petuofity of her rival, she has been put to a great deal of unnecellary expence, yet he had the wisdom to fee at last how matters really stood; and to acquiefce in the good old proverb, that it was more for her interest to— The proverb is fo trite, that it is unneceffary to repeat it. To fhew, however, to all the world, that there was no other object aimed at but an apparent victory, and to prove that the real victory, was on the other fide, fhe has dictated a pacification in fuch terms, as to throw every real advantage the could aim at into her own fcale, while the made a fhow of giving fomething to her opponents. This kind of legerdemain in politics, however, at beft, a mean fort of attainment, which a candid mind would think it beneath its dig-nity to adopt, whatever were the temptation to do it.

Vanity is the ruling principle of nations.. It has been the immediate caufe of the ruin of almost every state that has ever attained celebrity in the world, and will be fo to the: end of time. Wherever power is lodged, there will this paffion be difplayed; and wherever it is difplayed, it must provoke other nations, fooner or later, to humble it. Bri tain, for fome time past, has been placed in more fortunate circumftances, than the rival powers around her;; and has fhewn that he has poffeffed this filly paffion in as eminent. a degree as any other nation. She alfo felt, during the laft war, fome of its natural confequences; but not in fuch a degree as to eradicate, but merely to moderate it for a time. It is to be regretted, that the prefent circumftances of other nations tend to powerfully to nourish this propenfity in her. May the time foon come, when we fhall be obliged to view them with a greater degree of refpect; for it is then only. that the shall be enabled, as a nation, to act in a rational and refpectable manner!

With regard to the internal administration of this country, it is like that of every other nation, a tiffue of good and bad blended together, in which the bad greatly preponderates. This, indeed, must ever be expected to be the cafe ; because the good produced by government, can only be the refult of knowledge, while the bad is the confequence of erBut truth is only one, and the road to that folitary one is often difficult to be discovered; whereas every deviation from it leads to error; nor can a minifter, embaraffed

ror.

with the multiplicity of affairs, that for ever claim his at-> tention, find leifure to enter into the many difficult inveftigations neceffary to keep him from deviating from the right path if therefore, he has not had time to make thefe neceffary inveftigations, while he was in a private station, he cannot afterwards do it himfelf. Thefe important difcuffions must then be left to others; and fo many finifter views may induce these counsellors to give improper advice, that it is next to impoffible he fhould be able to avoid being wilfully led into error. It ought, therefore, to be an object of greater wonder, that a minifter fhould be ever right, than that he fhould be often wrong.

Thefe few general obfervations on the government of a free country, are enough to give fome flight notion of the prefent political ftate of Britain; for to cenfure or to applaud individuals, is no part of the plan of this work. When particular laws or regulations fhall come to be confidered feparately, in the courfe of this work, their tendency will be pointed out with that candour, it is hoped, which is becoming a liberal mind, and with that freedom which ought to accompany difquifitions that are indeed intended to enlighten the people, without any intention of either hurting or ferving any party whatever; fo that the remarks will fometimes feem to favour the one, and sometimes the other, as circumstances fhall render neceffary. It is not difficult, however, to forefee, that if truth be the fole object of purfuit, it must naturally happen, that those who, from their fituation in the state, are obliged to take the lead, will be found more frequently deviating into error, than thofe who are only allowed to act a negative part.

The only other great object respecting the internal state of this country, that feems to be neceffary to be here taken notice of, is the trial of Mr Haftings—a trial which has given room for a great difplay of talents, and which has? brought to light many of thofe abufes in government, which must make every individual in his private capacity fhudder with horror. Thefe abuses, however, feem to be rather the confequences of the office of a delegated power in a distant. country, than an imputation against the individual who exercifes it at the time. Perhaps a perfon lefs culpable in that high ftation, could not have been pitched upon than the.

object of the prefent profecution; and certainly no one could have been selected, who was more generally popular among those who were under his administration. The refult of the trial is not difficult to forefee. One good effect, however, has certainly refulted from the late parliamentary. difcuffion concerning it, viz. that it is not in the power of a king of this realm to fcreen a great delinquent from punishment, when the general fenfe of the most enlightened part of the nation fhall think it is merited.

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Obfervations on the Laws of Britain respecting Imprifonment for Debto

AT a time when the British parliament is making fuch à diftinguished stand in defence of the rights of justice and humanity, fuppofed to have been injured in Asia, and when the people at large have interested themselves fo confpicuoufly in favour of those unfortunate negroes who have been reduced to a state of flavery in our West India fettlements, it feems to be fomewhat furprising, that we should quietly tolerate among ourselves a fpecies of flavery of a more oppreffive nature, than that of which they fo juftly complain, while it is at the fame time fo impolitic, as to feem to admit of no defence. 1 here allude to the power of imprisonment for debt, as at prefent permitted by our laws, which, in its nature is fo cruel, and in its consequences to society is fo pernicious, that it never could have been tolerated by a fenfible and humane people, had not the diftreffes which it occafions, and which are so much concealed from public view, in a great meafure escaped the notice of perfons in the higher ranks of life.

The confequences of this fpecies of flavery, however, with regard to the unfortunate fufferers themselves, and their families, are fo obvious, that the flighteft degree of attention will difcover them; and the fubfequent VOL. I. N n

hurt that refults from it to the community at large, has been well pointed out by others, that I fhall not enlarge upon it here. On this head I fhall only make one remark, that cannot be too often repeated: viz. That prifons in general may be confidered as the most fuccefsful fchools of vice that this nation affords; and that many perfons, who, when carried thither on account of unavoidable misfortunes only, were poffeffed of the moft upright difpofitions of mind, have returned from thence,depraved in their morals, and thoroughly schooled in every fpecies of vice; thefe leffons of depravity are quickly communicated to their children and near connections, who fail not to reduce them to practice on the community at large, by a thousand ingenious devices they never could have thought of by themfelves, and which only could have been invented, by the united efforts of the numbers who are left at leifure to brood over their diabolical schemes, and bring them to perfect maturity, in thefe numerous feminaries of vice and idleness +.

Imprifonment, if viewed in a political light, can only be reconciled to juftice, from two confiderations. First, as being the means of preventing a perfon from efcaping justice, who has been, to appearance, guilty of some crime: And fecond, as a punishment for delinquencies of a certain fort. How far this mode of punishment is judicious or the reverfe, I mean not at prefent to enquire. I fhall only obferve at this time, that unless imprisonment fhall evidently tend to anfwer the one or other of thefe purposes, it must certainly be unjuft, and therefore it ought not to be tolerated.

Imprisonment in every cafe, is fo fevere in its effects, on the perfon who is fubjected to it, that our forefathers feem to have viewed it in general as a kind of punishment, the feverity of which ought to be mitigated as much as poffible: Hence a provifion has been made by +See on this fubject, a moft excellent differtation written by Sir Œnofipherous Paul, and the other obfervations of Mr. Howard on prifons, where these evils are fo fully displayed as to leave nothing new to be added by me on this head.