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to truft men with making of laws, who have been accustomed to have an unlimited right over the lives and liberties of others. This is undoubtedly true; but I am afraid that this will exclude a great number in England from being reprefented in the British parliament. If there is any truth at all in the ftories of the flave trade, there are not a few in Britain that are concern-7 ed in it, to their disgrace; and whatever colonies con: tinue in the practice they will not long enjoy their li berty. But the colonies do not defire to be repre fented in the British parliament; they only want to have their own reprefentatives at home, and to make laws for themfelves, as we do in England. It would be unreasonable for them to expect to be reprefented in the parliament of England. But this is not any part of the controverfy. The above writer feems to hint that Britain should claim a right to make laws to the Americans, because they are unfit to make laws to themselves, for want of feelings of humanity; and that this entitles Britain to an abfolute right of empire over the colonies If this argument were fairly analyfed, it would be found to go a great length, and much farther than the writer feems to intend; for it supposes that all the colonies are alike in this refpect, which is contrary to fact, and also that the parliament of England ought to have abfolute empire over a people whom they encourage in a trade that makes them subject to slavery. It is very manifest that if those whom he has confined to the abfolute empire of the British legislature, were to come to England, they' could not be denied a fhare in the government of this country, provided they had property to qualify them and suppose they employed thoufands in the ve trade, it would be no objection to their fitting in par liament. But it is a point to be foberly confidered,

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whether Great Britain is not as guilty as Virginia in this particular; for amongst all the laws for regulating. the trade of the colonies, the British parliament has not yet made a law against this most infamous traf fic. It is no uncommon thing to fee a British member of parliament have his Negro flave following him, which plainly fhews that this practice, is not peculiar to America. The first fettlers who went to America, knew nothing of this business. It began in fome other place where it does not difqualify men from being res f presented.

The miniftry at this time, whatever their intentions! were, acted very impolitically: They acted with a great degree of positiveness, yet wavered in pursuing their meafurés. They would neither give up their plans, nor would they purfue them with firmnefs: their whole defigns were known over all America, beforeever they were able to execute them.

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While our miniftry and parliament were deliberating concerning the methods to pursue the ftamp act, the leaders among the American colonies had time to paint it in the most formidable point of light, to the lower ranks of people, and to kindle a flame in their tempers against it, that neither the art nor power of the King's minifters were afterwards able to quench. Wherever the news of this impolitic and oppreffive law reached, it read discontent like a conflagration and blazed from one colony to another. The tempers of all the colonies being alike affected, it was eafy to ftir up the fame averfion in them all, against a law which was against their intereft, and had much the appearance of oppreffion. One thing with which the miniftry then, and fince have deceived themselves, is, that they were perfuaded that the averfion to this law was not univerfal: It was alledged that only a few

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of the colonies, and but fome in each of them, were disposed to pursue oppofition, or that like the people at home, they would raise a little clamour for a season, and then fubmit to the authority of the mother coun try: in the point of taxation. This was only furmife, without any real fhadow of foundation, or fo much as a partial understanding of the temper of the colonies, which ought to have been fully inveftigated before fuch a dangerous expedient had been tried. The managers at home appear to have been ignorant of the real ftate and difpofition of the colonists, and feem to have judged of a people, not yet corrupted with luxury, nor initiated in a fyftem of diffipation, from the examples they had obferved in the mother coun try, where corruption and venality is almost universal. In this they were greatly mistaken, and found by experience, that a people that ftill retained the fpirit and temper of the laft century, and were in many re-, spects formed upon the principles of their ancestors, were not to be managed in the fame manner as people rendered soft and effeminate, by importing the luxuries and vices of all nations under the fun. The miniftry were unfortunate in the beginning of this fcheme, and unfuccefsful in the conclufion of it. The news' of paffing the ftamp act came first to New England a colony the most tenacious of their liberty, and jealous to the laft degree, of every appearance of def pötifm. This colony confidered itself as the offspring. of progenitors, who had fuffered both feverely and unjustly at the hands of the mother country, and who had afferted their natural rights and privileges at the rifque of their lives, and the expence of much blood. They had not forgot how their fathers had, for the fake of civil and religious liberty, fled to a wildernefs, which they had now converted into a

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fruitful field, from an intolerable fpiritual perfecution, which could not be borne and they were not difpofed to furrender the fruits of their own labour, and that of their ancestors, to the children of thofe that had banifhed their fathers from their native country. The frat colonifts fucceeded in their undertakings without any expence or charge to the state, which was acknowledged by a vote of the house of commons as early as 1642; and it was not to be expected that their children were tamely to give up rights, that were both founded in nature, and the principles of common juf

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When the news of the ftamp act having received the royal fignature, reached New England, the mea lancholy that had taken poffeffion of their minds before, upon hearing that it was voted a proper measure to lay it upon them, broke out into fury and outrage, The fhips in the harbours hung out their colours half maft high, in token of deep mourning; the bells were muffled; the act was printed with a death's head to it, in the place where it is cultomary to affix the new. ads of parliament, and called publicly about the streets, by the name of the Folly of England, and the ruin of America, Several essays were written, not only ́a, gainst the expediency, but against the justice, of this law, in feveral news-papers: one in particular had the, title of the Constitutional Courant, containing matters interesting to liberty, and no wife repugnant to loyalty, printed by Andrew Marvely at the fign of the Bribe Refufed, on Conftitutional Hill, North America., This had a more fignificant frontifpiece than any of the reft: It had a fake cut in pieces with the initial letters of the names of the feveral colonies, from NewEngland to South Carolina inclufively, fixed to each piece, and above them Jdin or DIE. To thefe were

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added feveral characters, and fententious aphorifms, fuited to the occafion, which were eafily circulated, and as easily committed to memory; and being c ceedingly expreffive, they had all the force of a great many arguments. Many of the papers were written with great acrimony, and threw forth fevere reflections against the British ministry, and the leaders in thefe impolitic and arbitrary measures; and it must be granted by every judicious and candid perfon, that they had great provocation. There were two things exceedingly grievous in this act to the colonies. The first was, that the perfons that acted under this law, had in their power to bring an action, the cause of which had arifen at one extremity of North America, to the other, at the distance of near two thousand miles, without the traders being intitled to recover damages, in cafe the judge fhould certify that there was any probable caufe for the profecution. The fecond was, the judge had an interest in giving a fentence in favour of the party fuing for the penalties of the act, by being allowed, by way of commiffion, a very large fhare in thefe penalties. This was injufice that the greateft laves could not eafily endure without murmuring; and it was not to be expected that a free people, who have the most strict ideas of liberty, would, without repining, fubmit to fuch fagrant oppreffion and tyranny. By the time the act reached the colonies, they were wrought up to the highest pitch of averfion against it, and treated it with the greatest contempt: In many places it was publicly burnt, together with the effigies of the chief promp ters thereof, who, provided they had been prefent, would have met with abundant difgrace. On the other hand they praised and applauded, with culo giums of the highest ftrain, the perfons who had op. pofed

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