opportunity of depriving him of a power, which he fo early abused? I think the cafe now mentioned actually exists in the very dawn of this new parliament. Several gentlemen have talked of the laft parliament in the terms of reproach and indignation which that profligate affembly moft juftly merited. I fear, fir, the prefent parliament are treading in the fame fteps, which conducted their immediate predeceffors to the utter hatred of the nation. They seem to advance with giant ftrides to a like deteftation from this age, and from all pofterity. The people without doors, especially in the capital, make no fcruple to affirm that the majority of this house have even thus early, in one great inftance, acted contrary to the plain duty, which they owe to their country, and to the facred trust repofed in them. I allude, fir, to the contempt fhewn of the Petition of so respectable a body as the Merchants of the city of London trading to North America. This the majority have done in defiance of all decency, and of the great principles of the conftitution. I am forry to obferve, that the alarm is already become general, that from this early abuse of their truft, the delegated powers, which the fame men have fo lately received for the fecurity and prefervation of the rights of their conftituents, will be employed through a course of the next seven years for their destruction, and that' of our fellow-fubjects in America, unless the excellent

*The fecond petition of the Merchants, Traders, and others of the City of London, prefented by Mr. Alderman Hayley, Member for London, to the Houfe of Com mons, Jan. 26, 1775, ftates, "that by the refolution to which the house hath come, "refpecting the reference of their faid petition [the Art Petition of Jan. 23, 1775,], they are abfolutely precluded from the benefit of such a bearing, in support of their "faid petition, as can alone procure them that relief, which the importance and prefent "deplorable state of their trade require.”

motion of the honourable gentleman should arreft them in their career.

A new argument, fir, in favour of the motion in your hand feems at this time to arife from the nature of moft of the Petitions complaining of undue elections, which have been prefented to us in this firft feffion of the parliament. The general complaint is that of bribery and corruption. Short parliaments, fir, if they did not totally eradicate this moft pernicious practice, muft neceffarily diminish the evil in no fmall degree. By the frequent return of appeals to the people, the public money in the minifter's hands would not be found always adequate to the crooked counfels of an infidious court, nor to a determined purpose of regularly counteracting the wishes of a nation. The floodgates of the treasury, however widely opened, would on fuch repeated occafions fcarcely afford torrents copious and Impetuous enough to carry away all fenfe of duty to the conftitution, all regard to the laws and liberties of the country. If this house were elected for a * short term only, a commerce of corruption between the minifter and the reprefentative could not grow up to acquire the ftrength and confiftency which is given by a pe

The House of Commonss-was confidered as a controul, iffuing immediately from the people, and speedily to be refolved into the mass from whence it arose. Thoughts on the cause of the present Difcontents, 8vo edition, page 66.

If the perfons to whom the truft of government is committed hold their places for Short terms; if they are chofen by the unbiaffed voices of a majority of the state, and fubject to their inftructions; liberty will be enjoyed in its highest degree. But if they are chofen for long terms by a part only of the state; and if during that term, they are fubject to no controul from their conftituents; the very idea of liberty will be loft, and the power of chufing reprefentatives becomes nothing but a power, lodged in a few, to chufe at certain periods a body of masters for themselves and for the rest of the community.

Dr. Price's Obfervations on Civil Liberty, fifth edition, p. ro.

riod of seven years fecurity, and independency on the power by which we were created *.

I beg the indulgence of the house, fir, for only one more fhort obfervation. This motion ftrikes me as a kind of parliamentary teft, which brings every thing home to our confciences. It cannot fail of meeting in this houfe the fupport of all the true friends of the ancient constitution of England, of all who mean to act honeftly, for they run no rifque. They are sure of the applause, and free choice of their conftituents, on every fresh appeal. The venal and interested, all who think lightly of their ties and obligations to their mafters, and do not hold themselves bound to hear and redress the injuries of the nation which they reprefent, but are regardless of the feelings of the people, intent only on the public plunder; all these have their terrors, and certainly not ill-grounded, on the first fuggeftion of an appeal to their conftituents. From fuch

men

* In 1692 King William rejected a Bill for triennial parliaments, after it had paffed both houses. But in a following year he thought proper to give his affent. Dr. Price's additional obfervations, page 46.

The virtue, fpirit and effence of a House of Commons confifts in its being the exprefs image of the feelings of the nation [not of 558 gentlemen met in St. Stephen's Chapel.] Thoughts on the cause of the prefent Difcontents, p. 67.

By the King.

A Proclamation,

For diffolving the present Parliament, and declaring the calling of another. Whereas we have thought fit, by and with the advice of our Privy Council, to diffolve this prefent Parliament, which now stands prorogued to Tuesday the fif teenth day of November next: We do, for that end, publifh this our Royal Proclamation; and do hereby diffolve the faid Parliament accordingly: And the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and the Knights, Citizens, and Burgeffes, and the Commiffioners. for Shires and Burghs of the House of Commons, are discharged from their meeting and attendance on Tucsday the faid fifteenth day of November next. And we being defirous and refolved, as foon as may be, to meet our people, and to have their advice in Parliament, do hereby make known to all our loving fubjects, our Royal Will and pleasure to call a new Parliament; and do hereby further declare, That, with the advice of our Privy Council, we have this day given order to our Chancellor

B 3

men only, an oppofition to this motion is to be ex pected. The reprefentative who is confcious of having merited well of his conftituents, will always rejoice at the opportunity of applying for frequent proofs of their regard and truft; will defire, will earneftly folicit, this appeal; while the man who has acted contrary to the clear dictates of his duty, and betrayed his truft, will naturally dread every fuch occafion, will tremble even at the distant view of the spirited indignation, with which he would be rejected. A guilty mind, fir, frequently braves the filent reproaches of a wounded confcience, but can feldom bear up against that public contempt and infamy, which I truft will always purfue parliamentary proftitution.

VOTES of Feb. 6, 1775.

Refolved, That it is the opinion of this Committee, "That an humble Address be prefented to his Majesty, 66 to return His Majefty our most humble thanks, for

having been graciously pleased to communicate to "this House, the feveral papers relating to the present "ftate of the British Colonies in America, which, by

Chancellor of Great Britain, to iffue out writs in due form for calling a new parliament; which writs are to bear tefte on Saturday the first day of October next, and to be returnable on Tuesday the twenty-ninth day of November following.

Given at our Court at St. James's the thirtieth day of September, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-four, in the fourteenth year of our Reign.

God fave the King.

Journals of the House of Commons, vol. XXXV. page 3.

"His Majesty's commands, have been laid before this "House, and from which, after taking them into our "moft ferious confideration, we find, that a part of "His Majesty's fubjects in the province of the Mesachufets Bay have proceeded fo far to refift the au"thority of the fupreme legiflature, that a rebellion "at this time actually exifts within the faid province "-that we beg leave, in the most folemn manner, to "affure His Majefty, that it is our fixed refolution, "at the hazard of our lives and properties, to ftand "by His Majefty, against all rebellious attempts, in "the maintenance of the juft rights of His Majefty "and the Two Houfes of Parliament."

And a motion was made, and the question put, "That the faid refolution be re-committed;"

The Lord Mayor, Mr. Wilkes, faid,

Mr. Speaker,

The business before the Houfe, in its full extent,. respecting the British Colonies in America, is of as great importance as was ever debated in parliament. It comprehends almost every question relative to the common rights of mankind, almost every question of policy and legiflation. I do not mean to enter into fo vaft, fo welltrodden a field. I will confine myself to the immediate bufinefs of this day. The Addrefs now reported from the committee of the whole Houfe appears to be unfounded, rafh, and fanguinary. It draws the sword unjustly against America; but before adminiftration are fuffered to plunge the nation into the horrors of a civil war, before they are permitted to force Englishmen to fheath their fwords in the bowels of their fellow