4
HAL Us IV I L M I N G T 0 N G A Z E T T E
No. 37.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1797.
VolL)
t-
1 7-
REFORM in PARLIAMENT.
On the i6lh of May, Mr. Grey bi ought
forward a motion in the fcnglifh houfe of
commons for a reform in the reprefcntation.
The" motion was for the appointment of a
committee to bring in a bill, with the in
tention That the modifications of the prin
ciple mould be fettled when the bill was
brought in. The ideas of the favourites of
this motion appeared to go to extending
the right of fufF age to houfe-holders oaly.
The fpeech Of Mr. Fox on this occailon is
of extreme Jengtji j we have therefore
thought that exn mflh of the molt ftrikitig
palfages would be more acceptable to the
generality of our readers, than the publica
tion of the whole.
Mr. FOX.
For myrelf, and according to my vie w of
ur circmltajces, all tbat partwf the argu
ment agaibtt" reform which relate to the
danger of Innovation, is ftrangely mifpla
ced ; fo far from procuring the mere chance
of practical benefit? by a reform it is only
by a reform that we can have a chance of
refcuing ourfelves from a Itate of extreme
peril and dittieli. Such is my view of our
liquation. I think it is fo perilous, fo im
minent, that though I do not feel confcious
of dei'pair, an emotion which the heart
ought not to admit, yet it comes nearer to
that Itate of hazard when the fen t intent of
difpair, rather than of hope, may befuppofed
ro take pofleffion of the mind. 1 feel
myfeif to be in a community in which the
b oldeft man, without any imputation of
cowardice, may dread that we are not mere
ly approaching to a ftate of extreme peril,
butof abfolute diflolution.
With the ideas that I entertain, I cannot
liften for a moment to fuggeftions that are
applicable only to other fituatiors and to
other times; for unlefs we are refolvcd, in
a helplefs pufillanimity, or in a ftupid tor
por, to fuccumb, and to wait with refigna
tion the approach of our doom, to lie down
and die, we mutt take bold and decifive
meafures for our deliverance. We mult
not be deterred by meaner apprehenfions.
We mult combine all our ftrength, fortify
one another by the communion of our cour
age, and by a feafonable ftenion of nation
al wifdom, patriotifm, and vigor, take
meafures for the chance of falvation. and
encounter with unappalled hearts all the
enemies, toreign and internal, alt the dan
gers, and calamities of every kind which
prefs fo heavily upon us.
What isthe leflon to be derived from the
example of the lri(h, but that thecompara
tivelv fmall focietiesof 1 791, became ftrong
and formidable by the accetfion of the ma
siy who had nothing in common with them
in the out-let . I wilh it were pafiible for us
to draw the line more accurately between
the (mail number that the report defcribe
to have had mifcheivous object originally
in view, and the numerous bodies who
were made converts by the neglect of their
p:-t itions for constitutional rights, it is
improbable that the original few were
more than ten or twenty tpoufand in num
ber. What then do 1 leant from this That
the unwile, impolitic, and unjuft refufal ol
government, to attend to the application
of the moderate, made eighty or ninety
theufand prnfelytes from moderation to
violence. This is the leflbn which the
book of Ireland exhibits. Can you refufe
your afTent to the moral ? Will any man
argue, that it reform Had been conceded to
the eighty or ninety thoofind moderate
petitioner, yoo would have this day tode
plore the union of one hundred thouland
men, .bent bit objects fo extenfive, to aK
arming, fo calamitous 1 wifli to warm ydu
by this example; every argument that you
Have ufed to day was ufed in Dublin. In
the fhort lighted pride and obltinacy of
government, they turned a deaf ear to the
lupplieant 1 tnev ha?e now perhaps, in the
opentield tobrave the tliertor. Unwarned ,
Untutored by example, are you (till to go
n with the fame contemptuous and ftub
born pride f I by no meant think thar thf
discontents of this country have rifentoa
bright as to make ui fear for the general
peace of the country , but I deprecate the
courfe which was purfeed in Ireland. What
England is now, Ireland wet in 17 i.
What was laid of the few, they have now
pplied to the many; and at there are
" i ontents in this country which we can
neither difTemble nor conceal, let us not,
by an onwifc and minel difdatn, irritate
nd fret them into violence and difordcr.
The difcontentt may happily fubfide, bat a
man mull be either fanguine indeed iu hU
temper, or doll in his intellect, if he would
leave to theoperati n of chance, what he
miht more cenainly obtain by theexercife
-of reafon. Every thine that is dear and
near to the minds of Enolifhmen nreffe
1 T t t
jpon a ; tntbecritKal moment at v hicfi
now addreft you, a day, an hour, ought
not to efcape without giving to ourfelyes
the chance of this recovery. When go
vernment is daily prelenting itfelf in the
fhape ot weakiWIs that borders on diflolu
tion, unequal to all the functions of ufeful
(trength, and formidable only in perni
cious cormption, weak in power and ft? ong
only in influence, am I to be told that
fucfi a Itate of things can goon with fafetv
to any branch of the conititution ? If men
think that Under the impreflioti of fuch a
fyltem we can go on without a material
recurrence to fir ft principles, they argue
in direct oppofition to all theory and to all
practice. Thefe difcontents cannot, intheir
nature, iubfide under detected weaknefs
uid expofed incapacity. In that progrefs
and increafe, as inciehfe they mult, who
(hall fay that (Incion csnbe given to the
.torrent, or that having broke the bounds
ft can be kept front overwhelming the
country : juyit is not the part of ttatelmen
it is not the part of rational beings to a
mule them lei yes with loch fallacious
dreams? W mud not fit down and lament
over a helplefs fuuation ; we mull rot de
liver ourfelves up to an incredible defpoii
lency that would animate the approach of
danger ; but by a feafonable, alert and vi
gorous meal iire of wifdom, meet it with,
what we think, a fufficient and feafonable
emedy. We may be difappointed ; we
may fail in the application ; for 'no man
can be certain of a footing that is unex
plored ; but we fha41 at lealt have a chance
for fuccefs ; we fhall at lealt do what be
longs to legiflators and to rational beings,
on the occafiau ; and I have confidence that
our efforts would not be in vain. 1 fay that
we mould give ourfelves a chance, ai d I
may add, the beft chance, for deliverance ;
fince it would exhibit to the country a
proof, that we had conquered the fit (I jueat
difficulty that Rood in the way of bettering
ourcondiiion--wekad conquered ouifelves.
We had given a generous triumph to reafon
over prejudice ; we had given the death
blow to thofe miferable diftinctions of whio
and tory under which the warf are had been
maintained between pride and privilege,
and through the contention ojf our rva!
jenlouGcs the genuine rights-of the man v
bad been gradually undermined and frit
tered away. 1 fay, that this would be giv.
ing the belt chance, becaufe, feeing ecr
thing go on from bad to woi fe, feting thr
progrefs of the molt fcandalous wnftr
countenanced by the nioft criminal confi
dence, and that the effrontery of corruption
iio longer required the mafic of concealment .
leeing liberty daily infr;uged,and the vital
fprings of the nation. irduificiein for the ex
travagance of a dillipatiitg government, I
mult believe 1 h it unlefs the people are mad
ir ttupid, they will fulpect that there is
lomething f undamentally falfe and vicious
in our I) Item, and which no reform woul
be equal to correct. Then, to present all
this, and to try if we can pofliUe efTei't a
reform without tonching the main pillars
of the conititution, without changing its
onus, or dilturbing the harmony of its
parts, without putting any thing out of its
place, or affecting the fecurities which we
juftly hold to be lo facred, I fay, that it is
he only chance which we have for retriev.
ing our misfortunes by the road of quiet
snd tranquility, and by which national
Itrongth may be recovered without diltur
bing the property of a fingle individual"
Wepffen that under the prefent form
tnd practice of elections, we cannot expect
to ree any remarkJole change produced
by a general election. We mult argur
m (mi experience. Let us loak back to the
oeriodofthe American war. It will no.
fe contended by the right honorable gen
tleman, but that towards the end of that
ar, it became extremely unpopular, and
he king' minilters loft the confidence ol
the nation. In the year 1 780, a diflhluiiou
(nok place, and then it was naturally ima
;ined by fuperficial obfervers, who did not
examine the real Itate of reprelentation,
hat the people would have returned a par
liament that, would have unequivocally
fpken their fentiments on tin occalim..
What was the cafe ? I am able to fpeak
with con fide-aWIe precifion. At that time
I was much more than I am at prefent in
the way of knoaing perfonally tbo indi
viduals returned, and of making an acm
rate eltimate of the acceffion gained to the
'pilar fide by that election, lean tAr
upon me to fay, that the change was rr
fmall indeed . not more than three or foor
perfons were added to the number of thoft
who had from the beginning QPPfljftd fl
lifsftrous career of the minilters in that nil
I remember that upon that oecafton Lor.
North made ofe ofprecifely the laite arpo
ment as is now brousht forward. What.
rfaid he, " ran )ou contend the war i ttd
popular after the drclaraiion h t j
.a -.a. a .
mat tne peopu aave made by tneir fi
i'ii(
of reprefentatives t The general election
is the proof that the war continues to be tht
War of the people of England." Such w as
the argument of Lord North, and. jet j
was notojioufly otherwife. So notorioufl;.
othet wife, that the right honorable gentle'
man, the prefent chancellor of the exche
quer, made a juft and ttriking nfe of u,l
demonftrate the necelfity of a parliamen
tary reform. He referred to this event as
to a demonftration ot thisdoctrine : ' You
fee," laid he, ' that fo defective, fo inade
-quate, is the prefent practice, at leaft 01
the elective franchife, that no impreflioq
of national calamity, no conviction of min
ifterial error, no abhorrence of a difaftxous
war, are fufficient to ftand agaitdl that cor
rupt influence which has mixed itfelf with
election, and which drowns and (lifles the
popular voice." Upon this (tatemenr, antiJ
upon this unanfwerable argument, the
right honorable gentleman acted in 1782
When he propofed a parliamentary reform,
he did it expiefsly on the ground of the
xperience of 1780, and he made an expU
it declaration, that we had no other fie?
lUrity by which to gnard ourfelves agaird!
he reform of the !ame evjls. He repeated
t his warning in lyS aiid 1 785. It vys tl.
hading prihciplie of his conduct, ?Wi h
out aTeform,' faid he, the nation canno
befafe: this war may be put ap end to,
but vhat WfTI protect ou agair.ll another .'
As certainly as the Ipiiit which engender,
ed the prefent w ar ad nates ti e fecret coun
cils of the crown, will you, under the in
fluence of a defective leprefen ation, ' be
involved again in new wars, arid in fimilnr
calamities.' This was his argument, this
was his prophecy, and the right honorable
gentleman was a true piopl et- Preofely
as he pronounced it, the eveiu happened
another war took place, and 1 am fure it
wiil not be confidered as an aggravation
of its character, that it is at leaft equal in
dtfafter to the war of which the iglit ho
notable gentleman complained.' The de-It-ct
of reprelentation,' he laid, is the
uutional difeafe, and unlefs you apply a re
medy direct ly to that difeale you mult in
evitably take the confequences with which
it ra pregnant.' Wi.h fuch an authority,
can any n an deny ibatl realou right? Did
not the rirjit honorable gentleman demon
(Irate his cafe ? Good (jod ! what a fate
is rhat of the right honorable gentleman,
and in what a ftate of vvhim(jcal contiadic
tion does he (land ! During tht whole
courfe of his adminiftration, and particu
larly during the courle of the pielent war,
every prediction thathehss made, every
hope that he has held out, every prophecy
that he has hazarded, have failed ; he has
difappointed the expediat ions he has railed;
and every promife that be has held out has
proved to be a fallacy and a phantom. et
for thefe very declarations, and not with
Harding thrfe f ail.n we hae called him
a Wmt niMiilter. We have given htm our
connMence on account ojf his predictions,
have continued it upon their failure. Tho
Ud) ur event which he foretold has been
verified, we have ro"finuel to behold bim
as the oracle of Wifdom ; but in ihe onK
initaiue in which lie realjy pred cud, as if
by divine infpii at ion, what has come to pals
in that we have treated 1dm with Itubboni
inctedulity. In 178, he p ononnced the
iwful prophecy, without a parliamentary
reform tbe nation vill be plunged into new
wars; without a pai liamentaty reform )on
cannot be fafe Ogainit bad miniftetl, rior
can good minilters be of ule to you. Such
wot his prediction, and it hat come upon
is. Ii wool.! Gaafli as if the whole lite ol
the right honoraUe genileaan, from that
period, had been dell lued by Providence
for the illuHrai ion of his waruing. It I
were difpofed to coulider him as real en-
milt ill , and ahigot indiviiution, we might
he apt to think that he had hunfeif taken
meafures for ihe verification of his prophe
cy. He might now exc!ann to us, with the
proud fervour of fuccePi, you fee the con
fequence of not lilteniug to your ortde I
told you what would happen ; it it true that
your deftruction is complete; 1 have plun
ged you into a new war . i liave exhaulted
von as a people . I have brought you to the
brink of ruin, but I told you beforehand
what would happen. I told you that without
a reform in the representation of the people,
iiomini(tr, however wife, could fae ou ;
you denied my meant, and you take ti e
onf'qtirnce:' ( fay, fir, that it I were 10
ntftder himasabtgnt to hit doctrine, of
har his mind w rmf'tMred with fupcrftt
mm, m wr have heard of enthufiaits whole
ives hire Ireen dewrteri to the fulullmen
f 1 heir own predieYlaa, the right boiw
iWe gentleuMti't .-uhnuuHi jiioii hat been
lhaped, and la iw pg tares fc. a mad for bring
ing into a terrible demonft ation the poll
c il do trine wuh wtitcn Ue comaenccd bit
areer.
mi
Let as not, fir, he deterred from this aft
.f pi uric 1 ice by the talfe reprefentationi
hat are made to ut, or the falfe deductions
bat are made' from the recent occur rencet
f the world. I do not care for milrepre
entation, and I do not fcruple to give my
pinion of thofe ocenrrences wiih freedom
France is the phantom thatisconftahtly heir!
out to terrify os from our purpofe. Look ac
b ranch j it will not be denied but that fho
ftandson tbe broad balls of free reprefen
tat ion. Whatever other views the go
vernment of France may exhibit, and
which may afford juft alarm to other nati
ons ; it cannot be denied that the repre A
Tentative fyltem has proved itfelf capabla
of vigorous exertion. It cannot be denied
but that it has given her in truth cfuamie
fttengih. We reel ft too ftnilbly, jm0P
feels it too feiififcly for denial. Now, Z
though Ido not wifli vou tnimhaf,. vJ
and the ugh I am perfuaded you have no
necemty tor any terror of iuch imitation
beino forced unon vou. vat. J fow
ought to ts-ke example of what is good in
. youougnr to he as reatlyto
adopt the virtues, as you are iteady in
"ft i"c country the vicet of
Fiance, 1 fay, that it js demonftrated
otvonii tbe power of fubrerfiior.,-n:
that gerujne rcpefentation alone can give
olid power, and thar. neonl m.ft JLv-
the government. I fay that yoH ought to
-t on this grand maxmi of political wildom
ihu detnonflrated. and mil JLt-'JL
ing to the original principles of your
" "ctigin ana enen y to our
government. 1 lav ihr in AGZftt.it
will not innovate, vou will .1
;be true path of the conftitution of I'.wv
land. In making the people a conltituenc
! -re ot ttre government of England, yott
o no more than rM
dsllgned and t.amed by our anceitort. '
All honorable harnnvr -ff . t.
bihty ot democracies, and fays that hillory
doetnot g.ve ut the example of one thae
lias nHA -.u ... . .
'VV4 c.u.. vparc V.r 1
ik .1 , o j . " t m nor
PC kin jr 0f t,ure demnrrl.i .1
itte hii alluliondoes not annlv m n
gament iihty years. hM2L. fLZL
ami rtpofe would be ptcny well roianr
people to enjoy, and would be no bad re
prt juration of a Dure rtemnniu-v I tm
very icady, however, to agree with'the hon
1.1. i . . . . . .
oiaoir raroner, tnat according to the expe
rience of hiftory, the ancient democracies
of the world were viriousai.a nMtmroki.
KVjVVtlVtlSIWIb
on may accounts ; their inftability, their
injuftice and many other vicet, cannot b
overlooked j but lurely, when we look back
to the ancient democracies of Greece, when
we fee them in all the fnlendor of the ana
and if arms, when we fee how they arouf-
..1 - 1 L ; - . ' . -.
mu invigorareo genius, and to what an
eleva:iou they carried the powers of man,
it cat not bt denied, that however viciotM
on the Icore of ingratitude, of injuftice,
they were at lealt the pregnant and never
iHiimi murceoi national Itrength, and that
In particular they bring forth and afford
this ftrength in a peculiar manner in il e
moment of difijculiy and diflreft. "vVhea
we look at the demon aciet of the ancienc
Rorld, we are compelled to a knowledge
bui nppr.flions, thtjr horrible acts of ill
jiillice and ingratitude ; but they compel
alto admiration by their vigor, their con.
nancy, their Ipirit, and their exertiont in
every great emergency in which they are
tailed upon to act. We are compelled to
own that i given power of which nouber
lorm of government it capable. Why Be.
caufe it iucoiporatea every man with tht
tUtej bceaule it aroutct ejrery thing tbac
elong to the foul at well at to the body of
maiU becaufe it maket every individual
creature feel that he it fighting for himfclf
and not for another; that it it hltown caufe,
his own fafety, hif own concern, hit own
dignity on the face of the earth, and hit
own interelt in the identical foil which he
nas to maintain i and accordingly we find
that whatever may be atctibed, that what
ever may be objected to them on account
d the turbuleorv nf th n-.ii ...... i. .i .
engender, their tbort duration and their
mguiting vicet, they have exacted from
the common tidfrage of mankind the polrn
f Ifrength and ior. Who that reads ihe
MAW y of the Her ban war, what boy, whole
heart it warmed by the grand and ftuJimo
ntiji.i which the democrtc (jpirit prrtduc
ed, does not fi d in this priiuiplcfa key to
all rl.e wonden which were auhieved, and
of waich the recent and marvellous acts of
'he French people are prrgnant examples f
He fret that the principle t liberty only
would create the fnbtime and rflffftfblt 9m
notirai, and it k In vain to contend, frcm
the if nking illaftration that oar own timet
have iven, that rtur principle it net in the)
heart of man. Shalt we therttefufe to take
the henetu of thrt itreigi.ratinp principle f
Shall ve ref ufe to take Uk benefit which thf
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