fhould prefume to difpute a right which they have not frength to wreft from us. Power is very often the ultima ratio; but to queftion the rights of government without the ability to engage in fuch a conteft, is the perfection of folly and madness.'-These may serve as fpecimens of opinions belonging more particularly to the Writer of this Letter, which opinions are however intermixed with fome of the arguments that have been often urged against the colonies, and not unfrequently answered. Though we do not mean to prescribe any particular employment for this Gentleman, we cannot advife him to perfevere in writing Letters to Members of Parliament, unless it be for better ends than he will probably attain from their publication. B. Art. 12. The Interefts of the Merchants and Manufacturers of Great Britain, in the prefent Contest with the Colonies, ftated and confidered. 8vo. I s. Cadell. 1774.

The Author of this performance, to balance the disadvantages confeffedly impofed on the colonies, by reftraints of their trade, enamerates the fuppofed favours conferred on them by parliament; be. ginning with the act for prohibiting the cultivation of tobacco in England or Ireland, by which he means, as we fuppofe, the act 12 Car. II.-But none of the favours he mentions can, as we think, be justly afcribed to a partial regard for the interefts of the colonies, which have always been confidered, at moft, but as fecondary to thofe of the parent ftate. And indeed the only true reason for prohibiting the cultivation of tobacco in these kingdoms, is in the preamble of the act itfelf declared to be," that by planting thereof, your Majefty is deprived of a confiderable part of your revenue, arifing by cuftoms upon imported tobacco;" for which reafon its cultivation has been likewife prohibited in France, where the government cannot be supposed to have any particular folicitude for the profperity of Vir ginia, &c.

But this Writer's principal endeavour is to prevent any interference of the merchants and manufacturers of Great Britain, in behalf of the people of America, by representing that the continuance of their trade to the colonies clearly and intirely depends upon the laws of England, having authority there:-That it is their operation which binds the commerce of the colonies to this country, and gives fecurity to the property of the trader fent thither.' B. Art. 13. A very fhort and candid Appeal to freeborn Britons. By an American. 8vo. 1 S. Axtel. 1774.

This Appeal confifts only of arguments often repeated before in favour of the colonies, and contains nothing which will be thought interefting by thofe who are even moderately acquainted with the prefent ftate of the American controversy. B. Art. 14. A Speech never intended to be fpoken, in Anfwer to a Speech intended to have been spoken, on the Bill for altering the Charter of the Colony of Maffachufets-Bay. 8vo. I s. Knox. The Writer of this fpeech declaims with fome spirit and plaufibi. lity but when he condefcends, or rather pretends, to reason, we can not but pity either the weakness, or the abufe of his faculties.-The fuppofed Right Reverend Author of the fpeech intended to have been spoken' had conceded all the rights claimed by parliament

See Review for July, p. 70.

Over

over the colonies, and oppofed only what he thought a pernicious exercise of those rights: he imputed folly to the measures of government, rather than injuftice or oppreflion. His antagonist however has wantonly drawn the matter of right, into question, with a vain hope of proving what was already conceded: for this purpose he advances, as a fundamental pofition, that by the conftitution reprefentation is not necessary to taxation.'-An affertion fo contrary to the letter and spirit of numerous acts of state, as well as repugnant to all that has been written and believed of English rights or of English government, would feem at least to require one fubftantial proof; but inftead of this we find only two confiderations;' the first is, that parliament in the times of our Saxon ancestors, from whom we boat that the fpirit and form of our conftitution is derived, affeffed and levied taxes before the commons fat in parliament by representation.' -Anciently all English freemen were admitted perfonally to parliament, and could therefore have no need of representation. By the ftatute, de talliagio non concedendo, King Edward the First expressly declares, that no tallage or aid shall be taken or levied by us or our heirs in our realm, without the good will and affent of the archbishops, bishops, earls, barons, knights, burgeffes, and other freemen of the land.' There are various other ftatutes also which make the confent of the fubjects in general neceffary to authorise taxation; and this confent can only be given either in person or by representation; and the latter method, for convenience, was at length conftantly substituted for the former. In all times therefore the right of confent has remained: but could it even be proved, that there has been a time in which the people have had no thare in the powers of legislation and taxation, they must then have lived under a form of government, very different from that which has fince been the boat and felicity of Englishmen, and it must therefore be very abfurd to conclude any thing concerning the nature of our prefent conftitution from practices prevailing before this conftitution was formed or established. His fecond confideration is, that there are more fubjects unrepresented in England and yet taxed, than there are inhabitants in British America.-The right of voting at the choice of reprefentatives belonged to every English freeman until the reign of Henry the Sixth, and its restriction at that time, was a departure from the spirit of our free government. The right has however always exifted, though not in an equal divifion; (which indeed is not poffible) and those who have ceased to exercise the right, have by the conftitution been con fidered as enjoying a virtual reprefentation; from which they have derived a real fecurity; being affected by no law or tax which does not equally bind the reprefentatives and their electors alfo: and this is a circumstance of great importance, because as Sidney has observed, ⚫ the hazard of being ruined by those who must perish with us is not fo much to be feared, as by thofe who may enrich and ftrengthen themselves by our deftruction.' The people of America therefore, whilft taxed by partial laws, and wholly deprived of all reprefenta. tion, confider their cafe as very different from that of another people, who enjoy that privilege, under the fingle defect of having it unequally shared among them: and they particularly complain, that whilft every fubject poffeffing freehold property in Great Britain, of

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the yearly value of forty fhillings, enjoys the right of voting for reprefentatives, there are three hundred thoufand American freeholders, poffeffing fimilar qualifications, who have not altogether a fingle fuffrage for a fingle representative.

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After denying the existence of reprefentation, our Author very confiftently affirms, that the parliament is collectively the representative of the British empire;' and as a fecond fundamental pofition maintains, that the Americans are reprefented' therein. Had he indeed proved an affertion fo contrary to truth and common fenfe, it might have been neceffary to revive the laws against witchcraft. But on examination, his proofs do not appear the refult of any fupernatural aid indeed they hardly difcover the affiftance of reason though he has alleged one authority (as he fays) inferior only to divine revelation' and this is an expreffion in the petition or fupplication of parliament to Queen Mary in 1554;' wherein they speak of themfelves as reprefenting the whole body of the realm of England and do minions of the fame;' which realm and dominions have been commonly defcribed in the Atta Regia of thofe and fubfequent times, as confifting of our kingdom of England, dominion of Wales, and town of Berwick upon Tweed,' all of which then actually fent reprefentatives to parliament. We think therefore that a man cannot be faid to reason, who, because parliament in 1554 was confidered as reprefenting places which were actually reprefented therein, concludes from thence, that the fame parliament intended to declare themselves the reprefentatives of America, which they actually did not reprefent, and which was not even inhabited by a single subject of the crown: and yet this is the only pretended proof to fupport the fundamental affertion in queftion: and fo well is he fatisfied with it, that he exultingly expatiates on the glaring abfurdity of contending that, it is the criterion of British liberty to be taxed by parliament,' and is tyranny in that parliament to tax the Americans;' though a little attention to the relations of things, might probably have difcovered to a reasonable man, that the very circumstances which make it fafe and defirable for the people of Great Britain to be taxed by parliament, make it unfafe and grievous for another people to be taxed by that parliament. The commons of Great Britain in impofing taxes within the realm, grant what they and their conftituents maft pay. But in taxing the people of France, they would grant the property of others and make gifts which coft nothing either to themselves or their conftituents: and in taxing the people of America, they not only grant fupplies of which they pay no part, but have the adei tional fatisfaction of thereby faving their own money and that of their constituents. In a protest against the repeal of the ftamp aft, figned by thirty three of the lords, it is declared to be the indifpenfable duty of parliament to tax the colonies in order to ease the gentry and people of Great Britain.' It has therefore been feared that under fuch convictions of the duty of parliament, the love of ease so natural to the gentry,' might in fome future age operate fo as to render the people of America unealy, if they thould patiently fubmit to the exercife of parliamentary taxation.

In defence of the fuppofed expediency of the late measures which now threaten us with alarming confequences, our Author offers very little; indeed at one lucid interval he seems to condemn them; de

claring

claring ex poft facto acts of parliament' to be dangerous in civil, and tyrannical in criminal questions:' and propofing that inftead of paling empty unavailing declarations of the rights of parliament, and conftituting ourselves judges in our own caufe,' we should try the right like men,' by fubmitting the difpute to be judged by the fages of the law-the twelve Judges of England; and that in the mean time every hoftile, every penal proceeding against America may be stopped, and mercy, like the dew from heaven, may fall on the heads of the deluded and misguided Colonists; in whom the love of liberty, and their natale folum cannot be an unpardonable offence B. in the fight of Englishmen.' Art. 15. Great Britain's Right to tax the Colonies placed in the I s. Davenhill. cleareft Light, by a Swifs. 8vo. This Swiss is an advocate for the people of America, chiefly on B. grounds which have been before trodden by others. Art. 16. A Letter from a Virginian to the Members of the Congress, &c. Boston printed. London reprinted. 8vo.

1 s. Wilkie. Our Virginian appears to have made an effort to diffuade the members of the Congrefs from adopting the non importation and nonexportation agreements; but as they have difregarded his arguments, and as his performance contains nothing new or important to the people of Great Britain, we think the republication of it here was unfeasonable.

B. Art. 17. Thoughts of a Traveller upon our American Difputes. 8vo. 1 s. Ridley.

This pamphlet confits of letters lately printed in the Public Advertifer, and contains fome good, together with fome inconfiftent, obfervations.

B.

Other POLITICAL Publications. Art. 18. Pieces first published in the Public Advertiser-Sketch 1 s. 6d. Kearly. 1774. of the prefent Reign, &c. &c. 8vo. Thefe papers exhibit, firft, a moft unpleafing, and even frightful whole-length portrait of that court dæmon, by whom, it is afferted, the administration of our public affairs hath been uniformly directed, whether openly or fecretly, ever fince the commencement of the prefent reign. With this alarming piece is given, as its companion, an Oriental Tale. From the tale our attention is diverted to the Portrait of a modern Orator ;-a caricature of Lord Chatham. In the rear of the difguftful group we have a lively sketch of the famous Bolingbroke; whofe pernicious maxims are pointed out as the primary fource of that dangerous ftream of politics on which government hath unhappily embarked, and greatly hazarded, the national welfare.

The concealed Author of thefe four pieces writes with an air of intelligence, and information, fuperior to the generality of newspaper politicians: with whom, however, it is certain, the best pens of this country are frequently affociated. In invective he is free, in affumptions bold, in reprefentations plaufible, in conclufions defperate for although he finally admits that there are still, in our conftitution, remedies for all the diforders of the ftate,' yet he clogs this conceffion with a defponding kind of if, which at once dashes from our lips the cup of comfort he had prefented us with; if, fays he,

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there were but beads and hearts to apply them :' but, alas! he adds, you will wait long enough before any hope of fuch an application ceases to be treated, in theory and practice, as an Utopian chimera :— at least. according to all appearances, hitherto, of the PRESENT REIGN,'

Although we have by no means fo bad an opinion of the prefent fituation of " poor Old England," as this warm though fenfible Writer feems to have conceived, yet we think his pieces deserve to be read with attention, by all parties. He traces, from the out-fet, the whole courfe of the FAVOURITE's conduct, marks his footsteps, and infifts that the line of his progress leads in full and obvious direction, to the national ruin.

Our fanguine Author has fome ftriking observations on the conduct of government, with respect to the prefent difputes with the colonies; and he totally condemns it, in every instance.

He is no lefs fevere on the Quebec bill, which he reprobates as a meafure most injudicious, unconftitutional, unnecessary, and alarming; as affording a prefumptive proof of that ftrain of complaifance to the French court, of which the cabinet has been, with too much appearance of reafon, accufed, from the very first of this reign.' And this complaifance he refolves into the influence of Bolingbroke's counfels in the court of the late Prince of Wales.-Of the justice of this last charge, thofe are the best judges who were intimate in the cabinet of Carlton House: and whether or not this animated Writer was of that number, is best known to himself.-Perhaps he ranks with the outs; and, indeed, fuch an air of pique, and personal enmity prevails throughout thefe pieces, as may induce many Readers to refolve the whole of our Author's public reprefentations into pri

vate resentment.

Art. 19. An impartial Review of the Proceedings of the late Houfe of Commons. Wherein the Characters, Views, Principles, and Abilities of the principal Leaders in Administration, and of their Opponents, are fairly ftated. By one of the late Barons of the Cinque Ports. Izmo. 2 s. 6d. Witts. 1774

Black and all black! The plan of the Author was not to elucidate, in this effay, all the acts of the legiflature, in a retrofpect of fix years. We have ftated the most glaring acts, and the most deftructive of the liberty of the fubje&t; with the opinion of the few honeft men who oppofed, to no purpofe, all the wretched measures of a profligate majority.'-Well faid, brother Reviewer, of the Cinqueports! at 'em, Heart of Oak! fhew the rogues not a grain of mercy : especially as they are all dead, and there is no danger in trouncing the dogs.

One thing, however, puzzles our patriotic brother; it is furprifing, fays he, that a parliament fo notoriously venal, has given its fanction to make perpetual Mr. Grenville's bill, which will lessen the ministerial influence in contefted elections, and determine without injuftice and partiality, the rights of the reprefentatives and their conflituents.'

Sure enough, fuch inconfiftency in fo corrupt and unprincipled a body,' is fufficient to poze any honeft well-meaning Reviewer,

whether