the god of love, eternal and invariable friendships unite together all the bleffed; friendships, which, by no human infirmity disturbed, by death never feparated, fhall conftitute throughout endless ages, a great and diftinguifhed portion of the celestial felicity.

Burke.

S. B. VIII. 1. S. 419. Nur von ihm, als dem berühma ̧ teften neuern Volksretner, kann ich eine Probe der politischen Beredsamkeit der Engländer geben, in der sie zwar die Griechen und Rdmer, nach dem Geständniß ihrer eignen Kunßrichter, nicht erreicht, aber doch über die übrigen neuern Nationen ehedem merks lich gehoben, und dea heutigen Franzosen selbst wenigstens noch gleich erhalten haben. Burke wurde schon vor dreißig Jahren, als Privatsekretdr des Markis von Rockingham als Parlamentsredner feht geachtet; und mehr noch zeigte er sich als Repräsentant der Stadt Bristol im Unterbause, und durch seine öftern Reden bei Gelegenheit des amerikanischen Krieges, von denen zwei schon ehes dem besonders und nun auch in seinen Werken gedruckt find. Wenn übrigens gleich in den legten Jahren sein Ruhm als Staatss mann und Volksfreund sehr gesunken ist; so erkennt man ihn doch immer noch einftimmig für einen der geistvollsten beutigen Schrifts fteller und größten Redner. Die hier abgedruckte Rede hielt er den 3. Novemb. 1775 an die Wählenden zu Briñol, als ihn die Sheriffs zu einem rechtmäßig erwählten Repräsentanten dieser Stadt im Parlament, erklärt hatten :

Gentlemen,

I cannot avoid sympathizing strongly with the feelings

of the Gentleman who has received the fame honour that you have confered on me. If he, who was bred and paffed his whole life amongst you; if he, who, through the eafy gradations of acquaintance, friendship, and esteem, has obtained the honour, which feems of itself, naturally and almost insensibly, to meet with thofe, who, by the even tenour of pleafing manners and focial virtues, slide into the love and confidence of their fellow-citizens; if he cannot speak but with great emotion on this fubject, furrounded as he is on all fides with his old friends; you will have the good

nefs

ness to excuse me, if my real, unaffected embarassment prevents me from expreffing my gratitude to you as I ought.

I was brought hither under the disadvantage of being unknown, even by fight, to any of you. No previous canvass was made for me. I was put in nomination after the poll was opened. I did not appear until it was far advanced. If, under all these accumulated disadvantages, your good opinion has carried me to this happy point of fuccefs; you will pardon ane, if I can only fay, to you collectively, as I faid to you individually, fimply and plainly, I thank you I am obliged to you I am not infenfible of your

kindness.

This is all I am able to fay for the ineftimable favour you have conferred upon me. But I cannot be fatisfied without saying a little more in defence of the right you have to confer fuch a favour. The person that appeared here as a Counsel for the Candidate, who fo long and fo earnestly folicited your votes, thinks proper to deny, that a very great part of you have any vote to give. He fixes a standard period of time in his own imagination, not what the law defines, but merely what the convenience of his Client fuggefts, by which he would cut off, at one ftroke, all those freedoms, which are the deareft privileges of your Corporation; which the common law authorizes: which your Magistrates are compelled to grant; which come duly au thenticated into this Court; and are faved in the clearest words, and with the most religious care and tenderness, in that very act of Parliament, which was made to regulate the Elections by Freemen, and to prevent all poffible abuses in making them.

My

I do not intend to argue the matter here. learned Counsel has fupported your Cause with his usual Ability; the worthy fheriffs have acted with their ufual equity, and I have no doubt, that the fame equity, which dictates the return, will guide the final determination, I had the honour, in conjunction with many far wiler men, to contribute a very small affistance, but however fome affiftance, to the forming

Pp 5

the

the Judicature which is to try fuch questions. It would be unnatural in me, to doubt the Justice of that Court, in the trial of my own cause, to which I have been so active to give jurisdiction over every other.

I affure the worthy Freemen, and this Corporation, that, if the Gentleman perseveres in the intentions, which his present warmth dictates to him, I will attend their cause with diligence, and I hope with effect. For if I know any thing of myself, it is not my own interest in it, but my full conviction, that induces me to tell you I think there is not a fhadow of doubt in the cafe,

I do not imagine that you find me rash in declaring myself, or very forward in troubling you. From the beginning to the end of the election, I have kept silence in all matters of difcuffion. I have never afked a question of a voter on the other side, or supported a doubtful vote on my own. I respected the abilities of my managers; I relied on the candour of the court. I think the worthy fheriffs will bear me witness, that I have never once made an attempt to impose upon their reafon, to surprise their justice, or to ruffle their temper. I stood on the hustings (except when I gave my thanks to those who favoured me with their votes) less like a Candidate, than an unconcerned Spectator of a public proceeding. But here the face of things is altered. Here is an attempt for a general massacre of Suffrages; an attempt, by a promifcuous carnage of friends and foes, to exterminate above two thousand votes, including feven hundred polled for the Gentleman himself, who now complains, and who would destroy the Friends whom he has obtained, only because he cannot obtain as many of them as he wishes.

How he will be permitted, in another place, to ftultify and difable himself, and to plead against his own acts, is another question. The law will decide it. I fhall only speak of it as it concerns the propriety of public conduct in this city. I do not pretend to lay down rules of decorum for other Gentlemen. They are beft judges of the mode of proceeding that will recommend them to the favour of their fellow-citizens.

But

But I confels, I fhould look rather aukward, if I had been the very first to produce the new copies of freedom, if I had perfifted in producing them to the laft; if I had ranfacked, with the most unremitting industry, and the most penetrating research, the remoteft corners of the kingdom to discover them; if I were then, all at once, to turn fhort, and declare, that I had been sporting all this while with he right of election: and that I had been drawing out a Poll, upon no fort of rational grounds: which difturbed the peace of my fellowcitizens for a month together I really, for my part fhould appear aukward under such circumstances.

It would be ftill more aukward in ine, if I were gravely to look the sheriffs in the face, and to tell them, they were not to determine my cause on my own principles; nor to make the return upon those votes, upon which I had rested my election. Such would be my appearance to the court and magistrates.

But how should I appear to the voters themselves? If I had gone round to the citizens entitled to Freedoin, and squeezed them by the hand,,Sir, I humbly beg your Vote I shall be eternally thankful

,, may I hope for the honour of your fupport? ,, Well!

99

,house."

come

we shall see you at the CouncilIf I were then to deliver them to my managers, pack them into tallies, vote them off in court, and when I heard from the Bar

وو

Such a

one only! and fuch a one for ever he's my man!“ ,, Thank you, good Sir Hah! my worthy friend! ,, thank you kindly that's an honeft fellow how ,, is your good family?" Whilft these words were hardly out of my mouth, if I should have wheeled round at once, and told them

99

Get you gone, you ,, pack of worthless fellows! you have no votes ,,you are Ufurpers! you are intruders on the rights of ,, real freemen! I will have nothing to do with you! you ought never to have been produced; at this Election, and the Sheriffs ought not to have admitted you ,, to the poll."

99

Gentle

Gentlemen, I fhould make a ftrange figure, if my conduct had been of this fort. I am not so old an acquaintance of yours as the worthy Gentleman. Indeed I could not have ventured on such kinds of free

doms with you. But I am bound, and I will endea vour, to have juftice done to the rights of Freeinen; even though I fhould, at the fame time, be obliged to vindicate the former part of my antagonist's conduct against his own prefent inclinations.

I owe myself, in all things, to all the Freemen of this city. My particular friends have a demand on ne, that I fhould not deceive their expectations. Never was cause or man fupported with more conftancy, more activity, more fpirit. I have been fupported with a zeal indeed and heartiness in my friends, which (if their object had been at all proportioned to their endeavours) could never be fufficiently commen. ded. They fupported me upon the moft liberal principles. They wished that the members for Bristol fhould be chofen for the City, and for their Country at large, and not for themselves.

So far they are not disapointed. If I poffefs no thing elfe, I am fure I poffefs the temper that is fit for your fervice. I know nothing of Bristol, but by the favours I have received, and the virtues I have seen exerted in it.

I fhall ever retain, what I now feel, the most perfect and grateful attachment to my friends - and I have no enmities; no refentiment. I never can confider fidelity to engagements, and conftancy in friendfhips, but with the highest approbation; even when those noble qualities are employed against my own pretenfions. The Gentleman, who is not fortunate as I have been in this conteft, enjoys, in this respect, a confolation full of honour both to himself and to his friends. They have certainly left nothing undone for his fervice.

As for the trifling petulance, which the rage of party ftirs up in little minds, though it should fhew

itself