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the forest, and he is obliged to submit to it at the peril of his life but still there is no authority; nothing but brutal force; and it matters not how large we suppose the gang to be; for its properties are no more changed by its magnitude, than the propertics of a circle, which are always the same. Their power is absolute force; and the authority by which they exercise it, is from themselves, against all the settlements of law, and all the rights of possession. Allow but the force of those two commandments, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not steal, and then all this sort of power vanishes.

Such, however, is the power of the people; against which, therefore, every government is armed and defended; and without such a defence, there could be neither property nor security in the world; nothing but violence and rapine, which are sure to prevail, as soon as the people, under some wolvish unprincipled leaders of sedition, attempt to take power into their own hands. All liberty then takes its flight; the liberty of acting, of speaking, and perhaps of breathing; unless the breath be applied to blow the flames of sedition.

My brethren, let me speak freely to you upon this subject; power is a weapon of so sharp an edge, that mistakes about the nature and exercise of it are perilous indeed, and the bad consequences inexpressible therefore, as we value our own security, let us always distinguish between power and authority. The storm hath power to blow; the waves of the sea have power to rage; the lightning hath power to strike; the fire hath power to consume; but all this power tends only to destruction: the power which God giveth is for edification, and not for destruction. It is to build up society and preserve it, not to destroy

it. He hath appointed the sun to rule over the day, the moon and the stars to govern the night: all the nations of the earth enjoy light, and peace, and happiness under their dominion, and their authority is confined by a law which cannot be broken. But if we should become so insensible of this blessing, as to argue for a lawless power in the elements, and they were to be let loose upon us in consequence of our mistake; we should then discover, that it is the wisdom as well as the happiness of man, to submit to the ordinance of God. They are his laws which are executed in a state; and they can be executed by no authority but his own: if by an authority from the people, that would exalt the people into the place of God. Every state must have power of life and death but no individual hath any such power over himself; and consequently, he cannot give what he hath not such a power can be communicated only

that God, in whose hand are the lives of all mankind; to whom alone belongs that sword of justice, which is borne by the magistrate: who being the giver, is also the Lord of Life; and to suppose it otherwise, is to derive power by ascent instead of descent; which is contrary to the order of nature in all other cases whatsoever. Christians, who, according to the doctrine of their religion, derive all power from above, from whence every good and perfect gift cometh, go as high as they can, up to God himself: they who derive it from beneath, must go as low as they can, even down to the father of all that tumultuous rage and disorder, which distinguishes the power of the people. When this power is supposed to include authority, it is so contrary to fact, to reason, and to revelation, that it is seldom taken up, but by those, who wish to raise a storm against the state, and en

courage the waves to beat, because they have hopes of plunder from the wreck. Such a power was, in deed, admitted and highly esteemed by those fanciful Greeks and Romans of later times, who, having departed from their ancient principles, were torn to pieces with factions, and amused themselves with a vain search after that philosopher's stone in politics, a constitution where all might govern, and none be governed; till their balancings and fluctuations produced an arbitrary government, and brought them all under the yoke of military power; the natural consequence of such experiments. When a nation is grown restless with dreams of despotism, jealous of all authority, and agitated with contentions for power, on the ground of natural right against positive law; then we may know that the desolation thereof is nigh; that it must either fall under the lawless power of some intestine faction, or be reduced to the mortification of looking on, while its lands are divided and parcelled out by a foreign force; which hath happened lately in a country of Europe, where liberty was professed, whilst the worst sort of tyranny was practised.

But it is also our interest, as well as our duty and wisdom, to honour the king, and support that power by which we are protected. Government was not ordained to enslave the world, but to preserve the peace of society, to defend the innocent from the violent and injurious, to distinguish and secure property, and to prevent the people from falling a prey to one another, as they never fail to do in times of rebellion. When the restraint of government hinders the will of one man from being a law to another, by maintaining a common rule of action for all, it is the greatest blessing upon earth. There are in every

nation turbulent spirits, who would permit no law to prevail but their own will; and, if there were nothing to hinder them, would set the world on fire to make themselves confiderable. Tribute is, therefore, due from every people, in return for the protection they receive and if the government of the most absolute tyrant is better than the force of a lawless multitude; that is, if one bad man without law is a less evil than an hundred thousand, the purchase (dear as it may be) is certainly worth the price to those who are blessed with a regular establishment.

Our common interest will oblige us to consider, that the strength of every government against its foreign enemies depends on the affection of its own natu, ral subjects; so that they are its worst enemies, who endeavour to lessen that affection; for when a nation is out of humour with its governors, and careless of its establishment, it is of course weak and defenceless. Great things may be done, when the people are united with one heart and mind under the person of their prince. How small and contemptible an insect is the bee? yet, when the whole swarm is assembled, and kept together by an attachment to their leader, they are invincible; neither man nor beast can stand against them. Every loyal nation hath the same advantage : but then we are to remember, that the union, in which their strength consists, is the gift of God; who maketh men to be of one mind for their common preservation.

Under this head of interest, our honour is concerned: for the honour of the people is involved in that of their king. We must judge of states as we do of families. Does it not add to the reputation of any family, when there is a good understanding among the members of it; especially if the father of it is well esteemed,

and treated with veneration by those who are under him, his children and his servants? But it is a sure sign, that the family is either very wicked, or very vulgar, when a proper deference is wanting from the children to the parents; the disgrace of their ill behaviour returns with double weight upon themselves; according to that admonition of the son of Sirach, Glory not in the dishonour of thy father; for thy father's dishonour is no glory unto thee: for the glory of a man is from the honour of his father. Whatever accusation there may be ground for, it is weak and cruel in a son to take it up: he fhould leave that to the worst enemies of the family, whose malice is waiting for the ruin of them all. But if the father is virtuous and honourable, then the son is a wretch, who can delight himself with the dishonour of such a parent. All this is applicable to those subjects, wheresoever they are to be found, who search for accusations, who feed upon grievances, who shout for joy on any disadvantage to their native country, and publifh its distress to all the world, making ten times more of it than is true. If duty could not restrain such, policy and common sense should be sufficient to guard them from so unnatural and ridiculous a crime.

To conclude; we live in a country, where the fear of God, and the honour of the king, are inculcated by the laws of the state, and all the forms and doctrines of the church. Let us be thankful to God that they are still preserved to us; and that our profession is such, as duty, wisdom, interest, and honour, will never fail to recommend. There is nothing to seduce us from the practice of this profession, but false ideas of liberty, with which unthinking minds are cafily captivated: and complaints of slavery and grievances, with which weak and unbridled tempers are easily terrified.

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