CONCLUSION.

“Iftheycan subsist withoutyou; and alsoyouwithoutthem,” the attempt to subjugate them by confiscating their effects, burning their towns, and ravaging their territories, is a wanton exertion of cruel ambition, which, however common it has been among mankind, deserves to be called by harder names than I chuse to apply to it.—Suppose such an attempt was to be succeeded: Would it not be a fatal preparation for subduing yourselves? Would not the disposal ofAmericanplaces, and the distribution of anAmericanrevenue, render that influence of the crown irresistible, which has already stabbed your liberties?

Turn your eyes toIndia: There more has been done than is now attempted inAmerica. ThereEnglishmen, actuated by the love of plunder andthe spirit of conquest, have depopulated whole kingdoms, and ruined millions of innocent people by the most infamous oppression and rapacity.—The justice of the nation has slept over these enormities. Will the justice of heaven sleep?—Are we not now execrated on both sides of the globe?

With respect to the Colonists; it would be folly to pretend they are faultless. They were running fast into our vices. But this quarrel gives them a salutary check: And it may be permitted on purpose to favour them, and inthemthe rest of mankind; by making way for establishing, in an extensive country possessed of every advantage, a plan of government, and a growing power that will astonish the world, and under which every subject of human enquiry shall be open to free discussion, and the friends of Liberty, in every quarter of the globe, find a safe retreat from civil and spiritual tyranny.—I hope, therefore, our brethren inAmericawill forgive their oppressors. It is certainthey know not what they are doing.

Having said so much of the war with America, and particularly of the danger with which it threatens us, it may be expected that I should propose some method of escaping from this danger, and of restoring this once happy Empire to a state of peace and security.—Various plans of pacification have been proposed; and some of them, by persons so distinguished by their rank and merit, as to be above my applause. But till there is more of a disposition to attend to such plans; they cannot, I am afraid, be of any great service. And there is too much reason to apprehend, that nothing but calamity will bring us to repentance and wisdom.—In order, however, to complete my design in these observations, I will take the liberty to lay before the public the following sketch of one of the plans just referred to, as it was opened before the holidays to the house of Lords by theEarl of Shelburne; who, while he held the seals of the Southern Department, with the business of the Colonies annexed, possessed their confidence, without ever compromising the authority of this country; a confidence which discovered itself by peace among themselves, and duty and submissionto the Mother-country. I hope I shall not take an unwarrantable liberty, if, on this occasion, I use his Lordship’s own words, as nearly as I have been able to collect them.

“Meet the Colonies on their own ground, in the last petition from the Congress to the king. The surest, as well as the most dignified mode of proceeding for this country.—Suspend all hostilities—Repeal the acts which immediately distress America, namely, the last restraining act,—the charter act,—the act for the more impartial administration of justice;—and the Quebec act.—All the other acts (the custom house act, the post office act, &c.) leave to a temperate revisal.—There will be found much matter which both countries may wish repealed.Somewhich can never be given up, the principle being that regulation of trade for the common good of the Empire, which forms ourPalladium.Othermatter which is fair subject of mutual accommodation.—Prescribe the most explicit acknowledgment of your right of regulating commerce in its most extensive sense; if the petition and other public acts of the Colonies have not already, by their declarations and acknowledgments, left it upon a sufficiently secure foundation.—Besides the power of regulating the general commerce of the Empire, something further might be expected; provided a due andtender regard were had to the means and abilities of the several provinces, as well as to those fundamental, unalienable rights ofEnglishmen, which no father can surrender on the part of his son, no representative on the part of his elector, no generation on the part of the succeeding one; the right of judging not only of themodeof raising, but thequantum, and the appropriation of such aids as they shall grant.—To be more explicit; the debt ofEngland, without entering into invidious distinctions how it came to be contracted, might be acknowledged the debt of every individual part of the whole Empire, Asia, as well as America, included.—Provided, that full security were held forth to them, that such free aids, together with the Sinking Fund (Great Britain contributing her superior share) should not be left as the privy purse of the minister, but be unalienably appropriated to the original intention of that fund, the discharge of the debt;—and that by an honest application of thewholefund, the taxes might in time be lessened, and the price of our manufactures consequently reduced, so that every contributory part might feel the returning benefit—always supposing the laws of trade duly observed and enforced.

“The timewas, I am confident—and perhapsis, when these points might be obtained upon the easy, the constitutional, and, therefore, the indispensible terms of an exemptionfrom parliamentary taxation, and an admission of the sacredness of their charters; instead of sacrificing their good humour, their affection, their effectual aids, and the act ofNAVIGATIONitself, (which you are now in the direct road to do) for a commercial quit-rent,[47]or a barren metaphysical chimæra.—How long these ends may continue attainable, no man can tell.—But if no words are to be relied on except such as make against the Colonies—If nothing is acceptable, except what is attainable by force; it only remains to apply, what has been so often remarked of unhappy periods,—Quos deus vult, &c.”

These are sentiments and proposals of the last importance; and I am very happy in being able to give them to the public from so respectable an authority as that of the distinguished Peer I have mentioned; to whom, I know, this kingdom, aswell as America, is much indebted for his zeal to promote those grand public points on which the preservation of Liberty among us depends; and for the firm opposition which, jointly with many others (Noblemen and Commoners of the first character and abilities,) he has made to the present measures.

Had such a plan as that now proposed been adopted a few months ago, I have little doubt but that a pacification would have taken place, on terms highly advantageous to this kingdom.—In particular. It is probable, that the Colonies would have consented to grant an annual supply, which, increased by a saving of the money now spent in maintaining troops among them, and by contributions which might have been gained from other parts of the Empire, would have formed a fund considerable enough, if unalienably applied, to redeem the public debt; in consequence of which, agreeably to Lord Shelburne’s ideas, some of our worst taxes might be taken off, and the Colonies would receive our manufactures cheaper; our paper-currency might be restrained; our whole force would be free to meet at any time foreign danger; the influence of the Crown would be reduced; our Parliament would become less dependent; and the kingdom might, perhaps, be restored to a situation of permanent safety and prosperity.

To conclude.—An important revolution in the affairs of this kingdom seems to be approaching. If ruin is not to be our lot, all that has been lately done must be undone, and new measures adopted. At that period, an opportunity (never perhaps to be recovered, if lost) will offer itself for serving essentiallythis country, as well asAmerica; by putting the national debt into afixedcourse of payment; by subjecting to new regulations, the administration of the finances; and by establishing measures for exterminating corruption and restoring the constitution.—For my own part; if this is not to be the consequence of any future changes in the ministry, and the system of corruption, lately so much improved, is to go on; I think it totally indifferent to the kingdom who arein, or who areoutof power.

The following fact is of so much importance, that I cannot satisfy myself without laying it before the public.—In a Committee of the AmericanCongressinJune1775, a declaration was drawn up containing an offer toGreat Britain, “that the Colonies would not only continue to grant extraordinary aids in time of war, but also, if allowed a free commerce, pay into theSinking-Fundsuch a sum annually forONE HUNDRED YEARS, as should bemorethan sufficient in that time, if faithfully applied, to extinguish all the present debts ofBritain. Or, provided this was not accepted, that, to remove the groundless jealousy ofBritainthat the Colonies aimed at Independence and an abolition of the Navigation Act, which in truth, they had never intended; and also, to avoid all future disputes about the right of making that and other Acts for regulating their commerce for the general benefit, they would enter into a covenant withBritain, that she should fully possess and exercise that right forone hundred yearsto come.”

At the end of the preceding Tract I have had the honor of laying before the public the Earl ofShelburne’s plan of Pacification with the Colonies. In that plan, it is particularly proposed, that the Colonies should grant an annualsupply to be carried to the Sinking Fund, and unalienably appropriated to the discharge of the public debt.—It must give this excellent Peer great pleasure to learn, from this resolution, that even this part of his plan, as well as all the other parts, would, most probably, have been accepted by the Colonies. For though the resolution only offers the alternative of either afreetrade, with extraordinary aids and an annual supply, or anexclusivetrade confirmed and extended; yet there can be little reason to doubt, but that to avoid the calamities of the present contest,BOTHwould have been consented to; particularly, if, on our part, such a revisal of the laws of trade had been offered as was proposed in Lord Shelburne’s plan.

The preceding resolution was, I have said, drawn up in a Committee of the Congress. But it was not entered in their minutes; a severe Act of Parliament happening to arrive at that time, which determined them not to give the sum proposed in it.

FINIS.

FOOTNOTES[11]See a particular explanation of this assertion in the Second Tract,Page 9.[12]InGreat Britain, consisting of near sixmillionsof inhabitants, 5723 persons, most of them the lowest of the people, elect one half of theHouse of Commons; and 364 votes chuse a ninth part. This may be seen distinctly made out in thePolitical Disquisitions, Vol. 1. Book 2. C. 4. a work full of important and useful instruction.[13]See among others Mr. Locke on Government, and Dr. Priestley’s Essay on the first Principles of Government.[14]See Dr. Priestly on Government, page 68, 69, &c.[15]The independency of the Judges we esteem in this country one of our greatest privileges.—Before the revolution they generally, I believe, held their placesduring pleasure. King William gave them their placesduring good behaviour. At the accession of the present Royal Family their places were given themduring good behaviour, in consequence of the Act of Settlement, 12 and 13 W. III. C. 2. But an opinion having been entertained by some, that though their commissions were made under the Act of Settlement to continue, during good behaviour, yet that they determined on the demise of the Crown; it was enacted by a statute made in the first year of his present Majesty, Chap. 23. “That the commissions of Judges for the time being shall be, continue, and remain in full force, during their good behaviour, notwithstanding the demise of his Majesty, or of any of his Heirs and Successors;” with a proviso, “that it may be lawful for his Majesty, his Heirs and Successors, to remove any Judge upon the address of both Houses of Parliament.” And by the same Statute their salaries are secured to them during the continuance of their commissions: His Majesty, according to the preamble of the Statute, having been pleased to declare from the Throne to both Houses of Parliament, “That he looked upon the independency and uprightness of Judges as essential to the impartial administration of Justice, as one of the best securities to the Rights and Liberties of his loving Subjects, and as most conducive to the honour of his Crown.”A worthy friend and able Lawyer has supplied me with this note. It affords, when contrasted with thatdependenceof the Judges which has been thought reasonable inAmerica, a sad specimen of the different manner in which a kingdom may think proper to govern itself, and the provinces subject to it.[16]Montesquieu’s Spirit of Laws, Vol. I. Book 11. C. xix.[17]This is particularly true of thebountiesgranted on some American commodities (as pitch, tar, indigo, &c.) when imported intoBritain; for it is well known, that the end of granting them was, to get those commodities cheaper from the Colonies, and in return for our manufactures, which we used to get fromRussiaand other foreign countries. And this is expressed in the preambles of the laws which grant these bounties. See the Appeal to the Justice, &c. page 21, third edition. It is, therefore, strange that DoctorTuckerand others, should have insisted so much upon these bounties as favours and indulgencies to the Colonies.—But it is still more strange, that the same representation should have been made of the compensations granted them for doing more during the last war in assisting us than could have been reasonably expected; and also of the sums we have spent in maintaining troops among themwithouttheir consent; and in opposition to their wishes.—See a pamphlet, entitled “The rights of Great Britain asserted against the claims of America.”[18]It is remarkable that even the author of theRemarks on the Principal Acts of the 13th Parliament of Great Britain, &c. finds himself obliged to acknowledge this difference.—There cannot be more detestable principles of government, than those which are maintained by this writer. According to him, thepropertiesandrightsof a people are only a kind ofalmsgiven them by their civil governors. Taxes, therefore, he asserts, are not thegiftsof the people. See page 58, and 191.[19]See Observations on Reversionary Payments, page 207, &c.[20]Seepage 22.[21]The author ofTaxation no Tyrannywill undoubtedly assert this without hesitation, for in page 69 he compares our present situation with respect to the Colonies to that of the antientScythians, who, upon returning from a war,found themselves shut out of theirown Housesby theirSlaves.[22]See particularly, a speech intended to have been spoken on the bill for altering the Charter of the Colony of Massachuset’s Bay; theConsiderations on the Measures carrying on with respect to the British Colonies; theTwo Appeals to the Justice and Interests of the People; and thefurther Examination, just published,of our present American Measures, by the Author of the Considerations, &c.[23]I have heard it said by a person in one of the first departments of the state, that the present contest is forDominionon the side of the Colonies, as well as on ours: And so it is indeed; but with this essential difference.Weare struggling for dominion overOTHERS.Theyare struggling forSelf-dominion: The noblest of all blessings.[24]This has been our policy with respect to the people ofIreland; and the consequence is, that we now see their parliament as obedient as we can wish.[25]It should be remembered, that this was written some time before the Declaration of Independence in July 1776. Seepage 85of the next Tract.[26]In February 1776.—In a few weeks after this, they were driven fromBoston; and took refuge atHallifaxinNova Scotia; from whence, after a strong reinforcement, they invaded the Province ofNew-York.[27]Except theNegroesin the Southern Colonies, who probably will now either soon become extinct, or have their condition changed into that ofFreemen.—It is not the fault of the Colonies that they have among them so many of these unhappy people. They have made laws to prohibit the importation of them; but these laws have always had a negative put upon them here, because of their tendency to hurt our Negro trade.[28]In the county of Suffolk, where Boston is, there has not been, I am informed, more than one execution these 18 years.[29]Mr. Burke (in his excellent and admirable Speech on moving his resolutions for conciliation with the Colonies, P. 9. &c.) has shewn, that our trade to the Colonies, including that toAfricaand theWest-Indies, was in 1772 nearly equal to the trade which we carried on with the whole world at the beginning of this Century.[30]See Dr. Davenant’s works, collected and revised by Sir Charles Whitworth, Vol. I. Page 363, &c. 443, &c.[31]See Considerations on Money, Bullion, &c. Page 2 and 11.[32]The coin deficient between one grain and three grains was not called in at the time this was written. This call was made in the Summer of 1776; and it brought in above three millions more than was expected. The quantity of gold coin should therefore have been stated at aboutSixteen Millions, and the whole coin of the kingdom at 18 or 19 millions.—The evidence from which I have drawn this estimate may be found in the first Section of the Second Part of the next Tract.[33]See Sir James Steuart’s Enquiry into the Principles of political Œconomy, Vol. II. Book 4, Chap. 32.[34]See the Second Tract,P. 65.[35]Their debts consist chiefly of money raised by annuities on lives, short annuities, anticipations of taxes for short terms, &c. During the whole last war they added to theirperpetualannuities only 12 millions sterling, according to Sir James Steuart’s account; whereas we added to these annuities near 60 millions. In consequence therefore of the nature of their debts, as well as of the management they are now using for hastening the reduction of them, they must in a few years, if peace continues, be freed from most of their incumbrances; while we probably (if no event comes soon that will unburthen us at once) shall continue with them all upon us.[36]Mr.Lowndesin the dispute between him and Mr.Locke, contended for a reduction of the standard of silver. One of his reasons was, that it would render the silver-coin more commensurate to the wants of the nation; andcheck hazardous Paper-credit.—Mr.Conduit, SirIsaac Newton’ssuccessor in the mint, has proposed, in direct contradiction to the laws now in being, that all the bullion imported into the kingdom should be carried into the mint to be coined; and only coin allowed to be exported. “The height, he says, of paper-credit is the strongest argument for trying this andevery othermethod that is likely to increase the coinage. For whilst paper-credit does in a great measure the business of money at home, Merchants and Bankers are not under a necessity, as they were formerly, of coining a quantity of specie for their home trade; and as Paper-credit brings money to the Merchants to be exported, the money may go away insensibly, andNOT BE MISSED TILL IT BE TOO LATE: And where Paper-credit is large and increasing, if the money be exported and the coinage decrease,THAT CREDIT MAY SINK AT ONCE, for want of a proportionable quantity ofSpecie, which alone can support it in a time of distress.”—See Mr.Conduit’s Observations on the state of our Gold and Silver Coins in 1730, Page 36, to 46.[37]According to the accounts of the exports to, and imports from the North-American Colonies, laid before Parliament, the balance in our favour appears to have been, for 11 years before 1774, near amillion and a halfannually.[38]See the substance of the evidence on the petition presented by theWest-IndiaPlanters and Merchants to the House of Commons as it was introduced at theBAR, and summed up by Mr.Glover.[39]The annual average of the payments into the Exchequer, on account of the duties on tobacco, was for five years, from 1770 to 1774, 219,117l. exclusive of the payments fromScotland.—Near one half of thetobaccotrade is carried on fromScotland; and abovefour fifthsof the tobacco imported is afterwards exported toFrance,Germanyand other countries. FromFrancealone it brings annually into the Kingdom, I am informed, about 150,000l. in money.In 1775, being, alas! thepartingyear, the duties on tobacco inEnglandbrought into theExchequerno less a sum than 298,202l.[40]All the accounts and calculations in theAppendixhere referred to, have been transferred to the 2d and 4th Sections of the 3d Part of the Second Tract.[41]A quarter of the inhabitants of every country are fighting men.—If, therefore, the Colonies consist only of two millions of inhabitants, the number of fighting men in them will be half a million.[42]See the Appendix to Dr. Zubly’s Sermon, preached at the opening of the Provincial Congress ofGeorgia.[43]The apprehensions here expressed have been verified by the events which have happened since this was written. American privateers have spread themselves over the Atlantick. They have frightened us even on our own coasts, and seized millions of British property.[44]“I have no other notion of slavery, but being bound by a law to which I do not consent.” See the case ofIreland’s being bound by acts of Parliament inEngland, stated by William Molyneux, Esq; Dublin.—In arguing against the authority of Communities, and all people not incorporated, over one another; I have confined my views to taxation and internal legislation. Mr. Molyneux carried his views much farther; and denied the right ofEnglandto make any laws even to regulate the trade ofIreland. He was the intimate friend of Mr. Locke; and writ his book in 1698, soon after the publication of Mr. Locke’s Treatise on Government.[45]See on this subject the second Section of the second Part of the next Tract,Page 77.[46]Some persons, convinced of thefollyas well asbarbarityof attempting to keep the Colonies by slaughtering them, have very humanely proposed giving them up. But the highest authority has informed us, with great reason, “That they are too important to be given up.”—Dr.Tuckerhas insisted on the depopulation, produced by migrations from this country to the Colonies, as a reason for this measure. But, unless the kingdom is made a prison to its inhabitants, these migrations cannot be prevented; nor do I think that they have any great tendency to produce depopulation. When a number of people quit a country, there is more employment and greater plenty of the means of subsistence left for those who remain; and the vacancy is soon filled up. The grand causes of depopulation are, not migrations, or even famines and plagues, or any othertemporaryevils; but the permanent and slowly working evils of debauchery, luxury, high taxes, and oppression.[47]See the Resolutions on theNova-Scotiapetition reported to the House of Commons, November 29, 1775, by Lord North, Lord George Germaine, &c. and a bill ordered to be brought in upon the said Resolutions.—There is indeed, as Lord Shelburne has hinted, something very astonishing in these Resolutions. They offer a relaxation of the authority of this country, in points to which the Colonies have always consented, and by which we are great gainers; at the same time, that, with a rigour which hazards the Empire, we are maintaining its authority in points to which they will never consent; and by which nothing can be gained.

[11]See a particular explanation of this assertion in the Second Tract,Page 9.

[12]InGreat Britain, consisting of near sixmillionsof inhabitants, 5723 persons, most of them the lowest of the people, elect one half of theHouse of Commons; and 364 votes chuse a ninth part. This may be seen distinctly made out in thePolitical Disquisitions, Vol. 1. Book 2. C. 4. a work full of important and useful instruction.

[13]See among others Mr. Locke on Government, and Dr. Priestley’s Essay on the first Principles of Government.

[14]See Dr. Priestly on Government, page 68, 69, &c.

[15]The independency of the Judges we esteem in this country one of our greatest privileges.—Before the revolution they generally, I believe, held their placesduring pleasure. King William gave them their placesduring good behaviour. At the accession of the present Royal Family their places were given themduring good behaviour, in consequence of the Act of Settlement, 12 and 13 W. III. C. 2. But an opinion having been entertained by some, that though their commissions were made under the Act of Settlement to continue, during good behaviour, yet that they determined on the demise of the Crown; it was enacted by a statute made in the first year of his present Majesty, Chap. 23. “That the commissions of Judges for the time being shall be, continue, and remain in full force, during their good behaviour, notwithstanding the demise of his Majesty, or of any of his Heirs and Successors;” with a proviso, “that it may be lawful for his Majesty, his Heirs and Successors, to remove any Judge upon the address of both Houses of Parliament.” And by the same Statute their salaries are secured to them during the continuance of their commissions: His Majesty, according to the preamble of the Statute, having been pleased to declare from the Throne to both Houses of Parliament, “That he looked upon the independency and uprightness of Judges as essential to the impartial administration of Justice, as one of the best securities to the Rights and Liberties of his loving Subjects, and as most conducive to the honour of his Crown.”A worthy friend and able Lawyer has supplied me with this note. It affords, when contrasted with thatdependenceof the Judges which has been thought reasonable inAmerica, a sad specimen of the different manner in which a kingdom may think proper to govern itself, and the provinces subject to it.

A worthy friend and able Lawyer has supplied me with this note. It affords, when contrasted with thatdependenceof the Judges which has been thought reasonable inAmerica, a sad specimen of the different manner in which a kingdom may think proper to govern itself, and the provinces subject to it.

[16]Montesquieu’s Spirit of Laws, Vol. I. Book 11. C. xix.

[17]This is particularly true of thebountiesgranted on some American commodities (as pitch, tar, indigo, &c.) when imported intoBritain; for it is well known, that the end of granting them was, to get those commodities cheaper from the Colonies, and in return for our manufactures, which we used to get fromRussiaand other foreign countries. And this is expressed in the preambles of the laws which grant these bounties. See the Appeal to the Justice, &c. page 21, third edition. It is, therefore, strange that DoctorTuckerand others, should have insisted so much upon these bounties as favours and indulgencies to the Colonies.—But it is still more strange, that the same representation should have been made of the compensations granted them for doing more during the last war in assisting us than could have been reasonably expected; and also of the sums we have spent in maintaining troops among themwithouttheir consent; and in opposition to their wishes.—See a pamphlet, entitled “The rights of Great Britain asserted against the claims of America.”

[18]It is remarkable that even the author of theRemarks on the Principal Acts of the 13th Parliament of Great Britain, &c. finds himself obliged to acknowledge this difference.—There cannot be more detestable principles of government, than those which are maintained by this writer. According to him, thepropertiesandrightsof a people are only a kind ofalmsgiven them by their civil governors. Taxes, therefore, he asserts, are not thegiftsof the people. See page 58, and 191.

[19]See Observations on Reversionary Payments, page 207, &c.

[20]Seepage 22.

[21]The author ofTaxation no Tyrannywill undoubtedly assert this without hesitation, for in page 69 he compares our present situation with respect to the Colonies to that of the antientScythians, who, upon returning from a war,found themselves shut out of theirown Housesby theirSlaves.

[22]See particularly, a speech intended to have been spoken on the bill for altering the Charter of the Colony of Massachuset’s Bay; theConsiderations on the Measures carrying on with respect to the British Colonies; theTwo Appeals to the Justice and Interests of the People; and thefurther Examination, just published,of our present American Measures, by the Author of the Considerations, &c.

[23]I have heard it said by a person in one of the first departments of the state, that the present contest is forDominionon the side of the Colonies, as well as on ours: And so it is indeed; but with this essential difference.Weare struggling for dominion overOTHERS.Theyare struggling forSelf-dominion: The noblest of all blessings.

[24]This has been our policy with respect to the people ofIreland; and the consequence is, that we now see their parliament as obedient as we can wish.

[25]It should be remembered, that this was written some time before the Declaration of Independence in July 1776. Seepage 85of the next Tract.

[26]In February 1776.—In a few weeks after this, they were driven fromBoston; and took refuge atHallifaxinNova Scotia; from whence, after a strong reinforcement, they invaded the Province ofNew-York.

[27]Except theNegroesin the Southern Colonies, who probably will now either soon become extinct, or have their condition changed into that ofFreemen.—It is not the fault of the Colonies that they have among them so many of these unhappy people. They have made laws to prohibit the importation of them; but these laws have always had a negative put upon them here, because of their tendency to hurt our Negro trade.

[28]In the county of Suffolk, where Boston is, there has not been, I am informed, more than one execution these 18 years.

[29]Mr. Burke (in his excellent and admirable Speech on moving his resolutions for conciliation with the Colonies, P. 9. &c.) has shewn, that our trade to the Colonies, including that toAfricaand theWest-Indies, was in 1772 nearly equal to the trade which we carried on with the whole world at the beginning of this Century.

[30]See Dr. Davenant’s works, collected and revised by Sir Charles Whitworth, Vol. I. Page 363, &c. 443, &c.

[31]See Considerations on Money, Bullion, &c. Page 2 and 11.

[32]The coin deficient between one grain and three grains was not called in at the time this was written. This call was made in the Summer of 1776; and it brought in above three millions more than was expected. The quantity of gold coin should therefore have been stated at aboutSixteen Millions, and the whole coin of the kingdom at 18 or 19 millions.—The evidence from which I have drawn this estimate may be found in the first Section of the Second Part of the next Tract.

[33]See Sir James Steuart’s Enquiry into the Principles of political Œconomy, Vol. II. Book 4, Chap. 32.

[34]See the Second Tract,P. 65.

[35]Their debts consist chiefly of money raised by annuities on lives, short annuities, anticipations of taxes for short terms, &c. During the whole last war they added to theirperpetualannuities only 12 millions sterling, according to Sir James Steuart’s account; whereas we added to these annuities near 60 millions. In consequence therefore of the nature of their debts, as well as of the management they are now using for hastening the reduction of them, they must in a few years, if peace continues, be freed from most of their incumbrances; while we probably (if no event comes soon that will unburthen us at once) shall continue with them all upon us.

[36]Mr.Lowndesin the dispute between him and Mr.Locke, contended for a reduction of the standard of silver. One of his reasons was, that it would render the silver-coin more commensurate to the wants of the nation; andcheck hazardous Paper-credit.—Mr.Conduit, SirIsaac Newton’ssuccessor in the mint, has proposed, in direct contradiction to the laws now in being, that all the bullion imported into the kingdom should be carried into the mint to be coined; and only coin allowed to be exported. “The height, he says, of paper-credit is the strongest argument for trying this andevery othermethod that is likely to increase the coinage. For whilst paper-credit does in a great measure the business of money at home, Merchants and Bankers are not under a necessity, as they were formerly, of coining a quantity of specie for their home trade; and as Paper-credit brings money to the Merchants to be exported, the money may go away insensibly, andNOT BE MISSED TILL IT BE TOO LATE: And where Paper-credit is large and increasing, if the money be exported and the coinage decrease,THAT CREDIT MAY SINK AT ONCE, for want of a proportionable quantity ofSpecie, which alone can support it in a time of distress.”—See Mr.Conduit’s Observations on the state of our Gold and Silver Coins in 1730, Page 36, to 46.

[37]According to the accounts of the exports to, and imports from the North-American Colonies, laid before Parliament, the balance in our favour appears to have been, for 11 years before 1774, near amillion and a halfannually.

[38]See the substance of the evidence on the petition presented by theWest-IndiaPlanters and Merchants to the House of Commons as it was introduced at theBAR, and summed up by Mr.Glover.

[39]The annual average of the payments into the Exchequer, on account of the duties on tobacco, was for five years, from 1770 to 1774, 219,117l. exclusive of the payments fromScotland.—Near one half of thetobaccotrade is carried on fromScotland; and abovefour fifthsof the tobacco imported is afterwards exported toFrance,Germanyand other countries. FromFrancealone it brings annually into the Kingdom, I am informed, about 150,000l. in money.In 1775, being, alas! thepartingyear, the duties on tobacco inEnglandbrought into theExchequerno less a sum than 298,202l.

In 1775, being, alas! thepartingyear, the duties on tobacco inEnglandbrought into theExchequerno less a sum than 298,202l.

[40]All the accounts and calculations in theAppendixhere referred to, have been transferred to the 2d and 4th Sections of the 3d Part of the Second Tract.

[41]A quarter of the inhabitants of every country are fighting men.—If, therefore, the Colonies consist only of two millions of inhabitants, the number of fighting men in them will be half a million.

[42]See the Appendix to Dr. Zubly’s Sermon, preached at the opening of the Provincial Congress ofGeorgia.

[43]The apprehensions here expressed have been verified by the events which have happened since this was written. American privateers have spread themselves over the Atlantick. They have frightened us even on our own coasts, and seized millions of British property.

[44]“I have no other notion of slavery, but being bound by a law to which I do not consent.” See the case ofIreland’s being bound by acts of Parliament inEngland, stated by William Molyneux, Esq; Dublin.—In arguing against the authority of Communities, and all people not incorporated, over one another; I have confined my views to taxation and internal legislation. Mr. Molyneux carried his views much farther; and denied the right ofEnglandto make any laws even to regulate the trade ofIreland. He was the intimate friend of Mr. Locke; and writ his book in 1698, soon after the publication of Mr. Locke’s Treatise on Government.

[45]See on this subject the second Section of the second Part of the next Tract,Page 77.

[46]Some persons, convinced of thefollyas well asbarbarityof attempting to keep the Colonies by slaughtering them, have very humanely proposed giving them up. But the highest authority has informed us, with great reason, “That they are too important to be given up.”—Dr.Tuckerhas insisted on the depopulation, produced by migrations from this country to the Colonies, as a reason for this measure. But, unless the kingdom is made a prison to its inhabitants, these migrations cannot be prevented; nor do I think that they have any great tendency to produce depopulation. When a number of people quit a country, there is more employment and greater plenty of the means of subsistence left for those who remain; and the vacancy is soon filled up. The grand causes of depopulation are, not migrations, or even famines and plagues, or any othertemporaryevils; but the permanent and slowly working evils of debauchery, luxury, high taxes, and oppression.

[47]See the Resolutions on theNova-Scotiapetition reported to the House of Commons, November 29, 1775, by Lord North, Lord George Germaine, &c. and a bill ordered to be brought in upon the said Resolutions.—There is indeed, as Lord Shelburne has hinted, something very astonishing in these Resolutions. They offer a relaxation of the authority of this country, in points to which the Colonies have always consented, and by which we are great gainers; at the same time, that, with a rigour which hazards the Empire, we are maintaining its authority in points to which they will never consent; and by which nothing can be gained.

ADDITIONAL OBSERVATIONSOn theNatureandValueofCIVIL LIBERTY,AND THEWAR with AMERICA:ALSOObservationson Schemes for raising MoneybyPublic Loans;An Historical Deduction and Analysis of theNational Debt;And a brief Account of theDebtsandResourcesofFrance.

Should the morals of the English be perverted by luxury;—should they lose their Colonies by restraining them, &c.—they will be enslaved; they will become insignificant and contemptible; andEuropewill not be able to shew the world one nation in which she can pride herself.Abbe Raynal.

Abbe Raynal.

TOThe Right HonourableThe LORD MAYOR,The Aldermen, and the CommonsOF THECITY of LONDON,THIS TRACT,ContainingAdditionsto thoseObservationsonCivil Liberty,which they have honoured with their Approbation,Is, with the greatest Respect and Gratitude,INSCRIBED,BYTheir most obedientand humble Servant,Richard Price.

Published by the same Author,And printed forT. Cadell, in the Strand.1.ObservationsonReversionary Payments; on Schemes for providing Annuities for Widows, and Persons in Old Age; on the Method of calculating the Values of Assurances on Lives; and on the National Debt. To which are added, Four Essays on different Subjects in the Doctrine of Life-Annuities and Political Arithmetic. Also, an Appendix, containing a complete Set of Tables; particularly four New Tables, shewing the Probabilities of Life inLondon,Norwich, andNorthampton, and the Values of two joint Lives.The 3d Edition, with a Supplement, containing (besides several New Tables) additional Observations on the Probabilities of Human Life in different Situations; on theLondonSocieties for the Benefit of Widows and of Old Age; and on the present State of Population in this Kingdom. Price 6s.II. A Review of the principal Questions and Difficulties inMorals. Particularly, those relating to the Original of our Ideas of Virtue, its Nature, Foundation, Reference to the Deity, Obligation, Subject-matter, and Sanctions. The Second Edition corrected. Price 6s.III.Four Dissertations.—I. On Providence.—II. On Prayer.—III. On the Reasons for expecting that virtuous Men shall meet after Death in a State of Happiness.—IV. On the Importance of Christianity, the Nature of Historical Evidence, and Miracles. The 4th Edition. Price 6s.IV. AnAppealto thePublic, on the Subject of theNational Debt. The 2d Edition; with an Appendix, containing Explanatory Observations and Tables; and an Account of the present State of Population in Norfolk, Price 2s.V.Observationson the Nature ofCivil Liberty, the Principles ofGovernment, and the Justice and Policy of theWarwithAmerica. To which is added an Appendix, containing a State of the National Debt, an Estimate of the Money drawn from the Public by the Taxes, and an Account of the National Income and Expenditure since the last War. The 7th Edition. Price 2s.

Published by the same Author,And printed forT. Cadell, in the Strand.

1.ObservationsonReversionary Payments; on Schemes for providing Annuities for Widows, and Persons in Old Age; on the Method of calculating the Values of Assurances on Lives; and on the National Debt. To which are added, Four Essays on different Subjects in the Doctrine of Life-Annuities and Political Arithmetic. Also, an Appendix, containing a complete Set of Tables; particularly four New Tables, shewing the Probabilities of Life inLondon,Norwich, andNorthampton, and the Values of two joint Lives.

The 3d Edition, with a Supplement, containing (besides several New Tables) additional Observations on the Probabilities of Human Life in different Situations; on theLondonSocieties for the Benefit of Widows and of Old Age; and on the present State of Population in this Kingdom. Price 6s.

II. A Review of the principal Questions and Difficulties inMorals. Particularly, those relating to the Original of our Ideas of Virtue, its Nature, Foundation, Reference to the Deity, Obligation, Subject-matter, and Sanctions. The Second Edition corrected. Price 6s.

III.Four Dissertations.—I. On Providence.—II. On Prayer.—III. On the Reasons for expecting that virtuous Men shall meet after Death in a State of Happiness.—IV. On the Importance of Christianity, the Nature of Historical Evidence, and Miracles. The 4th Edition. Price 6s.

IV. AnAppealto thePublic, on the Subject of theNational Debt. The 2d Edition; with an Appendix, containing Explanatory Observations and Tables; and an Account of the present State of Population in Norfolk, Price 2s.

V.Observationson the Nature ofCivil Liberty, the Principles ofGovernment, and the Justice and Policy of theWarwithAmerica. To which is added an Appendix, containing a State of the National Debt, an Estimate of the Money drawn from the Public by the Taxes, and an Account of the National Income and Expenditure since the last War. The 7th Edition. Price 2s.

Before the reader enters on the following tract, I shall beg leave to detain him while I give a general account of the contents of it, and make a few introductory observations.

In the first part of theObservations on Civil Liberty, published last winter, I gave a brief account of the nature of Liberty in general, and ofCivil Libertyin particular. That account appears to me, after carefully reconsidering it, to be just; nor do I think it in my power to improve it. In order, however, to be as explicit as possible on this subject, and to remove those misapprehensions of my sentiments into which some have fallen, I have thought proper to add thesupplementalandexplanatoryobservations, which will be found in theFIRSTpart of this pamphlet.—In writing with this view, I have been led to refer often to my former pamphlet, and to repeat some of the observations in it. But as this could not have been avoided, it will, I hope, be excused.

The remarks in theSECONDpart, I offer to the public with all the deference due to the high station and abilities of the noble Lord, whose speech at opening the Budget inAprillast, has occasioned them.—These remarks, having beenpromised long ago, should have been published sooner. The reasons which have produced this delay are of little consequence to the public; and, therefore, need not be mentioned.

In the first section of thissecondpart, it will, I think, appear, that I went upon as good grounds as the nature of the case admitted, when I stated the gold coin[48]of the kingdom atABOUT TWELVE MILLIONS AND A HALF. It appears now, indeed, to be some millions more. But this is a discovery made by the call of last summer; which, I find, has brought in near double the sum that the best judges expected. Nothing, however, very encouraging can be inferred from hence. It only shews that a great deal of gold has been hoarded; and will, probably, be again hoarded. This is the natural consequence of public diffidence; and it is a circumstance which may, hereafter, greatly increase distress. Before theRevolution, according to Dr.Davenant, near half the coin was hoarded; and the same, undoubtedly, will be done again, whenever the nation comes to be thoroughly alarmed.

In the next section of this part, I have made some further observations on the contest withAmerica.—I cannot expect any other than a tragical and deplorable issue to this contest. But let events turn out as they will, I shall alwaysreflect with satisfaction, that I have, though a private person of little consequence, bore my testimony, from deep-felt conviction, against a war which must shock the feelings and the reason of every considerate person; a war in which rivers of blood must be shed, not to repel the attacks of enemies, or to maintain the authority of governmentwithinthe realm, but to maintain sovereignty and dominion in another world[49].—I wish the advocates for the measures againstAmericawould attend to the distinction now intimated.—The support of just governmentwithinthe realm is always necessary, and therefore right. But to maintain, by fire and sword, dominion over the persons and the property of a peopleoutof the realm, who have no share in its legislature, contradicts every principle of liberty and humanity.—Legitimate government, let it be remembered, as opposed to oppression and tyranny, consists “only in the dominion ofEQUAL LAWSmade withCOMMON CONSENT, or of men overTHEMSELVES; and not in the dominion of communities over communities, or ofANY MEN OVER OTHER MEN.”—This is the great truth I have endeavoured to explain and defend; andhappy would the world be, were a due conviction of it impressed on every human heart.

The representation I have given in this section and elsewhere, of the state of this kingdom, is, without doubt, gloomy. But it is not the effect, as some have intimated, of either a natural disposition to gloominess, or of sinister views. Few, who know me, will entertain such a suspicion. Valuingmostwhat politicians and statesmen generally valueleast, I feel myself perfectly easy with respect to my interest as a citizen of this world; nor is there any change of situation that can make me happier, except a return to privacy and obscurity. The opinion I have entertained of the present danger of the kingdom is, therefore, the effect of evidence which appears to me irresistible. This evidence I have stated to the public; and every one may judge of it as he pleases. I am sensible of my own liableness to error. The measures which I condemn as the worst that ever disgraced and hazarded a great kingdom, others, whose integrity I cannot question, approve; and that very situation of our affairs which I think alarming, others think prosperous. Time will determine which of these opinions is right. But supposing the latter to be so, no harm can arise from any representations which have a tendency to put us on our guard.

I have bestowed particular attention on the observations in the third section of this second part;and I think the subject of this section so important, that it is probable, I should not have resolved on the present publication, had it not been for the opportunity it gives me to lay the observations it contains before the public.—An intimation of them was given in the Introduction to the third edition of the Treatise onReversionary Payments. The nation being now once more got into a course of borrowing; and our first step having been a return to a mode of borrowing, which had appeared to me absurd and detrimental, I was induced to resume the subject, and to examine it with more care. And the result of an examination of only apartof the public loans, will be found to be, “that a capital of more thanTWENTY MILLIONShas been a needless addition to the public debt, for which no money, or any sort of equivalent has been received; and which might have been avoided, together with a great expence of interest, by only forming differently the schemes of the public loans.”

The intention of the first section of theThird Partis to give, in as short a compass as possible, a view of the progress of ourforeign trade, and its effect on the nation, from the beginning of this century; and, particularly, to point out an unfavourable change which seems to have taken place since 1764.

In the second section of this part, an explanation and analysis are given of all the differentarticles of the national debt, which will probably inform every person of most that he can wish to know concerning them.—I have added a general account of the debts and resources ofFrance. This is a subject at present particularly interesting to this country; and, having been informed of some important facts relating to it, I have thought proper to lay them before the public, with such reflexions as have offered themselves in mentioning them.

The last section contains such of the calculations in theAppendixto theObservations on Civil Libertyas were necessary to be reprinted, in order to introduce the remarks I have added on some particulars in the state of thepublic income and expenditure, published not long ago by theEarl of Stair. I have also meant to accommodate the purchasers of the different editions of theObservations on Civil Liberty, who will be enabled, by this section, to possess themselves of all the material alterations and improvements which were made in that pamphlet after its first publication.—The accounts, in the latter part of this tract, are so various and extensive, that it is scarcely possible there should not be some incorrectnesses in them. But the pains I have taken, and the means of information which I have possessed have been such, that I cannot suspect that I have fallen into any mistakes of consequence. Should, however, any such have escaped me, it will be kind in anyperson to point them out with candour; and to assist in making those accounts so correct and perfect, as that they may serve for a basis to all future accounts of the same kind.

The following note in Mr.Hume’s History ofEnglandwas written by him a little before his death, and left with other additions to be inserted in the new edition of that history just published. It contains, therefore, a kind of dying warning from Mr.Humeto this kingdom; and I have thought proper to transcribe it, and to insert it in this place, as a confirmation of similar sentiments frequently expressed in these tracts.

“The supplies granted QueenElizabeth, during a reign ofFORTY-FIVE YEARS, amounted to three millions. The minister, in the war which begun in 1754, was, in some periods, allowed to lavish a sum equal to this inTWO MONTHS. The extreme frivolous object of the late war, and the great importance of hers, set this matter in still a stronger light. Money too was in most particulars of the same value in both periods: she paid eight-pence a day to every foot soldier;—but ourLATE DELUSIONShave much exceeded any thing known in history, not even excepting those of theCrusades. For, I suppose, there is no mathematical, still less an arithmetical demonstration, that the road to the holy land was not the road to Paradise; as there is, that the endless increase of national debt is the direct road to national ruin. But having now completely reached that goal, it is needless at present to reflect on the past. It will be found in the present year (1776) that all the revenues of this island, north of theTrent, and west ofReading, are mortgaged or anticipated for ever. Could the small remainder be in a worse condition, were these provinces seized byAustriaandPrussia? There is only this difference, that some event might happen inEurope, which would oblige those great monarchs to disgorge their acquisitions. But no imagination can figure a situation which will induce our creditors to relinquish their claims, or the public to seize their revenues.—So egregious, indeed, has been our folly, that we have even lost all title to compassion, under the numberless calamities that are waiting us.”—Mr.Hume’s History, vol. 5th, page 475.

With respect to Liberty in general there are two questions to be considered:

First, What it is?—And Secondly, How far it is of value?

There is no difficulty in answering the first of these questions.—To beFree, is “to be able to act or to forbear acting, as we think best;” or “to be masters of our own resolutions and conduct.”—It may be pretended, that it is not desirable to be thus free; but, without doubt, this it is to befree; and this is what all meanwhen they say of themselves or others that they arefree.

I have observed, that all the different kinds of Liberty run up into the general idea of self-government[50].—The Liberty of men asagentsis that power of self-determination which all agents, as such, possess.—Their Liberty asmoralagents is their power of self-government in theirmoralconduct.—Their Liberty asreligiousagents is their power of self-government inreligion.—And their Liberty, as members of communities associated for the purposes of civil government, is their power of self-government in all their civil concerns. It is Liberty, in the last of these views of it, that is the subject of my present enquiry; and it may, in other words, be defined to be “the power of a state to govern itself by its own will.”—In order, therefore, to determine whether a state is free, no more is necessary than to determine whether there is any will, different from its own, to which it is subject.

When we speak of a state, we mean thewholestate, and not anypartof it; and the will of the state, therefore, is the will of the whole.—There are two ways in which this will may be expressed. First, by the suffrages of all the members given in person. Or secondly, by the suffragesof a body of Representatives, in appointing whom all the members have voices.—A state governed by its own will in the first of these ways enjoys the most complete and perfect Liberty; but such a government being impracticable, except in very small states, it is necessary that civil communities in general should satisfy themselves with that degree of Liberty which can be obtained in the last of these ways; and Liberty so obtained may be sufficiently ample, and at the same time is capable of being extended to the largest states[51].

But here, before I proceed, I must desire, that an observation may be attended to, which appears to me of considerable consequence.—A distinction should be made between theLibertyof a state, and its not suffering oppression; or between a free government, and a government under which freedom is enjoyed. Under the most despotic government liberty may happen to be enjoyed. But being derived from a will over which the state has no controul, and not from its own will; or from an accidental mildness in theadministration, and not from aconstitutionof government; it is nothing but an indulgence of a precarious nature, and of little importance.—Individuals in privatelife, while held under the power of masters, cannot be denominated free, however equitably and kindly they may be treated. This is strictly true ofcommunitiesas well as ofindividuals.—Civil Liberty (it should be remembered) must be enjoyed as a right derived from the Author of nature only, or it cannot be the blessing which merits this name. If there is any human power which is considered asgivingit, on which it depends, and which can invade or recall it at pleasure, it changes its nature, and becomes a species of slavery.

But to return—The force superseding self-government in a state, or the power destroying its Liberty, is of two kinds. It may be either a powerwithoutitself, or a powerwithinitself. The former constitutes what may be properly calledexternal, and the latterinternalslavery.—Were there any distant state which had acquired a sovereignty over this country, and exercised the power of making its laws and disposing its property, we should be in the first kind of slavery; and, if not totally depraved by a habit of subjection to such a power, we should think ourselves in a miserable condition; and an advocate for such a power would be considered as insulting us, who should attempt to reconcile us to it by telling us, that we wereonecommunity with that distantstate, though destitute of a single voice in its legislature; and, on this ground, should maintain, that all resistance to it was no less criminal than any resistancewithina state to the authority of that state.—In short, every state, not incorporated with another by an equal representation, and yet subject to its dominion, is enslaved in this sense.—Such was the slavery of the provinces subject to antientRome; and such is the slavery of every community, as far as any other community is master of it; or as far as, in respect of taxation and internal legislation, it is not independent of every other community. Nor does it make any difference to such a community, that it enjoys within itself a free constitution of government, if that constitution is itself liable to be altered, suspended or over-ruled at the discretion of the state which possesses the sovereignty over it.

But the slavery most prevalent in the world has been internal slavery.—In order better to explain this, it is proper to observe, that all civil government being either the government of awholebyitself, or of awholeby apower extraneousto it, or of awholeby apart; the firstaloneisLiberty, and the two last areTyranny, producing the two sorts of slavery which I have mentioned. Internal slavery, therefore, takes place wherever a whole community is governed by apart; and this, perhaps, is the most concise andcomprehensive account that can be given of it.—The part that governs may be either asingleman, as inabsolute Monarchies; or, a body of grandees, as inAristocracies. In both these cases the powers of government are commonly held for life without delegation, and descend from father to son; and the people governed are in the same situation with cattle upon an estate, which descends by inheritance from one owner to another.—But farther. A community may be governed by a body of delegates, and yet be enslaved.—Though government by representation alone is free, unless when carried on by the personal suffrages of all the members of a state, yetallsuch government is by no means free. In order to render it so, the following requisites are necessary.

First, The representation must becomplete. No state, apartof which only is represented in the Legislature that governs it, isself-governed. HadScotlandno representatives in the Parliament ofBritain, it would not be free; nor would it be proper to callBritainfree, thoughEngland, its other part, were adequately represented. The like is true, in general, of every country subject to a Legislature in whichsomeof its parts, or some classes of men in it, are represented, and others not.

Secondly, The representatives of a free state must befreelychosen. If this is not the case, theyare not at all representatives; and government by them degenerates into government by a junto of men in the community, who happen to have power or wealth enough to command or purchase their offices.

Thirdly, After beingfreelychosen, they must be themselvesfree. If there is any higher will which directs their resolutions, and on which they are dependent, they become the instruments of that will; and it is that will alone that in reality governs the state.

Fourthly, They must be chosen for short terms; and, in all their acts, be accountable to their constituents. Without this a people will have no controul over their representatives; and, in chusing them, they will give up entirely their Liberty; and only enjoy the poor privilege of naming, at certain intervals, a set of men whom they are toserve, and who are to dispose, at their discretion, of their property and lives.

The causes of internal slavery now mentioned prevail, some of them more and others less, in different communities. With respect, in particular, to a government by representation; it is evident, that it deviates more or less from Liberty, in proportion as the representation is more or less imperfect. And, if imperfect in every one of the instances I have recited; that is, if inadequate and partial; subject to no controul from thepeople; corruptly chosen for long terms; and, after being chosen, venal and dependent;—in these circumstances, a representation becomes an imposition and a nusance; and government by it is as inconsistent with true Liberty as the most arbitrary and despotic government.

I have been so much misunderstood[52]on this subject, that it is necessary I should particularly observe here, that my intention in this account has been merely to shew what is requisite to constitute a state or a government free, and not at all to define the best form of government. These are two very different points. The first is attended with few difficulties. A free state is a state self-governed in the manner I have described. But it may be free, and yet not enjoy the best constitution of government. Liberty, though the most essential requisite in government, is not the only one. Wisdom, union, dispatch, secresy, and vigour are likewise requisite; and that is the best form of government which best unites all these qualities; or which, to an equal and perfect Liberty, adds the greatestwisdom in deliberating and resolving, and the greatest union, force and expedition in executing[53].

In short, my whole meaning is, that the will of the Community alone ought to govern; but that there are different methods of obtaining and executing this will; of which those are the best which collect into it most of the knowledge and experience of the community, and at the same time carry it into execution with most dispatch and vigour.

It has been the employment of the wisest men in all ages to contrive plans for this purpose; and the happiness of society depends so much on civil government, that it is not possible the human understanding should be better employed.

I have said in the Observations on Civil Liberty, that “in a free state every man is his own legislator.”—I have been happy in since finding the[54]same assertion inMontesquieu, and also inMr. JusticeBlackstone’s Commentaries. It expresses the fundamental principle of our constitution; and the meaning of it is plainly, that every independent agent in a free state ought to have a share in the government of it, either by himselfpersonally, or by a body of representatives, in chusing whom he has a free vote, and therefore all the concern and weight which are possible, and consistent with the equal rights of every other member of the state.—But though the meaning of this assertion is so obvious, and the truth of it undeniable, it has been much exclaimed against, and occasioned no small part of the opposition which has been made to the principles advanced in theObservations on Civil Liberty.—One even of the most candid, as well as the ablest of my opponents, (whose difference of opinion from me I sincerely lament) has intimated, that it implies, that, in a free state,[55]thieves and pick-pockets have a right to make laws for themselves.—The public will not, I hope, wonder that I chuse to take little notice of such objections.

It has been said, that the liberty for which I have pleaded, is “a right or power in every oneto act as he likes without any restraint.”—However unfairly this representation has been given of my account of liberty, I am ready to adopt it, provided it is understood with a few limitations.—Moral Liberty, in particular, cannot be better defined than by calling it “a power in every one to do as he likes.” My opponents in general seem to be greatly puzzled with this; and I am afraid it will signify little to attempt explaining it to them by saying, that every man’s will, if perfectly free from restraint, would carry him invariably to rectitude and virtue; and that no one who acts wickedly acts as helikes, but is conscious of a tyranny within him overpowering his judgment, and carrying him into a conduct, for which he condemns and hates himself.The things that he would he does not;[56]and the things that he would not, those he does. He is, therefore, a slave in the properest sense.

Religious Liberty, likewise, is a power of acting as welikein religion; or of professing and practising that mode of religious worship which we think most acceptable to the Deity.—But here the limitation to which I have referred must be attended to.Allhave the same unalienable right to this Liberty; and consequently, no one has a right to such a use of it as shall take it from others.Within this limit, or as far as he does not encroach on the equal liberty of others, every one has a right to do as he pleases in religion.—That the right to religious Liberty goes as far as this every one must allow, who is not a friend to persecution; and that it cannot go farther, is self-evident; for if it did, there would be a contradiction in the natures of things; and it would be true, that every one had a right to enjoy what every one had a right to destroy.—If, therefore, the religious faith of any person leads him to hurt another because he professes a different faith; or if it carries him, in any instances, to intolerance, Liberty itself requires he should be restrained, and that, in such instances, he should lose his liberty.

All this is equally applicable to the Liberty of man in hiscivilcapacity; and it is a maxim true universally, “that as far as any one does not molestothers, others ought not to molesthim.”—All have a right to the free and undisturbed possession of their good names, properties and lives; and it is the right all have to this that gives the right to establish civil government, which is or ought to be nothing but an institution (by laws and provisions made withcommonconsent) for guarding this right against invasion; for giving to every one, intemporalsandspirituals, the power of commanding his own conduct; or, ofacting as he pleases, and going where he will, provided he does not run foul of others.—Just government, therefore, does notinfringeliberty, butestablishit.—It does nottake awaythe rights of mankind, butprotectandconfirmthem.—I will add, that it does not even create any new subordinations of particular men to one another, but only gives security in those several stations, whether of authority and pre-eminence, or of subordination and dependence, which nature has established, and which must have arisen among mankind whether civil government had been instituted or not. But this goes beyond my purpose in this place, and more will be said of it presently.

To sum up the whole—Our ideas of Civil Liberty will be rendered more distinct by considering it under the three following views:—The Liberty of thecitizen—The liberty of thegovernment—And the liberty of thecommunity.—Acitizenis free when the power of commanding his own conduct and the quiet possession of his life, person, property and good name aresecuredto him by being his own legislator in the sense explained inpage 10[57].—Agovernmentis free whenconstituted in such a manner as to give thissecurity.—And the freedom of a community or nation is the same among nations, that the freedom of a citizen is among his fellow-citizens.—It is not, therefore, as observed inpage 3, the mere possession of Liberty that denominates a citizen or a community free; but thatsecurityfor the possession of it which arises from such a free government as I have described; and which takes place, when there exists no power that can take it away.—It is in the same sense that the mere performance of virtuous actions is not what denominates an agent virtuous; but the temper and habits from whence they spring; or thatinward constitution, and right balance of the affections, whichsecurethe practice of virtue, produce stability of conduct, and constitute acharacter.

I cannot imagine how it can be disputed whether this is a just account of the nature of Liberty. It has been already given more briefly in the Observations on Civil Liberty; and it is with reluctance I have repeated so much of whathas been there said. But the wrong apprehensions which have been entertained of my sentiments have rendered this necessary. And, for the same reason, I am obliged to go on to the subject of the next section.

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