pageant1 as
 its ostensible instrument1 who was to  
be treated with every species of        
indignity1 till the moment when he was  
conveyed from the palace of contempt to 
the dungeon of horror1 and thence led by
 a brewer of his capital1 through the   
applauses of an hired1 frantic1 drunken 

multitude1 to lose his head upon a      
scaffold4  ,this is the ,constitution1  
or ,dmocratie ,royale2 and this is what 
infallibly would be again set up in     
,france1 to run exactly the same round1 
if the predominant power should so far  
be forced to submit as to receive the   
name of a king1 leaving it to the       
,jacobins 7that is1 to those who have   
subverted royalty and destroyed         
property7 to modify the one and to      
distribute the other as spoil4 ,by the  
,jacobins ,i mean indiscriminately the  
,brissotins and the ,maratists1 knowing 
no sort of difference between them4 ,as 
to any other party1 none exists in that 
unhappy country4 ,the ,royalists 7those 
in ,poitou excepted7 are banished and   
extinguished2 and as to what they call  
the ,constitutionalists1 or ,democrates 
,royaux1 they never had an existence of 
the smallest degree of power1           
consideration1 or authority1 nor1 if    
they differ at all from the rest of the 
atheistic banditti1 7which from their   

actions and principles ,i have no reason
 to think17 were they ever any other    
than the temporary tools and instruments
 of the more determined1 able1 and      
systematic regicides4 ,several attempts 
have been made to support this          
chimerical ,dmocratie ,royale3 the first
 was by ,la ,fayette1 the last by       
,dumouriez3 they tended only to show    
that this absurd project had no party to
 support it4 ,the ,girondists under     
,wimpfen1 and at ,bordeaux1 have made   
some struggle4 ,the ,constitutionalists 
never could make any1 and for a very    
plain reason3 they were leaders in      
rebellion4 ,all their principles and    
their whole scheme of government being  
republican1 they could never excite the 
smallest degree of enthusiasm in favor  
of the unhappy monarch1 whom they had   
rendered contemptible1 to make him the  
executive officer in their new          
commonwealth4 ,they only appeared as    
traitors to their own ,jacobin cause1   
not as faithful adherents to the king4  

,in an address to ,france1 in an attempt
 to treat with it1 or in considering any
 scheme at all relative to it1 it is    
impossible we should mean the           
geographical1 we must always mean the   
moral and political country4 ,i believe 
we shall be in a great error1 if we act 
upon an idea that there exists in that  
country any organized body of men who   
might be willing to treat on equitable  
terms for the restoration of their      
monarchy1 but who are nice in balancing 
those terms1 and who would accept such  
as to them appeared reasonable1 but who 
would quietly submit to the predominant 
power1 if they were not gratified in the
 fashion of some constitution which     
suited with their fancies4  ,sidenote3  
,no individual influence1 civil or      
military4  ,i take the state of ,france 
to be totally different4 ,i know of no  
such body1 and of no such party4 ,so far
 from a combination of twenty men1      
7always excepting ,poitou17 ,i never yet
 heard that a single man could be named 

of sufficient force or influence to     
answer for another man1 much less for   
the smallest district in the country1 or
 for the most incomplete company of     
soldiers in the army4 ,we see every man 
that the ,jacobins choose to apprehend  
taken up in his village or in his house1
 and conveyed to prison without the     
least shadow of resistance1--and this   
indifferently1 whether he is suspected  
of ,royalism1 or ,federalism1           
,moderantism1 ,democracy ,royal1 or any 
other of the names of faction which they
 start by the hour4 ,what is much more  
astonishing1 7and1 if we did not        
carefully attend to the genius and      
circumstances of this ,revolution1 must 
indeed appear incredible17 all their    
most accredited military men1 from a    
generalissimo to a corporal1 may be     
arrested1 7each in the midst of his     
camp1 and covered with the laurels of   
accumulated victories17 tied neck and   
heels1 thrown into a cart1 and sent to  
,paris to be disposed of at the pleasure

 of the ,revolutionary tribunals4       
,sidenote3 ,no corporations of justice1 
commerce1 or police4  ,as no individuals
 have power and influence1 so there are 
no corporations1 whether of lawyers or  
burghers1 existing4 ,the ,assembly      
called ,constituent1 destroyed all such 
institutions very early4 ,the primary   
and secondary assemblies1 by their      
original constitution1 were to be       
dissolved when they answered the purpose
 of electing the magistrates1 and were  
expressly disqualified from performing  
any corporate act whatsoever4 ,the      
transient magistrates have been almost  
all removed before the expiration of    
their terms1 and new have been lately   
imposed upon the people without the form
 or ceremony of an election4 ,these     
magistrates during their existence are  
put under1 as all the executive         
authorities are from first to last1 the 
popular societies 7called ,jacobin      
clubs7 of the several countries1 and    
this by an express order of the         

,national ,convention3 it is even made a
 case of death to oppose or attack those
 clubs4 ,they1 too1 have been lately    
subjected to an expurgatory scrutiny1 to
 drive out from them everything savoring
 of what they call the crime of         
moderantism1 of which offence1 however1 
few were guilty4 ,but as people began to
 take refuge from their persecutions    
amongst themselves1 they have driven    
them from that last asylum4  ,the state 
of ,france is perfectly simple4 ,it     
consists of but two descriptions1--the  
oppressors and the oppressed4  ,the     
first has the whole authority of the    
state in their hands1--all the arms1 all
 the revenues of the public1 all the    
confiscations of individuals and        
corporations4 ,they have taken the lower
 sort from their occupations and have   
put them into pay1 that they may form   
them into a body of janizaries to       
overrule and awe property4 ,the heads of
 these wretches they never suffer to    
cool4 ,they supply them with a food for 

fury varied by the day1--besides the    
sensual state of intoxication1 from     
which they are rarely free4 ,they have  
made the priests and people formally    
abjure the ,divinity2 they have         
estranged them from every civil1 moral1 
and social1 or even natural and         
instinctive sentiment1 habit1 and       
practice1 and have rendered them        
systematically savages1 to make it      
impossible for them to be the           
instruments of any sober and virtuous   
arrangement1 or to be reconciled to any 
state of order1 under any name          
whatsoever4  ,the other description--the
 oppressed--are people of some property3
 they are the small relics of the       
persecuted landed interest2 they are the
 burghers and the farmers4 ,by the very 
circumstance of their being of some     
property1 though numerous in some points
 of view1 they cannot be very           
considerable as a number4 ,in cities the
 nature of their occupations renders    
them domestic and feeble2 in the country

 it confines them to their farm for     
subsistence4 ,the national guards are   
all changed and reformed4 ,everything   
suspicious in the description of which  
they were composed is rigorously        
disarmed4 ,committees1 called of        
vigilance and safety1 are everywhere    
formed3 a most severe and scrutinizing  
inquisition1 far more rigid than        
anything ever known or imagined4 ,two   
persons cannot meet and confer without  
hazard to their liberty1 and even to    
their lives4 ,numbers scarcely credible 
have been executed1 and their property  
confiscated4 ,at ,paris1 and in most    
other towns1 the bread they buy is a    
daily dole1--which they cannot obtain   
without a daily ticket delivered to them
 by their masters4 ,multitudes of all   
ages and sexes are actually imprisoned4 
,i have reason to believe that in       
,france there are not1 for various state
 crimes1 so few as twenty thousand#cc   
actually in jail1--a large proportion of
 people of property in any state4 ,if a 

father of a family should show any      
disposition to resist or to withdraw    
himself from their power1 his wife and  
children are cruelly to answer for it4  
,it is by means of these hostages that  
they keep the troops1 which they force  
by masses 7as they call it7 into the    
field1 true to their colors4  ,another  
of their resources is not to be         
forgotten4 ,they have lately found a way
 of giving a sort of ubiquity to the    
supreme sovereign authority1 which no   
monarch has been able yet to give to any
 representation of his4  ,the           
commissioners of the ,national          
,convention1 who are the members of the 
,convention itself1 and really exercise 
all its powers1 make continual circuits 
through every province1 and visits to   
every army4 ,there they supersede all   
the ordinary authorities1 civil and     
military1 and change and alter          
everything at their pleasure4 ,so that1 
in effect1 no deliberative capacity     
exists in any portion of the            

inhabitants4  ,toulon1 republican in    
principle1 having taken its decision in 
a moment under the guillotine1 and      
before the arrival of these             
commissioners1--,toulon1 being a place  
regularly fortified1 and having in its  
bosom a navy in part highly             
discontented1 has escaped1 though by a  
sort of miracle3 and it would not have  
escaped1 if two powerful fleets had not 
been at the door1 to give them not only 
strong1 but prompt and immediate succor1
 especially as neither this nor any     
other seaport town in ,france can be    
depended on1 from the peculiarly savage 
dispositions1 manners1 and connections  
among the lower sort of people in those 
places4 ,this ,i take to be the true    
state of things in ,france1 so far as it
 regards any existing bodies1 whether of
 legal or voluntary association1 capable
 of acting or of treating in corps4  ,as
 to the oppressed individuals1 they are 
many1 and as discontented as men must be
 under the monstrous and complicated    

tyranny of all sorts with which they are
 crushed4 ,they want no stimulus to     
throw off this dreadful yoke2 but they  
do want1 not manifestoes1 which they    
have had even to surfeit1 but real      
protection1 force1 and succor4  ,the    
disputes and questions of men at their  
ease do not at all affect their minds1  
or ever can occupy the minds of men in  
their situation4 ,these theories are    
long since gone by2 they have had their 
day1 and have done their mischief4 ,the 
question is not between the rabble of   
systems1 ,fayettism1 ,condorcetism1     
,monarchism1 or ,democratism1 or        
,federalism1 on the one side1 and the   
fundamental laws of ,france on the      
other1--or between all these systems    
amongst themselves4 ,it is a controversy
 7weak1 indeed1 and unequal1 on the one 
part7 between the proprietor and the    
robber1 between the prisoner and the    
jailer1 between the neck and the        
guillotine4 ,four fifths of the ,french 
inhabitants would thankfully take       

protection from the emperor of ,morocco1
 and would never trouble their heads    
about the abstract principles of the    
power by which they were snatched from  
imprisonment1 robbery1 and murder4 ,but 
then these men can do little or nothing 
for themselves4 ,they have no arms1 nor 
magazines1 nor chiefs1 nor union1 nor   
the possibility of these things within  
themselves4 ,on the whole1 therefore1 ,i
 lay it down as a certainty1 that in the
 ,jacobins no change of mind is to be   
expected1 and that no others in the     
territory of ,france have an independent
 and deliberative existence4  ,the truth
 is1 that ,france is out of itself1--the
 moral ,france is separated from the    
geographical4 ,the master of the house  
is expelled1 and the robbers are in     
possession4 ,if we look for the         
corporate people of ,france1 existing as
 corporate in the eye and intention of  
public law1 7that corporate people1 ,i  
mean1 who are free to deliberate and to 
decide1 and who have a capacity to treat

 and conclude17 they are in ,flanders1  
and ,germany1 in ,switzerland1 ,spain1  
,italy1 and ,england4 ,there are all the
 princes of the blood1 there are all the
 orders of the state1 there are all the 
parliaments of the kingdom4  ,this      
being1 as ,i conceive1 the true state of
 ,france1 as it exists territorially1   
and as it exists morally1 the question  
will be1 with whom we are to concert our
 arrangements1 and whom we are to use as
 our instruments in the reduction1 in   
the pacification1 and in the settlement 
of ,france4 ,the work to be done must   
indicate the workmen4 ,supposing us to  
have national objects1 we have two      
principal and one secondary4 ,the first 
two are so intimately connected as not  
to be separated even in thought3 the    
restablishment of royalty1 and the      
restablishment of property4 ,one would  
think it requires not a great deal of   
argument to prove that the most serious 
endeavors to restore royalty will be    
made by ,royalists4 ,property will be   

most energetically restored by the      
ancient proprietors of that kingdom4    
,when ,i speak of ,royalists1 ,i wish to
 be understood of those who were always 
such from principle4 ,every arm lifted  
up for royalty from the beginning was   
the arm of a man so principled4 ,i do   
not think there are ten exceptions4     
,the principled ,royalists are certainly
 not of force to effect these objects by
 themselves4 ,if they were1 the         
operations of the present great         
combination would be wholly unnecessary4
 ,what ,i contend for is1 that they     
should be consulted with1 treated with1 
and employed2 and that no foreigners    
whatsoever are either in interest so    
engaged1 or in judgment and local       
knowledge so competent to answer all    
these purposes1 as the natural          
proprietors of the country4  ,their     
number1 for an exiled party1 is also    
considerable4 ,almost the whole body of 
the landed proprietors of ,france1      
ecclesiastical and civil1 have been     

steadily devoted to the monarchy4 ,this 
body does not amount to less than       
seventy thousand1--a very great number  
in the composition of the respectable   
classes in any society4 ,i am sure1     
that1 if half that number of the same   
description were taken out of this      
country1 it would leave hardly anything 
that ,i should call the people of       
,england4 ,on the faith of the ,emperor 
and the king of ,prussia1 a body of ten 
thousand nobility on horseback1 with the
 king's two brothers at their head1     
served with the king of ,prussia in the 
campaign of #agib1 and equipped         
themselves with the last shilling of    
their ruined fortunes and exhausted     
credit4#cd ,it is not now the question1 
how that great force came to be rendered
 useless and totally dissipated4 ,i     
state it now1 only to remark that a     
great part of the same force exists1 and
 would act1 if it were enabled4 ,i am   
sure everything has shown us that in    
this war with ,france one ,frenchman is 

worth twenty foreigners4 ,la ,vende is a
 proof of this4  ,if we wish to make an 
impression on the minds of any persons  
in ,france1 or to persuade them to join 
our standard1 it is impossible that they
 should not be more easily led1 and more
 readily formed and disciplined1        
7civilly and martially disciplined17 by 
those who speak their language1 who are 
acquainted with their manners1 who are  
conversant with their usages and habits 
of thinking1 and who have a local       
knowledge of their country1 and some    
remains of ancient credit and           
consideration1 than with a body         
congregated from all tongues and tribes4
 ,where none of the respectable native  
interests are seen in the transaction1  
it is impossible that any declarations  
can convince those that are within1 or  
those that are without1 that anything   
else than some sort of hostility in the 
style of a conqueror is meant4 ,at best1
 it will appear to such wavering        
persons1 7if such there are17 whom we   

mean to fix with us1 a choice whether   
they are to continue a prey to domestic 
banditti1 or to be fought for as a      
carrion carcass and picked to the bone  
by all the crows and vultures of the    
sky4 ,they may take protection1 7and    
they would1 ,i doubt not17 but they can 
have neither alacrity nor zeal in such a
 cause4 ,when they see nothing but bands
 of ,english1 ,spaniards1 ,neapolitans1 
,sardinians1 ,prussians1 ,austrians1    
,hungarians1 ,bohemians1 ,slavonians1   
,croatians1 acting as principals1 it is 
impossible they should think we come    
with a beneficent design4 ,many of those
 fierce and barbarous people have       
already given proofs how little they    
regard any ,french party whatsoever4    
,some of these nations the people of    
,france are jealous of3 such are the    
,english and the ,spaniards2--others    
they despise3 such are the              
,italians2--others they hate and dread3 
such are the ,german and ,danubian      
powers4 ,at best1 such interposition of 

ancient enemies excites apprehension2   
but in this case1 how can they suppose  
that we come to maintain their          
legitimate monarchy in a truly paternal 
,french government1 to protect their    
privileges1 their laws1 their religion1 
and their property1 when they see us    
make use of no one person who has any   
interest in them1 any knowledge of them1
 or any the least zeal for them8 ,on the
 contrary1 they see that we do not      
suffer any of those who have shown a    
zeal in that cause which we seem to make
 our own to come freely into any place  
in which the allies obtain any footing4 
,if we wish to gain upon any people1 it 
is right to see what it is they expect4 
,we have had a proposal from the        
,royalists of ,poitou4 ,they are well   
entitled1 after a bloody war maintained 
for eight months against all the powers 
of anarchy1 to speak the sentiments of  
the ,royalists of ,france4 ,do they     
desire us to exclude their princes1     
their clergy1 their nobility8 ,the      

direct contrary4 ,they earnestly solicit
 that men of every one of these         
descriptions should be sent to them4    
,they do not call for ,english1         
,austrian1 or ,prussian officers4 ,they 
call for ,french emigrant officers4     
,they call for the exiled priests4 ,they
 have demanded the ,comte d',artois to  
appear at their head4 ,these are the    
demands 7quite natural demands7 of those
 who are ready to follow the standard of
 monarchy4  ,the great means1 therefore1
 of restoring the monarchy1 which we    
have made the main object of the war1   
is1 to assist the dignity1 the religion1
 and the property of ,france to         
repossess themselves of the means of    
their natural influence4 ,this ought to 
be the primary object of all our        
politics and all our military           
operations4 ,otherwise everything will  
move in a preposterous order1 and       
nothing but confusion and destruction   
will follow4  ,i know that misfortune is
 not made to win respect from ordinary  

minds4 ,i know that there is a leaning  
to prosperity1 however obtained1 and a  
prejudice in its favor4 ,i know there is
 a disposition to hope something from   
the variety and inconstancy of villany1 
rather than from the tiresome uniformity
 of fixed principle4 ,there have been1  
,i admit1 situations in which a guiding 
person or party might be gained over1   
and through him or them the whole body  
of a nation4 ,for the hope of such a    
conversion1 and of deriving advantage   
from enemies1 it might be politic for a 
while to throw your friends into the    
shade4 ,but examples drawn from history 
in occasions like the present will be   
found dangerously to mislead us4 ,france
 has no resemblance to other countries  
which have undergone troubles and been  
purified by them4 ,if ,france1          
,jacobinized as it has been for four    
full years1 did contain any bodies of   
authority and disposition to treat with 
you1 7most assuredly she does not17 such
 is the levity of those who have        

expelled everything respectable in their
 country1 such their ferocity1 their    
arrogance1 their mutinous spirit1 their 
habits of defying everything human and  
divine1 that no engagement would hold   
with them for three months2 nor1 indeed1
 could they cohere together for any     
purpose of civilized society1 if left as
 they now are4 ,there must be a means1  
not only of breaking their strength     
within themselves1 but of civilizing    
them2 and these two things must go      
together1 before we can possibly treat  
with them1 not only as a nation1 but    
with any division of them4 ,descriptions
 of men of their own race1 but better in
 rank1 superior in property and decorum1
 of honorable1 decent1 and orderly      
habits1 are absolutely necessary to     
bring them to such a frame as to qualify
 them so much as to come into contact   
with a civilized nation4 ,a set of those
 ferocious savages with arms in their   
hands1 left to themselves in one part of
 the country whilst you proceed to      

another1 would break forth into outrages
 at least as bad as their former4 ,they 
must1 as fast as gained1 7if ever they  
are gained17 be put under the guide1    
direction1 and government of better     
,frenchmen than themselves1 or they will
 instantly relapse into a fever of      
aggravated ,jacobinism4  ,we must not   
judge of other parts of ,france by the  
temporary submission of ,toulon1 with   
two vast fleets in its harbor1 and a    
garrison far more numerous than all the 
inhabitants able to bear arms4 ,if they 
were left to themselves1 ,i am quite    
sure they would not retain their        
attachment to monarchy of any name for a
 single week4  ,to administer the only  
cure for the unheard-of disorders of    
that undone country1 ,i think it        
infinitely happy for us that ,god has   
given into our hands more effectual     
remedies than human contrivance could   
point out4 ,we have in our bosom1 and in
 the bosom of other civilized states1   
nearer forty than thirty thousand       

persons1 providentially preserved1 not  
only from the cruelty and violence1 but 
from the contagion of the horrid        
practices1 sentiments1 and language of  
the ,jacobins1 and even sacredly guarded
 from the view of such abominable       
scenes4 ,if we should obtain1 in any    
considerable district1 a footing in     
,france1 we possess an immense body of  
physicians and magistrates of the mind1 
whom we now know to be the most         
discreet1 gentle1 well-tempered1        
conciliatory1 virtuous1 and pious       
persons who in any order probably       
existed in the world4 ,you will have a  
missioner of peace and order in every   
parish4 ,never was a wiser national     
economy than in the charity of the      
,english and of other countries4 ,never 
was money better expended than in the   
maintenance of this body of civil troops
 for restablishing order in ,france1 and
 for thus securing its civilization to  
,europe4 ,this means1 if properly used1 
is of value inestimable4  ,nor is this  

corps of instruments of civilization    
confined to the first order of that     
state1--,i mean the clergy4 ,the allied 
powers possess also an exceedingly      
numerous1 well-informed1 sensible1      
ingenious1 high-principled1 and spirited
 body of cavaliers in the expatriated   
landed interest of ,france1 as well     
qualified1 at least1 as ,i 7who have    
been taught by time and experience to   
moderate my calculation of the          
expectancy of human abilities7 ever     
expected to see in the body of any      
landed gentlemen and soldiers by their  
birth4 ,france is well winnowed and     
sifted4 ,its virtuous men are1 ,i       
believe1 amongst the most virtuous1 as  
its wicked are amongst the most         
abandoned upon earth4 ,whatever in the  
territory of ,france may be found to be 
in the middle between these must be     
attracted to the better part4 ,this will
 be compassed1 when every gentleman1    
everywhere being restored to his landed 
estate1 each on his patrimonial ground1 

may join the clergy in reanimating the  
loyalty1 fidelity1 and religion of the  
people1--that these gentlemen           
proprietors of land may sort that people
 according to the trust they severally  
merit1 that they may arm the honest and 
well-affected1 and disarm and disable   
the factious and ill-disposed4 ,no      
foreigner can make this discrimination  
nor these arrangements4 ,the ancient    
corporations of burghers according to   
their several modes should be restored1 
and placed 7as they ought to be7 in the 
hands of men of gravity and property in 
the cities or bailliages1 according to  
the proper constitutions of the commons 
or third estate of ,france4 ,they will  
restrain and regulate the seditious     
rabble there1 as the gentlemen will on  
their own estates4 ,in this way1 and in 
this way alone1 the country 7once broken
 in upon by foreign force well directed7
 may be gained and settled4 ,it must be 
gained and settled by itself1 and       
through the medium of its own native    

dignity and property4 ,it is not honest1
 it is not decent1 still less is it     
politic1 for foreign powers themselves  
to attempt anything in this minute1     
internal1 local detail1 in which they   
could show nothing but ignorance1       
imbecility1 confusion1 and oppression4  
,as to the prince who has a just claim  
to exercise the regency of ,france1 like
 other men he is not without his faults 
and his defects4 ,but faults or defects 
7always supposing them faults of common 
human infirmity7 are not what in any    
country destroy a legal title to        
government4 ,these princes are kept in a
 poor1 obscure1 country town of the king
 of ,prussia's4 ,their reputation is    
entirely at the mercy of every          
calumniator4 ,they cannot show          
themselves1 they cannot explain         
themselves1 as princes ought to do4     
,after being well informed as any man   
here can be1 ,i do not find that these  
blemishes in this eminent person are at 
all considerable1 or that they at all   

affect a character which is full of     
probity1 honor1 generosity1 and real    
goodness4 ,in some points he has but too
 much resemblance to his unfortunate    
brother1 who1 with all his weaknesses1  
had a good understanding1 and many parts
 of an excellent man and a good king4   
,but ,monsieur1 without supposing the   
other deficient1 7as he was not17 excels
 him in general knowledge1 and in a     
sharp and keen observation1 with        
something of a better address1 and an   
happier mode of speaking and of writing4
 ,his conversation is open1 agreeable1  
and informed2 his manners gracious and  
princely4 ,his brother1 the ,comte      
d',artois1 sustains still better the    
representation of his place4 ,he is     
eloquent1 lively1 engaging in the       
highest degree1 of a decided character1 
full of energy and activity4 ,in a word1
 he is a brave1 honorable1 and          
accomplished cavalier4 ,their brethren  
of royalty1 if they were true to their  
own cause and interest1 instead of      

relegating these illustrious persons to 
an obscure town1 would bring them       
forward in their courts and camps1 and  
exhibit them to 7what they would        
speedily obtain7 the esteem1 respect1   
and affection of mankind4  ,sidenote3   
,objection made to the regent's endeavor
 to go to ,spain4  ,as to their knocking
 at every door1 7which seems to give    
offence17 can anything be more natural8 
,abandoned1 despised1 rendered in a     
manner outlaws by all the powers of     
,europe1 who have treated their         
unfortunate brethren with all the giddy 
pride and improvident insolence of      
blind1 unfeeling prosperity1 who did not
 even send them a compliment of         
condolence on the murder of their       
brother and sister1 in such a state is  
it to be wondered at1 or blamed1 that   
they tried every way1 likely or         
unlikely1 well or ill chosen1 to get out
 of the horrible pit into which they are
 fallen1 and that in particular they    
tried whether the princes of their own  

blood might at length be brought to     
think the cause of kings1 and of kings  
of their race1 wounded in the murder and
 exile of the branch of ,france1 of as  
much importance as the killing of a     
brace of partridges8 ,if they were      
absolutely idle1 and only eat in sloth  
their bread of sorrow and dependence1   
they would be forgotten1 or at best     
thought of as wretches unworthy of their
 pretensions1 which they had done       
nothing to support4 ,if they err from   
our interests1 what care has been taken 
to keep them in those interests8 or what
 desire has ever been shown to employ   
them in any other way than as           
instruments of their own degradation1   
shame1 and ruin8  ,the ,parliament of   
,paris1 by whom the title of the regent 
is to be recognized1 7not made17        
according to the laws of the kingdom1 is
 ready to recognize it1 and to register 
it1 if a place of meeting was given to  
them1 which might be within their own   
jurisdiction1 supposing that only       

locality was required for the exercise  
of their functions3 for it is one of the
 advantages of monarchy to have no local
 seat4 ,it may maintain its rights out  
of the sphere of its territorial        
jurisdiction1 if other powers will      
suffer it4  ,i am well apprised that the
 little intriguers1 and whisperers1 and 
self-conceited1 thoughtless babblers1   
worse than either1 run about to         
depreciate the fallen virtue of a great 
nation4 ,but whilst they talk1 we must  
make our choice1--they or the ,jacobins4
 ,we have no other option4 ,as to those 
who in the pride of a prosperity not    
obtained by their wisdom1 valor1 or     
industry1 think so well of themselves1  
and of their own abilities and virtues1 
and so ill of other men1 truth obliges  
me to say that they are not founded in  
their presumption concerning themselves1
 nor in their contempt of the ,french   
princes1 magistrates1 nobility1 and     
clergy4 ,instead of inspiring me with   
dislike and distrust of the unfortunate1

 engaged with us in a common cause      
against our ,jacobin enemy1 they take   
away all my esteem for their own        
characters1 and all my deference to     
their judgment4  ,there are some few    
,french gentlemen1 indeed1 who talk a   
language not wholly different from this 
jargon4 ,those whom ,i have in my eye ,i
 respect as gallant soldiers1 as much as
 any one can do2 but on their political 
judgment and prudence ,i have not the   
slightest reliance1 nor on their        
knowledge of their own country1 or of   
its laws and ,constitution4 ,they are1  
if not enemies1 at least not friends1 to
 the orders of their own state1--not to 
the princes1 the clergy1 or the         
nobility2 they possess only an          
attachment to the monarchy1 or rather to
 the persons of the late king and queen4
 ,in all other respects their           
conversation is ,jacobin4 ,i am afraid  
they1 or some of them1 go into the      
closets of ministers1 and tell them that
 the affairs of ,france will be better  

arranged by the allied powers than by   
the landed proprietors of the kingdom1  
or by the princes who have a right to   
govern2 and that1 if any ,french are at 
all to be employed in the settlement of 
their country1 it ought to be only those
 who have never declared any decided    
opinion1 or taken any active part in the
 ,revolution4#ce  ,i suspect that the   
authors of this opinion are mere        
soldiers of fortune1 who1 though men of 
integrity and honor1 would as gladly    
receive military rank from ,russia1 or  
,austria1 or ,prussia1 as from the      
regent of ,france4 ,perhaps their not   
having as much importance at his court  
as they could wish may incline them to  
this strange imagination4 ,perhaps1     
having no property in old ,france1 they 
are more indifferent about its          
restoration4 ,their language is         
certainly flattering to all ministers in
 all courts4 ,we all are men2 we all    
love to be told of the extent of our own
 power and our own faculties4 ,if we    

love glory1 we are jealous of partners1 
and afraid even of our own instruments4 
,it is of all modes of flattery the most
 effectual1 to be told that you can     
regulate the affairs of another kingdom 
better than its hereditary proprietors4 
,it is formed to flatter the principle  
of conquest so natural to all men4 ,it  
is this principle which is now making   
the partition of ,poland4 ,the powers   
concerned have been told by some        
perfidious ,poles1 and perhaps they     
believe1 that their usurpation is a     
great benefit to the people1 especially 
to the common people4 ,however this may 
turn out with regard to ,poland1 ,i am  
quite sure that ,france could not be so 
well under a foreign direction as under 
that of the representatives of its own  
king and its own ancient estates4  ,i   
think ,i have myself studied ,france as 
much as most of those whom the allied   
courts are likely to employ in such a   
work4 ,i have likewise of myself as     
partial and as vain an opinion as men   

commonly have of themselves4 ,but if ,i 
could command the whole military arm of 
,europe1 ,i am sure that a bribe of the 
best province in that kingdom would not 
tempt me to intermeddle in their        
affairs1 except in perfect concurrence  
and concert with the natural1 legal     
interests of the country1 composed of   
the ecclesiastical1 the military1 the   
several corporate bodies of justice and 
of burghership1 making under a monarch  
7,i repeat it again and again7 the      
,french nation according to its         
fundamental ,constitution4 ,no          
considerate statesman would undertake to
 meddle with it upon any other          
condition4  ,the government of that     
kingdom is fundamentally monarchical4   
,the public law of ,europe has never    
recognized in it any other form of      
government4 ,the potentates of ,europe  
have1 by that law1 a right1 an interest1
 and a duty to know with what government
 they are to treat1 and what they are to
 admit into the federative society1--or1

 in other words1 into the diplomatic    
republic of ,europe4 ,this right is     
clear and indisputable4  ,what other and
 further interference they have a right 
to in the interior of the concerns of   
another people is a matter on which1 as 
on every political subject1 no very     
definite or positive rule can well be   
laid down4 ,our neighbors are men2 and  
who will attempt to dictate the laws    
under which it is allowable or forbidden
 to take a part in the concerns of men1 
whether they are considered individually
 or in a collective capacity1 whenever  
charity to them1 or a care of my own    
safety1 calls forth my activity8        
,circumstances perpetually variable1    
directing a moral prudence and          
discretion1 the general principles of   
which never vary1 must alone prescribe a
 conduct fitting on such occasions4 ,the
 latest casuists of public law are      
rather of a republican cast1 and1 in my 
mind1 by no means so averse as they     
ought to be to a right in the people 7a 

word which1 ill defined1 is of the most 
dangerous use7 to make changes at their 
pleasure in the fundamental laws of     
their country4 ,these writers1 however1 
when a country is divided1 leave        
abundant liberty for a neighbor to      
support any of the parties according to 
his choice4#cf ,this interference must1 
indeed1 always be a right1 whilst the   
privilege of doing good to others1 and  
of averting from them every sort of     
evil1 is a right3 circumstances may     
render that right a duty4 ,it depends   
wholly on this1 whether it be a bon fide
 charity to a party1 and a prudent      
precaution with regard to yourself1 or  
whether1 under the pretence of aiding   
one of the parties in a nation1 you act 
in such a manner as to aggravate its    
calamities and accomplish its final     
destruction4 ,in truth1 it is not the   
interfering or keeping aloof1 but       
iniquitous intermeddling1 or treacherous
 inaction1 which is praised or blamed by
 the decision of an equitable judge4    

,it will be a just and irresistible     
presumption against the fairness of the 
interposing power1 that he takes with   
him no party or description of men in   
the divided state4 ,it is not probable  
that these parties should all1 and all  
alike1 be more adverse to the true      
interests of their country1 and less    
capable of forming a judgment upon them1
 than those who are absolute strangers  
to their affairs1 and to the character  
of the actors in them1 and have but a   
remote1 feeble1 and secondary sympathy  
with their interest4 ,sometimes a calm  
and healing arbiter may be necessary2   
but he is to compose differences1 not to
 give laws4 ,it is impossible that any  
one should not feel the full force of   
that presumption4 ,even people1 whose   
politics for the supposed good of their 
own country lead them to take advantage 
of the dissensions of a neighboring     
nation in order to ruin it1 will not    
directly propose to exclude the natives1
 but they will take that mode of        

consulting and employing them which most
 nearly approaches to an exclusion4 ,in 
some particulars they propose what      
amounts to that exclusion1 in others    
they do much worse4 ,they recommend to  
ministry1 that no ,frenchman who has    
given a decided opinion or acted a      
decided part in this great ,revolution1 
for or against it1 should be            
countenanced1 brought forward1 trusted1 
or employed1 even in the strictest      
subordination to the ministers of the   
allied powers4 ,although one would think
 that this advice would stand condemned 
on the first proposition1 yet1 as it has
 been made popular1 and has been        
proceeded upon practically1 ,i think it 
right to give it a full consideration4  
,and first1 ,i have asked myself who    
these ,frenchmen are1 that1 in the state
 their own country has been in for these
 last five years1 of all the people of  
,europe1 have alone not been able to    
form a decided opinion1 or have been    
unwilling to act a decided part8        

,looking over all the names ,i have     
heard of in this great revolution in all
 human affairs1 ,i find no man of any   
distinction who has remained in that    
more than ,stoical apathy1 but the      
,prince de ,conti4 ,this mean1 stupid1  
selfish1 swinish1 and cowardly animal1  
universally known and despised as such1 
has indeed1 except in one abortive      
attempt to elope1 been perfectly        
neutral4 ,however1 his neutrality1 which
 it seems would qualify him for trust1  
and on a competition must set aside the 
,prince de ,cond1 can be of no sort of  
service4 ,his moderation has not been   
able to keep him from a jail4 ,the      
allied powers must draw him from that   
jail1 before they can have the full     
advantage of the exertions of this great
 neutralist4  ,except him1 ,i do not    
recollect a man of rank or talents1 who 
by his speeches or his votes1 by his pen
 or by his sword1 has not been active on
 this scene4 ,the time1 indeed1 could   
admit no neutrality in any person worthy

 of the name of man4 ,there were        
originally two great divisions in       
,france3 the one is that which          
overturned the whole of the government  
in ,church and ,state1 and erected a    
republic on the basis of atheism4 ,their
 grand engine was the ,jacobin ,club1 a 
sort of secession from which1 but       
exactly on the same principles1 begat   
another short-lived one1 called the     
,club of ,eighty-,nine1#cg which was    
chiefly guided by the court rebels1 who1
 in addition to the crimes of which they
 were guilty in common with the others1 
had the merit of betraying a gracious   
master and a kind benefactor4           
,subdivisions of this faction1 which    
since we have seen1 do not in the least 
differ from each other in their         
principles1 their dispositions1 or the  
means they have employed4 ,their only   
quarrel has been about power3 in that   
quarrel1 like wave succeeding wave1 one 
faction has got the better and expelled 
the other4 ,thus1 ,la ,fayette for a    

while got the better of ,orlans2 and    
,orlans afterwards prevailed over ,la   
,fayette4 ,brissot overpowered ,orlans2 
,barre and ,robespierre1 and their      
faction1 mastered them both1 and cut off
 their heads4 ,all who were not         
,royalists have been listed in some or  
other of these divisions4 ,if it were of
 any use to settle a precedence1 the    
elder ought to have his rank4 ,the first
 authors1 plotters1 and contrivers of   
this monstrous scheme seem to me        
entitled to the first place in our      
distrust and abhorrence4 ,i have seen   
some of those who are thought the best  
amongst the original rebels1 and ,i have
 not neglected the means of being       
informed concerning the others4 ,i can  
very truly say1 that ,i have not found1 
by observation1 or inquiry1 that any    
sense of the evils produced by their    
projects has produced in them1 or any   
one of them1 the smallest degree of     
repentance4 ,disappointment and         
mortification undoubtedly they feel2 but

 to them repentance is a thing          
impossible4 ,they are atheists4 ,this   
wretched opinion1 by which they are     
possessed even to the height of         
fanaticism1 leading them to exclude from
 their ideas of a commonwealth the vital
 principle of the physical1 the moral1  
and the political world engages them in 
a thousand absurd contrivances to fill  
up this dreadful void4 ,incapable of    
innoxious repose or honorable action or 
wise speculation in the lurking-holes of
 a foreign land1 into which 7in a common
 ruin7 they are driven to hide their    
heads amongst the innocent victims of   
their madness1 they are at this very    
hour as busy in the confection of the   
dirt-pies of their imaginary            
constitutions as if they had not been   
quite fresh from destroying1 by their   
impious and desperate vagaries1 the     
finest country upon earth4  ,it is1     
however1 out of these1 or of such as    
these1 guilty and impenitent1 despising 
the experience of others1 and their own1

 that some people talk of choosing their
 negotiators with those ,jacobins who   
they suppose may be recovered to a      
sounder mind4 ,they flatter themselves1 
it seems1 that the friendly habits      
formed during their original partnership
 of iniquity1 a similarity of character1
 and a conformity in the groundwork of  
their principles1 might facilitate their
 conversion1 and gain them over to some 
recognition of royalty4 ,but surely this
 is to read human nature very ill4 ,the 
several sectaries in this schism of the 
,jacobins are the very last men in the  
world to trust each other4 ,fellowship  
in treason is a bad ground of           
confidence4 ,the last quarrels are the  
sorest2 and the injuries received or    
offered by your own associates are ever 
the most bitterly resented4 ,the people 
of ,france1 of every name and           
description1 would a thousand times     
sooner listen to the ,prince de ,cond1  
or to the ,archbishop of ,aix1 or the   
,bishop of ,st4 ,pol1 or to ,monsieur de

 ,cazals1 then to ,la ,fayette1 or      
,dumouriez1 or the ,vicomte de          
,noailles1 or the ,bishop of ,autun1 or 
,necker1 or his disciple ,lally         
,tollendal4 ,against the first          
description they have not the smallest  
animosity1 beyond that of a merely      
political dissension4 ,the others they  
regard as traitors4  ,the first         
description is that of the ,christian   
,royalists1 men who as earnestly wished 
for reformation1 as they opposed        
innovation in the fundamental parts of  
their ,church and ,state4 ,their part   
has been very decided4 ,accordingly1    
they are to be set aside in the         
restoration of ,church and ,state4 ,it  
is an odd kind of disqualification1     
where the restoration of religion and   
monarchy is the question4 ,if ,england  
should 7,god forbid it should67 fall    
into the same misfortune with ,france1  
and that the court of ,vienna should    
undertake the restoration of our        
monarchy1 ,i think it would be          

extraordinary to object to the admission
 of ,mr4 ,pitt or ,lord ,grenville or   
,mr4 ,dundas into any share in the      
management of that business1 because in 
a day of trial they have stood up firmly
 and manfully1 as ,i trust they always  
will do1 and with distinguished powers1 
for the monarchy and the legitimate     
,constitution of their country4 ,i am   
sure1 if ,i were to suppose myself at   
,vienna at such a time1 ,i should1 as a 
man1 as an ,englishman1 and as a        
,royalist1 protest in that case1 as ,i  
do in this1 against a weak and ruinous  
principle of proceeding1 which can have 
no other tendency than to make those who
 wish to support the crown meditate too 
profoundly on the consequences of the   
part they take1 and consider whether for
 their open and forward zeal in the     
royal cause they may not be thrust out  
from any sort of confidence and         
employment1 where the interest of       
crowned heads is concerned4  ,these are 
the parties4 ,i have said1 and said     

truly1 that ,i know of no neutrals4     
,but1 as a general observation on this  
general principle of choosing neutrals  
on such occasions as the present1 ,i    
have this to say1 that it amounts to    
neither more nor less than this shocking
 proposition1--that we ought to exclude 
men of honor and ability from serving   
theirs and our cause1 and to put the    
dearest interests of ourselves and our  
posterity into the hands of men of no   
decided character1 without judgment to  
choose and without courage to profess   
any principle whatsoever4  ,such men can
 serve no cause1 for this plain         
reason1--they have no cause at heart4   
,they can1 at best1 work only as mere   
mercenaries4 ,they have not been guilty 
of great crimes2 but it is only because 
they have not energy of mind to rise to 
any height of wickedness4 ,they are not 
hawks or kites3 they are only miserable 
fowls whose flight is not above their   
dunghill or hen-roost4 ,but they tremble
 before the authors of these horrors4   

,they admire them at a safe and         
respectful distance4 ,there never was a 
mean and abject mind that did not admire
 an intrepid and dexterous villain4 ,in 
the bottom of their hearts they believe 
such hardy miscreants to be the only men
 qualified for great affairs4 ,if you   
set them to transact with such persons1 
they are instantly subdued4 ,they dare  
not so much as look their antagonist in 
the face4 ,they are made to be their    
subjects1 not to be their arbiters or   
controllers4  ,these men1 to be sure1   
can look at atrocious acts without      
indignation1 and can behold suffering   
virtue without sympathy4 ,therefore they
 are considered as sober1 dispassionate 
men4 ,but they have their passions1     
though of another kind1 and which are   
infinitely more likely to carry them out
 of the path of their duty4 ,they are of
 a tame1 timid1 languid1 inert temper1  
wherever the welfare of others is       
concerned4 ,in such causes1 as they have
 no motives to action1 they never       

possess any real ability1 and are       
totally destitute of all resource4      
,believe a man who has seen much and    
observed something4 ,i have seen1 in the
 course of my life1 a great many of that
 family of men4 ,they are generally     
chosen because they have no opinion of  
their own2 and as far as they can be got
 in good earnest to embrace any opinion1
 it is that of whoever happens to employ
 them1 7neither longer nor shorter1     
narrower nor broader17 with whom they   
have no discussion or consultation4 ,the
 only thing which occurs to such a man1 
when he has got a business for others   
into his hands1 is1 how to make his own 
fortune out of it4 ,the person he is to 
treat with is not1 with him1 an         
adversary over whom he is to prevail1   
but a new friend he is to gain2         
therefore he always systematically      
betrays some part of his trust4 ,instead
 of thinking how he shall defend his    
ground to the last1 and1 if forced to   
retreat1 how little he shall give up1   

this kind of man considers how much of  
the interest of his employer he is to   
sacrifice to his adversary4 ,having     
nothing but himself in view1 he knows1  
that1 in serving his principal with     
zeal1 he must probably incur some       
resentment from the opposite party4 ,his
 object is1 to obtain the good-will of  
the person with whom he contends1 that1 
when an agreement is made1 he may join  
in rewarding him4 ,i would not take one 
of these as my arbitrator in a dispute  
for so much as a fish-pond2 for1 if he  
reserved the mud to me1 he would be sure
 to give the water that fed the pool to 
my adversary4 ,in a great cause1 ,i     
should certainly wish that my agent     
should possess conciliating qualities3  
that he should be of a frank1 open1 and 
candid disposition1 soft in his nature1 
and of a temper to soften animosities   
and to win confidence4 ,he ought not to 
be a man odious to the person he treats 
with1 by personal injury1 by violence1  
or by deceit1 or1 above all1 by the     

dereliction of his cause in any former  
transactions4 ,but ,i would be sure that
 my negotiator should be mine1--that he 
should be as earnest in the cause as    
myself1 and known to be so1--that he    
should not be looked upon as a          
stipendiary advocate1 but as a          
principled partisan4 ,in all treaty it  
is a great point that all idea of       
gaining your agent is hopeless4 ,i would
 not trust the cause of royalty with a  
man who1 professing neutrality1 is half 
a republican4 ,the enemy has already a  
great part of his suit without a        
struggle1--and he contends with         
advantage for all the rest4 ,the common 
principle allowed between your adversary
 and your agent gives your adversary the
 advantage in every discussion4  ,before
 ,i shut up this discourse about neutral
 agency1 7which ,i conceive is not to be
 found1 or1 if found1 ought not to be   
used17 ,i have a few other remarks to   
make on the cause which ,i conceive     
gives rise to it4  ,in all that we do1  

whether in the struggle or after it1 it 
is necessary that we should constantly  
have in our eye the nature and character
 of the enemy we have to contend with4  
,the ,jacobin ,revolution is carried on 
by men of no rank1 of no consideration1 
of wild1 savage minds1 full of levity1  
arrogance1 and presumption1 without     
morals1 without probity1 without        
prudence4 ,what have they1 then1 to     
supply their innumerable defects1 and to
 make them terrible even to the firmest 
minds8 ,one thing1 and one thing        
only1--but that one thing is worth a    
thousand2--they have energy4 ,in        
,france1 all things being put into an   
universal ferment1 in the decomposition 
of society1 no man comes forward but by 
his spirit of enterprise and the vigor  
of his mind4 ,if we meet this dreadful  
and portentous energy1 restrained by no 
consideration of ,god or man1 that is   
always vigilant1 always on the attack1  
that allows itself no repose1 and       
suffers none to rest an hour with       

impunity1--if we meet this energy with  
poor commonplace proceeding1 with       
trivial maxims1 paltry old saws1 with   
doubts1 fears1 and suspicions1 with a   
languid1 uncertain hesitation1 with a   
formal1 official spirit1 which is turned
 aside by every obstacle from its       
purpose1 and which never sees a         
difficulty but to yield to it1 or at    
best to evade it1--down we go to the    
bottom of the abyss1 and nothing short  
of ,omnipotence can save us4 ,we must   
meet a vicious and distempered energy   
with a manly and rational vigor4 ,as    
virtue is limited in its resources1 we  
are doubly bound to use all that in the 
circle drawn about us by our morals we  
are able to command4  ,i do not contend 
against the advantages of distrust4 ,in 
the world we live in it is but too      
necessary4 ,some of old called it the   
very sinews of discretion4 ,but what    
signify commonplaces that always run    
parallel and equal8 ,distrust is good1  
or it is bad1 according to our position 

and our purpose4 ,distrust is a         
defensive principle4 ,they who have much
 to lose have much to fear4 ,but in     
,france we hold nothing4 ,we are to     
break in upon a power in possession2 we 
are to carry everything by storm1 or by 
surprise1 or by intelligence1 or by all4
 ,adventure1 therefore1 and not caution1
 is our policy4 ,here to be too         
presuming is the better error4  ,the    
world will judge of the spirit of our   
proceeding in those places of ,france   
which may fall into our power by our    
conduct in those that are already in our
 hands4 ,our wisdom should not be       
vulgar4 ,other times1 perhaps other     
measures2 but in this awful hour our    
politics ought to be made up of nothing 
but courage1 decision1 manliness1 and   
rectitude4 ,we should have all the      
magnanimity of good faith4 ,this is a   
royal and commanding policy2 and as long
 as we are true to it1 we may give the  
law4 ,never can we assume this command1 
if we will not risk the consequences4   

,for which reason we ought to be        
bottomed enough in principle not to be  
carried away upon the first prospect of 
any sinister advantage4 ,for depend upon
 it1 that1 if we once give way to a     
sinister dealing1 we shall teach others 
the game1 and we shall be outwitted and 
overborne2 the ,spaniards1 the          
,prussians1 ,god knows who1 will put us 
under contribution at their pleasure2   
and instead of being at the head of a   
great confederacy1 and the arbiters of  
,europe1 we shall1 by our mistakes1     
break up a great design into a thousand 
little selfish quarrels1 the enemy will 
triumph1 and we shall sit down under the
 terms of unsafe and dependent peace1   
weakened1 mortified1 and disgraced1     
whilst all ,europe1 ,england included1  
is left open and defenceless on every   
part1 to ,jacobin principles1 intrigues1
 and arms4 ,in the case of the king of  
,france1 declared to be our friend and  
ally1 we will still be considering      
ourselves in the contradictory character

 of an enemy4 ,this contradiction1 ,i am
 afraid1 will1 in spite of us1 give a   
color of fraud to all our transactions1 
or at least will so complicate our      
politics that we shall ourselves be     
inextricably entangled in them4  ,i have
 ,toulon in my eye4 ,it was with        
infinite sorrow ,i heard1 that1 in      
taking the king of ,france's fleet in   
trust1 we instantly unrigged and        
dismasted the ships1 instead of keeping 
them in a condition to escape in case of
 disaster1 and in order to fulfil our   
trust1--that is1 to hold them for the   
use of the owner1 and in the mean time  
to employ them for our common service4  
,these ships are now so circumstanced1  
that1 if we are forced to evacuate      
,toulon1 they must fall into the hands  
of the enemy or be burnt by ourselves4  
,i know this is by some considered as a 
fine thing for us4 ,but the ,athenians  
ought not to be better than the         
,english1 or ,mr4 ,pitt less virtuous   
than ,aristides4  ,are we1 then1 so poor

 in resources that we can do no better  
with eighteen or twenty ships of the    
line than to burn them8 ,had we sent for
 ,french ,royalist naval officers1 of   
which some hundreds are to be had1 and  
made them select such seamen as they    
could trust1 and filled the rest with   
our own and ,mediterranean seamen1 which
 are all over ,italy to be had by       
thousands1 and put them under judicious 
,english commanders-in-chief1 and with a
 judicious mixture of our own           
subordinates1 the ,west ,indies would at
 this day have been ours4 ,it may be    
said that these ,french officers would  
take them for the king of ,france1 and  
that they would not be in our power4 ,be
 it so4 ,the islands would not be ours1 
but they would not be ,jacobinized4     
,this is1 however1 a thing impossible4  
,they must in effect and substance be   
ours4 ,but all is upon that false       
principle of distrust1 which1 not       
confiding in strength1 can never have   
the full use of it4 ,they that pay1 and 

feed1 and equip1 must direct4 ,but ,i   
must speak plain upon this subject4 ,the
 ,french islands1 if they were all our  
own1 ought not to be all kept4 ,a fair  
partition only ought to be made of those
 territories4 ,this is a subject of     
policy very serious1 which has many     
relations and aspects4 ,just here ,i    
only hint at it as answering an         
objection1 whilst ,i state the          
mischievous consequences which suffer us
 to be surprised into a virtual breach  
of faith by confounding our ally with   
our enemy1 because they both belong to  
the same geographical territory4  ,my   
clear opinion is1 that ,toulon ought to 
be made1 what we set out with1 a royal  
,french city4 ,by the necessity of the  
case1 it must be under the influence1   
civil and military1 of the allies4 ,but 
the only way of keeping that jealous and
 discordant mass from tearing its       
component parts to pieces1 and hazarding
 the loss of the whole1 is1 to put the  
place into the nominal government of the

 regent1 his officers being approved by 
us4 ,this1 ,i say1 is absolutely        
necessary for a poise amongst ourselves4
 ,otherwise is it to be believed that   
the ,spaniards1 who hold that place with
 us in a sort of partnership1 contrary  
to our mutual interest1 will see us     
absolute masters of the ,mediterranean1 
with ,gibraltar on one side and ,toulon 
on the other1 with a quiet and composed 
mind1 whilst we do little less than     
declare that we are to take the whole   
,west ,indies into our hands1 leaving   
the vast1 unwieldy1 and feeble body of  
the ,spanish dominions in that part of  
the world absolutely at our mercy1      
without any power to balance us in the  
smallest degree8 ,nothing is so fatal to
 a nation as an extreme of              
self-partiality1 and the total want of  
consideration of what others will       
naturally hope or fear4 ,spain must     
think she sees that we are taking       
advantage of the confusions which reign 
in ,france to disable that country1 and 

of course every country1 from affording 
her protection1 and in the end to turn  
the ,spanish monarchy into a province4  
,if she saw things in a proper point of 
light1 to be sure1 she would not        
consider any other plan of politics as  
of the least moment in comparison of the
 extinction of ,jacobinism4 ,but her    
ministers 7to say the best of them7 are 
vulgar politicians4 ,it is no wonder    
that they should postpone this great    
point1 or balance it by considerations  
of the common politics1 that is1 the    
questions of power between state and    
state4 ,if we manifestly endeavor to    
destroy the balance1 especially the     
maritime and commercial balance1 both in
 ,europe and the ,west ,indies1 7the    
latter their sore and vulnerable part17 
from fear of what ,france may do for    
,spain hereafter1 is it to be wondered  
that ,spain1 infinitely weaker than we  
are1 7weaker1 indeed1 than such a mass  
of empire ever was17 should feel the    
same fears from our uncontrolled power  

that we give way to ourselves from a    
supposed resurrection of the ancient    
power of ,france under a monarchy8 ,it  
signifies nothing whether we are wrong  
or right in the abstract2 but in respect
 to our relation to ,spain1 with such   
principles followed up in practice1 it  
is absolutely impossible that any       
cordial alliance can subsist between the
 two nations4 ,if ,spain goes1 ,naples  
will speedily follow4 ,prussia is quite 
certain1 and thinks of nothing but      
making a market of the present          
confusions4 ,italy is broken and        
divided4 ,switzerland is ,jacobinized1  
,i am afraid1 completely4 ,i have long  
seen with pain the progress of ,french  
principles in that country4 ,things     
cannot go on upon the present bottom4   
,the possession of ,toulon1 which1 well 
managed1 might be of the greatest       
advantage1 will be the greatest         
misfortune that ever happened to this   
nation4 ,the more we multiply troops    
there1 the more we shall multiply causes

 and means of quarrel amongst ourselves4
 ,i know but one way of avoiding it1    
which is1 to give a greater degree of   
simplicity to our politics4 ,our        
situation does necessarily render them a
 good deal involved4 ,and to this evil1 
instead of increasing it1 we ought to   
apply all the remedies in our power4    
,see what is in that place the          
consequence 7to say nothing of every    
other7 of this complexity4 ,toulon has1 
as it were1 two gates1--an ,english and 
a ,spanish4 ,the ,english gate is by our
 policy fast barred against the entrance
 of any ,royalists4 ,the ,spaniards open
 theirs1 ,i fear1 upon no fixed         
principle1 and with very little         
judgment4 ,by means1 however1 of this   
foolish1 mean1 and jealous policy on our
 side1 all the ,royalists whom the      
,english might select as most           
practicable1 and most subservient to    
honest views1 are totally excluded4 ,of 
those admitted the ,spaniards are       
masters4 ,as to the inhabitants1 they   

are a nest of ,jacobins1 which is       
delivered into our hands1 not from      
principle1 but from fear4 ,the          
inhabitants of ,toulon may be described 
in a few words4 ,it is differtum nautis1
 cauponibus atque malignis4 ,the rest of
 the seaports are of the same           
description4  ,another thing which ,i   
cannot account for is1 the sending for  
the ,bishop of ,toulon and afterwards   
forbidding his entrance4 ,this is as    
directly contrary to the declaration as 
it is to the practice of the allied     
powers4 ,the king of ,prussia did       
better4 ,when he took ,verdun1 he       
actually reinstated the bishop and his  
chapter4 ,when he thought he should be  
the master of ,chalons1 he called the   
bishop from ,flanders1 to put him into  
possession4 ,the ,austrians have        
restored the clergy wherever they       
obtained possession4 ,we have proposed  
to restore religion as well as monarchy2
 and in ,toulon we have restored neither
 the one nor the other4 ,it is very     

likely that the ,jacobin sans-culottes1 
or some of them1 objected to this       
measure1 who rather choose to have the  
atheistic buffoons of clergy they have  
got to sport with1 till they are ready  
to come forward1 with the rest of their 
worthy brethren1 in ,paris and other    
places1 to declare that they are a set  
of impostors1 that they never believed  
in ,god1 and never will preach any sort 
of religion4 ,if we give way to our     
,jacobins in this point1 it is fully and
 fairly putting the government1 civil   
and ecclesiastical1 not in the king of  
,france1 to whom1 as the protector and  
governor1 and in substance the head of  
the ,gallican ,church1 the nomination to
 the bishoprics belonged1 and who made  
the ,bishop of ,toulon1--it does not    
leave it with him1 or even in the hands 
of the king of ,england1 or the king of 
,spain1--but in the basest ,jacobins of 
a low seaport1 to exercise1 pro tempore1
 the sovereignty4 ,if this point of     
religion is thus given up1 the grand    

instrument for reclaiming ,france is    
abandoned4 ,we cannot1 if we would1     
delude ourselves about the true state of
 this dreadful contest4 ,it is a        
religious war4 ,it includes in its      
object1 undoubtedly1 every other        
interest of society as well as this2 but
 this is the principal and leading      
feature4 ,it is through this destruction
 of religion that our enemies propose   
the accomplishment of all their other   
views4 ,the ,french ,revolution1 impious
 at once and fanatical1 had no other    
plan for domestic power and foreign     
empire4 ,look at all the proceedings of 
the ,national ,assembly1 from the first 
day of declaring itself such1 in the    
year #aghi1 to this very hour1 and you  
will find full half of their business to
 be directly on this subject4 ,in fact1 
it is the spirit of the whole4 ,the     
religious system1 called the            
,constitutional ,church1 was1 on the    
face of the whole proceeding1 set up    
only as a mere temporary amusement to   

the people1 and so constantly stated in 
all their conversations1 till the time  
should come when they might with safety 
cast off the very appearance of all     
religion whatsoever1 and persecute      
,christianity throughout ,europe with   
fire and sword4 ,the ,constitutional    
clergy are not the ministers of any     
religion3 they are the agents and       
instruments of this horrible conspiracy 
against all morals4 ,it was from a sense
 of this1 that1 in the ,english addition
 to the articles proposed at ,st4       
,domingo1 tolerating all religions1 we  
very wisely refused to suffer that kind 
of traitors and buffoons4  ,this        
religious war is not a controversy      
between sect and sect1 as formerly1 but 
a war against all sects and all         
religions4 ,the question is not1 whether
 you are to overturn the ,catholic1 to  
set up the ,protestant4 ,such an idea1  
in the present state of the world1 is   
too contemptible4 ,our business is1 to  
leave to the schools the discussion of  

the controverted points1 abating as much
 as we can the acrimony of disputants on
 all sides4 ,it is for ,christian       
statesmen1 as the world is now          
circumstanced1 to secure their common   
basis1 and not to risk the subversion of
 the whole fabric by pursuing these     
distinctions with an ill-timed zeal4 ,we
 have in the present grand alliance all 
modes of government1 as well as all     
modes of religion4 ,in government1 we   
mean to restore that which1             
notwithstanding our diversity of forms1 
we are all agreed in as fundamental in  
government4 ,the same principle ought to
 guide us in the religious part3        
conforming the mode1 not to our         
particular ideas1 7for in that point we 
have no ideas in common17 but to what   
will best promote the great1 general    
ends of the alliance4 ,as statesmen1 we 
are to see which of those modes best    
suits with the interests of such a      
commonwealth as we wish to secure and   
promote4 ,there can be no doubt but that

 the ,catholic religion1 which is       
fundamentally the religion of ,france1  
must go with the monarchy of ,france4   
,we know that the monarchy did not      
survive the hierarchy1 no1 not even in  
appearance1 for many months1--in        
substance1 not for a single hour4 ,as   
little can it exist in future1 if that  
pillar is taken away1 or even shattered 
and impaired4  ,if it should please ,god
 to give to the allies the means of     
restoring peace and order in that focus 
of war and confusion1 ,i would1 as ,i   
said in the beginning of this memorial1 
first replace the whole of the old      
clergy2 because we have proof more than 
sufficient1 that1 whether they err or   
not in the scholastic disputes with us1 
they are not tainted with atheism1 the  
great political evil of the time4 ,i    
hope ,i need not apologize for this     
phrase1 as if ,i thought religion       
nothing but policy3 it is far from my   
thoughts1 and ,i hope it is not to be   
inferred from my expressions4 ,but in   

the light of policy alone ,i am here    
considering the question4 ,i speak of   
policy1 too1 in a large light2 in which 
large light1 policy1 too1 is a sacred   
thing4  ,there are many1 perhaps half a 
million or more1 calling themselves     
,protestants1 in the ,south of ,france1 
and in other of the provinces4 ,some    
raise them to a much greater number2 but
 ,i think this nearer to the mark4 ,i am
 sorry to say that they have behaved    
shockingly since the very beginning of  
this rebellion1 and have been uniformly 
concerned in its worst and most         
atrocious acts4 ,their clergy are just  
the same atheists with those of the     
,constitutional ,catholics1 but still   
more wicked and daring4 ,three of their 
number have met from their republican   
associates the reward of their crimes4  
,as the ancient ,catholic religion is to
 be restored for the body of ,france1   
the ancient ,calvinistic religion ought 
to be restored for the ,protestants1    
with every kind of protection and       

privilege4 ,but not one minister        
concerned in this rebellion ought to be 
suffered amongst them4 ,if they have not
 clergy of their own1 men well          
recommended1 as untainted with          
,jacobinism1 by the synods of those     
places where ,calvinism prevails and    
,french is spoken1 ought to be sought4  
,many such there are4 ,the ,presbyterian
 discipline ought1 in my opinion1 to be 
established in its vigor1 and the people
 professing it ought to be bound to its 
maintenance4 ,no man1 under the false   
and hypocritical pretence of liberty of 
conscience1 ought to be suffered to have
 no conscience at all4 ,the king's      
commissioner ought also to sit in their 
synods1 as before the revocation of the 
,edict of ,nantes4 ,i am conscious that 
this discipline disposes men to         
republicanism3 but it is still a        
discipline1 and it is a cure 7such as it
 is7 for the perverse and undisciplined 
habits which for some time have         
prevailed4 ,republicanism repressed may 

have its use in the composition of a    
state4 ,inspection may be practicable1  
and responsibility in the teachers and  
elders may be established1 in such an   
hierarchy as the ,presbyterian4 ,for a  
time like ours1 it is a great point     
gained1 that people should be taught to 
meet1 to combine1 and to be classed and 
arrayed in some other way than in clubs 
of ,jacobins4 ,if it be not the best    
mode of ,protestantism under a monarchy1
 it is still an orderly ,christian      
church1 orthodox in the fundamentals1   
and1 what is to our point1 capable      
enough of rendering men useful citizens4
 ,it was the impolitic abolition of     
their discipline1 which exposed them to 
the wild opinions and conduct that have 
prevailed amongst the ,huguenots4 ,the  
toleration in #aghg was owing to the    
good disposition of the late king2 but  
it was modified by the profligate folly 
of his atheistic minister1 the ,cardinal
 de ,lomnie4 ,this mischievous minister 
did not follow1 in the edict of         

toleration1 the wisdom of the ,edict of 
,nantes4 ,but his toleration was granted
 to non-,catholics1--a dangerous word1  
which might signify anything1 and was   
but too expressive of a fatal           
indifference with regard to all piety4  
,i speak for myself3 ,i do not wish any 
man to be converted from his sect4 ,the 
distinctions which we have reformed from
 animosity to emulation may be even     
useful to the cause of religion4 ,by    
some moderate contention they keep alive
 zeal4 ,whereas people who change1      
except under strong conviction1 7a thing
 now rather rare17 the religion of their
 early prejudices1 especially if the    
conversion is brought about by any      
political machine1 are very apt to      
degenerate into indifference1 laxity1   
and often downright atheism4  ,another  
political question arises about the mode
 of government which ought to be        
established4 ,i think the proclamation  
7which ,i read before ,i had proceeded  
far in this memorial7 puts it on the    

best footing1 by postponing that        
arrangement to a time of peace4  ,when  
our politics lead us to enterprise a    
great and almost total political        
revolution in ,europe1 we ought to look 
seriously into the consequences of what 
we are about to do4 ,some eminent       
persons discover an apprehension that   
the monarchy1 if restored in ,france1   
may be restored in too great strength   
for the liberty and happiness of the    
natives1 and for the tranquillity of    
other states4 ,they are therefore of    
opinion that terms ought to be made for 
the modification of that monarchy4 ,they
 are persons too considerable1 from the 
powers of their mind1 and from their    
situation1 as well as from the real     
respect ,i have for them1 who seem to   
entertain these apprehensions1 to let me
 pass them by unnoticed4  ,as to the    
power of ,france as a state1 and in its 
exterior relations1 ,i confess my fears 
are on the part of its extreme          
reduction4 ,there is undoubtedly        

something in the vicinity of ,france1   
which makes it naturally and properly an
 object of our watchfulness and         
jealousy1 whatever form its government  
may take4 ,but the difference is great  
between a plan for our own security and 
a scheme for the utter destruction of   
,france4 ,if there were no other        
countries in the political map but these
 two1 ,i admit that policy might justify
 a wish to lower our neighbor to a      
standard which would even render her in 
some measure1 if not wholly1 our        
dependant4 ,but the system of ,europe is
 extensive and extremely complex4       
,however formidable to us1 as taken in  
this one relation1 ,france is not       
equally dreadful to all other states4   
,on the contrary1 my clear opinion is1  
that the liberties of ,europe cannot    
possibly be preserved but by her        
remaining a very great and              
preponderating power4 ,the design at    
present evidently pursued by the        
combined potentates1 or of the two who  

lead1 is totally to destroy her as such 
a power4 ,for ,great ,britain resolves  
that she shall have no colonies1 no     
commerce1 and no marine4 ,austria means 
to take away the whole frontier1 from   
the borders of ,switzerland to ,dunkirk4
 ,it is their plan also to render the   
interior government lax and feeble1 by  
prescribing1 by force of the arms of    
rival and jealous nations1 and without  
consulting the natural interests of the 
kingdom1 such arrangements as1 in the   
actual state of ,jacobinism in ,france1 
and the unsettled state in which        
property must remain for a long time1   
will inevitably produce such distraction
 and debility in government as to reduce
 it to nothing1 or to throw it back into
 its old confusion4 ,one cannot conceive
 so frightful a state of a nation4 ,a   
maritime country without a marine and   
without commerce2 a continental country 
without a frontier1 and for a thousand  
miles surrounded with powerful1 warlike1
 and ambitious neighbors6 ,it is        

possible that she might submit to lose  
her commerce and her colonies3 her      
security she never can abandon4 ,if1    
contrary to all expectations1 under such
 a disgraced and impotent government1   
any energy should remain in that        
country1 she will make every effort to  
recover her security1 which will involve
 ,europe for a century in war and blood4
 ,what has it cost to ,france to make   
that frontier8 ,what will it cost to    
recover it8 ,austria thinks that without
 a frontier she cannot secure the       
,netherlands4 ,but without her frontier 
,france cannot secure herself4 ,austria 
has been1 however1 secure for an hundred
 years in those very ,netherlands1 and  
has never been dispossessed of them by  
the chance of war without a moral       
certainty of receiving them again on the
 restoration of peace4 ,her late dangers
 have arisen not from the power or      
ambition of the king of ,france4 ,they  
arose from her own ill policy1 which    
dismantled all her towns1 and           

discontented all her subjects by        
,jacobinical innovations4 ,she          
dismantles her own towns1 and then says1
 ,give me the frontier of ,france6 ,but 
let us depend upon it1 whatever tends1  
under the name of security1 to          
aggrandize ,austria1 will discontent and
 alarm ,prussia4 ,such a length of      
frontier on the side of ,france1        
separated from itself1 and separated    
from the mass of the ,austrian country1 
will be weak1 unless connected at the   
expense of the ,elector of ,bavaria 7the
 ,elector ,palatine7 and other lesser   
princes1 or by such exchanges as will   
again convulse the ,empire4  ,take it   
the other way1 and let us suppose that  
,france so broken in spirit as to be    
content to remain naked and defenceless 
by sea and by land4 ,is such a country  
no prey8 ,have other nations no views8  
,is ,poland the only country of which it
 is worth while to make a partition8 ,we
 cannot be so childish as to imagine    
that ambition is local1 and that no     

others can be infected with it but those
 who rule within certain parallels of   
latitude and longitude4 ,in this way ,i 
hold war equally certain4 ,but ,i can   
conceive that both these principles may 
operate3 ambition on the part of        
,austria to cut more and more from      
,france2 and ,french impatience under   
her degraded and unsafe condition4 ,in  
such a contest will the other powers    
stand by8 ,will not ,prussia call for   
indemnity1 as well as ,austria and      
,england8 ,is she satisfied with her    
gains in ,poland8 ,by no means4 ,germany
 must pay2 or we shall infallibly see   
,prussia leagued with ,france and       
,spain1 and possibly with other powers1 
for the reduction of ,austria2 and such 
may be the situation of things1 that it 
will not be so easy to decide what part 
,england may take in such a contest4  ,i
 am well aware how invidious a task it  
is to oppose anything which tends to the
 apparent aggrandizement of our own     
country4 ,but ,i think no country can be

 aggrandized whilst ,france is          
,jacobinized4 ,this post removed1 it    
will be a serious question how far her  
further reduction will contribute to the
 general safety1 which ,i always        
consider as included4 ,among precautions
 against ambition1 it may not be amiss  
to take one precaution against our own4 
,i must fairly say1 ,i dread our own    
power and our own ambition2 ,i dread our
 being too much dreaded4 ,it is         
ridiculous to say we are not men1 and   
that1 as men1 we shall never wish to    
aggrandize ourselves in some way or     
other4 ,can we say that even at this    
very hour we are not invidiously        
aggrandized8 ,we are already in         
possession of almost all the commerce of
 the world4 ,our empire in ,india is an 
awful thing4 ,if we should come to be in
 a condition not only to have all this  
ascendant in commerce1 but to be        
absolutely able1 without the least      
control1 to hold the commerce of all    
other nations totally dependent upon our

 good pleasure1 we may say that we shall
 not abuse this astonishing and hitherto
 unheard-of power4 ,but every other     
nation will think we shall abuse it4 ,it
 is impossible but that1 sooner or      
later1 this state of things must produce
 a combination against us which may end 
in our ruin4  ,as to ,france1 ,i must   
observe that for a long time she has    
been stationary4 ,she has1 during this  
whole century1 obtained far less by     
conquest or negotiation than any of the 
three great ,continental powers4 ,some  
part of ,lorraine excepted1 ,i recollect
 nothing she has gained1--no1 not a     
village4 ,in truth1 this ,lorraine      
acquisition does little more than secure
 her barrier4 ,in effect and substance  
it was her own before4  ,however that   
may be1 ,i consider these things at     
present chiefly in one point of view1 as
 obstructions to the war on ,jacobinism1
 which must stand as long as the powers 
think its extirpation but a secondary   
object1 and think of taking advantage1  

under the name of indemnity and         
security1 to make war upon the whole    
nation of ,france1 royal and ,jacobin1  
for the aggrandizement of the allies1 on
 the ordinary principles of interest1 as
 if no ,jacobinism existed in the world4
  ,so far is ,france from being         
formidable to its neighbors for its     
domestic strength1 that ,i conceive it  
will be as much as all its neighbors can
 do1 by a steady guaranty1 to keep that 
monarchy at all upon its basis4 ,it will
 be their business to nurse ,france1 not
 to exhaust it4 ,france1 such as it is1 
is indeed highly formidable3 not        
formidable1 however1 as a great         
republic2 but as the most dreadful gang 
of robbers and murderers that ever was  
embodied4 ,but this distempered strength
 of ,france will be the cause of        
proportionable weakness on its recovery4
 ,never was a country so completely     
ruined2 and they who calculate the      
resurrection of her power by former     
examples have not sufficiently          

considered what is the present state of 
things4 ,without detailing the inventory
 of what organs of government have been 
destroyed1 together with the very       
materials of which alone they can be    
recomposed1 ,i wish it to be considered 
what an operose affair the whole system 
of taxation is in the old states of     
,europe4 ,it is such as never could be  
made but in a long course of years4 ,in 
,france all taxes are abolished4 ,the   
present powers resort to the capital1   
and to the capital in kind4 ,but a      
savage1 undisciplined people suffer a   
robbery with more patience than an      
impost4 ,the former is in their habits  
and their dispositions4 ,they consider  
it as transient1 and as what1 in their  
turn1 they may exercise4 ,but the       
terrors of the present power are such as
 no regular government can possibly     
employ4 ,they who enter into ,france do 
not succeed to their resources4 ,they   
have not a system to reform1 but a      
system to begin4 ,the whole estate of   

government is to be reacquired4  ,what  
difficulties this will meet with in a   
country exhausted by the taking of the  
capital1 and among a people in a manner 
new-principled1 trained1 and actually   
disciplined to anarchy1 rebellion1      
disorder1 and impiety1 may be conceived 
by those who know what ,jacobin ,france 
is1 and who may have occupied themselves
 by revolving in their thoughts what    
they were to do1 if it fell to their lot
 to restablish the affairs of ,france4  
,what support or what limitations the   
restored monarchy must have may be a    
doubt1 or how it will pitch and settle  
at last4 ,but one thing ,i conceive to  
be far beyond a doubt3 that the         
settlement cannot be immediate2 but that
 it must be preceded by some sort of    
power1 equal at least in vigor1         
vigilance1 promptitude1 and decision1 to
 a military government4 ,for such a     
preparatory government1 no slow-paced1  
methodical1 formal1 lawyer-like system1 
still less that of a showy1 superficial1

 trifling1 intriguing court1 guided by  
cabals of ladies1 or of men like ladies1
 least of all a philosophic1 theoretic1 
disputatious school of sophistry1--none 
of these ever will or ever can lay the  
foundations of an order that can last4  
,whoever claims a right by birth to     
govern there must find in his breast1 or
 must conjure up in it1 an energy not to
 be expected1 perhaps not always to be  
wished for1 in well-ordered states4 ,the
 lawful prince must have1 in everything 
but crime1 the character of an usurper4 
,he is gone1 if he imagines himself the 
quiet possessor of a throne4 ,he is to  
contend for it as much after an apparent
 conquest as before4 ,his task is1 to   
win it3 he must leave posterity to enjoy
 and to adorn it4 ,no velvet cushions   
for him4 ,he is to be always 7,i speak  
nearly to the letter7 on horseback4     
,this opinion is the result of much     
patient thinking on the subject1 which  
,i conceive no event is likely to alter4
  ,a valuable friend of mine1 who ,i    

hope will conduct these affairs1 so far 
as they fall to his share1 with great   
ability1 asked me what ,i thought of    
acts of general indemnity and oblivion1 
as a means of settling ,france1 and     
reconciling it to monarchy4 ,before ,i  
venture upon any opinion of my own in   
this matter1 ,i totally disclaim the    
interference of foreign powers in a     
business that properly belongs to the   
government which we have declared legal4
 ,that government is likely to be the   
best judge of what is to be done towards
 the security of that kingdom1 which it 
is their duty and their interest to     
provide for by such measures of justice 
or of lenity as at the time they should 
find best4 ,but if we weaken it not only
 by arbitrary limitations of our own1   
but preserve such persons in it as are  
disposed to disturb its future peace1 as
 they have its past1 ,i do not know how 
a more direct declaration can be made of
 a disposition to perpetual hostility   
against a government4 ,the persons saved

 from the justice of the native         
magistrate by foreign authority will owe
 nothing to his clemency4 ,he will1 and 
must1 look to those to whom he is       
indebted for the power he has of        
dispensing it4 ,a ,jacobin faction1     
constantly fostered with the nourishment
 of foreign protection1 will be kept    
alive4  ,this desire of securing the    
safety of the actors in the present     
scene is owing to more laudable motives4
 ,ministers have been made to consider  
the brothers of the late merciful king1 
and the nobility of ,france who have    
been faithful to their honor and duty1  
as a set of inexorable and remorseless  
tyrants4 ,how this notion has been      
infused into them ,i cannot be quite    
certain4 ,i am sure it is not justified 
by anything they have done4 ,never were 
the two princes guilty1 in the day of   
their power1 of a single hard or        
ill-natured act4 ,no one instance of    
cruelty on the part of the gentlemen    
ever came to my ears4 ,it is true that  

the ,english ,jacobins1 7the natives    
have not thought of it17 as an excuse   
for their infernal system of murder1    
have so represented them4 ,it is on this
 principle that the massacres in the    
month of ,september1 #agib1 were        
justified by a writer in the ,morning   
,chronicle4 ,he says1 indeed1 that the  
whole ,french nation is to be given up  
to the hands of an irritated and        
revengeful noblesse2--and1 judging of   
others by himself and his brethren1 he  
says1 ,whoever succeeds in a civil war  
will be cruel4 ,but here the emigrants1 
flying to revenge in the cars of        
military victory1 will almost insatiably
 call for their victims and their booty2
 and a body of emigrant traitors were   
attending the ,king of ,prussia and the 
,duke of ,brunswick1 to suggest the most
 sanguinary counsels4 ,so says this     
wicked ,jacobin2 but so cannot say the  
,king of ,prussia nor the ,duke of      
,brunswick1 who never did receive any   
sanguinary counsel2 nor did the king's  

brothers1 or that great body of         
gentlemen who attended those princes1   
commit one single cruel action1 or hurt 
the person or property of one           
individual4 ,it would be right to quote 
the instance4 ,it is like the military  
luxury attributed to these unfortunate  
sufferers in our common cause4  ,if     
these princes had shown a tyrannic      
disposition1 it would be much to be     
lamented4 ,we have no others to govern  
,france4 ,if we screened the body of    
murderers from their justice1 we should 
only leave the innocent in future to the
 mercy of men of fierce and sanguinary  
dispositions1 of which1 in spite of all 
our intermeddling in their              
,constitution1 we could not prevent the 
effects4 ,but as we have much more      
reason to fear their feeble lenity than 
any blamable rigor1 we ought1 in my     
opinion1 to leave the matter to         
themselves4  ,if1 however1 ,i were asked
 to give an advice merely as such1 here 
are my ideas4 ,i am not for a total     

indemnity1 nor a general punishment4    
,and first1 the body and mass of the    
people never ought to be treated as     
criminal4 ,they may become an object of 
more or less constant watchfulness and  
suspicion1 as their preservation may    
best require1 but they can never become 
an object of punishment4 ,this is one of
 the few fundamental and unalterable    
principles of politics4  ,to punish them
 capitally would be to make massacres4  
,massacres only increase the ferocity of
 men1 and teach them to regard their own
 lives and those of others as of little 
value2 whereas the great policy of      
government is1 to teach the people to   
think both of great importance in the   
eyes of ,god and the state1 and never to
 be sacrificed or even hazarded to      
gratify their passions1 or for anything 
but the duties prescribed by the rules  
of morality1 and under the direction of 
public law and public authority4 ,to    
punish them with lesser penalties would 
be to debilitate the commonwealth1 and  

make the nation miserable1 which it is  
the business of government to render    
happy and flourishing4  ,as to crimes1  
too1 ,i would draw a strong line of     
limitation4 ,for no one offence1        
politically an offence of rebellion1 by 
council1 contrivance1 persuasion1 or    
compulsion1 for none properly a military
 offence of rebellion1 or anything done 
by open hostility in the field1 should  
any man at all be called in question2   
because such seems to be the proper and 
natural death of civil dissensions4 ,the
 offences of war are obliterated by     
peace4  ,another class will of course be
 included in the indemnity1--namely1 all
 those who by their activity in         
restoring lawful government shall       
obliterate their offences4 ,the offence 
previously known1 the acceptance of     
service is a pardon for crimes4 ,i fear 
that this class of men will not be very 
numerous4  ,so far as to indemnity4 ,but
 where are the objects of justice1 and  
of example1 and of future security to   

the public peace8 ,they are naturally   
pointed out1 not by their having        
outraged political and civil laws1 nor  
their having rebelled against the state 
as a state1 but by their having rebelled
 against the law of ,nature and outraged
 man as man4 ,in this list1 all the     
regicides in general1 all those who laid
 sacrilegious hands on the king1 who1   
without anything in their own rebellious
 mission to the ,convention to justify  
them1 brought him to his trial and      
unanimously voted him guilty1--all those
 who had a share in the cruel murder of 
the queen1 and the detestable           
proceedings with regard to the young    
king and the unhappy princesses1--all   
those who committed cold-blooded murder 
anywhere1 and particularly in their     
revolutionary tribunals1 where every    
idea of natural justice and of their own
 declared rights of man have been trod  
under foot with the most insolent       
mockery1--all men concerned in the      
burning and demolition of houses or     

churches1 with audacious and marked acts
 of sacrilege and scorn offered to      
religion1--in general1 all the leaders  
of ,jacobin clubs1--not one of these    
should escape a punishment suitable to  
the nature1 quality1 and degree of their
 offence1 by a steady1 but a measured   
justice4  ,in the first place1 no man   
ought to be subject to any penalty1 from
 the highest to the lowest1 but by a    
trial according to the course of law1   
carried on with all that caution and    
deliberation which has been used in the 
best times and precedents of the ,french
 jurisprudence1 the criminal law of     
which country1 faulty to be sure in some
 particulars1 was highly laudable and   
tender of the lives of men4 ,in         
restoring order and justice1 everything 
like retaliation ought to be religiously
 avoided2 and an example ought to be set
 of a total alienation from the ,jacobin
 proceedings in their accursed          
revolutionary tribunals4 ,everything    
like lumping men in masses1 and of      

forming tables of proscription1 ought to
 be avoided4  ,in all these punishments1
 anything which can be alleged in       
mitigation of the offence should be     
fully considered4 ,mercy is not a thing 
opposed to justice4 ,it is an essential 
part of it1--as necessary in criminal   
cases as in civil affairs equity is to  
law4 ,it is only for the ,jacobins never
 to pardon4 ,they have not done it in a 
single instance4 ,a council of mercy    
ought therefore to be appointed1 with   
powers to report on each case1 to soften
 the penalty1 or entirely to remit it1  
according to circumstances4  ,with these
 precautions1 the very first foundation 
of settlement must be to call to a      
strict account those bloody and         
merciless offenders4 ,without it1       
government cannot stand a year4 ,people 
little consider the utter impossibility 
of getting those who1 having emerged    
from very low1 some from the lowest     
classes of society1 have exercised a    
power so high1 and with such unrelenting

 and bloody a rage1 quietly to fall back
 into their old ranks1 and become       
humble1 peaceable1 laborious1 and useful
 members of society4 ,it never can be4  
,on the other hand1 is it to be believed
 that any worthy and virtuous subject1  
restored to the ruins of his house1 will
 with patience see the cold-blooded     
murderer of his father1 mother1 wife1 or
 children1 or perhaps all of these      
relations1 7such things have been17 nose
 him in his own village1 and insult him 
with the riches acquired from the       
plunder of his goods1 ready again to    
head a ,jacobin faction to attack his   
life8 ,he is unworthy of the name of man
 who would suffer it4 ,it is unworthy of
 the name of a government1 which1 taking
 justice out of the private hand1 will  
not exercise it for the injured by the  
public arm4  ,i know it sounds          
plausible1 and is readily adopted by    
those who have little sympathy with the 
sufferings of others1 to wish to jumble 
the innocent and guilty into one mass by

 a general indemnity4 ,this cruel       
indifference dignifies itself with the  
name of humanity4  ,it is extraordinary1
 that1 as the wicked arts of this       
regicide and tyrannous faction increase 
in number1 variety1 and atrocity1 the   
desire of punishing them becomes more   
and more faint1 and the talk of an      
indemnity towards them every day        
stronger and stronger4 ,our ideas of    
justice appear to be fairly conquered   
and overpowered by guilt1 when it is    
grown gigantic4 ,it is not the point of 
view in which we are in the habit of    
viewing guilt4 ,the crimes we every day 
punish are really below the penalties we
 inflict4 ,the criminals are obscure and
 feeble4 ,this is the view in which we  
see ordinary crimes and criminals4 ,but 
when guilt is seen1 though but for a    
time1 to be furnished with the arms and 
to be invested with the robes of power1 
it seems to assume another nature1 and  
to get1 as it were1 out of our          
jurisdiction4 ,this ,i fear is the case 

with many4 ,but there is another cause  
full as powerful towards this security  
to enormous guilt1--the desire which    
possesses people who have once obtained 
power to enjoy it at their ease4 ,it is 
not humanity1 but laziness and inertness
 of mind1 which produces the desire of  
this kind of indemnities4 ,this         
description of men love general and     
short methods4 ,if they punish1 they    
make a promiscuous massacre2 if they    
spare1 they make a general act of       
oblivion4 ,this is a want of disposition
 to proceed laboriously according to the
 cases1 and according to the rules and  
principles of justice on each case3 a   
want of disposition to assort criminals1
 to discriminate the degrees and modes  
of guilt1 to separate accomplices from  
principals1 leaders from followers1     
seducers from the seduced1 and then1 by 
following the same principles in the    
same detail1 to class punishments1 and  
to fit them to the nature and kind of   
the delinquency4 ,if that were once     

attempted1 we should soon see that the  
task was neither infinite nor the       
execution cruel4 ,there would be deaths1
 but1 for the number of criminals and   
the extent of ,france1 not many4 ,there 
would be cases of transportation1 cases 
of labor to restore what has been       
wickedly destroyed1 cases of            
imprisonment1 and cases of mere exile4  
,but be this as it may1 ,i am sure1     
that1 if justice is not done there1     
there can be neither peace nor justice  
there1 nor in any part of ,europe4      
,history is resorted to for other acts  
of indemnity in other times4 ,the       
princes are desired to look back to     
,henry the ,fourth4 ,we are desired to  
look to the restoration of ,king        
,charles4 ,these things1 in my opinion1 
have no resemblance whatsoever4 ,they   
were cases of a civil war1--in ,france  
more ferocious1 in ,england more        
moderate than common4 ,in neither       
country were the orders of society      
subverted1 religion and morality        

destroyed on principle1 or property     
totally annihilated4 ,in ,england1 the  
government of ,cromwell was1 to be sure1
 somewhat rigid1 but1 for a new power1  
no savage tyranny4 ,the country was     
nearly as well in his hands as in those 
of ,charles the ,second1 and in some    
points much better4 ,the laws in general
 had their course1 and were admirably   
administered4 ,the king did not in      
reality grant an act of indemnity2 the  
prevailing power1 then in a manner the  
nation1 in effect granted an indemnity  
to him4 ,the idea of a preceding        
rebellion was not at all admitted in    
that convention and that ,parliament4   
,the regicides were a common enemy1 and 
as such given up4  ,among the ornaments 
of their place which eminently          
distinguish them1 few people are better 
acquainted with the history of their own
 country than the illustrious princes   
now in exile2 but ,i caution them not to
 be led into error by that which has    
been supposed to be the guide of life4  

,i would give the same caution to all   
princes4 ,not that ,i derogate from the 
use of history4 ,it is a great improver 
of the understanding1 by showing both   
men and affairs in a great variety of   
views4 ,from this source much political 
wisdom may be learned1--that is1 may be 
learned as habit1 not as precept1--and  
as an exercise to strengthen the mind1  
as furnishing materials to enlarge and  
enrich it1 not as a repertory of cases  
and precedents for a lawyer3 if it were1
 a thousand times better would it be    
that a statesman had never learned to   
read1--vellem nescirent literas4 ,this  
method turns their understanding from   
the object before them1 and from the    
present exigencies of the world1 to     
comparisons with former times1 of which1
 after all1 we can know very little and 
very imperfectly2 and our guides1 the   
historians1 who are to give us their    
true interpretation1 are often          
prejudiced1 often ignorant1 often fonder
 of system than of truth4 ,whereas1 if a

 man with reasonable good parts and     
natural sagacity1 and not in the        
leading-strings of any master1 will look
 steadily on the business before him1   
without being diverted by retrospect and
 comparison1 he may be capable of       
forming a reasonable good judgment of   
what is to be done4 ,there are some     
fundamental points in which ,nature     
never changes2 but they are few and     
obvious1 and belong rather to morals    
than to politics4 ,but so far as regards
 political matter1 the human mind and   
human affairs are susceptible of        
infinite modifications1 and of          
combinations wholly new and             
unlooked-for4 ,very few1 for instance1  
could have imagined that property1 which
 has been taken for natural dominion1   
should1 through the whole of a vast     
kingdom1 lose all its importance1 and   
even its influence4 ,this is what       
history or books of speculation could   
hardly have taught us4 ,how many could  
have thought that the most complete and 

formidable revolution in a great empire 
should be made by men of letters1 not as
 subordinate instruments and trumpeters 
of sedition1 but as the chief contrivers
 and managers1 and in a short time as   
the open administrators and sovereign   
rulers8 ,who could have imagined that   
atheism could produce one of the most   
violently operative principles of       
fanaticism8 ,who could have imagined1   
that1 in a commonwealth in a manner     
cradled in war1 and in an extensive and 
dreadful war1 military commanders should
 be of little or no account1 --that the 
,convention should not contain one      
military man of name1--that             
administrative bodies1 in a state of the
 utmost confusion1 and of but a         
momentary duration1 and composed of men 
with not one imposing part of character1
 should be able to govern the country   
and its armies with an authority which  
the most settled senates and the most   
respected monarchs scarcely ever had in 
the same degree8 ,this1 for one1 ,i     

confess ,i did not foresee1 though all  
the rest was present to me very early1  
and not out of my apprehension even for 
several years4  ,i believe very few were
 able to enter into the effects of mere 
terror1 as a principle not only for the 
support of power in given hands or      
forms1 but in those things in which the 
soundest political speculators were of  
opinion that the least appearance of    
force would be totally                  
destructive1--such is the market1       
whether of money1 provision1 or         
commodities of any kind4 ,yet for four  
years we have seen loans made1          
treasuries supplied1 and armies levied  
and maintained1 more numerous than      
,france ever showed in the field1 by the
 effects of fear alone4  ,here is a     
state of things of which in its totality
 if history furnishes any examples at   
all1 they are very remote and feeble4 ,i
 therefore am not so ready as some are  
to tax with folly or cowardice those who
 were not prepared to meet an evil of   

this nature4 ,even now1 after the       
events1 all the causes may be somewhat  
difficult to ascertain4 ,very many are1 
however1 traceable4 ,but these things   
history and books of speculation 7as ,i 
have already said7 did not teach men to 
foresee1 and of course to resist4 ,now  
that they are no longer a matter of     
sagacity1 but of experience1 of recent  
experience1 of our own experience1 it   
would be unjustifiable to go back to the
 records of other times to instruct us  
to manage what they never enabled us to 
foresee4  ,,footnotes3  #cc ,some       
accounts make them five times as many4  
#cd ,before the ,revolution1 the ,french
 noblesse were so reduced in numbers    
that they did not much exceed twenty    
thousand at least of full-grown men4 ,as
 they have been very cruelly formed into
 entire corps of soldiers1 it is        
estimated1 that1 by the sword1 and      
distempers in the field1 they have not  
lost less than five thousand men2 and if
 this course is pursued1 it is to be    

feared that the whole body of the       
,french nobility may be extinguished4   
,several hundreds have also perished by 
famine1 and various accidents4  #ce     
,this was the language of the           
,ministerialists4  #cf ,vattel4  #cg    
,the first object of this club was the  
propagation of ,jacobin principles4     
,,appendix4  ,,extracts ,,from          
,,vattel',s ,,law ,,of ,,nations4  ,the 
,titles1 ,marginal ,abstracts1 and      
,notes are by ,mr4 ,,burke1 excepting   
such of the ,notes as are here          
distinguished4   ,,cases ,,of           
,,interference ,,with ,,independent     
,,powers4  ,if1 then1 there is anywhere 
a nation of a restless and mischievous  
disposition1 always ready to injure     
others1 to traverse their designs1 and  
to raise domestic troubles#ch it is not 
to be doubted that all have a right to  
join in order to repress1 chastise1 and 
put it ever after out of its power to   
injure them4 ,such should be the just   
fruits of the policy which ,machiavel   

praises in ,csar ,borgia4 ,the conduct  
followed by ,philip the ,second1 ,king  
of ,spain1 was adapted to unite all     
,europe against him2 and it was from    
just reasons that ,henry the ,great     
formed the design of humbling a power   
formidable by its forces and pernicious 
by its maxims4--,book ,,ii4 ch4 iv4     
#ec4  ,let us apply to the unjust what  
we have said above 7 #ec7 of a          
mischievous or maleficent nation4 ,if   
there be any that makes an open         
profession of trampling justice under   
foot1 of despising and violating the    
right of others1#ci whenever it finds an
 opportunity1 the interest of human     
society will authorize all others to    
unite in order to humble and chastise   
it4 ,we do not here forget the maxim    
established in our preliminaries1 that  
it does not belong to nations to usurp  
the power of being judges of each other4
 ,in particular cases1 liable to the    
least doubt1 it ought to be supposed    
that each of the parties may have some  

right2 and the injustice of that which  
has committed the injury may proceed    
from error1 and not from a general      
contempt of justice4 ,but if1 by        
constant maxims1 and by a continued     
conduct1 one nation shows that it has   
evidently this pernicious disposition1  
and that it considers no right as       
sacred1 the safety of the human race    
requires that it should be suppressed4  
,to form and support an unjust          
pretension is to do an injury not only  
to him who is interested in this        
pretension1 but to mock at justice in   
general1 and to injure all              
nations4--,ibid4 ch4 v4  #gj4           
,sidenote3 ,to succor against tyranny4  
,sidenote3 ,case of ,english            
,revolution4  ,sidenote3 ,an odious     
tyrant4  ,sidenote3 ,rebellious people4 
,sidenote3 ,case of civil war4          
,sidenote3 ,sovereign and his people1   
when distinct powers4  ,if the prince1  
attacking the fundamental laws1 gives   
his subjects a legal right to resist    

him1 if tyranny1 becoming insupportable1
 obliges the nation to rise in their    
defence1 every foreign power has a right
 to succor an oppressed people who      
implore their assistance4 ,the ,english 
justly complained of ,james the ,second4
 ,the nobility and the most             
distinguished patriots resolved to put a
 check on his enterprises1 which        
manifestly tended to overthrow the      
,constitution and to destroy the        
liberties and the religion of the       
people1 and therefore applied for       
assistance to the ,united ,provinces4   
,the authority of the ,prince of ,orange
 had1 doubtless1 an influence on the    
deliberations of the ,states-,general2  
but it did not make them commit         
injustice3 for when a people1 from good 
reasons1 take up arms against an        
oppressor1 justice and generosity       
require that brave men should be        
assisted in the defence of their        
liberties4 ,whenever1 therefore1 a civil
 war is kindled in a state1 foreign     

powers may assist that party which      
appears to them to have justice on their
 side4 ,he who assists an odious tyrant1
 he who declares ,,for ,,an ,,unjust    
,,and ,,rebellious ,,people1 offends    
against his duty4 ,when the bands of the
 political society are broken1 or at    
least suspended between the sovereign   
and his people1 they may then be        
considered as two distinct powers2 and  
since each is independent of all foreign
 authority1 nobody has a right to judge 
them4 ,either may be in the right1 and  
each of those who grant their assistance
 may believe that he supports a good    
cause4 ,it follows1 then1 in virtue of  
the voluntary law of nations1 7see      
,prelim4  #ba17 that the two parties may
 act as having an equal right1 and      
behave accordingly1 till the decision of
 the affair4  ,sidenote3 ,not to be     
pursued to an extreme4  ,sidenote3      
,endeavor to persuade subjects to a     
revolt4  ,but we ought not to abuse this
 maxim for authorizing odious           

proceedings against the tranquillity of 
states4 ,it is a violation of the law of
 nations to persuade those subjects to  
revolt who actually obey their          
sovereign1 though they complain of his  
government4  ,sidenote3 ,attempt to     
excite subjects to revolt4  ,the        
practice of nations is conformable to   
our maxims4 ,when the ,german           
,protestants came to the assistance of  
the ,reformed in ,france1 the court     
never undertook to treat them otherwise 
than as common enemies1 and according to
 the laws of war4 ,france at the same   
time assisted the ,netherlands1 which   
took up arms against ,spain1 and did not
 pretend that her troops should be      
considered upon any other footing than  
as auxiliaries in a regular war4 ,but no
 power avoids complaining of an         
atrocious injury1 if any one attempts by
 his emissaries to excite his subjects  
to revolt4  ,sidenote3 ,tyrants4  ,as to
 those monsters1 who1 under the title of
 sovereigns1 render themselves the      

scourges and horror of the human        
race1--these are savage beasts1 from    
which every brave man may justly purge  
the earth4 ,all antiquity has praised   
,hercules for delivering the world from 
an ,antus1 a ,busiris1 and a            
,diomedes4--,ibid4 ch4 iv4  #ef4  ,after
 stating that nations have no right to  
interfere in domestic concerns1 he      
proceeds1--,but this rule does not      
preclude them from espousing the quarrel
 of a dethroned king1 and assisting him1
 if he appears to have justice on his   
side4 ,they then declare themselves     
enemies of the nation which has         
acknowledged his rival2 as1 when two    
different nations are at war1 they are  
at liberty to assist that whose quarrel 
they shall think has the fairest        
appearance4--,book ,,iv4 ch4 ii4  #ad4  
,,case ,,of ,,alliances4  ,sidenote3    
,when an alliance to preserve a king    
takes place4  ,sidenote3 ,king does not 
lose his quality by the loss of his     
kingdom4  ,it is asked if that alliance 

subsists with the king and the royal    
family when by some revolution they are 
deprived of their crown4 ,we have lately
 remarked1 7 #aid17 that a personal     
alliance expires with the reign of him  
who contracted it3 but that is to be    
understood of an alliance with the      
state1 limited1 as to its duration1 to  
the reign of the contracting king4 ,this
 of which we are here speaking is of    
another nature4 ,for though it binds the
 state1 since it is bound by all the    
public acts of its sovereign1 it is made
 directly in favor of the king and his  
family2 it would therefore be absurd for
 it to terminate at the moment when they
 have need of it1 and at an event       
against which it was made4 ,besides1 the
 king does not lose his quality merely  
by the loss of his kingdom4 ,if he is   
stripped of it unjustly by an usurper1  
or by rebels1 he preserves his rights1  
in the number of which are his          
alliances4#dj  ,sidenote3 ,case wherein 
aid may be given to a deposed king4     

,but who shall judge if the king be     
dethroned lawfully or by violence8 ,an  
independent nation acknowledges no      
judge4 ,if the body of the nation       
declares the king deprived of his rights
 by the abuse he has made of them1 and  
deposes him1 it may justly do it when   
its grievances are well founded1 and no 
other power has a right to censure it4  
,the personal ally of this king ought   
not then to assist him against the      
nation that has made use of its right in
 deposing him3 if he attempts it1 he    
injures that nation4 ,england declared  
war against ,louis the ,fourteenth1 in  
the year #afhh1 for supporting the      
interest of ,james the ,second1 who was 
deposed in form by the nation4 ,the same
 country declared war against him a     
second time1 at the beginning of the    
present century1 because that prince    
acknowledged the son of the deposed     
,james1 under the name of ,james the    
,third4 ,in doubtful cases1 and when the
 body of the nation has not pronounced1 

or ,,has ,,not ,,pronounced ,,freely1 a 
sovereign may naturally support and     
defend an ally2 and it is then that the 
voluntary law of nations subsists       
between different states4 ,the party    
that has driven out the king pretends to
 have right on its side2 this unhappy   
king and his ally flatter themselves    
with having the same advantage2 and as  
they have no common judge upon earth1   
they have no other method to take but to
 apply to arms to terminate the dispute2
 they therefore engage in a formal war4 
,sidenote3 ,not obliged to pursue his   
right beyond a certain point4  ,in      
short1 when the foreign prince has      
faithfully fulfilled his engagements    
towards an unfortunate monarch1 when he 
has done in his defence1 or to procure  
his restoration1 all he was obliged to  
perform in virtue of the alliance1 if   
his efforts are ineffectual1 the        
dethroned prince cannot require him to  
support an endless war in his favor1 or 
expect that he will eternally remain the

 enemy of the nation or of the sovereign
 who has deprived him of the throne4 ,he
 must think of peace1 abandon the ally1 
and consider him as having himself      
abandoned his right through necessity4  
,thus ,louis the ,fourteenth was obliged
 to abandon ,james the ,second1 and to  
acknowledge ,king ,william1 though he   
had at first treated him as an usurper4 
,sidenote3 ,case of defence against     
subjects4  ,sidenote3 ,case where real  
alliances may be renounced4  ,the same  
question presents itself in real        
alliances1 and1 in general1 in all      
alliances made with the state1 and not  
in particular with a king for the       
defence of his person4 ,an ally ought1  
doubtless1 to be defended against every 
invasion1 against every foreign         
violence1 and even against his          
rebellious subjects3 in the same manner 
a republic ought to be defended against 
the enterprises of one who attempts to  
destroy the public liberty4 ,but it     
ought to be remembered that an ally of  

the state or the nation is not its      
judge4 ,if the nation has deposed its   
king in form1--if the people of a       
republic have driven out their          
magistrates and set themselves at       
liberty1 or acknowledged the authority  
of an usurper1 either expressly or      
tacitly1--to oppose these domestic      
regulations1 by disputing their justice 
or validity1 would be to interfere in   
the government of the nation1 and to do 
it an injury4 7,see  #ed1 and following1
 of this ,book47 ,the ally remains the  
ally of the state1 notwithstanding the  
change that has happened in it4         
,however1 when this change renders the  
alliance useless1 dangerous1 or         
disagreeable1 it may renounce it2 for it
 may say1 upon a good foundation1 that  
it would not have entered into an       
alliance with that nation1 had it been  
under the present form of government4   
,sidenote3 ,not an eternal war4  ,we may
 say here1 what we have said on a       
personal alliance3 however just the     

cause of that king may be who is driven 
from the throne either by his subjects  
or by a foreign usurper1 his aides are  
not obliged to support an eternal war in
 his favor4 ,after having made          
ineffectual efforts to restore him1 they
 must at length give peace to their     
people1 and come to an accommodation    
with the usurper1 and for that purpose  
treat with him as with a lawful         
sovereign4 ,louis the ,fourteenth1      
exhausted by a bloody and unsuccessful  
war1 offered at ,gertruydenberg to      
abandon his grandson1 whom he had placed
 on the throne of ,spain2 and when      
affairs had changed their appearance1   
,charles of ,austria1 the rival of      
,philip1 saw himself1 in his turn1      
abandoned by his allies4 ,they grew     
weary of exhausting their states in     
order to give him the possession of a   
crown which they believed to be his due1
 but which1 to all appearance1 they     
should never be able to procure for     
him4--,book ,,ii4 ch4 xii4  #aif1 #aig4 

,,dangerous ,,power4  ,sidenote3 ,all   
nations may join4  ,it is still easier  
to prove1 that1 should this formidable  
power betray any unjust and ambitious   
dispositions by doing the least         
injustice to another1 every nation may  
avail themselves of the occasion1 and   
join their forces to those of the party 
injured1 in order to reduce that        
ambitious power1 and disable it from so 
easily oppressing its neighbors1 or     
keeping them in continual awe and fear4 
,for an injury gives a nation a right to
 provide for its future safety by taking
 away from the violator the means of    
oppression4 ,it is lawful1 and even     
praiseworthy1 to assist those who are   
oppressed1 or unjustly attacked4--,book 
,,iii4 ch4 iii4  #de4   ,,system ,,of   
,,europe4  ,sidenote3 ,europe a republic
 to preserve order and liberty4  ,europe
 forms a political system1 a body where 
the whole is connected by the relations 
and different interests of nations      
inhabiting this part of the world4 ,it  

is not1 as anciently1 a confused heap of
 detached pieces1 each of which thought 
itself very little concerned in the fate
 of others1 and seldom regarded things  
which did not immediately relate to it4 
,the continual attention of sovereigns  
to what is on the carpet1 the constant  
residence of ministers1 and the         
perpetual negotiations1 make ,europe a  
kind of a republic1 the members of      
which1 though independent1 unite1       
through the ties of common interest1 for
 the maintenance of order and liberty4  
,hence arose that famous scheme of the  
political equilibrium1 or balance of    
power1 by which is understood such a    
disposition of things as no power is    
able absolutely to predominate or to    
prescribe laws to others4--,book ,,iii4 
ch4 iii4  #dg4  ,confederacies would be 
a sure way of preserving the            
equilibrium1 and supporting the liberty 
of nations1 did all princes thoroughly  
understand their true interests1 and    
regulate all their steps for the good of

 the state4--,ibid4  #di4               
,,contributions ,,in ,,the ,,enemy',s   
,,country4  ,sidenote3 ,to be moderate4 
,instead of the pillage of the country  
and defenceless places1 a custom has    
been substituted more humane and more   
advantageous to the sovereign making    
war3 ,i mean that of contributions4     
,whoever carries on a just war#da has a 
right of making the enemy's country     
contribute to the support of the army1  
and towards defraying all the charges of
 the war4 ,thus he obtains a part of    
what is due to him1 and the subjects of 
the enemy1 on submitting to this        
imposition1 are secured from pillage1   
and the country is preserved4 ,but a    
general who would not sully his         
reputation is to moderate his           
contributions1 and proportion them to   
those on whom they are imposed4 ,an     
excess in this point is not without the 
reproach of cruelty and inhumanity3 if  
it shows less ferocity than ravage and  
destruction1 it glares with             

avarice4--,book ,,iii4 ch4 ix4  #afe4   
,,asylum4  ,if an exile or banished man 
is driven from his country for any      
crime1 it does not belong to the nation 
in which he has taken refuge to punish  
him for a fault committed in a foreign  
country4 ,for ,nature gives to mankind  
and to nations the right of punishing   
only for their defence and safety 7     
#afi73 whence it follows that he can    
only be punished by those he has        
offended4  ,but this reason shows1 that1
 if the justice of each nation ought in 
general to be confined to the punishment
 of crimes committed in its own         
territories1 we ought to except from    
this rule the villains who1 by the      
quality and habitual frequency of their 
crimes1 violate all public security1 and
 declare themselves the enemies of the  
human race4 ,poisoners1 assassins1 and  
incendiaries by profession may be       
exterminated wherever they are seized2  
for they attack and injure all nations  
by trampling under foot the foundations 

of their common safety4 ,thus pirates   
are brought to the gibbet by the first  
into whose hands they fall4 ,if the     
sovereign of the country where crimes of
 that nature have been committed        
reclaims the authors of them in order to
 bring them to punishment1 they ought to
 be restored to him1 as to one who is   
principally interested in punishing them
 in an exemplary manner3 and it being   
proper to convict the guilty1 and to try
 them according to some form of law1    
this is a second not sole reason why    
malefactors are usually delivered up at 
the desire of the state where their     
crimes have been committed4--,book ,i4  
ch4 xix4  #bcb1 #bcc4  ,every nation has
 a right of refusing to admit a stranger
 into the country1 when he cannot enter 
it without putting it in evident danger1
 or without doing it a remarkable       
prejudice4#db--;,ibid4  #bcj4           
,,foreign ,,ministers4  ,the obligation 
does not go so far as to suffer at all  
times perpetual ministers1 who are      

desirous of residing with a sovereign1  
though they have nothing to negotiate4  
,it is natural1 indeed1 and very        
agreeable to the sentiments which       
nations owe to each other1 that these   
resident ministers1 when there it       
nothing to be feared from their stay1   
should be friendly received2 but if     
there be any solid reason against this1 
what is for the good of the state ought 
unquestionably to be preferred3 and the 
foreign sovereign cannot take it amiss1 
if his minister1 who has concluded the  
affairs of his commission1 and has no   
other affairs to negotiate1 be desired  
to depart4#dc ,the custom of keeping    
everywhere ministers continually        
resident is now so strongly established1
 that the refusal of a conformity to it 
would1 without very good reasons1 give  
offence4 ,these reasons may arise from  
particular conjunctures2 but there are  
also common reasons always subsisting1  
and such as relate to the constitution  
of a government and the state of a      

nation4 ,the republics have often very  
good reasons of the latter kind to      
excuse themselves from continually      
suffering foreign ministers who corrupt 
the citizens in order to gain them over 
to their masters1 to the great prejudice
 of the republic and fomenting of the   
parties1 c4 ,and should they only       
diffuse among a nation1 formerly plain1 
frugal1 and virtuous1 a taste for       
luxury1 avidity for money1 and the      
manners of courts1 these would be more  
than sufficient for wise and provident  
rulers to dismiss them4--,book ,,iv4 ch4
 v4  #ff4  ,,footnotes3  #ch ,this is   
the case of ,france3--,semonville at    
,turin1--,jacobin clubs1--,liegeois     
meeting1--,flemish meeting1--,la        
,fayette's answer1--,clootz's           
embassy1--,avignon4  #ci ,the ,french   
acknowledge no power not directly       
emanating from the people4  #dj ,by the 
seventh article of the ,treaty of       
,,triple ,,alliance1 between ,france1   
,england1 and ,holland1 signed at the   

,hague1 in the year #agag1 it is        
stipulated1 that1 if the kingdoms1      
countries1 or provinces of any of the   
allies are disturbed by intestine       
quarrels1 or by rebellions1 on account  
of the said successions1 7the           
,protestant succession to the throne of 
,great ,britain1 and the succession to  
the throne of ,france1 as settled by the
 ,treaty of ,utrecht17 or under any     
other pretext whatever1 the ally thus in
 trouble shall have full right to demand
 of his allies the succors above        
mentioned3 that is to say1 the same     
succors as in the case of an invasion   
from any foreign power1--#h1jjj foot and
 #b1jjj horse to be furnished by ,france
 or ,england1 and #d1jjj foot and #a1jjj
 horse by the ,states-,general4  ,by the
 fourth article of the ,treaty of       
,,quadruple ,,alliance1 between         
,england1 ,france1 ,holland1 and the    
,emperor of ,germany1 signed in the year
 #agah1 the contracting powers promise  
and oblige themselves that they will and

 ought to maintain1 guaranty1 and defend
 the right of succession in the kingdom 
of ,france1 according to the tenor of   
the treaties made at ,utrecht the #aath 
day of ,april1 #agac2 444 and this they 
shall perform against all persons       
whosoever who may presume to disturb the
 order of the said succession1 in       
contradiction to the previous acts and  
treaties subsequent thereon4  ,the above
 treaties have been revived and         
confirmed by every subsequent treaty of 
peace between ,great ,britain and       
,france4--,,edit4  #da ,contributions   
raised by the ,duke of ,brunswick in    
,france4 ,compare these with the        
contributions raised by the ,french in  
the ,netherlands4--,,edit4  #db ,the    
third article of the ,treaty of ,triple 
,alliance and the latter part of the    
fourth article of the ,treaty of        
,quadruple ,alliance stipulate1 that no 
kind of refuge or protection shall be   
given to rebellious subjects of the     
contracting powers4--,,edit4  #dc       

,dismission of ,m4 ,chauvelin4--,,edit4 
,,end ,,of ,,vol4 ,,iv4