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14

PARLIAMENTARY HISTORY.

Several fevere and farcaftic obfervations were made on the affurances given by the minister, relative to the promifed fuccefs of the measures recommended by him in the courfe of the laft feflion. He was frequently reminded of his predictions, and notes taken at the time were referred to in one or two inftances. He was particularly called on to recollect his confidently afferting in debate on the two reftraining bills, "That 10000 men, with the fleet then voted, would reduce America without hedding a fingle drop of blood; that all the fouthern provinces were well affected to government; that in thofe which had taken a decided part, great numbers were ready to join the King's troops, when they were rendered fufficiently ftrong to protect them from the ufurpation and oppreffion of the factious and feditious; and in short, the force voted would be fully adequate to the fervice for which it was intended." Thofe quotations were preffed with a mixture of pleafantry and feverity in fome inftances, and in others, difplayed in the most ridiculous points of view. There was a good deal faid on the illegality of introducing foreign troops into the garrisons of Gibraltar and Port Mahon, without the previous confent of Parliament, but as that was debated on the report, and afterwards on a motion framed on purpose, we hall refer faying any thing on it, till it fhall appear in its proper place.

On the part of adininiftration it was anfwered, that the fupremacy of the British Parliament over every colony and dependency of the British empire, was a clear indifputable propofition flowing as an inevitable confequence from the nature of civil government. That as taxation was one particular mode of exercising that fupremacy, it was of courfe included in the gene. ral fupreme power. That the objections made to the exercife of this right were obviated by permitting America to tax herself. That the irong argument ufed and fo much relied on, of the impropriety of raifing a revenue by taxes laid by the British legislature, no longer existed, and though it did, it ought to give way to the univerfal axiom, as well in this, as all other governments, that there must be a fupreme power lodged fomewhere for

Jan.

the purpose of carrying on government, which could not be the cafe, if America affumed to herself an independent fovereignty in any one initance, unlefs one could fuppofe two fupreme powers exifting at one time, in the fame civil fociety, an abfurdity too grofs to be endured.

The fpeech was fupported throughout, as containing the moft felf evident truths. It was ftrenuously infift ed on by almost every member who fpoke on that fide, that the ultimate views of America aimed at independance, and that the dependance held out by the Congrefs, as well as all the fubordinate affemblies, amounted to no more virtually, than a nominal obedience to the perfon of the Prince on the throne, and a total independence on the British legislature. That the actions and language of the colonies exactly corresponded, for they were no lefs affiduous in framing different models of government, than in raifing and embodying armies, collecting warlike stores, and fitting out a naval force. That the confequences had clearly fhewn their intentions were very different from ours; for while we were day after day meditating different plans, to avoid proceeding to extremities, they under the mafque of loyalty to the King, and obedience to the mother country, were making the moft vigorous and effectual preparations, not only to refift our claims, but to make an of fenfive war on our dominions. That the hardships fo loudly echoed from the other fide of the House, when clofely examined, would be found to have very little weight. The port of Bolton was shut up, because the inhabitants refused to make good the damage done to the Eaft India company. The charter of Maffachufets Bay was altered, its because powers were manifestly abufed, and employed to the most factious purposes. Neither of the restraining bills were paffed till the colonies had agreed in congrefs to a non-importation agreement. In thort, not one of the measures fo much complained of, were adopted but by way of retaliation, for fome provocation given by the people of America, or directly arifing from neceffity. In every one of thofe inftances, the point of taxation wasclearly out of the question: the first

was

1776.

PARLIAMENTARY HISTORY.

was directed to obtain reparation, the laft to prevent them from enjoying thofe advantages they denyed to the mother country, by prohibiting all intercourfe whatever with it.

As to the point of expediency in relation to the meafures propofed in the speech, it admitted of no argument, for it was now impoffible with propriety to recede. It became no longer a contention for a revenue; if that were merely the matter in if fue, it might be prudent to fufpend the claim, till a more cool and favourable season, when the colonies might be convinced by fober reflection, of its justice and propriety but that was not now the question, but whether Great Britain thould or fhould not forever relinquish every fpecies of dominion over America; and if nothing less than a total repeal of all the acts fince 1763 would do, the navigation act would foon fall on the fame grounds, and from that inftant the colonies would to every fubftantial or useful purpose be as indepen. dent of this country, as any one sovereign power in Europe.

As to the temper and difpofition of foreign powers, it was faid that Great Britain never ftood in a better or more unembarrassed fituation with them, than at the prefent period. It was nevertheless impoffible to be refponfible for their conduct, or to forefee by what motives of policy they might be actuated. In either event this country had only to confider, whether the ought to permit the difmemberment of her dominions upon a bare poffibility, that fome of the powers of Europe might take an opportunity of attacking us, while we were engaged in the act of compelling our rebellious fubjects to return to a conftitutional and legal fubmiffion and obedience.

And on the impracticability of coercing America, it was contended that the ftrength, numerous refources, and above all, the high fpirit of the British nation were fully equal to the

talk.

It was to be fure an undertak. ing of difficulty, but the interefts, honour, and conftitutional rights of the nation were not on that account to be facrificed and furrendered. The difficulties were to be overcome, not yielded to. The many fuccefsful wars carried on by this country, againit the

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most powerful and formidable enemies, were much infifted on, in which our uncommon exertions kept pace with their strength, and were proportioned to the magnitude of the object, and the force and weight of the oppofition we met with. That it was the duty as it was the intention of those who conducted the affairs of government, to fend a force to America fully adequate to its complete reduction; for to protract the miferies and horrors of a civil war now, that it became inevitabie, would not be lenity but cruelty in the extreme; and to accompany thofe armaments with offers of mercy' and pardon, as was intended, would leave America the choice of fubmitting to the juft claims of the mother country, or of being anfwerable for all the confequences be they what they might, if the refufed to return to that ftate of obedience, and to make a folemn recognition of thofe rights of fupremacy and dominion, which had never been till very lately queftioned. It was added, by the minifter, that it was intended to exert our utmost ftrength both by fea and land, to frain every nerve, to raile an army of 70000 men, and a proportionate fleet; in short, every man we were able to raife, or able to pay.

HOUSE of LORD S.

The debates in the Houfe of Lords, though fpirited, did not take in the extent, nor afford the variety as thofe carried on in the Commons. As foon as the king departed, after delivering his fpeech, a noble lord [Lord Townshend] moved the addrefs, in answer to his Majesty's moft gracious fpeech from the throne. His lordship was feconded by lord vif count Dudley. The propofed addrefs was couched in the terms ufu al on fuch occafions, which is little more than a repetition of the fpeech, paragraph by paragraph, accompa nied with declarations of relpect and approbation. The two points chiefly infifted on in the motion were, that if we did not refolve to relinquish our dominion over the colonies, and forego all the advantages derived from our commerce with them, coercive meafures were neceflary, and that our

great

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Anecdote of the Prime Minister of Portugal.

great refources, and the known di pofition of the other powers of Europe,rendered their fuccefs not only probable, but certain.

An amendment, literally the fame with that moved in the other Houle, was propofed by a noble Marquis (Marquis of Rockingham) and feconded by lord Coventry, which produced a debate that continued till pait eleven o'clock, when the question being put, there appeared contents for the amendment, 29, non-contents, 80: the original motion then returned of courfe, contents 76, non-contents 33, proxies included. Oppofition was

Jan.

this day ftrengthened by the duke of Grafton, fill a cabinet minifter, the bishop of Peterborough, and lord Thanet. The arguments reforted to on both fides were pretty nearly the fame as in the other House, but that the information fo neceffary to precede the adopting of the meatures chalked out in the fpeech, and the probable means of executing them, were much more infifted on by the oppofition, and that administration openly confiffed they had been deceived in the accounts they received of the ftate, condition, and difpofition of the people of America.

To the EDITOR of the LONDON MAGAZINE.
SIR,

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The Marquis de Pombal, though confidered as a great man in many parts of Europe, is not to esteemed by his own countrymen, who are not fo blind but they can easily dif cover when the intereft of the ftate is facrificed to the advantage of individuals, or fuffers by a ruinous policy. The Portuguese are more burdened at this prefent time, than any former period; for befides the established revenues of paft reigns, the king now receives from a late tax the whole riches of his fubjects once in ten years; our commerce languishes, and is almost ruined by the monopolizing companies of the Brazil trade; the laws are trampled upon, and even private property is not fecure against his venality; the army is like a body without a foul;

in short, he has exhibited fuch inftances of rigour and cruelty, that he is the dread of . the whole nation.-Every domeftic confidence is deftroyed by the emiflaries he is known to employ-Perhaps, when his avarice is fatiated, and he is arrived at the fummit of power, he may, like Auguftus, do good to mankind; but believe me, at prefent there is no order, no rank in fociety, but what detefts him; and furely if he was a great man, he would at least have fome party to efpoufe his caufe.-I mean not, however, to depreciate what there is valuable in his cha

racter. The measures he has pursued with the church, were cictated by the foundeft policy; and it must be allowed, it required fome exertion of power to go through with them.-They cannot fail promoting the increase of population; and it is to be hoped that future reigns, unfettered from the chains of the pricfts, will reftore vigour to the laws.

As to his family, his ancestors were what we call Homems Branco (white men) in short, his father was a provincial gentleman in low circumstances in the north of Portugal-he ferved during his younger years in the army, beginning, as was the cuftom of thofe days, with a musket-he arrived to the rank of lieutenant, but was afterwards difmiffed the fervice as a bad officer. He then came to Lifbon to follicit fome place in the civil department; and as he had received a liberal education, he found means to get employment in one of the public offices-he afterwards had the addrefs to recommend himself to the people who were then in power, and was appointed fuc effively as envoy to the courts of London, Paris, the Hague, and Vienna. At this laft, he was married to a German of diftinction; by which means he strengthened his intereft at home; for the then queen of Portugal was of the House of Auftria, and he managed to get fo much into the good graces of her majefty, that at his return he had the art to fupplant the fecretary, through whofe protection I have underflood he has been raifed."

A

1776.

A FRAGMENT from STERNE, after the Manner of RABELAIS.

CHAP. I. Shewing two Things; firft, what a Rabelaic Fellow Longinus Rabelaicus is, and fecondly, how cavalierly be begins bis Book."

Y dear and thrice reverend

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he, interrupting them both and refuming his difcourfe, is this, that if all the fcattered rules of the Kerukopædia could be but once carefully collected into one code, as thick as Panurge's head, and the whole cleanly digefted(pooh, fays Panurge, who felt him

as aggrieved)

and bishops, as the rest of the inferior clergy! would it not be a glorious thing, if any man of genius and capacity amongst us for fuch a work, was fully bent within himself, to fit down immediately and compofe a thorough-titched fyftem of the Kerukopædia, fairly fetting forth, to the best of his wit and memory, and collecting for that purpose all that is needful to be known, and understood of that art!Of what art cried Panurge? Good God, anfwered Longinus (making an exclamation, but taking care at the fame time to mo. derate his voice) why, of the art of

nued Longinus, by way of a regular inftitute, and then put into the hands of every licensed preacher in Great Britain and Ireland, juft before he began to compofe, I maintain it—I deny it flatly, quoth Panurge-What? anfwered Longinus Rabelaicus with all the temper in the world.

CHAP. II.

In which the Reader will begin to form a Judgment, of what an Hiflorical, Dramatical, Anecdotical, Allegorical, and Comical Kind of a Work be bas, got hold of.

HOMENAS who had to reach

next Sunday (before God knows whom) knowing nothing at all of the matter was all this while at it as hard as he could drive in the very next room for having fouled two clean fheets of his own, and being quite ftuck faft in the entrance upon his third general divifion, and finding himself unable to get either forwards or backwards with any grace

making minds of your theological, hebdodomical, roftrummical, humdrummical what d'ye call 'ems---I will be shot, quoth Epiftemon, if all this ftory of thine of a roafted horfe, is fimply no more than SSaufages? quoth Panurge. Thou haft fallen twelve feet and about five inches below the mark, anfwered Epiftemon, for I hold them to be Sermons-which faid word (as I take the matter) being but a word of low" Curfe it," fays he, (thereby exdegree, for a book of high rhetoric

Longinus Rabelaicus was foreminded to usher and lead into his differtation, with as much pomp and parade as he could afford; and for my own part, either I know no more of Latin than my horfe, or the Kerukopædia is nothing but the art of making 'em-And why not, quoth Gymnaft, of preaching them when we have done?-Believe me, dear fouls, this is half in halfand if fome fkilful body would but put us in a way to do this to fome tune-Thou wouldst not have them chanted furely, quoth Triboulet, laughing?—No, nor canted neither, quoth Gymnaft crying; but what I mean, my friends, fays Longinus Rabelaicus (who is certainly one of the greatest criticks in the western world, and as Rabelaic a fellow as ever exifted) what I mean, fays Jan. 1776.

communicating every mother's fon who should think differently) "why may not a man lawfully call in for help in this, as well as any other human emergency?"-So without any more argumentation, except ftarting up and nimming down from the top fhelf but one, the fecond volume of CLARK-though without any felonious intention in fo doing, he had begun to clap me in (making a joint first) five whole pages, nine round paragraphis, and a dozen and a half of good thoughts all of a row; and becaufe there was a confounded high gallery-was tranfcribing it away like a little devil.Now, quoth Homenas to himself, "though I hold all this to be fair and fquare, yet, if I am found out, there will be the deuce and all to pay.Why are the bells ringing backwards, you lad? what is all that D

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Exhibition of fome modern Sermonizers.

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crowd about, boneft man? Homenas
was got upon Doctor Clark's back,
fir-and what of that, my lad? Why
an please you, be has broke his neck, and
fractured his skull, and befouled himself
into the bargain, by a fall from the pul-
pit two flories high. Alas! poor Ho-
menas! Homenas has done his bufi-
nefs!Homenas will never preach
more while breath is in his body.-
No, faith, I fhall never again be able
to tickle it off as I have done. I
may fit up whole winter nights ha
king my blood with hectic watch-
ings, and write as folid as a FATHER
of the church-or, I may fit down
whole fummer days evaporating my
fpirits into the fineft thoughts, and
write as florid as a MOTHER of it.-
In a word, I may compofe myself off
my legs, and preach till I burft-and
when I have done, it will be worfe
Pray, Mr.
than if not done at all..
Such a-one, who held fortb laft Sunday?
Doctor Clark, I trow: fays one. Pray
what Doctor Clark fays a fecond? Why
Homenas's Doctor Clark, quoth a third.
O rare Homenas! cries a fourth;
your fervant Mr. Homenas, quoth a
fifth. Twill be all over with me,
by heav'n-I may as well put the
-Here
book from whence I took it."-
Homenas burst into a flood of tears,
which falling down helter fkelter,
ding dong, without any kind of in-
termiffion for fix minutes and almost
twenty five feconds, had a marvellous
effect upon his difcourfe; for the
aforefaid tears, do you mind, did fo
temper the wind that was rifing upon
the aforefaid difcourfe, but falling for
the most part perpendicularly, and
hitting the fpirits at right angles,
which were mounting horizontally
all over the furface of his harangue,
they not only played the devil and all
with the fublimnity-but moreover
the faid tears, by their nitrous qua-
lity, did fo refrigerate, precipitate,and
hurry down to the bottom of his foul,
all the unfavory particles which lay
fermenting (as you faw) in the middle
of his conception, that he went on in
the cooleft and chafteft ftile (for a foli-
loquy I think) that ever mortal man
uttered.

"This is really and truly a very
hard cafe, continued Homenas to
himfelf-Panurge, by the bye, and
all the company in the next room
hearing all along every fyllable he

Jan.

fpoke; for you must know, that
notwithstanding Panurge had opened
his mouth as wide as he could for
his blood, in order to give a round
answer to Longinus Rabelaicus's in-
terrogation, which concluded the
-yet Homenas's rhe-
laft chapter-
toric had poured in fo like a torrent,
flap dafh through the wainscot amongst
them, and happening at that uncritical
crifis, when Panurge had just put
his ugly face into the above faid
posture of defence that he stopt
thort-he did indeed, and though
his head was full of matter, and
he had screwed up every nerve and
mufcle belonging to it, till all cried
crack again, in order to give a due
projectile force to what be was going
to let fly, full in Longinus. Rabe-
laicus's teeth who fat over against
him-yet for all that, he had the
continence to contain himself, for he
Many
ftopt fhort, I fay, without uttering
one word, except z....ds.
reafons may be affigned for this, but
the most true, the moft ftrong, the
moft hydroftatical, and the most phi-
lofophical reason, why Panurge did
not go on, was-that the foremen-
tioned torrent did so drown his voice,
that he had none left to go on with.
-God help him, poor fellow! fo he
ftopt fhort (as I have told you before)
and all the time Homen as was speak-
ing he faid not another word, good
or bad, but food gaping, and sta-
ring, like what you pleafe-so that
the break, marked thus-which Ho-
menas's grief had made in the middle
of his difcourfe, which he could no
more help than he could fly-produ
ced no other change in the room
where Longinus Rabelaicus, Epifte-
mon, Gymnaft, Triboulet, and nine
or ten more honeft blades had got ke-
rukopædizing together, but that it
gave time to Gymnaft to give Panurge
a good fquashing chuck under his
double chin; which Panurge taking
in good part, and just as it was meant
by Gymnaft, he forthwith hut his
mouth-and gently fitting down upon
a ftool though fomewhat excentrically
and out of neighbours row, but liften-
ing, as all the reft did, with might
and main, they plainly and diftinctly
heard every fyllable of what you will
thou wilt
find recorded in the very next chapter.

Alas! poor Yorick!
write no more chapters.

For

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