any justice from their judges. And, as the money thus misapplied in one province is extorted from all, probably all will resent the misapplication.

14. If the Parliaments of your provinces should dare to claim rights, or complain of your administration, order them to be harassed with repeated dissolutions. If the same men are continually returned by new elections, adjourn their meetings to some country village, where they cannot be accommodated and there keep them during pleasure; for this, you know, is your prerogative; and an excellent one it is, as you may manage it to promote discontents among the people, diminish their respect, and increase their disaffection.

15. Convert the brave, honest officers of your navy into pimping tide-waiters and colony officers of the customs. Let those who in time of war fought gallantly in defence of the commerce of their countrymen, in peace be taught to prey upon it. Let them learn to be corrupted by great and real smugglers; but (to show their diligence) scour with armed boats every bay, harbor, river, creek, cove, or nook throughout the coast of your colonies; stop and detain every coaster, every wood-boat, every fisherman; tumble their cargoes and even their ballast inside out and upside down; and, if a pennyworth of pins is found unentered, let the whole be seized and confiscated. Thus shall the trade of your colonists suffer more from their friends in time of peace, than it did from their enemies in war. Then let these boats' crews land upon every farm in their way, rob their orchards, steal their pigs and poultry, and insult the

inhabitants. If the injured and exasperated farmers, unable to procure other justice, should attack the aggressors, drub them, and burn their boats; you are to call this high treason and rebellion, order fleets and armies into their country, and threaten to carry all the offenders three thousand miles to be hanged, drawn and quartered. Oh, this will work admirably!

16. If you are told of discontents in your colonies, never believe that they are general, or that you have given occasion for them; therefore do not think of applying any remedy, or of changing any offensive measure. Redress no grievance, lest they should be encouraged to demand the redress of some other grievance. Grant no request that is just and reasonable, lest they should make another that is unreasonable. Take all your informations of the state of the colonies from your governors and officers in enmity with them. Encourage and reward these leasingmakers; secrete their lying accusations, lest they should be confuted; but act upon them as the clearest evidence; and believe nothing you hear from the friends of the people. Suppose all their complaints to be invented and promoted by a few factious demagogues, whom if you could catch and hang, all would be quiet. Catch and hang a few of them accordingly; and the blood of the martyrs shall work miracles in favor of your purpose.'

One of the American writers affirms: "That there has not been a single instance in which they have complained, without being rebuked; or in which they have been complained against, without being punished." A fundamental mistake in the minister occasioned this. Every individual in New England (the peccant country) was held a coward or a knave, and the disorders which spread abroad there were

17. If you see rival nations rejoicing at the prospect of your disunion with your provinces, and endeavoring to promote it; if they translate, publish, and applaud all the complaints of your discontented colonists, at the same time privately stimulating you to severer measures, let not that offend you. Why should it, since you all mean the same thing?

If

18. If any colony should at their own charge erect a fortress to secure their port against the fleets of a foreign enemy, get your governor to betray that fortress into your hands. Never think of paying what it costs the country, for that would look at least like some regard for justice; but turn it into a citadel to awe the inhabitants and curb their commerce. they should have lodged in such fortress the very arms they bought and used to aid you in your conquests, seize them all; it will provoke, like ingratitude added to robbery. One admirable effect of these operations will be to discourage every other colony from erecting such defences, and so their and your enemies may more easily invade them, to the great disgrace of your government, and, of course, the furtherance of your project.

19. Send armies into their country under pretence of protecting the inhabitants; but, instead of garrisoning the forts on their frontiers with those troops to prevent incursions, demolish those forts and order the troops into the heart of the country, that the savages may be encouraged to attack the frontiers, treated as the result of the too great lenity of Great Britain! By the aid of this short and benevolent rule, judgment was ever wisely predetermined; to the shutting out redress on the one hand, and enforcing every rigor of punishment on the other.-B. V.

and that the troops may be protected by the inhabitants. This will seem to proceed from your ill-will or your ignorance, and contribute further to produce and strengthen an opinion among them that you are no longer fit to govern them.1

20. Lastly, invest the general of your army in the provinces with great and unconstitutional powers, and free him from the control of even your own civil governors. Let him have troops enough under his command, with all the fortresses in his possession; and who knows but (like some provincial generals in the Roman empire, and encouraged by the universal discontent you have produced) he may take it into his head to set up for himself? If he should, and you have carefully practised the few excellent rules of mine, take my word for it, all the provinces will immediately join him; and you will that day (if you have not done it sooner) get rid of the trouble of governing them, and all the plagues attending their commerce and connection from thenceforth and forever."

As the reader may be inclined to divide his belief between the wisdom of the ministry and the candor and veracity of Dr. Franklin, I shall inform him that two contrary objections may be made to the truth of this representation. The first is, that the conduct of Great Britain is made too absurd for possibility; and the second, that it is not made absurd enough for fact. If we consider that this writing does not include the measures subsequent to 1773, the latter difficulty is easily set aside. The former I can only solve by the many instances in history where the infatuation of individuals has brought the heaviest calamities upon nations.-B. V.

A new and handsome edition of the above piece was published at London in 1793, with the following ironical dedication. Lord Loughborough was once Mr. Wedderburn, and the same person who uttered an abusive philippic against Dr. Franklin in a speech before the king in council relating to Hutchinson's letters. See infra, p. 292.EDITOR. [For the "dedication," see foot note on p. 216.]

DXLII

TO THOMAS CUSHING

SIR:-Nothing of importance has occurred since my last. This serves chiefly to cover a newspaper in which I have stated a few of the American grievances that were omitted in my "Receipt for Diminishing a Great Empire." These odd ways of presenting matters to the public view sometimes occasion them to be more talked of and more attended to.

With great respect, I am, sir, etc.,

B. FRANKLIN.'

DXLIII

TO THOMAS PERCIVAL 2

WEST WYCOMBE, the Seat of Lord le Despencer,

25 September, 1773.

DEAR SIR: I have received here your favor of the 18th, enclosing your very valuable paper of the "To the Right Honorable Alexander, Lord Loughborough.

"MY LORD:-When I reflect on your lordship's magnanimous conduct towards the author of the following golden rules, there is, in my opinion, a peculiar propriety in dedicating this new edition of them to a nobleman whose talents were so eminently useful in procuring the emancipation of our American brethren.

"In the most heartfelt wish that the same talents may be employed on similar occasions with the same splendid success, I have the honor to be, my lord, your lordship's most obedient and very humble servant, "THE EDITOR.

"LONDON, Feb. 12, 1793.”

This letter, found in the London Public Record Office, is thus endorsed: "Benjamin Franklin, Sept. 23, 1773, private, wherein he acknowledges himself author of a Receipt or rather Prescription for Diminishing a Great Empire, as published in a London newspaper." See this Receipt or Prescription, supra, p. 204.

2

A physician of Manchester, in England, and author of several publications on medical and philosophical subjects.-ED.