the Petition of the County May 254 Answer of Henry VI. to cords, out of the fame; where, at your common law it is written, contra coronam et dignitatem vefiram: it is written in your time, and your noble progenitors, finth the faid Earldome came into your hands, and in all earls. times afore, contra dignitatem gladii Cefiria. And alfo they have no knights, citizens, ne burgeffes ne ever had, of the faid county, to any parliament holden out of the faid county; whereby they might, in any way of reafon, be bounden. And alfo ye and your noble progenitors, and all earles, whofe eftate ye have in the faid earledome; as earles of Chester, fith the conqueft of England have had within the fame'; regalem, proteflatum, jura regalia, prærogativa regia. Which franchifes notwithstanding, there be your commithions directed out to feveral commifioners of the fame county, for the levy of fubfidy, granted by the commons of your land, in your parliament, late begun at Westminster, and ended at Leicefter, to make levy thereof within the faid county, after the form of their grant thereof, contrary to the liberties, freedoms, and franchifes, of the faid county, and inheritance of the fame, at all times, before this time ufed, that pleafe your noble grace, of your bleffed favour, the premifes gracioufly to confider: and alfo, how that we your befeechers, have been as ready of our true hearts, with our goods, at times of need, as other parts of your lands; and also ready to obey your laws and ordinances, made, ordained, and admitted within the faid county, and if any thing amongst us [be wrong] ready to be reformed by your highnefs, by the advice of your councel, within the faid county; and hereupon to difcharge all fuch commilioners of levy of the faid fubfidy within the faid county, and of your fpecial meer grace, ever, to fee that there be never act in this parliament, nor in any parliament hereafter, holden out of the faid county, made to the hurt of any of the inheritors, or inheritance of the faid county, of their bodies, liberties, franchifes, goods, lands, tenements, or poffeffions, being within the faid county. For if any fuch act should be made, it were clean contrary to the liberties, freedoms, immunities, and franchises of the faid county. And as to the refigning of fuch poffeffions, as it hath liked your highnefs, to grant unto any of your fubjects; all fuch as have ought of grant within the faid county, will be ready to furrender their letters pattents, which they have of your grant, for the more honourable keeping of your eftate; as any other person or perfons within any other part of your land; or elfe they fhall be avoided by us, under your authority committed unto us, within your faid county. And furthermore, confidering that your befeechers are, and ever have been true, dreading, obaifant, and loving unto you, and of you, as unto you; and of our moft dowted fovereign lord, our earle and natural lord: we the faid barons, knights, efquires, and commons, are ready to live and die with you, against all earthly creatures; and by your licence, to fhew unto your highnefs, for the gracious expedition of this our most behoveful petition. And we the faid abbots, priors, and clergy, continually to pray to God for your most hounerable eftate, profperity, and felicity, which we all befeek God to continue, with as long life to reign, as ever did prince upon people; with iffue coming of your most gracious body, perpetually to raign upon us for all our most fingular joy and comfort." The king's will is, to the fubfidy in this bill contained: forafmuch as he is learned, that the befeechers in the fame, their predeceffors, nor anceftors, have not been charged afore this time, by authority of any parliament holden out. of the faide county, of any quindifme, or fubfidy, granted unto him or any of his progenitors, in any fuch parliament; that the befeechers, and each of them be difcharged of the paying and levy of the faid fubfidy. And furthermore, the king willeth, that the faid befeechers, their fucceffors and heirs, have and enjoy all their liberties, freedoms, and franchifes, as freely and entirely as ever they, their predeceffors or anceftors in his time, or in time of his progenitors, had and enjoyed it. Pre 1776. Palatine of Chefter on Parliamentary Taxes. By the KING. TRUSTY and well beloved in God, and trusty and well beloved-we greet you well. And forafmuch as we have understanding, by a fupplication prefented unto us, on behalf of all our liege people within our county palatine of Chefter: how their predeceffors nor anceftors, have not been charged before this time, with any fifteenth or fubfidy granted unto us, or any of our progenitors, by authority of any parliament, holden out of our faid county, for which caufe, we have charged our chamberlain of our faid county, to make out writs, directed to all our commiffioners, ordained for the affeffing and levy of the fubfidy last granted unto us: charging them to furceafe of any execution of our letters of commiffion, made unto them, in their parties. Wherefore, according to our commandment late given by us, unto our faid chamberlain: we will that ye in our behalf, open and declare unto all our faid liege people; how it is our full will and intent, that they be not charged with any fuch grant, otherwife than they, their predeceffors and ancestors have been charged afore time. And 255 that they have and hold, poffide, and enjoy, all their liberties, freedoms, and franchifes, in as ample and large form, as ever they had in our, or any of our faid progenitors days. And that he fail not thereof, as we truft you, and as you deem to please us. Given under our fignet of the eagle, at the pallace of Westminster the eighth day of March, anno R. R. H. 6. Viceffimo Nono. To our trufty and well beloved in' God, the abbot of our monastry of Chefter; and to our trusty and wellbeloved knights Sir Thomas Stanley, our juftices of Chefter, Sir John Manwaring, and to every of them." The following extract from the year books demonftrates that, from the fame principle, the British parlia ment have no right to tax the people of Ireland, though they have attempted to ufurp and enjoy that power. "A tax granted by the parliament of England thall not bind those of Ireland, because they are not summoned to our parliament;" and again, "Ireland hath a parliament of its own, and maketh and altereth laws; and our ftatutes do not bind them, because they do not fend knights to our parlia ment:" but their perfons are the king's fubjects, like as the inhabitants of Calais, Gafcoiny and Guienne, while they continued under the king's fubjection. See I. Bl. Comm. 101. To the EDITOR of the LONDON MAGAZINE. SIR, TU URNING over Blackflone's Commentaries, I met with a very extraordinary paffage, which as it feems to explain the foundation of the loyalty of thofe men, who now dignify themselves with the name of the king's friends, I here lay before your readers. "The reafons upon which they decided [who fettled the fucceffion to the crown as it is now established] may be matter of inftructive amufement for us to contemplate as a fpeculative point of hiftory. But care must be taken not to carry this enquiry further than merely for inftruction or amufement. The idea that the confciences of pof. terity were concerned in the rectitude of their ancestors decifions, gave birth to thofe dangerous political herefies, which fo long distracted the itate, but at length are all happily extinguished. I therefore rather choose to contider this great political measure upon the folid footing of authority, than to reafon in its favour from its justice, moderation, and expedience; because that might imply a right of diffenting or revolting from it, in cafe we should think it to have been unjust, oppreffive or inexpedient. Whereas our ancestors having moft indifputably a competent jurifdiction to decide this great and important question, and having in fact decided it, it is now become our duty at this distance of 256 Remarks on Blackstone's Commentaries. time, to acquiefce in their determination; being born under that establishment which was built upon this foundation, and obliged by every tie, religious, as well as civil, to main tain it." Numberless reflections must crowd upon the mind, after an attentive perufal of the above paffage.-Give me leave to throw together a few of thofe that occurred to me, in which I fhall not be very follicitous of obferving method, for I defign not a regular treatife, but a few curfory remarks. I would ask this refpectable and judicious author, what we are to think of his method of defending the Revolution, and its confequence, the Act of Settlement; does he really think it the beft in itself, or is it only calculated for the meridian of Oxford, where he delivered thofe lectures, the fubftance of which form his Commentaries? Does he look upon it as a fpecific that will eradicate, or only as an opiate that may lull into loyalty the ever restless and implacable fpirit of peevith difappointed Jacobitifm? I am loth to think that a gentleman fo venerable by his character, fo diftinguished by his rank, fo eminent by his abilities, fhould entertain the leaft diffidence of the juftice, the moderation, or the expediency of the mea fure in question, or imagine that entering into a difcuffion of thofe points, fhould leave in the minds of the unprejudiced, the candid and the rational, (who alone were objects worth his notice) the flightest fufpicion of its being unjuft, oppreffive or inexpedient. Let it be concluded then, that he thought authority (authority confidered as acting without regard to justice, moderation, or expediency) the only method that could prevail with his hearers to acquiefce in the queftioned eltablishment. Poffibly he may be in the right. But what dependence a prince can have upon loyalty, refting on fuch a foundation, requires to be confidered. The men who imagine the title of his family to the crown, to be founded on injuftice and oppreffion, can never May be heartily affected to his perfon or his caufe, never can stand firmly by him, or venture their lives and fortunes to fupport what they must look upon as a continuance of that injuf tice and oppreffion. Such men are evidently the most dangerous to be near his perfon, the most unfit to share his councils. For corrupt and degenerate as the age may be, it is not poffible to imagine human nature fo intirely abandoned as actively and zealously to efpoufe the cause of injuftice and oppreffion, where the immediate perfonal intereft of the abettor is not concerned. Such fervice must be purchased dear, and, what is worse, must be languid, uniteady, and faithlefs. It can be paid only by the ba feft, the moft fordid minds, who are callous to confcience, dead to every virtue. That the unjuft oppreffive measure was the work of their ancestors, cannot exculpate their pofterity for actively fupporting, or even for paffively acquiefcing in their iniquitous deci fion. If they are active in their fupport, they tranfgrefs; if they are not active in their oppofition of its continuance, they neglect their duty. Our learned and fagacious author has rightly afferted, that our ancestors had a competent jurifdiction to fettle the fucceffion. Their ancestors had made a different fettlement, which was cancelled in 1688, because it was thought that it would open the floodgates of oppreffion and injustice. It would not be amifs if it were shewn what competent jurisdiction our greatgrandfathers then poffeffed, which we cannot now exercife. He fays theirs was indifputably competent, and they decided; his hearers and readers will retort, then is ours indifputably competent, and we may decide; if their decifion appear to us unjust, oppreffive, or inexpedient, we may diffent, we may revolt from it, as they did from the decifion of their ancestors. Thus we fee, that at the first step, the learned writer raifes in their minds the very political berely he intended to obviate. 9 1776. 257 To the EDITOR of the LONDON MAGAZINE. Intend to apply myself principally There are many things in the doctrine and practice of that body, which I never could perfectly approve. I think a party whofe diftinguishing characteristic is a defire of exalting the prerogative of the crown, ought never to take the lead in a government conftituted like ours. But, though I could not relish the doctrines of this political fet, I did not of courfe condemn the intentions of all who held them. I did not, I confefs, think the Tory party entirely well affected to the conftitution. Their own favourite phrafe," The old Conftitution," which was, and is continually in their mouths, feems to imply an invidious diftinction, and to intimate a dislike to the constitution, as perfected, or if they please, new modelled at the Revolution. But whatever their opinions of the conftitution might be, I thought them zealous, according to their ideas, for the interest and honour of their country. In all things which diftinguish this ifland from any other nation, the exclufive and patriotic partiality of their affections has broken out, and sometimes not in the moft decent and orderly manner that could have been wifhed. It always appeared a circumftance rather fingular, that they whofe principles were fo much of foreign growth, fhould far outgo the whigs themselves in the abhorrence of foreigners. The great bleffings derived from the Revolution, could not make them forget that King William was a Dutchman. They did not readily forgive even the founders of the fortune and greatnefs of his prefent majefty, that they were born in Hanover, and were fuppofed to entertain fentiments of partial regard to their native well, that when the the fan troops were brought hither, this party complained very loudly. The imminent invafion of England at that time, did not reconcile them to the measure of committing any part, even our most neceffary defence, to foreign forces. Thofe foreign troops who were brought over for the purpose of quieting the troubles in Scotland (for I mean to speak gently) in the year 1745, did not meet from that party a more favourable reception. Their unaffected dread of the prevalence of the house of Stuart in that critical conteft, could not make them permit a momentary departure from their antient maxims. Their prefervation from the greatest of all calamities, fubjection to an irritated, a revengeful, a bigotted, even a foreign master, a mafter who founded his right upon the fuppofed nullity of every right in his fubjects, could not excufe this obnoxious mode of fafety. It was in vain alledged in mitigation of that meafure, that the national troops were engaged abroad, that we had not time to get together, and to difcipline a body of English; that our foreign enemies had interfered; that fome forces in the French fervice were actually in Scotland; and the arrival of more was daily apprehended. This was all urged to inattentive ears. The Tories ftill exclaim ed, that the troops of our allies brought hither on that occafion were foreigners; and nothing but the confideration that a late capitulation had bound them not to be of any use, could induce the Tory party to bear the prefence of fuch guests, with any reafonable patience. Sudden emergencies may make the departure from the most wife and fettled principles juftifiable by the evident neceffity of the cafe. But certainly, the general principle of keeping foreign powers from interfering in national difputes, is founded in the trueft wisdom and foundest policy. There is not only no dignity, but no fafety in a different conduct. LI 1 was 258 Evils to the State by foreign Connections. I was therefore a good deal furprised, when I found fo many of the Tories not only tolerating, but rejoicing in the attempts made by minifters for engaging large bodies of foreigners to act in this prefent civil war. To what are we to attribute this extraordinary change, which that party has made in the only part of their fentiments; in which they were perfectly juftin able? Inftead of murmurs, com plaints, and remonftrances, we fee the perfons moft warm in that caufe, almoft.every where active and bustling to procure addreffes of compliment; in order to give the minifters all kind of credit and fupport in their negocia tions for foreign troops. In all this I fee no fort of attention to the honour of this country. The first principle of dignity is indepen dence. A government in profound peace with all its neighbours, which 35 not able, without external af fiftance, to enforce obedience from its own fubjects, is in effect annihilated: The powers on whom fuch a phantom of authority depends, are the true and real government. The other is only a vafal. If we cannot govern it but by the forces of Hanover, &c.-Hanover, Heffe, &c. are not only the rulers of America, but they are the mafters of England. · There must be fome extraordinary weakness in adminiftration, fome difinclination to the fervice in the grofs of the people, fomething unufually colourable in the refiftance, that at the very outlet of the quarrel, has dif abled the ftongeft power in the world. Our minifters ftumble at the threshold; they are out of wind before they have run the first heat. The first year of this war in America, they implore foreign nations to bring them out of that struggle, which a little while ago, they told us might May be ended by a very few of the fuperfluous regiments, which a prodigal peace eftablishment wantonly kept up for parade and fhew. Such is the dig nity of England in the hands of its prefent trustees! If we cannot end our own quarrels by our own wifdom, or our own power, they will never be ended. Foreigners very rarely, if ever, interfere with cordial purposes to the benefit of the party which calls them in. It will be their bufinefs, like lawyers, to prolong the fuit, in order to exhauft the litigants. Whilft the quarrel continues, fo reign powers know that you must comply with every demand, and fubmit to every infult. The old enemies of the kingdom will be fure to fan the flames of diffention. The very belt affected of the foreign courts will make themfelves neceffary as long as they can. They will affift you just enough to continue the difpute, but not to end it, because that dispute and their fuperiority must have exactly the fame duration. Rather than confent to be thus at the mercy of foreigners, Dignity, if he would condefcend to take common fenfe into her councils, would think, that the cruel alternative proposed by the American Congrefs," of returning to the fituation in which we ftood in 1762," ought to be accepted. If English dignity is to be compromifed, I had rather fettle amicably with America, than be obliged to too polite a fubmiffion to the House of Bourbon. I fhould confent rather to bear the roughnefs of English liberty, than fubject myfelf to foreign pride, and barbarian infolence. I had ra ther flake Hancock and Adams by the hand, than cool my heels in the antichamber of Orloff and Potemkin. VALENS. |