It is certainly needless to multiply arguments in fuch a fituation. All that is valuable to us as men and freemen are at ftake. It does not admit of a question what would be the effect of our finally failing. Even the boasted commiffioners for giving peace to America have not offered, and do not now offer, any terms, but pardon on abfolute fubmiffion. And though (bleffed be God!) even the lofs of Philadelphia would not be the lofs of the caufe;-yet while it can be faved, let us not, in the clofe of the campaign, afford them fuch ground of triumph; but give a check to their progrefs, and convince our friends in the diftant parts, that one fpirit animates the whole. Confiding in your fidelity and zeal in a. conteft the most illuftrious and important, and firmly trusting in the good providence of God, we wish you happinefs and fuccefs. Given at Philadelphia, Dec. 10. 1776. By order of the Congress, JOHN HANCOCK, Prefident, Letters from Williamsburgh in Virgipia, dated Dec. 2. declare, that the e Lemies to government in that province were greatly distracted by inteftine divions; that the cultivation of tobacco and indigo had for fome time paft been entirely neglected; and that the finking of the paper-currency had brought great rembers into the utmoft diftrefs, and entirely banished all the gold and filver out of the country, as the monied men had collected all the fpecie, and fent it away to Philadelphia. Add to this, that the Ladians on the Pamimky river have latedeftroyed several of the gentlemens hofes there, particularly Mount Vernon, near Colchester, the feat of Geneal Washington. The city of Philadelphia, which, it is prehended, will be the feat of war in the fpring, is one of the handfomeft towns in America. Every house has a large court or garden before it; they have one firect one hundred feet in breadth, and which runs the whole length of the city: Parallel with this noble street, run ght others, croffed at right angles by twenty more; and in the centre of Phiadelphia there is a fquare of at leaft ten acres of ground. They have an excellent qay, and the town is well fupplied with water by canals, communicative with fine rers. Connoiffeurs have given it as their opinion, that Philadelphia is conftructed Os a very mafterly and elegant plan. PARLIAMENT. [xxxviii. 630.] OF the proceedings of the feffion 1776-7, we have already inferted the King's fpeech, the addreffes, and the debates in both houses on their addreffes. A motion was made, Nov. 1. the fecond day of the feffion, That a fupply be granted to his Majefty. The Houfe went into a committee on this motion, Nov. 4. and warm debates took place. It was urged, on the one hand, That it was impoffible for us much longer to fupport the enormous expence of the American war, into which the nation had been led, ftep by step, by the fallacious affertions of adminiftration; that no account had been given how the great fums granted last year had been expended; that the war was carried on with an unparallelled extravagance; large and profitable contracts had been given to members of parliament; no wonder that these gentlemen voted for continuing the war, because they shared in the spoils of which the nation was fleeced: If Ame rica was conquered, we should be obliged to keep a standing army there, which would drain us of our men and money, and leave us an easy prey to any foreign power who fhould attack us; if, thereing biow that feemed to threaten us with fore, we wanted to ward off the impenddeftruction, we would recal our fleets and armies, enter into an alliance with America, and allow them that independat an expence far beyond the profits we ence which we had driven them to, but could gain by them.-It was anfwered, That the fuccefs of his Majefty's arms promised a speedy and effectual reduction of the nation, the honour of parliament, to American rebellion; that the dignity and the interefts of commeree, now called for a full exertion of the ftrength of the nation: when foreign powers were arming, it was abfolutely neceffary to put ourselves on a refpectable footing; blow, would in all probability prevent which, if France and Spain intended a their putting it in execution, when they found we were as well prepared as themselves; and no friend of this country would grudge the neceffary and unavoidable expence for putting us in a proper ftate of defence: That if we were not to pursue the vigorous steps pointed out in his Majefty's fpeech, the gentlemen on the other fide of the houfe would have been the first to have condemned administration The house refolved, That a fupply be granted to his Majesty. Which refolution was reported Nov. 6. and agreed to nem. con. Upon Lord North's arrival in the houfe, Nov. 6. Lord John Cavendish unexpectedly brought on a converfation, that was fupported with much spirit for many hours. He faid, that he had feen in the public prints of the day, a moft extraordinary declaration [xxxviii. 585.], which, if genuine, required attention. He read it, and then proceeded to question the authenticity, from the dubious manner in which it was communicated to the public; but in order to be certain, he called upon the Noble Lord in the blue ribbon [North], or his colleague in office, [Lord G. Germaine,] to fatisfy the houfe, by. either avowing it, or declaring it fpu administration for their pufillanimity. - red by their fellow-fubjects in every part of the empire; when the leaft appearance of lenient measures is to be held out, the merit is all to be attributed to the King and his minifters; it is to originate from them alone. Notwithstanding all this, he felt he faid a dawn of joy break in on his mind. If minifters were ferious, he should not stand upon mere punctilios; yet he thought, to give the negociation the greater weight and efficacy, that Houfe fhould, as the first proof of their difpofition to peace, cooperate with administration in so defirable a work. It would besides reftove minifters to confidence: their profeffions were disbelieved in America; the motion, therefore, he was about to make, would be the means of removing the almoft universal opinion that prevailed in America, that every minifterial promise was given with fome infidious intention of treachery, deceit, impofition, or to divide them, in order the more easily to break their ftrength, and fubdue them. To remove fo ftrong an impediment to peace and reconciliation; to fhew we were in carneft, and wished fincerely for both; his Lordship moved, "That this Houfe will, on a certain day, refolve itself into a committee, to confider of the revifal of all acts of parliament by which his Majefty's fubjects in America think themfelves aggrieved." rious. [Here Lord North referred his Lordfhip to Lord G. Germaine for informa. tion, as it was to his office that it was tranfmitted.] Lord George acknowledged the paper, and that it was a faithful copy of that iffued at New York by Lord Howe. Lord John Cavendish congratulated the Houfe on this gleam of peace and conciliation, though he conld not but exprefs his aftonishment at both the contents of the declaration, and the extraordinary manner it became firft communicated to the public. He obferved, that parliament had been ufed all along by adminiftration with the most mortifying contempt: Commiffioners are fent out with an intention of carrying a certain act of parliament into execution, armed at the fame time with certain parliamentary powers for reftoring peace; these extend no farther than granting pardons, and receiving fubmiffions; yet, wonderful to relate, the firft account parliament hear, and that through the channel of a news paper, is, that thofe commiffioners are authorifed to anfwer directly for the fovereign, (and obliquely for the two other branches of the legiflature), that he will concur in the revifal of all acts by which his American fubjects are aggrieved. He said, parliament were rendered ciphers in the whole conduct of the bufinefs from its commencement: when their name is wanted, they are called on, by way of requifition, to fanction acts which render them abhor Mr Burke feconded the motion. He begged to know from the Noble Lord, [North], whether the inftructions to the commiffioners went the length of the offer of revifal held out in the declaration: for, without intrenching on that part of the prerogative which promises a revifion of fuch of the royal inftructions as may be conftrued to lay an improper restraint, &c. it was, in his apprehenfion, pretty evident, that the latter part of the fentence, on which the motion was framed, held out a promise of concurrence on the part of the crown, to revise all acts by which his Majesty's subjects in America think themselves aggrieved. This he looked upon to be leading parliament, not following it; he fhould, however, fufpend any decifive opinion on the paffage, till the Noble Lord had explained it. Lord North affured the Hon. Gent. that adminiftration never meant to relax in purfuing the claims of this country, fo long as its legiflative authority was difputed. This declaration, like every o ther, ther, tended to one and the same point, inconveniencies and much poffible mifthe restoration of peace to America. It chief it might be productive of. invited the people of America to that retoration; and as a motive of encouragement, a revifal of all acts by which his Majesty's fubjects in that country think themfelves aggrieved, is held out, -As to the motion made by the Noble Lord, he must be obliged to diffent from it for several reasons; but before he proceeded to state those reasons, he would take the liberty to fet his Lordship right, as he fuppofed the error he meant to allede to, led him to make the motion. The Noble Lord's mistake was this; that the promise contained in the declaration was the first of the kind; than which nothing could be more erroneous. It was the great principle that pervaded the conduct of administration from the beginning; it was the language of parliament from the outfet; and why any communication of a plan already fanc tioned by parliament, or, more properly fpeaking, originating from it, fhould be infifted on, till fome of the fruits of the measures thus recommended became manifeft, was more, he confeffed, than he could poffibly perceive.-His reasons for giving a negative to the motion, would, he prefumed, be obvious to every member prefent. America have declared themfelves independent; why enter into deliberation about what you are willing to concede, till we know firft that they acknowledge our authority? and after they have returned to us as fubjects, till we know what would reafonably content them? Let them acknowledge the right once; let them fairly point out the constitutional abuse of it, and the grievances flowing from that abufe; and I fhall be ready to go into the propofed committee; or to adopt the most efficacious and fpeedy meafures, not only to remedy real grievances, but even to bend to their prejudices in fome inftances. In fuch a cafe, they would be heard with complaifance, and treated with candour. But for petitions to be repeatedly prefented to this Houfe, denying exprefsly the legislative authority of G. Britain, was to the laft degree nugatory and abfurd, His Lordfhip added, befides, that the prefent motion, if agreed to, inftead of producing any good confequence, might probably produce the very worst. He could not discover what fervice the agreeing with the motion could do, but he faw many VOL, XXXIX. Mr Charles Fox obferved, that though the operations of war were communicated with all poffible oftentation and parade, yet the negotiations for peace, in which parliament and the nation were much more deeply interested, were kept in a state of concealment; as if ministers were ashamed to own, as well they might, that, after all the blood and trea fure which had been spent in the unhappy conteft, they are obliged in the end to offer thofe very conditions which they had fome years fince rejected with every mark of difpleasure and disapprobation. The account from New York, he obferved, was received late on Saturday night; an extraordinary gazette, announcing the retreat of the provincials from that city, was published early on Monday morning [xxxviii. 542.]; another gazette followed it the fucceeding evening; and yet a fyllable of the declaration never transpired. In America, he said, all was peace, conciliation, and parental tenderness; in England, nothing but fubjugation, unconditional fubmiffion, and a war of conqueft. Here taxes are to be obtained; charters are to be modified or annihilated at pleasure. There the most moderate measures and fafcinating promises are held out, in order to infidiously trepan and deceive. What do the commiffioners promise in the King's name? to concur in the revifal of all acts, &c.? Does his Majefty, at any time, or upon any occafion, concur in the revifal of any acts of any kind? He may concur in the repeal of an act, or in any amendmeut made in an act, which comes in the fhape of a bill, waiting for the royal affent; but for promifing to concur in the revifal of a law, which implies examination and amendment, in ftages that he can poffibly take no part, it is rank ignorance or grofs deceit. Befides, if by revifion is meant repeal, the parliament that now is thinks fo differently, that the promise made in his Majefty's name could not poffibly be fulfilled. He obferved, that the commiffioners, especially Lord Howe, were known to be friends to conciliation; and for that reafon were not fent out till fo late in the feafon, that government knew the Americans muft have declared for indeHe dependency before they arrived. clared it, as his firm opinion, that there could be no peace in America, without a C complete complete relinquithing on our part of the claim of taxation; that the congrefs might well call the propofitions of the court of G. Britain infidious, if the Houfe of Commons refufed to fupport the declaration of the commiffioners: That the expreffions in the declaration were complained of as not being clear; but that whenever an expreffion was reprefented as not clear, the act accompanying it must be taken as its commentary. If then the declaration in queftion is not clear, how muft America understand it, when by the vote of this Houfe, this day, fhould the Noble Lord's motion be negatived, the Americans will then plainly perceive, that the Commons of G. Britain were determined to render his Majefty's gracious difpofitions ineffective ? Mr Wedderbnrne feemed to think the motion brought in by furprife, and to have been the joint refult of a converfation on Tuesday night at the opera, and of the declaration printed in the morning in the common news papers; he be. lieved most of the members expected little or no bufinefs to be done, and it was only late in the day he heard fome extraordinary motion was to be made. He did not doubt but the Noble Lord who made the motion, wished for nothing fo much as to accelerate the means of peace; but he oppofed it, because in his opinion it would effectually mar the whole defign. It is at prefent, he faid, in the hands of the commiffioners in the regular course of business; but this motion tends at once to take it out of their hands, and to raife jealoufies in the Americans, of the powers of those commiffioners; becaufe, by giving them the prefent propofed fanction, it would point out that they were not before armed with parliamentary powers, adequate to the profeffed objects of their commission. On the other hand, it may be productive of evil, as it compels us to give the propofition a negative; which is far from being the difpofition of the Houfe, when America fhall acknowledge the fupreme legislative right of this country, and by fuch acknowledgement lay a just confitutional claim to our favour and protection The colonies are in a fate of declared independency: could you, confiftently with common prudence, revise acts by way of obliging thofe whole principal object is not fuch revifion, but to render themselves free from all connection with you as their fuperiors? It has been obferved, that the King has anfwered too much for the legislature [of this kingdom, in the expreffions of the proclamation in queftion.] It appears to me different. His Majefty there fpeaks as the fenfe of his people, by affuring them, that the legislative power is ready and willing to hear their grievances, and revife any of their acts which may prove grievances, whenever they thall think fit, and return to their duty. To think the words of the proclamation mean any thing else, is to torture them strangely, Relative to thefe grievances, what are they which we can enter into a revifion of? Taxation and charters.---And would you enter upon the question of taxation by way of reconciliation ?--Impossible ! till the point of independency is fettled as a preliminary. Reftore their charter of K. William, will they be satisfied? No. They are as unwilling to fubmit to the terms of thofe charters, as to the Boston acts: they openly declare this, Hence, therefore, I may fairly and reafonably affert, that till the fpirit of independency is fubdued, it is idle to come to any refolutions or revifions, as means of conciliation. Take the fword out of the hand of the governing part of America, and that country will return to its obedience with as much rapidity as it revolted. Can gentlemen imagine, that the Americans are fo free under their prefent government, as to have any reafon to wish for a continuance of it? The very contrary is the fact the congrefs does not govern America ;—it tyrannizes over it: deftruction hangs over the man who ventures to write or express a fentiment in oppofition to their opinions. This horrid tyranny is what we may rationally hope to fee fo far diffolved, from the difference of the troops on both fides, as to enable the oppreffed tyrannized Americans, fafely to avow their real opinions, and to return without danger to their duty.-As to a point much infifted on, the defign in adminiftration of keeping the proclamation fecret, it were folly in the minister to make that a fecret, which was pofted upon the walls of New York: I think this is a reafon fufficient why it was not inferted in the gazette. Mr Burke. The learned gentleman thinks it abfurd to reafon at present with the Americans. It was well faid, on another occafion, that your fpeech demands an army and I may fay, that the tyranny ?-For this, you fhut up their ports,-cut off their fishery,--annihilated their charters, and governed them by an army. Sir, the recollection of these things, being the evident caufes of what we have feen, is more than what ought to be endured. This it is that has burnt the noble city of New York ;that has planted the bayonet in the bofoms of my principals;--in the bofom of the city where alone your wretched gcvernment once boafted the only friends fhe could number in America.-If this was not the only fucceffion of events you determined, and therefore looked for, why was America left without any power in it to give fecurity to the perfons and property of those who were and wifhed to be loyal ?-This was effential to government: you did not; and therefore might be well faid to have abdicated the government. the learned gentleman demands blood : Reasoning be fays is vain ;-the fword must convince America, and clear up their clouded apprehenfions. But has be told you why commiffioners were not fest fooner to America? - If the measure was right, and neceffary-in order for concation, as the King declared in his fpeech at the opening of that feflion, why was tnct executed at a time in which it could be effectual; instead of being purpuicly deferred to one when it could not pudibly answer any end, but that of adding hypocrify to treachery, and infult and mockery to cruelty and oppreffion? By this delay you drove them into the declaration of independency; not as a matter of choice, but neceffity; and, now they have declared it, you bring it as an argument to prove, tha. there can be ao other reafoning ufed with them, but the fword. What is this but declaring, that you were originally determimed not to prevent, but to punish rebellion; not to use conciliation, but an arny; not to convince, but to deftroy? Then, Sir, what an infult to all Åmefica was it to fend as commiffioners, none but the commanders of the fleet and army to negotiate peace? Did it not thew how much you were determined, that the only arguments you meant to afe were your broad fwords and broadEles? Let me affert, Sir, that the doc. traes to be laid down in America, would tot have been too trivial an occafion, ven for the reafoning abilities of the karned gentleman himfelf. But, Sir,you may think to carry thefe doctrines into ccation, and be mistaken too :- the battle is not yet fought; but if it was faght, and the wreath of victory adorn ed your brow, still is not that continent conquered; witnefs the behaviour of cae miferable woman, who, with her fingle arm, did that which an army of me could not do,-arrested your progrefs in the moment of your fuccefs, This miferable being was found in a cel lar, with her vifage befmeared and fmutted over, with every mark of rage, de fpair, refolution, and the moft exalted heroifm, buried in combustibles, in order to fire New York, and perifh in its afhes. brought forth; and knowing that the would be condemned to die, upon being asked her purpose, faid, To fire the city!-In order to bring things to this unhappy fituation, did not you pave the way, by a fucceflien of acts of -She was Gods! Sir, fhall we be told, that you cannot analyse grievances ?-that you can have no communication with rebels, because they have declared for independency !--Shall we be told this, when the tyrant Philip H. of Spain did it after the fame circumftance in the Netherlands?-By edict he allowed their fhips to enter his ports, and fuffered them to depart in peace; -he treated with them;made them propofitions ;--and pofitively declared that he would redrets all their grievances. -And James II. when he was failing from France, at the head of a formidable force, affifted like you by foreign troops, and having a great party in the kingdom, ftill offered fpecific terms; while his exceptions of pardon were few, among the reit, my_Hon. friend's anceftor, Sir Stephen Fox.But you will offer none;-you fimply tell them to lay down their arms, and then you will do juft as you please. Could the moft cruel conqueror fay lefs? In this fituation, Sir, fhocking to fay, are we called upon by another proclamation to go to the altar of the Almighty, with war and vengeance in our hearts, inftead of the peace of our bleffed Saviour.-He faid, "My peace I give thee ;"-but we are on this faft, to have war only in our hearts and mouths; war against our brethren.-Till our churches are purified from this abominable fervice, I fhall confider them, not as the temples of the Almighty, but the fynagogues of Satan. An act not more infamous refpecting ite political purposes, than |