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diff --git a/31271-h/31271-h.htm b/31271-h/31271-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4cb6bda --- /dev/null +++ b/31271-h/31271-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,18344 @@ +<?xml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1"?> + +<!DOCTYPE html + PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd" > + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en"> + <head> + <title> + The Writings of Thomas Paine, Volume III by Thomas Paine + </title> + <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve"> + + body { margin:5%; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + .mynote {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .toc2 { margin-left: 20%;} + div.fig { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; } + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + .pagenum {display:inline; font-size: 70%; font-style:normal; + margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%; + text-align: right;} + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +</style> + </head> + <body> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Writings Of Thomas Paine, Volume III., by +Thomas Paine + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Writings Of Thomas Paine, Volume III. + 1791-1804 + +Author: Thomas Paine + +Editor: Moncure Daniel Conway + +Release Date: February 13, 2010 [EBook #31271] +Last Updated: November 15, 2012 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WRITINGS OF THOMAS PAINE *** + + + + +Produced by David Widger + + + + + +</pre> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <h1> + THE WRITINGS OF THOMAS PAINE + </h1> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h2> + By Thomas Paine + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <h3> + Edited By Moncure Daniel Conway + </h3> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <h2> + VOLUME III. + </h2> + <h3> + 1791-1804 + </h3> + <h4> + <br /><br /> G. P. Putnam's Sons <br /><br /> New York London <br /><br /> + Copyright, 1895 <br /><br /> By G. P. Putnam's Sons <br /> + </h4> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img alt="titlepage (29K)" src="images/titlepage.jpg" width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <blockquote> + <p class="toc"> + <big><b>CONTENTS</b></big> + </p> + <p> + <br /> <a href="#link2H_INTR"> INTRODUCTION TO THE THIRD VOLUME. </a><br /><br /><br /> + <a href="#link2H_4_0002"> I. </a> THE REPUBLICAN PROCLAMATION + <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> II. </a> TO THE AUTHORS + OF "LE RÉPUBLICAIN." <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0004"> III. </a> TO + THE ABBÉ SIÈYES <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0005"> IV. </a> TO + THE ATTORNEY GENERAL <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0006"> V. </a> TO + MR. SECRETARY DUNDAS <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0007"> VI. </a> LETTERS + TO ONSLOW CRANLEY <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0008"> VII. </a> TO + THE SHERIFF OF THE COUNTY OF SUSSEX, <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0009"> + VIII. </a> TO MR. SECRETARY DUNDAS <br /><br /> <a + href="#link2H_4_0010"> IX. </a> LETTER ADDRESSED TO THE + ADDRESSERS ON THE LATE PROCLAMATION <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0011"> + X. </a> ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OF FRANCE <br /><br /> <a + href="#link2H_4_0012"> XI. </a> ANTI-MONARCHAL ESSAY FOR THE + USE OF NEW REPUBLICANS <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0013"> XII. </a> TO + THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, ON THE PROSECUTION AGAINST THE SECOND PART <br /><br /> + <a href="#link2H_4_0014"> XIII. </a> ON THE PROPRIETY OF + BRINGING LOUIS XVI. TO TRIAL <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0015"> XIV. + </a> REASONS FOR PRESERVING THE LIFE OF LOUIS CAPET, <br /><br /> + <a href="#link2H_4_0016"> XV. </a> SHALL LOUIS XVI. HAVE + RESPITE? <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0017"> XVI. </a> DECLARATION + OF RIGHTS <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0018"> XVII. </a> PRIVATE + LETTERS TO JEFFERSON <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0019"> XVIII. </a> LETTER + TO DANTON <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0020"> XIX. </a> A + CITIZEN OF AMERICA TO THE CITIZENS OF EUROPE <br /><br /> <a + href="#link2H_4_0021"> XX. </a> APPEAL TO THE CONVENTION + <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0022"> XXI. </a> THE MEMORIAL + TO MONROE <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0023"> XXII. </a> LETTER + TO GEORGE WASHINGTON <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0024"> XXIII. </a> OBSERVATIONS + <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0025"> XXIV. </a> DISSERTATION + ON FIRST PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0026"> + XXV. </a> THE CONSTITUTION OF 1795 <br /><br /> <a + href="#link2H_4_0027"> XXVI. </a> THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE + ENGLISH SYSTEM OF FINANCE <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0028"> XXVII. + </a> FORGETFULNESS <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0029"> + XXVIII. </a> AGRARIAN JUSTICE <br /><br /> <a + href="#link2H_4_0030"> XXIX. </a> THE EIGHTEENTH FRUCTIDOR + <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0031"> XXX. </a> THE RECALL OF + MONROE <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0032"> XXXI. </a> PRIVATE + LETTER TO PRESIDENT JEFFERSON <br /><br /> <a href="#link2H_4_0033"> + XXXII. </a> PROPOSAL THAT LOUISIANA BE PURCHASED <br /><br /> + <a href="#link2H_4_0034"> XXXIII. </a> THOMAS + PAINE TO THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES, <br /><br /> <a + href="#link2H_4_0035"> XXXIV. </a> TO THE FRENCH INHABITANTS + OF LOUISIANA <br /><br /> + </p> + </blockquote> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="link2H_INTR" id="link2H_INTR"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + INTRODUCTION TO THE THIRD VOLUME. + </h2> + <h3> + WITH HISTORICAL NOTES AND DOCUMENTS. + </h3> + <p> + In a letter of Lafayette to Washington ("Paris, 12 Jan., 1790") he writes: + "<i>Common Sense</i> is writing for you a brochure where you will see a + part of my adventures." It thus appears that the narrative embodied in the + reply to Burke ("Rights of Man," Part I.), dedicated to Washington, was + begun with Lafayette's collaboration fourteen months before its + publication (March 13, 1791). + </p> + <p> + In another letter of Lafayette to Washington (March 17, 1790) he writes: + </p> + <p> + "To Mr. Paine, who leaves for London, I entrust the care of sending you my + news.... Permit me, my dear General, to offer you a picture representing + the Bastille as it was some days after I gave the order for its + demolition. I also pay you the homage of sending you the principal Key of + that fortress of despotism. It is a tribute I owe as a son to my adoptive + father, as aide-de-camp to my General, as a missionary of liberty to his + Patriarch." + </p> + <p> + The Key was entrusted to Paine, and by him to J. Rut-ledge, Jr., who + sailed from London in May. I have found in the manuscript despatches of + Louis Otto, Chargé d' Affaires, several amusing paragraphs, addressed to + his govern-ment at Paris, about this Key. + </p> + <p> + "August 4, 1790. In attending yesterday the public audience of the + President, I was surprised by a question from the Chief Magistrate, + 'whether I would like to see the Key of the Bastille?' One of his + secretaries showed me at the same moment a large Key, which had been sent + to the President by desire of the Marquis de la Fayette. I dissembled my + surprise in observing to the President that 'the time had not yet come in + America to do ironwork equal to that before him.' The Americans present + looked at the key with indifference, and as if wondering why it had been + sent But the serene face of the President showed that he regarded it as an + homage from the French nation." "December 13, 1790. The Key of the + Bastille, regularly shown at the President's audiences, is now also on + exhibition in Mrs. Washington's <i>salon</i>, where it satisfies the + curiosity of the Philadelphians. I am persuaded, Monseigneur, that it is + only their vanity that finds pleasure in the exhibition of this trophy, + but Frenchmen here are not the less piqued, and many will not enter the + President's house on this account." + </p> + <p> + In sending the key Paine, who saw farther than these distant Frenchmen, + wrote to Washington: "That the principles of America opened the Bastille + is not to be doubted, and therefore the Key comes to the right place." + </p> + <p> + Early in May, 1791 (the exact date is not given), Lafayette writes + Washington: "I send you the rather indifferent translation of Mr. Paine as + a kind of preservative and to keep me near you." This was a hasty + translation of "Rights of Man," Part I., by F. Soûles, presently + superseded by that of Lanthenas. + </p> + <p> + The first convert of Paine to pure republicanism in France was Achille + Duchâtelet, son of the Duke, and grandson of the authoress,—the + friend of Voltaire. It was he and Paine who, after the flight of Louis + XVI., placarded Paris with the Proclamation of a Republic, given as the + first chapter of this volume. An account of this incident is here quoted + from Etienne Dumont's "Recollections of Mirabeau": + </p> + <p> + "The celebrated Paine was at this time in Paris, and intimate in + Condorcet's family. Thinking that he had effected the American Revolution, + he fancied himself called upon to bring about one in France. Duchâtelet + called on me, and after a little preface placed in my hand an English + manuscript—a Proclamation to the French People. It was nothing less + than an anti-royalist Manifesto, and summoned the nation to seize the + opportunity and establish a Republic. Paine was its author. Duchâtelet had + adopted and was resolved to sign, placard the walls of Paris with it, and + take the consequences. He had come to request me to translate and develop + it. I began discussing the strange proposal, and pointed out the danger of + raising a republican standard without concurrence of the National + Assembly, and nothing being as yet known of the king's intentions, + resources, alliances, and possibilities of support by the army, and in the + provinces. I asked if he had consulted any of the most influential + leaders,—Sieves, Lafayette, etc. He had not: he and Paine had acted + alone. An American and an impulsive nobleman had put themselves forward to + change the whole governmental system of France. Resisting his entreaties, + I refused to translate the Proclamation. Next day the republican + Proclamation appeared on the walls in every part of Paris, and was + denounced to the Assembly. The idea of a Republic had previously presented + itself to no one: this first intimation filled with consternation the + Right and the moderates of the Left. Malouet, Cazales, and others proposed + prosecution of the author, but Chapelier, and a numerous party, fearing to + add fuel to the fire instead of extinguishing it, prevented this. But some + of the seed sown by the audacious hand of Paine were now budding in + leading minds." + </p> + <p> + A Republican Club was formed in July, consisting of five members, the + others who joined themselves to Paine and Duchâtelet being Condorcet, and + probably Lanthenas (translator of Paine's works), and Nicolas de + Bonneville. They advanced so far as to print "Le Républicain," of which, + however, only one number ever appeared. From it is taken the second piece + in this volume. + </p> + <p> + Early in the year 1792 Paine lodged in the house and book-shop of Thomas + "Clio" Rickman, now as then 7 Upper Marylebone Street. Among his friends + was the mystical artist and poet, William Blake. Paine had become to him a + transcendental type; he is one of the Seven who appear in Blake's + "Prophecy" concerning America (1793): + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + "The Guardian Prince of Albion burns in his nightly tent + Sullen fires across the Atlantic glow to America's shore; + Piercing the souls of warlike men, who rise in silent night:— + Washington, Franklin, Paine, and Warren, Gates, Hancock, and Greene, + Meet on the coast glowing with blood from Albion's fiery Prince." +</pre> + <p> + The Seven are wrapt in the flames of their enthusiasm. Albion's Prince + sends to America his thirteen Angels, who, however, there become Governors + of the thirteen States. It is difficult to discover from Blake's mystical + visions how much political radicalism was in him, but he certainly saved + Paine from the scaffold by forewarning him (September 13, 1792) that an + order had been issued for his arrest. Without repeating the story told in + Gilchrist's "Life of Blake," and in my "Life of Paine," I may add here my + belief that Paine also appears in one of Blake's pictures. The picture is + in the National Gallery (London), and called "The spiritual form of Pitt + guiding Behemoth." The monster jaws of Behemoth are full of struggling + men, some of whom stretch imploring hands to another spiritual form, who + reaches down from a crescent moon in the sky, as if to rescue them. This + face and form appear to me certainly meant for Paine. + </p> + <p> + Acting on Blake's warning Paine's friends got him off to Dover, where, + after some trouble, related in a letter to Dundas (see p. 41 of this + volume), he reached Calais. He had been elected by four departments to the + National Convention, and selected Calais, where he was welcomed with grand + civic parades. On September 19, 1792, he arrived in Paris, stopping at + "White's Hotel," 7 Passage des Pétits Pères, about five minutes' walk from + the Salle de Manége, where, on September 21st, the National Convention + opened its sessions. The spot is now indicated by a tablet on the wall of + the Tuileries Garden, Rue de Rivoli. On that day Paine was introduced to + the Convention by the Abbé Grégoire, and received with acclamation. + </p> + <p> + The French Minister in London, Chauvelin, had sent to his government + (still royalist) a despatch unfavorable to Paine's work in England, part + of which I translate: + </p> + <p> + "May 23, 1792. An Association [for Parliamentary Reform, see pp. 78, 93, + of this volume] has been formed to seek the means of forwarding the + demand. It includes some distinguished members of the Commons, and a few + peers. The writings of M. Payne which preceded this Association by a few + days have done it infinite harm. People suspect under the veil of a reform + long demanded by justice and reason an intention to destroy a constitution + equally dear to the peers whose privileges it consecrates, to the wealthy + whom it protects, and to the entire nation, to which it assures all the + liberty desired by a people methodical and slow in character, and who, + absorbed in their commercial interests, do not like being perpetually + worried about the imbecile George III. or public affairs. Vainly have the + friends of reform protested their attachment to the Constitution. Vainly + they declare that they desire to demand nothing, to obtain nothing, save + in lawful ways. They are persistently disbelieved. Payne alone is seen in + all their movements; and this author has not, like Mackintosh, rendered + imposing his refutation of Burke. The members of the Association, although + very different in principles, find themselves involved in the now almost + general disgrace of Payne." + </p> + <p> + M. Noël writes from London, November 2, 1792, to the republican Minister, + Le Brun, concerning the approaching trial of Paine, which had been fixed + for December 18th. + </p> + <p> + "This matter above all excites the liveliest interest. People desire to + know whether they live in a free country, where criticism even of + government is a right of every citizen. Whatever may be the decision in + this interesting trial, the result can only be fortunate for the cause of + liberty. But the government cannot conceal from itself that it is + suspended over a volcano. The wild dissipations of the King's sons add to + the discontent, and if something is overlooked in the Prince of Wales, who + is loved enough, it is not so with the Duke of York, who has few friends. + The latter has so many debts that at this moment the receivers are in his + house, and the creditors wish even his bed to be seized. You perceive, + Citizen, what a text fruitful in reflexions this conduct presents to a + people groaning under the weight of taxes for the support of such whelps (<i>louvetaux</i>)." + </p> + <p> + Under date of December 22, 1792, M. Noël writes: + </p> + <p> + "London is perfectly tranquil. The arbitrary measures taken by the + government in advance [of Paine's trial] cause no anxiety to the mass of + the nation about its liberties. Some dear-headed people see well that the + royal prerogative will gain in this crisis, and that it is dangerous to + leave executive power to become arbitrary at pleasure; but this very small + number groan in silence, and dare not speak for fear of seeing their + property pillaged or burned by what the miserable hirelings of government + call 'Loyal Mob,' or 'Church and King Mob.' To the 'Addressers,' of whom I + wrote you, are added the associations for maintaining the Constitution + they are doing all they can to destroy. There is no corporation, no + parish, which is not mustered for this object. All have assembled, one on + the other, to press against those whom they call 'The Republicans and the + Levellers,' the most inquisitorial measures. Among other parishes, one (S. + James' Vestry Room) distinguishes itself by a decree worthy of the + sixteenth century. It promises twenty guineas reward to any one who shall + denounce those who in conversation or otherwise propagate opinions + contrary to the public tranquillity, and places the denouncer under + protection of the parish. The inhabitants of London are now placed under a + new kind of <i>Test</i>, and those who refuse it will undoubtedly be + persecuted. Meantime these papers are carried from house to house to be + signed, especially by those lodging as strangers. This <i>Test</i> causes + murmurs, and some try to evade signature, but the number is few. The + example of the capital is generally followed. The trial of Payne, which at + one time seemed likely to cause events, has ended in the most peaceful + way. Erskine has been borne to his house by people shouting <i>God Save + the King! Erskine forever!</i> The friends of liberty generally are much + dissatisfied with the way in which he has defended his client. They find + that he threw himself into commonplaces which could make his eloquence + shine, but guarded himself well from going to the bottom of the question. + Vane especially, a distinguished advocate and zealous democrat, is furious + against Erskine. It is now for Payne to defend himself. But whatever he + does, he will have trouble enough to reverse the opinion. The Jury's + verdict is generally applauded: a mortal blow is dealt to freedom of + thought. People sing in the streets, even at midnight, <i>God save the + King and damn Tom Payne!</i>" (1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The despatches from which these translations are made are + in the Archives of the Department of State at Paris, series + marked <i>Angleterre</i> vol. 581. +</pre> + <p> + The student of that period will find some instruction in a collection, now + in the British Museum, of coins and medals mostly struck after the trial + and outlawry of Paine. A halfpenny, January 21,1793: <i>obverse</i>, a man + hanging on a gibbet, with church in the distance; motto "End of Pain"; <i>reverse</i>, + open book inscribed "The Wrongs of Man." A token: bust of Paine, with his + name; <i>reverse</i>, "The Mountain in Labour, 1793." Farthing: Paine + gibbeted; <i>reverse</i>, breeches burning, legend, "Pandora's breeches"; + beneath, serpent decapitated by a dagger, the severed head that of Paine. + Similar farthing, but <i>reverse</i>, combustibles intermixed with labels + issuing from a globe marked "Fraternity"; the labels inscribed "Regicide," + "Robbery," "Falsity," "Requisition"; legend, "French Reforms, 1797"; near + by, a church with flag, on it a cross. Half-penny without date, but no + doubt struck in 1794, when a rumor reached London that Paine had been + guillotined: Paine gibbeted; above, devil smoking a pipe; <i>reverse</i>, + monkey dancing; legend, "We dance, Paine swings." Farthing: three men + hanging on a gallows; "The three Thomases, 1796." <i>Reverse</i>, "May the + three knaves of Jacobin Clubs never get a trick." The three Thomases were + Thomas Paine, Thomas Muir, and Thomas Spence. In 1794 Spence was + imprisoned seven months for publishing some of Paine's works at his + so-called "Hive of Liberty." Muir, a Scotch lawyer, was banished to Botany + Bay for fourteen years for having got up in Edinburgh (1792) a + "Convention," in imitation of that just opened in Paris; two years later + he escaped from Botany Bay on an American ship, and found his way to Paine + in Paris. Among these coins there are two of opposite character. A + farthing represents Pitt on a gibbet, against which rests a ladder; + inscription, "End of P [here an eye] T." <i>Reverse</i>, face of Pitt + conjoined with that of the devil, and legend, "Even Fellows." Another + farthing like the last, except an added legend, "Such is the reward of + tyrants, 1796." These anti-Pitt farthings were struck by Thomas Spence. + </p> + <p> + In the winter of 1792-3 the only Reign of Terror was in England. The + Ministry had replied to Paine's "Rights of Man" by a royal proclamation + against seditious literature, surrounding London with militia, and calling + a meeting of Parliament (December, 1792) out of season. Even before the + trial of Paine his case was prejudged by the royal proclamation, and by + the Addresses got up throughout the country in response,—documents + which elicited Paine's Address to the Addressers, chapter IX. in this + volume. The Tory gentry employed roughs to burn Paine in effigy throughout + the country, and to harry the Nonconformists. Dr. Priestley's house was + gutted. Mr. Fox (December 14, 1792) reminded the House of Commons that all + the mobs had "Church and King" for their watchword, no mob having been + heard of for "The Rights of Man"; and he vainly appealed to the government + to prosecute the dangerous libels against Dissenters as they were + prosecuting Paine's work. Burke, who in the extra session of Parliament + for the first time took his seat on the Treasury Bench, was reminded that + he had once "exulted at the victories of that rebel Washington," and + welcomed Franklin. "Franklin," he said, "was a native of America; Paine + was born in England, and lived under the protection of our laws; but, + instigated by his evil genius, he conspired against the very country which + gave him birth, by attempting to introduce the new and pernicious + doctrines of republicans." + </p> + <p> + In the course of the same harangue, Burke alluded to the English and Irish + deputations, then in Paris, which had congratulated the Convention on the + defeat of the invaders of the Republic. Among them he named Lord Semphill, + John Frost, D. Adams, and "Joel—Joel the Prophet" (Joel Barlow). + These men were among those who, towards the close of 1792, formed a sort + of Paine Club at "Philadelphia House"—as White's Hotel was now + called. The men gathered around Paine, as the exponent of republican + principles, were animated by a passion for liberty which withheld no + sacrifice. Some of them threw away wealth and rank as trifles. At a + banquet of the Club, at Philadelphia House, November 18, 1792, where Paine + presided, Lord Edward Fitzgerald and Sir Robert Smyth, Baronet, formally + renounced their titles. Sir Robert proposed the toast, "A speedy abolition + of all hereditary titles and feudal distinctions." Another toast was, + "Paine—and the new way of making good books known by a Royal + proclamation and a King's Bench prosecution." + </p> + <p> + There was also Franklin's friend, Benjamin Vaughan, Member of Parliament, + who, compromised by an intercepted letter, took refuge in Paris under the + name of Jean Martin. Other Englishmen were Rev. Jeremiah Joyce, a + Unitarian minister and author (coadjutor of Dr. Gregory in his + "Cyclopaedia "); Henry Redhead Yorke, a West Indian with some negro blood + (afterwards an agent of Pitt, under whom he had been imprisoned); Robert + Merry, husband of the actress "Miss Brunton"; Sayer, Rayment, Macdonald, + Perry. + </p> + <p> + Sampson Perry of London, having attacked the government in his journal, + "The Argus," fled from an indictment, and reached Paris in January, 1793. + These men, who for a time formed at Philadelphia House their Parliament of + Man, were dashed by swift storms on their several rocks. Sir Robert Smyth + was long a prisoner under the Reign of Terror, and died (1802) of the + illness thereby contracted. Lord Edward Fitzgerald was slain while trying + to kindle a revolution in Ireland. Perry was a prisoner in the Luxembourg, + and afterwards in London. John Frost, a lawyer (struck off the roll), + ventured back to London, where he was imprisoned six months in Newgate, + sitting in the pillory at Charing Cross one hour per day. Robert Merry + went to Baltimore, where he died in 1798. Nearly all of these men suffered + griefs known only to the "man without a country." + </p> + <p> + Sampson Perry, who in 1796 published an interesting "History of the French + Revolution," has left an account of his visit to Paine in January, 1793: + </p> + <p> + "I breakfasted with Paine about this time at the Philadelphia Hotel, and + asked him which province in America he conceived the best calculated for a + fugitive to settle in, and, as it were, to begin the world with no other + means or pretensions than common sense and common honesty. Whether he saw + the occasion and felt the tendency of this question I know not; but he + turned it aside by the political news of the day, and added that he was + going to dine with Petion, the mayor, and that he knew I should be welcome + and be entertained. We went to the mayoralty in a hackney coach, and were + seated at a table about which were placed the following persons: Petion, + the mayor of Paris, with his female relation who did the honour of the + table; Dumourier, the commander-in-chief of the French forces, and one of + his aides-de-camp; Santerre, the commandant of the armed force of Paris, + and an aide-de-camp; Condorcet; Brissot; Gaudet; Genson-net; Danton; + Rersaint; Clavière; Vergniaud; and Syèyes; which, with three other + persons, whose names I do not now recollect, and including Paine and + myself, made in all nineteen." + </p> + <p> + Paine found warm welcome in the home of Achille Du-châtelet, who with him + had first proclaimed the Republic, and was now a General. Madame + Duchâtelet was an English lady of rank, Charlotte Comyn, and English was + fluently spoken in the family. They resided at Auteuil, not far from the + Abbé Moulet, who preserved an arm-chair with the inscription, <i>Benjamin + Franklin hic sedebat</i>, Paine was a guest of the Duchâtelets soon after + he got to work in the Convention, as I have just discovered by a letter + addressed "To Citizen Le Brun, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Paris." + </p> + <p> + "Auteuil, Friday, the 4th December, 1792. I enclose an Irish newspaper + which has been sent me from Belfast. It contains the Address of the + Society of United Irishmen of Dublin (of which Society I am a member) to + the volunteers of Ireland. None of the English newspapers that I have seen + have ventured to republish this Address, and as there is no other copy of + it than this which I send you, I request you not to let it go out of your + possession. Before I received this newspaper I had drawn up a statement of + the affairs of Ireland, which I had communicated to my friend General + Duchâtelet at Auteuil, where I now am. I wish to confer with you on that + subject, but as I do not speak French, and as the matter requires + confidence, General Duchâtelet has desired me to say that if you can make + it convenient to dine with him and me at Auteuil, he will with pleasure do + the office of interpreter. I send this letter by my servant, but as it may + not be convenient to you to give an answer directly, I have told him not + to wait—Thomas Paine." + </p> + <p> + It will be noticed that Paine now keeps his servant, and drives to the + Mayor's dinner in a hackney coach. A portrait painted in Paris about this + time, now owned by Mr. Alfred Howlett of Syracuse, N. Y., shows him in + elegant costume. + </p> + <p> + It is mournful to reflect, even at this distance, that only a little later + both Paine and his friend General Duchâtelet were prisoners. The latter + poisoned himself in prison (1794). + </p> + <p> + The illustrative notes and documents which it seems best to set before the + reader at the outset may here terminate. As in the previous volumes the + writings are, as a rule, given in chronological sequence, but an exception + is now made in respect of Paine's religious writings, some of which + antedate essays in the present volume. The religious writings are reserved + for the fourth and final volume, to which will be added an Appendix + containing Paine's poems, scientific fragments, and several letters of + general interest. + </p> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> <a name="link2H_4_0002" id="link2H_4_0002"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <h2> + I. THE REPUBLICAN PROCLAMATION.(1) + </h2> + <h3> + "Brethren and Fellow Citizens: + </h3> + <p> + "The serene tranquillity, the mutual confidence which prevailed amongst + us, during the time of the late King's escape, the indifference with which + we beheld him return, are unequivocal proofs that the absence of a King is + more desirable than his presence, and that he is not only a political + superfluity, but a grievous burden, pressing hard on the whole nation. + </p> + <p> + "Let us not be imposed on by sophisms; all that concerns this is reduced + to four points. + </p> + <p> + "He has abdicated the throne in having fled from his post. Abdication and + desertion are not characterized by the length of absence; but by the + single act of flight. In the present instance, the act is everything, and + the time nothing. + </p> + <p> + "The nation can never give back its confidence to a man who, false to his + trust, perjured to his oath, conspires a clandestine flight, obtains a + fraudulent passport, conceals a King of France under the disguise of a + valet, directs his course towards a frontier covered with traitors and + deserters, and evidently meditates a return into our country, with a force + capable of imposing his own despotic laws. + </p> + <p> + "Should his flight be considered as his own act, or the act of those who + fled with him? Was it a spontaneous resolution of his own, or was it + inspired by others? The alternative is immaterial; whether fool or + hypocrite, idiot or traitor, he has proved himself equally unworthy of the + important functions that had been delegated to him. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See Introduction to this volume. This manifesto with which + Paris was found placarded on July 1, 1791, is described by + Dumont as a "Republican Proclamation," but what its literal + caption was I have not found.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + "In every sense in which the question can be considered, the reciprocal + obligation which subsisted between us is dissolved. He holds no longer any + authority. We owe him no longer obedience. We see in him no more than an + indifferent person; we can regard him only as Louis Capet. + </p> + <p> + "The history of France presents little else than a long series of public + calamity, which takes its source from the vices of Kings; we have been the + wretched victims that have never ceased to suffer either for them or by + them. The catalogue of their oppressions was complete, but to complete the + sum of their crimes, treason was yet wanting. Now the only vacancy is + filled up, the dreadful list is full; the system is exhausted; there are + no remaining errors for them to commit; their reign is consequently at an + end. + </p> + <p> + "What kind of office must that be in a government which requires for its + execution neither experience nor ability, that may be abandoned to the + desperate chance of birth, that may be filled by an idiot, a madman, a + tyrant, with equal effect as by the good, the virtuous, and the wise? An + office of this nature is a mere nonentity; it is a place of show, not of + use. Let France then, arrived at the age of reason, no longer be deluded + by the sound of words, and let her deliberately examine, if a King, + however insignificant and contemptible in himself, may not at the same + time be extremely dangerous. + </p> + <p> + "The thirty millions which it costs to support a King in the eclat of + stupid brutal luxury, presents us with an easy method of reducing taxes, + which reduction would at once relieve the people, and stop the progress of + political corruption. The grandeur of nations consists, not, as Kings + pretend, in the splendour of thrones, but in a conspicuous sense of their + own dignity, and in a just disdain of those barbarous follies and crimes + which, under the sanction of Royalty, have hitherto desolated Europe. + </p> + <p> + "As to the personal safety of Louis Capet, it is so much the more + confirmed, as France will not stoop to degrade herself by a spirit of + revenge against a wretch who has dishonoured himself. In defending a just + and glorious cause, it is not possible to degrade it, and the universal + tranquillity which prevails is an undeniable proof that a free people know + how to respect themselves." + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + II. TO THE AUTHORS OF "LE RÉPUBLICAIN."(1) + </h2> + <p> + Gentlemen: + </p> + <p> + M. Duchâtelet has mentioned to me the intention of some persons to + commence a work under the title of "The Republican." + </p> + <p> + As I am a Citizen of a country which knows no other Majesty than that of + the People; no other Government than that of the Representative body; no + other sovereignty than that of the Laws, and which is attached to <i>France</i> + both by alliance and by gratitude, I voluntarily offer you my services in + support of principles as honorable to a nation as they are adapted to + promote the happiness of mankind. I offer them to you with the more zeal, + as I know the moral, literary, and political character of those who are + engaged in the undertaking, and find myself honoured in their good + opinion. + </p> + <p> + But I must at the same time observe, that from ignorance of the French + language, my works must necessarily undergo a translation; they can of + course be of but little utility, and my offering must consist more of + wishes than services. I must add, that I am obliged to pass a part of this + summer in England and Ireland. + </p> + <p> + As the public has done me the unmerited favor of recognizing me under the + appellation of "Common Sense," which is my usual signature, I shall + continue it in this publication to avoid mistakes, and to prevent my being + supposed the author of works not my own. As to my political principles, I + shall endeavour, in this letter, to trace their general features in such a + manner, as that they cannot be misunderstood. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 "Le Républicain; ou le Défenseur du gouvernement + Représentatif. Par une Société des Républicains. A Paris. + July, 1791." See Introduction to this volume.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + It is desirable in most instances to avoid that which may give even the + least suspicion as to the part meant to be adopted, and particularly on + the present occasion, where a perfect clearness of expression is necessary + to the avoidance of any possible misinterpretation. I am happy, therefore, + to find, that the work in question is entitled "The Republican." This word + expresses perfectly the idea which we ought to have of Government in + general—<i>Res Publico</i>,—the public affairs of a nation. + </p> + <p> + As to the word <i>Monarchy</i>, though the address and intrigue of Courts + have rendered it familiar, it does not contain the less of reproach or of + insult to a nation. The word, in its immediate or original sense, + signifies <i>the absolute power of a single individual</i>, who may prove + a fool, an hypocrite, or a tyrant. The appellation admits of no other + interpretation than that which is here given. France is therefore not a <i>Monarchy</i>; + it is insulted when called by that name. The servile spirit which + characterizes this species of government is banished from France, and this + country, like AMERICA, can now afford to Monarchy no more than a glance of + disdain. + </p> + <p> + Of the errors which monarchic ignorance or knavery has spread through the + world, the one which bears the marks of the most dexterous invention, is + the opinion that the system of <i>Republicanism</i> is only adapted to a + small country, and that a <i>Monarchy</i> is suited, on the contrary, to + those of greater extent. Such is the language of Courts, and such the + sentiments which they have caused to be adopted in monarchic countries; + but the opinion is contrary, at the same time, to principle and to + experience. + </p> + <p> + The Government, to be of real use, should possess a complete knowledge of + all the parties, all the circumstances, and all the interests of a nation. + The monarchic system, in consequence, instead of being suited to a country + of great extent, would be more admissible in a small territory, where an + individual may be supposed to know the affairs and the interests of the + whole. But when it is attempted to extend this individual knowledge to the + affairs of a great country, the capacity of knowing bears no longer any + proportion to the extent or multiplicity of the objects which ought to be + known, and the government inevitably falls from ignorance into tyranny. + For the proof of this position we need only look to Spain, Russia, + Germany, Turkey, and the whole of the Eastern Continent,—countries, + for the deliverance of which I offer my most sincere wishes. + </p> + <p> + On the contrary, the true <i>Republican</i> system, by Election and + Representation, offers the only means which are known, and, in my opinion, + the only means which are possible, of proportioning the wisdom and the + information of a Government to the extent of a country. + </p> + <p> + The system of <i>Representation</i> is the strongest and most powerful + center that can be devised for a nation. Its attraction acts so + powerfully, that men give it their approbation even without reasoning on + the cause; and France, however distant its several parts, finds itself at + this moment <i>an whole</i>, in its <i>central</i> Representation. The + citizen is assured that his rights are protected, and the soldier feels + that he is no longer the slave of a Despot, but that he is become one of + the Nation, and interested of course in its defence. + </p> + <p> + The states at present styled <i>Republican</i>, as Holland, Genoa, Venice, + Berne, &c. are not only unworthy the name, but are actually in + opposition to every principle of a <i>Republican</i> government, and the + countries submitted to their power are, truly speaking, subject to an <i>Aristocratic</i> + slavery! + </p> + <p> + It is, perhaps, impossible, in the first steps which are made in a + Revolution, to avoid all kind of error, in principle or in practice, or in + some instances to prevent the combination of both. Before the sense of a + nation is sufficiently enlightened, and before men have entered into the + habits of a free communication with each other of their natural thoughts, + a certain reserve—a timid prudence seizes on the human mind, and + prevents it from obtaining its level with that vigor and promptitude that + belongs to <i>right</i>.—An example of this influence discovers + itself in the commencement of the present Revolution: but happily this + discovery has been made before the Constitution was completed, and in time + to provide a remedy. + </p> + <p> + The <i>hereditary succession</i> can never exist as a matter of <i>right</i>; + it is a <i>nullity</i>—a <i>nothing</i>. To admit the idea is to + regard man as a species of property belonging to some individuals, either + born or to be born! It is to consider our descendants, and all posterity, + as mere animals without a right or will! It is, in fine, the most base and + humiliating idea that ever degraded the human species, and which, for the + honor of Humanity, should be destroyed for ever. + </p> + <p> + The idea of hereditary succession is so contrary to the rights of man, + that if we were ourselves to be recalled to existence, instead of being + replaced by our posterity, we should not have the right of depriving + ourselves beforehand of those <i>rights</i> which would then properly + belong to us. On what ground, then, or by what authority, do we dare to + deprive of their rights those children who will soon be men? Why are we + not struck with the injustice which we perpetrate on our descendants, by + endeavouring to transmit them as a vile herd to masters whose vices are + all that can be foreseen. + </p> + <p> + Whenever the <i>French</i> constitution shall be rendered conformable to + its <i>Declaration of Rights</i>, we shall then be enabled to give to + France, and with justice, the appellation of a <i>civic Empire</i>; for + its government will be the empire of laws founded on the great republican + principles of <i>Elective Representation</i>, and the <i>Rights of Man</i>.—But + Monarchy and Hereditary Succession are incompatible with the <i>basis</i> + of its constitution. + </p> + <p> + I hope that I have at present sufficiently proved to you that I am a good + Republican; and I have such a confidence in the truth of the principles, + that I doubt not they will soon be as universal in <i>France</i> as in <i>America</i>. + The pride of human nature will assist their evidence, will contribute to + their establishment, and men will be ashamed of Monarchy. + </p> + <p> + I am, with respect, Gentlemen, your friend, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Paris, June, 1791. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0004" id="link2H_4_0004"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + III. TO THE ABBÉ SIÈYES.(1) + </h2> + <h3> + Paris, 8th July, 1791. + </h3> + <p> + Sir, + </p> + <p> + At the moment of my departure for England, I read, in the <i>Moniteur</i> + of Tuesday last, your letter, in which you give the challenge, on the + subject of Government, and offer to defend what is called the <i>Monarchical + opinion</i> against the Republican system. + </p> + <p> + I accept of your challenge with pleasure; and I place such a confidence in + the superiority of the Republican system over that nullity of a system, + called <i>Monarchy</i>, that I engage not to exceed the extent of fifty + pages, and to leave you the liberty of taking as much latitude as you may + think proper. + </p> + <p> + The respect which I bear your moral and literary reputation, will be your + security for my candour in the course of this discussion; but, + notwithstanding that I shall treat the subject seriously and sincerely, + let me promise, that I consider myself at liberty to ridicule, as they + deserve, Monarchical absurdities, whensoever the occasion shall present + itself. + </p> + <p> + By Republicanism, I do not understand what the name signifies in Holland, + and in some parts of Italy. I understand simply a government by + representation—a government founded upon the principles of the + Declaration of Rights; principles to which several parts of the French + Constitution arise in contradiction. The Declaration of Rights of France + and America are but one and the same thing in principles, and almost in + expressions; and this is the Republicanism which I undertake to defend + against what is called <i>Monarchy</i> and <i>Aristocracy</i>. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Written to the <i>Moniteur</i> in reply to a letter of the Abbé + (July 8) elicited by Paine's letter to "Le Républicain" + (II.). The Abbé now declining a controversy, Paine dealt + with his views in "Rights of Man," Part IL, ch. 3.— + <i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I see with pleasure that in respect to one point we are already agreed; + and <i>that is, the extreme danger of a civil list of thirty millions</i>. + I can discover no reason why one of the parts of the government should be + supported with so extravagant a profusion, whilst the other scarcely + receives what is sufficient for its common wants. + </p> + <p> + This dangerous and dishonourable disproportion at once supplies the one + with the means of corrupting, and throws the other into the predicament of + being corrupted. In America there is but little difference, with regard to + this point, between the legislative and the executive part of our + government; but the first is much better attended to than it is in France. + </p> + <p> + In whatsoever manner, Sir, I may treat the subject of which you have + proposed the investigation, I hope that you will not doubt my entertaining + for you the highest esteem. I must also add, that I am not the personal + enemy of Kings. Quite the contrary. No man more heartily wishes than + myself to see them all in the happy and honourable state of private + individuals; but I am the avowed, open, and intrepid enemy of what is + called Monarchy; and I am such by principles which nothing can either + alter or corrupt—by my attachment to humanity; by the anxiety which + I feel within myself, for the dignity and the honour of the human race; by + the disgust which I experience, when I observe men directed by children, + and governed by brutes; by the horror which all the evils that Monarchy + has spread over the earth excite within my breast; and by those sentiments + which make me shudder at the calamities, the exactions, the wars, and the + massacres with which Monarchy has crushed mankind: in short, it is against + all the hell of monarchy that I have declared war. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 To the sixth paragraph of the above letter is appended a + footnote: "A deputy to the congress receives about a guinea + and a half daily: and provisions are cheaper in America + than in France." The American Declaration of Rights referred + to unless the Declaration of Independence, was no doubt, + especially that of Pennsylvania, which Paine helped to + frame.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0005" id="link2H_4_0005"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + IV. TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL. + </h2> + <p> + [Undated, but probably late in May, 1793.] + </p> + <p> + Sir, + </p> + <p> + Though I have some reason for believing that you were not the original + promoter or encourager of the prosecution commenced against the work + entitled "Rights of Man" either as that prosecution is intended to affect + the author, the publisher, or the public; yet as you appear the official + person therein, I address this letter to you, not as Sir Archibald + Macdonald, but as Attorney General. + </p> + <p> + You began by a prosecution against the publisher Jordan, and the reason + assigned by Mr. Secretary Dundas, in the House of Commons, in the debate + on the Proclamation, May 25, for taking that measure, was, he said, + because Mr. Paine could not be found, or words to that effect. Mr. Paine, + sir, so far from secreting himself, never went a step out of his way, nor + in the least instance varied from his usual conduct, to avoid any measure + you might choose to adopt with respect to him. It is on the purity of his + heart, and the universal utility of the principles and plans which his + writings contain, that he rests the issue; and he will not dishonour it by + any kind of subterfuge. The apartments which he occupied at the time of + writing the work last winter, he has continued to occupy to the present + hour, and the solicitors of the prosecution knew where to find him; of + which there is a proof in their own office, as far back as the 21st of + May, and also in the office of my own Attorney.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine was residing at the house of one of his publishers, + Thomas Rickman, 7 Upper Marylebone Street, London. His + Attorney was the Hon. Thomas Erskine.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But admitting, for the sake of the case, that the reason for proceeding + against the publisher was, as Mr. Dundas stated, that Mr. Paine could not + be found, that reason can now exist no longer. + </p> + <p> + The instant that I was informed that an information was preparing to be + filed against me, as the author of, I believe, one of the most useful and + benevolent books ever offered to mankind, I directed my Attorney to put in + an appearance; and as I shall meet the prosecution fully and fairly, and + with a good and upright conscience, I have a right to expect that no act + of littleness will be made use of on the part of the prosecution towards + influencing the future issue with respect to the author. This expression + may, perhaps, appear obscure to you, but I am in the possession of some + matters which serve to shew that the action against the publisher is not + intended to be a <i>real</i> action. If, therefore, any persons concerned + in the prosecution have found their cause so weak, as to make it appear + convenient to them to enter into a negociation with the publisher, whether + for the purpose of his submitting to a verdict, and to make use of the + verdict so obtained as a circumstance, by way of precedent, on a future + trial against myself; or for any other purpose not fully made known to me; + if, I say, I have cause to suspect this to be the case, I shall most + certainly withdraw the defence I should otherwise have made, or promoted + on his (the publisher's) behalf, and leave the negociators to themselves, + and shall reserve the whole of the defence for the <i>real</i> trial.(1) + </p> + <p> + But, sir, for the purpose of conducting this matter with at least the + appearance of fairness and openness, that shall justify itself before the + public, whose cause it really is, (for it is the right of public + discussion and investigation that is questioned,) I have to propose to you + to cease the prosecution against the publisher; and as the reason or + pretext can no longer exist for continuing it against him because Mr. + Paine could not be found, that you would direct the whole process against + me, with whom the prosecuting party will not find it possible to enter + into any private negociation. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 A detailed account of the proceedings with regard to the + publisher will be found infra, in ix., Letter to the + Addressers.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I will do the cause full justice, as well for the sake of the nation, as + for my own reputation. + </p> + <p> + Another reason for discontinuing the process against the publisher is, + because it can amount to nothing. First, because a jury in London cannot + decide upon the fact of publishing beyond the limits of the jurisdiction + of London, and therefore the work may be republished over and over again + in every county in the nation, and every case must have a separate + process; and by the time that three or four hundred prosecutions have been + had, the eyes of the nation will then be fully open to see that the work + in question contains a plan the best calculated to root out all the abuses + of government, and to lessen the taxes of the nation upwards of <i>six + millions annually</i>. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, Because though the gentlemen of London may be very expert in + understanding their particular professions and occupations, and how to + make business contracts with government beneficial to themselves as + individuals, the rest of the nation may not be disposed to consider them + sufficiently qualified nor authorized to determine for the whole Nation on + plans of reform, and on systems and principles of Government. This would + be in effect to erect a jury into a National Convention, instead of + electing a Convention, and to lay a precedent for the probable tyranny of + juries, under the pretence of supporting their rights. + </p> + <p> + That the possibility always exists of packing juries will not be denied; + and, therefore, in all cases, where Government is the prosecutor, more + especially in those where the right of public discussion and investigation + of principles and systems of Government is attempted to be suppressed by a + verdict, or in those where the object of the work that is prosecuted is + the reform of abuse and the abolition of sinecure places and pensions, in + all these cases the verdict of a jury will itself become a subject of + discussion; and therefore, it furnishes an additional reason for + discontinuing the prosecution against the publisher, more especially as it + is not a secret that there has been a negociation with him for secret + purposes, and for proceeding against me only. I shall make a much stronger + defence than what I believe the Treasury Solicitor's agreement with him + will permit him to do. + </p> + <p> + I believe that Mr. Burke, finding himself defeated, and not being able to + make any answer to the <i>Rights of Man</i>, has been one of the promoters + of this prosecution; and I shall return the compliment to him by shewing, + in a future publication, that he has been a masked pensioner at 1500L. per + annum for about ten years. + </p> + <p> + Thus it is that the public money is wasted, and the dread of public + investigation is produced. + </p> + <p> + I am, sir, Your obedient humble servant, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine's case was set down for June 8th, and on that day he + appeared in court; but, much to his disappointment, the + trial was adjourned to December 18th, at which time he was + in his place in the National Convention at Paris.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0006" id="link2H_4_0006"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + V. TO MR. SECRETARY DUNDAS.(1) + </h2> + <p> + London, June 6, 1793. + </p> + <p> + Sir, + </p> + <p> + As you opened the debate in the House of Commons, May 25th, on the + proclamation for suppressing publications, which that proclamation + (without naming any) calls wicked and seditious: and as you applied those + opprobious epithets to the works entitled "RIGHTS OF MAN," I think it + unnecessary to offer any other reason for addressing this letter to you. + </p> + <p> + I begin, then, at once, by declaring, that I do not believe there are + found in the writings of any author, ancient or modern, on the subject of + government, a spirit of greater benignity, and a stronger inculcation of + moral principles than in those which I have published. They come, Sir, + from a man, who, by having lived in different countries, and under + different systems of government, and who, being intimate in the + construction of them, is a better judge of the subject than it is possible + that you, from the want of those opportunities, can be:—And besides + this, they come from a heart that knows not how to beguile. + </p> + <p> + I will farther say, that when that moment arrives in which the best + consolation that shall be left will be looking back on some past actions, + more virtuous and more meritorious than the rest, I shall then with + happiness remember, among other things, I have written the RIGHTS OF MAN.—-As + to what proclamations, or prosecutions, or place-men, and + place-expectants,—those who possess, or those who are gaping for + office,—may say of them, it will not alter their character, either + with the world or with me. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Henry D. (afterwards Viscount Melville), appointed + Secretary for the Home Department, 1791. In 1805 he was + impeached by the Commons for "gross malversation" while + Treasurer of the Navy; he was acquitted by the Lords + (1806), but not by public sentiment or by history.— + <i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Having, Sir, made this declaration, I shall proceed to remark, not + particularly on your speech on that occasion, but on any one to which your + motion on that day gave rise; and I shall begin with that of Mr. Adam. + </p> + <p> + This Gentleman accuses me of not having done the very thing that <i>I have + done</i>, and which, he says, if I <i>had</i> done, he should not have + accused me. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Adam, in his speech, (see the Morning Chronicle of May 26,) says, + </p> + <p> + "That he had well considered the subject of Constitutional Publications, + and was by no means ready to say (but the contrary) that books of science + upon government though recommending a doctrine or system different from + the form of our constitution (meaning that of England) were fit objects of + prosecution; that if he did, he must condemn Harrington for his Oceana, + Sir Thomas More for his Eutopia, and Hume for his Idea of a perfect + Commonwealth. But (continued Mr. Adam) the publication of Mr. Paine was + very different; for it reviled what was most sacred in the constitution, + destroyed every principle of subordination, and <i>established nothing in + their room</i>." + </p> + <p> + I readily perceive that Mr. Adam has not read the Second Part of <i>Rights + of Man</i>, and I am put under the necessity, either of submitting to an + erroneous charge, or of justifying myself against it; and certainly shall + prefer the latter.—If, then, I shall prove to Mr. Adam, that in my + reasoning upon systems of government, in the Second Part of <i>Rights of + Man</i>, I have shown as clearly, I think, as words can convey ideas, a + certain system of government, and that not existing in theory only, but + already in full and established practice, and systematically and + practically free from all the vices and defects of the English government, + and capable of producing more happiness to the people, and that also with + an eightieth part of the taxes, which the present English system of + government consumes; I hope he will do me the justice, when he next goes + to the House, to get up and confess he had been mistaken in saying, that I + had <i>established nothing, and that I had destroyed every principle of + subordination</i>. Having thus opened the case, I now come to the point. + </p> + <p> + In the Second Part of the Rights of Man, I have distinguished government + into two classes or systems: the one the hereditary system, the other the + representative system. + </p> + <p> + In the First Part of <i>Rights of Man</i>, I have endeavoured to shew, and + I challenge any man to refute it, that there does not exist a right to + establish hereditary government; or, in other words, hereditary governors; + because hereditary government always means a government yet to come, and + the case always is, that the people who are to live afterwards, have + always the same right to choose a government for themselves, as the people + had who lived before them. + </p> + <p> + In the Second Part of <i>Rights of Man</i>, I have not repeated those + arguments, because they are irrefutable; but have confined myself to shew + the defects of what is called hereditary government, or hereditary + succession, that it must, from the nature of it, throw government into the + hands of men totally unworthy of it, from want of principle, or unfitted + for it from want of capacity.—James the IId. is recorded as an + instance of the first of these cases; and instances are to be found almost + all over Europe to prove the truth of the latter. + </p> + <p> + To shew the absurdity of the Hereditary System still more strongly, I will + now put the following case:—Take any fifty men promiscuously, and it + will be very extraordinary, if, out of that number, one man should be + found, whose principles and talents taken together (for some might have + principles, and others might have talents) would render him a person truly + fitted to fill any very extraordinary office of National Trust. If then + such a fitness of character could not be expected to be found in more than + one person out of fifty, it would happen but once in a thousand years to + the eldest son of any one family, admitting each, on an average, to hold + the office twenty years. Mr. Adam talks of something in the Constitution + which he calls <i>most sacred</i>; but I hope he does not mean hereditary + succession, a thing which appears to me a violation of every order of + nature, and of common sense. + </p> + <p> + When I look into history and see the multitudes of men, otherwise + virtuous, who have died, and their families been ruined, in the defence of + knaves and fools, and which they would not have done, had they reasoned at + all upon the system; I do not know a greater good that an individual can + render to mankind, than to endeavour to break the chains of political + superstition. Those chains are now dissolving fast, and proclamations and + persecutions will serve but to hasten that dissolution. + </p> + <p> + Having thus spoken of the Hereditary System as a bad System, and subject + to every possible defect, I now come to the Representative System, and + this Mr. Adam will find stated in the Second Part of Rights of Man, not + only as the best, but as the only <i>Theory</i> of Government under which + the liberties of the people can be permanently secure. + </p> + <p> + But it is needless now to talk of mere theory, since there is already a + government in full practice, established upon that theory; or in other + words, upon the Rights of Man, and has been so for almost twenty years. + Mr. Pitt, in a speech of his some short time since, said, "That there + never did, and never could exist a Government established upon those + Rights, and that if it began at noon, it would end at night." Mr. Pitt has + not yet arrived at the degree of a school-boy in this species of + knowledge; his practice has been confined to the means of <i>extorting + revenue</i>, and his boast has been—<i>how much!</i> Whereas the + boast of the system of government that I am speaking of, is not how much, + but how little. + </p> + <p> + The system of government purely representative, unmixed with any thing of + hereditary nonsense, began in America. I will now compare the effects of + that system of government with the system of government in England, both + during, and since the close of the war. + </p> + <p> + So powerful is the Representative system, first, by combining and + consolidating all the parts of a country together, however great the + extent; and, secondly, by admitting of none but men properly qualified + into the government, or dismissing them if they prove to be otherwise, + that America was enabled thereby totally to defeat and overthrow all the + schemes and projects of the hereditary government of England against her. + As the establishment of the Revolution and Independence of America is a + proof of this fact, it is needless to enlarge upon it. + </p> + <p> + I now come to the comparative effect of the two systems <i>since</i> the + close of the war, and I request Mr. Adam to attend to it. + </p> + <p> + America had internally sustained the ravages of upwards of seven years of + war, which England had not. England sustained only the expence of the war; + whereas America sustained not only the expence, but the destruction of + property committed by <i>both</i> armies. Not a house was built during + that period, and many thousands were destroyed. The farms and plantations + along the coast of the country, for more than a thousand miles, were laid + waste. Her commerce was annihilated. Her ships were either taken, or had + rotted within her own harbours. The credit of her funds had fallen upwards + of ninety per cent., that is, an original hundred pounds would not sell + for ten pounds. In fine, she was apparently put back an hundred years when + the war closed, which was not the case with England. + </p> + <p> + But such was the event, that the same representative system of government, + though since better organized, which enabled her to conquer, enabled her + also to recover, and she now presents a more flourishing condition, and a + more happy and harmonized society, under that system of government, than + any country in the world can boast under any other. Her towns are rebuilt, + much better than before; her farms and plantations are in higher + improvement than ever; her commerce is spread over the world, and her + funds have risen from less than ten pounds the hundred to upwards of one + hundred and twenty. Mr. Pitt and his colleagues talk of the things that + have happened in his boyish administration, without knowing what greater + things have happened elsewhere, and under other systems of government. + </p> + <p> + I now come to state the expence of the two systems, as they now stand in + each of the countries; but it may first be proper to observe, that + government in America is what it ought to be, a matter of honour and + trust, and not made a trade of for the purpose of lucre. + </p> + <p> + The whole amount of the nett(sic) taxes in England (exclusive of the + expence of collection, of drawbacks, of seizures and condemnation, of + fines and penalties, of fees of office, of litigations and informers, + which are some of the blessed means of enforcing them) is seventeen + millions. Of this sum, about nine millions go for the payment of the + interest of the national debt, and the remainder, being about eight + millions, is for the current annual expences. This much for one side of + the case. I now come to the other. + </p> + <p> + The expence of the several departments of the general Representative + Government of the United States of America, extending over a space of + country nearly ten times larger than England, is two hundred and + ninety-four thousand, five hundred and fifty-eight dollars, which, at 4s. + 6d. per dollar, is 66,305L. 11s. sterling, and is thus apportioned; + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0001" id="linkimage-0001"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/table046.jpg" alt="Table046 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img alt="table047 (26K)" src="images/table047.jpg" width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + On account of the incursions of the Indians on the back settlements, + Congress is at this time obliged to keep six thousand militia in pay, in + addition to a regiment of foot, and a battalion of artillery, which it + always keeps; and this increases the expence of the War Department to + 390,000 dollars, which is 87,795L. sterling, but when peace shall be + concluded with the Indians, the greatest part of this expence will cease, + and the total amount of the expence of government, including that of the + army, will not amount to 100,000L. sterling, which, as has been already + stated, is but an eightieth part of the expences of the English + government. + </p> + <p> + I request Mr. Adam and Mr. Dundas, and all those who are talking of + Constitutions, and blessings, and Kings, and Lords, and the Lord knows + what, to look at this statement. Here is a form and system of government, + that is better organized and better administered than any government in + the world, and that for less than one hundred thousand pounds per annum, + and yet every Member of Congress receives, as a compensation for his time + and attendance on public business, one pound seven shillings per day, + which is at the rate of nearly five hundred pounds a year. + </p> + <p> + This is a government that has nothing to fear. It needs no proclamations + to deter people from writing and reading. It needs no political + superstition to support it; it was by encouraging discussion and rendering + the press free upon all subjects of government, that the principles of + government became understood in America, and the people are now enjoying + the present blessings under it. You hear of no riots, tumults, and + disorders in that country; because there exists no cause to produce them. + Those things are never the effect of Freedom, but of restraint, + oppression, and excessive taxation. + </p> + <p> + In America, there is not that class of poor and wretched people that are + so numerously dispersed all over England, who are to be told by a + proclamation, that they are happy; and this is in a great measure to be + accounted for, not by the difference of proclamations, but by the + difference of governments and the difference of taxes between that country + and this. What the labouring people of that country earn, they apply to + their own use, and to the education of their children, and do not pay it + away in taxes as fast as they earn it, to support Court extravagance, and + a long enormous list of place-men and pensioners; and besides this, they + have learned the manly doctrine of reverencing themselves, and + consequently of respecting each other; and they laugh at those imaginary + beings called Kings and Lords, and all the fraudulent trumpery of Court. + </p> + <p> + When place-men and pensioners, or those who expect to be such, are lavish + in praise of a government, it is not a sign of its being a good one. The + pension list alone in England (see sir John Sinclair's History of the + Revenue, p. 6, of the Appendix) is one hundred and seven thousand four + hundred and four pounds, <i>which is more than the expences of the whole + Government of America amount to</i>. And I am now more convinced than + before, that the offer that was made to me of a thousand pounds for the + copy-right of the second part of the Rights of Man, together with the + remaining copyright of the first part, was to have effected, by a quick + suppression, what is now attempted to be done by a prosecution. The + connection which the person, who made the offer, has with the King's + printing-office, may furnish part of the means of inquiring into this + affair, when the ministry shall please to bring their prosecution to + issue.(1) But to return to my subject.— + </p> + <p> + I have said in the second part of the <i>Rights of Man</i>, and I repeat + it here, that the service of any man, whether called King, President, + Senator, Legislator, or any thing else, cannot be worth more to any + country, in the regular routine of office, than ten thousand pounds per + annum. We have a better man in America, and more of a gentleman, than any + King I ever knew of, who does not occasion half that ex-pence; for, though + the salary is fixed at £5625 he does not accept it, and it is only the + incidental expences that are paid out of it.(2) The name by which a man is + called is of itself but an empty thing. It is worth and character alone + which can render him valuable, for without these, Kings, and Lords, and + Presidents, are but jingling names. + </p> + <p> + But without troubling myself about Constitutions of Government, I have + shewn in the Second Part of <i>Rights of Man</i>, that an alliance may be + formed between England, France, and America, and that the expences of + government in England may be put back to one million and a half, viz.: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Civil expence of Government...... 500,000L. + Army............................. 500,000 + Navy............................. 500,000 + ————— + 1,500,000L. +</pre> + <p> + And even this sum is fifteen times greater than the expences of government + are in America; and it is also greater than the whole peace establishment + of England amounted to about an hundred years ago. So much has the weight + and oppression of taxes increased since the Revolution, and especially + since the year 1714. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 At Paine's trial, Chapman, the printer, in answer to fa + question of the Solicitor General, said: "I made him three + separate offers in the different stages of the work; the + first, I believe, was a hundred guineas, the second five + hundred, and the last was a thousand."—<i>Editor</i>. + + 2 Error. See also ante, and in vol. ii., p. 435. + Washington had retracted his original announcement, and + received his salary regularly.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + To shew that the sum of 500,000L. is sufficient to defray all civil + expences of government, I have, in that work, annexed the following + estimate for any country of the same extent as England.— + </p> + <p> + In the first place, three hundred Representatives, fairly elected, are + sufficient for all the purposes to which Legislation can apply, and + preferable to a larger number. + </p> + <p> + If, then, an allowance, at the rate of 500L. per annum be made to every + Representative, deducting for non-attendance, the expence, if the whole + number attended six months each year, would be.......75,000L. + </p> + <p> + The Official Departments could not possibly exceed the following number, + with the salaries annexed, viz.: + </p> + <p> + [ILLUSTRATION: Table] + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Three offices at + 10,000L. + each + 30,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Ten ditto at + 5,000 + u + 50,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Twenty ditto at + 2,000 + u + 40,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Forty ditto at + 1,000 + it + 40,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Two hundred ditto at + 500 + u + 100,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Three hundred ditto at 200 + u + 60,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Five hundred ditto at + 100 + u + 50,000 +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> +Seven hundred ditto at 75 + it + 52,500 +</pre> + <p> + 497,500L. + </p> + <p> + If a nation chose, it might deduct four per cent, from all the offices, + and make one of twenty thousand pounds per annum, and style the person who + should fill it, King or Madjesty, (1) or give him any other title. + </p> + <p> + Taking, however, this sum of one million and a half, as an abundant supply + for all the expences of government under any form whatever, there will + remain a surplus of nearly six millions and a half out of the present + taxes, after paying the interest of the national debt; and I have shewn in + the Second Part of <i>Rights of Man</i>, what appears to me, the best mode + of applying the surplus money; for I am now speaking of expences and + savings, and not of systems of government. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 A friend of Paine advised him against this pun, as too + personal an allusion to George the Third, to whom however + much has been forgiven on account of his mental infirmity. + Yorke, in his account of his visit to Paine, 1802, alludes + to his (Paine's) anecdotes "of humor and benevolence" + concerning George III.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I have, in the first place, estimated the poor-rates at two millions + annually, and shewn that the first effectual step would be to abolish the + poor-rates entirely (which would be a saving of two millions to the + house-keepers,) and to remit four millions out of the surplus taxes to the + poor, to be paid to them in money, in proportion to the number of children + in each family, and the number of aged persons. + </p> + <p> + I have estimated the number of persons of both sexes in England, of fifty + years of age and upwards, at 420,000, and have taken one third of this + number, viz. 140,000, to be poor people. + </p> + <p> + To save long calculations, I have taken 70,000 of them to be upwards of + fifty years of age, and under sixty, and the others to be sixty years and + upwards; and to allow six pounds per annum to the former class, and ten + pounds per annum to the latter. The expence of which will be, + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Seventy thousand persons at 6L. per annum..... 420,000L. + Seventy thousand persons at 10L. per annum.... 700,000 + —————- + 1,120,000L. +</pre> + <p> + There will then remain of the four millions, 2,880,000L. I have stated two + different methods of appropriating this money. The one is to pay it in + proportion to the number of children in each family, at the rate of three + or four pounds per annum for each child; the other is to apportion it + according to the expence of living in different counties; but in either of + these cases it would, together with the allowance to be made to the aged, + completely take off taxes from one third of all the families in England, + besides relieving all the other families from the burthen of poor-rates. + </p> + <p> + The whole number of families in England, allotting five souls to each + family, is one million four hundred thousand, of which I take one third, + <i>viz</i>. 466,666 to be poor families who now pay four millions of + taxes, and that the poorest pays at least four guineas a year; and that + the other thirteen millions are paid by the other two-thirds. The plan, + therefore, as stated in the work, is, first, to remit or repay, as is + already stated, this sum of four millions to the poor, because it is + impossible to separate them from the others in the present mode of + collecting taxes on articles of consumption; and, secondly, to abolish the + poor-rates, the house and window-light tax, and to change the commutation + tax into a progressive tax on large estates, the particulars of all which + are set forth in the work, to which I desire Mr. Adam to refer for + particulars. I shall here content myself with saying, that to a town of + the population of Manchester, it will make a difference in its favour, + compared with the present state of things, of upwards of fifty thousand + pounds annually, and so in proportion to all other places throughout the + nation. This certainly is of more consequence than that the same sums + should be collected to be afterwards spent by riotous and profligate + courtiers, and in nightly revels at the Star and Garter tavern, Pall Mall. + </p> + <p> + I will conclude this part of my letter with an extract from the Second + Part of the <i>Rights of Man</i>, which Mr. Dundas (a man rolling in + luxury at the expence of the nation) has branded with the epithet of + "wicked." + </p> + <p> + "By the operation of this plan, the poor laws, those instruments of civil + torture, will be superseded, and the wasteful ex-pence of litigation + prevented. The hearts of the humane will not be shocked by ragged and + hungry children, and persons of seventy and eighty years of age begging + for bread. The dying poor will not be dragged from place to place to + breathe their last, as a reprisal of parish upon parish. Widows will have + a maintenance for their children, and not be carted away, on the death of + their husbands, like culprits and criminals; and children will no longer + be considered as increasing the distresses of their parents. The haunts of + the wretched will be known, because it will be to their advantage; and the + number of petty crimes, the offspring of poverty and distress, will be + lessened. The poor as well as the rich will then be interested in the + support of Government, and the cause and apprehension of riots and tumults + will cease. Ye who sit in ease, and solace yourselves in plenty, and such + there are in Turkey and Russia, as well as in England, and who say to + yourselves, <i>are we not well off</i> have ye thought of these things? + When ye do, ye will cease to speak and feel for yourselves alone." + </p> + <p> + After this remission of four millions be made, and the poor-rates and + houses and window-light tax be abolished, and the commutation tax changed, + there will still remain nearly one million and a half of surplus taxes; + and as by an alliance between England, France and America, armies and + navies will, in a great measure, be rendered unnecessary; and as men who + have either been brought up in, or long habited to, those lines of life, + are still citizens of a nation in common with the rest, and have a right + to participate in all plans of national benefit, it is stated in that work + (<i>Rights of Man</i>, Part ii.) to apply annually 507,000L. out of the + surplus taxes to this purpose, in the following manner: + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0002" id="linkimage-0002"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/table053.jpg" alt="Table 053 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + The limits to which it is proper to confine this letter, will not admit of + my entering into further particulars. I address it to Mr. Dundas because + he took the lead in the debate, and he wishes, I suppose, to appear + conspicuous; but the purport of it is to justify myself from the charge + which Mr. Adam has made. + </p> + <p> + This Gentleman, as has been observed in the beginning of this letter, + considers the writings of Harrington, More and Hume, as justifiable and + legal publications, because they reasoned by comparison, though in so + doing they shewed plans and systems of government, not only different + from, but preferable to, that of England; and he accuses me of + endeavouring to confuse, instead of producing a system in the room of that + which I had reasoned against; whereas, the fact is, that I have not only + reasoned by comparison of the representative system against the hereditary + system, but I have gone further; for I have produced an instance of a + government established entirely on the representative system, under which + greater happiness is enjoyed, much fewer taxes required, and much higher + credit is established, than under the system of government in England. The + funds in England have risen since the war only from 54L. to 97L. and they + have been down since the proclamation, to 87L. whereas the funds in + America rose in the mean time from 10L. to 120L. + </p> + <p> + His charge against me of "destroying every principle of subordination," is + equally as groundless; which even a single paragraph from the work will + prove, and which I shall here quote: + </p> + <p> + "Formerly when divisions arose respecting Governments, recourse was had to + the sword, and a civil war ensued. That savage custom is exploded by the + new system, and <i>recourse is had to a national convention</i>. + Discussion, and the general will, arbitrates the question, and to this + private opinion yields with a good grace, and <i>order is preserved + uninterrupted</i>." + </p> + <p> + That two different charges should be brought at the same time, the one by + a Member of the Legislative, for <i>not</i> doing a certain thing, and the + other by the Attorney General for <i>doing</i> it, is a strange jumble of + contradictions. I have now justified myself, or the work rather, against + the first, by stating the case in this letter, and the justification of + the other will be undertaken in its proper place. But in any case the work + will go on. + </p> + <p> + I shall now conclude this letter with saying, that the only objection I + found against the plan and principles contained in the Second Part of <i>Rights + of Man</i>, when I had written the book, was, that they would beneficially + interest at least ninety-nine persons out of every hundred throughout the + nation, and therefore would not leave sufficient room for men to act from + the direct and disinterested principles of honour; but the prosecution now + commenced has fortunately removed that objection, and the approvers and + protectors of that work now feel the immediate impulse of honour added to + that of national interest. + </p> + <p> + I am, Mr. Dundas, + </p> + <p> + Not your obedient humble Servant, + </p> + <p> + But the contrary, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0007" id="link2H_4_0007"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + VI. LETTERS TO ONSLOW CRANLEY, + </h2> + <p> + Lord Lieutenant of the county of Surry; on the subject of the late + excellent proclamation:—or the chairman who shall preside at the + meeting to be held at Epsom, June 18. + </p> + <p> + FIRST LETTER. + </p> + <p> + London, June 17th, 1792. + </p> + <p> + SIR, + </p> + <p> + I have seen in the public newspapers the following advertisement, to wit— + </p> + <p> + "To the Nobility, Gentry, Clergy, Freeholders, and other Inhabitants of + the county of Surry. + </p> + <p> + "At the requisition and desire of several of the freeholders of the + county, I am, in the absence of the Sheriff, to desire the favour of your + attendance, at a meeting to be held at Epsom, on Monday, the 18th instant, + at 12 o'clock at noon, to consider of an humble address to his majesty, to + express our grateful approbation of his majesty's paternal, and well-timed + attendance to the public welfare, in his late most gracious Proclamation + against the enemies of our happy Constitution. + </p> + <p> + "(Signed.) Onslow Cranley." + </p> + <p> + Taking it for granted, that the aforesaid advertisement, equally as + obscure as the proclamation to which it refers, has nevertheless some + meaning, and is intended to effect some purpose; and as a prosecution + (whether wisely or unwisely, justly or unjustly) is already commenced + against a work intitled RIGHTS OF MAN, of which I have the honour and + happiness to be the author; I feel it necessary to address this letter to + you, and to request that it may be read publicly to the gentlemen who + shall meet at Epsom in consequence of the advertisement. + </p> + <p> + The work now under prosecution is, I conceive, the same work which is + intended to be suppressed by the aforesaid proclamation. Admitting this to + be the case, the gentlemen of the county of Surry are called upon by + somebody to condemn a work, and they are at the same time forbidden by the + proclamation to know what that work is; and they are further called upon + to give their aid and assistance to prevent other people from knowing it + also. It is therefore necessary that the author, for his own + justification, as well as to prevent the gentlemen who shall meet from + being imposed upon by misrepresentation, should give some outlines of the + principles and plans which that work contains. + </p> + <p> + The work, Sir, in question, contains, first, an investigation of general + principles of government. + </p> + <p> + It also distinguishes government into two classes or systems, the one the + hereditary system; the other the representative system; and it compares + these two systems with each other. + </p> + <p> + It shews that what is called hereditary government cannot exist as a + matter of right; because hereditary government always means a government + yet to come; and the case always is, that those who are to live afterwards + have always the same right to establish a government for themselves as the + people who had lived before them. + </p> + <p> + It also shews the defect to which hereditary government is unavoidably + subject: that it must, from the nature of it, throw government into the + hands of men totally unworthy of it from the want of principle, and + unfitted for it from want of capacity. James II. and many others are + recorded in the English history as proofs of the former of those cases, + and instances are to be found all over Europe to prove the truth of the + latter. + </p> + <p> + It then shews that the representative system is the only true system of + government; that it is also the only system under which the liberties of + any people can be permanently secure; and, further, that it is the only + one that can continue the same equal probability at all times of admitting + of none but men properly qualified, both by principles and abilities, into + government, and of excluding such as are otherwise. + </p> + <p> + The work shews also, by plans and calculations not hitherto denied nor + controverted, not even by the prosecution that is commenced, that the + taxes now existing may be reduced at least six millions, that taxes may be + entirely taken off from the poor, who are computed at one third of the + nation; and that taxes on the other two thirds may be considerably + reduced; that the aged poor may be comfortably provided for, and the + children of poor families properly educated; that fifteen thousand + soldiers, and the same number of sailors, may be allowed three shillings + per week during life out of the surplus taxes; and also that a + proportionate allowance may be made to the officers, and the pay of the + remaining soldiers and sailors be raised; and that it is better to apply + the surplus taxes to those purposes, than to consume them on lazy and + profligate placemen and pensioners; and that the revenue, said to be + twenty thousand pounds per annum, raised by a tax upon coals, and given to + the Duke of Richmond, is a gross imposition upon all the people of London, + and ought to be instantly abolished. + </p> + <p> + This, Sir, is a concise abstract of the principles and plans contained in + the work that is now prosecuted, and for the suppression of which the + proclamation appears to be intended; but as it is impossible that I can, + in the compass of a letter, bring into view all the matters contained in + the work, and as it is proper that the gentlemen who may compose that + meeting should know what the merits or demerits of it are, before they + come to any resolutions, either directly or indirectly relating thereto, I + request the honour of presenting them with one hundred copies of the + second part of the Rights of Man, and also one thousand copies of my + letter to Mr. Dundas, which I have directed to be sent to Epsom for that + purpose; and I beg the favour of the Chairman to take the trouble of + presenting them to the gentlemen who shall meet on that occasion, with my + sincere wishes for their happiness, and for that of the nation in general. + </p> + <p> + Having now closed thus much of the subject of my letter, I next come to + speak of what has relation to me personally. I am well aware of the + delicacy that attends it, but the purpose of calling the meeting appears + to me so inconsistent with that justice that is always due between man and + man, that it is proper I should (as well on account of the gentlemen who + may meet, as on my own account) explain myself fully and candidly thereon. + </p> + <p> + I have already informed the gentlemen, that a prosecution is commenced + against a work of which I have the honour and happiness to be the author; + and I have good reasons for believing that the proclamation which the + gentlemen are called to consider, and to present an address upon, is + purposely calculated to give an impression to the jury before whom that + matter is to come. In short, that it is dictating a verdict by + proclamation; and I consider the instigators of the meeting to be held at + Epsom, as aiding and abetting the same improper, and, in my opinion, + illegal purpose, and that in a manner very artfully contrived, as I shall + now shew. + </p> + <p> + Had a meeting been called of the Freeholders of the county of Middlesex, + the gentlemen who had composed that meeting would have rendered themselves + objectionable as persons to serve on a Jury, before whom the judicial case + was afterwards to come. But by calling a meeting out of the county of + Middlesex, that matter is artfully avoided, and the gentlemen of Surry are + summoned, as if it were intended thereby to give a tone to the sort of + verdict which the instigators of the meeting no doubt wish should be + brought in, and to give countenance to the Jury in so doing. I am, sir, + </p> + <p> + With much respect to the + </p> + <p> + Gentlemen who shall meet, Their and your obedient and humble Servant, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + TO ONSLOW CRANLEY, COMMONLY CALLED LORD ONSLOW. SECOND LETTER. SIR, + </p> + <p> + London, June 21st 1792. + </p> + <p> + WHEN I wrote you the letter which Mr. Home Tooke did me the favour to + present to you, as chairman of the meeting held at Epsom, Monday, June 18, + it was not with much expectation that you would do me the justice of + permitting, or recommending it to be publicly read. I am well aware that + the signature of Thomas Paine has something in it dreadful to sinecure + Placemen and Pensioners; and when you, on seeing the letter opened, + informed the meeting that it was signed Thomas Paine, and added in a note + of exclamation, "the common enemy of us all." you spoke one of the + greatest truths you ever uttered, if you confine the expression to men of + the same description with yourself; men living in indolence and luxury, on + the spoil and labours of the public. + </p> + <p> + The letter has since appeared in the "Argus," and probably in other + papers.(1) It will justify itself; but if any thing on that account hath + been wanting, your conduct at the meeting would have supplied the + omission. You there sufficiently proved that I was not mistaken in + supposing that the meeting was called to give an indirect aid to the + prosecution commenced against a work, the reputation of which will long + outlive the memory of the Pensioner I am writing to. + </p> + <p> + When meetings, Sir, are called by the partisans of the Court, to preclude + the nation the right of investigating systems and principles of + government, and of exposing errors and defects, under the pretence of + prosecuting an individual—it furnishes an additional motive for + maintaining sacred that violated right. + </p> + <p> + The principles and arguments contained in the work in question, <i>Rights + OF Man</i>, have stood, and they now stand, and I believe ever will stand, + unrefuted. They are stated in a fair and open manner to the world, and + they have already received the public approbation of a greater number of + men, of the best of characters, of every denomination of religion, and of + every rank in life, (placemen and pensioners excepted,) than all the + juries that shall meet in England, for ten years to come, will amount to; + and I have, moreover, good reasons for believing that the approvers of + that work, as well private as public, are already more numerous than all + the present electors throughout the nation. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The <i>Argus</i> was edited by Sampson Perry, soon after + prosecuted.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Not less than forty pamphlets, intended as answers thereto, have appeared, + and as suddenly disappeared: scarcely are the titles of any of them + remembered, notwithstanding their endeavours have been aided by all the + daily abuse which the Court and Ministerial newspapers, for almost a year + and a half, could bestow, both upon the work and the author; and now that + every attempt to refute, and every abuse has failed, the invention of + calling the work a libel has been hit upon, and the discomfited party has + pusillanimously retreated to prosecution and a jury, and obscure + addresses. + </p> + <p> + As I well know that a long letter from me will not be agreeable to you, I + will relieve your uneasiness by making it as short as I conveniently can; + and will conclude it with taking up the subject at that part where Mr. + HORNE TOOKE was interrupted from going on when at the meeting. + </p> + <p> + That gentleman was stating, that the situation you stood in rendered it + improper for you to appear <i>actively</i> in a scene in which your + private interest was too visible: that you were a Bedchamber Lord at a + thousand a year, and a Pensioner at three thousand pounds a year more—and + here he was stopped by the little but noisy circle you had collected + round. Permit me then, Sir, to add an explanation to his words, for the + benefit of your neighbours, and with which, and a few observations, I + shall close my letter. + </p> + <p> + When it was reported in the English Newspapers, some short time since, + that the empress of RUSSIA had given to one of her minions a large tract + of country and several thousands of peasants as property, it very justly + provoked indignation and abhorrence in those who heard it. But if we + compare the mode practised in England, with that which appears to us so + abhorrent in Russia, it will be found to amount to very near the same + thing;—for example— + </p> + <p> + As the whole of the revenue in England is drawn by taxes from the pockets + of the people, those things called gifts and grants (of which kind are all + pensions and sinecure places) are paid out of that stock. The difference, + therefore, between the two modes is, that in England the money is + collected by the government, and then given to the Pensioner, and in + Russia he is left to collect it for himself. The smallest sum which the + poorest family in a county so near London as Surry, can be supposed to pay + annually, of taxes, is not less than five pounds; and as your sinecure of + one thousand, and pension of three thousand per annum, are made up of + taxes paid by eight hundred such poor families, it comes to the same thing + as if the eight hundred families had been given to you, as in Russia, and + you had collected the money on your account. Were you to say that you are + not quartered particularly on the people of Surrey, but on the nation at + large, the objection would amount to nothing; for as there are more + pensioners than counties, every one may be considered as quartered on that + in which he lives. + </p> + <p> + What honour or happiness you can derive from being the PRINCIPAL PAUPER of + the neighbourhood, and occasioning a greater expence than the poor, the + aged, and the infirm, for ten miles round you, I leave you to enjoy. At + the same time I can see that it is no wonder you should be strenuous in + suppressing a book which strikes at the root of those abuses. No wonder + that you should be against reforms, against the freedom of the press, and + the right of investigation. To you, and to others of your description, + these are dreadful things; but you should also consider, that the motives + which prompt you to <i>act</i>, ought, by reflection, to compel you to be + <i>silent</i>. + </p> + <p> + Having now returned your compliment, and sufficiently tired your patience, + I take my leave of you, with mentioning, that if you had not prevented my + former letter from being read at the meeting, you would not have had the + trouble of reading this; and also with requesting, that the next time you + call me "<i>a common enemy</i>," you would add, "<i>of us sinecure + placemen and pensioners</i>." + </p> + <p> + I am, Sir, &c. &c. &c. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0008" id="link2H_4_0008"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + VII. TO THE SHERIFF OF THE COUNTY OF SUSSEX, + </h2> + <p> + OR, THE GENTLEMAN WHO SHALL PRESIDE AT THE MEETING TO BE HELD AT LEWES, + JULY 4. + </p> + <p> + London, June 30, 1792. + </p> + <p> + Sir, + </p> + <p> + I have seen in the Lewes newspapers, of June 25, an advertisement, signed + by sundry persons, and also by the sheriff, for holding a meeting at the + Town-hall of Lewes, for the purpose, as the advertisement states, of + presenting an Address on the late Proclamation for suppressing writings, + books, &c. And as I conceive that a certain publication of mine, + entitled "Rights of Man," in which, among other things, the enormous + increase of taxes, placemen, and pensioners, is shewn to be unnecessary + and oppressive, <i>is the particular writing alluded to in the said + publication</i>; I request the Sheriff, or in his absence, whoever shall + preside at the meeting, or any other person, to read this letter publicly + to the company who shall assemble in consequence of that advertisement. + </p> + <p> + Gentlemen—It is now upwards of eighteen years since I was a resident + inhabitant of the town of Lewes. My situation among you, as an officer of + the revenue, for more than six years, enabled me to see into the numerous + and various distresses which the weight of taxes even at that time of day + occasioned; and feeling, as I then did, and as it is natural for me to do, + for the hard condition of others, it is with pleasure I can declare, and + every person then under my survey, and now living, can witness, the + exceeding candour, and even tenderness, with which that part of the duty + that fell to my share was executed. The name of <i>Thomas Paine</i> is not + to be found in the records of the Lewes' justices, in any one act of + contention with, or severity of any kind whatever towards, the persons + whom he surveyed, either in the town, or in the country; of this, <i>Mr. + Fuller</i> and <i>Mr. Shelley</i>, who will probably attend the meeting, + can, if they please, give full testimony. It is, however, not in their + power to contradict it. + </p> + <p> + Having thus indulged myself in recollecting a place where I formerly had, + and even now have, many friends, rich and poor, and most probably some + enemies, I proceed to the more important purport of my letter. + </p> + <p> + Since my departure from Lewes, fortune or providence has thrown me into a + line of action, which my first setting out into life could not possibly + have suggested to me. + </p> + <p> + I have seen the fine and fertile country of America ravaged and deluged in + blood, and the taxes of England enormously increased and multiplied in + consequence thereof; and this, in a great measure, by the instigation of + the same class of placemen, pensioners, and Court dependants, who are now + promoting addresses throughout England, on the present <i>unintelligible</i> + Proclamation. + </p> + <p> + I have also seen a system of Government rise up in that country, free from + corruption, and now administered over an extent of territory ten times as + large as England, <i>for less expence than the pensions alone in England + amount to</i>; and under which more freedom is enjoyed, and a more happy + state of society is preserved, and a more general prosperity is promoted, + than under any other system of Government now existing in the world. + Knowing, as I do, the things I now declare, I should reproach myself with + want of duty and affection to mankind, were I not in the most undismayed + manner to publish them, as it were, on the house-tops, for the good of + others. + </p> + <p> + Having thus glanced at what has passed within my knowledge, since my + leaving Lewes, I come to the subject more immediately before the meeting + now present. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Edmund Burke, who, as I shall show, in a future publication, has lived + a concealed pensioner, at the expence of the public, of fifteen hundred + pounds per annum, for about ten years last past, published a book the + winter before last, in open violation of the principles of liberty, and + for which he was applauded by that class of men <i>who are now promoting + addresses</i>. Soon after his book appeared, I published the first part of + the work, entitled "Rights of Man," as an answer thereto, and had the + happiness of receiving the public thanks of several bodies of men, and of + numerous individuals of the best character, of every denomination in + religion, and of every rank in life—placemen and pensioners + excepted. + </p> + <p> + In February last, I published the Second Part of "Rights of Man," and as + it met with still greater approbation from the true friends of national + freedom, and went deeper into the system of Government, and exposed the + abuses of it, more than had been done in the First Part, it consequently + excited an alarm among all those, who, insensible of the burthen of taxes + which the general mass of the people sustain, are living in luxury and + indolence, and hunting after Court preferments, sinecure places, and + pensions, either for themselves, or for their family connections. + </p> + <p> + I have shewn in that work, that the taxes may be reduced at least <i>six + millions</i>, and even then the expences of Government in England would be + twenty times greater than they are in the country I have already spoken + of. That taxes may be entirely taken off from the poor, by remitting to + them in money at the rate of between <i>three and four pounds</i> per head + per annum, for the education and bringing up of the children of the poor + families, who are computed at one third of the whole nation, and <i>six + pounds</i> per annum to all poor persons, decayed tradesmen, or others, + from the age of fifty until sixty, and <i>ten pounds</i> per annum from + after sixty. And that in consequence of this allowance, to be paid out of + the surplus taxes, the poor-rates would become unnecessary, and that it is + better to apply the surplus taxes to these beneficent purposes, <i>than to + waste them on idle and profligate courtiers, placemen, and pensioners</i>. + </p> + <p> + These, gentlemen, are a part of the plans and principles contained in the + work, which this meeting is now called upon, in an indirect manner, to + vote an address against, and brand with the name of <i>wicked and + seditious</i>. But that the work may speak for itself, I request leave to + close this part of my letter with an extract therefrom, in the following + words: [<i>Quotation the same as that on p. 26</i>.] + </p> + <p> + Gentlemen, I have now stated to you such matters as appear necessary to me + to offer to the consideration of the meeting. I have no other interest in + what I am doing, nor in writing you this letter, than the interest of the + <i>heart</i>. I consider the proposed address as calculated to give + countenance to placemen, pensioners, enormous taxation, and corruption. + Many of you will recollect, that whilst I resided among you, there was not + a man more firm and open in supporting the principles of liberty than + myself, and I still pursue, and ever will, the same path. + </p> + <p> + I have, Gentlemen, only one request to make, which is—that those who + have called the meeting will speak <i>out</i>, and say, whether in the + address they are going to present against publications, which the + proclamation calls wicked, they mean the work entitled <i>Rights of Man</i>, + or whether they do not? + </p> + <p> + I am, Gentlemen, With sincere wishes for your happiness, + </p> + <p> + Your friend and Servant, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0009" id="link2H_4_0009"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + VIII. TO MR. SECRETARY DUNDAS. + </h2> + <h3> + Calais, Sept. 15, 1792. + </h3> + <p> + Sir, + </p> + <p> + I CONCEIVE it necessary to make you acquainted with the following + circumstance:—The department of Calais having elected me a member of + the National Convention of France, I set off from London the 13th instant, + in company with Mr. Frost, of Spring Garden, and Mr. Audibert, one of the + municipal officers of Calais, who brought me the certificate of my being + elected. We had not arrived more, I believe, than five minutes at the York + Hotel, at Dover, when the train of circumstances began that I am going to + relate. We had taken our baggage out of the carriage, and put it into a + room, into which we went. Mr. Frost, having occasion to go out, was + stopped in the passage by a gentleman, who told him he must return into + the room, which he did, and the gentleman came in with him, and shut the + door. I had remained in the room; Mr. Audibert was gone to inquire when + the packet was to sail. The gentleman then said, that he was collector of + the customs, and had an information against us, and must examine our + baggage for prohibited articles. He produced his commission as Collector. + Mr. Frost demanded to see the information, which the Collector refused to + shew, and continued to refuse, on every demand that we made. The Collector + then called in several other officers, and began first to search our + pockets. He took from Mr. Audibert, who was then returned into the room, + every thing he found in his pocket, and laid it on the table. He then + searched Mr. Frost in the same manner, (who, among other things, had the + keys of the trunks in his pocket,) and then did the same by me. Mr. Frost + wanting to go out, mentioned it, and was going towards the door; on which + the Collector placed himself against the door, and said, nobody should + depart the room. After the keys had been taken from Mr. Frost, (for I had + given him the keys of my trunks beforehand, for the purpose of his + attending the baggage to the customs, if it should be necessary,) the + Collector asked us to open the trunks, presenting us the keys for that + purpose; this we declined to do, unless he would produce his information, + which he again refused. The Collector then opened the trunks himself, and + took out every paper and letter, sealed or unsealed. On our remonstrating + with him on the bad policy, as well as the illegality, of Custom-House + officers seizing papers and letters, which were things that did not come + under their cognizance, he replied, that the <i>Proclamation</i> gave him + the authority. + </p> + <p> + Among the letters which he took out of my trunk, were two sealed letters, + given into my charge by the American Minister in London [Pinckney], one of + which was directed to the American Minister at Paris [Gouverneur Morris], + the other to a private gentleman; a letter from the President of the + United States, and a letter from the Secretary of State in America, both + directed to me, and which I had received from the American Minister, now + in London, and were private letters of friendship; a letter from the + electoral body of the Department of Calais, containing the notification of + my being elected to the National Convention; and a letter from the + President of the National Assembly, informing me of my being also elected + for the Department of the Oise. + </p> + <p> + As we found that all remonstrances with the Collector, on the bad policy + and illegality of seizing papers and letters, and retaining our persons by + force, under the pretence of searching for prohibited articles, were vain, + (for he justified himself on the Proclamation, and on the information + which he refused to shew,) we contented ourselves with assuring him, that + what he was then doing, he would afterwards have to answer for, and left + it to himself to do as he pleased. + </p> + <p> + It appeared to us that the Collector was acting under the direction of + some other person or persons, then in the hotel, but whom he did not + choose we should see, or who did not choose to be seen by us; for the + Collector went several times out of the room for a few minutes, and was + also called out several times. + </p> + <p> + When the Collector had taken what papers and letters he pleased out of the + trunks, he proceeded to read them. The first letter he took up for this + purpose was that from the President of the United States to me. While he + was doing this, I said, that it was very extraordinary that General + Washington could not write a letter of private friendship to me, without + its being subject to be read by a custom-house officer. Upon this Mr. + Frost laid his hand over the face of the letter, and told the Collector + that he should not read it, and took it from him. Mr. Frost then, casting + his eyes on the concluding paragraph of the letter, said, I will read this + part to you, which he did; of which the following is an exact transcript— + </p> + <p> + "And as no one can feel a greater interest in the happiness of mankind + than I do, it is the first wish of my heart, that the enlightened policy + of the present age may diffuse to all men those blessings to which they + are entitled, and lay the foundation of happiness for future + generations."(1) + </p> + <p> + As all the other letters and papers lay then on the table, the Collector + took them up, and was going out of the room with them. During the + transactions already stated, I contented myself with observing what + passed, and spoke but little; but on seeing the Collector going out of the + room with the letters, I told him that the papers and letters then in his + hand were either belonging to me, or entrusted to my charge, and that as I + could not permit them to be out of my sight, I must insist on going with + him. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Washington's letter is dated 6 May, 1792. See my <i>Life of + Paine</i> vol. i., p. 302.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + The Collector then made a list of the letters and papers, and went out of + the room, giving the letters and papers into the charge of one of the + officers. He returned in a short time, and, after some trifling + conversation, chiefly about the Proclamation, told us, that he saw <i>the + Proclamation was ill-founded</i>, and asked if we chose to put the letters + and papers into the trunks ourselves, which, as we had not taken them out, + we declined doing, and he did it himself, and returned us the keys. + </p> + <p> + In stating to you these matters, I make no complaint against the personal + conduct of the Collector, or of any of the officers. Their manner was as + civil as such an extraordinary piece of business could admit of. + </p> + <p> + My chief motive in writing to you on this subject is, that you may take + measures for preventing the like in future, not only as it concerns + private individuals, but in order to prevent a renewal of those unpleasant + consequences that have heretofore arisen between nations from + circumstances equally as insignificant. I mention this only for myself; + but as the interruption extended to two other gentlemen, it is probable + that they, as individuals, will take some more effectual mode for redress. + </p> + <p> + I am, Sir, yours, &c. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + P. S. Among the papers seized, was a copy of the Attorney-General's + information against me for publishing the <i>Rights of Man</i>, and a + printed proof copy of my Letter to the Addressers, which will soon be + published. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0010" id="link2H_4_0010"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + IX. LETTER ADDRESSED TO THE ADDRESSERS ON THE LATE PROCLAMATION.(1) + </h2> + <p> + COULD I have commanded circumstances with a wish, I know not of any that + would have more generally promoted the progress of knowledge, than the + late Proclamation, and the numerous rotten Borough and Corporation + Addresses thereon. They have not only served as advertisements, but they + have excited a spirit of enquiry into principles of government, and a + desire to read the Rights OF Man, in places where that spirit and that + work were before unknown. + </p> + <p> + The people of England, wearied and stunned with parties, and alternately + deceived by each, had almost resigned the prerogative of thinking. Even + curiosity had expired, and a universal languor had spread itself over the + land. The opposition was visibly no other than a contest for power, whilst + the mass of the nation stood torpidly by as the prize. + </p> + <p> + In this hopeless state of things, the First Part of the Rights of Man made + its appearance. It had to combat with a strange mixture of prejudice and + indifference; it stood exposed to every species of newspaper abuse; and + besides this, it had to remove the obstructions which Mr. Burke's rude and + outrageous attack on the French Revolution had artfully raised. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The Royal Proclamation issued against seditious writings, + May 21st. This pamphlet, the proof of which was read in + Paris (see P. S. of preceding chapter), was published at 1s. + 6d. by H. D. Symonds, Paternoster Row, and Thomas Clio + Rickman, 7 Upper Marylebone Street (where it was written), + both pub-Ushers being soon after prosecuted.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But how easy does even the most illiterate reader distinguish the + spontaneous sensations of the heart, from the laboured productions of the + brain. Truth, whenever it can fully appear, is a thing so naturally + familiar to the mind, that an acquaintance commences at first sight. No + artificial light, yet discovered, can display all the properties of + daylight; so neither can the best invented fiction fill the mind with + every conviction which truth begets. + </p> + <p> + To overthrow Mr. Burke's fallacious book was scarcely the operation of a + day. Even the phalanx of Placemen and Pensioners, who had given the tone + to the multitude, by clamouring forth his political fame, became suddenly + silent; and the final event to himself has been, that as he rose like a + rocket, he fell like the stick. + </p> + <p> + It seldom happens, that the mind rests satisfied with the simple detection + of error or imposition. Once put in motion, <i>that</i> motion soon + becomes accelerated; where it had intended to stop, it discovers new + reasons to proceed, and renews and continues the pursuit far beyond the + limits it first prescribed to itself. Thus it has happened to the people + of England. From a detection of Mr. Burke's incoherent rhapsodies, and + distorted facts, they began an enquiry into the first principles of + Government, whilst himself, like an object left far behind, became + invisible and forgotten. + </p> + <p> + Much as the First Part of RIGHTS OF Man impressed at its first appearance, + the progressive mind soon discovered that it did not go far enough. It + detected errors; it exposed absurdities; it shook the fabric of political + superstition; it generated new ideas; but it did not produce a regular + system of principles in the room of those which it displaced. And, if I + may guess at the mind of the Government-party, they beheld it as an + unexpected gale that would soon blow over, and they forbore, like sailors + in threatening weather, to whistle, lest they should encrease(sic) the + wind. Every thing, on their part, was profound silence. + </p> + <p> + When the Second Part of <i>Rights of Man, combining Principle and Practice</i>, + was preparing to appear, they affected, for a while, to act with the same + policy as before; but finding their silence had no more influence in + stifling the progress of the work, than it would have in stopping the + progress of time, they changed their plan, and affected to treat it with + clamorous contempt. The Speech-making Placemen and Pensioners, and + Place-expectants, in both Houses of Parliament, the <i>Outs</i> as well as + the <i>Ins</i>, represented it as a silly, insignificant performance; as a + work incapable of producing any effect; as something which they were sure + the good sense of the people would either despise or indignantly spurn; + but such was the overstrained awkwardness with which they harangued and + encouraged each other, that in the very act of declaring their confidence + they betrayed their fears. + </p> + <p> + As most of the rotten Borough Addressers are obscured in holes and corners + throughout the country, and to whom a newspaper arrives as rarely as an + almanac, they most probably have not had the opportunity of knowing how + far this part of the farce (the original prelude to all the Addresses) has + been acted. For <i>their</i> information, I will suspend a while the more + serious purpose of my Letter, and entertain them with two or three + Speeches in the last Session of Parliament, which will serve them for + politics till Parliament meets again. + </p> + <p> + You must know, Gentlemen, that the Second Part of the Rights of Man (the + book against which you have been presenting Addresses, though it is most + probable that many of you did not know it) was to have come out precisely + at the time that Parliament last met. It happened not to be published till + a few days after. But as it was very well known that the book would + shortly appear, the parliamentary Orators entered into a very cordial + coalition to cry the book down, and they began their attack by crying up + the <i>blessings</i> of the Constitution. + </p> + <p> + Had it been your fate to have been there, you could not but have been + moved at the heart-and-pocket-felt congratulations that passed between all + the parties on this subject of <i>blessings</i>; for the <i>Outs</i> enjoy + places and pensions and sinecures as well as the <i>Ins</i>, and are as + devoutly attached to the firm of the house. + </p> + <p> + One of the most conspicuous of this motley groupe, is the Clerk of the + Court of King's Bench, who calls himself Lord Stormont. He is also called + Justice General of Scotland, and Keeper of Scoon, (an opposition man,) and + he draws from the public for these nominal offices, not less, as I am + informed, than six thousand pounds a-year, and he is, most probably, at + the trouble of counting the money, and signing a receipt, to shew, + perhaps, that he is qualified to be Clerk as well as Justice. He spoke as + follows.(*) + </p> + <p> + "That we shall all be unanimous in expressing our attachment to the + constitution of these realms, I am confident. It is a subject upon which + there can be no divided opinion in this house. I do not pretend to be deep + read in the knowledge of the Constitution, but I take upon me to say, that + from the extent of my knowledge [<i>for I have so many thousands a year + for nothing</i>] it appears to me, that from the period of the Revolution, + for it was by no means created then, it has been, both in theory and + practice, the wisest system that ever was formed. I never was [he means he + never was till now] a dealer in political cant. My life has not been + occupied in that way, but the speculations of late years seem to have + taken a turn, for which I cannot account. When I came into public life, + the political pamphlets of the time, however they might be charged with + the heat and violence of parties, were agreed in extolling the radical + beauties of the Constitution itself. I remember [<i>he means he has + forgotten</i>] a most captivating eulogium on its charms, by Lord + Bolingbroke, where he recommends his readers to contemplate it in all its + aspects, with the assurance that it would be found more estimable the more + it was seen, I do not recollect his precise words, but I wish that men who + write upon these subjects would take this for their model, instead of the + political pamphlets, which, I am told, are now in circulation, [<i>such, I + suppose, as Rights of Man,</i>] pamphlets which I have not read, and whose + purport I know only by report, [<i>he means, perhaps, by the noise they + make</i>.] This, however, I am sure, that pamphlets tending to unsettle + the public reverence for the constitution, will have very little + influence. They can do very little harm—for [<i>by the bye, he is no + dealer in political cant</i>] the English are a sober-thinking people, and + are more intelligent, more solid, more steady in their opinions, than any + people I ever had the fortune to see. [<i>This is pretty well laid on, + though, for a new beginner</i>.] But if there should ever come a time when + the propagation of those doctrines should agitate the public mind, I am + sure for every one of your Lordships, that no attack will be made on the + constitution, from which it is truly said that we derive all our + prosperity, without raising every one of your Lordships to its support It + will then be found that there is no difference among us, but that we are + all determined to stand or fall together, in defence of the inestimable + system "—[<i>of places and pensions</i>]. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * See his speech in the Morning Chronicle of Feb. 1.— + Author. +</pre> + <p> + After Stormont, on the opposition side, sat down, up rose another noble + Lord, on the ministerial side, Grenville. This man ought to be as strong + in the back as a mule, or the sire of a mule, or it would crack with the + weight of places and offices. He rose, however, without feeling any + incumbrance, full master of his weight; and thus said this noble Lord to + t'other noble Lord! + </p> + <p> + "The patriotic and manly manner in which the noble Lord has declared his + sentiments on the subject of the constitution, demands my cordial + approbation. The noble Viscount has proved, that however we may differ on + particular measures, amidst all the jars and dissonance of parties, we are + unanimous in principle. There is a perfect and entire consent [<i>between + us</i>] in the love and maintenance of the constitution as happily + subsisting. It must undoubtedly give your Lordships concern, to find that + the time is come [heigh ho!] when there is propriety in the expressions of + regard to [o! o! o!] the constitution. And that there are men [confound—their—po-li-tics] + who disseminate doctrines hostile to the genuine spirit of our well + balanced system, [<i>it is certainly well balanced when both sides hold + places and pensions at once.</i>] I agree with the noble viscount that + they have not [I hope] much success. I am convinced that there is no + danger to be apprehended from their attempts: but it is truly important + and consolatory [to us placemen, I suppose] to know, that if ever there + should arise a serious alarm, there is but one spirit, one sense, [<i>and + that sense I presume is not common sense</i>] and one determination in + this house "—which undoubtedly is to hold all their places and + pensions as long as they can. + </p> + <p> + Both those speeches (except the parts enclosed in parenthesis, which are + added for the purpose of illustration) are copied verbatim from the + Morning Chronicle of the 1st of February last; and when the situation of + the speakers is considered, the one in the opposition, and the other in + the ministry, and both of them living at the public expence, by sinecure, + or nominal places and offices, it required a very unblushing front to be + able to deliver them. Can those men seriously suppose any nation to be so + completely blind as not to see through them? Can Stormont imagine that the + political <i>cant</i>, with which he has larded his harangue, will conceal + the craft? Does he not know that there never was a cover large enough to + hide <i>itself</i>? Or can Grenvilie believe that his credit with the + public encreases with his avarice for places? + </p> + <p> + But, if these orators will accept a service from me, in return for the + allusions they have made to the <i>Rights of Man</i>, I will make a speech + for either of them to deliver, on the excellence of the constitution, that + shall be as much to the purpose as what they have spoken, or as <i>Bolingbroke's + captivating eulogium</i>. Here it is. + </p> + <p> + "That we shall all be unanimous in expressing our attachment to the + constitution, I am confident. It is, my Lords, incomprehensibly good: but + the great wonder of all is the wisdom; for it is, my lords, <i>the wisest + system that ever was formed</i>. + </p> + <p> + "With respect to us, noble Lords, though the world does not know it, it is + very well known to us, that we have more wisdom than we know what to do + with; and what is still better, my Lords, we have it all in stock. I defy + your Lordships to prove, that a tittle of it has been used yet; and if we + but go on, my Lords, with the frugality we have hitherto done, we shall + leave to our heirs and successors, when we go out of the world, the whole + stock of wisdom, <i>untouched</i>, that we brought in; and there is no + doubt but they will follow our example. This, my lords, is one of the + blessed effects of the hereditary system; for we can never be without + wisdom so long as we keep it by us, and do not use it. + </p> + <p> + "But, my Lords, as all this wisdom is hereditary property, for the sole + benefit of us and our heirs, and it is necessary that the people should + know where to get a supply for their own use, the excellence of our + constitution has provided us a King for this very purpose, and for <i>no + other</i>. But, my Lords, I perceive a defect to which the constitution is + subject, and which I propose to remedy by bringing a bill into Parliament + for that purpose. + </p> + <p> + "The constitution, my Lords, out of delicacy, I presume, has left it as a + matter of <i>choice</i> to a King whether he will be wise or not. It has + not, I mean, my Lords, insisted upon it as a constitutional point, which, + I conceive it ought to have done; for I pledge myself to your Lordships to + prove, and that with <i>true patriotic boldness</i>, that he has <i>no + choice in the matter</i>. This bill, my Lords, which I shall bring in, + will be to declare, that the constitution, according to the true intent + and meaning thereof, does not invest the King with this choice; our + ancestors were too wise to do that; and, in order to prevent any doubts + that might otherwise arise, I shall prepare, my Lords, an enacting clause, + to fix the wisdom of Kings by act of Parliament; and then, my Lords our + Constitution will be the wonder of the world! + </p> + <p> + "Wisdom, my lords, is the one thing needful: but that there may be no + mistake in this matter, and that we may proceed consistently with the true + wisdom of the constitution, I shall propose a <i>certain criterion</i> + whereby the <i>exact quantity of wisdom</i> necessary for a King may be + known. [Here should be a cry of, Hear him! Hear him!] + </p> + <p> + "It is recorded, my Lords, in the Statutes at Large of the Jews, 'a book, + my Lords, which I have not read, and whose purport I know only by report,' + <i>but perhaps the bench of Bishops can recollect something about it</i>, + that Saul gave the most convincing proofs of royal wisdom before he was + made a King, <i>for he was sent to seek his father's asses and he could + not find them</i>. + </p> + <p> + "Here, my Lords, we have, most happily for us, a case in point: This + precedent ought to be established by act of Parliament; and every King, + before he be crowned, should be sent to seek his father's asses, and if he + cannot find them, he shall be declared wise enough to be King, according + to the true meaning of our excellent constitution. All, therefore, my + Lords, that will be necessary to be done by the enacting clause that I + shall bring in, will be to invest the King beforehand with the quantity of + wisdom necessary for this purpose, lest he should happen not to possess + it; and this, my Lords, we can do without making use of any of our own. + </p> + <p> + "We further read, my Lords, in the said Statutes at Large of the Jews, + that Samuel, who certainly was as mad as any Man-of-Rights-Man now-a-days + (hear him! hear him!), was highly displeased, and even exasperated, at the + proposal of the Jews to have a King, and he warned them against it with + all that assurance and impudence of which he was master. I have been, my + Lords, at the trouble of going all the way to <i>Paternoster-row</i>, to + procure an extract from the printed copy. I was told that I should meet + with it there, or in <i>Amen-eorner</i>, for I was then going, my Lords, + to rummage for it among the curiosities of the <i>Antiquarian Society</i>. + I will read the extracts to your Lordships, to shew how little Samuel knew + of the matter. + </p> + <p> + "The extract, my Lords, is from 1 Sam. chap. viii.: + </p> + <p> + "'And Samuel told all the words of the Lord unto the people that asked of + him a King. + </p> + <p> + "'And he said, this will be the manner of the King that shall reign over + you: he will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his + chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots. + </p> + <p> + "'And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over + fifties, and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and + to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots. + </p> + <p> + "'And he will take your daughters to be confectionnes, and to be cooks, + and to be bakers. + </p> + <p> + "'And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your olive-yards, + even the best of them, and give them to his servants. + </p> + <p> + "'And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give + to his officers and to his servants. + </p> + <p> + "'And he will take your men-servants, and your maid-servants, and your + goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work. + </p> + <p> + "'And he will take the tenth of your sheep, and ye shall be his servants. + </p> + <p> + "'And ye shall cry out in that day, because of your King, which ye shall + have chosen you; and the Lord will not hear you in that day.' + </p> + <p> + "Now, my Lords, what can we think of this man Samuel? Is there a word of + truth, or any thing like truth, in all that he has said? He pretended to + be a prophet, or a wise man, but has not the event proved him to be a + fool, or an incendiary? Look around, my Lords, and see if any thing has + happened that he pretended to foretell! Has not the most profound peace + reigned throughout the world ever since Kings were in fashion? Are not, + for example, the present Kings of Europe the most peaceable of mankind, + and the Empress of Russia the very milk of human kindness? It would not be + worth having Kings, my Lords, if it were not that they never go to war. + </p> + <p> + "If we look at home, my Lords, do we not see the same things here as are + seen every where else? Are our young men taken to be horsemen, or foot + soldiers, any more than in Germany or in Prussia, or in Hanover or in + Hesse? Are not our sailors as safe at land as at sea? Are they ever + dragged from their homes, like oxen to the slaughter-house, to serve on + board ships of war? When they return from the perils of a long voyage with + the merchandize of distant countries, does not every man sit down under + his own vine and his own fig-tree, in perfect security? Is the tenth of + our seed taken by tax-gatherers, or is any part of it given to the King's + servants? In short, <i>is not everything as free from taxes as the light + from Heaven!</i> (1) + </p> + <p> + "Ah! my Lords, do we not see the blessed effect of having Kings in every + thing we look at? Is not the G. R., or the broad R., stampt upon every + thing? Even the shoes, the gloves, and the hats that we wear, are enriched + with the impression, and all our candles blaze a burnt-offering. + </p> + <p> + "Besides these blessings, my Lords, that cover us from the sole of the + foot to the crown of the head, do we not see a race of youths growing up + to be Kings, who are the very paragons of virtue? There is not one of + them, my Lords, but might be trusted with untold gold, as safely as the + other. Are they not '<i>more sober, intelligent, more solid, more steady</i>,' + and withal, <i>more learned, more wise, more every thing, than any youths + we '</i>ever had the fortune to see.' Ah! my Lords, they are a <i>hopeful + family</i>. + </p> + <p> + "The blessed prospect of succession, which the nation has at this moment + before its eyes, is a most undeniable proof of the excellence of our + constitution, and of the blessed hereditary system; for nothing, my Lords, + but a constitution founded on the truest and purest wisdom could admit + such heaven-born and heaven-taught characters into the government.—Permit + me now, my Lords, to recal your attention to the libellous chapter I have + just read about Kings. I mention this, my Lords, because it is my + intention to move for a bill to be brought into parliament to expunge that + chapter from the Bible, and that the Lord Chancellor, with the assistance + of the Prince of Wales, the Duke of York, and the Duke of Clarence, be + requested to write a chapter in the room of it; and that Mr. Burke do see + that it be truly canonical, and faithfully inserted."—Finis. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Allusion to the window-tax.—Editor, +</pre> + <p> + If the Clerk of the Court of King's Bench should chuse to be the orator of + this luminous encomium on the constitution, I hope he will get it well by + heart before he attempts to deliver it, and not have to apologize to + Parliament, as he did in the case of Bolingbroke's encomium, for + forgetting his lesson; and, with this admonition I leave him. + </p> + <p> + Having thus informed the Addressers of what passed at the meeting of + Parliament, I return to take up the subject at the part where I broke off + in order to introduce the preceding speeches. + </p> + <p> + I was then stating, that the first policy of the Government party was + silence, and the next, clamorous contempt; but as people generally choose + to read and judge for themselves, the work still went on, and the + affectation of contempt, like the silence that preceded it, passed for + nothing. + </p> + <p> + Thus foiled in their second scheme, their evil genius, like a + will-with-a-wisp, led them to a third; when all at once, as if it had been + unfolded to them by a fortune-teller, or Mr. Dundas had discovered it by + second sight, this once harmless, insignificant book, without undergoing + the alteration of a single letter, became a most wicked and dangerous + Libel. The whole Cabinet, like a ship's crew, became alarmed; all hands + were piped upon deck, as if a conspiracy of elements was forming around + them, and out came the Proclamation and the Prosecution; and Addresses + supplied the place of prayers. + </p> + <p> + Ye silly swains, thought I to myself, why do you torment yourselves thus? + The Rights OF Man is a book calmly and rationally written; why then are + you so disturbed? Did you see how little or how suspicious such conduct + makes you appear, even cunning alone, had you no other faculty, would hush + you into prudence. The plans, principles, and arguments, contained in that + work, are placed before the eyes of the nation, and of the world, in a + fair, open, and manly manner, and nothing more is necessary than to refute + them. Do this, and the whole is done; but if ye cannot, so neither can ye + suppress the reading, nor convict the author; for the Law, in the opinion + of all good men, would convict itself, that should condemn what cannot be + refuted. + </p> + <p> + Having now shown the Addressers the several stages of the business, prior + to their being called upon, like Cæsar in the Tyber, crying to Cassius, "<i>help, + Cassius, or I sink</i>!" I next come to remark on the policy of the + Government, in promoting Addresses; on the consequences naturally + resulting therefrom; and on the conduct of the persons concerned. + </p> + <p> + With respect to the policy, it evidently carries with it every mark and + feature of disguised fear. And it will hereafter be placed in the history + of extraordinary things, that a pamphlet should be produced by an + individual, unconnected with any sect or party, and not seeking to make + any, and almost a stranger in the land, that should compleatly frighten a + whole Government, and that in the midst of its most triumphant security. + Such a circumstance cannot fail to prove, that either the pamphlet has + irresistible powers, or the Government very extraordinary defects, or + both. The nation exhibits no signs of fear at the Rights of Man; why then + should the Government, unless the interest of the two are really opposite + to each other, and the secret is beginning to be known? That there are two + distinct classes of men in the nation, those who pay taxes, and those who + receive and live upon the taxes, is evident at first sight; and when + taxation is carried to excess, it cannot fail to disunite those two, and + something of this kind is now beginning to appear. + </p> + <p> + It is also curious to observe, amidst all the fume and bustle about + Proclamations and Addresses, kept up by a few noisy and interested men, + how little the mass of the nation seem to care about either. They appear + to me, by the indifference they shew, not to believe a word the + Proclamation contains; and as to the Addresses, they travel to London with + the silence of a funeral, and having announced their arrival in the + Gazette, are deposited with the ashes of their predecessors, and Mr. + Dundas writes their <i>hic facet</i>. + </p> + <p> + One of the best effects which the Proclamation, and its echo the Addresses + have had, has been that of exciting and spreading curiosity; and it + requires only a single reflection to discover, that the object of all + curiosity is knowledge. When the mass of the nation saw that Placemen, + Pensioners, and Borough-mongers, were the persons that stood forward to + promote Addresses, it could not fail to create suspicions that the public + good was not their object; that the character of the books, or writings, + to which such persons obscurely alluded, not daring to mention them, was + directly contrary to what they described them to be, and that it was + necessary that every man, for his own satisfaction, should exercise his + proper right, and read and judge for himself. + </p> + <p> + But how will the persons who have been induced to read the <i>Rights of + Man</i>, by the clamour that has been raised against it, be surprized to + find, that, instead of a wicked, inflammatory work, instead of a + licencious and profligate performance, it abounds with principles of + government that are uncontrovertible—with arguments which every + reader will feel, are unanswerable—with plans for the increase of + commerce and manufactures—for the extinction of war—for the + education of the children of the poor—for the comfortable support of + the aged and decayed persons of both sexes—for the relief of the + army and navy, and, in short, for the promotion of every thing that can + benefit the moral, civil, and political condition of Man. + </p> + <p> + Why, then, some calm observer will ask, why is the work prosecuted, if + these be the goodly matters it contains? I will tell thee, friend; it + contains also a plan for the reduction of Taxes, for lessening the immense + expences of Government, for abolishing sinecure Places and Pensions; and + it proposes applying the redundant taxes, that shall be saved by these + reforms, to the purposes mentioned in the former paragraph, instead of + applying them to the support of idle and profligate Placemen and + Pensioners. + </p> + <p> + Is it, then, any wonder that Placemen and Pensioners, and the whole train + of Court expectants, should become the promoters of Addresses, + Proclamations, and Prosecutions? or, is it any wonder that Corporations + and rotten Boroughs, which are attacked and exposed, both in the First and + Second Parts of <i>Rights of Man</i>, as unjust monopolies and public + nuisances, should join in the cavalcade? Yet these are the sources from + which Addresses have sprung. Had not such persons come forward to oppose + the <i>Rights of Man</i>, I should have doubted the efficacy of my own + writings: but those opposers have now proved to me that the blow was well + directed, and they have done it justice by confessing the smart. + </p> + <p> + The principal deception in this business of Addresses has been, that the + promoters of them have not come forward in their proper characters. They + have assumed to pass themselves upon the public as a part of the Public, + bearing a share of the burthen of Taxes, and acting for the public good; + whereas, they are in general that part of it that adds to the public + burthen, by living on the produce of the public taxes. They are to the + public what the locusts are to the tree: the burthen would be less, and + the prosperity would be greater, if they were shaken off. + </p> + <p> + "I do not come here," said Onslow, at the Surry County meeting, "as the + Lord Lieutenant and Custos Rotulorum of the county, but I come here as a + plain country gentleman." The fact is, that he came there as what he was, + and as no other, and consequently he came as one of the beings I have been + describing. If it be the character of a gentleman to be fed by the public, + as a pauper is by the parish, Onslow has a fair claim to the title; and + the same description will suit the Duke of Richmond, who led the Address + at the Sussex meeting. He also may set up for a gentleman. + </p> + <p> + As to the meeting in the next adjoining county (Kent), it was a scene of + disgrace. About two hundred persons met, when a small part of them drew + privately away from the rest, and voted an Address: the consequence of + which was that they got together by the ears, and produced a riot in the + very act of producing an Address to prevent Riots. + </p> + <p> + That the Proclamation and the Addresses have failed of their intended + effect, may be collected from the silence which the Government party + itself observes. The number of addresses has been weekly retailed in the + Gazette; but the number of Addressers has been concealed. Several of the + Addresses have been voted by not more than ten or twelve persons; and a + considerable number of them by not more than thirty. The whole number of + Addresses presented at the time of writing this letter is three hundred + and twenty, (rotten Boroughs and Corporations included) and even + admitting, on an average, one hundred Addressers to each address, the + whole number of addressers would be but thirty-two thousand, and nearly + three months have been taken up in procuring this number. That the success + of the Proclamation has been less than the success of the work it was + intended to discourage, is a matter within my own knowledge; for a greater + number of the cheap edition of the First and Second Parts of the Rights OF + Man has been sold in the space only of one month, than the whole number of + Addressers (admitting them to be thirty-two thousand) have amounted to in + three months. + </p> + <p> + It is a dangerous attempt in any government to say to a Nation, "<i>thou + shalt not read</i>." This is now done in Spain, and was formerly done + under the old Government of France; but it served to procure the downfall + of the latter, and is subverting that of the former; and it will have the + same tendency in all countries; because <i>thought</i> by some means or + other, is got abroad in the world, and cannot be restrained, though + reading may. + </p> + <p> + If <i>Rights of Man</i> were a book that deserved the vile description + which the promoters of the Address have given of it, why did not these men + prove their charge, and satisfy the people, by producing it, and reading + it publicly? This most certainly ought to have been done, and would also + have been done, had they believed it would have answered their purpose. + But the fact is, that the book contains truths which those time-servers + dreaded to hear, and dreaded that the people should know; and it is now + following up the, + </p> + <p> + ADDRESS TO ADDRESSERS. + </p> + <p> + Addresses in every part of the nation, and convicting them of falsehoods. + </p> + <p> + Among the unwarrantable proceedings to which the Proclamation has given + rise, the meetings of the Justices in several of the towns and counties + ought to be noticed.. Those men have assumed to re-act the farce of + General Warrants, and to suppress, by their own authority, whatever + publications they please. This is an attempt at power equalled only by the + conduct of the minor despots of the most despotic governments in Europe, + and yet those Justices affect to call England a Free Country. But even + this, perhaps, like the scheme for garrisoning the country by building + military barracks, is necessary to awaken the country to a sense of its + Rights, and, as such, it will have a good effect. + </p> + <p> + Another part of the conduct of such Justices has been, that of threatening + to take away the licences from taverns and public-houses, where the + inhabitants of the neighbourhood associated to read and discuss the + principles of Government, and to inform each other thereon. This, again, + is similar to what is doing in Spain and Russia; and the reflection which + it cannot fail to suggest is, that the principles and conduct of any + Government must be bad, when that Government dreads and startles at + discussion, and seeks security by a prevention of knowledge. + </p> + <p> + If the Government, or the Constitution, or by whatever name it be called, + be that miracle of perfection which the Proclamation and the Addresses + have trumpeted it forth to be, it ought to have defied discussion and + investigation, instead of dreading it. Whereas, every attempt it makes, + either by Proclamation, Prosecution, or Address, to suppress + investigation, is a confession that it feels itself unable to bear it. It + is error only, and not truth, that shrinks from enquiry. All the numerous + pamphlets, and all the newspaper falsehood and abuse, that have been + published against the Rights of Man, have fallen before it like pointless + arrows; and, in like manner, would any work have fallen before the + Constitution, had the Constitution, as it is called, been founded on as + good political principles as those on which the Rights OF Man is written. + </p> + <p> + It is a good Constitution for courtiers, placemen, pensioners, + borough-holders, and the leaders of Parties, and these are the men that + have been the active leaders of Addresses; but it is a bad Constitution + for at least ninety-nine parts of the nation out of an hundred, and this + truth is every day making its way. + </p> + <p> + It is bad, first, because it entails upon the nation the unnecessary + expence of supporting three forms and systems of Government at once, + namely, the monarchical, the aristocratical, and the democratical. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, because it is impossible to unite such a discordant composition + by any other means than perpetual corruption; and therefore the corruption + so loudly and so universally complained of, is no other than the natural + consequence of such an unnatural compound of Governments; and in this + consists that excellence which the numerous herd of placemen and + pensioners so loudly extol, and which at the same time, occasions that + enormous load of taxes under which the rest of the nation groans. + </p> + <p> + Among the mass of national delusions calculated to amuse and impose upon + the multitude, the standing one has been that of flattering them into + taxes, by calling the Government (or as they please to express it, the + English Constitution) "<i>the envy and the admiration of the world</i>" + Scarcely an Address has been voted in which some of the speakers have not + uttered this hackneyed nonsensical falsehood. + </p> + <p> + Two Revolutions have taken place, those of America and France; and both of + them have rejected the unnatural compounded system of the English + government. America has declared against all hereditary Government, and + established the representative system of Government only. France has + entirely rejected the aristocratical part, and is now discovering the + absurdity of the monarchical, and is approaching fast to the + representative system. On what ground then, do these men continue a + declaration, respecting what they call the <i>envy and admiration of other + nations</i>, which the voluntary practice of such nations, as have had the + opportunity of establishing Government, contradicts and falsifies. Will + such men never confine themselves to truth? Will they be for ever the + deceivers of the people? + </p> + <p> + But I will go further, and shew, that were Government now to begin in + England, the people could not be brought to establish the same system they + now submit to. + </p> + <p> + In speaking on this subject (or on any other) <i>on the pure ground of + principle</i>, antiquity and precedent cease to be authority, and + hoary-headed error loses its effect. The reasonableness and propriety of + things must be examined abstractedly from custom and usage; and, in this + point of view, the right which grows into practice to-day is as much a + right, and as old in principle and theory, as if it had the customary + sanction of a thousand ages. Principles have no connection with time, nor + characters with names. + </p> + <p> + To say that the Government of this country is composed of King, Lords, and + Commons, is the mere phraseology of custom. It is composed of men; and + whoever the men be to whom the Government of any country is intrusted, + they ought to be the best and wisest that can be found, and if they are + not so, they are not fit for the station. A man derives no more excellence + from the change of a name, or calling him King, or calling him Lord, than + I should do by changing my name from Thomas to George, or from Paine to + Guelph. I should not be a whit more able to write a book because my name + was altered; neither would any man, now called a King or a lord, have a + whit the more sense than he now has, were he to call himself Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + As to the word "Commons," applied as it is in England, it is a term of + degradation and reproach, and ought to be abolished. It is a term unknown + in free countries. + </p> + <p> + But to the point.—Let us suppose that Government was now to begin in + England, and that the plan of Government, offered to the nation for its + approbation or rejection, consisted of the following parts: + </p> + <p> + First—That some one individual should be taken from all the rest of + the nation, and to whom all the rest should swear obedience, and never be + permitted to sit down in his presence, and that they should give to him + one million sterling a year.—That the nation should never after have + power or authority to make laws but with his express consent; and that his + sons and his sons' sons, whether wise or foolish, good men or bad, fit or + unfit, should have the same power, and also the same money annually paid + to them for ever. + </p> + <p> + Secondly—That there should be two houses of Legislators to assist in + making laws, one of which should, in the first instance, be entirely + appointed by the aforesaid person, and that their sons and their sons' + sons, whether wise or foolish, good men or bad, fit or unfit, should for + ever after be hereditary Legislators. + </p> + <p> + Thirdly—That the other house should be chosen in the same manner as + the house now called the House of Commons is chosen, and should be subject + to the controul of the two aforesaid hereditary Powers in all things. + </p> + <p> + It would be impossible to cram such a farrago of imposition and absurdity + down the throat of this or any other nation that was capable of reasoning + upon its rights and its interest. + </p> + <p> + They would ask, in the first place, on what ground of right, or on what + principle, such irrational and preposterous distinctions could, or ought + to be made; and what pretensions any man could have, or what services he + could render, to entitle him to a million a year? They would go farther, + and revolt at the idea of consigning their children, and their children's + children, to the domination of persons hereafter to be born, who might, + for any thing they could foresee, turn out to be knaves or fools; and they + would finally discover, that the project of hereditary Governors and + Legislators <i>was a treasonable usurpation over the rights of posterity</i>. + Not only the calm dictates of reason, and the force of natural affection, + but the integrity of manly pride, would impel men to spurn such proposals. + </p> + <p> + From the grosser absurdities of such a scheme, they would extend their + examination to the practical defects—They would soon see that it + would end in tyranny accomplished by fraud. That in the operation of it, + it would be two to one against them, because the two parts that were to be + made hereditary would form a common interest, and stick to each other; and + that themselves and representatives would become no better than hewers of + wood and drawers of water for the other parts of the Government.—Yet + call one of those powers King, the other Lords, and the third the Commons, + and it gives the model of what is called the English Government. + </p> + <p> + I have asserted, and have shewn, both in the First and Second Parts of <i>Rights + of Man</i>, that there is not such a thing as an English Constitution, and + that the people have yet a Constitution to form. <i>A Constitution is a + thing antecedent to a Government; it is the act of a people creating a + Government and giving it powers, and defining the limits and exercise of + the powers so given</i>. But whenever did the people of England, acting in + their original constituent character, by a delegation elected for that + express purpose, declare and say, "We, the people of this land, do + constitute and appoint this to be our system and form of Government." The + Government has assumed to constitute itself, but it never was constituted + by the people, in whom alone the right of constituting resides. + </p> + <p> + I will here recite the preamble to the Federal Constitution of the United + States of America. I have shewn in the Second Part of <i>Rights of Man</i>, + the manner by which the Constitution was formed and afterwards ratified; + and to which I refer the reader. The preamble is in the following words: + </p> + <p> + "We, the people, of the United States, in order to form a more perfect + union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for common + defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty + to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution + for the United States of America." + </p> + <p> + Then follow the several articles which appoint the manner in which the + several component parts of the Government, legislative and executive, + shall be elected, and the period of their duration, and the powers they + shall have: also, the manner by which future additions, alterations, or + amendments, shall be made to the constitution. Consequently, every + improvement that can be made in the science of government, follows in that + country as a matter of order. It is only in Governments founded on + assumption and false principles, that reasoning upon, and investigating + systems and principles of Government, and shewing their several + excellencies and defects, are termed libellous and seditious. These terms + were made part of the charge brought against Locke, Hampden, and Sydney, + and will continue to be brought against all good men, so long as bad + government shall continue. + </p> + <p> + The Government of this country has been ostentatiously giving challenges + for more than an hundred years past, upon what it called its own + excellence and perfection. Scarcely a King's Speech, or a Parliamentary + Speech, has been uttered, in which this glove has not been thrown, till + the world has been insulted with their challenges. But it now appears that + all this was vapour and vain boasting, or that it was intended to conceal + abuses and defects, and hush the people into taxes. I have taken the + challenge up, and in behalf of the public have shewn, in a fair, open, and + candid manner, both the radical and practical defects of the system; when, + lo! those champions of the Civil List have fled away, and sent the + Attorney-General to deny the challenge, by turning the acceptance of it + into an attack, and defending their Places and Pensions by a prosecution. + </p> + <p> + I will here drop this part of the subject, and state a few particulars + respecting the prosecution now pending, by which the Addressers will see + that they have been used as tools to the prosecuting party and their + dependents. The case is as follows: + </p> + <p> + The original edition of the First and Second Parts of the Rights of Man, + having been expensively printed, (in the modern stile of printing + pamphlets, that they might be bound up with Mr. Burke's Reflections on the + French Revolution,) the high price(1) precluded the generality of people + from purchasing; and many applications were made to me from various parts + of the country to print the work in a cheaper manner. The people of + Sheffield requested leave to print two thousand copies for themselves, + with which request I immediately complied. The same request came to me + from Rotherham, from Leicester, from Chester, from several towns in + Scotland; and Mr. James Mackintosh, author of <i>Vindico Gallico</i>, + brought me a request from Warwickshire, for leave to print ten thousand + copies in that county. I had already sent a cheap edition to Scotland; and + finding the applications increase, I concluded that the best method of + complying therewith, would be to print a very numerous edition in London, + under my own direction, by which means the work would be more perfect, and + the price be reduced lower than it could be by <i>printing</i> small + editions in the country, of only a few thousands each. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Half a crown.—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + The cheap edition of the first part was begun about the first of last + April, and from that moment, and not before, I expected a prosecution, and + the event has proved that I was not mistaken. I had then occasion to write + to Mr. Thomas Walker of Manchester, and after informing him of my + intention of giving up the work for the purpose of general information, I + informed him of what I apprehended would be the consequence; that while + the work was at a price that precluded an extensive circulation, the + government party, not able to controvert the plans, arguments, and + principles it contained, had chosen to remain silent; but that I expected + they would make an attempt to deprive the mass of the nation, and + especially the poor, of the right of reading, by the pretence of + prosecuting either the Author or the Publisher, or both. They chose to + begin with the Publisher. + </p> + <p> + Nearly a month, however, passed, before I had any information given me of + their intentions. I was then at Bromley, in Kent, upon which I came + immediately to town, (May 14) and went to Mr. Jordan, the publisher of the + original edition. He had that evening been served with a summons to appear + at the Court of King's Bench, on the Monday following, but for what + purpose was not stated. Supposing it to be on account of the work, I + appointed a meeting with him on the next morning, which was accordingly + had, when I provided an attorney, and took the ex-pence of the defence on + myself. But finding afterwards that he absented himself from the attorney + employed, and had engaged another, and that he had been closeted with the + Solicitors of the Treasury, I left him to follow his own choice, and he + chose to plead Guilty. This he might do if he pleased; and I make no + objection against him for it. I believe that his idea by the word <i>Guilty</i>, + was no other than declaring himself to be the publisher, without any + regard to the merits or demerits of the work; for were it to be construed + otherwise, it would amount to the absurdity of converting a publisher into + a Jury, and his confession into a verdict upon the work itself. This would + be the highest possible refinement upon packing of Juries. + </p> + <p> + On the 21st of May, they commenced their prosecution against me, as the + author, by leaving a summons at my lodgings in town, to appear at the + Court of King's Bench on the 8th of June following; and on the same day, + (May 21,) <i>they issued also their Proclamation</i>. Thus the Court of + St. James and the Court of King's Bench, were playing into each other's + hands at the same instant of time, and the farce of Addresses brought up + the rear; and this mode of proceeding is called by the prostituted name of + Law. Such a thundering rapidity, after a ministerial dormancy of almost + eighteen months, can be attributed to no other cause than their having + gained information of the forwardness of the cheap Edition, and the dread + they felt at the progressive increase of political knowledge. + </p> + <p> + I was strongly advised by several gentlemen, as well those in the practice + of the law, as others, to prefer a bill of indictment against the + publisher of the Proclamation, as a publication tending to influence, or + rather to dictate the verdict of a Jury on the issue of a matter then + pending; but it appeared to me much better to avail myself of the + opportunity which such a precedent justified me in using, by meeting the + Proclamation and the Addressers on their own ground, and publicly + defending the Work which had been thus unwarrantably attacked and + traduced.—And conscious as I now am, that the Work entitled Rights + OF Man so far from being, as has been maliciously or erroneously + represented, a false, wicked, and seditious libel, is a work abounding + with unanswerable truths, with principles of the purest morality and + benevolence, and with arguments not to be controverted—Conscious, I + say, of these things, and having no object in view but the happiness of + mankind, I have now put the matter to the best proof in my power, by + giving to the public a cheap edition of the First and Second Parts of that + Work. Let every man read and judge for himself, not only of the merits and + demerits of the Work, but of the matters therein contained, which relate + to his own interest and happiness. + </p> + <p> + If, to expose the fraud and imposition of monarchy, and every species of + hereditary government—to lessen the oppression of taxes—to + propose plans for the education of helpless infancy, and the comfortable + support of the aged and distressed—to endeavour to conciliate + nations to each other—to extirpate the horrid practice of war—to + promote universal peace, civilization, and commerce—and to break the + chains of political superstition, and raise degraded man to his proper + rank;—if these things be libellous, let me live the life of a + Libeller, and let the name of Libeller be engraved on my tomb. + </p> + <p> + Of all the weak and ill-judged measures which fear, ignorance, or + arrogance could suggest, the Proclamation, and the project for Addresses, + are two of the worst. They served to advertise the work which the + promoters of those measures wished to keep unknown; and in doing this they + offered violence to the judgment of the people, by calling on them to + condemn what they forbad them to know, and put the strength of their party + to that hazardous issue that prudence would have avoided.—The County + Meeting for Middlesex was attended by only one hundred and eighteen + Addressers. They, no doubt, expected, that thousands would flock to their + standard, and clamor against the <i>Rights of Man</i>. But the case most + probably is, that men in all countries, are not so blind to their Rights + and their Interest as Governments believe. + </p> + <p> + Having thus shewn the extraordinary manner in which the Government party + commenced their attack, I proceed to offer a few observations on the + prosecution, and on the mode of trial by Special Jury. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, I have written a book; and if it cannot be refuted, it + cannot be condemned. But I do not consider the prosecution as particularly + levelled against me, but against the general right, or the right of every + man, of investigating systems and principles of government, and shewing + their several excellencies or defects. If the press be free only to + flatter Government, as Mr. Burke has done, and to cry up and extol what + certain Court sycophants are pleased to call a "glorious Constitution," + and not free to examine into its errors or abuses, or whether a + Constitution really exist or not, such freedom is no other than that of + Spain, Turkey, or Russia; and a Jury in this case, would not be a Jury to + try, but an Inquisition to condemn. + </p> + <p> + I have asserted, and by fair and open argument maintained, the right of + every nation at all times to establish such a system and form of + government for itself as best accords with its disposition, interest, and + happiness; and to change and alter it as it sees occasion. Will any Jury + deny to the Nation this right? If they do, they are traitors, and their + verdict would be null and void. And if they admit the right, the means + must be admitted also; for it would be the highest absurdity to say, that + the right existed, but the means did not. The question then is, What are + the means by which the possession and exercise of this National Right are + to be secured? The answer will be, that of maintaining, inviolably, the + right of free investigation; for investigation always serves to detect + error, and to bring forth truth. + </p> + <p> + I have, as an individual, given my opinion upon what I believe to be not + only the best, but the true system of Government, which is the + representative system, and I have given reasons for that opinion. + </p> + <p> + First, Because in the representative system, no office of very + extraordinary power, or extravagant pay, is attached to any individual; + and consequently there is nothing to excite those national contentions and + civil wars with which countries under monarchical governments are + frequently convulsed, and of which the History of England exhibits such + numerous instances. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, Because the representative is a system of Government always in + maturity; whereas monarchical government fluctuates through all the + stages, from non-age to dotage. + </p> + <p> + Thirdly, Because the representative system admits of none but men properly + qualified into the Government, or removes them if they prove to be + otherwise. Whereas, in the hereditary system, a nation may be encumbered + with a knave or an ideot for a whole life-time, and not be benefited by a + successor. + </p> + <p> + Fourthly, Because there does not exist a right to establish hereditary + government, or, in other words, hereditary successors, because hereditary + government always means a government yet to come, and the case always is, + that those who are to live afterwards have the same right to establish + government for themselves, as the people had who lived before them; and, + therefore, all laws attempting to establish hereditary government, are + founded on assumption and political fiction. + </p> + <p> + If these positions be truths, and I challenge any man to prove the + contrary; if they tend to instruct and enlighten mankind, and to free them + from error, oppression, and political superstition, which are the objects + I have in view in publishing them, that Jury would commit an act of + injustice to their country, and to me, if not an act of perjury, that + should call them <i>false, wicked, and malicious</i>. + </p> + <p> + Dragonetti, in his treatise "On Virtues and Rewards," has a paragraph + worthy of being recorded in every country in the world—"The science + (says he,) of the politician, consists, in, fixing the true point of + happiness and freedom. Those men deserve the gratitude of ages who should + discover a mode of government that contained the greatest sum of <i>individual + happiness</i> with the least <i>national expence</i>." But if Juries are + to be made use of to prohibit enquiry, to suppress truth, and to stop the + progress of knowledge, this boasted palladium of liberty becomes the most + successful instrument of tyranny. + </p> + <p> + Among the arts practised at the Bar, and from the Bench, to impose upon + the understanding of a Jury, and to obtain a Verdict where the consciences + of men could not otherwise consent, one of the most successful has been + that of calling <i>truth a libel</i>, and of insinuating that the words "<i>falsely, + wickedly, and maliciously</i>," though they are made the formidable and + high sounding part of the charge, are not matters of consideration with a + Jury. For what purpose, then, are they retained, unless it be for that of + imposition and wilful defamation? + </p> + <p> + I cannot conceive a greater violation of order, nor a more abominable + insult upon morality, and upon human understanding, than to see a man + sitting in the judgment seat, affecting by an antiquated foppery of dress + to impress the audience with awe; then causing witnesses and Jury to be + sworn to truth and justice, himself having officially sworn the same; then + causing to be read a prosecution against a man charging him with having <i>wickedly + and maliciously written and published a certain false, wicked, and + seditious book</i>; and having gone through all this with a shew of + solemnity, as if he saw the eye of the Almighty darting through the roof + of the building like a ray of light, turn, in an instant, the whole into a + farce, and, in order to obtain a verdict that could not otherwise be + obtained, tell the Jury that the charge of <i>falsely, wickedly, and + seditiously</i>, meant nothing; that <i>truth</i> was out of the question; + and that whether the person accused spoke truth or falsehood, or intended + <i>virtuously or wickedly</i>, was the same thing; and finally conclude + the wretched inquisitorial scene, by stating some antiquated precedent, + equally as abominable as that which is then acting, or giving some opinion + of his own, and <i>falsely calling the one and the other—Law</i>. It + was, most probably, to such a Judge as this, that the most solemn of all + reproofs was given—"<i>The Lord will smite thee, thou whitened wall</i>." + </p> + <p> + I now proceed to offer some remarks on what is called a Special Jury. As + to what is called a Special Verdict, I shall make no other remark upon it, + than that it is in reality <i>not</i> a verdict. It is an attempt on the + part of the Jury to delegate, or of the Bench to obtain, the exercise of + that right, which is committed to the Jury only. + </p> + <p> + With respect to the Special Juries, I shall state such matters as I have + been able to collect, for I do not find any uniform opinion concerning the + mode of appointing them. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, this mode of trial is but of modern invention, and the + origin of it, as I am told, is as follows: + </p> + <p> + Formerly, when disputes arose between Merchants, and were brought before a + Court, the case was that the nature of their commerce, and the method of + keeping Merchants' accounts not being sufficiently understood by persons + out of their own line, it became necessary to depart from the common mode + of appointing Juries, and to select such persons for a Jury whose <i>practical + knowledge</i> would enable them to decide upon the case. From this + introduction, Special Juries became more general; but some doubts having + arisen as to their legality, an act was passed in the 3d of George II. to + establish them as legal, and also to extend them to all cases, not only + between individuals, but in cases where <i>the Government itself should be + the prosecutor</i>. This most probably gave rise to the suspicion so + generally entertained of packing a Jury; because, by this act, when the + Crown, as it is called, is the Prosecutor, the Master of the Crown-office, + who holds his office under the Crown, is the person who either wholly + nominates, or has great power in nominating the Jury, and therefore it has + greatly the appearance of the prosecuting party selecting a Jury. + </p> + <p> + The process is as follows: + </p> + <p> + On motion being made in Court, by either the Plaintiff or Defendant, for a + Special Jury, the Court grants it or not, at its own discretion. + </p> + <p> + If it be granted, the Solicitor of the party that applied for the Special + Jury, gives notice to the Solicitor of the adverse party, and a day and + hour are appointed for them to meet at the office of the Master of the + Crown-office. The Master of the Crown-office sends to the Sheriff or his + deputy, who attends with the Sheriff's book of Freeholders. From this + book, forty-eight names are taken, and a copy thereof given to each of the + parties; and, on a future day, notice is again given, and the Solicitors + meet a second time, and each strikes out twelve names. The list being thus + reduced from forty-eight to twenty-four, the first twelve that appear in + Court, and answer to their names, is the Special Jury for that cause. The + first operation, that of taking the forty-eight names, is called + nominating the Jury; and the reducing them to twenty-four is called + striking the Jury. + </p> + <p> + Having thus stated the general process, I come to particulars, and the + first question will be, how are the forty-eight names, out of which the + Jury is to be struck, obtained from the Sheriff's book? For herein lies + the principal ground of suspicion, with respect to what is understood by + packing of Juries. + </p> + <p> + Either they must be taken by some rule agreed upon between the parties, or + by some common rule known and established beforehand, or at the discretion + of some person, who in such a case, ought to be perfectly disinterested in + the issue, as well officially as otherwise. + </p> + <p> + In the case of Merchants, and in all cases between individuals, the Master + of the office, called the Crown-office, is officially an indifferent + person, and as such may be a proper person to act between the parties, and + present them with a list of forty-eight names, out of which each party is + to strike twelve. But the case assumes an entire difference of character, + when the Government itself is the Prosecutor. The Master of the + Crown-office is then an officer holding his office under the Prosecutor; + and it is therefore no wonder that the suspicion of packing Juries should, + in such cases, have been so prevalent. + </p> + <p> + This will apply with additional force, when the prosecution is commenced + against the Author or Publisher of such Works as treat of reforms, and of + the abolition of superfluous places and offices, &c, because in such + cases every person holding an office, subject to that suspicion, becomes + interested as a party; and the office, called the Crown-office, may, upon + examination, be found to be of this description. + </p> + <p> + I have heard it asserted, that the Master of the Crown-office is to open + the sheriff's book as it were per hazard, and take thereout forty-eight <i>following</i> + names, to which the word Merchant or Esquire is affixed. The former of + these are certainly proper, when the case is between Merchants, and it has + reference to the origin of the custom, and to nothing else. As to the word + Esquire, every man is an Esquire who pleases to call himself Esquire; and + the sensible part of mankind are leaving it off. But the matter for + enquiry is, whether there be any existing law to direct the mode by which + the forty-eight names shall be taken, or whether the mode be merely that + of custom which the office has created; or whether the selection of the + forty-eight names be wholly at the discretion and choice of the Master of + the Crown-office? One or other of the two latter appears to be the case, + because the act already mentioned, of the 3d of George II. lays down no + rule or mode, nor refers to any preceding law—but says only, that + Special Juries shall hereafter be struck, "<i>in such manner as Special + Juries have been and are usually struck</i>." + </p> + <p> + This act appears to have been what is generally understood by a "<i>deep + take in</i>." It was fitted to the spur of the moment in which it was + passed, 3d of George II. when parties ran high, and it served to throw + into the hands of Walpole, who was then Minister, the management of Juries + in Crown prosecutions, by making the nomination of the forty-eight + persons, from whom the Jury was to be struck, follow the precedent + established by custom between individuals, and by this means slipt into + practice with less suspicion. Now, the manner of obtaining Special Juries + through the medium of an officer of the Government, such, for instance, as + a Master of the Crown-office, may be impartial in the case of Merchants or + other individuals, but it becomes highly improper and suspicious in cases + where the Government itself is one of the parties. And it must, upon the + whole, appear a strange inconsistency, that a Government should keep one + officer to commence prosecutions, and another officer to nominate the + forty-eight persons from whom the Jury is to be struck, both of whom are + <i>officers of the Civil List</i>, and yet continue to call this by the + pompous name of <i>the glorious "Right of trial by Jury!</i>" + </p> + <p> + In the case of the King against Jordan, for publishing the Rights of Man, + the Attorney-General moved for the appointment of a Special Jury, and the + Master of the Crown-office nominated the forty-eight persons himself, and + took them from such part of the Sheriff's book as he pleased. + </p> + <p> + The trial did not come on, occasioned by Jordan withdrawing his plea; but + if it had, it might have afforded an opportunity of discussing the subject + of Special Juries; for though such discussion might have had no effect in + the Court of King's Bench, it would, in the present disposition for + enquiry, have had a considerable effect upon the Country; and, in all + national reforms, this is the proper point to begin at. But a Country + right, and it will soon put Government right. Among the improper things + acted by the Government in the case of Special Juries, on their own + motion, one has been that of treating the Jury with a dinner, and + afterwards giving each Juryman two guineas, if a verdict be found for the + prosecution, and only one if otherwise; and it has been long observed, + that, in London and Westminster, there are persons who appear to make a + trade of serving, by being so frequently seen upon Special Juries. + </p> + <p> + Thus much for Special Juries. As to what is called a <i>Common Jury</i>, + upon any Government prosecution against the Author or Publisher of RIGHTS + OF Man, during the time of the <i>present Sheriffry</i>, I have one + question to offer, which is, <i>whether the present Sheriffs of London, + having publicly prejudged the case, by the part they have taken in + procuring an Address from the county of Middlesex, (however diminutive and + insignificant the number of Addressers were, being only one hundred and + eighteen,) are eligible or proper persons to be intrusted with the power + of returning a Jury to try the issue of any such prosecution</i>. + </p> + <p> + But the whole matter appears, at least to me, to be worthy of a more + extensive consideration than what relates to any Jury, whether Special or + Common; for the case is, whether any part of a whole nation, locally + selected as a Jury of twelve men always is, be competent to judge and + determine for the whole nation, on any matter that relates to systems and + principles of Government, and whether it be not applying the institution + of Juries to purposes for which such institutions were not intended? For + example, + </p> + <p> + I have asserted, in the Work Rights of Man, that as every man in the + nation pays taxes, so has every man a right to a share in government, and + consequently that the people of Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield, Leeds, + Halifax, &c have the same right as those of London. Shall, then, + twelve men, picked out between Temple-bar and Whitechapel, because the + book happened to be first published there, decide upon the rights of the + inhabitants of those towns, or of any other town or village in the nation? + </p> + <p> + Having thus spoken of Juries, I come next to offer a few observations on + the matter contained in the information or prosecution. + </p> + <p> + The work, Rights of Man, consists of Part the First, and Fart the Second. + The First Part the prosecutor has thought it most proper to let alone; and + from the Second Fart he has selected a few short paragraphs, making in the + whole not quite two pages of the same printing as in the cheap edition. + Those paragraphs relate chiefly to certain facts, such as the revolution + of 1688, and the coming of George the First, commonly called of the House + of Hanover, or the House of Brunswick, or some such House. The arguments, + plans and principles contained in the work, the prosecutor has not + ventured to attack. They are beyond his reach. + </p> + <p> + The Act which the prosecutor appears to rest most upon for the support of + the prosecution, is the Act intituled, "An Act, declaring the rights and + liberties of the subject, and settling the succession of the crown," + passed in the first year of William and Mary, and more commonly known by + the name of the "Bill of Rights." + </p> + <p> + I have called this bill "<i>A Bill of wrongs and of insult</i>." My + reasons, and also my proofs, are as follow: + </p> + <p> + The method and principle which this Bill takes for declaring rights and + liberties, are in direct contradiction to rights and liberties; it is an + assumed attempt to take them wholly from posterity—for the + declaration in the said Bill is as follows: + </p> + <p> + "The Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, do, in <i>the name of all + the people</i>, most humbly and faithfully <i>submit themselves, their + heirs, and posterity for ever</i>;" that is, to William and Mary his wife, + their heirs and successors. This is a strange way of declaring rights and + liberties. But the Parliament who made this declaration in the name, and + on the part, of the people, had no authority from them for so doing; and + with respect to <i>posterity for ever</i>, they had no right or authority + whatever in the case. It was assumption and usurpation. I have reasoned + very extensively against the principle of this Bill, in the first part of + Rights of Man; the prosecutor has silently admitted that reasoning, and he + now commences a prosecution on the authority of the Bill, after admitting + the reasoning against it. + </p> + <p> + It is also to be observed, that the declaration in this Bill, abject and + irrational as it is, had no other intentional operation than against the + family of the Stuarts, and their abettors. The idea did not then exist, + that in the space of an hundred years, posterity might discover a + different and much better system of government, and that every species of + hereditary government might fall, as Popes and Monks had fallen before. + This, I say, was not then thought of, and therefore the application of the + Bill, in the present case, is a new, erroneous, and illegal application, + and is the same as creating a new Bill <i>ex post facto</i>. + </p> + <p> + It has ever been the craft of Courtiers, for the purpose of keeping up an + expensive and enormous Civil List, and a mummery of useless and antiquated + places and offices at the public expence, to be continually hanging + England upon some individual or other, called <i>King</i>, though the man + might not have capacity to be a parish constable. The folly and absurdity + of this, is appearing more and more every day; and still those men + continue to act as if no alteration in the public opinion had taken place. + They hear each other's nonsense, and suppose the whole nation talks the + same Gibberish. + </p> + <p> + Let such men cry up the House of Orange, or the House of Brunswick, if + they please. They would cry up any other house if it suited their purpose, + and give as good reasons for it. But what is this house, or that house, or + any other house to a nation? "<i>For a nation to be free, it is sufficient + that she wills it</i>." Her freedom depends wholly upon herself, and not + on any house, nor on any individual. I ask not in what light this cargo of + foreign houses appears to others, but I will say in what light it appears + to me—It was like the trees of the forest, saying unto the bramble, + come thou and reign over us. + </p> + <p> + Thus much for both their houses. I now come to speak of two other houses, + which are also put into the information, and those are the House of Lords, + and the House of Commons. Here, I suppose, the Attorney-General intends to + prove me guilty of speaking either truth or falsehood; for, according to + the modern interpretation of Libels, it does not signify which, and the + only improvement necessary to shew the compleat absurdity of such + doctrine, would be, to prosecute a man for uttering a most <i>false and + wicked truth</i>. + </p> + <p> + I will quote the part I am going to give, from the Office Copy, with the + Attorney General's inuendoes, enclosed in parentheses as they stand in the + information, and I hope that civil list officer will caution the Court not + to laugh when he reads them, and also to take care not to laugh himself. + </p> + <p> + The information states, that <i>Thomas Paine, being a wicked, malicious, + seditious, and evil-disposed person, hath, with force and arms, and most + wicked cunning, written and published a certain false, scandalous, + malicious, and seditious libel; in one part thereof, to the tenor and + effect following, that is to say</i>— + </p> + <p> + "With respect to the two Houses, of which the English Parliament (<i>meaning + the Parliament of this Kingdom</i>) is composed, they appear to be + effectually influenced into one, and, as a Legislature, to have no temper + of its own. The Minister, (<i>meaning the Minuter employed by the King of + this Realm, in the administration of the Government thereof</i>) whoever + he at any time may be, touches it (<i>meaning the two Houses of Parliament + of this Kingdom</i>) as with an opium wand, and it (<i>meaning the two + Houses of Parliament of this Kingdom</i>) sleeps obedience." + </p> + <p> + As I am not malicious enough to disturb their repose, though it be time + they should awake, I leave the two Houses and the Attorney General, to the + enjoyment of their dreams, and proceed to a new subject. + </p> + <p> + The Gentlemen, to whom I shall next address myself, are those who have + stiled themselves "<i>Friends of the people</i>," holding their meeting at + the Freemasons' Tavern, London.(1) + </p> + <p> + One of the principal Members of this Society, is Mr. Grey, who, I believe, + is also one of the most independent Members in Parliament.(2) I collect + this opinion from what Mr. Burke formerly mentioned to me, rather than + from any knowledge of my own. The occasion was as follows: + </p> + <p> + I was in England at the time the bubble broke forth about Nootka Sound: + and the day after the King's Message, as it is called, was sent to + Parliament, I wrote a note to Mr. Burke, that upon the condition the + French Revolution should not be a subject (for he was then writing the + book I have since answered) I would call on him the next day, and mention + some matters I was acquainted with, respecting the affair; for it appeared + to me extraordinary that any body of men, calling themselves + Representatives, should commit themselves so precipitately, or "sleep + obedience," as Parliament was then doing, and run a nation into expence, + and perhaps a war, without so much as enquiring into the case, or the + subject, of both which I had some knowledge. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See in the Introduction to this volume Chauvelin's account + of this Association.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 In the debate in the House of Commons, Dec. 14, 1793, Mr. + Grey is thus reported: "Mr. Grey was not a friend to + Paine's doctrines, but he was not to be deterred by a man + from acknowledging that he considered the rights of man as + the foundation of every government, and those who stood out + against those rights as conspirators against the people." He + severely denounced the Proclamation. Parl. Hist., vol. + xxvi.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + When I saw Mr. Burke, and mentioned the circumstances to him, he + particularly spoke of Mr. Grey, as the fittest Member to bring such + matters forward; "for," said Mr. Burke, "<i>I am not the proper</i> person + to do it, as I am in a treaty with Mr. Pitt about Mr. Hastings's trial." I + hope the Attorney General will allow, that Mr. Burke was then <i>sleeping + his obedience</i>.—But to return to the Society——— + </p> + <p> + I cannot bring myself to believe, that the general motive of this Society + is any thing more than that by which every former parliamentary opposition + has been governed, and by which the present is sufficiently known. Failing + in their pursuit of power and place within doors, they have now (and that + in not a very mannerly manner) endeavoured to possess themselves of that + ground out of doors, which, had it not been made by others, would not have + been made by them. They appear to me to have watched, with more cunning + than candour, the progress of a certain publication, and when they saw it + had excited a spirit of enquiry, and was rapidly spreading, they stepped + forward to profit by the opportunity, and Mr. Fox <i>then</i> called it a + Libel. In saying this, he libelled himself. Politicians of this cast, + such, I mean, as those who trim between parties, and lye by for events, + are to be found in every country, and it never yet happened that they did + not do more harm than good. They embarrass business, fritter it to + nothing, perplex the people, and the event to themselves generally is, + that they go just far enough to make enemies of the few, without going far + enough to make friends of the many. + </p> + <p> + Whoever will read the declarations of this Society, of the 25th of April + and 5th of May, will find a studied reserve upon all the points that are + real abuses. They speak not once of the extravagance of Government, of the + abominable list of unnecessary and sinecure places and pensions, of the + enormity of the Civil List, of the excess of taxes, nor of any one matter + that substantially affects the nation; and from some conversation that has + passed in that Society, it does not appear to me that it is any part of + their plan to carry this class of reforms into practice. No Opposition + Party ever did, when it gained possession. + </p> + <p> + In making these free observations, I mean not to enter into contention + with this Society; their incivility towards me is what I should expect + from place-hunting reformers. They are welcome, however, to the ground + they have advanced upon, and I wish that every individual among them may + act in the same upright, uninfluenced, and public spirited manner that I + have done. Whatever reforms may be obtained, and by whatever means, they + will be for the benefit of others and not of me. I have no other interest + in the cause than the interest of my heart. The part I have acted has been + wholly that of a volunteer, unconnected with party; and when I quit, it + shall be as honourably as I began. + </p> + <p> + I consider the reform of Parliament, by an application to Parliament, as + proposed by the Society, to be a worn-out hackneyed subject, about which + the nation is tired, and the parties are deceiving each other. It is not a + subject that is cognizable before Parliament, because no Government has a + right to alter itself, either in whole or in part. The right, and the + exercise of that right, appertains to the nation only, and the proper + means is by a national convention, elected for the purpose, by all the + people. By this, the will of the nation, whether to reform or not, or what + the reform shall be, or how far it shall extend, will be known, and it + cannot be known by any other means. Partial addresses, or separate + associations, are not testimonies of the general will. + </p> + <p> + It is, however, certain, that the opinions of men, with respect to systems + and principles of government, are changing fast in all countries. The + alteration in England, within the space of a little more than a year, is + far greater than could have been believed, and it is daily and hourly + increasing. It moves along the country with the silence of thought. The + enormous expence of Government has provoked men to think, by making them + feel; and the Proclamation has served to increase jealousy and disgust. To + prevent, therefore, those commotions which too often and too suddenly + arise from suffocated discontents, it is best that the general WILL should + have the full and free opportunity of being publicly ascertained and + known. + </p> + <p> + Wretched as the state of representation is in England, it is every day + becoming worse, because the unrepresented parts of the nation are + increasing in population and property, and the represented parts are + decreasing. It is, therefore, no ill-grounded estimation to say, that as + not one person in seven is represented, at least fourteen millions of + taxes out of the seventeen millions, are paid by the unrepresented part; + for although copyholds and leaseholds are assessed to the land-tax, the + holders are unrepresented. Should then a general demur take place as to + the obligation of paying taxes, on the ground of not being represented, it + is not the Representatives of Rotten Boroughs, nor Special Juries, that + can decide the question. This is one of the possible cases that ought to + be foreseen, in order to prevent the inconveniencies that might arise to + numerous individuals, by provoking it. + </p> + <p> + I confess I have no idea of petitioning for rights. Whatever the rights of + people are, they have a right to them, and none have a right either to + withhold them, or to grant them. Government ought to be established on + such principles of justice as to exclude the occasion of all such + applications, for wherever they appear they are virtually accusations. + </p> + <p> + I wish that Mr. Grey, since he has embarked in the business, would take + the whole of it into consideration. He will then see that the right of + reforming the state of the Representation does not reside in Parliament, + and that the only motion he could consistently make would be, that + Parliament should <i>recommend</i> the election of a convention of the + people, because all pay taxes. But whether Parliament recommended it or + not, the right of the nation would neither be lessened nor increased + thereby. + </p> + <p> + As to Petitions from the unrepresented part, they ought not to be looked + for. As well might it be expected that Manchester, Sheffield, &c. + should petition the rotten Boroughs, as that they should petition the + Representatives of those Boroughs. Those two towns alone pay far more + taxes than all the rotten Boroughs put together, and it is scarcely to be + expected they should pay their court either to the Boroughs, or the + Borough-mongers. + </p> + <p> + It ought also to be observed, that what is called Parliament, is composed + of two houses that have always declared against the right of each other to + interfere in any matter that related to the circumstances of either, + particularly that of election. A reform, therefore, in the representation + cannot, on the ground they have individually taken, become the subject of + an act of Parliament, because such a mode would include the interference, + against which the Commons on their part have protested; but must, as well + on the ground of formality, as on that of right, proceed from a National + Convention. + </p> + <p> + Let Mr. Grey, or any other man, sit down and endeavour to put his thoughts + together, for the purpose of drawing up an application to Parliament for a + reform of Parliament, and he will soon convince himself of the folly of + the attempt. He will find that he cannot get on; that he cannot make his + thoughts join, so as to produce any effect; for, whatever formality of + words he may use, they will unavoidably include two ideas directly opposed + to each other; the one in setting forth the reasons, the other in praying + for relief, and the two, when placed together, would stand thus: "<i>The + Representation in Parliament is so very corrupt, that we can no longer + confide in it,—and, therefore, confiding in the justice and wisdom + of Parliament, we pray</i>," &c, &c. + </p> + <p> + The heavy manner in which every former proposed application to Parliament + has dragged, sufficiently shews, that though the nation might not exactly + see the awkwardness of the measure, it could not clearly see its way, by + those means. To this also may be added another remark, which is, that the + worse Parliament is, the less will be the inclination to petition it. This + indifference, viewed as it ought to be, is one of the strongest censures + the public express. It is as if they were to say to them, "Ye are not + worth reforming." + </p> + <p> + Let any man examine the Court-Kalendar of Placemen in both Houses, and the + manner in which the Civil List operates, and he will be at no loss to + account for this indifference and want of confidence on one side, nor of + the opposition to reforms on the other. + </p> + <p> + Who would have supposed that Mr. Burke, holding forth as he formerly did + against secret influence, and corrupt majorities, should become a + concealed Pensioner? I will now state the case, not for the little purpose + of exposing Mr. Burke, but to shew the inconsistency of any application to + a body of men, more than half of whom, as far as the nation can at present + know, may be in the same case with himself. + </p> + <p> + Towards the end of Lord North's administration, Mr. Burke brought a bill + into Parliament, generally known by Mr. Burke's Reform Bill; in which, + among other things, it is enacted, "That no pension exceeding the sum of + three hundred pounds a year, shall be granted to any one person, and that + the whole amount of the pensions granted in one year shall not exceed six + hundred pounds; a list of which, together with the <i>names of the persons</i> + to whom the same are granted, shall be laid before Parliament in twenty + days after the beginning of each session, until the whole pension list + shall be reduced to ninety thousand pounds." A provisory clause is + afterwards added, "That it shall be lawful for the First Commissioner of + the Treasury, to return into the Exchequer any pension or annuity, <i>without + a name</i>, on his making oath that such pension or annuity is not + directly or indirectly for the benefit, use, or behoof of any Member of + the House of Commons." + </p> + <p> + But soon after that administration ended, and the party Mr. Burke acted + with came into power, it appears from the circumstances I am going to + relate, that Mr. Burke became himself a Pensioner in disguise; in a + similar manner as if a pension had been granted in the name of John Nokes, + to be privately paid to and enjoyed by Tom Stiles. The name of Edmund + Burke does not appear in the original transaction: but after the pension + was obtained, Mr. Burke wanted to make the most of it at once, by selling + or mortgaging it; and the gentleman in whose name the pension stands, + applied to one of the public offices for that purpose. This unfortunately + brought forth the name of <i>Edmund Burke</i>, as the real Pensioner of + 1,500L. per annum.(1) When men trumpet forth what they call the blessings + of the Constitution, it ought to be known what sort of blessings they + allude to. + </p> + <p> + As to the Civil List of a million a year, it is not to be supposed that + any one man can eat, drink, or consume the whole upon himself. The case + is, that above half the sum is annually apportioned among Courtiers, and + Court Members, of both Houses, in places and offices, altogether + insignificant and perfectly useless as to every purpose of civil, + rational, and manly government. For instance, + </p> + <p> + Of what use in the science and system of Government is what is called a + Lord Chamberlain, a Master and Mistress of the Robes, a Master of the + Horse, a Master of the Hawks, and one hundred other such things? Laws + derive no additional force, nor additional excellence from such mummery. + </p> + <p> + In the disbursements of the Civil List for the year 1786, (which may be + seen in Sir John Sinclair's History of the Revenue,) are four separate + charges for this mummery office of Chamberlain: + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0003" id="linkimage-0003"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/table110.jpg" alt="Table110 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + From this sample the rest may be guessed at. As to the Master of the + Hawks, (there are no hawks kept, and if there were, it is no reason the + people should pay the expence of feeding them, many of whom are put to it + to get bread for their children,) his salary is 1,372L. 10s. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See note at the end of this chapter.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + And besides a list of items of this kind, sufficient to fill a quire of + paper, the Pension lists alone are 107,404L. 13s. 4d. which is a greater + sum than all the expences of the federal Government in America amount to. + </p> + <p> + Among the items, there are two I had no expectation of finding, and which, + in this day of enquiry after Civil List influence, ought to be exposed. + The one is an annual payment of one thousand seven hundred pounds to the + Dissenting Ministers in England, and the other, eight hundred pounds to + those of Ireland. + </p> + <p> + This is the fact; and the distribution, as I am informed, is as follows: + The whole sum of 1,700L. is paid to one person, a Dissenting Minister in + London, who divides it among eight others, and those eight among such + others as they please. The Lay-body of the Dissenters, and many of their + principal Ministers, have long considered it as dishonourable, and have + endeavoured to prevent it, but still it continues to be secretly paid; and + as the world has sometimes seen very fulsome Addresses from parts of that + body, it may naturally be supposed that the receivers, like Bishops and + other Court-Clergy, are not idle in promoting them. How the money is + distributed in Ireland, I know not. + </p> + <p> + To recount all the secret history of the Civil List, is not the intention + of this publication. It is sufficient, in this place, to expose its + general character, and the mass of influence it keeps alive. It will + necessarily become one of the objects of reform; and therefore enough is + said to shew that, under its operation, no application to Parliament can + be expected to succeed, nor can consistently be made. + </p> + <p> + Such reforms will not be promoted by the Party that is in possession of + those places, nor by the Opposition who are waiting for them; and as to a + <i>mere reform</i>, in the state of the Representation, the idea that + another Parliament, differently elected from the present, but still a + third component part of the same system, and subject to the controul of + the other two parts, will abolish those abuses, is altogether delusion; + because it is not only impracticable on the ground of formality, but is + unwisely exposing another set of men to the same corruptions that have + tainted the present. + </p> + <p> + Were all the objects that require reform accomplishable by a mere reform + in the state of the Representation, the persons who compose the present + Parliament might, with rather more propriety, be asked to abolish all the + abuses themselves, than be applied to as the more instruments of doing it + by a future Parliament. If the virtue be wanting to abolish the abuse, it + is also wanting to act as the means, and the nation must, from necessity, + proceed by some other plan. + </p> + <p> + Having thus endeavoured to shew what the abject condition of Parliament + is, and the impropriety of going a second time over the same ground that + has before miscarried, I come to the remaining part of the subject. + </p> + <p> + There ought to be, in the constitution of every country, a mode of + referring back, on any extraordinary occasion, to the sovereign and + original constituent power, which is the nation itself. The right of + altering any part of a Government, cannot, as already observed, reside in + the Government, or that Government might make itself what it pleased. + </p> + <p> + It ought also to be taken for granted, that though a nation may feel + inconveniences, either in the excess of taxation, or in the mode of + expenditure, or in any thing else, it may not at first be sufficiently + assured in what part of its government the defect lies, or where the evil + originates. It may be supposed to be in one part, and on enquiry be found + to be in another; or partly in all. This obscurity is naturally interwoven + with what are called mixed Governments. + </p> + <p> + Be, however, the reform to be accomplished whatever it may, it can only + follow in consequence of obtaining a full knowledge of all the causes that + have rendered such reform necessary, and every thing short of this is + guess-work or frivolous cunning. In this case, it cannot be supposed that + any application to Parliament can bring forward this knowledge. That body + is itself the supposed cause, or one of the supposed causes, of the abuses + in question; and cannot be expected, and ought not to be asked, to give + evidence against itself. The enquiry, therefore, which is of necessity the + first step in the business, cannot be trusted to Parliament, but must be + undertaken by a distinct body of men, separated from every suspicion of + corruption or influence. + </p> + <p> + Instead, then, of referring to rotten Boroughs and absurd Corporations for + Addresses, or hawking them about the country to be signed by a few + dependant tenants, the real and effectual mode would be to come at once to + the point, and to ascertain the sense of the nation by electing a National + Convention. By this method, as already observed, the general WILL, whether + to reform or not, or what the reform shall be, or how far it shall extend, + will be known, and it cannot be known by any other means. Such a body, + empowered and supported by the nation, will have authority to demand + information upon all matters necessary to be en-quired into; and no + Minister, nor any person, will dare to refuse it. It will then be seen + whether seventeen millions of taxes are necessary, and for what purposes + they are expended. The concealed Pensioners will then be obliged to + unmask; and the source of influence and corruption, if any such there be, + will be laid open to the nation, not for the purpose of revenge, but of + redress. + </p> + <p> + By taking this public and national ground, all objections against partial + Addresses on the one side, or private associations on the other, will be + done away; THE NATION WILL DECLARE ITS OWN REFORMS; and the clamour about + Party and Faction, or Ins or Outs, will become ridiculous. + </p> + <p> + The plan and organization of a convention is easy in practice. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, the number of inhabitants in every county can be + sufficiently ascertained from the number of houses assessed to the House + and Window-light tax in each county. This will give the rule for + apportioning the number of Members to be elected to the National + Convention in each of the counties. + </p> + <p> + If the total number of inhabitants in England be seven millions, and the + total number of Members to be elected to the Convention be one thousand, + the number of members to be elected in a county containing one hundred and + fifty thousand inhabitants will be <i>twenty-one</i>, and in like + proportion for any other county. + </p> + <p> + As the election of a Convention must, in order to ascertain the general + sense of the nation, go on grounds different from that of Parliamentary + elections, the mode that best promises this end will have no difficulties + to combat with from absurd customs and pretended rights. The right of + every man will be the same, whether he lives in a city, a town, or a + village. The custom of attaching Rights to <i>place</i>, or in other + words, to inanimate matter, instead of to the <i>person</i>, independently + of place, is too absurd to make any part of a rational argument. + </p> + <p> + As every man in the nation, of the age of twenty-one years, pays taxes, + either out of the property he possesses, or out of the product of his + labor, which is property to him; and is amenable in his own person to + every law of the land; so has every one the same equal right to vote, and + no one part of the nation, nor any individual, has a right to dispute the + right of another. The man who should do this ought to forfeit the exercise + of his <i>own</i> right, for a term of years. This would render the + punishment consistent with the crime. + </p> + <p> + When a qualification to vote is regulated by years, it is placed on the + firmest possible ground; because the qualification is such, as nothing but + dying before the time can take away; and the equality of Rights, as a + principle, is recognized in the act of regulating the exercise. But when + Rights are placed upon, or made dependant upon property, they are on the + most precarious of all tenures. "Riches make themselves wings, and fly + away," and the rights fly with them; and thus they become lost to the man + when they would be of most value. + </p> + <p> + It is from a strange mixture of tyranny and cowardice, that exclusions + have been set up and continued. The boldness to do wrong at first, changes + afterwards into cowardly craft, and at last into fear. The Representatives + in England appear now to act as if they were afraid to do right, even in + part, lest it should awaken the nation to a sense of all the wrongs it has + endured. This case serves to shew, that the same conduct that best + constitutes the safety of an individual, namely, a strict adherence to + principle, constitutes also the safety of a Government, and that without + it safety is but an empty name. When the rich plunder the poor of his + rights, it becomes an example to the poor to plunder the rich of his + property; for the rights of the one are as much property to him, as wealth + is property to the other, and the <i>little all</i> is as dear as the <i>much</i>. + It is only by setting out on just principles that men are trained to be + just to each other; and it will always be found, that when the rich + protect the rights of the poor, the poor will protect the property of the + rich. But the guarantee, to be effectual, must be parliamentarily + reciprocal. + </p> + <p> + Exclusions are not only unjust, but they frequently operate as injuriously + to the party who monopolizes, as to those who are excluded. When men seek + to exclude others from participating in the exercise of any right, they + should, at least, be assured, that they can effectually perform the whole + of the business they undertake; for, unless they do this, themselves will + be losers by the monopoly. This has been the case with respect to the + monopolized right of Election. The monopolizing party has not been able to + keep the Parliamentary Representation, to whom the power of taxation was + entrusted, in the state it ought to have been, and have thereby multiplied + taxes upon themselves equally with those who were excluded. + </p> + <p> + A great deal has been, and will continue to be said, about + disqualifications, arising from the commission of offences; but were this + subject urged to its full extent, it would disqualify a great number of + the present Electors, together with their Representatives; for, of all + offences, none are more destructive to the morals of Society than Bribery + and Corruption. It is, therefore, civility to such persons to pass this + subject over, and to give them a fair opportunity of recovering, or rather + of creating character. + </p> + <p> + Every thing, in the present mode of electioneering in England, is the + reverse of what it ought to be, and the vulgarity that attends elections + is no other than the natural consequence of inverting the order of the + system. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, the Candidate seeks the Elector, instead of the + Elector seeking for a Representative; and the Electors are advertised as + being in the interest of the Candidate, instead of the Candidate being in + the interest of the Electors. The Candidate pays the Elector for his vote, + instead of the Nation paying the Representative for his time and + attendance on public business. The complaint for an undue election is + brought by the Candidate, as if he, and not the Electors, were the party + aggrieved; and he takes on himself, at any period of the election, to + break it up, by declining, as if the election was in his right and not in + theirs. + </p> + <p> + The compact that was entered into at the last Westminster election between + two of the candidates (Mr. Fox and Lord Hood,) was an indecent violation + of the principles of election. The Candidates assumed, in their own + persons, the rights of the Electors; for, it was only in the body of the + Electors, and not at all in the Candidates, that the right of making any + such compact, or compromise, could exist. But the principle of Election + and Representation is so completely done away, in every stage thereof, + that inconsistency has no longer the power of surprising. + </p> + <p> + Neither from elections thus conducted, nor from rotten Borough Addressers, + nor from County-meetings, promoted by Placemen and Pensioners, can the + sense of the nation be known. It is still corruption appealing to itself. + But a Convention of a thousand persons, fairly elected, would bring every + matter to a decided issue. + </p> + <p> + As to County-meetings, it is only persons of leisure, or those who live + near to the place of meeting, that can attend, and the number on such + occasions is but like a drop in the bucket compared with the whole. The + only consistent service which such meetings could render, would be that of + apportioning the county into convenient districts, and when this is done, + each district might, according to its number of inhabitants, elect its + quota of County Members to the National Convention; and the vote of each + Elector might be taken in the parish where he resided, either by ballot or + by voice, as he should chuse to give it. + </p> + <p> + A National Convention thus formed, would bring together the sense and + opinions of every part of the nation, fairly taken. The science of + Government, and the interest of the Public, and of the several parts + thereof, would then undergo an ample and rational discussion, freed from + the language of parliamentary disguise. + </p> + <p> + But in all deliberations of this kind, though men have a right to reason + with, and endeavour to convince each other, upon any matter that respects + their common good, yet, in point of practice, the majority of opinions, + when known, forms a rule for the whole, and to this rule every good + citizen practically conforms. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Burke, as if he knew, (for every concealed Pensioner has the + opportunity of knowing,) that the abuses acted under the present system, + are too flagrant to be palliated, and that the majority of opinions, + whenever such abuses should be made public, would be for a general and + effectual reform, has endeavoured to preclude the event, by sturdily + denying the right of a majority of a nation to act as a whole. Let us + bestow a thought upon this case. + </p> + <p> + When any matter is proposed as a subject for consultation, it necessarily + implies some mode of decision. Common consent, arising from absolute + necessity, has placed this in a majority of opinions; because, without it, + there can be no decision, and consequently no order. It is, perhaps, the + only case in which mankind, however various in their ideas upon other + matters, can consistently be unanimous; because it is a mode of decision + derived from the primary original right of every individual concerned; <i>that</i> + right being first individually exercised in giving an opinion, and whether + that opinion shall arrange with the minority or the majority, is a + subsequent accidental thing that neither increases nor diminishes the + individual original right itself. Prior to any debate, enquiry, or + investigation, it is not supposed to be known on which side the majority + of opinions will fall, and therefore, whilst this mode of decision secures + to every one the right of giving an opinion, it admits to every one an + equal chance in the ultimate event. + </p> + <p> + Among the matters that will present themselves to the consideration of a + national convention, there is one, wholly of a domestic nature, but so + marvellously loaded with con-fusion, as to appear at first sight, almost + impossible to be reformed. I mean the condition of what is called Law. + </p> + <p> + But, if we examine into the cause from whence this confusion, now so much + the subject of universal complaint, is produced, not only the remedy will + immediately present itself, but, with it, the means of preventing the like + case hereafter. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, the confusion has generated itself from the absurdity + of every Parliament assuming to be eternal in power, and the laws partake + in a similar manner, of this assumption. They have no period of legal or + natural expiration; and, however absurd in principle, or inconsistent in + practice many of them have become, they still are, if not especially + repealed, considered as making a part of the general mass. By this means + the body of what is called Law, is spread over a space of <i>several + hundred years</i>, comprehending laws obsolete, laws repugnant, laws + ridiculous, and every other kind of laws forgotten or remembered; and what + renders the case still worse, is, that the confusion multiplies with the + progress of time. (*) + </p> + <p> + To bring this misshapen monster into form, and to prevent its lapsing + again into a wilderness state, only two things, and those very simple, are + necessary. + </p> + <p> + The first is, to review the whole mass of laws, and to bring forward such + only as are worth retaining, and let all the rest drop; and to give to the + laws so brought forward a new era, commencing from the time of such + reform. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * In the time of Henry IV. a law was passed making it felony + "to multiply gold or silver, or to make use of the craft of + multiplication," and this law remained two hundred and + eighty-six years upon the statute books. It was then + repealed as being ridiculous and injurious.—<i>Author</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Secondly; that at the expiration of every twenty-one years (or any other + stated period) a like review shall again be taken, and the laws, found + proper to be retained, be again carried forward, commencing with that + date, and the useless laws dropped and discontinued. + </p> + <p> + By this means there can be no obsolete laws, and scarcely such a thing as + laws standing in direct or equivocal contradiction to each other, and + every person will know the period of time to which he is to look back for + all the laws in being. + </p> + <p> + It is worth remarking, that while every other branch of science is brought + within some commodious system, and the study of it simplified by easy + methods, the laws take the contrary course, and become every year more + complicated, entangled, confused, and obscure. + </p> + <p> + Among the paragraphs which the Attorney General has taken from the <i>Rights + of Man</i>, and put into his information, one is, that where I have said, + "that with respect to regular law, there is <i>scarcely such a thing</i>." + </p> + <p> + As I do not know whether the Attorney-General means to show this + expression to be libellous, because it is TRUE, or because it is FALSE, I + shall make no other reply to him in this place, than by remarking, that if + almanack-makers had not been more judicious than law-makers, the study of + almanacks would by this time have become as abstruse as the study of the + law, and we should hear of a library of almanacks as we now do of + statutes; but by the simple operation of letting the obsolete matter drop, + and carrying forward that only which is proper to be retained, all that is + necessary to be known is found within the space of a year, and laws also + admit of being kept within some given period. + </p> + <p> + I shall here close this letter, so far as it respects the Addresses, the + Proclamation, and the Prosecution; and shall offer a few observations to + the Society, styling itself "The Friends of the People." + </p> + <p> + That the science of government is beginning to be better understood than + in former times, and that the age of fiction and political superstition, + and of craft and mystery, is passing away, are matters which the + experience of every day-proves to be true, as well in England as in other + countries. + </p> + <p> + As therefore it is impossible to calculate the silent progress of opinion, + and also impossible to govern a nation after it has changed its habits of + thinking, by the craft or policy that it was governed by before, the only + true method to prevent popular discontents and commotions is, to throw, by + every fair and rational argument, all the light upon the subject that can + possibly be thrown; and at the same time, to open the means of collecting + the general sense of the nation; and this cannot, as already observed, be + done by any plan so effectually as a national convention. Here individual + opinion will quiet itself by having a centre to rest upon. + </p> + <p> + The society already mentioned, (which is made up of men of various + descriptions, but chiefly of those called Foxites,) appears to me, either + to have taken wrong grounds from want of judgment, or to have acted with + cunning reserve. It is now amusing the people with a new phrase, namely, + that of "a temperate and moderate reform," the interpretation of which is, + <i>a continuance of the abuses as long as possible, If we cannot hold all + let us hold some</i>. + </p> + <p> + Who are those that are frightened at reforms? Are the public afraid that + their taxes should be lessened too much? Are they afraid that sinecure + places and pensions should be abolished too fast? Are the poor afraid that + their condition should be rendered too comfortable? Is the worn-out + mechanic, or the aged and decayed tradesman, frightened at the prospect of + receiving ten pounds a year out of the surplus taxes? Is the soldier + frightened at the thoughts of his discharge, and three shillings per week + during life? Is the sailor afraid that press-warrants will be abolished? + The Society mistakes the fears of borough-mongers, placemen, and + pensioners, for the fears of the people; and the <i>temperate and moderate + Reform</i> it talks of, is calculated to suit the condition of the former. + </p> + <p> + Those words, "temperate and moderate," are words either of political + cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction.—A thing, moderately good, is + not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper, is always a virtue; + but moderation in principle, is a species of vice. But who is to be the + judge of what is a temperate and moderate Reform? The Society is the + representative of nobody; neither can the unrepresented part of the nation + commit this power to those in Parliament, in whose election they had no + choice; and, therefore, even upon the ground the Society has taken, + recourse must be had to a National Convention. + </p> + <p> + The objection which Mr. Fox made to Mr. Grey's proposed Motion for a + Parliamentary Reform was, that it contained no plan.—It certainly + did not. But the plan very easily presents itself; and whilst it is fair + for all parties, it prevents the dangers that might otherwise arise from + private or popular discontent. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Editorial Note on Burke's Alleged Secret Pension.—By + reference to Vol. II., pp. 271, 360, of this work, it will + be seen that Paine mentions a report that Burke was a + "pensioner in a fictitious name." A letter of John Hall to a + relative in Leicester, (London, May 1,1792.) says: "You will + remember that there was a vote carried, about the conclusion + of the American war, that the influence of the Crown had + increased, was increasing, and should be diminished. Burke, + poor, and like a good angler, baited a hook with a bill to + bring into Parliament, that no pensions should be given + above £300 a year, but what should be publicly granted, and + for what, (I may not be quite particular.) To stop that he + took in another person's name £1500 a year for life, and + some time past he disposed of it, or sold his life out. He + has been very still since his declension from the Whigs, and + is not concerned in the slave-trade [question?] as I hear + of." This letter, now in possession of Hall's kinsman, Dr. + Dutton Steele of Philadelphia, contains an item not in + Paine's account, which may have been derived from it. Hall + was an English scientific engineer, and acquainted with + intelligent men in London. Paine was rather eager for a + judicial encounter with Burke, and probably expected to be + sued by him for libel, as he (Burke) had once sued the + "Public Advertiser" for a personal accusation. But Burke + remained quiet under this charge, and Paine, outlawed, and + in France, had no opportunity for summoning witnesses in its + support. The biographers of Burke have silently passed over + the accusation, and this might be fair enough were this + unconfirmed charge made against a public man of stainless + reputation in such matters. But though Burke escaped + parliamentary censure for official corruption (May 16, 1783, + by only 24 majority) he has never been vindicated. It was + admitted that he had restored to office a cashier and an + accountant dismissed for dishonesty by his predecessor. + ("Pari. Hist.," xxiii., pp. 801,902.) He escaped censure by + agreeing to suspend them. One was proved guilty, the + other committed suicide. It was subsequently shown that one + of the men had been an agent of the Burkes in raising India + stock. (Dilke's "Papers of a Critic," ii-, p. 333—"Dict. + Nat Biography": art Burke.) Paine, in his letter to the + Attorney-General (IV. of this volume), charged that Burke + had been a "masked pensioner" ten years. The date + corresponds with a secret arrangement made in 1782 with + Burke for a virtual pension to his son, for life, and his + mother. Under date April 34 of that year, Burke, writing to + William Burke at Madras, reports his appointment as + Paymaster: "The office is to be 4000L. certain. Young + Richard [his son] is the deputy with a salary of 500L. The + office to be reformed according to the Bill. There is enough + emoluments. In decency it could not be more. Something + considerable is also to be secured for the life of young + Richard to be a security for him and his mother."("Mem. and + Cor. of Charles James Fox," i., p. 451.) It is thus certain + that the Rockingham Ministry were doing for the Paymaster + all they could "in decency," and that while posing as a + reformer in reducing the expenses of that office, he was + arranging for secret advantages to his family. It is said + that the arrangement failed by his loss of office, but while + so many of Burke's papers are withheld from the public (if + not destroyed), it cannot be certain that something was not + done of the kind charged by Paine. That Burke was not strict + in such matters is further shown by his efforts to secure + for his son the rich sinecure of the Clerkship of the Polls, + in which he failed. Burke was again Paymaster in 1783-4, and + this time remained long enough in office to repeat more + successfully his secret attempts to secure irregular + pensions for his family. On April 7, 1894, Messrs. Sotheby, + Wilkinson, and Hodge sold in London (Lot 404) a letter of + Burke (which I have not seen in print), dated July 16, 1795. + It was written to the Chairman of the Commission on Public + Accounts, who had required him to render his accounts for + the time he was in office as Paymaster-General, 1783-4. + Burke refuses to do so in four angry and quibbling pages, + and declares he will appeal to his country against the + demand if it is pressed. Why should Burke wish to conceal + his accounts? There certainly were suspicions around Burke, + and they may have caused Pitt to renounce his intention, + conveyed to Burke, August 30, 1794, of asking Parliament to + bestow on him a pension. "It is not exactly known," says one + of Burke's editors, "what induced Mr. Pitt to decline + bringing before Parliament a measure which he had himself + proposed without any solicitation whatever on the part of + Burke." (Burke's "Works," English Ed., 1852, ii., p. 252.) + The pensions were given without consultation with + Parliament—1200L. granted him by the King from the Civil + List, and 2500L. by Pitt in West Indian 41/2 per cents. + Burke, on taking his seat beside Pitt in the great Paine + Parliament (December, 1792), had protested that he had not + abandoned his party through expectation of a pension, but + the general belief of those with whom he had formerly acted + was that he had been promised a pension. A couplet of the + time ran: + + "A pension makes him change his plan, + And loudly damn the rights of man." + + Writing in 1819, Cobbett says: "As my Lord Grenville + introduced the name of Burke, suffer me, my Lord, to + introduce the name of the man [Paine] who put this Burke to + shame, who drove him off the public stage to seek shelter in + the Pension List, and who is now named fifty million times + where the name of the pensioned Burke is mentioned once."— + <i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0011" id="link2H_4_0011"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + X. ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE OF FRANCE. + </h2> + <p> + Paris, Sept. 25, [1792.] First Year of the Republic. + </p> + <p> + Fellow Citizens, + </p> + <p> + I RECEIVE, with affectionate gratitude, the honour which the late National + Assembly has conferred upon me, by adopting me a Citizen of France: and + the additional honor of being elected by my fellow citizens a Member of + the National Convention.(1) Happily impressed, as I am, by those + testimonies of respect shown towards me as an individual, I feel my + felicity increased by seeing the barrier broken down that divided + patriotism by spots of earth, and limited citizenship to the soil, like + vegetation. + </p> + <p> + Had those honours been conferred in an hour of national tranquillity, they + would have afforded no other means of shewing my affection, than to have + accepted and enjoyed them; but they come accompanied with circumstances + that give me the honourable opportunity of commencing my citizenship in + the stormy hour of difficulties. I come not to enjoy repose. Convinced + that the cause of France is the cause of all mankind, and that liberty + cannot be purchased by a wish, I gladly share with you the dangers and + honours necessary to success. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The National Assembly (August 26, 1792) conferred the + title of "French Citizen" on "Priestley, Payne, Bentham, + Wilberforce, Clarkson, Mackintosh, Campe, Cormelle, Paw, + David Williams, Gorani, Anacharsis Clootz, Pestalozzi, + Washington, Hamilton, Madison, Klopstoc, Kosciusko, + Gilleers."—<i>Editor.</i>. vol ni—7 +</pre> + <p> + I am well aware that the moment of any great change, such as that + accomplished on the 10th of August, is unavoidably the moment of terror + and confusion. The mind, highly agitated by hope, suspicion and + apprehension, continues without rest till the change be accomplished. But + let us now look calmly and confidently forward, and success is certain. It + is no longer the paltry cause of kings, or of this, or of that individual, + that calls France and her armies into action. It is the great cause of + all. It is the establishment of a new aera, that shall blot despotism from + the earth, and fix, on the lasting principles of peace and citizenship, + the great Republic of Man. + </p> + <p> + It has been my fate to have borne a share in the commencement and complete + establishment of one Revolution, (I mean the Revolution of America.) The + success and events of that Revolution are encouraging to us. The + prosperity and happiness that have since flowed to that country, have + amply rewarded her for all the hardships she endured and for all the + dangers she encountered. + </p> + <p> + The principles on which that Revolution began, have extended themselves to + Europe; and an over-ruling Providence is regenerating the Old World by the + principles of the New. The distance of America from all the other parts of + the globe, did not admit of her carrying those principles beyond her own + situation. It is to the peculiar honour of France, that she now raises the + standard of liberty for all nations; and in fighting her own battles, + contends for the rights of all mankind. + </p> + <p> + The same spirit of fortitude that insured success to America; will insure + it to France, for it is impossible to conquer a nation determined to be + free! The military circumstances that now unite themselves to France, are + such as the despots of the earth know nothing of, and can form no + calculation upon. They know not what it is to fight against a nation; they + have only been accustomed to make war upon each other, and they know, from + system and practice, how to calculate the probable success of despot + against despot; and here their knowledge and their experience end. + </p> + <p> + But in a contest like the present a new and boundless variety of + circumstances arise, that deranges all such customary calculations. When a + whole nation acts as an army, the despot knows not the extent of the power + against which he contends. New armies arise against him with the necessity + of the moment. It is then that the difficulties of an invading enemy + multiply, as in the former case they diminished; and he finds them at + their height when he expected them to end. + </p> + <p> + The only war that has any similarity of circumstances with the present, is + the late revolution war in America. On her part, as it now is in France, + it was a war of the whole nation:—there it was that the enemy, by + beginning to conquer, put himself in a condition of being conquered. His + first victories prepared him for defeat. He advanced till he could not + retreat, and found himself in the midst of a nation of armies. + </p> + <p> + Were it now to be proposed to the Austrians and Prussians, to escort them + into the middle of France, and there leave them to make the most of such a + situation, they would see too much into the dangers of it to accept the + offer, and the same dangers would attend them, could they arrive there by + any other means. Where, then, is the military policy of their attempting + to obtain, by force, that which they would refuse by choice? But to reason + with despots is throwing reason away. The best of arguments is a vigorous + preparation. + </p> + <p> + Man is ever a stranger to the ways by which Providence regulates the order + of things. The interference of foreign despots may serve to introduce into + their own enslaved countries the principles they come to oppose. Liberty + and Equality are blessings too great to be the inheritance of France + alone. It is an honour to her to be their first champion; and she may now + say to her enemies, with a mighty voice, "O! ye Austrians, ye Prussians! + ye who now turn your bayonets against us, it is for you, it is for all + Europe, it is for all mankind, and not for France alone, that she raises + the standard of Liberty and Equality!" + </p> + <p> + The public cause has hitherto suffered from the contradictions contained + in the Constitution of the Constituent Assembly. Those contradictions have + served to divide the opinions of individuals at home, and to obscure the + great principles of the Revolution in other countries. But when those + contradictions shall be removed, and the Constitution be made conformable + to the declaration of Rights; when the bagatelles of monarchy, royalty, + regency, and hereditary succession, shall be exposed, with all their + absurdities, a new ray of light will be thrown over the world, and the + Revolution will derive new strength by being universally understood. + </p> + <p> + The scene that now opens itself to France extends far beyond the + boundaries of her own dominions. Every nation is becoming her colleague, + and every court is become her enemy. It is now the cause of all nations, + against the cause of all courts. The terror that despotism felt, + clandestinely begot a confederation of despots; and their attack upon + France was produced by their fears at home. + </p> + <p> + In entering on this great scene, greater than any nation has yet been + called to act in, let us say to the agitated mind, be calm. Let us punish + by instructing, rather than by revenge. Let us begin the new ara by a + greatness of friendship, and hail the approach of union and success. + </p> + <p> + Your Fellow-Citizen, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0012" id="link2H_4_0012"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XI. ANTI-MONARCHAL ESSAY. FOR THE USE OF NEW REPUBLICANS.(1) + </h2> + <p> + When we reach some great good, long desired, we begin by felicitating + ourselves. We triumph, we give ourselves up to this joy without rendering + to our minds any full account of our reasons for it. Then comes reflexion: + we pass in review all the circumstances of our new happiness; we compare + it in detail with our former condition; and each of these thoughts becomes + a fresh enjoyment. This satisfaction, elucidated and well-considered, we + now desire to procure for our readers. + </p> + <p> + In seeing Royalty abolished and the Republic established, all France has + resounded with unanimous plaudits.(2) Yet, Citizen President: In the name + of the Deputies of the Department of the Pas de Calais, I have the honor + of presenting to the Convention the felicitations of the General Council + of the Commune of Calais on the abolition of Royalty. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Translated for this work from Le Patriote François, + "Samedi 20 Octobre, 1793, l'an Ier de la République. + Supplement au No. 1167," in the Bibliothèque Nationale, + Paris. It is headed, "Essai anti-monarchique, à l'usage des + nouveaux républicains, tiré de la Feuille Villageoise." I + have not found this Feuille, but no doubt Brissot, in + editing the essay for his journal (Le Patriote François) + abridged it, and in one instance Paine is mentioned by name. + Although in this essay Paine occasionally repeats sentences + used elsewhere, and naturally maintains his well-known + principles, the work has a peculiar interest as indicating + the temper and visions of the opening revolution.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Royalty was abolished by the National Convention on the + first day of its meeting, September 21, 1792, the + revolutionary Calendar beginning next day. Paine was chosen + by his fellow-deputies of Calais to congratulate the + Convention, and did so in a brief address, dated October 27, + which was loaned by M. Charavay to the Historical Exposition + of the Revolution at Paris, 1889, where I made the subjoined + translation: "folly of oar ancestor», who have placed us + under the necessity of treating gravely (solennellement) the + abolition of a phantom (fantôme).—Thomas Paine, Deputy."— + <i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Amid the joy inspired by this event, one cannot forbear some pain at the + some who clap their hands do not sufficiently understand the condition + they are leaving or that which they are assuming. + </p> + <p> + The perjuries of Louis, the conspiracies of his court, the wildness of his + worthy brothers, have filled every Frenchman with horror, and this race + was dethroned in their hearts before its fall by legal decree. But it is + little to throw down an idol; it is the pedestal that above all must be + broken down; it is the regal office rather than the incumbent that is + murderous. All do not realize this. + </p> + <p> + Why is Royalty an absurd and detestable government? Why is the Republic a + government accordant with nature and reason? At the present time a + Frenchman should put himself in a position to answer these two questions + clearly. For, in fine, if you are free and contented it is yet needful + that you should know why. + </p> + <p> + Let us first discuss Royalty or Monarchy. Although one often wishes to + distinguish between these names, common usage gives them the same sense. + </p> + <p> + ROYALTY. + </p> + <p> + Bands of brigands unite to subvert a country, place it under tribute, + seize its lands, enslave its inhabitants. The expedition completed, the + chieftain of the robbers adopts the title of monarch or king. Such is the + origin of Royalty among all tribes—huntsmen, agriculturists, + shepherds. + </p> + <p> + A second brigand arrives who finds it equitable to take away by force what + was conquered by violence: he dispossesses the first; he chains him, kills + him, reigns in his place. Ere long time effaces the memory of this origin; + the successors rule under a new form; they do a little good, from policy; + they corrupt all who surround them; they invent fictitious genealogies to + make their families sacred (1); the knavery of priests comes to their aid; + they take Religion for a life-guard: thenceforth tyranny becomes immortal, + the usurped power becomes an hereditary right. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The Boston Investigator's compilation of Paine's Works + contains the following as supposed to be Mr. Paine's: + + "Royal Pedigree.—George the Third, who was the grandson of + George the Second, who was the son of George the First, who + was the son of the Princess Sophia, who was the cousin of + Anne, who was the sister of William and Mary, who were the + daughter and son-in-law of James the Second, who was the son + of Charles the First, who was a traitor to his country and + decapitated as such, who was the son of James the First, who + was the son of Mary, who was the sister of Edward the Sixth, + who was the son of Henry the Eighth, who was the coldblooded + murderer of his wives, and the promoter of the Protestant + religion, who was the son of Henry the Seventh, who slew + Richard the Third, who smothered his nephew Edward the + Fifth, who was the son of Edward the Fourth, who with bloody + Richard slew Henry the Sixth, who succeeded Henry the Fifth, + who was the son of Henry the Fourth, who was the cousin of + Richard the Second, who was the son of Edward the Third, who + was the son of Richard the Second, who was the son of Edward + the First, who was the son of Henry the Third, who was the + son of John, who was the brother of Richard the First, who + was the son of Henry the Second, who was the son of Matilda, + who was the daughter of Henry the First, who was the brother + of William Rufus, who was the son of William the Conqueror, + who was the son of a whore."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + The effects of Royalty have been entirely harmonious with its origin. What + scenes of horror, what refinements of iniquity, do the annals of + monarchies present! If we should paint human nature with a baseness of + heart, an hypocrisy, from which all must recoil and humanity disavow, it + would be the portraiture of kings, their ministers and courtiers. + </p> + <p> + And why should it not be so? What should such a monstrosity produce but + miseries and crimes? What is monarchy? It has been finely disguised, and + the people familiarized with the odious title: in its real sense the word + signifies <i>the absolute power of one single individual</i>, who may with + impunity be stupid, treacherous, tyrannical, etc. Is it not an insult to + nations to wish them so governed? + </p> + <p> + Government by a single individual is vicious in itself, independently of + the individual's vices. For however little a State, the prince is nearly + always too small: where is the proportion between one man and the affairs + of a whole nation? + </p> + <p> + True, some men of genius have been seen under the diadem; but the evil is + then even greater: the ambition of such a man impels him to conquest and + despotism, his subjects soon have to lament his glory, and sing their <i>Te-deums</i> + while perishing with hunger. Such is the history of Louis XIV. and so many + others. + </p> + <p> + But if ordinary men in power repay you with incapacity or with princely + vices? But those who come to the front in monarchies are frequently mere + mean mischief-makers, commonplace knaves, petty intriguers, whose small + wits, which in courts reach large places, serve only to display their + ineptitude in public, as soon as they appear. (*) In short, monarchs do + nothing, and their ministers do evil: this is the history of all + monarchies. + </p> + <p> + But if Royalty as such is baneful, as hereditary succession it is equally + revolting and ridiculous. What! there exists among my kind a man who + pretends that he is born to govern me? Whence derived he such right? From + his and my ancestors, says he. But how could they transmit to him a right + they did not possess? Man has no authority over generations unborn. I + cannot be the slave of the dead, more than of the living. Suppose that + instead of our posterity, it was we who should succeed ourselves: we + should not to-day be able to despoil ourselves of the rights which would + belong to us in our second life: for a stronger reason we cannot so + despoil others. + </p> + <p> + An hereditary crown! A transmissible throne! What a notion! With even a + little reflexion, can any one tolerate it? Should human beings then be the + property of certain individuals, born or to be born? Are we then to treat + our descendants in advance as cattle, who shall have neither will nor + rights of their own? To inherit government is to inherit peoples, as if + they were herds. It is the basest, the most shameful fantasy that ever + degraded mankind. + </p> + <p> + It is wrong to reproach kings with their ferocity, their brutal + indifference, the oppressions of the people, and molestations of citizens: + it is hereditary succession that makes them what they are: this breeds + monsters as a marsh breeds vipers. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * J. J. Rousseau, Contrat Social.—Author. +</pre> + <p> + The logic on which the hereditary prince rests is in effect this: I derive + my power from my birth; I derive my birth from God; therefore I owe + nothing to men. It is little that he has at hand a complacent minister, he + continues to indulge, conscientiously, in all the crimes of tyranny. This + has been seen in all times and countries. + </p> + <p> + Tell me, then, what is there in common between him who is master of a + people, and the people of whom he is master? Are these masters really of + their kind? It is by sympathy that we are good and human: with whom does a + monarch sympathize? When my neighbor suffers I pity, because I put myself + in his place: a monarch pities none, because he has never been, can never + be, in any other place than his own. + </p> + <p> + A monarch is an egoist by nature, the <i>egoist par excellence</i>. A + thousand traits show that this kind of men have no point of contact with + the rest of humanity. There was demanded of Charles II. the punishment of + Lauderdale, his favorite, who had infamously oppressed the Scotch. "Yes," + said Charles coolly, "this man has done much against the Scotch, but I + cannot see that he has done anything against my interests." Louis XIV. + often said: "If I follow the wishes of the people, I cannot act the king." + Even such phrases as "misfortunes of the State," "safety of the State," + filled Louis XIV. with wrath. + </p> + <p> + Could nature make a law which should assure virtue and wisdom invariably + in these privileged castes that perpetuate themselves on thrones, there + would be no objection to their hereditary succession. But let us pass + Europe in review: all of its monarchs are the meanest of men. This one a + tyrant, that one an imbecile, another a traitor, the next a debauchee, + while some muster all the vices. It looks as if fate and nature had aimed + to show our epoch, and all nations, the absurdity and enormity of Royalty. + </p> + <p> + But I mistake: this epoch has nothing peculiar. For, such is the essential + vice of this royal succession by animal filiation, the peoples have not + even the chances of nature,—they cannot even hope for a good prince + as an alternative. All things conspire to deprive of reason and justice an + individual reared to command others. The word of young Dionysius was very + sensible: his father, reproaching him for a shameful action, said, "Have I + given thee such example?" "Ah," answered the youth, "thy father was not a + king!" + </p> + <p> + In truth, were laughter on such a subject permissible, nothing would + suggest ideas more burlesque than this fantastic institution of hereditary + kings. Would it not be believed, to look at them, that there really exist + particular lineages possessing certain qualities which enter the blood of + the embryo prince, and adapt him physically for royalty, as a horse for + the racecourse? But then, in this wild supposition, it yet becomes + necessary to assure the genuine family descent of the heir presumptive. To + perpetuate the noble race of Andalusian chargers, the circumstances pass + before witnesses, and similar precautions seem necessary, however + indecent, to make sure that the trickeries of queens shall not supply + thrones with bastards, and that the kings, like the horses, shall always + be thoroughbreds. + </p> + <p> + Whether one jests or reasons, there is found in this idea of hereditary + royalty only folly and shame. What then is this office, which may be + filled by infants or idiots? Some talent is required to be a simple + workman; to be a king there is need to have only the human shape, to be a + living automaton. We are astonished when reading that the Egyptians placed + on the throne a flint, and called it their king. We smile at the dog + Barkouf, sent by an Asiatic despot to govern one of his provinces.(*) But + mon-archs of this kind are less mischievous and less absurd than those + before whom whole peoples prostrate themselves. The flint and the dog at + least imposed on nobody. None ascribed to them qualities or characters + they did not possess. They were not styled 'Father of the People,'—though + this were hardly more ridiculous than to give that title to a rattle-head + whom inheritance crowns at eighteen. Better a mute than an animate idol. + Why, there can hardly be cited an instance of a great man having children + worthy of him, yet you will have the royal function pass from father to + son! As well declare that a wise man's son will be wise. A king is an + administrator, and an hereditary administrator is as absurd as an author + by birthright. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * See the first year of La Feuille Villageoise, No. 42.— + Author. [Cf. Montaigne's Essays, chap. xii.—<i>Editor.</i>] +</pre> + <p> + Royalty is thus as contrary to common sense as to com-mon right. But it + would be a plague even if no more than an absurdity; for a people who can + bow down in honor of a silly thing is a debased people. Can they be fit + for great affairs who render equal homage to vice and virtue, and yield + the same submission to ignorance and wisdom? Of all institutions, none has + caused more intellectual degeneracy. This explains the often-remarked + abjectness of character under monarchies. + </p> + <p> + Such is also the effect of this contagious institution that it renders + equality impossible, and draws in its train the presumption and the evils + of "Nobility." If you admit inheritance of an office, why not that of a + distinction? The Nobility's heritage asks only homage, that of the Crown + commands submission. When a man says to me, 'I am born illustrious,' I + merely smile; when he says 'I am born your master,' I set my foot on him. + </p> + <p> + When the Convention pronounced the abolition of Royalty none rose for the + defence that was expected. On this subject a philosopher, who thought + discussion should always precede enactment, proposed a singular thing; he + desired that the Convention should nominate an orator commissioned to + plead before it the cause of Royalty, so that the pitiful arguments by + which it has in all ages been justified might appear in broad daylight. + Judges give one accused, however certain his guilt, an official defender. + In the ancient Senate of Venice there existed a public officer whose + function was to contest all propositions, however incontestible, or + however perfect their evidence. For the rest, pleaders for Royalty are not + rare: let us open them, and see what the most specious of royalist + reasoners have said. + </p> + <p> + 1. <i>A king is necessary to preserve a people from the tyranny of + powerful men</i>. + </p> + <p> + Establish the Rights of Man(1); enthrone Equality; form a good + Constitution; divide well its powers; let there be no privileges, no + distinctions of birth, no monopolies; make safe the liberty of industry + and of trade, the equal distribution of [family] inheritances, publicity + of administration, freedom of the press: these things all established, you + will be assured of good laws, and need not fear the powerful men. + Willingly or unwillingly, all citizens will be under the Law. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The reader should bear in mind that this phrase, now used + vaguely, had for Paine and his political school a special + significance; it implied a fundamental Declaration of + individual rights, of supreme force and authority, invasion + which, either by legislatures, law courts, majorities, or + administrators, was to be regarded as the worst treason and + despotism.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + 2. <i>The Legislature might usurp authority, and a king is needed to + restrain it</i>. + </p> + <p> + With representatives, frequently renewed, who neither administer nor + judge, whose functions are determined by the laws; with national + conventions, with primary assemblies, which can be convoked any moment; + with a people knowing how to read, and how to defend itself; with good + journals, guns, and pikes; a Legislature would have a good deal of trouble + in enjoying any months of tyranny. Let us not suppose an evil for the sake + of its remedy. + </p> + <p> + 3. <i>A king is needed to give force to executive power</i>. + </p> + <p> + This might be said while there existed nobles, a priesthood, parliaments, + the privileged of every kind. But at present who can resist the Law, which + is the will of all, whose execution is the interest of all? On the + contrary the existence of an hereditary prince inspires perpetual distrust + among the friends of liberty; his authority is odious to them; in checking + despotism they constantly obstruct the action of government. Observe how + feeble the executive power was found, after our recent pretence of + marrying Royalty with Liberty. + </p> + <p> + Take note, for the rest, that those who talk in this way are men who + believe that the King and the Executive Power are only one and the same + thing: readers of <i>La Feuille Villageoise</i> are more advanced.(*) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * See No. 50.—<i>Author</i> +</pre> + <p> + Others use this bad reasoning: "Were there no hereditary chief there would + be an elective chief: the citizens would side with this man or that, and + there would be a civil war at every election." In the first place, it is + certain that hereditary succession alone has produced the civil wars of + France and England; and that beyond this are the pre-tended rights, of + royal families which have twenty times drawn on these nations the scourge + of foreign wars. It is, in fine, the heredity of crowns that has caused + the troubles of Regency, which Thomas Paine calls Monarchy at nurse. + </p> + <p> + But above all it must be said, that if there be an elective chief, that + chief will not be a king surrounded by courtiers, burdened with pomp, + inflated by idolatries, and endowed with thirty millions of money; also, + that no citizen will be tempted to injure himself by placing another + citizen, his equal, for some years in an office without limited income and + circumscribed power. + </p> + <p> + In a word, whoever demands a king demands an aristocracy, and thirty + millions of taxes. See why Franklin described Royalism as <i>a crime like + poisoning</i>. + </p> + <p> + Royalty, its fanatical eclat, its superstitious idolatry, the delusive + assumption of its necessity, all these fictions have been invented only to + obtain from men excessive taxes and voluntary servitude. Royalty and + Popery have had the same aim, have sustained themselves by the same + artifices, and crumble under the same Light. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0013" id="link2H_4_0013"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XII. TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, ON THE PROSECUTION AGAINST THE SECOND PART + </h2> + <p> + OF RIGHTS OF MAN.(1) + </p> + <p> + Paris, 11th of November, 1st Year of the Republic. [1792.] + </p> + <p> + Mr. Attorney General: + </p> + <p> + Sir,—As there can be no personal resentment between two strangers, I + write this letter to you, as to a man against whom I have no animosity. + </p> + <p> + You have, as Attorney General, commenced a prosecution against me, as the + author of Rights of Man. Had not my duty, in consequence of my being + elected a member of the National Convention of France, called me from + England, I should have staid to have contested the injustice of that + prosecution; not upon my own account, for I cared not about the + prosecution, but to have defended the principles I had advanced in the + work. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Read to the Jury by the Attorney General, Sir Archibald + Macdonald, at the trial of Paine, December 18, 1792, which + resulted in his outlawry.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + The duty I am now engaged in is of too much importance to permit me to + trouble myself about your prosecution: when I have leisure, I shall have + no objection to meet you on that ground; but, as I now stand, whether you + go on with the prosecution, or whether you do not, or whether you obtain a + verdict, or not, is a matter of the most perfect indifference to me as an + individual. If you obtain one, (which you are welcome to if you can get + it,) it cannot affect me either in person, property, or reputation, + otherwise than to increase the latter; and with respect to yourself, it is + as consistent that you obtain a verdict against the Man in the Moon as + against me; neither do I see how you can continue the prosecution against + me as you would have done against one <i>your own people, who</i> had + absented himself because he was prosecuted; what passed at Dover proves + that my departure from England was no secret. (1) + </p> + <p> + My necessary absence from your country affords the opportunity of knowing + whether the prosecution was intended against Thomas Paine, or against the + Right of the People of England to investigate systems and principles of + government; for as I cannot now be the object of the prosecution, the + going on with the prosecution will shew that something else was the + object, and that something else can be no other than the People of + England, for it is against <i>their Rights</i>, and not against me, that a + verdict or sentence can operate, if it can operate at all. Be then so + candid as to tell the Jury, (if you choose to continue the process,) whom + it is you are prosecuting, and on whom it is that the verdict is to + fall.(2) + </p> + <p> + But I have other reasons than those I have mentioned for writing you this + letter; and, however you may choose to interpret them, they proceed from a + good heart. The time, Sir, is becoming too serious to play with Court + prosecutions, and sport with national rights. The terrible examples that + have taken place here, upon men who, less than a year ago, thought + themselves as secure as any prosecuting Judge, Jury, or Attorney General, + now can in England, ought to have some weight with men in your situation. + That the government of England is as great, if not the greatest, + perfection of fraud and corruption that ever took place since governments + began, is what you cannot be a stranger to, unless the constant habit of + seeing it has blinded your senses; but though you may not chuse to see it, + the people are seeing it very fast, and the progress is beyond what you + may chuse to believe. Is it possible that you, or I, can believe, or that + reason can make any other man believe, that the capacity of such a man as + Mr. Guelph, or any of his profligate sons, is necessary to the government + of a nation? I speak to you as one man ought to speak to another; and I + know also that I speak what other people are beginning to think. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See Chapter VIII. of this volume.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 In reading the letter in court the Attorney General said + at this point: "Gentlemen, I certainly will comply with + this request. I am prosecuting both him and his work; and + if I succeed in this prosecution, he shall never return to + this country otherwise than <i>in vintulis</i>, for I will outlaw + him."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + That you cannot obtain a verdict (and if you do, it will signify nothing) + <i>without packing a Jury</i>, (and we <i>both</i> know that such tricks + are practised,) is what I have very good reason to believe, I have gone + into coffee-houses, and places where I was unknown, on purpose to learn + the currency of opinion, and I never yet saw any company of twelve men + that condemned the book; but I have often found a greater number than + twelve approving it, and this I think is <i>a fair way of collecting the + natural currency of opinion</i>. Do not then, Sir, be the instrument of + drawing twelve men into a situation that may be <i>injurious</i> to them + afterwards. I do not speak this from policy, but from benevolence; but if + you chuse to go on with the process, I make it my request to you that you + will read this letter in Court, after which the Judge and the Jury may do + as they please. As I do not consider myself the object of the prosecution, + neither can I be affected by the issue, one way or the other, I shall, + though a foreigner in your country, subscribe as much money as any other + man towards supporting the right of the nation against the prosecution; + and it is for this purpose only that I shall do it.(1) + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + As I have not time to copy letters, you will excuse the corrections. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In reading this letter at the trial the Attorney + interspersed comments. At the phrase, "Mr. Guelph and his + profligate sons," he exclaimed: "This passage is + contemptuous, scandalous, false, cruel. Why, gentlemen, is + Mr. Paine, in addition to the political doctrines he is + teaching us in this country, to teach us the morality and + religion of implacability? Is he to teach human creatures, + whose moments of existence depend upon the permission of a + Being, merciful, long-suffering, and of great goodness, that + those youthful errors from which even royalty is not + exempted, are to be treasured up in a vindictive memory, and + are to receive sentence of irremissible sin at His hands.... + If giving me pain was his object he has that hellish + gratification." Erskine, Fame's counsel, protested in + advance against the reading of this letter (of which he had + heard), as containing matter likely to divert the Jury from + the subject of prosecution (the book). Lord Kenyon admitted + the letter.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + P. S. I intended, had I staid in England, to have published the + information, with my remarks upon it, before the trial came on; but as I + am otherwise engaged, I reserve myself till the trial is over, when I + shall reply fully to every thing you shall advance. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0014" id="link2H_4_0014"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XIII. ON THE PROPRIETY OF BRINGING LOUIS XVI. TO TRIAL.(1) + </h2> + <h3> + Read to the Convention, November 21, 1792. + </h3> + <p> + Paris, Nov. 20, 1792. + </p> + <p> + Citizen President, + </p> + <p> + As I do not know precisely what day the Convention will resume the + discussion on the trial of Louis XVI., and, on account of my inability to + express myself in French, I cannot speak at the tribune, I request + permission to deposit in your hands the enclosed paper, which contains my + opinion on that subject. I make this demand with so much more eagerness, + because circumstances will prove how much it imports to France, that Louis + XVI. should continue to enjoy good health. I should be happy if the + Convention would have the goodness to hear this paper read this morning, + as I propose sending a copy of it to London, to be printed in the English + journals.(2) + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This address, which has suffered by alterations in all + editions is here revised and completed by aid of the + official document: "Opinion de Thomas Payne, Depute du + Département de la Somme [error], concernant le jugement de + Louis XVI. Précédé par sa lettre d'envoi au Président de la + Convention. Imprimé par ordre de la Convention Nationale. À + Paris. De l'Imprimerie Nationale." Lamartine has censured + Paine for this speech; but the trial of the King was a + foregone conclusion, and it will be noted that Paine was + already trying to avert popular wrath from the individual + man by directing it against the general league of monarchs, + and the monarchal system. Nor would his plea for the King's + life have been listened to but for this previous address.— + <i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Of course no English journal could then venture to print + it.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + A Secretary read the opinion of Thomas Paine. I think it necessary that + Louis XVI. should be tried; not that this advice is suggested by a spirit + of vengeance, but because this measure appears to me just, lawful, and + conformable to sound policy. If Louis is innocent, let us put him to prove + his innocence; if he is guilty, let the national will determine whether he + shall be pardoned or punished. + </p> + <p> + But besides the motives personal to Louis XVI., there are others which + make his trial necessary. I am about to develope these motives, in the + language which I think expresses them, and no other. I forbid myself the + use of equivocal expression or of mere ceremony. There was formed among + the crowned brigands of Europe a conspiracy which threatened not only + French liberty, but likewise that of all nations. Every thing tends to the + belief that Louis XVI. was the partner of this horde of conspirators. You + have this man in your power, and he is at present the only one of the band + of whom you can make sure. I consider Louis XVI. in the same point of view + as the two first robbers taken up in the affair of the Store Room; their + trial led to discovery of the gang to which they belonged. We have seen + the unhappy soldiers of Austria, of Prussia, and the other powers which + declared themselves our enemies, torn from their fire-sides, and drawn to + butchery like wretched animals, to sustain, at the cost of their blood, + the common cause of these crowned brigands. They loaded the inhabitants of + those regions with taxes to support the expenses of the war. All this was + not done solely for Louis XVI. Some of the conspirators have acted openly: + but there is reason to presume that this conspiracy is composed of two + classes of brigands; those who have taken up arms, and those who have lent + to their cause secret encouragement and clandestine assistance. Now it is + indispensable to let France and the whole world know all these + accomplices. + </p> + <p> + A little time after the National Convention was constituted, the Minister + for Foreign Affairs presented the picture of all the governments of + Europe,—those whose hostilities were public, and those that acted + with a mysterious circumspection. This picture supplied grounds for just + suspicions of the part the latter were disposed to take, and since then + various circumstances have occurred to confirm those suspicions. We have + already penetrated into some part of the conduct of Mr. Guelph, Elector of + Hanover, and strong presumptions involve the same man, his court and + ministers, in quality of king of England. M. Calonne has constantly been + favoured with a friendly reception at that court.(1) The arrival of Mr. + Smith, secretary to Mr. Pitt, at Coblentz, when the emigrants were + assembling there; the recall of the English ambassador; the extravagant + joy manifested by the court of St. James' at the false report of the + defeat of Dumouriez, when it was communicated by Lord Elgin, then Minister + of Great Britain at Brussels—all these circumstances render him + [George III.] extremely suspicious; the trial of Louis XVI. will probably + furnish more decisive proofs. + </p> + <p> + The long subsisting fear of a revolution in England, would alone, I + believe, prevent that court from manifesting as much publicity in its + operations as Austria and Prussia. Another reason could be added to this: + the inevitable decrease of credit, by means of which alone all the old + governments could obtain fresh loans, in proportion as the probability of + revolutions increased. Whoever invests in the new loans of such + governments must expect to lose his stock. + </p> + <p> + Every body knows that the Landgrave of Hesse fights only as far as he is + paid. He has been for many years in the pay of the court of London. If the + trial of Louis XVI. could bring it to light, that this detestable dealer + in human flesh has been paid with the produce of the taxes imposed on the + English people, it would be justice to that nation to disclose that fact. + It would at the same time give to France an exact knowledge of the + character of that court, which has not ceased to be the most intriguing in + Europe, ever since its connexion with Germany. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Calonne (1734-1802), made Controller General of the + Treasury in 1783, lavished the public money on the Queen, on + courtiers, and on himself (purchasing St. Cloud and + Rambouillet), borrowing vast sums and deceiving the King as + to the emptiness of the Treasury, the annual deficit having + risen in 1787 to 115 millions of francs. He was then + banished to Lorraine, whence he proceeded to England, where + he married the wealthy widow Haveley. By his agency for the + Coblentz party he lost his fortune. In 1802 Napoleon brought + him back from London to Paris, where he died the same year. + —<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Louis XVI., considered as an individual, is an object beneath the notice + of the Republic; but when he is looked upon as a part of that band of + conspirators, as an accused man whose trial may lead all nations in the + world to know and detest the disastrous system of monarchy, and the plots + and intrigues of their own courts, he ought to be tried. + </p> + <p> + If the crimes for which Louis XVI. is arraigned were absolutely personal + to him, without reference to general conspiracies, and confined to the + affairs of France, the plea of inviolability, that folly of the moment, + might have been urged in his behalf with some appearance of reason; but he + is arraigned not only for treasons against France, but for having + conspired against all Europe, and if France is to be just to all Europe we + ought to use every means in our power to discover the whole extent of that + conspiracy. France is now a republic; she has completed her revolution; + but she cannot earn all its advantages so long as she is surrounded with + despotic governments. Their armies and their marine oblige her also to + keep troops and ships in readiness. It is therefore her immediate interest + that all nations shall be as free as herself; that revolutions shall be + universal; and since the trial of Louis XVI. can serve to prove to the + world the flagitiousness of governments in general, and the necessity of + revolutions, she ought not to let slip so precious an opportunity. + </p> + <p> + The despots of Europe have formed alliances to preserve their respective + authority, and to perpetuate the oppression of peoples. This is the end + they proposed to themselves in their invasion of French territory. They + dread the effect of the French revolution in the bosom of their own + countries; and in hopes of preventing it, they are come to attempt the + destruction of this revolution before it should attain its perfect + maturity. Their attempt has not been attended with success. France has + already vanquished their armies; but it remains for her to sound the + particulars of the conspiracy, to discover, to expose to the eyes of the + world, those despots who had the infamy to take part in it; and the world + expects from her that act of justice. + </p> + <p> + These are my motives for demanding that Louis XVI. be judged; and it is in + this sole point of view that his trial appears to me of sufficient + importance to receive the attention of the Republic. + </p> + <p> + As to "inviolability," I would not have such a word mentioned. If, seeing + in Louis XVI. only a weak and narrow-minded man, badly reared, like all + his kind, given, as it is said, to frequent excesses of drunkenness—a + man whom the National Assembly imprudently raised again on a throne for + which he was not made—he is shown hereafter some compassion, it + shall be the result of the national magnanimity, and not the burlesque + notion of a pretended "inviolability." + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0015" id="link2H_4_0015"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XIV. REASONS FOR PRESERVING THE LIFE OF LOUIS CAPET, + </h2> + <h3> + As Delivered to the National Convention, January 15, 1703.(1) + </h3> + <p> + Citizen President, + </p> + <p> + My hatred and abhorrence of monarchy are sufficiently known: they + originate in principles of reason and conviction, nor, except with life, + can they ever be extirpated; but my compassion for the unfortunate, + whether friend or enemy, is equally lively and sincere. + </p> + <p> + I voted that Louis should be tried, because it was necessary to afford + proofs to the world of the perfidy, corruption, and abomination of the + monarchical system. The infinity of evidence that has been produced + exposes them in the most glaring and hideous colours; thence it results + that monarchy, whatever form it may assume, arbitrary or otherwise, + becomes necessarily a centre round which are united every species of + corruption, and the kingly trade is no less destructive of all morality in + the human breast, than the trade of an executioner is destructive of its + sensibility. I remember, during my residence in another country, that I + was exceedingly struck with a sentence of M. Autheine, at the Jacobins + [Club], which corresponds exactly with my own idea,—"Make me a king + to-day," said he, "and I shall be a robber to-morrow." + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Printed in Paris (Hartley, Adlard & Son) and published in + London with the addition of D. I. Eaton's name, in 1796. + While Paine was in prison, he was accused in England and + America of having helped to bring Louis XVI. to the + scaffold. The English pamphlet has a brief preface in which + it is presented "as a burnt offering to Truth, in behalf of + the most zealous friend and advocate of the Rights of Man; + to protect him against the barbarous shafts of scandal and + delusion, and as a reply to all the horrors which despots of + every description have, with such unrelenting malice, + attempted to fix on his conduct. But truth in the end must + triumph: cease then such calumnies: all your efforts are + in vain —you bite a file."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Nevertheless, I am inclined to believe that if Louis Capet had been born + in obscure condition, had he lived within the circle of an amiable and + respectable neighbourhood, at liberty to practice the duties of domestic + life, had he been thus situated, I cannot believe that he would have shewn + himself destitute of social virtues: we are, in a moment of fermentation + like this, naturally little indulgent to his vices, or rather to those of + his government; we regard them with additional horror and indignation; not + that they are more heinous than those of his predecessors, but because our + eyes are now open, and the veil of delusion at length withdrawn; yet the + lamentable, degraded state to which he is actually reduced, is surely far + less imputable to him than to the Constituent Assembly, which, of its own + authority, without consent or advice of the people, restored him to the + throne. + </p> + <p> + I was in Paris at the time of the flight, or abdication of Louis XVI., and + when he was taken and brought back. The proposal of restoring him to + supreme power struck me with amazement; and although at that time I was + not a French citizen, yet as a citizen of the world I employed all the + efforts that depended on me to prevent it. + </p> + <p> + A small society, composed only of five persons, two of whom are now + members of the Convention,(1) took at that time the name of the Republican + Club (Société Républicaine). This society opposed the restoration of + Louis, not so much on account of his personal offences, as in order to + overthrow the monarchy, and to erect on its ruins the republican system + and an equal representation. + </p> + <p> + With this design, I traced out in the English language certain + propositions, which were translated with some trifling alterations, and + signed by Achille Duchâtelet, now Lieutenant-General in the army of the + French republic, and at that time one of the five members which composed + our little party: the law requiring the signature of a citizen at the + bottom of each printed paper. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Condorect and Paine; the other members were Achille + Duchitelet, and probably Nicolas de Bonneville and + Lanthenas,—translator of Paine's "Works."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + The paper was indignantly torn by Malouet; and brought forth in this very + room as an article of accusation against the person who had signed it, the + author and their adherents; but such is the revolution of events, that + this paper is now received and brought forth for a very opposite purpose—to + remind the nation of the errors of that unfortunate day, that fatal error + of not having then banished Louis XVI. from its bosom, and to plead this + day in favour of his exile, preferable to his death. + </p> + <p> + The paper in question, was conceived in the following terms: + </p> + <p> + [The address constitutes the first chapter of the present volume.] + </p> + <p> + Having thus explained the principles and the exertions of the republicans + at that fatal period, when Louis was rein-stated in full possession of the + executive power which by his flight had been suspended, I return to the + subject, and to the deplorable situation in which the man is now actually + involved. + </p> + <p> + What was neglected at the time of which I have been speaking, has been + since brought about by the force of necessity. The wilful, treacherous + defects in the former constitution have been brought to light; the + continual alarm of treason and conspiracy aroused the nation, and produced + eventually a second revolution. The people have beat down royalty, never, + never to rise again; they have brought Louis Capet to the bar, and + demonstrated in the face of the whole world, the intrigues, the cabals, + the falsehood, corruption, and rooted depravity, the inevitable effects of + monarchical government. There remains then only one question to be + considered, what is to be done with this man? + </p> + <p> + For myself I seriously confess, that when I reflect on the unaccountable + folly that restored the executive power to his hands, all covered as he + was with perjuries and treason, I am far more ready to condemn the + Constituent Assembly than the unfortunate prisoner Louis Capet. + </p> + <p> + But abstracted from every other consideration, there is one circumstance + in his life which ought to cover or at least to palliate a great number of + his transgressions, and this very circumstance affords to the French + nation a blessed occasion of extricating itself from the yoke of kings, + without defiling itself in the impurities of their blood. + </p> + <p> + It is to France alone, I know, that the United States of America owe that + support which enabled them to shake off the unjust and tyrannical yoke of + Britain. The ardour and zeal which she displayed to provide both men and + money, were the natural consequence of a thirst for liberty. But as the + nation at that time, restrained by the shackles of her own government, + could only act by the means of a monarchical organ, this organ—whatever + in other respects the object might be—certainly performed a good, a + great action. + </p> + <p> + Let then those United States be the safeguard and asylum of Louis Capet. + There, hereafter, far removed from the miseries and crimes of royalty, he + may learn, from the constant aspect of public prosperity, that the true + system of government consists not in kings, but in fair, equal, and + honourable representation. + </p> + <p> + In relating this circumstance, and in submitting this proposition, I + consider myself as a citizen of both countries. I submit it as a citizen + of America, who feels the debt of gratitude which he owes to every + Frenchman. I submit it also as a man, who, although the enemy of kings, + cannot forget that they are subject to human frailties. I support my + proposition as a citizen of the French republic, because it appears to me + the best, the most politic measure that can be adopted. + </p> + <p> + As far as my experience in public life extends, I have ever observed, that + the great mass of the people are invariably just, both in their intentions + and in their objects; but the true method of accomplishing an effect does + not always shew itself in the first instance. For example: the English + nation had groaned under the despotism of the Stuarts. Hence Charles I. + lost his life; yet Charles II. was restored to all the plenitude of power, + which his father had lost. Forty years had not expired when the same + family strove to reestablish their ancient oppression; so the nation then + banished from its territories the whole race. The remedy was effectual. + The Stuart family sank into obscurity, confounded itself with the + multitude, and is at length extinct. + </p> + <p> + The French nation has carried her measures of government to a greater + length. France is not satisfied with exposing the guilt of the monarch. + She has penetrated into the vices and horrors of the monarchy. She has + shown them clear as daylight, and forever crushed that system; and he, + whoever he may be, that should ever dare to reclaim those rights would be + regarded not as a pretender, but punished as a traitor. + </p> + <p> + Two brothers of Louis Capet have banished themselves from the country; but + they are obliged to comply with the spirit and etiquette of the courts + where they reside. They can advance no pretensions on their own account, + so long as Louis Capet shall live. + </p> + <p> + Monarchy, in France, was a system pregnant with crime and murders, + cancelling all natural ties, even those by which brothers are united. We + know how often they have assassinated each other to pave a way to power. + As those hopes which the emigrants had reposed in Louis XVI. are fled, the + last that remains rests upon his death, and their situation inclines them + to desire this catastrophe, that they may once again rally around a more + active chief, and try one further effort under the fortune of the + ci-devant Monsieur and d'Artois. That such an enterprize would precipitate + them into a new abyss of calamity and disgrace, it is not difficult to + foresee; yet it might be attended with mutual loss, and it is our duty as + legislators not to spill a drop of blood when our purpose may be + effectually accomplished without it. + </p> + <p> + It has already been proposed to abolish the punishment of death, and it is + with infinite satisfaction that I recollect the humane and excellent + oration pronounced by Robespierre on that subject in the Constituent + Assembly. This cause must find its advocates in every corner where + enlightened politicians and lovers of humanity exist, and it ought above + all to find them in this assembly. + </p> + <p> + Monarchical governments have trained the human race, and inured it to the + sanguinary arts and refinements of punishment; and it is exactly the same + punishment which has so long shocked the sight and tormented the patience + of the people, that now, in their turn, they practice in revenge upon + their oppressors. But it becomes us to be strictly on our guard against + the abomination and perversity of monarchical examples: as France has been + the first of European nations to abolish royalty, let her also be the + first to abolish the punishment of death, and to find out a milder and + more effectual substitute. + </p> + <p> + In the particular case now under consideration, I submit the following + propositions: 1st, That the National Convention shall pronounce sentence + of banishment on Louis and his family. 2d, That Louis Capet shall be + detained in prison till the end of the war, and at that epoch the sentence + of banishment to be executed. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0016" id="link2H_4_0016"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XV. SHALL LOUIS XVI. HAVE RESPITE? + </h2> + <h3> + SPEECH IN THE CONVENTION, JANUARY 19, 1793.(1) + </h3> + <p> + (Read in French by Deputy Bancal,) + </p> + <p> + Very sincerely do I regret the Convention's vote of yesterday for death. + </p> + <p> + Marat [<i>interrupting</i>]: I submit that Thomas Paine is incompetent to + vote on this question; being a Quaker his religious principles are opposed + to capital punishment. [<i>Much confusion, quieted by cries for "freedom + of speech" on which Bancal proceeds with Paine's speech</i>.] + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Not included in any previous edition of Paine's "Works." + It is here printed from contemporary French reports, + modified only by Paine's own quotations of a few sentences + in his Memorial to Monroe (xxi.).—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + I have the advantage of some experience; it is near twenty years that I + have been engaged in the cause of liberty, having contributed something to + it in the revolution of the United States of America, My language has + always been that of liberty <i>and</i> humanity, and I know that nothing + so exalts a nation as the union of these two principles, under all + circumstances. I know that the public mind of France, and particularly + that of Paris, has been heated and irritated by the dangers to which they + have been exposed; but could we carry our thoughts into the future, when + the dangers are ended and the irritations forgotten, what to-day seems an + act of justice may then appear an act of vengeance. [<i>Murmurs</i>.] My + anxiety for the cause of France has become for the moment concern for her + honor. If, on my return to America, I should employ myself on a history of + the French Revolution, I had rather record a thousand errors on the side + of mercy, than be obliged to tell one act of severe justice. I voted + against an appeal to the people, because it appeared to me that the + Convention was needlessly wearied on that point; but I so voted in the + hope that this Assembly would pronounce against death, and for the same + punishment that the nation would have voted, at least in my opinion, that + is for reclusion during the war, and banishment thereafter.(1) That is the + punishment most efficacious, because it includes the whole family at once, + and none other can so operate. I am still against the appeal to the + primary assemblies, because there is a better method. This Convention has + been elected to form a Constitution, which will be submitted to the + primary assemblies. After its acceptance a necessary consequence will be + an election and another assembly. We cannot suppose that the present + Convention will last more than five or six months. The choice of new + deputies will express the national opinion, on the propriety or + impropriety of your sentence, with as much efficacy as if those primary + assemblies had been consulted on it. As the duration of our functions here + cannot be long, it is a part of our duty to consider the interests of + those who shall replace us. If by any act of ours the number of the + nation's enemies shall be needlessly increased, and that of its friends + diminished,—at a time when the finances may be more strained than + to-day,—we should not be justifiable for having thus unnecessarily + heaped obstacles in the path of our successors. Let us therefore not be + precipitate in our decisions. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 It is possible that the course of the debate may have + produced some reaction among the people, but when Paine + voted against submitting the king's fate to the popular vote + it was believed by the king and his friends that it would be + fatal. The American Minister, Gouverneur Morris, who had + long been acting for the king, wrote to President + Washington, Jan. 6, 1793: "The king's fate is to be decided + next Monday, the 14th. That unhappy man, conversing with one + of his Council on his own fate, calmly summed up the motives + of every kind, and concluded that a majority of the Council + would vote for referring his case to the people, and that in + consequence he should be massacred." Writing to Washington + on Dec. 28, 1792, Morris mentions having heard from Paine + that he was to move the king's banishment to America, and he + may then have informed Paine that the king believed + reference of his case to popular vote would be fatal. + Genet was to have conducted the royal family to America.— + <i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + France has but one ally—the United States of America. That is the + only nation that can furnish France with naval provisions, for the + kingdoms of northern Europe are, or soon will be, at war with her. It + unfortunately happens that the person now under discussion is considered + by the Americans as having been the friend of their revolution. His + execution will be an affliction to them, and it is in your power not to + wound the feelings of your ally. Could I speak the French language I would + descend to your bar, and in their name become your petitioner to respite + the execution of the sentence on Louis. + </p> + <p> + Thuriot: This is not the language of Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Marat: I denounce the interpreter. I maintain that it is not Thomas + Paine's opinion. It is an untrue translation. + </p> + <p> + Garran: I have read the original, and the translation is correct.(1) + </p> + <p> + [<i>Prolonged uproar. Paine, still standing in the tribune beside his + interpreter, Deputy Bancal, declared the sentiments to be his.</i>] + </p> + <p> + Your Executive Committee will nominate an ambassador to Philadelphia; my + sincere wish is that he may announce to America that the National + Convention of France, out of pure friendship to America, has consented to + respite Louis. That people, by my vote, ask you to delay the execution. + </p> + <p> + Ah, citizens, give not the tyrant of England the triumph of seeing the man + perish on the scaffold who had aided my much-loved America to break his + chains! + </p> + <p> + Marat ["<i>launching himself into the middle of the hall</i>"]: Paine + voted against the punishment of death because he is a Quaker. + </p> + <p> + Paine: I voted against it from both moral motives and motives of public + policy. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See Guizot, "Hist, of France," vi., p. 136. "Hist. + Parliamentair," vol. ii., p. 350. Louis Blanc says that + Paine's appeal was so effective that Marat interrupted + mainly in order to destroy its effect.—"Hist, de la Rev.," + tome vii, 396.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0017" id="link2H_4_0017"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XVI. DECLARATION OF RIGHTS.(1) + </h2> + <p> + The object of all union of men in society being maintenance of their + natural rights, civil and political, these rights are the basis of the + social pact: their recognition and their declaration ought to precede the + Constitution which assures their guarantee. + </p> + <p> + 1. The natural rights of men, civil and political, are liberty, equality, + security, property, social protection, and resistance to oppression. + </p> + <p> + 2. Liberty consists in the right to do whatever is not contrary to the + rights of others: thus, exercise of the natural rights of each individual + has no limits other than those which secure to other members of society + enjoyment of the same rights. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In his appeal from prison to the Convention (August 7, + 1794) Paine states that he had, as a member of the Committee + for framing the Constitution, prepared a Plan, which was in + the hands of Barère, also of that Committee. I have not yet + succeeded in finding Paine's Constitution, but it is certain + that the work of framing the Constitution of 1793 was mainly + entrusted to Paine and Condorcet. + + Dr. John Moore, in his work on the French Revolution, + describes the two at their work; and it is asserted that he + "assisted in drawing up the French Declaration of Rights," + by "Juvencus," author of an able "Essay on the Life and + Genius of Thomas Paine," whose information came from a + personal friend of Paine. ("Aphorisms, Opinions, and + Reflections of Thomas Paine," etc., London, 1826. Pp. 3, + 14.) A translation of the Declaration and Constitution + appeared in England (Debrett, Picadilly, 1793), but with + some faults. The present translation is from "Oeuvres + Complètes de Condorcet," tome xviii. The Committee reported + their Constitution February 15th, and April 15th was set for + its discussion, Robespierre then demanded separate + discussion of the Declaration of Rights, to which he + objected that it made no mention of the Supreme Being, and + that its extreme principles of freedom would shield illicit + traffic. Paine and Jefferson were troubled that the United + States Constitution contained no Declaration of Rights, it + being a fundamental principle in Paine's theory of + government that such a Declaration was the main safeguard of + the individual against the despotism of numbers. See + supra, vol. ii.t pp. 138, 139.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + 3. The preservation of liberty depends on submission to the Law, which is + the expression of the general will. Nothing unforbidden by law can be + hindered, and none may be forced to do what the law does not command. + </p> + <p> + 4. Every man is free to make known his thoughts and opinions. + </p> + <p> + 5. Freedom of the press, and every other means of publishing one's + opinion, cannot be interdicted, suspended, or limited. + </p> + <p> + 6. Every citizen shall be free in the exercise of his religion (<i>culte</i>). + </p> + <p> + 7. Equality consists in the enjoyment by every one of the same rights. + </p> + <p> + 8. The law should be equal for all, whether it rewards or punishes, + protects or represses. + </p> + <p> + 9. All citizens are admissible to all public positions, employments, and + functions. Free nations recognize no grounds of preference save talents + and virtues. + </p> + <p> + 10. Security consists in the protection accorded by society to every + citizen for the preservation of his person, property, and rights. + </p> + <p> + 11. None should be sued, accused, arrested, or detained, save in cases + determined by the law, and in accordance with forms prescribed by it. + Every other act against a citizen is arbitrary and null. + </p> + <p> + 12. Those who solicit, further, sign, execute, or cause to be executed, + such arbitrary acts are culpable, and should be punished. + </p> + <p> + 13. Citizens against whom the execution of such acts is attempted have the + right to repel force by force; but every citizen summoned or arrested by + authority of the Law, and in the forms by it prescribed, should instantly + obey: he renders himself guilty by resistance. + </p> + <p> + 14. Every man being presumed innocent until legally pronounced guilty, + should his arrest be deemed indispensable, all rigor not necessary to + secure his person should be severely represssed by law. + </p> + <p> + 15. None should be punished save in virtue of a law formally enacted, + promulgated anterior to the offence, and legally applied. + </p> + <p> + 16. Any law that should punish offences committed before its existence + would be an arbitrary act. Retroactive effect given to the law is a crime. + </p> + <p> + 17. The law should award only penalties strictly and evidently necessary + to the general safety. Penalties should be proportioned to offences, and + useful to society. + </p> + <p> + 18. The right of property consists in every man's being master in the + disposal, at his will, of his goods, capital, income, and industry. + </p> + <p> + 19. No kind of labor, commerce, or culture, can be prohibited to any one: + he may make, sell, and transport every species of production. + </p> + <p> + 20. Every man may engage his services and his time; but he cannot sell + himself; his person is not an alienable property. + </p> + <p> + 21. No one can be deprived of the least portion of his property without + his consent, unless evidently required by public necessity, legally + determined, and under the condition of a just indemnity in advance. + </p> + <p> + 22. No tax shall be imposed except for the general welfare, and to meet + public needs. All citizens have the right to unite personally, or by their + representatives, in the fixing of imposts. + </p> + <p> + 23. Instruction is the need of all, and society owes it to all its members + equally. + </p> + <p> + 24. Public succours are a sacred debt of society; it is for the law to + determine their extent and application. + </p> + <p> + 25. The social guarantee of the rights of man rests on the national + sovereignty. + </p> + <p> + 26. This sovereignty is one, indivisible, imprescriptible, and + inalienable. + </p> + <p> + 27. It resides essentially in the whole people, and every citizen has an + equal right to unite in its exercise. + </p> + <p> + 28. No partial assemblage of citizens, and no individual, may attribute to + themselves sovereignty, or exercise any authority, or discharge any public + function, without formal delegation thereto by the law. + </p> + <p> + 29. The social guarantee cannot exist if the limits of public + administration are not clearly determined by law, and if the + responsibility of all public functionaries is not assured. + </p> + <p> + 30. All citizens are bound to unite in this guarantee, and in enforcing + the law when summoned in its name. + </p> + <p> + 31. Men united in society should have legal means of resisting oppression. + </p> + <p> + 32. There is oppression when any law violates the natural rights, civil + and political, which it should guarantee. + </p> + <p> + There is oppression when the law is violated by public officials in its + application to individual cases. + </p> + <p> + There is oppression when arbitrary actions violate the rights of citizen + against the express purpose (<i>expression</i>) of the law. + </p> + <p> + In a free government the mode of resisting these different acts of + oppression should be regulated by the Constitution. + </p> + <p> + 33. A people possesses always the right to reform and alter its + Constitution. A generation has no right to subject a future generation to + its laws; and all heredity in offices is absurd and tyrannical. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0018" id="link2H_4_0018"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XVII. PRIVATE LETTERS TO JEFFERSON. + </h2> + <p> + Paris, 20 April, 1793. + </p> + <p> + My dear Friend,—The gentleman (Dr. Romer) to whom I entrust this + letter is an intimate acquaintance of Lavater; but I have not had the + opportunity of seeing him, as he had set off for Havre prior to my writing + this letter, which I forward to him under cover from one of his friends, + who is also an acquaintance of mine. + </p> + <p> + We are now in an extraordinary crisis, and it is not altogether without + some considerable faults here. Dumouriez, partly from having no fixed + principles of his own, and partly from the continual persecution of the + Jacobins, who act without either prudence or morality, has gone off to the + Enemy, and taken a considerable part of the Army with him. The expedition + to Holland has totally failed, and all Brabant is again in the hands of + the Austrians. + </p> + <p> + You may suppose the consternation which such a sudden reverse of fortune + has occasioned, but it has been without commotion. Dumouriez threatened to + be in Paris in three weeks. It is now three weeks ago; he is still on the + frontier near to Mons with the Enemy, who do not make any progress. + Dumouriez has proposed to re-establish the former Constitution in which + plan the Austrians act with him. But if France and the National Convention + act prudently this project will not succeed. In the first place there is a + popular disposition against it, and there is force sufficient to prevent + it. In the next place, a great deal is to be taken into the calculation + with respect to the Enemy. There are now so many persons accidentally + jumbled together as to render it exceedingly difficult to them to agree + upon any common object. + </p> + <p> + The first object, that of restoring the old Monarchy, is evidently given + up by the proposal to re-establish the late Constitution. The object of + England and Prussia was to preserve Holland, and the object of Austria was + to recover Brabant; while those separate objects lasted, each party having + one, the Confederation could hold together, each helping the other; but + after this I see not how a common object is to be formed. To all this is + to be added the probable disputes about opportunity, the expence, and the + projects of reimbursements. The Enemy has once adventured into France, and + they had the permission or the good fortune to get back again. On every + military calculation it is a hazardous adventure, and armies are not much + disposed to try a second time the ground upon which they have been + defeated. + </p> + <p> + Had this revolution been conducted consistently with its principles, there + was once a good prospect of extending liberty through the greatest part of + Europe; but I now relinquish that hope. Should the Enemy by venturing into + France put themselves again in a condition of being captured, the hope + will revive; but this is a risk I do not wish to see tried, lest it should + fail. + </p> + <p> + As the prospect of a general freedom is now much shortened, I begin to + contemplate returning home. I shall await the event of the proposed + Constitution, and then take my final leave of Europe. I have not written + to the President, as I have nothing to communicate more than in this + letter. Please to present him my affection and compliments, and remember + me among the circle of my friends. + </p> + <p> + Your sincere and affectionate friend, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + P. S. I just now received a letter from General Lewis Morris, who tells me + that the house and Barn on my farm at New Rochelle are burnt down. I + assure you I shall not bring money enough to build another. + </p> + <p> + Paris, 20 Oct., 1793. + </p> + <p> + I wrote you by Captain Dominick who was to sail from Havre about the 20th + of this month. This will probably be brought you by Mr. Barlow or Col. + Oswald. Since my letter by Dominick I am every day more convinced and + impressed with the propriety of Congress sending Commissioners to Europe + to confer with the Ministers of the Jesuitical Powers on the means of + terminating the War. The enclosed printed paper will shew there are a + variety of subjects to be taken into consideration which did not appear at + first, all of which have some tendency to put an end to the War. I see not + how this War is to terminate if some intermediate power does not step + forward. There is now no prospect that France can carry revolutions into + Europe on the one hand, or that the combined powers can conquer France on + the other hand. It is a sort of defensive War on both sides. This being + the case, how is the War to close? Neither side will ask for peace though + each may wish it. I believe that England and Holland are tired of the War. + Their Commerce and Manufactures have suffered most exceedingly,—besides + this, it is for them a War without an object. Russia keeps herself at a + distance. + </p> + <p> + I cannot help repeating my wish that Congress would send Commissioners, + and I wish also that yourself would venture once more across the ocean, as + one of them. If the Commissioners rendezvous at Holland they would know + what steps to take. They could call Mr. Pinckney [Gen. Thomas Pinckney, + American Minister in England] to their councils, and it would be of use, + on many accounts, that one of them should come over from Holland to + France. Perhaps a long truce, were it proposed by the neutral powers, + would have all the effects of a Peace, without the difficulties attending + the adjustment of all the forms of Peace. + </p> + <p> + Yours affectionately, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0019" id="link2H_4_0019"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XVIII. LETTER TO DANTON.(1) + </h2> + <h3> + Paris, May 6, 2nd year of the Republic [1793.] + </h3> + <p> + Citoyen Danton: As you read English, I write this letter to you without + passing it through the hands of a translator. I am exceedingly disturbed + at the distractions, jealousies, discontents and uneasiness that reign + among us, and which, if they continue, will bring ruin and disgrace on the + Republic. When I left America in the year 1787, it was my intention to + return the year following, but the French Revolution, and the prospect it + afforded of extending the principles of liberty and fraternity through the + greater part of Europe, have induced me to prolong my stay upwards of six + years. I now despair of seeing the great object of European liberty + accomplished, and my despair arises not from the combined foreign powers, + not from the intrigues of aristocracy and priestcraft, but from the + tumultuous misconduct with which the internal affairs of the present + revolution are conducted. + </p> + <p> + All that now can be hoped for is limited to France only, and I agree with + your motion of not interfering in the government of any foreign country, + nor permitting any foreign country to interfere in the government of + France. This decree was necessary as a preliminary toward terminating the + war. But while these internal contentions continue, while the hope remains + to the enemy of seeing the Republic fall to pieces, while not only the + representatives of the departments but representation itself is publicly + insulted, as it has lately been and now is by the people of Paris, or at + least by the tribunes, the enemy will be encouraged to hang about the + frontiers and await the issue of circumstances. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This admirable letter was brought to light by the late M. + Taine, and first published in full by Taine's translator, + John Durand ("New Materials for the History of the American + Revolution," 1889). The letter to Marat mentioned by Paine + has not been discovered. Danton followed Paine to prison, + and on meeting him there said: "That which you did for the + happiness and liberty of your country I tried to do for + mine. I have been less fortunate, but not less innocent. + They will send me to the scaffold; very well, my friend, I + will go gaily." M. Taine in La Révolution (vol. ii., pp. + 382, 413, 414) refers to this letter of Paine, and says: + "Compared with the speeches and writings of the time, it + produces the strangest effect by its practical good sense." + —<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + I observe that the confederated powers have not yet recognized Monsieur, + or D'Artois, as regent, nor made any proclamation in favour of any of the + Bourbons; but this negative conduct admits of two different conclusions. + The one is that of abandoning the Bourbons and the war together; the other + is that of changing the object of the war and substituting a partition + scheme in the place of their first object, as they have done by Poland. If + this should be their object, the internal contentions that now rage will + favour that object far more than it favoured their former object. The + danger every day increases of a rupture between Paris and the departments. + The departments did not send their deputies to Paris to be insulted, and + every insult shown to them is an insult to the departments that elected + and sent them. I see but one effectual plan to prevent this rupture taking + place, and that is to fix the residence of the Convention, and of the + future assemblies, at a distance from Paris. + </p> + <p> + I saw, during the American Revolution, the exceeding inconvenience that + arose by having the government of Congress within the limits of any + Municipal Jurisdiction. Congress first resided in Philadelphia, and after + a residence of four years it found it necessary to leave it. It then + adjourned to the State of Jersey. It afterwards removed to New York; it + again removed from New York to Philadelphia, and after experiencing in + every one of these places the great inconvenience of a government, it + formed the project of building a Town, not within the limits of any + municipal jurisdiction, for the future residence of Congress. In any one + of the places where Congress resided, the municipal authority privately or + openly opposed itself to the authority of Congress, and the people of each + of these places expected more attention from Congress than their equal + share with the other States amounted to. The same thing now takes place in + France, but in a far greater excess. + </p> + <p> + I see also another embarrassing circumstance arising in Paris of which we + have had full experience in America. I mean that of fixing the price of + provisions. But if this measure is to be attempted it ought to be done by + the Municipality. The Convention has nothing to do with regulations of + this kind; neither can they be carried into practice. The people of Paris + may say they will not give more than a certain price for provisions, but + as they cannot compel the country people to bring provisions to market the + consequence will be directly contrary to their expectations, and they will + find dearness and famine instead of plenty and cheapness. They may force + the price down upon the stock in hand, but after that the market will be + empty. + </p> + <p> + I will give you an example. In Philadelphia we undertook, among other + regulations of this kind, to regulate the price of Salt; the consequence + was that no Salt was brought to market, and the price rose to thirty-six + shillings sterling per Bushel. The price before the war was only one + shilling and sixpence per Bushel; and we regulated the price of flour + (farina) till there was none in the market, and the people were glad to + procure it at any price. + </p> + <p> + There is also a circumstance to be taken into the account which is not + much attended to. The assignats are not of the same value they were a year + ago, and as the quantity increases the value of them will diminish. This + gives the appearance of things being dear when they are not so in fact, + for in the same proportion that any kind of money falls in value articles + rise in price. If it were not for this the quantity of assignats would be + too great to be circulated. Paper money in America fell so much in value + from this excessive quantity of it, that in the year 1781 I gave three + hundred paper dollars for one pair of worsted stockings. What I write you + upon this subject is experience, and not merely opinion. I have no + personal interest in any of these matters, nor in any party disputes. I + attend only to general principles. + </p> + <p> + As soon as a constitution shall be established I shall return to America; + and be the future prosperity of France ever so great, I shall enjoy no + other part of it than the happiness of knowing it. In the mean time I am + distressed to see matters so badly conducted, and so little attention paid + to moral principles. It is these things that injure the character of the + Revolution and discourage the progress of liberty all over the world. When + I began this letter I did not intend making it so lengthy, but since I + have gone thus far I will fill up the remainder of the sheet with such + matters as occur to me. + </p> + <p> + There ought to be some regulation with respect to the spirit of + denunciation that now prevails. If every individual is to indulge his + private malignancy or his private ambition, to denounce at random and + without any kind of proof, all confidence will be undermined and all + authority be destroyed. Calumny is a species of Treachery that ought to be + punished as well as any other kind of Treachery. It is a private vice + productive of public evils; because it is possible to irritate men into + disaffection by continual calumny who never intended to be disaffected. It + is therefore, equally as necessary to guard against the evils of unfounded + or malignant suspicion as against the evils of blind confidence. It is + equally as necessary to protect the characters of public officers from + calumny as it is to punish them for treachery or misconduct. For my own + part I shall hold it a matter of doubt, until better evidence arises than + is known at present, whether Dumouriez has been a traitor from policy or + resentment. There was certainly a time when he acted well, but it is not + every man whose mind is strong enough to bear up against ingratitude, and + I think he experienced a great deal of this before he revolted. Calumny + becomes harmless and defeats itself, when it attempts to act upon too + large a scale. Thus the denunciation of the Sections [of Paris] against + the twenty-two deputies [Girondists] falls to the ground. The departments + that elected them are better judges of their moral and political + characters than those who have denounced them. This denunciation will + injure Paris in the opinion of the departments because it has the + appearance of dictating to them what sort of deputies they shall elect. + Most of the acquaintances that I have in the Convention are among those + who are in that list, and I know there are not better men nor better + patriots than what they are. + </p> + <p> + I have written a letter to Marat of the same date as this but not on the + same subject. He may show it to you if he chuse. + </p> + <p> + Votre Ami, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Citoyen Danton. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0020" id="link2H_4_0020"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XIX. A CITIZEN OF AMERICA TO THE CITIZENS OF EUROPE (1) + </h2> + <p> + 18th Year of Independence. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 State Archives, Paris: États Unis, vol. 38, fol. 90. This + pamphlet is in English, without indication of authorship or + of the place of publication. It is accompanied by a French + translation (MS.) inscribed "Par Thomas Payne." In the + printed pamphlet the date (18th Year, etc) is preceded by + the French words (printed): "Philadelphie 28 Juillet 1793." + It was no doubt the pamphlet sent by Paine to Monroe, with + various documents relating to his imprisonment, describing + it as "a Letter which I had printed here as an American + letter, some copies of which I sent to Mr. Jefferson." A + considerable portion of the pamphlet embodies, with + occasional changes of phraseology, a manuscript (États Unis, + vol. 37, Do. 39) endorsed: "January 1793. Thorn. Payne. + Copie. Observations on the situation of the Powers joined + against France." This opens with the following paragraph: + "It is always useful to know the position and the designs of + one's enemies. It is much easier to do so by combining and + comparing the events, and by examining the consequences + which result from them, than by forming one's judgment by + letters found or intercepted. These letters could be + fabricated with the intention of deceiving, but events or + circumstances have a character which is proper to them. If + in the course of our political operations we mistake the + designs of our enemy, it leads us to do precisely that which + he desires we should do, and it happens by the fact, but + against our intentions, that we work for him." That the date + written on this MS. is erroneous appears by an allusion to + the defeat of the Duke of York at Dunkirk in the closing + paragraph: "There are three distinct parties in England at + this moment: the government party, the revolutionary party, + and an intermedial party,—which is only opposed to the war + on account of the expense it entails, and the harm it does + commerce and manufactures. I am speaking of the People, and + not of the Parliament. The latter is divided into two + parties: the Ministerial, and the Anti-ministerial. The + revolutionary party, the intermedial party, and the anti- + ministerial party, will all rejoice, publicly or privately, + at the defeat of the Duke of York at Dunkirk." The two + paragraphs quoted represent the only actual additions to the + pamphlet. I have a clipping from the London Morning + Chronicle of Friday, April 25, 1794, containing the part of + the pamphlet headed "Of the present state of Europe and the + Confederacy," signed "Thomas Paine, Author of Common Sense, + etc." On February 1,1793, the Convention having declared + war, appointed Paine, Barère, Condorcet and Faber, a + Committee to draft an address to the English people. It was + never done, but these fragments may represent notes written + by Paine with reference to that task. The pamphlet + probably appeared late in September, 1793.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + Understanding that a proposal is intended to be made at the ensuing + meeting of the Congress of the United States of America "to send + commissioners to Europe to confer with the Ministers of all the Neutral + Powers for the purpose of negotiating preliminaries of peace," I address + this letter to you on that subject, and on the several matters connected + therewith. + </p> + <p> + In order to discuss this subject through all its circumstances, it will be + necessary to take a review of the state of Europe, prior to the French + revolution. It will from thence appear, that the powers leagued against + France are fighting to attain an object, which, were it possible to be + attained, would be injurious to themselves. + </p> + <p> + This is not an uncommon error in the history of wars and governments, of + which the conduct of the English government in the war against America is + a striking instance. She commenced that war for the avowed purpose of + subjugating America; and after wasting upwards of one hundred millions + sterling, and then abandoning the object, she discovered, in the course of + three or four years, that the prosperity of England was increased, instead + of being diminished, by the independence of America. In short, every + circumstance is pregnant with some natural effect, upon which intentions + and opinions have no influence; and the political error lies in misjudging + what the effect will be. England misjudged it in the American war, and the + reasons I shall now offer will shew, that she misjudges it in the present + war. In discussing this subject, I leave out of the question everything + respecting forms and systems of government; for as all the governments of + Europe differ from each other, there is no reason that the government of + France should not differ from the rest. + </p> + <p> + The clamours continually raised in all the countries of Europe were, that + the family of the Bourbons was become too powerful; that the intrigues of + the court of France endangered the peace of Europe. Austria saw with a + jealous eye the connection of France with Prussia; and Prussia, in her + turn became jealous of the connection of France with Austria; England had + wasted millions unsuccessfully in attempting to prevent the family compact + with Spain; Russia disliked the alliance between France and Turkey; and + Turkey became apprehensive of the inclination of France towards an + alliance with Russia. Sometimes the quadruple alliance alarmed some of the + powers, and at other times a contrary system alarmed others, and in all + those cases the charge was always made against the intrigues of the + Bourbons. + </p> + <p> + Admitting those matters to be true, the only thing that could have quieted + the apprehensions of all those powers with respect to the interference of + France, would have been her entire NEUTRALITY in Europe; but this was + impossible to be obtained, or if obtained was impossible to be secured, + because the genius of her government was repugnant to all such + restrictions. + </p> + <p> + It now happens that by entirely changing the genius of her government, + which France has done for herself, this neutrality, which neither wars + could accomplish nor treaties secure, arises naturally of itself, and + becomes the ground upon which the war should terminate. It is the thing + that approaches the nearest of all others to what ought to be the + political views of all the European powers; and there is nothing that can + so effectually secure this neutrality, as that the genius of the French + government should be different from the rest of Europe. + </p> + <p> + But if their object is to restore the Bourbons and monarchy together, they + will unavoidably restore with it all the evils of which they have + complained; and the first question of discord will be, whose ally is that + monarchy to be? + </p> + <p> + Will England agree to the restoration of the family compact against which + she has been fighting and scheming ever since it existed? Will Prussia + agree to restore the alliance between France and Austria, or will Austria + agree to restore the former connection between France and Prussia, formed + on purpose to oppose herself; or will Spain or Russia, or any of the + maritime powers, agree that France and her navy should be allied to + England? In fine, will any of the powers agree to strengthen the hands of + the other against itself? Yet all these cases involve themselves in the + original question of the restoration of the Bourbons; and on the other + hand, all of them disappear by the neutrality of France. + </p> + <p> + If their object is not to restore the Bourbons, it must be the + impracticable project of a partition of the country. The Bourbons will + then be out of the question, or, more properly speaking, they will be put + in a worse condition; for as the preservation of the Bourbons made a part + of the first object, the extirpation of them makes a part of the second. + Their pretended friends will then become interested in their destruction, + because it is favourable to the purpose of partition that none of the + nominal claimants should be left in existence. + </p> + <p> + But however the project of a partition may at first blind the eyes of the + confederacy, or however each of them may hope to outwit the other in the + progress or in the end, the embarrassments that will arise are + insurmountable. But even were the object attainable, it would not be of + such general advantage to the parties as the neutrality of France, which + costs them nothing, and to obtain which they would formerly have gone to + war. + </p> + <p> + OF THE PRESENT STATE OF EUROPE, AND THE CONFEDERACY. + </p> + <p> + In the first place the confederacy is not of that kind that forms itself + originally by concert and consent. It has been forced together by chance—a + heterogeneous mass, held only by the accident of the moment; and the + instant that accident ceases to operate, the parties will retire to their + former rivalships. + </p> + <p> + I will now, independently of the impracticability of a partition project, + trace out some of the embarrassments which will arise among the + confederated parties; for it is contrary to the interest of a majority of + them that such a project should succeed. + </p> + <p> + To understand this part of the subject it is necessary, in the first + place, to cast an eye over the map of Europe, and observe the geographical + situation of the several parts of the confederacy; for however strongly + the passionate politics of the moment may operate, the politics that arise + from geographical situation are the most certain, and will in all cases + finally prevail. + </p> + <p> + The world has been long amused with what is called the "<i>balance of + power</i>." But it is not upon armies only that this balance depends. + Armies have but a small circle of action. Their progress is slow and + limited. But when we take maritime power into the calculation, the scale + extends universally. It comprehends all the interests connected with + commerce. + </p> + <p> + The two great maritime powers are England and France. Destroy either of + those, and the balance of naval power is destroyed. The whole world of + commerce that passes on the Ocean would then lie at the mercy of the + other, and the ports of any nation in Europe might be blocked up. + </p> + <p> + The geographical situation of those two maritime powers comes next under + consideration. Each of them occupies one entire side of the channel from + the straits of Dover and Calais to the opening into the Atlantic. The + commerce of all the northern nations, from Holland to Russia, must pass + the straits of Dover and Calais, and along the Channel, to arrive at the + Atlantic. + </p> + <p> + This being the case, the systematical politics of all the nations, + northward of the straits of Dover and Calais, can be ascertained from + their geographical situation; for it is necessary to the safety of their + commerce that the two sides of the Channel, either in whole or in part, + should not be in the possession either of England or France. While one + nation possesses the whole of one side, and the other nation the other + side, the northern nations cannot help seeing that in any situation of + things their commerce will always find protection on one side or the + other. It may sometimes be that of England and sometimes that of France. + </p> + <p> + Again, while the English navy continues in its present condition, it is + necessary that another navy should exist to controul the universal sway + the former would otherwise have over the commerce of all nations. France + is the only nation in Europe where this balance can be placed. The navies + of the North, were they sufficiently powerful, could not be sufficiently + operative. They are blocked up by the ice six months in the year. Spain + lies too remote; besides which, it is only for the sake of her American + mines that she keeps up her navy. + </p> + <p> + Applying these cases to the project of a partition of France, it will + appear, that the project involves with it a DESTRUCTION OF THE BALANCE OF + MARITIME POWER; because it is only by keeping France entire and + indivisible that the balance can be kept up. This is a case that at first + sight lies remote and almost hidden. But it interests all the maritime and + commercial nations in Europe in as great a degree as any case that has + ever come before them.—In short, it is with war as it is with law. + In law, the first merits of the case become lost in the multitude of + arguments; and in war they become lost in the variety of events. New + objects arise that take the lead of all that went before, and everything + assumes a new aspect. This was the case in the last great confederacy in + what is called the succession war, and most probably will be the case in + the present. + </p> + <p> + I have now thrown together such thoughts as occurred to me on the several + subjects connected with the confederacy against France, and interwoven + with the interest of the neutral powers. Should a conference of the + neutral powers take place, these observations will, at least, serve to + generate others. The whole matter will then undergo a more extensive + investigation than it is in my power to give; and the evils attending upon + either of the projects, that of restoring the Bourbons, or of attempting a + partition of France, will have the calm opportunity of being fully + discussed. + </p> + <p> + On the part of England, it is very extraordinary that she should have + engaged in a former confederacy, and a long expensive war, to <i>prevent</i> + the family compact, and now engage in another confederacy to <i>preserve</i> + it. And on the part of the other powers, it is as inconsistent that they + should engage in a partition project, which, could it be executed, would + immediately destroy the balance of maritime power in Europe, and would + probably produce a second war, to remedy the political errors of the + first. + </p> + <p> + A Citizen of the United States of America. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0021" id="link2H_4_0021"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XX. APPEAL TO THE CONVENTION.(1) + </h2> + <p> + Citizens Representatives: If I should not express myself with the energy I + used formerly to do, you will attribute it to the very dangerous illness I + have suffered in the prison of the Luxembourg. For several days I was + insensible of my own existence; and though I am much recovered, it is with + exceeding great difficulty that I find power to write you this letter. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Written in Luxembourg prison, August 7, 1794. Robespierre + having fallen July 29th, those who had been imprisoned under + his authority were nearly all at once released, but Paine + remained. There were still three conspirators against him on + the Committee of Public Safety, and to that Committee this + appeal was unfortunately confided; consequently it never + reached the Convention. The circumstances are related at + length infra, in the introduction to the Memorial to Monroe + (XXI.). It will also be seen that Paine was mistaken in his + belief that his imprisonment was due to the enmity of + Robespierre, and this he vaguely suspected when his + imprisonment was prolonged three months after Robespierre's + death.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But before I proceed further, I request the Convention to observe: that + this is the first line that has come from me, either to the Convention or + to any of the Committees, since my imprisonment,—which is + approaching to eight months. —Ah, my friends, eight months' loss of + liberty seems almost a life-time to a man who has been, as I have been, + the unceasing defender of Liberty for twenty years. + </p> + <p> + I have now to inform the Convention of the reason of my not having written + before. It is a year ago that I had strong reason to believe that + Robespierre was my inveterate enemy, as he was the enemy of every man of + virtue and humanity. The address that was sent to the Convention some time + about last August from Arras, the native town of Robespierre, I have + always been informed was the work of that hypocrite and the partizans he + had in the place. The intention of that address was to prepare the way for + destroying me, by making the people declare (though without assigning any + reason) that I had lost their confidence; the Address, however, failed of + success, as it was immediately opposed by a counter-address from St. Omer, + which declared the direct contrary. But the strange power that + Robespierre, by the most consummate hypocrisy and the most hardened + cruelties, had obtained, rendered any attempt on my part to obtain justice + not only useless but dangerous; for it is the nature of Tyranny always to + strike a deeper blow when any attempt has been made to repel a former one. + This being my situation, I submitted with patience to the hardness of my + fate and waited the event of brighter days. I hope they are now arrived to + the nation and to me. + </p> + <p> + Citizens, when I left the United States in the year 1787 I promised to all + my friends that I would return to them the next year; but the hope of + seeing a revolution happily established in France, that might serve as a + model to the rest of Europe,(1) and the earnest and disinterested desire + of rendering every service in my power to promote it, induced me to defer + my return to that country, and to the society of my friends, for more than + seven years. This long sacrifice of private tranquillity, especially after + having gone through the fatigues and dangers of the American Revolution + which continued almost eight years, deserved a better fate than the long + imprisonment I have silently suffered. But it is not the nation but a + faction that has done me this injustice. Parties and Factions, various and + numerous as they have been, I have always avoided. My heart was devoted to + all France, and the object to which I applied myself was the Constitution. + The Plan which I proposed to the Committee, of which I was a member, is + now in the hands of Barère, and it will speak for itself. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Revolutions have now acquired such sanguinary associations + that it is important to bear in mind that by "revolution" + Paine always means simply a change or reformation of + government, which might be and ought to be bloodless. See + "Rights of Man" Part II., vol. ii. of this work, pp. 513, + 523.—:<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + It is perhaps proper that I inform you of the cause as-assigned in the + order for my imprisonment. It is that I am 'a Foreigner'; whereas, the <i>Foreigner</i> + thus imprisoned was invited into France by a decree of the late National + Assembly, and that in the hour of her greatest danger, when invaded by + Austrians and Prussians. He was, moreover, a citizen of the United States + of America, an ally of France, and not a subject of any country in Europe, + and consequently not within the intentions of any decree concerning + Foreigners. But any excuse can be made to serve the purpose of malignity + when in power. + </p> + <p> + I will not intrude on your time by offering any apology for the broken and + imperfect manner in which I have expressed myself. I request you to accept + it with the sincerity with which it comes from my heart; and I conclude + with wishing Fraternity and prosperity to France, and union and happiness + to her representatives. + </p> + <p> + Citizens, I have now stated to you my situation, and I can have no doubt + but your justice will restore me to the Liberty of which I have been + deprived. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Luxembourg, Thermidor 19, 2nd Year of the French Republic, one and + indivisible. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0022" id="link2H_4_0022"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXI. THE MEMORIAL TO MONROE. + </h2> + <h3> + EDITOR'S historical introduction: + </h3> + <p> + The Memorial is here printed from the manuscript of Paine now among the + Morrison Papers, in the British Museum,—no doubt the identical + document penned in Luxembourg prison. The paper in the United States State + Department (vol. vii., Monroe Papers) is accompanied by a note by Monroe: + "Mr. Paine, Luxembourg, on my arrival in France, 1794. My answer was after + the receipt of his second letter. It is thought necessary to print only + those parts of his that relate directly to his confinement, and to omit + all between the parentheses in each." The paper thus inscribed seems to + have been a wrapper for all of Paine's letters. An examination of the MS. + at Washington does not show any such "parentheses," indicating omissions, + whereas that in the British Museum has such marks, and has evidently been + prepared for the press,—being indeed accompanied by the long title + of the French pamphlet. There are other indications that the British + Museum MS. is the original Memorial from which was printed in Paris the + pamphlet entitled: + </p> + <p> + "Mémoire de Thomas Payne, autographe et signé de sa main: addressé à M. + Monroe, ministre des États-unis en france, pour réclamer sa mise en + liberté comme citoyen Américain, 10 Sept 1794. Robespierre avait fait + arrêter Th. Payne, en 1793—il fut conduit au Luxembourg où le glaive + fut longtemps suspendu sur sa tête. Après onze mois de captivité, il + recouvra la liberté, sur la réclamation du ministre Américain—c'était + après la chute de Robespierre—il reprit sa place à la convention, le + 8 décembre 1794. (18 frimaire an iii.) Ce Mémoire contient des renseigne + mens curieux sur la conduite politique de Th. Payne en france, pendant la + Révolution, et à l'époque du procès de Louis XVI. Ce n'est point, dit il, + comme Quaker, qu'il ne vota pas La Mort du Roi mais par un sentiment + d'humanité, qui ne tenait point à ses principes religieux. Villenave." + </p> + <p> + No date is given, but the pamphlet probably appeared early in 1795. + Matthieu Gillaume Thérèse Villenave (b. 1762, d. 1846) was a journalist, + and it will be noticed that he, or the translator, modifies Paine's answer + to Marat about his Quakerism. There are some loose translations in the + cheap French pamphlet, but it is the only publication which has given + Paine's Memorial with any fulness. Nearly ten pages of the manuscript were + omitted from the Memorial when it appeared as an Appendix to the pamphlet + entitled "Letter to George Washington, President of the United States of + America, on Affairs public and private." By Thomas Paine, Author of the + Works entitled, Common Sense, Rights of Man, Age of Reason, &c. + Philadelphia: Printed by Benj. Franklin Bache, No. 112 Market Street. + 1796. [Entered according to law.] This much-abridged copy of the Memorial + has been followed in all subsequent editions, so that the real document + has not hitherto appeared.(1) + </p> + <p> + In appending the Memorial to his "Letter to Washington," Paine would + naturally omit passages rendered unimportant by his release, but his + friend Bache may have suppressed others that might have embarrassed + American partisans of France, such as the scene at the king's trial. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Bache's pamphlet reproduces the portrait engraved in + Villenave, where it is underlined: "Peint par Ped [Peale] à + Philadelphie, Dessiné par F. Bonneville, Gravé par Sandoz." + In Bache it is: "Bolt sc. 1793 "; and beneath this the + curious inscription: "Thomas Paine. Secretair d. Americ: + Congr: 1780. Mitgl: d. fr. Nat. Convents. 1793." The + portrait is a variant of that now in Independence Hall, and + one of two painted by C. W. Peale. The other (in which the + chin is supported by the hand) was for religious reasons + refused by the Boston Museum when it purchased the + collection of "American Heroes" from Rembrandt Peale. It was + bought by John McDonough, whose brother sold it to Mr. + Joseph Jefferson, the eminent actor, and perished when his + house was burned at Buzzard's Bay. Mr. Jefferson writes me + that he meant to give the portrait to the Paine Memorial + Society, Boston; "but the cruel fire roasted the splendid + <i>Infidel</i>, so I presume the saints are satisfied." +</pre> + <p> + This description, however, and a large proportion of the suppressed pages, + are historically among the most interesting parts of the Memorial, and + their restoration renders it necessary to transfer the document from its + place as an appendix to that of a preliminary to the "Letter to + Washington." + </p> + <p> + Paine's Letter to Washington burdens his reputation today more, probably, + than any other production of his pen. The traditional judgment was formed + in the absence of many materials necessary for a just verdict. The editor + feels under the necessity of introducing at this point an historical + episode; he cannot regard it as fair to the memory of either Paine or + Washington that these two chapters should be printed without a full + statement of the circumstances, the most important of which, but recently + discovered, were unknown to either of those men. In the editor's "Life of + Thomas Paine" (ii., pp. 77-180) newly discovered facts and documents + bearing on the subject are given, which may be referred to by those who + desire to investigate critically such statements as may here appear + insufficiently supported. Considerations of space require that the history + in that work should be only summarized here, especially as important new + details must be added. + </p> + <p> + Paine was imprisoned (December 28, 1793) through the hostility of + Gouverneur Morris, the American Minister in Paris. The fact that the + United States, after kindling revolution in France by its example, was + then represented in that country by a Minister of vehement royalist + opinions, and one who literally entered into the service of the King to + defeat the Republic, has been shown by that Minister's own biographers. + Some light is cast on the events that led to this strange situation by a + letter written to M. de Mont-morin, Minister of Foreign Affairs, by a + French Chargé d'Affaires, Louis Otto, dated Philadelphia, 10 March, 1792. + Otto, a nobleman who married into the Livingston family, was an astute + diplomatist, and enjoyed the intimacy of the Secretary of State, + Jefferson, and of his friends. At the close of a long interview Jefferson + tells him that "The secresy with which the Senate covers its deliberations + serves to veil personal interest, which reigns therein in all its + strength." Otto explains this as referring to the speculative operations + of Senators, and to the commercial connections some of them have with + England, making them unfriendly to French interests. + </p> + <p> + "Among the latter the most remarkable is Mr. Robert Morris, of English + birth, formerly Superintendent of Finance, a man of greatest talent, whose + mercantile speculations are as unlimited as his ambition. He directs the + Senate as he once did the American finances in making it keep step with + his policy and his business.... About two years ago Mr. Robert Morris sent + to France Mr. Gouverneur Morris to negotiate a loan in his name, and for + different other personal matters.... During his sojourn in France, Mr. + Rob. Morris thought he could make him more useful for his aims by inducing + the President of the United States to entrust him with a negotiation with + England relative to the Commerce of the two countries. M. Gouv. Morris + acquitted himself in this as an adroit man, and with his customary zeal, + but despite his address (insinuation) obtained only the vague hope of an + advantageous commercial treaty on condition of an <i>Alliance resembling + that between France and the United States</i>.... [Mr. Robert Morris] is + himself English, and interested in all the large speculations founded in + this country for Great Britain.... His great services as Superintendent of + Finance during the Revolution have assured him the esteem and + consideration of General Washington, who, however, is far from adopting + his views about France. The warmth with which Mr. Rob. Morris opposed in + the Senate the exemption of French <i>armateurs</i> from tonnage, demanded + by His Majesty, undoubtedly had for its object to induce the king, by this + bad behavior, to break the treaty, in order to facilitate hereafter the + negotiations begun with England to form an alliance. As for Mr. Gouv. + Morris he is entirely devoted to his correspondent, with whom he has been + constantly connected in business and opinion. His great talents are + recognized, and his extreme quickness in conceiving new schemes and + gaining others to them. He is perhaps the most eloquent and ingenious man + of his country, but his countrymen themselves distrust his talents. They + admire but fear him." (1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Archives of the State Department, Paris, États Unis., + vol. 35, fol. 301. +</pre> + <p> + The Commission given to Gouverneur Morris by Washington, to which Otto + refers, was in his own handwriting, dated October 13, 1789, and authorized + him "in the capacity of private agent, and in the credit of this letter, + to converse with His Britannic Majesty's ministers on these points, viz. + whether there be any, and what objection to performing those articles of + the treaty which remained to be performed on his part; and whether they + incline to a treaty of commerce on any and what terms. This communication + ought regularly to be made to you by the Secretary of State; but, that + office not being at present filled, my desire of avoiding delays induces + me to make it under my own hand."(1) + </p> + <p> + The President could hardly have assumed the authority of secretly + appointing a virtual ambassador had there not been a tremendous object in + view: this, as he explains in an accompanying letter, was to secure the + evacuation by Great Britain of the frontier posts. This all-absorbing + purpose of Washington is the key to his administration. Gouverneur Morris + paved the way for Jay's treaty, and he was paid for it with the French + mission. The Senate would not have tolerated his appointment to England, + and only by a majority of four could the President secure his confirmation + as Minister to France (January 12, 1792). The President wrote Gouverneur + Morris (January 28th) a friendly lecture about the objections made to him, + chiefly that he favored the aristocracy and was unfriendly to the + revolution, and expressed "the fullest confidence" that, supposing the + allegations founded, he would "effect a change." But Gouverneur Morris + remained the agent of Senator Robert Morris, and still held Washington's + mission to England, and he knew only as "conspirators" the rulers who + succeeded Louis XVI. Even while utilizing them, he was an agent of Great + Britain in its war against the country to which he was officially + commissioned. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Ford's "Writings of George Washington" vol. xi., p. 440. +</pre> + <p> + Lafayette wrote to Washington ("Paris, March 15,1792") the following + appeal: + </p> + <p> + "Permit me, my dear General, to make an observation for yourself alone, on + the recent selection of an American ambassador. Personally I am a friend + of Gouverneur Morris, and have always been, in private, quite content with + him; but the aristocratic and really contra-revolutionary principles which + he has avowed render him little fit to represent the only government + resembling ours.... I cannot repress the desire that American and French + principles should be in the heart and on the lips of the ambassador of the + United States in France." (1) + </p> + <p> + In addition to this; two successive Ministers from France, after the fall + of the Monarchy, conveyed to the American Government the most earnest + remonstrances against the continuance of Gouverneur Morris in their + country, one of them reciting the particular offences of which he was + guilty. The President's disregard of all these protests and entreaties, + unexampled perhaps in history, had the effect of giving Gouverneur Morris + enormous power over the country against which he was intriguing. He was + recognized as the Irremovable. He represented Washington's fixed and + unalterable determination, and this at a moment when the main purpose of + the revolutionary leaders was to preserve the alliance with America. + Robespierre at that time ( 1793) had special charge of diplomatic affairs, + and it is shown by the French historian, Frédéric Masson, that he was very + anxious to recover for the republic the initiative of the American + alliance credited to the king; and "although their Minister, Gouverneur + Morris, was justly suspected, and the American republic was at that time + aiming only to utilize the condition of its ally, the French republic + cleared it at a cheap rate of its debts contracted with the King."(2) + Morris adroitly held this doubt, whether the alliance of his government + with Louis XVI. would be continued to that King's executioners, over the + head of the revolutionists, as a suspended sword. Under that menace, and + with the authentication of being Washington's irremovable mouthpiece, this + Minister had only to speak and it was done. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 "Mémoire», etc., du General Lafayette," Bruxelles, 1837, + tome ii., pp. 484,485. + + 2 "Le Département des Affaires Étrangères pendant la + Révolution," p. 395. +</pre> + <p> + Meanwhile Gouverneur Morris was steadily working in France for the aim + which he held in common with Robert Morris, namely to transfer the + alliance from France to England. These two nations being at war, it was + impossible for France to fulfil all the terms of the alliance; it could + not permit English ships alone to seize American provisions on the seas, + and it was compelled to prevent American vessels from leaving French ports + with cargoes certain of capture by British cruisers. In this way a large + number of American Captains with their ships were detained in France, to + their distress, but to their Minister's satisfaction. He did not fail to + note and magnify all "infractions" of the treaty, with the hope that they + might be the means of annulling it in favor of England, and he did nothing + to mitigate sufferings which were counts in his indictment of the Treaty. + </p> + <p> + It was at this point that Paine came in the American Minister's way. He + had been on good terms with Gouverneur Morris, who in 1790 (May 29th) + wrote from London to the President: + </p> + <p> + "On the 17th Mr. Paine called to tell me that he had conversed on the same + subject [impressment of American seamen] with Mr. Burke, who had asked him + if there was any minister, consul, or other agent of the United States who + could properly make application to the Government: to which he had replied + in the negative; but said that I was here, who had been a member of + Congress, and was therefore the fittest person to step forward. In + consequence of what passed thereupon between them he [Paine] urged me to + take the matter up, which I promised to do. On the 18th I wrote to the + Duke of Leeds requesting an interview." + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Force's "American State Papers, For. Rel.," vol. i. +</pre> + <p> + At that time (1790) Paine was as yet a lion in London, thus able to give + Morris a lift. He told Morris, in 1792 that he considered his appointment + to France a mistake. This was only on the ground of his anti-republican + opinions; he never dreamed of the secret commissions to England. He could + not have supposed that the Minister who had so promptly presented the case + of impressed seamen in England would not equally attend to the distressed + Captains in France; but these, neglected by their Minister, appealed to + Paine. Paine went to see Morris, with whom he had an angry interview, + during which he asked Morris "if he did not feel ashamed to take the money + of the country and do nothing for it." Paine thus incurred the personal + enmity of Gouverneur Morris. By his next step he endangered this + Minister's scheme for increasing the friction between France and America; + for Paine advised the Americans to appeal directly to the Convention, and + introduced them to that body, which at once heeded their application, + Morris being left out of the matter altogether. This was August 22d, and + Morris was very angry. It is probable that the Americans in Paris felt + from that time that Paine was in danger, for on September 13th a memorial, + evidently concocted by them, was sent to the French government proposing + that they should send Commissioners to the United States to forestall the + intrigues of England, and that Paine should go with them, and set forth + their case in the journals, as he "has great influence with the people." + This looks like a design to get Paine safely out of the country, but it + probably sealed his fate. Had Paine gone to America and reported there + Morris's treacheries to France and to his own country, and his + licentiousness, notorious in Paris, which his diary has recently revealed + to the world, the career of the Minister would have swiftly terminated. + Gouverneur Morris wrote to Robert Morris that Paine was intriguing for his + removal, and intimates that he (Paine) was ambitious of taking his place + in Paris. Paine's return to America must be prevented. + </p> + <p> + Had the American Minister not been well known as an enemy of the republic + it might have been easy to carry Paine from the Convention to the + guillotine; but under the conditions the case required all of the + ingenuity even of a diplomatist so adroit as Gouverneur Morris. But fate + had played into his hand. It so happened that Louis Otto, whose letter + from Philadelphia has been quoted, had become chief secretary to the + Minister of Foreign Affairs in Paris, M. Deforgues. This Minister and his + Secretary, apprehending the fate that presently overtook both, were + anxious to be appointed to America. No one knew better than Otto the + commanding influence of Gouverneur Morris, as Washington's "irremovable" + representative, both in France and America, and this desire of the two + frightened officials to get out of France was confided to him.(1) By hope + of his aid, and by this compromising confidence, Deforgues came under the + power of a giant who used it like a giant. Morris at once hinted that + Paine was fomenting the troubles given by Genêt to Washington in America, + and thus set in motion the procedure by which Paine was ultimately lodged + in prison. + </p> + <p> + There being no charge against Paine in France, and no ill-will felt + towards him by Robespierre, compliance with the supposed will of + Washington was in this case difficult. Six months before, a law had been + passed to imprison aliens of hostile nationality, which could not affect + Paine, he being a member of the Convention and an American. But a decree + was passed, evidently to reach Paine, "that no foreigner should be + admitted to represent the French people"; by this he was excluded from the + Convention, and the Committee of General Surety enabled to take the final + step of assuming that he was an Englishman, and thus under the decree + against aliens of hostile nations.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Letter of Gouverneur Morris to Washington, Oct 19, 1793. + Sparks's "Life of Gouverneur Morris," vol. ii., p. 375. + + 2 Although, as I have said, there was no charge against + Paine in France, and none assigned in any document connected + with his arrest, some kind of insinuation had to be made in + the Convention to cover proceedings against a Deputy, and + Bourdon de l'Oise said, "I know that he has intrigued with a + former agent of the bureau of Foreign Affairs." It will be + seen by the third addendum to the Memorial to Monroe that + Paine supposed this to refer to Louis Otto, who had been his + interpreter in an interview requested by Barère, of the + Committee of Public Safety. But as Otto was then, early in + September, 1793, Secretary in the Foreign Office, and Barère + a fellow-terrorist of Bourdon, there could be no accusation + based on an interview which, had it been probed, would have + put Paine's enemies to confusion. It is doubtful, however, + if Paine was right in his conjecture. The reference of + Bourdon was probably to the collusion between Paine and + Genêt suggested by Morris. +</pre> + <p> + Paine was thus lodged in prison simply to please Washington, to whom it + was left to decide whether he had been rightly represented by his Minister + in the case. When the large number of Americans in Paris hastened in a + body to the Convention to demand his release, the President (Vadier) + extolled Paine, but said his birth in England brought him under the + measures of safety, and referred them to the Committees. There they were + told that "their reclamation was only the act of individuals, without any + authority from the American Government." Unfortunately the American + petitioners, not understanding by this a reference to the President, + unsuspiciously repaired to Morris, as also did Paine by letter. The + Minister pretended compliance, thereby preventing their direct appeal to + the President. Knowing, however, that America would never agree that + nativity under the British flag made Paine any more than other Americans a + citizen of England, the American Minister came from Sain-port, where he + resided, to Paris, and secured from the obedient Deforgues a certificate + that he had reclaimed Paine as an American citizen, but that he was held + as a <i>French</i> citizen. This ingeniously prepared certificate which + was sent to the Secretary of State (Jefferson), and Morris's pretended + "reclamation," <i>which was never sent to America</i>, are translated in + my "Life of Paine," and here given in the original. + </p> + <p> + À Paris le 14 février 1794, 26 pluviôse. + </p> + <p> + Le Minisire plénipotentiaire des États Unis de l'Amérique près la + République française au Ministre des Affaires Étrangères. + </p> + <p> + Monsieur: + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine vient de s'adresser à moi pour que je le réclame comme + Citoyen des États Unis. Voici (je crois) les Faits que le regardent. Il + est né en Angleterre. Devenu ensuite Citoyen des États Unis il s'y est + acquise une grande célébrité par des Écrits révolutionnaires. En + consequence il fût adopté Citoyen français et ensuite élu membre de la + Convention. Sa conduite depuis cette époque n'est pas de mon ressort. + J'ignore la cause de sa Détention actuelle dans la prison du Luxembourg, + mais je vous prie Monsieur (si des raisons que ne me sont pas connues + s'opposent à sa liberation) de vouloir bien m'en instruire pour que je + puisse les communiquer au Gouvernement des États Unis. J'ai l'honneur + d'être, Monsieur, + </p> + <p> + Votre très humble Serviteur + </p> + <p> + Gouv. Morris. + </p> + <p> + Paris, i Ventôse l'An ad. de la République une et indivisible. + </p> + <p> + Le Ministre des Affaires Étrangères au Ministre Plénipotentiaire des États + Unis de V Amérique près la République Française. + </p> + <p> + Par votre lettre du 26 du mois dernier, vous réclamez la liberté de Thomas + Faine, comme Citoyen américain. Né en Angleterre, cet ex-deputé est devenu + successivement Citoyen Américain et Citoyen français. En acceptant ce + dernier titre et en remplissant une place dans le Corps Législatif, il est + soumis aux lob de la République et il a renoncé de fait à la protection + que le droit des gens et les traités conclus avec les États Unis auraient + pu lui assurer. + </p> + <p> + J'ignore les motifs de sa détention mais je dois présumer qûils bien + fondés. Je vois néanmoins soumettre au Comité de Salut Public la démande + que vous m'avez adressée et je m'empresserai de vous faire connaître sa + décision. + </p> + <p> + Dir ORGUBS. (1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Archives of the Foreign Office, Paris, "États Unis," vol. + xl. Translations:—Morris: "Sir,—Thomas Paine has just + applied to me to claim him as a citizen of the United + States. Here (I believe) are the facts relating to him. He + was born in England. Having afterwards become a citizen of + the United States, he acquired great celebrity there by his + revolutionary writings. In consequence he was adopted a + French citizen and then elected Member of the Convention. + His conduct since this epoch is out of my jurisdiction. I am + ignorant of the reason for his present detention in the + Luxembourg prison, but I beg you, sir (if reasons unknown to + me prevent his liberation), be so good as to inform me, that + I may communicate them to the government of the United + States." Deporgurs: "By your letter of the 36th of last + month you reclaim the liberty of Thomas Paine as an American + citizen. Born in England, this ex-deputy has become + successively an American and a French citizen. In accepting + this last title, and in occupying a place in the Corps + Législatif he submitted himself to the laws of the Republic, + and has certainly renounced the protection which the law of + nations, and treaties concluded with the United States, + could have assured him. I am ignorant of the motives of his + detention, but I must presume they are well founded. I shall + nevertheless submit to the Committee of Public Safety the + demand you have addressed to me, and I shall lose no time in + letting you know its decision." +</pre> + <p> + It will be seen that Deforgues begins his letter with a falsehood: "You + reclaim the liberty of Paine as an American citizen." Morris's letter had + declared him a French citizen out of his (the American Minister's) + "jurisdiction." Morris states for Deforgues his case, and it is obediently + adopted, though quite discordant with the decree, which imprisoned Paine + as a foreigner. Deforgues also makes Paine a member of a non-existent + body, the "Corps Législatif," which might suggest in Philadelphia previous + connection with the defunct Assembly. No such inquiries as Deforgues + promised, nor any, were ever made, and of course none were intended. + Morris had got from Deforgues the certificate he needed to show in + Philadelphia and to Americans in Paris. His pretended "reclamation" was of + course withheld: no copy of it ever reached America till brought from + French archives by the present writer. Morris does not appear to have + ventured even to keep a copy of it himself. The draft (presumably in + English), found among his papers by Sparks, alters the fatal sentence + which deprived Paine of his American citizenship and of protection. + "Res-sort"—jurisdiction—which has a definite technical meaning + in the mouth of a Minister, is changed to "cognizance"; the sentence is + made to read, "his conduct from that time has not come under my + cognizance." (Sparks's "Life of Gouverneur Morris," i., p. 401). Even as + it stands in his book, Sparks says: "The application, it must be + confessed, was neither pressing in its terms, nor cogent in its + arguments." + </p> + <p> + The American Minister, armed with this French missive, dictated by + himself, enclosed it to the Secretary of State, whom he supposed to be + still Jefferson, with a letter stating that he had reclaimed Paine as an + American, that he (Paine) was held to answer for "crimes," and that any + further attempt to release him would probably be fatal to the prisoner. By + these falsehoods, secured from detection by the profound secrecy of the + Foreign Offices in both countries, Morris paralyzed all interference from + America, as Washington could not of course intervene in behalf of an + American charged with "crimes" committed in a foreign country, except to + demand his trial. But it was important also to paralyze further action by + Americans in Paris, and to them, too, was shown the French certificate of + a reclamation never made. A copy was also sent to Paine, who returned to + Morris an argument which he entreated him to embody in a further appeal to + the French Minister. This document was of course buried away among the + papers of Morris, who never again mentioned Paine in any communication to + the French government, but contented himself with personal slanders of his + victim in private letters to Washington's friend, Robert Morris, and no + doubt others. I quote Sparks's summary of the argument unsuspectingly sent + by Paine to Morris: + </p> + <p> + "He first proves himself to have been an American citizen, a character of + which he affirms no subsequent act had deprived him. The title of French + citizen was a mere nominal and honorary one, which the Convention chose to + confer, when they asked him to help them in making a Constitution. But let + the nature or honor of the title be what it might, the Convention had + taken it away of their own accord. 'He was excluded from the Convention on + the motion for excluding <i>foreigners</i>. Consequently he was no longer + under the law of the Republic as a <i>citizen</i>, but under the + protection of the Treaty of Alliance, as fully and effectually as any + other citizen of America. It was therefore the duty of the American + Minister to demand his release.'" + </p> + <p> + To this Sparks adds: + </p> + <p> + "Such is the drift of Paine's argument, and it would seem indeed that he + could not be a foreigner and a citizen at the same time. It was hard that + his only privilege of citizenship should be that of imprisonment. But this + logic was a little too refined for the revolutionary tribunals of the + Jacobins in Paris, and Mr. Morris well knew it was not worth while to + preach it to them. He did not believe there was any serious design at that + time against the life of the prisoner, and he considered his best chance + of safety to be in preserving silence for the present. Here the matter + rested, and Paine was left undisturbed till the arrival of Mr. Monroe, who + procured his discharge from confinement." ("Life of Gouverneur Morris," + i., p. 417.)l + </p> + <p> + Sparks takes the gracious view of the man whose Life he was writing, but + the facts now known turn his words to sarcasm. The Terror by which Paine + suffered was that of Morris, who warned him and his friends, both in Paris + and America, that if his case was stirred the knife would fall on him. + Paine declares (see xx.) that this danger kept him silent till after the + fall of Robespierre. None knew so well as Morris that there were no + charges against Paine for offences in France, and that Robespierre was + awaiting that action by Washington which he (Morris) had rendered + impossible. Having thus suspended the knife over Paine for six months, + Robespierre interpreted the President's silence, and that of Congress, as + confirmation of Morris's story, and resolved on the execution of Paine "in + the interests of America as well as of France"; in other words to + conciliate Washington to the endangered alliance with France. + </p> + <p> + Paine escaped the guillotine by the strange accident related in a further + chapter. The fall of Robespierre did not of course end his imprisonment, + for he was not Robespierre's but Washington's prisoner. Morris remained + Minister in France nearly a month after Robespierre's death, but the word + needed to open Paine's prison was not spoken. After his recall, had Monroe + been able at once to liberate Paine, an investigation must have followed, + and Morris would probably have taken his prisoner's place in the + Luxembourg. But Morris would not present his letters of recall, and + refused to present his successor, thus keeping Monroe out of his office + four weeks. In this he was aided by Bourdon de l'Oise (afterwards banished + as a royalist conspirator, but now a commissioner to decide on prisoners); + also by tools of Robespierre who had managed to continue on the Committee + of Public Safety by laying their crimes on the dead scapegoat—Robespierre. + Against Barère (who had signed Paine's death-warrant), Billaud-Varennes, + and Colloit d'Her-bois, Paine, if liberated, would have been a terrible + witness. The Committee ruled by them had suppressed Paine's appeal to the + Convention, as they presently suppressed Monroe's first appeal. Paine, + knowing that Monroe had arrived, but never dreaming that the manoeuvres of + Morris were keeping him out of office, wrote him from prison the following + letters, hitherto unpublished. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 There is no need to delay the reader here with any + argument about Paine's unquestionable citizenship, that + point having been settled by his release as an American, and + the sanction of Monroe's action by his government. There was + no genuineness in any challenge of Paine's citizenship, but + a mere desire to do him an injury. In this it had marvellous + success. Ten years after Paine had been reclaimed by Monroe, + with the sanction of Washington, as an American citizen, his + vote was refused at New Rochelle, New York, by the + supervisor, Elisha Ward, on the ground that Washington and + Morris had refused to Declaim him. Under his picture of the + dead Paine, Jarvis, the artist, wrote: "A man who devoted + his whole life to the attainment of two objects—rights of + man, and freedom of conscience—had his vote denied when + living, and was denied a grave when dead."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + August 17th, 1794. + </p> + <p> + My Dear Sir: As I believe none of the public papers have announced your + name right I am unable to address you by it, but a <i>new</i> minister + from America is joy to me and will be so to every American in France. + </p> + <p> + Eight months I have been imprisoned, and I know not for what, except that + the order says that I am a Foreigner. The Illness I have suffered in this + place (and from which I am but just recovering) had nearly put an end to + my existence. My life is but of little value to me in this situation tho' + I have borne it with a firmness of patience and fortitude. + </p> + <p> + I enclose you a copy of a letter, (as well the translation as the English)—which + I sent to the Convention after the fall of the Monster Robespierre—for + I was determined not to write a line during the time of his detestable + influence. I sent also a copy to the Committee of public safety—but + I have not heard any thing respecting it. I have now no expectation of + delivery but by your means—<i>Morris has been my inveterate enemy</i> + and I think he has permitted something of the national Character of + America to suffer by quietly letting a Citizen of that Country remain + almost eight months in prison without making every official exertion to + procure him justice,—for every act of violence offered to a + foreigner is offered also to the Nation to which he belongs. + </p> + <p> + The gentleman, Mr. Beresford, who will present you this has been very + friendly to me.(1) Wishing you happiness in your appointment, I am your + affectionate friend and humble servant. + </p> + <p> + August 18th, 1794. + </p> + <p> + Dear Sir: In addition to my letter of yesterday (sent to Mr. Beresford to + be conveyed to you but which is delayed on account of his being at St. + Germain) I send the following memoranda. + </p> + <p> + I was in London at the time I was elected a member of this Convention. I + was elected a Deputé in four different departments without my knowing any + thing of the matter, or having the least idea of it. The intention of + electing the Convention before the time of the former Legislature expired, + was for the purpose of reforming the Constitution or rather for forming a + new one. As the former Legislature shewed a disposition that I should + assist in this business of the new Constitution, they prepared the way by + voting me a French Citoyen (they conferred the same title on General + Washington and certainly I had no more idea than he had of vacating any + part of my real Citizenship of America for a nominal one in France, + especially at a time when she did not know whether she would be a Nation + or not, and had it not even in her power to promise me protection). I was + elected (the second person in number of Votes, the Abbé Sieves being + first) a member for forming the Constitution, and every American in Paris + as well as my other acquaintance knew that it was my intention to return + to America as soon as the Constitution should be established. The violence + of Party soon began to shew itself in the Convention, but it was + impossible for me to see upon what principle they differed—unless it + was a contention for power. I acted however as I did in America, I + connected myself with no Party, but considered myself altogether a + National Man—but the case with Parties generally is that when you + are not with one you are supposed to be with the other. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 A friendly lamp-lighter, alluded to in the Letter to + Washington, conveyed this letter to Mr. Beresford.— + <i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + I was taken out of bed between three and four in the morning on the 28 of + December last, and brought to the Luxembourg—without any other + accusation inserted in the order than that I was a foreigner; a motion + having been made two days before in the Convention to expel Foreigners + therefrom. I certainly then remained, even upon their own tactics, what I + was before, a Citizen of America. + </p> + <p> + About three weeks after my imprisonment the Americans that were in Paris + went to the bar of the Convention to reclaim me, but contrary to my + advice, they made their address into a Petition, and it miscarried. I then + applied to G. Morris, to reclaim me as an official part of his duty, which + he found it necessary to do, and here the matter stopt.(1) I have not + heard a single line or word from any American since, which is now seven + months. I rested altogether on the hope that a new Minister would arrive + from America. I have escaped with life from more dangers than one. Had it + not been for the fall of Roberspierre and your timely arrival I know not + what fate might have yet attended me. There seemed to be a determination + to destroy all the Prisoners without regard to merit, character, or any + thing else. During the time I laid at the height of my illness they took, + in one night only, 169 persons out of this prison and executed all but + eight. The distress that I have suffered at being obliged to exist in the + midst of such horrors, exclusive of my own precarious situation, suspended + as it were by the single thread of accident, is greater than it is + possible you can conceive—but thank God times are at last changed, + and I hope that your Authority will release me from this unjust + imprisonment. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The falsehood told Paine, accompanied by an intimation of + danger in pursuing the pretended reclamation, was of course + meant to stop any farther action by Paine or his friends.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + August 25, 1794. + </p> + <p> + My Dear Sir: Having nothing to do but to sit and think, I will write to + pass away time, and to say that I am still here. I have received two notes + from Mr. Beresford which are encouraging (as the generality of notes and + letters are that arrive to persons here) but they contain nothing explicit + or decisive with respect to my liberation, and <i>I shall be very glad to + receive a line from yourself to inform me in what condition the matter + stands</i>. If I only glide out of prison by a sort of accident America + gains no credit by my liberation, neither can my attachment to her be + increased by such a circumstance. She has had the services of my best + days, she has my allegiance, she receives my portion of Taxes for my house + in Borden Town and my farm at New Rochelle, and she owes me protection + both at home and thro' her Ministers abroad, yet I remain in prison, in + the face of her Minister, at the arbitrary will of a committee. + </p> + <p> + Excluded as I am from the knowledge of everything and left to a random of + ideas, I know not what to think or how to act. Before there was any + Minister here (for I consider Morris as none) and while the Robespierrian + faction lasted, I had nothing to do but to keep my mind tranquil and + expect the fate that was every day inflicted upon my comrades, not + individually but by scores. Many a man whom I have passed an hour with in + conversation I have seen marching to his destruction the next hour, or + heard of it the next morning; for what rendered the scene more horrible + was that they were generally taken away at midnight, so that every man + went to bed with the apprehension of never seeing his friends or the world + again. + </p> + <p> + I wish to impress upon you that all the changes that have taken place in + Paris have been sudden. There is now a moment of calm, but if thro' any + over complaisance to the persons you converse with on the subject of my + liberation, you omit procuring it for me <i>now</i>, you may have to + lament the fate of your friend when its too late. The loss of a Battle to + the Northward or other possible accident may happen to bring this about. I + am not out of danger till I am out of Prison. + </p> + <p> + Yours affectionately. + </p> + <p> + P. S.—I am now entirely without money. The Convention owes me 1800 + livres salary which I know not how to get while I am here, nor do I know + how to draw for money on the rent of my farm in America. It is under the + care of my good friend General Lewis Morris. I have received no rent since + I have been in Europe. + </p> + <p> + [Addressed] Minister Plenipotentiary from America, Maison des Étrangers, + Rue de la Loi, Rue Richelieu. + </p> + <p> + Such was the sufficiently cruel situation when there reached Paine in + prison, September 4th, the letter of Peter Whiteside which caused him to + write his Memorial. Whiteside was a Philadelphian whose bankruptcy in + London had swallowed up some of Paine's means. His letter, reporting to + Paine that he was not regarded by the American Government or people as an + American citizen, and that no American Minister could interfere in his + behalf, was evidently inspired by Morris who was still in Paris, the + authorities being unwilling to give him a passport to Switzerland, as they + knew he was going in that direction to join the conspirators against + France. This Whiteside letter put Paine, and through him Monroe, on a + false scent by suggesting that the difficulty of his case lay in a <i>bona + fide</i> question of citizenship, whereas there never had been really any + such question. The knot by which Morris had bound Paine was thus + concealed, and Monroe was appealing to polite wolves in the interest of + their victim. There were thus more delays, inexplicable alike to Monroe + and to Paine, eliciting from the latter some heartbroken letters, not + hitherto printed, which I add at the end of the Memorial. To add to the + difficulties and dangers, Paris was beginning to be agitated by + well-founded rumors of Jay's injurious negotiations in England, and a + coldness towards Monroe was setting in. Had Paine's release been delayed + much longer an American Minister's friendship might even have proved + fatal. Of all this nothing could be known to Paine, who suffered agonies + he had not known during the Reign of Terror. The other prisoners of + Robespierre's time had departed; he alone paced the solitary corridors of + the Luxembourg, chilled by the autumn winds, his cell tireless, unlit by + any candle, insufficiently nourished, an abscess forming in his side; all + this still less cruel than the feeling that he was abandoned, not only by + Washington but by all America. + </p> + <p> + This is the man of whom Washington wrote to Madison nine years before: + "Must the merits and services of 'Common Sense' continue to glide down the + stream of time unrewarded by this country?" This, then, is his reward. To + his old comrade in the battle-fields of Liberty, George Washington, Paine + owed his ten months of imprisonment, at the end of which Monroe found him + a wreck, and took him (November 4) to his own house, where he and his wife + nursed him back into life. But it was not for some months supposed that + Paine could recover; it was only after several relapses; and it was under + the shadow of death that he wrote the letter to Washington so much and so + ignorantly condemned. Those who have followed the foregoing narrative will + know that Paine's grievances were genuine, that his infamous treatment + stains American history; but they will also know that they lay chiefly at + the door of a treacherous and unscrupulous American Minister. + </p> + <p> + Yet it is difficult to find an excuse for the retention of that Minister + in France by Washington. On Monroe's return to America in 1797, he wrote a + pamphlet concerning the mission from which he had been curtly recalled, in + which he said: + </p> + <p> + "I was persuaded from Mr. Morris's known political character and + principles, that his appointment, and especially at a period when the + French nation was in a course of revolution from an arbitrary to a free + government, would tend to discountenance the republican cause there and at + home, and otherwise weaken, and greatly to our prejudice, the connexion + subsisting between the two countries." + </p> + <p> + In a copy of this pamphlet found at Mount Vernon, Washington wrote on the + margin of this sentence: + </p> + <p> + "Mr. Morris was known to be a man of first rate abilities; and his + integrity and honor had never been impeached. Besides, Mr. Morris was sent + whilst the kingly government was in existence, ye end of 91 or beginning + of 92." (1) + </p> + <p> + But this does not explain why Gouverneur Morris was persistently kept in + France after monarchy was abolished (September 21, 1792), or even after + Lafayette's request for his removal, already quoted. To that letter of + Lafayette no reply has been discovered. After the monarchy was abolished, + Ternant and Genêt successively carried to America protests from their + Foreign Office against the continuance of a Minister in France, who was + known in Paris, and is now known to all acquainted with his published + papers, to have all along made his office the headquarters of British + intrigue against France, American interests being quite subordinated. + Washington did not know this, but he might have known it, and his + disregard of French complaints can hardly be ascribed to any other cause + than his delusion that Morris was deeply occupied with the treaty + negotiations confided to him. It must be remembered that Washington + believed such a treaty with England to be the alternative of war.(2) On + that apprehension the British party in America, and British agents, played + to the utmost, and under such influences Washington sacrificed many old + friendships,—with Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Edmund Randolph, + Paine,—and also the confidence of his own State, Virginia. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Washington's marginal notes on Monroe's "View, etc.," + were first fully given in Ford's "Writings of Washington," + vol. xiii., p. 452, seq. + + 2 Ibid., p. 453. +</pre> + <p> + There is a traditional impression that Paine's angry letter to Washington + was caused by the President's failure to inter-pose for his relief from + prison. But Paine believed that the American Minister (Morris) had + reclaimed him in some feeble fashion, as an American citizen, and he knew + that the President had officially approved Monroe's action in securing his + release. His grievance was that Washington, whose letters of friendship he + cherished, who had extolled his services to America, should have + manifested no concern personally, made no use of his commanding influence + to rescue him from daily impending death, sent to his prison no word of + kindness or inquiry, and sent over their mutual friend Monroe without any + instructions concerning him; and finally, that his private letter, asking + explanation, remained unanswered. No doubt this silence of Washington + concerning the fate of Paine, whom he acknowledged to be an American + citizen, was mainly due to his fear of offending England, which had + proclaimed Paine. The "outlaw's" imprisonment in Paris caused jubilations + among the English gentry, and went on simultaneously with Jay's + negotiations in London, when any expression by Washington of sympathy with + Paine (certain of publication) might have imperilled the Treaty, regarded + by the President as vital. + </p> + <p> + So anxious was the President about this, that what he supposed had been + done for Paine by Morris, and what had really been done by Monroe, was + kept in such profound secrecy, that even his Secretary of State, + Pickering, knew nothing of it. This astounding fact I recently discovered + in the manuscripts of that Secretary.(1) Colonel Pickering, while + flattering enough to the President in public, despised his intellect, and + among his papers is a memorandum concluding as follows: + </p> + <p> + "But when the hazards of the Revolutionary War had ended, by the + establishment of our Independence, why was the knowledge of General + Washington's comparatively defective mental powers not freely divulged? + Why, even by the enemies of his civil administration were his abilities + very tenderly glanced at? —Because there were few, if any men, who + did not revere him for his distinguished virtues; his modesty—his + unblemished integrity, his pure and disinterested patriotism. These + virtues, of infinitely more value than exalted abilities without them, + secured to him the veneration and love of his fellow citizens at large. + Thus immensely popular, no man was willing to publish, under his hand, + even the simple truth. The only exception, that I recollect, was the + infamous Tom Paine; and this when in France, after he had escaped the + guillotine of Robespierre; and in resentment, because, after he had + participated in the French Revolution, President Washington seemed not to + have thought him so very important a character in the world, as officially + to interpose for his relief from the fangs of the French ephemeral Rulers. + In a word, no man, however well informed, was willing to hazard his own + popularity by exhibiting the real intellectual character of the immensely + popular Washington." + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Massachusetts Historical Society, vol. 11., p. 171. +</pre> + <p> + How can this ignorance of an astute man, Secretary of State under + Washington and Adams, be explained? Had Washington hidden the letters + showing on their face that he <i>had</i> "officially interposed" for Paine + by two Ministers? + </p> + <p> + Madison, writing to Monroe, April 7, 1796, says that Pickering had spoken + to him "in harsh terms" of a letter written by Paine to the President. + This was a private letter of September 20, 1795, afterwards printed in + Paine's public Letter to Washington. The Secretary certainly read that + letter on its arrival, January 18, 1796, and yet Washington does not + appear to have told him of what had been officially done in Paine's case! + Such being the secrecy which Washington had carried from the camp to the + cabinet, and the morbid extent of it while the British Treaty was in + negotiation and discussion, one can hardly wonder at his silence under + Paine's private appeal and public reproach. + </p> + <p> + Much as Pickering hated Paine, he declares him the only man who ever told + the simple truth about Washington. In the lapse of time historical + research, while removing the sacred halo of Washington, has revealed + beneath it a stronger brain than was then known to any one. Paine + published what many whispered, while they were fawning on Washington for + office, or utilizing his power for partisan ends. Washington, during his + second administration, when his mental decline was remarked by himself, by + Jefferson, and others, was regarded by many of his eminent contemporaries + as fallen under the sway of small partisans. Not only was the influence of + Jefferson, Madison, Randolph, Monroe, Livingston, alienated, but the + counsels of Hamilton were neutralized by Wolcott and Pickering, who + apparently agreed about the President's "mental powers." Had not Paine + previously incurred the <i>odium theologicum</i>, his pamphlet concerning + Washington would have been more damaging; even as it was, the verdict was + by no means generally favorable to the President, especially as the + replies to Paine assumed that Washington had indeed failed to try and + rescue him from impending death.(1) A pamphlet written by Bache, printed + anonymously (1797), Remarks occasioned by the late conduct of Mr. + Washington, indicates the belief of those who raised Washington to power, + that both Randolph and Paine had been sacrificed to please Great Britain. + </p> + <p> + The <i>Bien-informé</i> (Paris, November 12, 1797) published a letter from + Philadelphia, which may find translation here as part of the history of + the pamphlet: + </p> + <p> + "The letter of Thomas Paine to General Washington is read here with + avidity. We gather from the English papers that the Cabinet of St James + has been unable to stop the circulation of that pamphlet in England, since + it is allowable to reprint there any English work already published + elsewhere, however disagreeable to Messrs. Pitt and Dundas. We read in the + letter to Washington that Robespierre had declared to the Committee of + Public Safety that it was desirable in the interests of both France and + America that Thomas Paine, who, for seven or eight months had been kept a + prisoner in the Luxembourg, should forthwith be brought up for judgment + before the revolutionary tribunal. The proof of this fact is found in + Robespierre's papers, and gives ground for strange suspicions." + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The principal ones were "A Letter to Thomas Paine. By an + American Citizen. New York, 1797," and "A Letter to the + infamous Tom Paine, in answer to his Letter to General + Washington. December 1796. By Peter Porcupine" (Cobbett). + Writing to David Stuart, January 8,1797, Washington, + speaking of himself in the third person, says: "Although + he is soon to become a private citizen, his opinions are to + be knocked down, and his character traduced as low as they + are capable of sinking it, even by resorting to absolute + falsehoods. As an evidence whereof, and of the plan they are + pursuing, I send you a letter of Mr. Paine to me, printed in + this city and disseminated with great industry. Enclosed you + will receive also a production of Peter Porcupine, alias + William Cobbett. Making allowances for the asperity of an + Englishman, for some of his strong and coarse expressions, + and a want of official information as to many facts, it is + not a bad thing." The "many facts" were, of course, the + action of Monroe, and the supposed action of Morris in + Paris, but not even to one so intimate as Stuart are these + disclosed. +</pre> + <p> + "It was long believed that Paine had returned to America with his friend + James Monroe, and the lovers of freedom [there] congratulated themselves + on being able to embrace that illustrious champion of the Rights of Man. + Their hopes have been frustrated. We know positively that Thomas Paine is + still living in France. The partizans of the late presidency [in America] + also know it well, yet they have spread a rumor that after actually + arriving he found his (really popular) <i>principles no longer the order + of the day</i>, and thought best to re-embark. + </p> + <p> + "The English journals, while repeating this idle rumor, observed that it + was unfounded, and that Paine had not left France. Some French journals + have copied these London paragraphs, but without comments; so that at the + very moment when Thomas Paine's Letter on the 18th. Fructidor is + published, <i>La Clef du Cabinet</i> says that this citizen is suffering + unpleasantness in America." + </p> + <p> + Paine had intended to return with Monroe, in the spring of 1797, but, + suspecting the Captain and a British cruiser in the distance, returned + from Havre to Paris. The packet was indeed searched by the cruiser for + Paine, and, had he been captured, England would have executed the sentence + pronounced by Robespierre to please Washington. + </p> + <p> + MEMORIAL ADDRESSED TO JAMES MONROE, MINISTER FROM THE UNITED STATES OF + AMERICA TO THE FRENCH REPUBLIC. + </p> + <p> + Prison of the Luxembourg, Sept. 10th, 1794. + </p> + <p> + I address this memorial to you, in consequence of a letter I received from + a friend, 18 Fructidor (September 4th,) in which he says, "Mr. Monroe has + told me, that he has no orders [meaning from the American government] + respecting you; but I am sure he will leave nothing undone to liberate + you; but, from what I can learn, from all the late Americans, you are not + considered either by the Government, or by the individuals, as an American + citizen. You have been made a french Citizen, which you have accepted, and + you have further made yourself a servant of the french Republic; and, + therefore, it would be out of character for an American Minister to + interfere in their internal concerns. You must therefore either be + liberated out of Compliment to America, or stand your trial, which you + have a right to demand." + </p> + <p> + This information was so unexpected by me, that I am at a loss how to + answer it. I know not on what principle it originates; whether from an + idea that I had voluntarily abandoned my Citizenship of America for that + of France, or from any article of the American Constitution applied to me. + The first is untrue with respect to any intention on my part; and the + second is without foundation, as I shall shew in the course of this + memorial. + </p> + <p> + The idea of conferring honor of Citizenship upon foreigners, who had + distinguished themselves in propagating the principles of liberty and + humanity, in opposition to despotism, war, and bloodshed, was first + proposed by me to La Fayette, at the commencement of the french + revolution, when his heart appeared to be warmed with those principles. My + motive in making this proposal, was to render the people of different + nations more fraternal than they had been, or then were. I observed that + almost every branch of Science had possessed itself of the exercise of + this right, so far as it regarded its own institution. Most of the + Academies and Societies in Europe, and also those of America, conferred + the rank of honorary member, upon foreigners eminent in knowledge, and + made them, in fact, citizens of their literary or scientific republic, + without affecting or anyways diminishing their rights of citizenship in + their own country or in other societies: and why the Science of Government + should not have the same advantage, or why the people of one nation should + not, by their representatives, exercise the right of conferring the honor + of Citizenship upon individuals eminent in another nation, without + affecting <i>their</i> rights of citizenship, is a problem yet to be + solved. + </p> + <p> + I now proceed to remark on that part of the letter, in which the writer + says, that, <i>from what he can learn from all the late Americans, I am + not considered in America, either by the Government or by the individuals, + as an American citizen</i>. + </p> + <p> + In the first place I wish to ask, what is here meant by the Government of + America? The members who compose the Government are only individuals, when + in conversation, and who, most probably, hold very different opinions upon + the subject. Have Congress as a body made any declaration respecting me, + that they now no longer consider me as a citizen? If they have not, + anything they otherwise say is no more than the opinion of individuals, + and consequently is not legal authority, nor anyways sufficient authority + to deprive any man of his Citizenship. Besides, whether a man has + forfeited his rights of Citizenship, is a question not determinable by + Congress, but by a Court of Judicature and a Jury; and must depend upon + evidence, and the application of some law or article of the Constitution + to the case. No such proceeding has yet been had, and consequently I + remain a Citizen until it be had, be that decision what it may; for there + can be no such thing as a suspension of rights in the interim. + </p> + <p> + I am very well aware, and always was, of the article of the Constitution + which says, as nearly as I can recollect the words, that "any citizen of + the United States, who shall accept any title, place, or office, from any + foreign king, prince, or state, shall forfeit and lose his right of + Citizenship of the United States." + </p> + <p> + Had the Article said, that <i>any citizen of the United States, who shall + be a member of any foreign convention, for the purpose of forming a free + constitution, shall forfeit and lose the right of citizenship of the + United States</i>, the article had been directly applicable to me; but the + idea of such an article never could have entered the mind of the American + Convention, and the present article <i>is</i> altogether foreign to the + case with respect to me. It supposes a Government in active existence, and + not a Government dissolved; and it supposes a citizen of America accepting + titles and offices under that Government, and not a citizen of America who + gives his assistance in a Convention chosen by the people, for the purpose + of forming a Government <i>de nouveau</i> founded on their authority. + </p> + <p> + The late Constitution and Government of France was dissolved the 10th of + August, 1792. The National legislative Assembly then in being, supposed + itself without sufficient authority to continue its sittings, and it + proposed to the departments to elect not another legislative Assembly, but + a Convention for the express purpose of forming a new Constitution. When + the Assembly were discoursing on this matter, some of the members said, + that they wished to gain all the assistance possible upon the subject of + free constitutions; and expressed a wish to elect and invite foreigners of + any Nation to the Convention, who had distinguished themselves in + defending, explaining, and propagating the principles of liberty. It was + on this occasion that my name was mentioned in the Assembly. (I was then + in England.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In the American pamphlet a footnote, probably added by + Bache, here says: "Even this article does not exist in the + manner here stated." It is a pity Paine did not have in his + prison the article, which says: "No person holding any + office of profit or trust under them [the United States] + shall, without the consent of Congress, accept of any + present, emolument, office, or title of any kind whatever, + from any king, prince, or foreign State."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + After this, a deputation from a body of the french people, in order to + remove any objection that might be made against my assisting at the + proposed Convention, requested the Assembly, as their representatives, to + give me the title of French Citizen; after which, I was elected a member + of the Convention, in four different departments, as is already known.(1) + </p> + <p> + The case, therefore, is, that I accepted nothing from any king, prince, or + state, nor from any Government: for France was without any Government, + except what arose from common consent, and the necessity of the case. + Neither did I <i>make myself a servant of the french Republic</i>, as the + letter alluded to expresses; for at that time France was not a republic, + not even in name. She was altogether a people in a state of revolution. + </p> + <p> + It was not until the Convention met that France was declared a republic, + and monarchy abolished; soon after which a committee was elected, of which + I was a member,(2) to form a Constitution, which was presented to the + Convention [and read by Condorcet, who was also a member] the 15th and + 16th of February following, but was not to be taken into consideration + till after the expiration of two months,(3) and if approved of by the + Convention, was then to be referred to the people for their acceptance, + with such additions or amendments as the Convention should make. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The deputation referred to was described as the + "Commission Extraordinaire," in whose name M. Guadet moved + that the title of French Citizen be conferred on Priestley, + Paine, Bentham, Wilberforce, Clarkson, Mackintosh, David + Williams, Cormelle, Paw, Pestalozzi, Washington, Madison, + Hamilton, Klopstock, Koscinsko, Gorani, Campe, Anacharsis + Clootz, Gilleers. This was on August 26, and Paine was + elected by Calais on September 6,1792; and in the same week + by Oise, Somme, and Puy-de-Dome.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Sieves, Paine, Brissot, Pétion, Vergniaud, Gensonne, + Barère, Danton, Condorcet.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 3 The remainder of this sentence is replaced in the American + pamphlet by the following: "The disorders and the + revolutionary government that took place after this put a + stop to any further progress upon the case."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + In thus employing myself upon the formation of a Constitution, I certainly + did nothing inconsistent with the American Constitution. I took no oath of + allegiance to France, or any other oath whatever. I considered the + Citizenship they had presented me with as an honorary mark of respect paid + to me not only as a friend to liberty, but as an American Citizen. My + acceptance of that, or of the deputyship, not conferred on me by any king, + prince, or state, but by a people in a state of revolution and contending + for liberty, required no transfer of my allegiance or of my citizenship + from America to France. There I was a real citizen, paying Taxes; here, I + was a voluntary friend, employing myself on a temporary service. Every + American in Paris knew that it was my constant intention to return to + America, as soon as a constitution should be established, and that I + anxiously waited for that event. + </p> + <p> + I know not what opinions have been circulated in America. It may have been + supposed there that I had voluntarily and intentionally abandoned America, + and that my citizenship had ceased by my own choice. I can easily + [believe] there are those in that country who would take such a proceeding + on my part somewhat in disgust. The idea of forsaking old friendships for + new acquaintances is not agreeable. I am a little warranted in making this + supposition by a letter I received some time ago from the wife of one of + the Georgia delegates in which she says "Your friends on this side the + water cannot be reconciled to the idea of your abandoning America." + </p> + <p> + I have never abandoned her in thought, word or deed; and I feel it + incumbent upon me to give this assurance to the friends I have in that + country and with whom I have always intended and am determined, if the + possibility exists, to close the scene of my life. It is there that I have + made myself a home. It is there that I have given the services of my best + days. America never saw me flinch from her cause in the most gloomy and + perilous of her situations; and I know there are those in that country who + will not flinch from me. If I have enemies (and every man has some) I + leave them to the enjoyment of their ingratitude.* + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * I subjoin in a note, for the sake of wasting the solitude + of a prison, the answer that I gave to the part of the + letter above mentioned. It is not inapplacable to the + subject of this Memorial; but it contain! somewhat of a + melancholy idea, a little predictive, that I hope is not + becoming true so soon. +</pre> + <p> + It is somewhat extraordinary that the idea of my not being a citizen of + America should have arisen only at the time that I am imprisoned in France + because, or on the pretence that, I am a foreigner. The case involves a + strange contradiction of ideas. None of the Americans who came to France + whilst I was in liberty had conceived any such idea or circulated any such + opinion; and why it should arise now is a matter yet to be explained. + However discordant the late American Minister G. M. [Gouverneur Morris] + and the late French Committee of Public Safety were, it suited the purpose + of both that I should be continued in arrestation. The former wished to + prevent my return to America, that I should not expose his misconduct; and + the latter, lest I should publish to the world the history of its + wickedness. Whilst that Minister and the Committee continued I had no + expectation of liberty. I speak here of the Committee of which Robespierre + was member.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + "You touch me on a very tender point when you say that my + friends on your side the water cannot be reconciled to the + idea of my abandoning America. They are right. I had rather + see my horse Button eating the grass of Borden-Town or + Morrisania than see all the pomp and show of Europe. + + "A thousand years hence (for I must indulge a few thoughts) + perhaps in less, America may be what Europe now is. The + innocence of her character, that won the hearts of all + nations in her favour, may sound like a romance and her + inimitable virtue as if it had never been. The ruin of that + liberty which thousands bled for or struggled to obtain may + just furnish materials for a village tale or extort a sigh + from rustic sensibility, whilst the fashionable of that day, + enveloped in dissipation, shall deride the principle and + deny the fact. + + "When we contemplate the fall of Empires and the extinction + of the nations of the Ancient World, we see but little to + excite our regret than the mouldering ruins of pompous + palaces, magnificent museums, lofty pyramids and walls and + towers of the most costly workmanship; but when the Empire + of America shall fall, the subject for contemplative sorrow + will be infinitely greater than crumbling brass and marble + can inspire. It will not then be said, here stood a temple + of vast antiquity; here rose a babel of invisible height; + or there a palace of sumptuous extravagance; but here, Ah, + painful thought! the noblest work of human wisdom, the + grandest scene of human glory, the fair cause of Freedom + rose and fell. Read this, and then ask if I forget + America."—Author. +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This letter, quoted also in Paine's Letter to Washington, + was written from London, Jan. 6, 1789, to the wife of Col. + Few, née Kate Nicholson. It is given in full in my "Life of + Paine," i., p. 247.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + THE MEMORIAL TO MONROE. + </p> + <p> + I ever must deny, that the article of the American constitution already + mentioned, can be applied either verbally, intentionally, or + constructively, to me. It undoubtedly was the intention of the Convention + that framed it, to preserve the purity of the American republic from being + debased by foreign and foppish customs; but it never could be its + intention to act against the principles of liberty, by forbidding its + citizens to assist in promoting those principles in foreign Countries; + neither could it be its intention to act against the principles of + gratitude.(1) France had aided America in the establishment of her + revolution, when invaded and oppressed by England and her auxiliaries. + France in her turn was invaded and oppressed by a combination of foreign + despots. In this situation, I conceived it an act of gratitude in me, as a + citizen of America, to render her in return the best services I could + perform. I came to France (for I was in England when I received the + invitation) not to enjoy ease, emoluments, and foppish honours, as the + article supposes; but to encounter difficulties and dangers in defence of + liberty; and I much question whether those who now malignantly seek (for + some I believe do) to turn this to my injury, would have had courage to + have done the same thing. I am sure Gouverneur Morris would not. He told + me the second day after my arrival, (in Paris,) that the Austrians and + Prussians, who were then at Verdun, would be in Paris in a fortnight. I + have no idea, said he, that seventy thousand disciplined troops can be + stopped in their march by any power in France. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This and the two preceding paragraphs, including the + footnote, are entirely omitted from the American pamphlet. + It will be seen that Paine had now a suspicion of the + conspiracy between Gouverneur Morris and those by whom he + was imprisoned. Soon after his imprisonment he had applied + to Morris, who replied that he had reclaimed him, and + enclosed the letter of Deforgues quoted in my Introduction + to this chapter, of course withholding his own letter to the + Minister. Paine answered (Feb. 14, 1793): "You must not + leave me in the situation in which this letter places me. + You know I do not deserve it, and you see the unpleasant + situation in which I am thrown. I have made an answer to the + Minister's letter, which I wish you to make ground of a + reply to him. They have nothing against me—except that they + do not choose I should lie in a state of freedom to write my + mind freely upon things I have seen. Though you and I are + not on terms of the best harmony, I apply to you as the + Minister of America, and you may add to that service + whatever you think my integrity deserves. At any rate I + expect you to make Congress acquainted with my situation, + and to send them copies of the letters that have passed on + the subject. A reply to the Minister's letter is absolutely + necessary, were it only to continue the reclamation. + Otherwise your silence will be a sort of consent to his + observations." Deforgues' "observations" having been + dictated by Morris himself, no reply was sent to him, and no + word to Congress.—<i>Editor</i>. + + 2 In the pamphlet this last clause of the sentence is + omitted.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Besides the reasons I have already given for accepting the invitations to + the Convention, I had another that has reference particularly to America, + and which I mentioned to Mr. Pinckney the night before I left London to + come to Paris: "That it was to the interest of America that the system of + European governments should be changed and placed on the same principle + with her own." Mr. Pinckney agreed fully in the same opinion. I have done + my part towards it.(1) + </p> + <p> + It is certain that governments upon similar systems agree better together + than those that are founded on principles discordant with each other; and + the same rule holds good with respect to the people living under them. In + the latter case they offend each other by pity, or by reproach; and the + discordancy carries itself to matters of commerce. I am not an ambitious + man, but perhaps I have been an ambitious American. I have wished to see + America the <i>Mother Church</i> of government, and I have done my utmost + to exalt her character and her condition. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In the American pamphlet the name of Pinckney (American + Minister in England) is left blank in this paragraph, and + the two concluding sentences are omitted from both the + French and American pamphlets.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + I have now stated sufficient matter, to shew that the Article in question + is not applicable to me; and that any such application to my injury, as + well in circumstances as in Rights, is contrary both to the letter and + intention of that Article, and is illegal and unconstitutional. Neither do + I believe that any Jury in America, when they are informed of the whole of + the case, would give a verdict to deprive me of my Rights upon that + Article. The citizens of America, I believe, are not very fond of + permitting forced and indirect explanations to be put upon matters of this + kind. I know not what were the merits of the case with respect to the + person who was prosecuted for acting as prize master to a french + privateer, but I know that the jury gave a verdict against the + prosecution. The Rights I have acquired are dear to me. They have been + acquired by honourable means, and by dangerous service in the worst of + times, and I cannot passively permit them to be wrested from me. I + conceive it my duty to defend them, as the case involves a constitutional + and public question, which is, how far the power of the federal government + (1) extends, in depriving any citizen of his Rights of Citizenship, or of + suspending them. + </p> + <p> + That the explanation of National Treaties belongs to Congress is strictly + constitutional; but not the explanation of the Constitution itself, any + more than the explanation of Law in the case of individual citizens. These + are altogether Judiciary questions. It is, however, worth observing, that + Congress, in explaining the Article of the Treaty with respect to french + prizes and french privateers, confined itself strictly to the letter of + the Article. Let them explain the Article of the Constitution with respect + to me in the same manner, and the decision, did it appertain to them, + could not deprive me of my Rights of Citizenship, or suspend them, for I + have accepted nothing from any king, prince, state, or Government. + </p> + <p> + You will please to observe, that I speak as if the federal Government had + made some declaration upon the subject of my Citizenship; whereas the fact + is otherwise; and your saying that you have no order respecting me is a + proof of it. Those therefore who propagate the report of my not being + considered as a Citizen of America by Government, do it to the + prolongation of my imprisonment, and without authority; for Congress, <i>as + a government</i>, has neither decided upon it, nor yet taken the matter + into consideration; and I request you to caution such persons against + spreading such reports. But be these matters as they may, I cannot have a + doubt that you find and feel the case very different, since you have heard + what I have to say, and known what my situation is [better] than you did + before your arrival. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In the pamphlet occurs here a significant parenthesis by + Bache: "it should have been said in this case, how far the + Executive."—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But it was not the Americans only, but the Convention also, that knew what + my intentions were upon that subject. In my last discourse delivered at + the Tribune of the Convention, January 19,1793, on the motion for + suspending the execution of Louis 16th, I said (the Deputy Bancal read the + translation in French): "It unfortunately happens that the person who is + the subject of the present discussion, is considered by the Americans as + having been the friend of their revolution. His execution will be an + affliction to them, and it is in your power not to wound the feelings of + your ally. Could I speak the french language I would descend to your bar, + and in their name become your petitioner to respite the execution of the + sentence/"—"As the convention was elected for the express purpose of + forming a Constitution, its continuance cannot be longer than four or five + months more at furthest; and if, after my <i>return to America</i>, I + should employ myself in writing the history of the french Revolution, I + had rather record a thousand errors on the side of mercy, than be obliged + to tell one act of severe Justice."—"Ah Citizens! give not the + tyrant of England the triumph of seeing the man perish on a scaffold who + had aided my much-loved America." + </p> + <p> + Does this look as if I had abandoned America? But if she abandons me in + the situation I am in, to gratify the enemies of humanity, let that + disgrace be to herself. But I know the people of America better than to + believe it,(1) tho' I undertake not to answer for every individual. + </p> + <p> + When this discourse was pronounced, Marat launched himself into the middle + of the hall and said that "I voted against the punishment of death because + I was a quaker." I replied that "I voted against it both morally and + politically." + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In the French pamphlet: "pour jamais lui prêter du tels + sentiments." +</pre> + <p> + I certainly went a great way, considering the rage of the times, in + endeavouring to prevent that execution. I had many reasons for so doing. I + judged, and events have shewn that I judged rightly, that if they once + began shedding blood, there was no knowing where it would end; and as to + what the world might call <i>honour</i> the execution would appear like a + nation killing a mouse; and in a political view, would serve to transfer + the hereditary claim to some more formidable Enemy. The man could do no + more mischief; and that which he had done was not only from the vice of + his education, but was as much the fault of the Nation in restoring him + after he had absconded June 21st, 1791, as it was his. I made the proposal + for imprisonment until the end of the war and perpetual banishment after + the war, instead of the punishment of death. Upwards of three hundred + members voted for that proposal. The sentence for absolute death (for some + members had voted the punishment of death conditionally) was carried by a + majority of twenty-five out of more than seven hundred. + </p> + <p> + I return from this digression to the proper subject of my memorial.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This and the preceding five paragraphs, and five following + the nest, are omitted from the American pamphlet.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Painful as the want of liberty may be, it is a consolation to me to + believe, that my imprisonment proves to the world, that I had no share in + the murderous system that then reigned. That I was an enemy to it, both + morally and politically, is known to all who had any knowledge of me; and + could I have written french as well as I can English, I would publicly + have exposed its wickedness and shewn the ruin with which it was pregnant. + They who have esteemed me on former occasions, whether in America or in + Europe will, I know, feel no cause to abate that esteem, when they + reflect, that <i>imprisonment with preservation of character is preferable + to liberty with disgrace</i>. + </p> + <p> + I here close my Memorial and proceed to offer you a proposal that appears + to me suited to all the circumstances of the case; which is, that you + reclaim me conditionally, until the opinion of Congress can be obtained on + the subject of my citizenship of America; and that I remain in liberty + under your protection during that time. + </p> + <p> + I found this proposal upon the following grounds. + </p> + <p> + First, you say you have no orders respecting me; consequently, you have no + orders <i>not</i> to reclaim me; and in this case you are left + discretionary judge whether to reclaim or not. My proposal therefore + unites a consideration of your situation with my own. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, I am put in arrestation because I am a foreigner. It is + therefore necessary to determine to what country I belong. The right of + determining this question cannot appertain exclusively to the Committee of + Public Safety or General Surety; because I appeal to the Minister of the + United States, and show that my citizenship of that country is good and + valid, referring at the same time, thro' the agency of the Minister, my + claim of right to the opinion of Congress. It being a matter between two + Governments. + </p> + <p> + Thirdly. France does not claim me fora citizen; neither do I set up any + claim of citizenship in France. The question is simply, whether I am or am + not a citizen of America. I am imprisoned here on the decree for + imprisoning foreigners, because, say they, I was born in England. I say in + answer that, though born in England, I am not a subject of the English + Government any more than any other American who was born, as they all + were, under the same Government, or than the Citizens of France are + subjects of the French Monarchy under which they were born. I have twice + taken the oath of abjuration to the British King and Government and of + Allegiance to America,—once as a citizen of the State of + Pennsylvania in 1776, and again before Congress, administered to me by the + President, Mr. Hancock, when I was appointed Secretary in the Office of + Foreign Affairs in 1777. + </p> + <p> + The letter before quoted in the first page of this memorial, says, "It + would be out of character for an American minister to interfere in the + internal affairs of France." This goes on the idea that I am a citizen of + France, and a member of the Convention, which is not the fact. The + Convention have declared me to be a foreigner; and consequently the + citizenship and the election are null and void.(1) It also has the + appearance of a Decision, that the article of the Constitution, respecting + grants made to American Citizens by foreign kings, princes, or states, is + applicable to me; which is the very point in question, and against the + application of which I contend. I state evidence to the Minister, to shew + that I am not within the letter or meaning of that Article; that it cannot + operate against me; and I apply to him for the protection that I conceive + I have a right to ask and to receive. The internal affairs of France are + out of the question with respect to my application or his interference. I + ask it not as a citizen of France, for I am not one: I ask it not as a + member of the Convention, for I am not one; both these, as before said, + have been rendered null and void; I ask it not as a man against whom there + is any accusation, for there is none; I ask it not as an exile from + America, whose liberties I have honourably and generously contributed to + establish; I ask it as a Citizen of America, deprived of his liberty in + France, under the plea of being a foreigner; and I ask it because I + conceive I am entitled to it, upon every principle of Constitutional + Justice and National honour.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In the pamphlet: "The Convention included me in the vote + for dismissing foreigners from the Convention, and the + Committees imprisoned me as a foreigner."—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 All previous editions of the pamphlet end with this + word.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + But tho' I thus positively assert my claim because I believe I have a + right to do so, it is perhaps most eligible, in the present situation of + things, to put that claim upon the footing I have already mentioned; that + is, that the Minister reclaims me conditionally until the opinion of + Congress can be obtained on the subject of my citizenship of America, and + that I remain in liberty under the protection of the Minister during that + interval. + </p> + <p> + N. B. I should have added that as Gouverneur Morris could not inform + Congress of the cause of my arrestation, as he knew it not himself, it is + to be supposed that Congress was not enough acquainted with the case to + give any directions respecting me when you came away. + </p> + <p> + T.P. ADDENDA. + </p> + <p> + Letters, hitherto unpublished, written by Paine to Monroe before his + release on November 4., 1794. + </p> + <p> + 1. Luxembourg Mem Vendemaire, Old Style Oct 4th 1794 + </p> + <p> + Dear Sir: I thank you for your very friendly and affectionate letter of + the 18th September which I did not receive till this morning.(1) It has + relieved my mind from a load of disquietude. You will easily suppose that + if the information I received had been exact, my situation was without + hope. I had in that case neither section, department nor Country, to + reclaim me; but that is not all, I felt a poignancy of grief, in having + the least reason to suppose that America had so soon forgotten me who had + never forgotten her. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Labonadaire, in a note of yesterday, directed me to write to the + Convention. As I suppose this measure has been taken in concert with you, + I have requested him to shew you the letter, of which he will make a + translation to accompany the original. + </p> + <p> + (I cannot see what motive can induce them to keep me in prison. It will + gratify the English Government and afflict the friends I have in America. + The supporters of the system of Terror might apprehend that if I was in + liberty and in America I should publish the history of their crimes, but + the present persons who have overset that immoral System ought to have no + such apprehension. On the contrary, they ought to consider me as one of + themselves, at least as one of their friends. Had I been an insignificant + character I had not been in arrestation. It was the literary and + philosophical reputation I had gained, in the world, that made them my + Enemies; and I am the victim of the principles, and if I may be permitted + to say it, of the talents, that procured me the esteem of America. My + character is the <i>secret</i> of my arrestation.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Printed in the letter to Washington, chap. XXII. The delay + of sixteen days in Monroe's letter was probably due to the + manouvres of Paine's enemies on the Committee of Public + Safety. He was released only after their removal from the + Committee, and the departure of Gouverneur Morris.— + <i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + If the letter I have written be not covered by other authority than my own + it will have no effect, for they already know all that I can say. On what + ground do they pretend to deprive America of the service of any of her + citizens without assigning a cause, or only the flimsy one of my being + born in England? Gates, were he here, might be arrested on the same + pretence, and he and Burgoyne be confounded together. + </p> + <p> + It is difficult for me to give an opinion, but among other things that + occur to me, I think that if you were to say that, as it will be necessary + to you to inform the Government of America of my situation, you require an + explanation with the Committee upon that subject; that you are induced to + make this proposal not only out of esteem for the character of the person + who is the personal object of it, but because you know that his + arrestation will distress the Americans, and the more so as it will appear + to them to be contrary to their ideas of civil and national justice, it + might perhaps have some effect. If the Committee [of Public Safety] will + do nothing, it will be necessary to bring this matter openly before the + Convention, for I do most sincerely assure you, from the observations that + I hear, and I suppose the same are made in other places, that the + character of America lies under some reproach. All the world knows that I + have served her, and they see that I am still in prison; and you know that + when people can form a conclusion upon a simple fact, they trouble not + themselves about reasons. I had rather that America cleared herself of all + suspicion of ingratitude, though I were to be the victim. + </p> + <p> + You advise me to have patience, but I am fully persuaded that the longer I + continue in prison the more difficult will be my liberation. There are two + reasons for this: the one is that the present Committee, by continuing so + long my imprisonment, will naturally suppose that my mind will be soured + against them, as it was against those who put me in, and they will + continue my imprisonment from the same apprehensions as the former + Committee did; the other reason is, that it is now about two months since + your arrival, and I am still in prison. They will explain this into an + indifference upon my fate that will encourage them to continue my + imprisonment. When I hear some people say that it is the Government of + America that now keeps me in prison by not reclaiming me, and then pour + forth a volley of execrations against her, I know not how to answer them + otherwise than by a direct denial which they do not appear to believe. You + will easily conclude that whatever relates to imprisonments and + liberations makes a topic of prison conversation; and as I am now the + oldest inhabitant within these walls, except two or three, I am often the + subject of their remarks, because from the continuance of my imprisonment + they auger ill to themselves. You see I write you every thing that occurs + to me, and I conclude with thanking you again for your very friendly and + affectionate letter, and am with great respect, + </p> + <p> + Your's affectionately, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + (To day is the anniversary of the action at German Town. [October 4, + 1777.] Your letter has enabled me to contradict the observations before + mentioned.) + </p> + <p> + 2. Oct 13, 1794 Dear Sir: On the 28th of this Month (October) I shall have + suffered ten months imprisonment, to the dishonour of America as well as + of myself, and I speak to you very honestly when I say that my patience is + exhausted. It is only my actual liberation that can make me believe it. + Had any person told me that I should remain in prison two months after the + arrival of a new Minister, I should have supposed that he meant to affront + me as an American. By the friendship and sympathy you express in your + letter you seem to consider my imprisonment as having connection only with + myself, but I am certain that the inferences that follow from it have + relation also to the National character of America, I already feel this in + myself, for I no longer speak with pride of being a citizen of that + country. Is it possible Sir that I should, when I am suffering unjust + imprisonment under the very eye of her new Minister? + </p> + <p> + While there was no Minister here (for I consider Morris as none) nobody + wondered at my imprisonment, but now everybody wonders. The continuance of + it under a change of diplomatic circumstances, subjects me to the + suspicion of having merited it, and also to the suspicion of having + forfeited my reputation with America; and it subjects her at the same time + to the suspicion of ingratitude, or to the reproach of wanting national or + diplomatic importance. The language that some Americans have held of my + not being considered as an American citizen, tho' contradicted by + yourself, proceeds, I believe, from no other motive, than the shame and + dishonour they feel at the imprisonment of a fellow-citizen, and they + adopt this apology, at my expence, to get rid of that disgrace. Is it not + enough that I suffer imprisonment, but my mind also must be wounded and + tortured with subjects of this kind? Did I reason from personal + considerations only, independent of principles and the pride of having + practiced those principles honourably, I should be tempted to curse the + day I knew America. By contributing to her liberty I have lost my own, and + yet her Government beholds my situation in silence. Wonder not, Sir, at + the ideas I express or the language in which I express them. If I have a + heart to feel for others I can feel also for myself, and if I have anxiety + for my own honour, I have it also for a country whose suffering infancy I + endeavoured to nourish and to which I have been enthusiastically attached. + As to patience I have practiced it long—as long as it was honorable + to do so, and when it goes beyond that point it becomes meanness. + </p> + <p> + I am inclined to believe that you have attended to my imprisonment more as + a friend than as a Minister. As a friend I thank you for your affectionate + attachment. As a Minister you have to look beyond me to the honour and + reputation of your Government; and your Countrymen, who have accustomed + themselves to consider any subject in one line of thinking only, more + especially if it makes a strong [impression] upon them, as I believe my + situation has made upon you, do not immediately see the matters that have + relation to it in another line; and it is to bring these two into one + point that I offer you these observations. A citizen and his country, in a + case like mine, are so closely connected that the case of one is the case + of both. + </p> + <p> + When you first arrived the path you had to pursue with respect to my + liberation was simple. I was imprisoned as a foreigner; you knew that + foreigner to be a citizen of America, and you knew also his character, and + as such you should immediately have reclaimed him. You could lose nothing + by taking strong ground, but you might lose much by taking an inferior + one; but instead of this, which I conceive would have been the right line + of acting, you left me in their hands on the loose intimation that my + liberation would take place without your direct interference, and you + strongly recommended it to me to wait the issue. This is more than seven + weeks ago and I am still in prison. I suspect these people are trifling + with you, and if they once believe they can do that, you will not easily + get any business done except what they wish to have done. + </p> + <p> + When I take a review of my whole situation—my circumstances ruined, + my health half destroyed, my person imprisoned, and the prospect of + imprisonment still staring me in the face, can you wonder at the agony of + my feelings? You lie down in safety and rise to plenty; it is otherwise + with me; I am deprived of more than half the common necessaries of life; I + have not a candle to burn and cannot get one. Fuel can be procured only in + small quantities and that with great difficulty and very dear, and to add + to the rest, I am fallen into a relapse and am again on the sick list. Did + you feel the whole force of what I suffer, and the disgrace put upon + America by this injustice done to one of her best and most affectionate + citizens, you would not, either as a friend or Minister, rest a day till + you had procured my liberation. It is the work of two or three hours when + you set heartily about it, that is, when you demand me as an American + citizen, or propose a conference with the Committee upon that subject; or + you may make it the work of a twelve-month and not succeed. I know these + people better than you do. + </p> + <p> + You desire me to believe that "you are placed here on a difficult Theatre + with many important objects to attend to, and with but few to consult + with, and that it becomes you in pursuit of these to regulate your conduct + with respect to each, as to manner and time, as will in your judgment be + best calculated to accomplish the whole." As I know not what these objects + are I can say nothing to that point. But I have always been taught to + believe that the liberty of a Citizen was the first object of all free + Governments, and that it ought not to give preference to, or be blended + with, any other. It is that public object that all the world can see, and + which obtains an influence upon public opinion more than any other. This + is not the case with the objects you allude to. But be those objects what + they may, can you suppose you will accomplish them the easier by holding + me in the back-ground, or making me only an accident in the negotiation? + Those with whom you confer will conclude from thence that you do not feel + yourself very strong upon those points, and that you politically keep me + out of sight in the meantime to make your approach the easier. + </p> + <p> + There is one part in your letter that is equally as proper should be + communicated to the Committee as to me, and which I conceive you are under + some diplomatic obligation to do. It is that part which you conclude by + saying that "<i>to the welfare of Thomas Paine the Americans are not and + cannot be indifferent</i>." As it is impossible the Americans can preserve + their esteem for me and for my oppressors at the same time, the injustice + to me strikes at the popular part of the Treaty of Alliance. If it be the + wish of the Committee to reduce the treaty to a mere skeleton of + Government forms, they are taking the right method to do it, and it is not + improbable they will blame you afterwards for not in-forming them upon the + subject. The disposition to retort has been so notorious here, that you + ought to be guarded against it at all points. + </p> + <p> + You say in your letter that you doubt whether the gentleman who informed + me of the language held by some Americans respecting my citizenship of + America conveyed even his own ideas clearly upon the subject.(1) I know + not how this may be, but I believe he told me the truth. I received a + letter a few days ago from a friend and former comrade of mine in which he + tells me, that all the Americans he converses with, say, that I should + have been in liberty long ago if the Minister could have reclaimed me as + an American citizen. When I compare this with the counter-declarations in + your letter I can explain the case no otherwise than I have already done, + that it is an apology to get rid of the shame and dishonour they feel at + the imprisonment of an American citizen, and because they are not willing + it should be supposed there is want of influence in the American Embassy. + But they ought to see that this language is injurious to me. + </p> + <p> + On the 2d of this month Vendemaire I received a line from Mr. Beresford in + which he tells me I shall be in liberty in two or three days, and that he + has this from good authority. On the 12th I received a note from Mr. + Labonadaire, written at the Bureau of the Concierge, in which he tells me + of the interest you take in procuring my liberation, and that after the + steps that had been already taken that I ought to write to the Convention + to demand my liberty <i>purely and simply</i> as a citizen of the United + States of America. He advised me to send the letter to him, and he would + translate it. I sent the letter inclosing at the same time a letter to + you. I have heard nothing since of the letter to the Convention. On the + 17th I received a letter from my former comrade Vanhuele, in which he says + "I am just come from Mr. Russell who had yesterday a conversation with + your Minister and your liberation is certain—you will be in liberty + to-morrow." Vanhuele also adds, "I find the advice of Mr. Labonadaire + good, for tho' you have some enemies in the Convention, the strongest and + best part are in your favour." But the case is, and I felt it whilst I was + writing the letter to the Convention, that there is an awkwardness in my + appearing, you being present; for every foreigner should apply thro' his + Minister, or rather his Minister for him. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The letter of Peter Whiteside, quoted at the beginning of + the Memorial. See introduction to the Memorial. It would + seem from this whole letter that it was not known by + Americans in Paris that Monroe had been kept ont of his + office by Morris for nearly a month after his arrival in + Paris.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + When I thus see day after day and month after month, and promise after + promise, pass away without effect, what can I conclude but that either the + Committees are secretly determined not to let me go, or that the measures + you take are not pursued with the vigor necessary to give them effect; or + that the American National character is without sufficient importance in + the French Republic? The latter will be gratifying to the English + Government. In short, Sir, the case is now arrived to that crisis, that + for the sake of your own reputation as a Minister you ought to require a + positive answer from the Committee. As to myself, it is more agreeable to + me now to contemplate an honourable destruction, and to perish in the act + of protesting against the injustice I suffer, and to caution the people of + America against confiding too much in the Treaty of Alliance, violated as + it has been in every principle, and in my imprisonment though an American + Citizen, than remain in the wretched condition I am. I am no longer of any + use to the world or to myself. + </p> + <p> + There was a time when I beheld the Revolution of the 10th. Thermidor [the + fall of Robespierre] with enthusiasm. It was the first news my comrade + Vanhuele communicated to me during my illness, and it contributed to my + recovery. But there is still something rotten at the Center, and the + Enemies that I have, though perhaps not numerous, are more active than my + friends. If I form a wrong opinion of men or things it is to you I must + look to set me right. You are in possession of the secret. I know nothing + of it. But that I may be guarded against as many wants as possible I shall + set about writing a memorial to Congress, another to the State of + Pennsylvania, and an address to the people of America; but it will be + difficult for me to finish these until I know from yourself what + applications you have made for my liberation, and what answers you have + received. + </p> + <p> + Ah, Sir, you would have gotten a load of trouble and difficulties off your + hands that I fear will multiply every day, had you made it a point to + procure my liberty when you first arrived, and not left me floating on the + promises of men whom you did not know. You were then a new character. You + had come in consequence of their own request that Morris should be + recalled; and had you then, before you opened any subject of negociation + that might arise into controversy, demanded my liberty either as a + Civility or as a Right I see not how they could have refused it. + </p> + <p> + I have already said that after all the promises that have been made I am + still in prison. I am in the dark upon all the matters that relate to + myself. I know not if it be to the Convention, to the Committee of Public + Safety, of General Surety, or to the deputies who come sometimes to the + Luxembourg to examine and put persons in liberty, that applications have + been made for my liberation. But be it to whom it may, my earnest and + pressing request to you as Minister is that you will bring this matter to + a conclusion by reclaiming me as an American citizen imprisoned in France + under the plea of being a foreigner born in England; that I may know the + result, and how to prepare the Memorials I have mentioned, should there be + occasion for them. The right of determining who are American citizens can + belong only to America. The Convention have declared I am not a French + Citizen because she has declared me to be a foreigner, and have by that + declaration cancelled and annulled the vote of the former assembly that + conferred the Title of Citizen upon Citizens or subjects of other + Countries. I should not be honest to you nor to myself were I not to + express myself as I have done in this letter, and I confide and request + you will accept it in that sense and in no other. + </p> + <p> + I am, with great respect, your suffering fellow-citizen, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + P. S.—If my imprisonment is to continue, and I indulge very little + hope to the contrary, I shall be under the absolute necessity of applying + to you for a supply of several articles. Every person here have their + families or friends upon the spot who make provision for them. This is not + the case with me; I have no person I can apply to but the American + Minister, and I can have no doubt that if events should prevent my + repaying the expence Congress or the State of Pennsylvania will discharge + it for me. + </p> + <p> + To day is 22 Vendemaire Monday October 13, but you will not receive this + letter till the 14th. I will send the bearer to you again on the 15th, + Wednesday, and I will be obliged to you to send me for the present, three + or four candles, a little sugar of any kind, and some soap for shaving; + and I should be glad at the same time to receive a line from you and a + memorandum of the articles. Were I in your place I would order a Hogshead + of Sugar, some boxes of Candles and Soap from America, for they will + become still more scarce. Perhaps the best method for you to procure them + at present is by applying to the American Consuls at Bordeaux and Havre, + and have them up by the diligence. + </p> + <p> + 3. [Undated.] + </p> + <p> + Dear Sir: As I have not yet received any answer to my last, I have amused + myself with writing you the inclosed memoranda. Though you recommend + patience to me I cannot but feel very pointedly the uncomfortableness of + my situation, and among other reflections that occur to me I cannot think + that America receives any credit from the long imprisonment that I suffer. + It has the appearance of neglecting her citizens and her friends and of + encouraging the insults of foreign nations upon them, and upon her + commerce. My imprisonment is as well and perhaps more known in England + than in France, and they (the English) will not be intimidated from + molesting an American ship when they see that one of her best citizens + (for I have a right to call myself so) can be imprisoned in another + country at the mere discretion of a Committee, because he is a foreigner. + </p> + <p> + When you first arrived every body congratulated me that I should soon, if + not immediately, be in liberty. Since that time about two hundred have + been set free from this prison on the applications of their sections or of + individuals—and I am continually hurt by the observations that are + made—"that a section in Paris has more influence than America." + </p> + <p> + It is right that I furnish you with these circumstances. It is the effect + of my anxiety that the character of America suffer no reproach; for the + world knows that I have acted a generous duty by her. I am the third + American that has been imprisoned. Griffiths nine weeks, Haskins about + five, and myself eight [months] and yet in prison. With respect to the two + former there was then no Minister, for I consider Morris as none; and they + were liberated on the applications of the Americans in Paris. As to myself + I had rather be publicly and honorably reclaimed, tho' the reclamation was + refused, than remain in the uncertain situation that I am. Though my + health has suffered my spirits are not broken. I have nothing to fear + unless innocence and fortitude be crimes. America, whatever may be my + fate, will have no cause to blush for me as a citizen; I hope I shall have + none to blush for her as a country. If, my dear Sir, there is any-thing in + the perplexity of ideas I have mistaken, only suppose yourself in my + situation, and you will easily find an excuse for it. I need not say how + much I shall rejoice to pay my respects to you without-side the walls of + this prison, and to enquire after my American friends. But I know that + nothing can be accomplished here but by unceasing perseverance and + application. Yours affectionately. + </p> + <p> + 4. October 20, 1794. + </p> + <p> + Dear Sir: I recd. your friendly letter of the 26 Vendemaire on the day it + was written, and I thank you for communicating to me your opinion upon my + case. Ideas serve to beget ideas, and as it is from a review of every + thing that can be said upon a subject, or is any ways connected with it, + that the best judgment can be formed how to proceed, I present you with + such ideas as occur to me. I am sure of one thing, which is that you will + give them a patient and attentive perusal. + </p> + <p> + You say in your letter that "I must be sensible that although I am an + American citizen, yet if you interfere in my behalf as the Minister of my + country you must demand my liberation only in case there be no charge + against me; and that if there is I must be brought to trial previously, + since no person in a <i>private</i> character can be exempt from the laws + of the country in which he resides."—This is what I have twice + attempted to do. I wrote a letter on the 3d Sans Culottodi(1) to the + Deputies, members of the Committee of Surety General, who came to the + Luxembourg to examine the persons detained. The letter was as follows:—"Citizens + Representatives: I offer myself for examination. Justice is due to every + Man. It is Justice only that I ask.—Thomas Paine." + </p> + <p> + As I was not called for examination, nor heard anything in consequence of + my letter the first time of sending it, I sent a duplicate of it a few + days after. It was carried to them by my good friend and comrade Vanhuele, + who was then going in liberty, having been examined the day before. + Vanhuele wrote me on the next day and said: "Bourdon de l'Oise [who was + one of the examining Deputies] is the most inveterate enemy you can have. + The answer he gave me when I presented your letter put me in such a + passion with him that I expected I should be sent back again to prison." I + then wrote a third letter but had not an opportunity of sending it, as + Bourdon did not come any more till after I received Mr. Labonadaire's + letter advising me to write to the Convention. The letter was as follows:—"Citizens, + I have twice offered myself for examination, and I chose to do this while + Bourdon de l'Oise was one of the Commissioners. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Festival of Labour, September 19, 1794.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + This Deputy has said in the Convention that I intrigued with an ancient + agent of the Bureau of Foreign Affairs. My examination therefore while he + is present will give him an opportunity of proving his charge or of + convincing himself of his error. If Bourdon de l'Oise is an honest man he + will examine me, but lest he should not I subjoin the following. That + which B[ourdon] calls an intrigue was at the request of a member of the + former Committee of Salut Public, last August was a twelvemonth. I met the + member on the Boulevard. He asked me something in French which I did not + understand and we went together to the Bureau of Foreign Affairs which was + near at hand. The Agent (Otto, whom you probably knew in America) served + as interpreter, The member (it was Barère) then asked me 1st, If I could + furnish him with the plan of Constitution I had presented to the Committee + of Constitution of which I was member with himself, because, he said, it + contained several things which he wished had been adopted: 2dly, He asked + me my opinion upon sending Commissioners to the United States of America: + 3dly, If fifty or an hundred ship loads of flour could be procured from + America. As verbal interpretation was tedious, it was agreed that I should + give him my opinion in writing, and that the Agent [Otto] should translate + it, which he did. I answered the first question by sending him the plan + [of a Constitution] which he still has. To the second, I replied that I + thought it would be proper to send Commissioners, because that in + Revolutions circumstances change so fast that it was often necessary to + send a better supply of information to an Ally than could be communicated + by writing; and that Congress had done the same thing during the American + War; and I gave him some information that the Commissioners would find + useful on their arrival. I answered the third question by sending him a + list of American exports two years before, distinguishing the several + articles by which he would see that the supply he mentioned could be + obtained. I sent him also the plan of Paul Jones, giving it as his, for + procuring salt-petre, which was to send a squadron (it did not require a + large one) to take possession of the Island of St. Helen's, to keep the + English flag flying at the port, that the English East India ships coming + from the East Indies, and that ballast with salt-petre, might be induced + to enter as usual; And that it would be a considerable time before the + English Government could know of what had happened at St. Helen's. See + here what Bourdon de l'Oise has called an intrigue.—If it was an + intrigue it was between a Committee of Salut Public and myself, for the + Agent was no more than the interpreter and translator, and the object of + the intrigue was to furnish France with flour and salt-petre."—I + suppose Bourdon had heard that the agent and I were seen together talking + English, and this was enough for <i>him</i> to found his charge upon.(1) + </p> + <p> + You next say that "I must likewise be sensible that although I am an + American citizen that it is likewise believed there [in America] that I am + become a citizen of France, and that in consequence this latter character + has so far [illegible] the former as to weaken if not destroy any claim + you might have to interpose in my behalf." I am sorry I cannot add any new + arguments to those I have already advanced on this part of the subject. + But I cannot help asking myself, and I wish you would ask the Committee, + if it could possibly be the intention of France to <i>kidnap</i> citizens + from America under the pretence of dubbing them with the title of French + citizens, and then, after inviting or rather enveigling them into France, + make it a pretence for detaining them? If it was, (which I am sure it was + not, tho' they now act as if it was) the insult was to America, tho' the + injury was to me, and the treachery was to both. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The communications of Paine to Barère are given in my + "Life of Paine," vol. ii-i PP. 73, 87. Otto was Secretary to + the Minister of Foreign Affairs when he acted as interpreter + between Paine and Barère. There was never any charge at all + made against Paine, as the Archives of France now prove, + save that he was a "foreigner." Paine was of coarse ignorant + of the conspiracy between Morris and Deforgues which had + imprisoned him. Bourdon de l'Oise, one of the most cruel + Jacobins and Terrorists, afterwards conspired with Pichegru + to overthrow the Republic, and was with him banished (1797) + to Sinamari, South America, where he died soon after his + arrival.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Did they mean to kidnap General Washington, Mr. Madison, and several other + Americans whom they dubbed with the same title as well as me? Let any man + look at the condition of France when I arrived in it,—invaded by + Austrians and Prussians and declared to be in danger,—and then ask + if any man who had a home and a country to go to, as I had in America, + would have come amongst them from any other motive than of assisting them. + If I could possibly have supposed them capable of treachery I certainly + would not have trusted myself in their power. Instead therefore of your + being unwilling or apprehensive of meeting the question of French + citizenship, they ought to be ashamed of advancing it, and this will be + the case unless you admit their arguments or objections too passively. It + is a case on their part fit only for the continuations of Robespierre to + set up. As to the name of French citizen, I never considered it in any + other light, so far as regarded myself, than as a token of honorary + respect. I never made them any promise nor took any oath of allegiance or + of citizenship, nor bound myself by an act or means whatever to the + performance of any thing. I acted altogether as a friend invited among + them as I supposed on honorable terms. I did not come to join myself to a + Government already formed, but to assist in forming one <i>de nouveau</i>, + which was afterwards to be submitted to the people whether they would + accept it or not, and this any foreigner might do. And strictly speaking + there are no citizens before this is a government. They are all of the + People. The Americans were not called citizens till after Government was + established, and not even then until they had taken the oath of + allegiance. This was the case in Pennsylvania. But be this French + citizenship more or less, the Convention have swept it away by declaring + me to be a foreigner, and imprisoning me as such; and this is a short + answer to all those who affect to say or to believe that I am French + Citizen. A Citizen without Citizenship is a term non-descript. + </p> + <p> + After the two preceeding paragraphs you ask—"If it be my wish that + you should embark in this controversy (meaning that of reclaiming me) and + risque the consequences with respect to myself and the good understanding + subsisting between the two countries, or, without relinquishing any point + of right, and which might be insisted on in case of extremities, pursue + according to your best judgment and with the light before you, the object + of my liberation?" + </p> + <p> + As I believe from the apparent obstinacy of the Committees that + circumstances will grow towards the extremity you mention, unless + prevented beforehand, I will endeavour to throw into your hands all the + lights I can upon the subject. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, reclamation may mean two distinct things. All the + reclamations that are made by the sections in behalf of persons detained + as <i>suspect</i> are made on the ground that the persons so detained are + patriots, and the reclamation is good against the charge of "suspect" + because it proves the contrary. But my situation includes another + circumstance. I am imprisoned on the charge (if it can be called one) of + being a foreigner born in England. You know that foreigner to be a citizen + of the United States of America, and that he has been such since the 4th + of July 1776, the political birthday of the United States, and of every + American citizen, for before that period all were British subjects, and + the States, then provinces, were British dominions.—Your reclamation + of me therefore as a citizen of the United States (all other + considerations apart) is good against the pretence for imprisoning me, or + that pretence is equally good against every American citizen born in + England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, or Holland, and you know this + description of men compose a very great part of the population of the + three States of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and make also a + part of Congress, and of the State Legislatures. + </p> + <p> + Every politician ought to know, and every civilian does know, that the Law + of Treaty of Alliance, and also that of Amity and Commerce knows no + distinction of American Citizens on account of the place of their birth, + but recognizes all to be Citizens whom the Constitution and laws of the + United States of America recognize as such; and if I recollect rightly + there is an article in the Treaty of Commerce particular to this point. + The law therefore which they have here, to put all persons in arrestation + born in any of the Countries at war with France, is, when applied to + Citizens of America born in England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, or + holland, a violation of the treaties of Alliance and of Commerce, because + it assumes to make a distinction of Citizens which those Treaties and the + Constitution of America know nothing of. This is a subject that officially + comes under your cognizance as Minister, and it would be consistent that + you expostulated with them upon the Case. That foolish old man Vadier, who + was president of the Convention and of the Committee of Surety general + when the Americans then in Paris went to the Bar of the Convention to + reclaim me, gave them for answer that my being born in England was cause + sufficient for imprisoning me. It happened that at least half those who + went up with that address were in the same case with myself. + </p> + <p> + As to reclamations on the ground of Patriotism it is difficult to know + what is to be understood by Patriotism here. There is not a vice, and + scarcely a virtue, that has not as the fashion of the moment suited been + called by the name of Patriotism. The wretches who composed the + revolutionary tribunal of Nantz were the Patriots of that day and the + criminals of this. The Jacobins called themselves Patriots of the first + order, men up to the height of the circumstances, and they are now + considered as an antidote to Patriotism. But if we give to Patriotism a + fixed idea consistent with that of a Republic, it would signify a strict + adherence to the principles of Moral Justice, to the equality of civil and + political Rights, to the System of representative Government, and an + opposition to every hereditary claim to govern; and of this species of + Patriotism you know my character. But, Sir, there are men on the Committee + who have changed their Party but not their principles. Their aim is to + hold power as long as possible by preventing the establishment of a + Constitution, and these men are and will be my Enemies, and seek to hold + me in prison as long as they can. I am too good a Patriot for them. It is + not improbable that they have heard of the strange language held by some + Americans that I am not considered in America as an American citizen, and + they may also have heard say, that you had no orders respecting me, and it + is not improbable that they interpret that language and that silence into + a connivance at my imprisonment. If they had not some ideas of this kind + would they resist so long the civil efforts you make for my liberation, or + would they attach so much importance to the imprisonment of an Individual + as <i>to risque</i> (as you say to me) <i>the good understanding that + exists between the two Countries?</i>You also say that <i>it is impossible + for any person to do more than you have done without adopting the other + means</i>, meaning that of reclaiming me. How then can you account for the + want of success after so many efforts, and such a length of time, upwards + of ten weeks, without supposing that they fortify themselves in the + interpretation I have just mentioned? I can admit that it was not + necessary to give orders, and that it was difficult to give direct orders, + for I much question if Morris had informed Congress or the President of + the whole of the case, or had sent copies of my letters to him as I had + desired him to do. You would find the case here when you came, and you + could not fully understand it till you did come, and as Minister you would + have authority to act upon it. But as you inform me that you know what the + wishes of the President are, you will see also that his reputation is + exposed to some risque, admitting there to be ground for the supposition I + have made. It will not add to his popularity to have it believed in + America, as I am inclined to think the Committee believe here, that he + connives at my imprisonment. You say also that <i>it is known to everybody + that you wish my liberation</i>. It is, Sir, because they know your wishes + that they misinterpret the means you use. They suppose that those mild + means arise from a restriction that you cannot use others, or from a + consciousness of some defect on my part of which you are unwilling to + provoke the enquiry. + </p> + <p> + But as you ask me if it be my wish that you should embark in this + controversy and risque the consequences with respect to myself, I will + answer this part of the question by marking out precisely the part I wish + you to take. What I mean is a sort of middle line above what you have yet + gone, and not up to the full extremity of the case, which will still lie + in reserve. It is to write a letter to the Committee that shall in the + first place defeat by anticipation all the objections they might make to a + simple reclamation, and at the same time make the ground good for that + object. But, instead of sending the letter immediately, to invite some of + the Committee to your house and to make that invitation the opportunity of + shewing them the letter, expressing at the same time a wish that you had + done this, from a hope that the business might be settled in an amicable + manner without your being forced into an official interference, that would + excite the observations of the Enemies of both Countries, and probably + interrupt the harmony that subsisted between the two republics. But as I + can not convey the ideas I wish you to use by any means so concisely or so + well as to suppose myself the writer of the letter I shall adopt this + method and you will make use of such parts or such ideas of it as you + please if you approve the plan. Here follows the supposed letter: + </p> + <p> + Citizens: When I first arrived amongst you as Minister from the United + States of America I was given to understand that the liberation of Thomas + Paine would take place without any official interference on my part. This + was the more agreeable to me as it would not only supercede the necessity + of that interference, but would leave to yourselves the whole opportunity + of doing justice to a man who as far as I have been able to learn has + suffered much cruel treatment under what you have denominated the system + of Terror. But as I find my expectations have not been fulfilled I am + under the official necessity of being more explicit upon the subject than + I have hitherto been. + </p> + <p> + Permit me, in the first place, to observe that as it is impossible for me + to suppose that it could have been the intention of France to seduce any + citizens of America from their allegiance to their proper country by + offering them the title of French citizen, so must I be compelled to + believe, that the title of French citizen conferred on Thomas Paine was + intended only as a mark of honorary respect towards a man who had so + eminently distinguished himself in defence of liberty, and on no occasion + more so than in promoting and defending your own revolution. For a proof + of this I refer you to his two works entitled <i>Rights of Man</i>. Those + works have procured to him an addition of esteem in America, and I am + sorry they have been so ill rewarded in France. But be this title of + French Citizen more or less, it is now entirely swept away by the vote of + the Convention which declares him to be a foreigner, and which supercedes + the vote of the Assembly that conferred that title upon him, consequently + upon the case superceded with it. + </p> + <p> + In consequence of this vote of the Convention declaring him to be a + foreigner the former Committees have imprisoned him. It is therefore + become my official duty to declare to you that the foreigner thus + imprisoned is a citizen of the United States of America as fully, as + legally, as constitutionally as myself, and that he is moreover one of the + principal founders of the American Republic. + </p> + <p> + I have been informed of a law or decree of the Convention which subjects + foreigners born in any of the countries at war with France to arrestation + and imprisonment. This law when applied to citizens of America born in + England is an infraction of the Treaty of Alliance and of Amity and + Commerce, which knows no distinction of American citizens on account of + the place of their birth, but recognizes all to be citizens whom the + Constitution and laws of America recognize as such. The circumstances + under which America has been peopled requires this guard on her Treaties, + because the mass of her citizens are composed not of natives only but also + of the natives of almost all the countries of Europe who have sought an + asylum there from the persecutions they experienced in their own + countries. After this intimation you will without doubt see the propriety + of modelling that law to the principles of the Treaty, because the law of + Treaty in cases where it applies is the governing law to both parties + alike, and it cannot be infracted without hazarding the existence of the + Treaty. + </p> + <p> + Of the Patriotism of Thomas Paine I can speak fully, if we agree to give + to patriotism a fixed idea consistent with that of a republic. It would + then signify a strict adherence to Moral Justice, to the equality of civil + and political rights, to the system of representative government, and an + opposition to all hereditary claims to govern. Admitting patriotism to + consist in these principles, I know of no man who has gone beyond Thomas + Paine in promulgating and defending them, and that for almost twenty years + past. + </p> + <p> + I have now spoken to you on the principal matters concerned in the case of + Thomas Paine. The title of French citizen which you had enforced upon him, + you have since taken away by declaring him to be a foreigner, and + consequently this part of the subject ceases of itself. I have declared to + you that this foreigner is a citizen of the United States of America, and + have assured you of his patriotism. + </p> + <p> + I cannot help at the same time repeating to you my wish that his + liberation had taken place without my being obliged to go thus far into + the subject, because it is the mutual interest of both republics to avoid + as much as possible all subjects of controversy, especially those from + which no possible good can flow. I still hope that you will save me the + unpleasant task of proceeding any farther by sending me an order for his + liberation, which the injured state of his health absolutely requires. I + shall be happy to receive such an order from you and happy in presenting + it to him, for to the welfare of Thomas Paine the Americans are not and + cannot be indifferent. + </p> + <p> + This is the sort of letter I wish you to write, for I have no idea that + you will succeed by any measures that can, by any kind of construction, be + interpreted into a want of confidence or an apprehension of consequences. + It is themselves that ought to be apprehensive of consequences if any are + to be apprehended. They, I mean the Committees, are not certain that the + Convention or the nation would support them in forcing any question to + extremity that might interrupt the good understanding subsisting between + the two countries; and I know of no question [so likely] to do this as + that which involves the rights and liberty of a citizen. + </p> + <p> + You will please to observe that I have put the case of French citizenship + in a point of view that ought not only to preclude, but to make them + ashamed to advance any thing upon this subject; and this is better than to + have to answer their counter-reclamation afterwards. Either the + Citizenship was intended as a token of honorary respect, or it was + in-tended to deprive America of a citizen or to seduce him from his + allegiance to his proper country. If it was intended as an honour they + must act consistently with the principle of honour. But if they make a + pretence for detaining me, they convict themselves of the act of + seduction. Had America singled out any particular French citizen, + complimented him with the title of Citizen of America, which he without + suspecting any fraudulent intention might accept, and then after having + invited or rather inveigled him into America made his acceptance of that + Title a pretence for seducing or forcing him from his allegiance to + France, would not France have just cause to be offended at America? And + ought not America to have the same right to be offended at France? And + will the Committees take upon themselves to answer for the dishonour they + bring upon the National Character of their Country? If these arguments are + stated beforehand they will prevent the Committees going into the subject + of French Citizenship. They must be ashamed of it. But after all the case + comes to this, that this French Citizenship appertains no longer to me + because the Convention, as I have already said, have swept it away by + declaring me to be foreigner, and it is not in the power of the Committees + to reverse it. But if I am to be citizen and foreigner, and citizen again, + just when and how and for any purpose they please, they take the + Government of America into their own hands and make her only a Cypher in + their system. + </p> + <p> + Though these ideas have been long with me they have been more particularly + matured by reading your last Communication, and I have many reasons to + wish you had opened that Communication sooner. I am best acquainted with + the persons you have to deal with and the circumstances of my own case. If + you chuse to adopt the letter as it is, I send you a translation for the + sake of expediting the business. I have endeavoured to conceive your own + manner of expression as well as I could, and the civility of language you + would use, but the matter of the letter is essential to me. + </p> + <p> + If you chuse to confer with some of the members of the Committee at your + own house on the subject of the letter it may render the sending it + unnecessary; but in either case I must request and press you not to give + away to evasion and delay, and that you will fix positively with them that + they shall give you an answer in three or four days whether they will + liberate me on the representation you have made in the letter, or whether + you must be forced to go further into the subject. The state of my health + will not admit of delay, and besides the tortured state of my mind wears + me down. If they talk of bringing me to trial (and I well know there is no + accusation against me and that they can bring none) I certainly summons + you as an Evidence to my Character. This you may mention to them either as + what I intend to do or what you intend to do voluntarily for me. + </p> + <p> + I am anxious that you undertake this business without losing time, because + if I am not liberated in the course of this decade, I intend, if in case + the seventy-one detained deputies are liberated, to follow the same track + that they have done, and publish my own case myself.(1) I cannot rest any + longer in this state of miserable suspense, be the consequences what they + may. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Those deputies, imprisoned for having protested against + the overthrow of the Girondin government, May 31,1793, when + the Convention was invaded and overawed by the armed + communes of Paris. These deputies were liberated and + recalled to the Convention, December 8, 1794. Paine was + invited to resume his seat the day before, by a special act + of the Convention, after an eloquent speech by Thibaudeau.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Dear Sir: I need not mention to you the happiness I received from the + information you sent me by Mr. Beresford. I easily guess the persons you + have conversed with on the subject of my liberation—but matters and + even promises that pass in conversation are not quite so strictly attended + to here as in the Country you come from. I am not, my Dear Sir, impatient + from any thing in my disposition, but the state of my health requires + liberty and a better air; and besides this, the rules of the prison do not + permit me, though I have all the indulgences the Concierge can give, to + procure the things necessary to my recovery, which is slow as to strength. + I have a tolerable appetite but the allowance of provision is scanty. We + are not allowed a knife to cut our victuals with, nor a razor to shave; + but they have lately allowed some barbers that are here to shave. The room + where I am lodged is a ground floor level with the earth in the garden and + floored with brick, and is so wet after every rain that I cannot guard + against taking colds that continually cheat my recovery. If you could, + without interfering with or deranging the mode proposed for my liberation, + inform the Committee that the state of my health requires liberty and air, + it would be good ground to hasten my liberation. The length of my + imprisonment is also a reason, for I am now almost the oldest inhabitant + of this uncomfortable mansion, and I see twenty, thirty and sometimes + forty persons a day put in liberty who have not been so long confined as + myself. Their liberation is a happiness to me; but I feel sometimes, a + little mortification that I am thus left behind. I leave it entirely to + you to arrange this matter. The messenger waits. Your's affectionately, + </p> + <p> + T. P. + </p> + <p> + I hope and wish much to see you. I have much to say. I have had the + attendance of Dr. Graham (Physician to Genl. O'Hara, who is prisoner here) + and of Dr. Makouski, house physician, who has been most exceedingly kind + to me. After I am at liberty I shall be glad to introduce him to you. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This letter, written in a feeble handwriting, is not + dated, but Monroe's endorsement, "2d. Luxembourg," + indicates November 2, two days before Paine's liberation.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0023" id="link2H_4_0023"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXII. LETTER TO GEORGE WASHINGTON. + </h2> + <h3> + Paris, July 30, 1796. + </h3> + <p> + As censure is but awkwardly softened by apology. I shall offer you no + apology for this letter. The eventful crisis to which your double politics + have conducted the affairs of your country, requires an investigation + uncramped by ceremony. + </p> + <p> + There was a time when the fame of America, moral and political, stood fair + and high in the world. The lustre of her revolution extended itself to + every individual; and to be a citizen of America gave a title to respect + in Europe. Neither meanness nor ingratitude had been mingled in the + composition of her character. Her resistance to the attempted tyranny of + England left her unsuspected of the one, and her open acknowledgment of + the aid she received from France precluded all suspicion of the other. The + Washington of politics had not then appeared. + </p> + <p> + At the time I left America (April 1787) the Continental Convention, that + formed the federal Constitution was on the point of meeting. Since that + time new schemes of politics, and new distinctions of parties, have + arisen. The term <i>Antifederalist</i> has been applied to all those who + combated the defects of that constitution, or opposed the measures of your + administration. It was only to the absolute necessity of establishing some + federal authority, extending equally over all the States, that an + instrument so inconsistent as the present federal Constitution is, + obtained a suffrage. I would have voted for it myself, had I been in + America, or even for a worse, rather than have had none, provided it + contained the means of remedying its defects by the same appeal to the + people by which it was to be established. It is always better policy to + leave removeable errors to expose themselves, than to hazard too much in + contending against them theoretically. I have introduced these + observations, not only to mark the general difference between + Antifederalist and Anti-constitutionalist, but to preclude the effect, and + even the application, of the former of these terms to myself. I declare + myself opposed to several matters in the Constitution, particularly to the + manner in which what is called the Executive is formed, and to the long + duration of the Senate; and if I live to return to America, I will use all + my endeavours to have them altered.(*) I also declare myself opposed to + almost the whole of your administration; for I know it to have been + deceitful, if not perfidious, as I shall shew in the course of this + letter. But as to the point of consolidating the States into a Federal + Government, it so happens, that the proposition for that purpose came + originally from myself. I proposed it in a letter to Chancellor Livingston + in the spring of 1782, while that gentleman was Minister for Foreign + Affairs. The five per cent, duty recommended by Congress had then fallen + through, having been adopted by some of the States, altered by others, + rejected by Rhode Island, and repealed by Virginia after it had been + consented to. The proposal in the letter I allude to, was to get over the + whole difficulty at once, by annexing a continental legislative body to + Congress; for in order to have any law of the Union uniform, the case + could only be, that either Congress, as it then stood, must frame the law, + and the States severally adopt it without alteration, or the States must + erect a Continental Legislature for the purpose. Chancellor Livingston, + Robert Morris, Gouverneur Morris, and myself, had a meeting at the house + of Robert Morris on the subject of that letter. There was no diversity of + opinion on the proposition for a Continental Legislature: the only + difficulty was on the manner of bringing the proposition forward. For my + own part, as I considered it as a remedy in reserve, that could be applied + at any time <i>when the States saw themselves wrong enough to be put right</i>, + (which did not appear to be the case at that time) I did not see the + propriety of urging it precipitately, and declined being the publisher of + it myself. After this account of a fact, the leaders of your party will + scarcely have the hardiness to apply to me the term of Antifederalist. But + I can go to a date and to a fact beyond this; for the proposition for + electing a continental convention to form the Continental Government is + one of the subjects treated of in the pamphlet <i>Common Sense</i>.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * I have always been opposed to the mode of refining + Government up to an individual, or what is called a single + Executive. Such a man will always be the chief of a party. A + plurality is far better: It combines the mass of a nation + better together: And besides this, it is necessary to the + manly mind of a republic that it loses the debasing idea of + obeying an individual.—<i>Author</i>. +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See vol. i. of this work, pp. 97, 98, 109, no.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Having thus cleared away a little of the rubbish that might otherwise have + lain in my way, I return to the point of time at which the present Federal + Constitution and your administration began. It was very well said by an + anonymous writer in Philadelphia, about a year before that period, that "<i>thirteen + staves and ne'er a hoop will not make a barrel</i>" and as any kind of + hooping the barrel, however defectively executed, would be better than + none, it was scarcely possible but that considerable advantages must arise + from the federal hooping of the States. It was with pleasure that every + sincere friend of America beheld, as the natural effect of union, her + rising prosperity; and it was with grief they saw that prosperity mixed, + even in the blossom, with the germ of corruption. Monopolies of every kind + marked your administration almost in the moment of its commencement. The + lands obtained by the revolution were lavished upon partisans; the + interest of the disbanded soldier was sold to the speculator; injustice + was acted under the pretence of faith; and the chief of the army became + the patron of the fraud.(2) From such a beginning what else could be + expected, than what has happened? A mean and servile submission to the + insults of one nation; treachery and ingratitude to another. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 2 The history of the Scioto Company, by which so many + Frenchmen as well as Americans were ruined, warranted an + even stronger statement. Though Washington did not know what + was going on, he cannot be acquitted of a lack of due + precaution in patronizing leading agents of these + speculations, and introducing them in France.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Some vices make their approach with such a splendid appearance, that we + scarcely know to what class of moral distinctions they belong. They are + rather virtues corrupted than vices, originally. But meanness and + ingratitude have nothing equivocal in their character. There is not a + trait in them that renders them doubtful. They are so originally vice, + that they are generated in the dung of other vices, and crawl into + existence with the filth upon their back. The fugitives have found + protection in you, and the levee-room is their place of rendezvous. + </p> + <p> + As the Federal Constitution is a copy, though not quite so base as the + original, of the form of the British Government, an imitation of its vices + was naturally to be expected. So intimate is the connection between <i>form + and practice</i>, that to adopt the one is to invite the other. Imitation + is naturally progressive, and is rapidly so in matters that are vicious. + </p> + <p> + Soon after the Federal Constitution arrived in England, I received a + letter from a female literary correspondent (a native of New York) very + well mixed with friendship, sentiment, and politics. In my answer to that + letter, I permitted myself to ramble into the wilderness of imagination, + and to anticipate what might hereafter be the condition of America. I had + no idea that the picture I then drew was realizing so fast, and still less + that Mr. Washington was hurrying it on. As the extract I allude to is + congenial with the subject I am upon, I here transcribe it: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + [<i>The extract is the same as that given in a footnote, in + the Memorial to Monroe, p. 180</i>.] +</pre> + <p> + Impressed, as I was, with apprehensions of this kind, I had America + constantly in my mind in all the publications I afterwards made. The + First, and still more the Second, Part of the Rights of Man, bear evident + marks of this watchfulness; and the Dissertation on First Principles of + Government [XXIV.] goes more directly to the point than either of the + former. I now pass on to other subjects. + </p> + <p> + It will be supposed by those into whose hands this letter may fall, that I + have some personal resentment against you; I will therefore settle this + point before I proceed further. + </p> + <p> + If I have any resentment, you must acknowledge that I have not been hasty + in declaring it; neither would it now be declared (for what are private + resentments to the public) if the cause of it did not unite itself as well + with your public as with your private character, and with the motives of + your political conduct. + </p> + <p> + The part I acted in the American revolution is well known; I shall not + here repeat it. I know also that had it not been for the aid received from + France, in men, money and ships, that your cold and unmilitary conduct (as + I shall shew in the course of this letter) would in all probability have + lost America; at least she would not have been the independent nation she + now is. You slept away your time in the field, till the finances of the + country were completely exhausted, and you have but little share in the + glory of the final event. It is time, sir, to speak the undisguised + language of historical truth. + </p> + <p> + Elevated to the chair of the Presidency, you assumed the merit of every + thing to yourself, and the natural ingratitude of your constitution began + to appear. You commenced your Presidential career by encouraging and + swallowing the grossest adulation, and you travelled America from one end + to the other to put yourself in the way of receiving it. You have as many + addresses in your chest as James the II. As to what were your views, for + if you are not great enough to have ambition you are little enough to have + vanity, they cannot be directly inferred from expressions of your own; but + the partizans of your politics have divulged the secret. + </p> + <p> + John Adams has said, (and John it is known was always a speller after + places and offices, and never thought his little services were highly + enough paid,)—John has said, that as Mr. Washington had no child, + the Presidency should be made hereditary in the family of Lund Washington. + John might then have counted upon some sinecure himself, and a provision + for his descendants. He did not go so far as to say, also, that the + Vice-Presidency should be hereditary in the family of John Adams. He + prudently left that to stand on the ground that one good turn deserves + another.(*) + </p> + <p> + John Adams is one of those men who never contemplated the origin of + government, or comprehended any thing of first principles. If he had, he + might have seen, that the right to set up and establish hereditary + government, never did, and never can, exist in any generation at any time + whatever; that it is of the nature of treason; because it is an attempt to + take away the rights of all the minors living at that time, and of all + succeeding generations. It is of a degree beyond common treason. It is a + sin against nature. The equal right of every generation is a right fixed + in the nature of things. It belongs to the son when of age, as it belonged + to the father before him. John Adams would himself deny the right that any + former deceased generation could have to decree authoritatively a + succession of governors over him, or over his children; and yet he assumes + the pretended right, treasonable as it is, of acting it himself. His + ignorance is his best excuse. + </p> + <p> + John Jay has said,(**) (and this John was always the sycophant of every + thing in power, from Mr. Girard in America, to Grenville in England,)—John + Jay has said, that the Senate should have been appointed for life. He + would then have been sure of never wanting a lucrative appointment for + himself, and have had no fears about impeachment. These are the disguised + traitors that call themselves Federalists.(**) + </p> + <p> + Could I have known to what degree of corruption and perfidy the + administrative part of the government of America had descended, I could + have been at no loss to have understood the reservedness of Mr. Washington + towards me, during my imprisonment in the Luxembourg. There are cases in + which silence is a loud language. I will here explain the cause of that + imprisonment, and return to Mr. Washington afterwards. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * Two persons to whom John Adams said this, told me of it. + The secretary of Mr. Jay was present when it was told to + me.—<i>Author</i>. + + ** If Mr. John Jay desires to know on what authority I say + this, I will give that authority publicly when he chooses to + call for it—<i>Author</i>. +</pre> + <p> + In the course of that rage, terror and suspicion, which the brutal letter + of the Duke of Brunswick first started into existence in France, it + happened that almost every man who was opposed to violence, or who was not + violent himself, became suspected. I had constantly been opposed to every + thing which was of the nature or of the appearance of violence; but as I + had always done it in a manner that shewed it to be a principle founded in + my heart, and not a political manouvre, it precluded the pretence of + accusing me. I was reached, however, under another pretence. + </p> + <p> + A decree was passed to imprison all persons born in England; but as I was + a member of the Convention, and had been complimented with the honorary + style of Citizen of France, as Mr. Washington and some other Americans had + been, this decree fell short of reaching me. A motion was afterwards made + and carried, supported chiefly by Bourdon de l'Oise, for expelling + foreigners from the Convention. My expulsion being thus effected, the two + committees of Public Safety and of General Surety, of which Robespierre + was the dictator, put me in arrestation under the former decree for + imprisoning persons born in England. Having thus shewn under what pretence + the imprisonment was effected, I come to speak of such parts of the case + as apply between me and Mr. Washington, either as a President or as an + individual. + </p> + <p> + I have always considered that a foreigner, such as I was in fact, with + respect to France, might be a member of a Convention for framing a + Constitution, without affecting his right of citizenship in the country to + which he belongs, but not a member of a government after a Constitution is + formed; and I have uniformly acted upon this distinction» To be a member + of a government requires that a person be in allegiance to that government + and to the country locally. But a Constitution, being a thing of + principle, and not of action, and which, after it is formed, is to be + referred to the people for their approbation or rejection, does not + require allegiance in the persons forming and proposing it; and besides + this, it is only to the thing after it be formed and established, and to + the country after its governmental character is fixed by the adoption of a + constitution, that the allegiance can be given. No oath of allegiance or + of citizenship was required of the members who composed the Convention: + there was nothing existing in form to swear allegiance to. If any such + condition had been required, I could not, as Citizen of America in fact, + though Citizen of France by compliment, have accepted a seat in the + Convention. + </p> + <p> + As my citizenship in America was not altered or diminished by any thing I + had done in Europe, (on the contrary, it ought to be considered as + strengthened, for it was the American principle of government that I was + endeavouring to spread in Europe,) and as it is the duty of every + govern-ment to charge itself with the care of any of its citizens who may + happen to fall under an arbitrary persecution abroad, and is also one of + the reasons for which ambassadors or ministers are appointed,—it was + the duty of the Executive department in America, to have made (at least) + some enquiries about me, as soon as it heard of my imprisonment. But if + this had not been the case, that government owed it to me on every ground + and principle of honour and gratitude. Mr. Washington owed it to me on + every score of private acquaintance, I will not now say, friendship; for + it has some time been known by those who know him, that he has no + friendships; that he is incapable of forming any; he can serve or desert a + man, or a cause, with constitutional indifference; and it is this cold + hermaphrodite faculty that imposed itself upon the world, and was credited + for a while by enemies as by friends, for prudence, moderation and + impartiality.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 "L'on pent dire qu'il [Washington] jouit de tous les + avantages possibles a l'exception des douceurs de + l'amitié."—Louis Otto, Chargé d'Affaires (at New York) to + his government, 13 June, 1790. French Archives, vol. 35, No. + 32.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + Soon after I was put into arrestation, and imprisoned in the Luxembourg, + the Americans who were then in Paris went in a body to the bar of the + Convention to reclaim me. They were answered by the then President Vadier, + who has since absconded, that <i>I was born in England</i>, and it was + signified to them, by some of the Committee of <i>General Surety</i>, to + whom they were referred (I have been told it was Billaud Varennes,) that + their reclamation of me was only the act of individuals, without any + authority from the American government. + </p> + <p> + A few days after this, all communications from persons imprisoned to any + person without the prison was cut off by an order of the Police. I neither + saw, nor heard from, any body for six months; and the only hope that + remained to me was, that a new Minister would arrive from America to + supercede Morris, and that he would be authorized to enquire into the + cause of my imprisonment. But even this hope, in the state to which + matters were daily arriving, was too remote to have any consolatory + effect, and I contented myself with the thought, that I might be + remembered when it would be too late. There is perhaps no condition from + which a man conscious of his own uprightness cannot derive consolation; + for it is in itself a consolation for him to find, that he can bear that + condition with calmness and fortitude. + </p> + <p> + From about the middle of March (1794) to the fall of Robespierre July 29, + (9th of Thermidor,) the state of things in the prisons was a continued + scene of horror. No man could count upon life for twenty-four hours. To + such a pitch of rage and suspicion were Robespierre and his Committee + arrived, that it seemed as if they feared to leave a man living. Scarcely + a night passed in which ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, or more, were + not taken out of the prison, carried before a pretended tribunal in the + morning, and guillotined before night. One hundred and sixty-nine were + taken out of the Luxembourg one night, in the month of July, and one + hundred and sixty of them guillotined. A list of two hundred more, + according to the report in the prison, was preparing a few days before + Robespierre fell. In this last list I have good reason to believe I was + included. A memorandum in the hand-writing of Robespierre was afterwards + produced in the Convention, by the committee to whom the papers of + Robespierre were referred, in these words: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + "Demander que Thomas "I Demand that Thomas Paine + "Payne soit décrété d'ac- be decreed of accusation + "cusation pour les inté- for the interests of America + "rôtsde l'Amérique,autant as well as of France." + "que de la France." +</pre> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In reading this the Committee added, "Why Thomas Payne + more than another? Because He helped to establish the + liberty of both worlds."—<i>Editor</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I had then been imprisoned seven months, and the silence of the Executive + part of the government of America (Mr. Washington) upon the case, and upon + every thing respecting me, was explanation enough to Robespierre that he + might proceed to extremities. + </p> + <p> + A violent fever which had nearly terminated my existence, was, I believe, + the circumstance that preserved it. I was not in a condition to be + removed, or to know of what was passing, or of what had passed, for more + than a month. It makes a blank in my remembrance of life. The first thing + I was informed of was the fall of Robespierre. + </p> + <p> + About a week after this, Mr. Monroe arrived to supercede Gouverneur + Morris, and as soon as I was able to write a note legible enough to be + read, I found a way to convey one to him by means of the man who lighted + the lamps in the prison; and whose unabated friendship to me, from whom he + had never received any service, and with difficulty accepted any + recompense, puts the character of Mr. Washington to shame. + </p> + <p> + In a few days I received a message from Mr. Monroe, conveyed to me in a + note from an intermediate person, with assurance of his friendship, and + expressing a desire that I would rest the case in his hands. After a + fortnight or more had passed, and hearing nothing farther, I wrote to a + friend who was then in Paris, a citizen of Philadelphia, requesting him to + inform me what was the true situation of things with respect to me. I was + sure that something was the matter; I began to have hard thoughts of Mr. + Washington, but I was unwilling to encourage them. + </p> + <p> + In about ten days, I received an answer to my letter, in which the writer + says, "Mr. Monroe has told me that he has no order [meaning from the + President, Mr. Washington] respecting you, but that he (Mr. Monroe) will + do every thing in his power to liberate you; but, from what I learn from + the Americans lately arrived in Paris, you are not considered, either by + the American government, or by the individuals, as an American citizen." + </p> + <p> + I was now at no loss to understand Mr. Washington and his new fangled + faction, and that their policy was silently to leave me to fall in France. + They were rushing as fast as they could venture, without awakening the + jealousy of America, into all the vices and corruptions of the British + government; and it was no more consistent with the policy of Mr. + Washington, and those who immediately surrounded him, than it was with + that of Robespierre or of Pitt, that I should survive. They have, however, + missed the mark, and the reaction is upon themselves. + </p> + <p> + Upon the receipt of the letter just alluded to, I sent a memorial to Mr. + Monroe, which the reader will find in the appendix, and I received from + him the following answer.(1) It is dated the 18th of September, but did + not come to hand till about the 4th of October. I was then failing into a + relapse, the weather was becoming damp and cold, fuel was not to be had, + and the abscess in my side, the consequence of these things, and of the + want of air and exercise, was beginning to form, and which has continued + immoveable ever since. Here follows Mr. Monroe's letter. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The appendix consisted of an abridgment of the Memorial, + which forms the preceding chapter (XXI.) in this volume.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Paris, September 18th, 1794. "Dear Sir, + </p> + <p> + "I was favoured soon after my arrival here with several letters from you, + and more latterly with one in the character of memorial upon the subject + of your confinement; and should have answered them at the times they were + respectively written had I not concluded you would have calculated with + certainty upon the deep interest I take in your welfare, and the pleasure + with which I shall embrace every opportunity in my power to serve you. I + should still pursue the same course, and for reasons which must obviously + occur, if I did not find that you are disquieted with apprehensions upon + interesting points, and which justice to you and our country equally + forbid you should entertain. You mention that you have been informed you + are not considered as an American citizen by the Americans, and that you + have likewise heard that I had no instructions respecting you by the + government. I doubt not the person who gave you the information meant + well, but I suspect he did not even convey accurately his own ideas on the + first point: for I presume the most he could say is, that you had likewise + become a French citizen, and which by no means deprived you of being an + American one. Even this, however, may be doubted, I mean the acquisition + of citizenship in France, and I confess you have said much to show that it + has not been made. I really suspect that this was all that the gentleman + who wrote to you, and those Americans he heard speak upon the subject + meant. It becomes my duty, however, to declare to you, that I consider you + as an American citizen, and that you are considered universally in that + character by the people of America. As such you are entitled to my + attention; and so far as it can be given consistently with those + obligations which are mutual between every government and even a transient + passenger, you shall receive it. + </p> + <p> + "The Congress have never decided upon the subject of citizenship in a + manner to regard the present case. By being with us through the revolution + you are of our country as absolutely as if you had been born there, and + you are no more of England, than every native American is. This is the + true doctrine in the present case, so far as it becomes complicated with + any other consideration. I have mentioned it to make you easy upon the + only point which could give you any disquietude. + </p> + <p> + "Is it necessary for me to tell you how much all your countrymen, I speak + of the great mass of the people, are interested in your welfare? They have + not forgotten the history of their own revolution and the difficult scenes + through which they passed; nor do they review its several stages without + reviving in their bosoms a due sensibility of the merits of those who + served them in that great and arduous conflict. The crime of ingratitude + has not yet stained, and I trust never will stain, our national character. + You are considered by them as not only having rendered important service + in our own revolution, but as being, on a more extensive scale, the friend + of human rights, and a distinguished and able advocate in favour of public + liberty. To the welfare of Thomas Paine, the Americans are not, nor can + they be, indifferent. + </p> + <p> + "Of the sense which the President has always entertained of your merits, + and of his friendly disposition towards you, you are too well assured to + require any declaration of it from me. That I forward his wishes in + seeking your safety is what I well know, and this will form an additional + obligation on me to perform what I should otherwise consider as a duty. + </p> + <p> + "You are, in my opinion, at present menaced by no kind of danger. To + liberate you, will be an object of my endeavours, and as soon as possible. + But you must, until that event shall be accomplished, bear your situation + with patience and fortitude. You will likewise have the justice to + recollect, that I am placed here upon a difficult theatre* many important + objects to attend to, with few to consult It becomes me in pursuit of + those to regulate my conduct in respect to each, as to the manner and the + time, as will, in my judgment, be best calculated to accomplish the whole. + </p> + <p> + "With great esteem and respect consider me personally your friend, + </p> + <p> + "James Monroe." + </p> + <p> + The part in Mr. Monroe's letter, in which he speaks of the President, (Mr. + Washington,) is put in soft language. Mr. Monroe knew what Mr. Washington + had said formerly, and he was willing to keep that in view. But the fact + is, not only that Mr. Washington had given no orders to Mr. Monroe, as the + letter [of Whiteside] stated, but he did not so much as say to him, + enquire if Mr. Paine be dead or alive, in prison or out, or see if there + be any assistance we can give him. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + This I presume alludes to the embarrassments which the + strange conduct of Gouverneur Morris had occasioned, and + which, I well know, had created suspicions of the sincerity + of Mr. Washington.—<i>Author</i>. voi. m—ij +</pre> + <p> + While these matters were passing, the liberations from the prisons were + numerous; from twenty to forty in the course of almost every twenty-four + hours. The continuance of my imprisonment after a new Minister had arrived + immediately from America, which was now more than two months, was a matter + so obviously strange, that I found the character of the American + government spoken of in very unqualified terms of reproach; not only by + those who still remained in prison, but by those who were liberated, and + by persons who had access to the prison from without. Under these + circumstances I wrote again to Mr. Monroe, and found occasion, among other + things, to say: "It will not add to the popularity of Mr. Washington to + have it believed in America, as it is believed here, that he connives at + my imprisonment." + </p> + <p> + The case, so far as it respected Mr. Monroe, was, that having to get over + the difficulties, which the strange conduct of Gouverneur Morris had + thrown in the way of a successor, and having no authority from the + American government to speak officially upon any thing relating to me, he + found himself obliged to proceed by unofficial means with individual + members; for though Robespierre was overthrown, the Robespierrian members + of the Committee of Public Safety still remained in considerable force, + and had they found out that Mr. Monroe had no official authority upon the + case, they would have paid little or no regard to his reclamation of me. + In the mean time my health was suffering exceedingly, the dreary prospect + of winter was coming on, and imprisonment was still a thing of danger. + After the Robespierrian members of the Committee were removed by the + expiration of their time of serving, Mr. Monroe reclaimed me, and I was + liberated the 4th of November. Mr. Monroe arrived in Paris the beginning + of August before. All that period of my imprisonment, at least, I owe not + to Robespierre, but to his colleague in projects, George Washington. + Immediately upon my liberation, Mr. Monroe invited me to his house, where + I remained more than a year and a half; and I speak of his aid and + friendship, as an open-hearted man will always do in such a case, with + respect and gratitude. + </p> + <p> + Soon after my liberation, the Convention passed an unanimous vote, to + invite me to return to my seat among them. The times were still unsettled + and dangerous, as well from without as within, for the coalition was + unbroken, and the constitution not settled. I chose, however, to accept + the invitation: for as I undertake nothing but what I believe to be right, + I abandon nothing that I undertake; and I was willing also to shew, that, + as I was not of a cast of mind to be deterred by prospects or retrospects + of danger, so neither were my principles to be weakened by misfortune or + perverted by disgust. + </p> + <p> + Being now once more abroad in the world, I began to find that I was not + the only one who had conceived an unfavourable opinion of Mr. Washington; + it was evident that his character was on the decline as well among + Americans as among foreigners of different nations. From being the chief + of the government, he had made himself the chief of a party; and his + integrity was questioned, for his politics had a doubtful appearance. The + mission of Mr. Jay to London, notwithstanding there was an American + Minister there already, had then taken place, and was beginning to be + talked of. It appeared to others, as it did to me, to be enveloped in + mystery, which every day served either to increase or to explain into + matter of suspicion. + </p> + <p> + In the year 1790, or about that time, Mr. Washington, as President, had + sent Gouverneur Morris to London, as his secret agent to have some + communication with the British Ministry. To cover the agency of Morris it + was given out, I know not by whom, that he went as an agent from Robert + Morris to borrow money in Europe, and the report was permitted to pass + uncontradicted. The event of Morris's negociation was, that Mr. Hammond + was sent Minister from England to America, Pinckney from America to + England, and himself Minister to France. If, while Morris was Minister in + France, he was not a emissary of the British Ministry and the coalesced + powers, he gave strong reasons to suspect him of it. No one who saw his + conduct, and heard his conversation, could doubt his being in their + interest; and had he not got off the time he did, after his recall, he + would have been in arrestation. Some letters of his had fallen into the + hands of the Committee of Public Safety, and enquiry was making after him. + </p> + <p> + A great bustle had been made by Mr. Washington about the conduct of Genet + in America, while that of his own Minister, Morris, in France, was + infinitely more reproachable. If Genet was imprudent or rash, he was not + treacherous; but Morris was all three. He was the enemy of the French + revolution, in every stage of it. But notwithstanding this conduct on the + part of Morris, and the known profligacy of his character, Mr. Washington + in a letter he wrote to him at the time of recalling him on the complaint + and request of the Committee of Public Safety, assures him, that though he + had complied with that request, he still retained the same esteem and + friendship for him as before. This letter Morris was foolish enough to + tell of; and, as his own char-acter and conduct were notorious, the + telling of it could have but one effect, which was that of implicating the + character of the writer.(1) Morris still loiters in Europe, chiefly in + England; and Mr. Washington is still in correspondence with him. Mr. + Washington ought, therefore, to expect, especially since his conduct in + the affairs of Jay's treaty, that France must consider Morris and + Washington as men of the same description. The chief difference, however, + between the two is, (for in politics there is none,) that the one is + profligate enough to profess an indifference about <i>moral</i> + principles, and the other is prudent enough to conceal the want of them. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Washington wrote to Morris, June 19,1794, "my confidence + in and friendship for you remain undiminished." It was not + "foolish" but sagacious to show this one sentence, without + which Morris might not have escaped out of France. The + letter reveals Washington's mental decline. He says "until + then [Fauchet's demand for recall of Morris, early 1794] I + had supposed you stood well with the powers that were." + Lafayette had pleaded for Morris's removal, and two French + Ministers before Fauchet, Ternant and Genet, had expressed + their Government's dissatisfaction with him. See Ford's + Writings of Washington, vii., p. 453; also Editor's + Introduction to XXI.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + About three months after I was at liberty, the official note of Jay to + Grenville on the subject of the capture of American vessels by the British + cruisers, appeared in the American papers that arrived at Paris. Every + thing was of a-piece. Every thing was mean. The same kind of character + went to all circumstances public or private. Disgusted at this national + degradation, as well as at the particular conduct of Mr. Washington to me, + I wrote to him (Mr. Washington) on the 22d of February (1795) under cover + to the then Secretary of State, (Mr. Randolph,) and entrusted the letter + to Mr. Le-tombe, who was appointed French consul to Philadelphia, and was + on the point of taking his departure. When I supposed Mr. Letombe had + sailed, I mentioned the letter to Mr. Monroe, and as I was then in his + house, I shewed it to him. He expressed a wish that I would recall it, + which he supposed might be done, as he had learnt that Mr. Letombe had not + then sailed. I agreed to do so, and it was returned by Mr. Letombe under + cover to Mr. Monroe. + </p> + <p> + The letter, however, will now reach Mr. Washington publicly in the course + of this work. + </p> + <p> + About the month of September following, I had a severe relapse which gave + occasion to the report of my death. I had felt it coming on a considerable + time before, which occasioned me to hasten the work I had then in hand, + the <i>Second part of the Age of Reason</i>. When I had finished that + work, I bestowed another letter on Mr. Washington, which I sent under + cover to Mr. Benj. Franklin Bache of Philadelphia. The letter is as + follows: + </p> + <p> + "Paris, September 20th, 1795. + </p> + <p> + "Sir, + </p> + <p> + "I had written you a letter by Mr. Letombe, French consul, but, at the + request of Mr. Monroe, I withdrew it, and the letter is still by me. I was + the more easily prevailed upon to do this, as it was then my intention to + have returned to America the latter end of the present year, 1795; but the + illness I now suffer prevents me. In case I had come, I should have + applied to you for such parts of your official letters (and of your + private ones, if you had chosen to give them) as contained any + instructions or directions either to Mr. Monroe, or to Mr. Morris, or to + any other person respecting me; for after you were informed of my + imprisonment in France, it was incumbent on you to have made some enquiry + into the cause, as you might very well conclude that I had not the + opportunity of informing you of it. I cannot understand your silence upon + this subject upon any other ground, than as <i>connivance</i> at my + imprisonment; and this is the manner it is understood here, and will be + understood in America, unless you give me authority for contradicting it. + I therefore write you this letter, to propose to you to send me copies of + any letters you have written, that may remove that suspicion. In the + preface to the second part of the Age of Reason, I have given a memorandum + from the hand-writing of Robespierre, in which he proposed a decree of + accusation against me, '<i>for the interests of America as well as of + France!</i>' He could have no cause for putting America in the case, but + by interpreting the silence of the American government into connivance and + consent. I was imprisoned on the ground of being born in England; and your + silence in not enquiring into the cause of that imprisonment, and + reclaiming me against it, was tacitly giving me up. I ought not to have + suspected you of treachery; but whether I recover from the illness I now + suffer or not, I shall continue to think you treacherous, till you give me + cause to think otherwise. I am sure you would have found yourself more at + your ease, had you acted by me as you ought; for whether your desertion of + me was intended to gratify the English Government, or to let me fall into + destruction in France that you might exclaim the louder against the French + Revolution, or whether you hoped by my extinction to meet with less + opposition in mounting up the American government—either of these + will involve you in reproach you will not easily shake off. + </p> + <p> + "THOMAS Paine." + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Washington Papers in State Department. Endorsed by Bache: + "Jan. 18, 1796. Enclosed to Benj. Franklin Bache, and by him + forwarded immediately upon receipt."—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Here follows the letter above alluded to, which I had stopped in + complaisance to Mr. Monroe. + </p> + <p> + "Paris, February aad, 1795. + </p> + <p> + "Sir, + </p> + <p> + "As it is always painful to reproach those one would wish to respect, it + is not without some difficulty that I have taken the resolution to write + to you. The dangers to which I have been exposed cannot have been unknown + to you, and the guarded silence you have observed upon that circumstance + is what I ought not to have expected from you, either as a friend or as + President of the United States. + </p> + <p> + "You knew enough of my character to be assured that I could not have + deserved imprisonment in France; and, without knowing any thing more than + this, you had sufficient ground to have taken some interest for my safety. + Every motive arising from recollection of times past, ought to have + suggested to you the propriety of such a measure. But I cannot find that + you have so much as directed any enquiry to be made whether I was in + prison or at liberty, dead or alive; what the cause of that imprisonment + was, or whether there was any service or assistance you could render. Is + this what I ought to have expected from America, after the part I had + acted towards her, or will it redound to her honour or to yours, that I + tell the story? I do not hesitate to say, that you have not served America + with more disinterestedness, or greater zeal, or more fidelity, than + myself, and I know not if with better effect. After the revolution of + America was established I ventured into new scenes of difficulties to + extend the principles which that revolution had produced, and you rested + at home to partake of the advantages. In the progress of events, you + beheld yourself a President in America, and me a prisoner in France. You + folded your arms, forgot your friend, and became silent. + </p> + <p> + "As every thing I have been doing in Europe was connected with my wishes + for the prosperity of America, I ought to be the more surprised at this + conduct on the part of her government. It leaves me but one mode of + explanation, which is, <i>that every thing is not as it ought to be + amongst you</i>, and that the presence of a man who might disapprove, and + who had credit enough with the country to be heard and believed, was not + wished for. This was the operating motive with the despotic faction that + imprisoned me in France, (though the pretence was, that I was a + foreigner,) and those that have been silent and inactive towards me in + America, appear to me to have acted from the same motive. It is impossible + for me to discover any other.(1) + </p> + <p> + "After the part I have taken in the revolution of America, it is natural + that I feel interested in whatever relates to her character and + prosperity. Though I am not on the spot to see what is immediately acting + there, I see some part of what she is acting in Europe. For your own sake, + as well as for that of America, I was both surprised and concerned at the + appointment of Gouverneur Morris to be Minister to France. His conduct has + proved that the opinion I had formed of that appointment was well founded. + I wrote that opinion to Mr. Jefferson at the time, and I was frank enough + to say the same thing to Morris—<i>that it was an unfortunate + appointment?</i> His prating, insignificant pomposity, rendered him at + once offensive, suspected, and ridiculous; and his total neglect of all + business had so disgusted the Americans, that they proposed drawing up a + protest against him. He carried this neglect to such an extreme, that it + was necessary to inform him of it; and I asked him one day, if he did not + feel himself ashamed to take the money of the country, and do nothing for + it?' But Morris is so fond of profit and voluptousness, that he cares + nothing about character. Had he not been removed at the time he was, I + think his conduct would have precipitated the two countries into a + rupture; and in this case, hated <i>systematically</i> as America is and + ever will be by the British government, and at the same time suspected by + France, the commerce of America would have fallen a prey to both + countries. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This paragraph of the original letter was omitted from the + American pamphlet, probably by the prudence of Mr. Bache.— + <i>Editor.</i> + + 2 "I have just heard of Gouverneur Morris's appointment. It + is a most unfortunate one; and, as I shall mention the same + thing to him when I see him, I do not express it to you with + the injunction of confidence."—Paine to Jefferson, Feb. + 13,1792.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 3 Paine could not of course know that Morris was willing + that the Americans, to whom he alludes, captains of captured + vessels, should suffer, in order that there might be a case + against France of violation of treaty, which would leave the + United States free to transfer the alliance to England. See + Introduction to XXI.. also my "Life of Paine," ii., p. + 83.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + "If the inconsistent conduct of Morris exposed the interest of America to + some hazard in France, the pusillanimous conduct of Mr. Jay in England has + rendered the American government contemptible in Europe. Is it possible + that any man who has contributed to the independence of Amer-ica, and to + free her from the tyranny and injustice of the British government, can + read without shame and indignation the note of Jay to Grenville? It is a + satire upon the declaration of Independence, and an encouragement to the + British government to treat America with contempt. At the time this + Minister of Petitions was acting this miserable part, he had every means + in his hands to enable him to have done his business as he ought. The + success or failure of his mission depended upon the success or failure of + the French arms. Had France failed, Mr. Jay might have put his humble + petition in his pocket, and gone home. The case happened to be otherwise, + and he has sacrificed the honour and perhaps all the advantages of it, by + turning petitioner. I take it for granted, that he was sent over to demand + indemnification for the captured property; and, in this case, if he + thought he wanted a preamble to his demand, he might have said, + </p> + <p> + 'That, tho' the government of England might suppose itself under the + necessity of seizing American property bound to France, yet that supposed + necessity could not preclude indemnification to the proprietors, who, + acting under the authority of their own government, were not accountable + to any other.' + </p> + <p> + "But Mr. Jay sets out with an implied recognition of the right of the + British government to seize and condemn: for he enters his complaint + against the <i>irregularity</i> of the seizures and the condemnation, as + if they were reprehensible only by not being <i>conformable</i> to the <i>terms</i> + of the proclamation under which they were seized. Instead of being the + Envoy of a government, he goes over like a lawyer to demand a new trial. I + can hardly help thinking that Grenville wrote that note himself and Jay + signed it; for the style of it is domestic and not diplomatic. The term, + <i>His</i> Majesty, used without any descriptive epithet, always signifies + the King whom the Minister that speaks represents. If this sinking of the + demand into a petition was a juggle between Grenville and Jay, to cover + the indemnification, I think it will end in another juggle, that of never + paying the money, and be made use of afterwards to preclude the right of + demanding it: for Mr. Jay has virtually disowned the right <i>by appealing + to the magnanimity of his Majesty against the capturers</i>. He has made + this magnanimous Majesty the umpire in the case, and the government of the + United States must abide by the decision. If, Sir, I turn some part of + this business into ridicule, it is to avoid the unpleasant sensation of + serious indignation. + </p> + <p> + "Among other things which I confess I do not understand, is the + proclamation of neutrality. This has always appeared to me as an + assumption on the part of the executive not warranted by the Constitution. + But passing this over, as a disputable case, and considering it only as + political, the consequence has been that of sustaining the losses of war, + without the balance of reprisals. When the profession of neutrality, on + the part of America, was answered by hostilities on the part of Britain, + the object and intention of that neutrality existed no longer; and to + maintain it after this, was not only to encourage farther insults and + depredations, but was an informal breach of neutrality towards France, by + passively contributing to the aid of her enemy. That the government of + England considered the American government as pusillanimous, is evident + from the encreasing insolence of the conduct of the former towards the + latter, till the affair of General Wayne. She then saw that it might be + possible to kick a government into some degree of spirit.(1) So far as the + proclamation of neutrality was intended to prevent a dissolute spirit of + privateering in America under foreign colors, it was undoubtedly laudable; + but to continue it as a government neutrality, after the commerce of + America was made war upon, was submission and not neutrality. I have heard + so much about this thing called neutrality, that I know not if the + ungenerous and dishonorable silence (for I must call it such,) that has + been observed by your part of the government towards me, during my + imprisonment, has not in some measure arisen from that policy. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Wayne's success against the Indians of the Six Nations, + 1794, was regarded by Washington also as a check on England. + Writing to Pendleton, Jan. 22, 1795, he says: "There is + reason to believe that the Indians....<i>together with their + abettors</i>; begin to see things in a different point of + view." (Italics mine).—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + "Tho' I have written you this letter, you ought not to suppose it has been + an agreeable undertaking to me. On the contrary, I assure you, it has + caused me some disquietude. I am sorry you have given me cause to do it; + for, as I have always remembered your former friendship with pleasure, I + suffer a loss by your depriving me of that sentiment. + </p> + <p> + "Thomas Paine." + </p> + <p> + That this letter was not written in very good temper, is very evident; but + it was just such a letter as his conduct appeared to me to merit, and + every thing on his part since has served to confirm that opinion. Had I + wanted a commentary on his silence, with respect to my imprisonment in + France, some of his faction have furnished me with it. What I here allude + to, is a publication in a Philadelphia paper, copied afterwards into a New + York paper, both under the patronage of the Washington faction, in which + the writer, still supposing me in prison in France, wonders at my lengthy + respite from the scaffold; and he marks his politics still farther, by + saying: + </p> + <p> + "It appears, moreover, that the people of England did not relish his + (Thomas Paine's) opinions quite so well as he expected, and that for one + of his last pieces, as destructive to the peace and happiness of their + country, (meaning, I suppose, the <i>Rights of Man</i>,) they threatened + our knight-errant with such serious vengeance, that, to avoid a trip to + Botany Bay, he fled over to France, as a less dangerous voyage." + </p> + <p> + I am not refuting or contradicting the falsehood of this publication, for + it is sufficiently notorious; neither am I censuring the writer: on the + contrary, I thank him for the explanation he has incautiously given of the + principles of the Washington faction. Insignificant, however, as the piece + is, it was capable of having some ill effects, had it arrived in France + during my imprisonment, and in the time of Robespierre; and I am not + uncharitable in supposing that this was one of the intentions of the + writer.(*) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * I know not who the writer of the piece is, but some of the + Americans say it is Phineas Bond, an American refugee, but + now a British consul; and that he writes under the + signature of Peter Skunk or Peter Porcupine, or some such + signature.—Author. + + This footnote probably added to the gall of Porcupine's + (Cobbett's) "Letter to the Infamous Tom Paine, in Answer to + his Letter to General Washington" (Polit. Censor, Dec., + 1796), of which he (Cobbett) afterwards repented. Phineas + Bond had nothing to do with it.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + I have now done with Mr. Washington on the score of private affairs. It + would have been far more agreeable to me, had his conduct been such as not + to have merited these reproaches. Errors or caprices of the temper can be + pardoned and forgotten; but a cold deliberate crime of the heart, such as + Mr. Washington is capable of acting, is not to be washed away. I now + proceed to other matter. + </p> + <p> + After Jay's note to Grenville arrived in Paris from America, the character + of every thing that was to follow might be easily foreseen; and it was + upon this anticipation that <i>my</i> letter of February the 22d was + founded. The event has proved that I was not mistaken, except that it has + been much worse than I expected. + </p> + <p> + It would naturally occur to Mr. Washington, that the secrecy of Jay's + mission to England, where there was already an American Minister, could + not but create some suspicion in the French government; especially as the + conduct of Morris had been notorious, and the intimacy of Mr. Washington + with Morris was known. + </p> + <p> + The character which Mr. Washington has attempted to act in the world, is a + sort of non-describable, camelion-colored thing, called <i>prudence</i>. + It is, in many cases, a substitute for principle, and is so nearly allied + to hypocrisy that it easily slides into it. His genius for prudence + furnished him in this instance with an expedient that served, as is the + natural and general character of all expedients, to diminish the + embarrassments of the moment and multiply them afterwards; for he + authorized it to be made known to the French government, as a confidential + matter, (Mr. Washington should recollect that I was a member of the + Convention, and had the means of knowing what I here state) he authorized + it, I say, to be announced, and that for the purpose of preventing any + uneasiness to France on the score of Mr. Jay's mission to England, that + the object of that mission, and of Mr. Jay's authority, was restricted to + that of demanding the surrender of the western posts, and indemnification + for the cargoes captured in American vessels. Mr. Washington knows that + this was untrue; and knowing this, he had good reason to himself for + refusing to furnish the House of Representatives with copies of the + instructions given to Jay, as he might suspect, among other things, that + he should also be called upon for copies of instructions given to other + Ministers, and that, in the contradiction of instructions, his want of + integrity would be detected.(1) Mr. Washington may now, perhaps, learn, + when it is too late to be of any use to him, that a man will pass better + through the world with a thousand open errors upon his back, than in being + detected in <i>one</i> sly falsehood. When one is detected, a thousand are + suspected. + </p> + <p> + The first account that arrived in Paris of a treaty being negotiated by + Mr. Jay, (for nobody suspected any,) came in an English newspaper, which + announced that a treaty <i>offensive and defensive</i> had been concluded + between the United States of America and England. This was immediately + denied by every American in Paris, as an impossible thing; and though it + was disbelieved by the French, it imprinted a suspicion that some + underhand business was going forward.(*) At length the treaty itself + arrived, and every well-affected American blushed with shame. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 When the British treaty had been ratified by the Senate + (with one stipulation) and signed by the President, the + House of Representatives, required to supply the means for + carrying into effect, believed that its power over the + supplies authorized it to check what a large majority + considered an outrage on the country and on France. This was + the opinion of Edmund Randolph (the first Attorney General), + of Jefferson, Madison, and other eminent men. The House + having respectfully requested the President to send them + such papers on the treaty as would not affect any existing + negotiations, he refused in a message (March 30, 1796), + whose tenor Madison described as "improper and indelicate." + He said "the assent of the House of Representatives is not + necessary to the validity of a treaty." The House regarded + the message as menacing a serious conflict, and receded.— + <i>Editor.</i> + + * It was the embarrassment into which the affairs and credit + of America were thrown at this instant by the report above + alluded to, that made it necessary to contradict it, and + that by every means arising from opinion or founded upon + authority. The Committee of Public Safety, existing at that + time, had agreed to the full execution, on their part, of + the treaty between America and France, notwithstanding some + equivocal conduct on the part of the American government, + not very consistent with the good faith of an ally; but they + were not in a disposition to be imposed upon by a counter- + treaty. That Jay had no instructions beyond the points above + stated, or none that could possibly be construed to extend + to the length the British treaty goes, was a matter believed + in America, in England, and in France; and without going to + any other source it followed naturally from the message of + the President to Congress, when he nominated Jay upon that + mission. The secretary of Mr. Jay came to Paris soon after + the treaty with England had been concluded, and brought with + him a copy of Mr. Jay's instructions, which he offered to + shew to me as <i>justification of Jay</i>. I advised him, as a + friend, not to shew them to anybody, and did not permit him + to shew them to me. "Who is it," said I to him, "that you + intend to implicate as censureable by shewing those + instructions? Perhaps that implication may fall upon your + own government." Though I did not see the instructions, I + could not be at a loss to understand that the American + administration had been playing a double game.—Author. + + That there was a "double game" in this business, from first + to last, is now a fact of history. Jay was confirmed by the + Senate on a declaration of the President in which no + faintest hint of a treaty was given, but only the + "adjustment of our complaints," "vindication of our rights," + and cultivation of "peace." Only after the Envoy's + confirmation did the Cabinet add the main thing, his + authority to negotiate a commercial treaty. This was done + against the protest of the only lawyer among them, Edmund + Randolph, Secretary of State, who said the exercise of such + a power by Jay would be an abridgment of the rights of the + Senate and of the nation. See my "Life of Randolph," p. 220. + For Jay's Instructions, etc., see I. Am. State Papers, + Foreign Relations.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + It is curious to observe, how the appearance of characters will change, + whilst the root that produces them remains the same. The Washington + faction having waded through the slough of negociation, and whilst it + amused France with professions of friendship contrived to injure her, + immediately throws off the hypocrite, and assumes the swaggering air of a + bravado. The party papers of that imbecile administration were on this + occasion filled with paragraphs about <i>Sovereignty</i>. A paltroon may + boast of his sovereign right to let another kick him, and this is the only + kind of sovereignty shewn in the treaty with England. But those daring + paragraphs, as Timothy Pickering(1) well knows, were intended for France; + without whose assistance, in men, money, and ships, Mr. Washington would + have cut but a poor figure in the American war. But of his military + talents I shall speak hereafter. + </p> + <p> + I mean not to enter into any discussion of any article of Jay's treaty; I + shall speak only upon the whole of it. It is attempted to be justified on + the ground of its not being a violation of any article or articles of the + treaty pre-existing with France. But the sovereign right of explanation + does not lie with George Washington and his man Timothy; France, on her + part, has, at least, an equal right: and when nations dispute, it is not + so much about words as about things. + </p> + <p> + A man, such as the world calls a sharper, and versed as Jay must be + supposed to be in the quibbles of the law, may find a way to enter into + engagements, and make bargains, in such a manner as to cheat some other + party, without that party being able, as the phrase is, <i>to take the law + of him</i>. This often happens in the cabalistical circle of what is + called law. But when this is attempted to be acted on the national scale + of treaties, it is too despicable to be defended, or to be permitted to + exist. Yet this is the trick upon which Jay's treaty is founded, so far as + it has relation to the treaty pre-existing with France. It is a + counter-treaty to that treaty, and perverts all the great articles of that + treaty to the injury of France, and makes them operate as a bounty to + England, with whom France is at war. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Secretary of State.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + The Washington administration shews great desire that the treaty between + France and the United States be preserved. Nobody can doubt their + sincerity upon this matter. There is not a British Minister, a British + merchant, or a British agent or sailor in America, that does not anxiously + wish the same thing. The treaty with France serves now as a passport to + supply England with naval stores and other articles of American produce, + whilst the same articles, when coming to France, are made contraband or + seizable by Jay's treaty with England. The treaty with France says, that + neutral ships make neutral property, and thereby gives protection to + English property on board American ships; and Jay's treaty delivers up + French property on board American ships to be seized by the English. It is + too paltry to talk of faith, of national honour, and of the preservation + of treaties, whilst such a bare-faced treachery as this stares the world + in the face. + </p> + <p> + The Washington administration may save itself the trouble of proving to + the French government its <i>most faithful</i> intentions of preserving + the treaty with France; for France has now no desire that it should be + preserved. She had nominated an Envoy extraordinary to America, to make + Mr. Washington and his government a present of the treaty, and to have no + more to do with <i>that</i>, or with <i>him</i>. It was at the same time + officially declared to the American Minister at Paris, <i>that the French + Republic had rather have the American government for an open enemy than a + treacherous friend</i>. This, sir, together with the internal distractions + caused in America, and the loss of character in the world, is the <i>eventful + crisis</i>, alluded to in the beginning of this letter, to which your + double politics have brought the affairs of your country. It is time that + the eyes of America be opened upon you. + </p> + <p> + How France would have conducted herself towards America and American + commerce, after all treaty stipulations had ceased, and under the sense of + services rendered and injuries received, I know not. It is, however, an + unpleasant reflection, that in all national quarrels, the innocent, and + even the friendly part of the community, become involved with the culpable + and the unfriendly; and as the accounts that arrived from America + continued to manifest an invariable attachment in the general mass of the + people to their original ally, in opposition to the new-fangled Washington + faction,—the resolutions that had been taken in France were + suspended. It happened also, fortunately enough, that Gouverneur Morris + was not Minister at this time. + </p> + <p> + There is, however, one point that still remains in embryo, and which, + among other things, serves to shew the ignorance of Washington + treaty-makers, and their inattention to preexisting treaties, when they + were employing themselves in framing or ratifying the new treaty with + England. + </p> + <p> + The second article of the treaty of commerce between the United States and + France says: + </p> + <p> + "The most christian king and the United States engage mutually, not to + grant any particular favour to other nations in respect of commerce and + navigation that shall not immediately become common to the other party, + who shall enjoy the same favour freely, if the concession was freely made, + or on allowing the same compensation if the concession was conditional." + </p> + <p> + All the concessions, therefore, made to England by Jay's treaty are, + through the medium of this second article in the pre-existing treaty, made + to France, and become engrafted into the treaty with France, and can be + exercised by her as a matter of right, the same as by England. + </p> + <p> + Jay's treaty makes a concession to England, and that unconditionally, of + seizing naval stores in American ships, and condemning them as contraband. + It makes also a concession to England to seize provisions and <i>other + articles</i> in American ships. <i>Other articles are all other articles</i>, + and none but an ignoramus, or something worse, would have put such a + phrase into a treaty. The condition annexed in this case is, that the + provisions and other articles so seized, are to be paid for at a price to + be agreed upon. Mr. Washington, as President, ratified this treaty after + he knew the British Government had recommended an indiscriminate seizure + of provisions and all other articles in American ships; and it is now + known that those seizures were made to fit out the expedition going to + Quiberon Bay, and it was known before hand that they would be made. The + evidence goes also a good way to prove that Jay and Grenville understood + each other upon that subject. Mr. Pinckney,(1) when he passed through + France on his way to Spain, spoke of the recommencement of the seizures as + a thing that would take place. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Gen. Thomas Pinckney, U. S. Minister to England.— + <i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + The French government had by some means received information from London + to the same purpose, with the addition, that the recommencement of the + seizures would cause no misunderstanding between the British and American + governments. Grenville, in defending himself against the opposition in + Parliament, on account of the scarcity of corn, said (see his speech at + the opening of the Parliament that met October 29, 1795) that <i>the + supplies for the Quiberon expedition were furnished out of the American + ships</i>, and all the accounts received at that time from England stated + that those seizures were made under the treaty. After the supplies for the + Quiberon expedition had been procured, and the expected success had + failed, the seizures were countermanded; and had the French seized + provision vessels going to England, it is probable that the Quiberon + expedition could not have been attempted. + </p> + <p> + In one point of view, the treaty with England operates as a loan to the + English government. It gives permission to that government to take + American property at sea, to any amount, and pay for it when it suits her; + and besides this, the treaty is in every point of view a surrender of the + rights of American commerce and navigation, and a refusal to France of the + rights of neutrality. The American flag is not now a neutral flag to + France; Jay's treaty of surrender gives a monopoly of it to England. + </p> + <p> + On the contrary, the treaty of commerce between America and France was + formed on the most liberal principles, and calculated to give the greatest + encouragement to the infant commerce of America. France was neither a + carrier nor an exporter of naval stores or of provisions. Those articles + belonged wholly to America, and they had all the protection in that treaty + which a treaty could give. But so much has that treaty been perverted, + that the liberality of it on the part of France, has served to encourage + Jay to form a counter-treaty with England; for he must have supposed the + hands of France tied up by her treaty with America, when he was making + such large concessions in favour of England. The injury which Mr. + Washington's administration has done to the character as well as to the + commerce of America, is too great to be repaired by him. Foreign nations + will be shy of making treaties with a government that has given the + faithless example of perverting the liberality of a former treaty to the + injury of the party with whom it was made.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 For an analysis of the British Treaty see Wharton's + "Digest of the International Law of the United States," vol. + it, § 150 a. Paine's analysis is perfectly correct.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + In what a fraudulent light must Mr. Washington's character appear in the + world, when his declarations and his conduct are compared together! Here + follows the letter he wrote to the Committee of Public Safety, while Jay + was negotiating in profound secrecy this treacherous treaty: + </p> + <p> + "George Washington, President of the United States of America, to the + Representatives of the French people, members of the Committee of Public + Safety of the French Republic, the great and good friend and ally of the + United States. + </p> + <p> + "On the intimation of the wish of the French republic that à new Minister + should be sent from the United States, I resolved to manifest my sense of + the readiness with which <i>my</i> request was fulfilled, [that of + recalling Genet,] by immediately fulfilling the request of your + government, [that of recalling Morris]. + </p> + <p> + "It was some time before a character could be obtained, worthy of the high + office of expressing the attachment of the United States to the happiness + of our allies, <i>and drawing closer the bonds of our friendship</i>. I + have now made choice of James Monroe, one of our distinguished citizens, + to reside near the French republic, in quality of Minister Plenipotentiary + of the United States of America. He is instructed to bear to you our <i>sincere + solicitude for your welfare, and to cultivate with teal the cordiality so + happily subsisting between us</i>. From a knowledge of his fidelity, + probity, and good conduct, I have entire confidence that he will render + himself acceptable to you, and give effect to your desire of preserving + and <i>advancing, on all occasions, the interest and connection of the two + nations</i>. I beseech you, therefore, to give full credence to whatever + he shall say to you on the part of the United States, and <i>most of all, + when he shall assure you that your prosperity is an object of our + affection</i>. + </p> + <p> + "And I pray God to have the French Republic in his holy keeping. + </p> + <p> + "G. Washington." + </p> + <p> + Was it by entering into a treaty with England to surrender French property + on board American ships to be seized by the English, while English + property on board American ships was declared by the French treaty not to + be seizable, <i>that the bonds of friendship between America and France + were to be drawn the closer?</i> Was it by declaring naval stores + contraband when coming to France, whilst by the French treaty they were + not contraband when going to England, that the <i>connection between + France and America was to be advanced?</i> Was it by opening the American + ports to the British navy in the present war, from which ports the same + navy had been expelled by the aid solicited from France in the American + war (and that aid gratuitously given) (2) that the gratitude of America + was to be shewn, and the <i>solicitude</i> spoken of in the letter + demonstrated? + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The italics are Paine's. Paine's free use of this document + suggests that he possessed the confidence of the French + Directory.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 It is notable that Paine adheres to his old contention in + his controversy with Deane. See vol. i., ch. aa of this work; + and vol. i., ch. 9 of my "Life of Paine."—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + As the letter was addressed to the Committee of Public Safety, Mr. + Washington did not expect it would get abroad in the world, or be seen by + any other eye than that of Robespierre, or be heard by any other ear than + that of the Committee; that it would pass as a whisper across the + Atlantic, from one dark chamber to the other, and there terminate. It was + calculated to remove from the mind of the Committee all suspicion upon + Jay's mission to England, and, in this point of view, it was suited to the + circumstances of the movement then passing; but as the event of that + mission has proved the letter to be hypocritical, it serves no other + purpose of the present moment than to shew that the writer is not to be + credited. Two circumstances serve to make the reading of the letter + necessary in the Convention. The one was, that they who succeeded on the + fall of Robespierre, found it most proper to act with publicity; the + other, to extinguish the suspicions which the strange conduct of Morris + had occasioned in France. + </p> + <p> + When the British treaty, and the ratification of it by Mr. Washington, was + known in France, all further declarations from him of his good disposition + as an ally and friend, passed for so many cyphers; but still it appeared + necessary to him to keep up the farce of declarations. It is stipulated in + the British treaty, that commissioners are to report at the end of two + years, on the case of <i>neutral ships making neutral property</i>. In the + mean time, neutral ships do <i>not</i> make neutral property, according to + the British treaty, and they <i>do</i> according to the French treaty. The + preservation, therefore, of the French treaty became of great importance + to England, as by that means she can employ American ships as carriers, + whilst the same advantage is denied to France. Whether the French treaty + could exist as a matter of right after this clandestine perversion of it, + could not but give some apprehensions to the partizans of the British + treaty, and it became necessary to them to make up, by fine words, what + was wanting in good actions. + </p> + <p> + An opportunity offered to that purpose. The Convention, on the public + reception of Mr. Monroe, ordered the American flag and the French flags to + be displayed unitedly in the hall of the Convention. Mr. Monroe made a + present of an American flag for the purpose. The Convention returned this + compliment by sending a French flag to America, to be presented by their + Minister, Mr. Adet, to the American government. This resolution passed + long before Jay's treaty was known or suspected: it passed in the days of + confidence; but the flag was not presented by Mr. Adet till several months + after the treaty had been ratified. Mr. Washington made this the occasion + of saying some fine things to the French Minister; and the better to get + himself into tune to do this, he began by saying the finest things of + himself. + </p> + <p> + "Born, sir (said he) in a land of liberty; <i>having</i> early learned its + value; <i>having</i> engaged in a perilous conflict to defend it; <i>having</i>, + in a word, devoted the best years of my life to secure its permanent + establishment in my own country; <i>my</i> anxious recollections, my + sympathetic feelings, and <i>my</i> best wishes are irresistibly excited, + whenever, in any country, I see an oppressed people unfurl the banner of + freedom." + </p> + <p> + Mr. Washington, having expended so many fine phrases upon himself, was + obliged to invent a new one for the French, and he calls them "wonderful + people!" The coalesced powers acknowledged as much. + </p> + <p> + It is laughable to hear Mr. Washington talk of his <i>sympathetic feelings</i>, + who has always been remarked, even among his friends, for not having any. + He has, however, given no proofs of any to me. As to the pompous encomiums + he so liberally pays to himself, on the score of the American revolution, + the reality of them may be questioned; and since he has forced them so + much into notice, it is fair to examine his pretensions. + </p> + <p> + A stranger might be led to suppose, from the egotism with which Mr. + Washington speaks, that himself, and himself only, had generated, + conducted, compleated, and established the revolution: In fine, that it + was all his own doing. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, as to the political part, he had no share in it; and, + therefore, the whole of <i>that</i> is out of the question with respect to + him. There remains, then, only the military part; and it would have been + prudent in Mr. Washington not to have awakened enquiry upon that subject. + Fame then was cheap; he enjoyed it cheaply; and nobody was disposed to + take away the laurels that, whether they were <i>acquired</i> or not, had + been <i>given</i>. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Washington's merit consisted in constancy. But constancy was the + common virtue of the revolution. Who was there that was inconstant? I know + but of one military defection, that of Arnold; and I know of no political + defection, among those who made themselves eminent when the revolution was + formed by the declaration of independence. Even Silas Deane, though he + attempted to defraud, did not betray.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This generous judgment by Deane's old adversary has become + questionable under recent investigations.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But when we speak of military character, something more is to be + understood than constancy; and something more <i>ought</i> to be + understood than the Fabian system of <i>doing nothing</i>. The <i>nothing</i> + part can be done by any body. Old Mrs. Thompson, the housekeeper of head + quarters, (who threatened to make the sun and the wind shine through + Rivington of New York,) 'could have done it as well as Mr. Washington. + Deborah would have been as good as Barak. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Washington had the nominal rank of Commander in Chief, but he was not + so in fact. He had, in reality, only a separate command. He had no + controul over, or direction of, the army to the northward under Gates, + that captured Burgoyne; nor of that to the south under [Nathaniel] Greene, + that recovered the southern States.(2) The nominal rank, however, of + Commander in Chief, served to throw upon him the lustre of those actions, + and to make him appear as the soul and centre of all military operations + in America. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The Tory publisher of New York City, whose press was + destroyed in 1775 by a mob of Connecticut soldiers.— + <i>Editor.</i> + + 2 See Mr. Winterbotham's valuable History of America, lately + published.—Author. [The "History of the Establishment of + Independence" is contained in the first of Mr. + Winterbotham's four volumes (London, 1795).—<i>Editor.</i>.] +</pre> + <p> + He commenced his command June, 1775, during the time the Massachusetts + army lay before Boston, and after the affair of Bunker-hill. The + commencement of his command was the commencement of inactivity. Nothing + was afterwards done, or attempted to be done, during the nine months he + remained before Boston. If we may judge from the resistance made at + Concord, and afterwards at Bunker-hill, there was a spirit of enterprise + at that time, which the presence of Mr. Washington chilled into cold + defence. By the advantage of a good exterior he attracts respect, which + his habitual silence tends to preserve; but he has not the talent of + inspiring ardour in an army. The enemy removed from Boston in March 1776, + to wait for reinforcements from Europe, and to take a more advantageous + position at New York. + </p> + <p> + The inactivity of the campaign of 1775, on the part of General Washington, + when the enemy had a less force than in any other future period of the + war, and the injudicious choice of positions taken by him in the campaign + of 1776, when the enemy had its greatest force, necessarily produced the + losses and misfortunes that marked that gloomy campaign. The positions + taken were either islands or necks of land. In the former, the enemy, by + the aid of their ships, could bring their whole force against apart of + General Washington's, as in the affair of Long Island; and in the latter, + he might be shut up as in the bottom of a bag. This had nearly been the + case at New York, and it was so in part; it was actually the case at Fort + Washington; and it would have been the case at Fort Lee, if General Greene + had not moved precipitately off, leaving every thing behind, and by + gaining Hackinsack bridge, got out of the bag of Bergen Neck. How far Mr. + Washington, as General, is blameable for these matters, I am not + undertaking to determine; but they are evidently defects in military + geography. The successful skirmishes at the close of that campaign, + (matters that would scarcely be noticed in a better state of things,) make + the brilliant exploits of General Washington's seven campaigns. No wonder + we see so much pusillanimity in the President, when we see so little + enterprise in the General! + </p> + <p> + The campaign of 1777 became famous, not by anything on the part of General + Washington, but by the capture of General Burgoyne, and the army under his + command, by the Northern army at Saratoga, under General Gates. So totally + distinct and unconnected were the two armies of Washington and Gates, and + so independent was the latter of the authority of the nominal Commander in + Chief, that the two Generals did not so much as correspond, and it was + only by a letter of General (since Governor) Clinton, that General + Washington was informed of that event. The British took possession of + Philadelphia this year, which they evacuated the next, just time enough to + save their heavy baggage and fleet of transports from capture by the + French Admiral d'Estaing, who arrived at the mouth of the Delaware soon + after. + </p> + <p> + The capture of Burgoyne gave an eclat in Europe to the American arms, and + facilitated the alliance with France. The eclat, however, was not kept up + by any thing on the part of General Washington. The same unfortunate + languor that marked his entrance into the field, continued always. + Discontent began to prevail strongly against him, and a party was formed + in Congress, whilst sitting at York-town, in Pennsylvania, for removing + him from the command of the army. The hope, however, of better times, the + news of the alliance with France, and the unwillingness of shewing + discontent, dissipated the matter. + </p> + <p> + Nothing was done in the campaigns of 1778, 1779, 1780, in the part where + General Washington commanded, except the taking of Stony Point by General + Wayne. The Southern States in the mean time were over-run by the enemy. + They were afterwards recovered by General Greene, who had in a very great + measure created the army that accomplished that recovery. In all this + General Washington had no share. The Fabian system of war, followed by + him, began now to unfold itself with all its evils; but what is Fabian war + without Fabian means to support it? The finances of Congress depending + wholly on emissions of paper money, were exhausted. Its credit was gone. + The continental treasury was not able to pay the expense of a brigade of + waggons to transport the necessary stores to the army, and yet the sole + object, the establishment of the revolution, was a thing of remote + distance. The time I am now speaking of is in the latter end of the year + 1780. + </p> + <p> + In this situation of things it was found not only expedient, but + absolutely necessary, for Congress to state the whole case to its ally. I + knew more of this matter, (before it came into Congress or was known to + General Washington) of its progress, and its issue, than I chuse to state + in this letter. Colonel John Laurens was sent to France as an Envoy + Extraordinary on this occasion, and by a private agreement between him and + me I accompanied him. We sailed from Boston in the Alliance frigate, + February 11th, 1781. France had already done much in accepting and paying + bills drawn by Congress. She was now called upon to do more. The event of + Colonel Laurens's mission, with the aid of the venerable Minister, + Franklin, was, that France gave in money, as a present, six millions of + livres, and ten millions more as a loan, and agreed to send a fleet of not + less than thirty sail of the line, at her own expense, as an aid to + America. Colonel Laurens and myself returned from Brest the 1st of June + following, taking with us two millions and a half of livres (upwards of + one hundred thousand pounds sterling) of the money given, and convoying + two ships with stores. + </p> + <p> + We arrived at Boston the 25th of August following. De Grasse arrived with + the French fleet in the Chesapeak at the same time, and was afterwards + joined by that of Barras, making 31 sail of the line. The money was + transported in waggons from Boston to the Bank at Philadelphia, of which + Mr. Thomas Willing, who has since put himself at the head of the list of + petitioners in favour of the British treaty, was then President. And it + was by the aid of this money, and this fleet, and of Rochambeau's army, + that Cornwallis was taken; the laurels of which have been unjustly given + to Mr. Washington. His merit in that affair was no more than that of any + other American officer. + </p> + <p> + I have had, and still have, as much pride in the American revolution as + any man, or as Mr. Washington has a right to have; but that pride has + never made me forgetful whence the great aid came that compleated the + business. Foreign aid (that of France) was calculated upon at the + commencement of the revolution. It is one of the subjects treated of in + the pamphlet <i>Common Sense</i>, but as a matter that could not be hoped + for, unless independence was declared.1 The aid, however, was greater than + could have been expected. + </p> + <p> + It is as well the ingratitude as the pusillanimity of Mr. Washington, and + the Washington faction, that has brought upon America the loss of + character she now suffers in the world, and the numerous evils her + commerce has undergone, and to which it is yet exposed. The British + Ministry soon found out what sort of men they had to deal with, and they + dealt with them accordingly; and if further explanation was wanting, it + has been fully given since, in the snivelling address of the New York + Chamber of Commerce to the President, and in that of sundry merchants of + Philadelphia, which was not much better. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See vol. i. of this work, p. ixx. Paine was sharply taken + to task on this point by "Cato." Ib.% pp. 145-147.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + When the revolution of America was finally established by the termination + of the war, the world gave her credit for great character; and she had + nothing to do but to stand firm upon that ground. The British ministry had + their hands too full of trouble to have provoked a rupture with her, had + she shown a proper resolution to defend her rights. But encouraged as they + were by the submissive character of the American administration, they + proceeded from insult to insult, till none more were left to be offered. + The proposals made by Sweden and Denmark to the American administration + were disregarded. I know not if so much as an answer has been returned to + them. The minister penitentiary, (as some of the British prints called + him,) Mr. Jay, was sent on a pilgrimage to London, to make up all by + penance and petition. In the mean time the lengthy and drowsy writer of + the pieces signed <i>Camillas</i> held himself in reserve to vindicate + every thing; and to sound in America the tocsin of terror upon the + inexhaustible resources of England. Her resources, says he, are greater + than those of all the other powers. This man is so intoxicated with fear + and finance, that he knows not the difference between <i>plus</i> and <i>minus</i>—between + a hundred pounds in hand, and a hundred pounds worse than nothing. + </p> + <p> + The commerce of America, so far as it had been established by all the + treaties that had been formed prior to that by Jay, was free, and the + principles upon which it was established were good. That ground ought + never to have been departed from. It was the justifiable ground of right, + and no temporary difficulties ought to have induced an abandonment of it. + The case is now otherwise. The ground, the scene, the pretensions, the + everything, are changed. The commerce of America is, by Jay's treaty, put + under foreign dominion. The sea is not free for her. Her right to navigate + it is reduced to the right of escaping; that is, until some ship of + England or France stops her vessels, and carries them into port. Every + article of American produce, whether from the sea or the sand, fish, + flesh, vegetable, or manufacture, is, by Jay's treaty, made either + contraband or seizable. Nothing is exempt. In all other treaties of + commerce, the article which enumerates the contraband articles, such as + fire arms, gunpowder, &c, is followed by another article which + enumerates the articles not contraband: but it is not so in Jay's treaty. + There is no exempting article. Its place is supplied by the article for + seizing and carrying into port; and the sweeping phrase of "provisions and + <i>other articles </i>" includes every thing. There never was such a base + and servile treaty of surrender since treaties began to exist. + </p> + <p> + This is the ground upon which America now stands. All her rights of + commerce and navigation are to begin anew, and that with loss of character + to begin with. If there is sense enough left in the heart to call a blush + into the cheek, the Washington administration must be ashamed to appear.—And + as to you, Sir, treacherous in private friendship (for so you have been to + me, and that in the day of danger) and a hypocrite in public life, the + world will be puzzled to decide whether you are an apostate or an + impostor; whether you have abandoned good principles, or whether you ever + had any. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0024" id="link2H_4_0024"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXIII. OBSERVATIONS.(1) + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 State Archives, Paris, États Unis, vol. 43, fol. 100. + Undated, but evidently written early in the year 1795, when + Jay's Treaty was as yet unknown. Paine was then staying in + the house of the American Minister, Monroe.—' Editor, +</pre> + <p> + The United States of America are negociating with Spain respecting the + free Navigation of the Mississippi, and the territorial limits of this + large river, in conformity with the Treaty of Peace with England dated + 30th November, 1782. As the brilliant successes of the French Republic + have forced England to grant us, what was in all justice our due, so the + continuation of the prosperity of the Republic, will force Spain to make a + Treaty with us on the points in controversy. + </p> + <p> + Since it is certain that all that we shall obtain from Spain will be due + to the victories of France, and as the inhabitants of the western part of + the United States (which part contains or covers more than half the United + States), have decided to claim their rights to the free navigation of the + Mississippi, would it not be a wiser policy for the Republican Government + (who have only to command to obtain) to arrogate all the merit, by making + our demands to Spain, one of the conditions, of France, to consent to + restore peace to the Castilians. They have only to declare, they will not + make Peace, or that they will support with all their might, the just + reclamations of their allies against these Powers,—against England + for the surrender of the frontier posts, and for the indemnities due + through their depredations on our Trade, and against Spain for our + territorial limits, and the free navigation of the Mississippi. This + declaration would certainly not prolong the War a single day more, nor + cost the Republic an obole, whilst it would assure all the merit of + success to France, and besides produce all the good effects mentioned + above. + </p> + <p> + It may perhaps be observed that the Negociation is already finished with + England, and perhaps in a manner which will not be approved of by France. + That may be, (though the terms of this arrangement may not be known); but + as to Spain, the negociation is still pending, and it is evident that if + France makes the above <i>Declaration</i> as to this Power (which + declaration would be a demonstrative proof of what she would have done in + the other case if circumstances had required it), she would receive the + same credit as if the Declaration had been made relatively to the two + Powers. In fact the Decree or resolution (and perhaps this last would be + preferable) can be worded in terms which would declare that in case the + arrangement with England were not satisfactory, France will nevertheless, + maintain the just demands of America against that Power. A like + Declaration, in case Mr. Jay should do anything reprehensible, and which + might even be approved of in America, would certainly raise the reputation + of the French Republic to the most eminent degree of splendour, and lower + in proportion that of her enemies. + </p> + <p> + It is very certain that France cannot better favour the views of the + British party in America, and wound in a most sensible manner the + Republican Government of this country, than by adopting a strict and + oppressive policy with regard to us. Every one knows that the injustices + committed by the privateers and other ships belonging to the French + Republic against our navigation, were causes of exultation and joy to this + party, even when their own properties were subjected to these + depredations, whilst the friends of France and the Revolution were vexed + and most confused about it. It follows then, that a generous policy would + produce quite opposite effects—it would acquire for France the merit + that is her due; it would discourage the hopes of her adversaries, and + furnish the friends of humanity and liberty with the means of acting + against the intrigues of England, and cement the Union, and contribute + towards the true interests of the two republics. + </p> + <p> + So sublime and generous a manner of acting, which would not cost anything + to France, would cement in a stronger way the ties between the two + republics. The effect of such an event, would confound and annihilate in + an irrevocable manner all the partisans for the British in America. There + are nineteen twentieths of our nation attached through inclination and + gratitude to France, and the small number who seek uselessly all sorts of + pretexts to magnify the small occasions of complaint which might have + subsisted previously will find itself reduced to silence, or have to join + their expressions of gratitude to ours.—The results of this event + cannot be doubted, though not reckoned on: all the American hearts will be + French, and England will be afflicted. + </p> + <p> + An American. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0025" id="link2H_4_0025"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXIV. DISSERTATION ON FIRST PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT. (1) + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Printed from the first edition, whose title is as above, + with the addition: "By Thomas Paine, Author of Common Sense; + Rights of Man; Age of Reason. Paris, Printed at the + English Press, me de Vaugerard, No. 970. Third year of the + French Republic." The pamphlet seems to have appeared early + in July (perhaps the Fourth), 1795, and was meant to + influence the decision of the National Convention on the + Constitution then under discussion. This Constitution, + adopted September 23d, presently swept away by Napoleon, + contained some features which appeared to Paine reactionary. + Those to which he most objected are quoted by him in his + speech in the Convention, which is bound up in the same + pamphlet, and follows this "Dissertation" in the present + volume. In the Constitution as adopted Paine's preference + for a plural Executive was established, and though the + bicameral organization (the Council of Five Hundred and the + Council of Ancients) was not such as he desired, his chief + objection was based on his principle of manhood suffrage. + But in regard to this see Paine's "Dissertations on + Government," written nine years before (vol. ii., ch. vi. of + this work), and especially p. 138 seq. of that volume, where + he indicates the method of restraining the despotism of + numbers.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + There is no subject more interesting to every man than the subject of + government. His security, be he rich or poor, and in a great measure his + prosperity, are connected therewith; it is therefore his interest as well + as his duty to make himself acquainted with its principles, and what the + practice ought to be. + </p> + <p> + Every art and science, however imperfectly known at first, has been + studied, improved, and brought to what we call perfection by the + progressive labours of succeeding generations; but the science of + government has stood still. No improvement has been made in the principle + and scarcely any in the practice till the American revolution began. In + all the countries of Europe (except in France) the same forms and systems + that were erected in the remote ages of ignorance still continue, and + their antiquity is put in the place of principle; it is forbidden to + investigate their origin, or by what right they exist. If it be asked how + has this happened, the answer is easy: they are established on a principle + that is false, and they employ their power to prevent detection. + </p> + <p> + Notwithstanding the mystery with which the science of government has been + enveloped, for the purpose of enslaving, plundering, and imposing upon + mankind, it is of all things the least mysterious and the most easy to be + understood. The meanest capacity cannot be at a loss, if it begins its + enquiries at the right point. Every art and science has some point, or + alphabet, at which the study of that art or science begins, and by the + assistance of which the progress is facilitated. The same method ought to + be observed with respect to the science of government. + </p> + <p> + Instead then of embarrassing the subject in the outset with the numerous + subdivisions under which different forms of government have been classed, + such as aristocracy, democracy, oligarchy, monarchy, &c. the better + method will be to begin with what may be called primary divisions, or + those under which all the several subdivisions will be comprehended. + </p> + <p> + The primary divisions are but two: + </p> + <p> + First, government by election and representation. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, government by hereditary succession. + </p> + <p> + All the several forms and systems of government, however numerous or + diversified, class themselves under one or other of those primary + divisions; for either they are on the system of representation, or on that + of hereditary succession. As to that equivocal thing called mixed + government, such as the late government of Holland, and the present + government of England, it does not make an exception to the general rule, + because the parts separately considered are either representative or + hereditary. + </p> + <p> + Beginning then our enquiries at this point, we have first to examine into + the nature of those two primary divisions. + </p> + <p> + If they are equally right in principle, it is mere matter of opinion which + we prefer. If the one be demonstratively better than the other, that + difference directs our choice; but if one of them should be so absolutely + false as not to have a right to existence, the matter settles itself at + once; because a negative proved on one thing, where two only are offered, + and one must be accepted, amounts to an affirmative on the other. + </p> + <p> + The revolutions that are now spreading themselves in the world have their + origin in this state of the case, and the present war is a conflict + between the representative system founded on the rights of the people, and + the hereditary system founded in usurpation. As to what are called + Monarchy, Royalty, and Aristocracy, they do not, either as things or as + terms, sufficiently describe the hereditary system; they are but secondary + things or signs of the hereditary system, and which fall of themselves if + that system has not a right to exist. Were there no such terms as + Monarchy, Royalty, and Aristocracy, or were other terms substituted in + their place, the hereditary system, if it continued, would not be altered + thereby. It would be the same system under any other titulary name as it + is now. + </p> + <p> + The character therefore of the revolutions of the present day + distinguishes itself most definitively by grounding itself on the system + of representative government, in opposition to the hereditary. No other + distinction reaches the whole of the principle. + </p> + <p> + Having thus opened the case generally, I proceed, in the first place, to + examine the hereditary system, because it has the priority in point of + time. The representative system is the invention of the modern world; and, + that no doubt may arise as to my own opinion, I declare it before hand, + which is, <i>that there is not a problem in Euclid more mathematically + true, than that hereditary government has not a right to exist. When + therefore we take from any man the exercise of hereditary power, we take + away that which he never had the right to possess, and which no law or + custom could, or ever can, give him a title to</i>. + </p> + <p> + The arguments that have hitherto been employed against the hereditary + system have been chiefly founded upon the absurdity of it, and its + incompetency to the purpose of good government. Nothing can present to our + judgment, or to our imagination, a figure of greater absurdity, than that + of seeing the government of a nation fall, as it frequently does, into the + hands of a lad necessarily destitute of experience, and often little + better than a fool. It is an insult to every man of years, of character, + and of talents, in a country. The moment we begin to reason upon the + hereditary system, it falls into derision; let but a single idea begin, + and a thousand will soon follow. Insignificance, imbecility, childhood, + dotage, want of moral character; in fine, every defect serious or + laughable unite to hold up the hereditary system as a figure of ridicule. + Leaving, however, the ridiculousness of the thing to the reflections of + the reader, I proceed to the more important part of the question, namely, + whether such a system has a right to exist. + </p> + <p> + To be satisfied of the right of a thing to exist, we must be satisfied + that it had a right to begin. If it had not a right to begin, it has not a + right to continue. By what right then did the hereditary system begin? Let + a man but ask himself this question, and he will find that he cannot + satisfy himself with an answer. + </p> + <p> + The right which any man or any family had to set itself up at first to + govern a nation, and to establish itself hereditarily, was no other than + the right which Robespierre had to do the same thing in France. If he had + none, they had none. If they had any, he had as much; for it is impossible + to discover superiority of right in any family, by virtue of which + hereditary government could begin. The Capets, the Guelphs, the + Robespierres, the Marats, are all on the same standing as to the question + of right. It belongs exclusively to none. + </p> + <p> + It is one step towards liberty, to perceive that hereditary government + could not begin as an exclusive right in any family. The next point will + be, whether, having once begun, it could grow into a right by the + influence of time. + </p> + <p> + This would be supposing an absurdity; for either it is putting time in the + place of principle, or making it superior to principle; whereas time has + no more connection with, or influence upon principle, than principle has + upon time. The wrong which began a thousand years ago, is as much a wrong + as if it began to-day; and the right which originates to-day, is as much a + right as if it had the sanction of a thousand years. Time with respect to + principles is an eternal now: it has no operation upon them: it changes + nothing of their nature and qualities. But what have we to do with a + thousand years? Our life-time is but a short portion of that period, and + if we find the wrong in existence as soon as we begin to live, that is the + point of time at which it begins to us; and our right to resist it is the + same as if it never existed before. + </p> + <p> + As hereditary government could not begin as a natural right in any family, + nor derive after its commencement any right from time, we have only to + examine whether there exist in a nation a right to set it up, and + establish it by what is called law, as has been done in England. I answer + NO; and that any law or any constitution made for that purpose is an act + of treason against the right of every minor in the nation, at the time it + is made, and against the rights of all succeeding generations. I shall + speak upon each of those cases. First, of the minor at the time such law + is made. Secondly, of the generations that are to follow. + </p> + <p> + A nation, in a collective sense, comprehends all the individuals of + whatever age, from just born to just dying. Of these, one part will be + minors, and the other aged. The average of life is not exactly the same in + every climate and country, but in general, the minority in years are the + majority in numbers; that is, the number of persons under twenty-one + years, is greater than the number of persons above that age. This + difference in number is not necessary to the establishment of the + principle I mean to lay down, but it serves to shew the justice of it more + strongly. The principle would be equally as good, if the majority in years + were also the majority in numbers. + </p> + <p> + The rights of minors are as sacred as the rights of the aged. The + difference is altogether in the different age of the two parties, and + nothing in the nature of the rights; the rights are the same rights; and + are to be preserved inviolate for the inheritance of the minors when they + shall come of age. During the minority of minors their rights are under + the sacred guardianship of the aged. The minor cannot surrender them; the + guardian cannot dispossess him; consequently, the aged part of a nation, + who are the law-makers for the time being, and who, in the march of life + are but a few years ahead of those who are yet minors, and to whom they + must shortly give place, have not and cannot have the right to make a law + to set up and establish hereditary government, or, to speak more + distinctly, <i>an hereditary succession of governors</i>; because it is an + attempt to deprive every minor in the nation, at the time such a law is + made, of his inheritance of rights when he shall come of age, and to + subjugate him to a system of government to which, during his minority, he + could neither consent nor object. + </p> + <p> + If a person who is a minor at the time such a law is proposed, had + happened to have been born a few years sooner, so as to be of the age of + twenty-one years at the time of proposing it, his right to have objected + against it, to have exposed the injustice and tyrannical principles of it, + and to have voted against it, will be admitted on all sides. If, + therefore, the law operates to prevent his exercising the same rights + after he comes of age as he would have had a right to exercise had he been + of age at the time, it is undeniably a law to take away and annul the + rights of every person in the nation who shall be a minor at the time of + making such a law, and consequently the right to make it cannot exist. + </p> + <p> + I come now to speak of government by hereditary succession, as it applies + to succeeding generations; and to shew that in this case, as in the case + of minors, there does not exist in a nation a right to set it up. + </p> + <p> + A nation, though continually existing, is continually in a state of + renewal and succession. It is never stationary. + </p> + <p> + Every day produces new births, carries minors forward to maturity, and old + persons from the stage. In this ever running flood of generations there is + no part superior in authority to another. Could we conceive an idea of + superiority in any, at what point of time, or in what century of the + world, are we to fix it? To what cause are we to ascribe it? By what + evidence are we to prove it? By what criterion are we to know it? A single + reflection will teach us that our ancestors, like ourselves, were but + tenants for life in the great freehold of rights. The fee-absolute was not + in them, it is not in us, it belongs to the whole family of man, thro* all + ages. If we think otherwise than this, we think either as slaves or as + tyrants. As slaves, if we think that any former generation had a right to + bind us; as tyrants, if we think that we have authority to bind the + generations that are to follow. + </p> + <p> + It may not be inapplicable to the subject, to endeavour to define what is + to be understood by a generation, in the sense the word is here used. + </p> + <p> + As a natural term its meaning is sufficiently clear. The father, the son, + the grandson, are so many distinct generations. But when we speak of a + generation as describing the persons in whom legal authority resides, as + distinct from another generation of the same description who are to + succeed them, it comprehends all those who are above the age of twenty-one + years, at the time that we count from; and a generation of this kind will + continue in authority between fourteen and twenty-one years, that is, + until the number of minors, who shall have arrived at age, shall be + greater than the number of persons remaining of the former stock. + </p> + <p> + For example: if France, at this or any other moment, contains twenty-four + millions of souls, twelve millions will be males, and twelve females. Of + the twelve millions of males, six millions will be of the age of + twenty-one years, and six will be under, and the authority to govern will + reside in the first six. But every day will make some alteration, and in + twenty-one years every one of those minors who survives will have arrived + at age, and the greater part of the former stock will be gone: the + majority of persons then living, in whom the legal authority resides, will + be composed of those who, twenty-one years before, had no legal existence. + Those will be fathers and grandfathers in their turn, and, in the next + twenty-one years, (or less) another race of minors, arrived at age, will + succeed them, and so on. + </p> + <p> + As this is ever the case, and as every generation is equal in rights to + another, it consequently follows, that there cannot be a right in any to + establish government by hereditary succession, because it would be + supposing itself possessed of a right superior to the rest, namely, that + of commanding by its own authority how the world shall be hereafter + governed and who shall govern it. Every age and generation is, and must + be, (as a matter of right,) as free to act for itself in all cases, as the + age and generation that preceded it. The vanity and presumption of + governing beyond the grave is the most ridiculous and insolent of all + tyrannies. Man has no property in man, neither has one generation a + property in the generations that are to follow. + </p> + <p> + In the first part of the Rights of Man I have spoken of government by + hereditary succession; and I will here close the subject with an extract + from that work, which states it under the two following heads. (1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The quotation, here omitted, will be found in vol. ii. of + this work, beginning with p. 364, and continuing, with a few + omissions, to the 15th line of p. 366. This "Dissertation" + was originally written for circulation in Holland, where + Paine's "Rights of Man" was not well known.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <hr /> + <p> + The history of the English parliament furnishes an example of this kind; + and which merits to be recorded, as being the greatest instance of + legislative ignorance and want of principle that is to be found in any + country. The case is as follows: + </p> + <p> + The English parliament of 1688, imported a man and his wife from Holland, + <i>William and Mary</i>, and made them king and queen of England. (2) + Having done this, the said parliament made a law to convey the government + of the country to the heirs of William and Mary, in the following words: + "We, the lords spiritual and temporal, and commons, do, in the name of the + people of England, most humbly and faithfully submit <i>ourselves, our + heirs, and posterities</i>, to William and Mary, <i>their heirs and + posterities</i>, for ever." And in a subsequent law, as quoted by Edmund + Burke, the said parliament, in the name of the people of England then + living, <i>binds the said people, their heirs and posterities, to William + and Mary, their heirs and posterities, to the end of time</i>. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 2 "The Bill of Rights (temp. William III.) shows that the + Lords and Commons met not in Parliament but in convention, + that they declared against James II., and in favour of + William III. The latter was accepted as sovereign, and, when + monarch. Acta of Parliament were passed confirming what had + been done."—Joseph Fisher in Notes and Queries (London), + May 2,1874. This does not affect Paine's argument, as a + Convention could have no more right to bind the future than + a Parliament.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + It is not sufficient that we laugh at the ignorance of such law-makers; it + is necessary that we reprobate their want of principle. The constituent + assembly of France, 1789, fell into the same vice as the parliament of + England had done, and assumed to establish an hereditary succession in the + family of the Capets, as an act of the constitution of that year. That + every nation, <i>for the time being</i>, has a right to govern itself as + it pleases, must always be admitted; but government by hereditary + succession is government for another race of people, and not for itself; + and as those on whom it is to operate are not yet in existence, or are + minors, so neither is the right in existence to set it up for them, and to + assume such a right is treason against the right of posterity. + </p> + <p> + I here close the arguments on the first head, that of government by + hereditary succession; and proceed to the second, that of government by + election and representation; or, as it may be concisely expressed, <i>representative + government</i>, in contra-distinction to <i>hereditary government</i>. + </p> + <p> + Reasoning by exclusion, if <i>hereditary government</i> has not a right to + exist, and that it has not is proveable, <i>representative government</i> + is admitted of course. + </p> + <p> + In contemplating government by election and representation, we amuse not + ourselves in enquiring when or how, or by what right, it began. Its origin + is ever in view. Man is himself the origin and the evidence of the right. + It appertains to him in right of his existence, and his person is the + title deed.(1) + </p> + <p> + The true and only true basis of representative government is equality of + Rights. Every man has a right to one vote, and no more, in the choice of + representatives. The rich have no more right to exclude the poor from the + right of voting, or of electing and being elected, than the poor have to + exclude the rich; and wherever it is attempted, or proposed, on either + side, it is a question of force and not of right. Who is he that would + exclude another? That other has a right to exclude him. + </p> + <p> + That which is now called aristocracy implies an inequality of rights; but + who are the persons that have a right to establish this inequality? Will + the rich exclude themselves? No. Will the poor exclude themselves? No. By + what right then can any be excluded? It would be a question, if any man or + class of men have a right to exclude themselves; but, be this as it may, + they cannot have the right to exclude another. The poor will not delegate + such a right to the rich, nor the rich to the poor, and to assume it is + not only to assume arbitrary power, but to assume a right to commit + robbery. Personal rights, of which the right of voting for representatives + is one, are a species of property of the most sacred kind: and he that + would employ his pecuniary property, or presume upon the influence it + gives him, to dispossess or rob another of his property of rights, uses + that pecuniary property as he would use fire-arms, and merits to have it + taken from him. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 "The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for + among old parchments or musty records. They are written as + with a sunbeam in the whole volume of human nature by the + hand of Divinity itself, and can never be erased or obscured + by mortal power."—Alexander Hamilton, 1775. (Cf. Rights of + Man, Toi. ii., p. 304): "Portions of antiquity by proving + everything establish nothing. It is authority against + authority all the way, till we come to the divine origin of + the rights of man at the creation."—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Inequality of rights is created by a combination in one part of the + community to exclude another part from its rights. Whenever it be made an + article of a constitution, or a law, that the right of voting, or of + electing and being elected, shall appertain exclusively to persons + possessing a certain quantity of property, be it little or much, it is a + combination of the persons possessing that quantity to exclude those who + do not possess the same quantity. It is investing themselves with powers + as a self-created part of society, to the exclusion of the rest. + </p> + <p> + It is always to be taken for granted, that those who oppose an equality of + rights never mean the exclusion should take place on themselves; and in + this view of the case, pardoning the vanity of the thing, aristocracy is a + subject of laughter. This self-soothing vanity is encouraged by another + idea not less selfish, which is, that the opposers conceive they are + playing a safe game, in which there is a chance to gain and none to lose; + that at any rate the doctrine of equality includes <i>them</i>, and that + if they cannot get more rights than those whom they oppose and would + exclude, they shall not have less. This opinion has already been fatal to + thousands, who, not contented with <i>equal rights</i>, have sought more + till they lost all, and experienced in themselves the degrading <i>inequality</i> + they endeavoured to fix upon others. + </p> + <p> + In any view of the case it is dangerous and impolitic, sometimes + ridiculous, and always unjust, to make property the criterion of the right + of voting. If the sum or value of the property upon which the right is to + take place be considerable, it will exclude a majority of the people, and + unite them in a common interest against the government and against those + who support it; and as the power is always with the majority, they can + overturn such a government and its supporters whenever they please. + </p> + <p> + If, in order to avoid this danger, a small quantity of property be fixed, + as the criterion of the right, it exhibits liberty in disgrace, by putting + it in competition with accident and insignificance. When a brood-mare + shall fortunately produce a foal or a mule that, by being worth the sum in + question, shall convey to its owner the right of voting, or by its death + take it from him, in whom does the origin of such a right exist? Is it in + the man, or in the mule? When we consider how many ways property may be + acquired without merit, and lost without a crime, we ought to spurn the + idea of making it a criterion of rights. + </p> + <p> + But the offensive part of the case is, that this exclusion from the right + of voting implies a stigma on the moral char* acter of the persons + excluded; and this is what no part of the community has a right to + pronounce upon another part. No external circumstance can justify it: + wealth is no proof of moral character; nor poverty of the want of it. On + the contrary, wealth is often the presumptive evidence of dishonesty; and + poverty the negative evidence of innocence. If therefore property, whether + little or much, be made a criterion, the means by which that property has + been acquired ought to be made a criterion also. + </p> + <p> + The only ground upon which exclusion from the right of voting is + consistent with justice, would be to inflict it as a punishment for a + certain time upon those who should propose to take away that right from + others. The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by + which other rights are protected. To take away this right is to reduce a + man to slavery, for slavery consists in being subject to the will of + another, and he that has not a vote in the election of representatives is + in this case. The proposal therefore to disfranchise any class of men is + as criminal as the proposal to take away property. When we speak of right, + we ought always to unite with it the idea of duties: rights become duties + by reciprocity. The right which I enjoy becomes my duty to guarantee it to + another, and he to me; and those who violate the duty justly incur a + forfeiture of the right. + </p> + <p> + In a political view of the case, the strength and permanent security of + government is in proportion to the number of people interested in + supporting it. The true policy therefore is to interest the whole by an + equality of rights, for the danger arises from exclusions. It is possible + to exclude men from the right of voting, but it is impossible to exclude + them from the right of rebelling against that exclusion; and when all + other rights are taken away, the right of rebellion is made perfect. + </p> + <p> + While men could be persuaded they had no rights, or that rights + appertained only to a certain class of men, or that government was a thing + existing in right of itself, it was not difficult to govern them + authoritatively. The ignorance in which they were held, and the + superstition in which they were instructed, furnished the means of doing + it. But when the ignorance is gone, and the superstition with it; when + they perceive the imposition that has been acted upon them; when they + reflect that the cultivator and the manufacturer are the primary means of + all the wealth that exists in the world, beyond what nature spontaneously + produces; when they begin to feel their consequence by their usefulness, + and their right as members of society, it is then no longer possible to + govern them as before. The fraud once detected cannot be re-acted. To + attempt it is to provoke derision, or invite destruction. + </p> + <p> + That property will ever be unequal is certain. Industry, superiority of + talents, dexterity of management, extreme frugality, fortunate + opportunities, or the opposite, or the means of those things, will ever + produce that effect, without having recourse to the harsh, ill sounding + names of avarice and oppression; and besides this, there are some men who, + though they do not despise wealth, will not stoop to the drudgery or the + means of acquiring it, nor will be troubled with it beyond their wants or + their independence; whilst in others there is an avidity to obtain it by + every means not punishable; it makes the sole business of their lives, and + they follow it as a religion. All that is required with respect to + property is to obtain it honestly, and not employ it criminally; but it is + always criminally employed when it is made a criterion for exclusive + rights. + </p> + <p> + In institutions that are purely pecuniary, such as that of a bank or a + commercial company, the rights of the members composing that company are + wholly created by the property they invest therein; and no other rights + are represented in the government of that company, than what arise out of + that property; neither has that government cognizance of <i>any thing but + property</i>. + </p> + <p> + But the case is totally different with respect to the institution of civil + government, organized on the system of representation. Such a government + has cognizance of every thing, and of <i>every man</i> as a member of the + national society, whether he has property or not; and, therefore, the + principle requires that <i>every man</i>, and <i>every kind of right</i>, + be represented, of which the right to acquire and to hold property is but + one, and that not of the most essential kind. The protection of a man's + person is more sacred than the protection of property; and besides this, + the faculty of performing any kind of work or services by which he + acquires a livelihood, or maintaining his family, is of the nature of + property. It is property to him; he has acquired it; and it is as much the + object of his protection as exterior property, possessed without that + faculty, can be the object of protection in another person. + </p> + <p> + I have always believed that the best security for property, be it much or + little, is to remove from every part of the community, as far as can + possibly be done, every cause of complaint, and every motive to violence; + and this can only be done by an equality of rights. When rights are + secure, property is secure in consequence. But when property is made a + pretence for unequal or exclusive rights, it weakens the right to hold the + property, and provokes indignation and tumult; for it is unnatural to + believe that property can be secure under the guarantee of a society + injured in its rights by the influence of that property. + </p> + <p> + Next to the injustice and ill-policy of making property a pretence for + exclusive rights, is the unaccountable absurdity of giving to mere <i>sound</i> + the idea of property, and annexing to it certain rights; for what else is + a <i>title</i> but sound? Nature is often giving to the world some + extraordinary men who arrive at fame by merit and universal consent, such + as Aristotle, Socrates, Plato, &c. They were truly great or noble. + </p> + <p> + But when government sets up a manufactory of nobles, it is as absurd as if + she undertook to manufacture wise men. Her nobles are all counterfeits. + </p> + <p> + This wax-work order has assumed the name of aristocracy; and the disgrace + of it would be lessened if it could be considered only as childish + imbecility. We pardon foppery because of its insignificance» and on the + same ground we might pardon the foppery of Titles. But the origin of + aristocracy was worse than foppery. It was robbery. The first aristocrats + in all countries were brigands. Those of later times, sycophants. + </p> + <p> + It is very well known that in England, (and the same will be found in + other countries) the great landed estates now held in descent were + plundered from the quiet inhabitants at the conquest. The possibility did + not exist of acquiring such estates honestly. If it be asked how they + could have been acquired, no answer but that of robbery can be given. That + they were not acquired by trade, by commerce, by manufactures, by + agriculture, or by any reputable employment, is certain. How then were + they acquired? Blush, aristocracy, to hear your origin, for your + progenitors were Thieves. They were the Robespierres and the Jacobins of + that day. When they had committed the robbery, they endeavoured to lose + the disgrace of it by sinking their real names under fictitious ones, + which they called Titles. It is ever the practice of Felons to act in this + manner. They never pass by their real names.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This and the preceding paragraph have been omitted from + some editions.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + As property, honestly obtained, is best secured by an equality of Rights, + so ill-gotten property depends for protection on a monopoly of rights. He + who has robbed another of his property, will next endeavour to disarm him + of his rights, to secure that property; for when the robber becomes the + legislator he believes himself secure. That part of the government of + England that is called the house of lords, was originally composed of + persons who had committed the robberies of which I have been speaking. It + was an association for the protection of the property they had stolen. + </p> + <p> + But besides the criminality of the origin of aristocracy, it has an + injurious effect on the moral and physical character of man. Like slavery + it debilitates the human faculties; for as the mind bowed down by slavery + loses in silence its elastic powers, so, in the contrary extreme, when it + is buoyed up by folly, it becomes incapable of exerting them, and dwindles + into imbecility. It is impossible that a mind employed upon ribbands and + titles can ever be great. The childishness of the objects consumes the + man. + </p> + <p> + It is at all times necessary, and more particularly so during the progress + of a revolution, and until right ideas confirm themselves by habit, that + we frequently refresh our patriotism by reference to first principles. It + is by tracing things to their origin that we learn to understand them: and + it is by keeping that line and that origin always in view that we never + forget them. + </p> + <p> + An enquiry into the origin of Rights will demonstrate to us that <i>rights</i> + are not <i>gifts</i> from one man to another, nor from one class of men to + another; for who is he who could be the first giver, or by what principle, + or on what authority, could he possess the right of giving? A declaration + of rights is not a creation of them, nor a donation of them. It is a + manifest of the principle by which they exist, followed by a detail of + what the rights are; for every civil right has a natural right for its + foundation, and it includes the principle of a reciprocal guarantee of + those rights from man to man. As, therefore, it is impossible to discover + any origin of rights otherwise than in the origin of man, it consequently + follows, that rights appertain to man in right of his existence only, and + must therefore be equal to every man. The principle of an <i>equality of + rights</i> is clear and simple. Every man can understand it, and it is by + understanding his rights that he learns his duties; for where the rights + of men are equal, every man must finally see the necessity of protecting + the rights of others as the most effectual security for his own. But if, + in the formation of a constitution, we depart from the principle of equal + rights, or attempt any modification of it, we plunge into a labyrinth of + difficulties from which there is no way out but by retreating. Where are + we to stop? Or by what principle are we to find out the point to stop at, + that shall discriminate between men of the same country, part of whom + shall be free, and the rest not? If property is to be made the criterion, + it is a total departure from every moral principle of liberty, because it + is attaching rights to mere matter, and making man the agent of that + matter. It is, moreover, holding up property as an apple of discord, and + not only exciting but justifying war against it; for I maintain the + principle, that when property is used as an instrument to take away the + rights of those who may happen not to possess property, it is used to an + unlawful purpose, as fire-arms would be in a similar case. + </p> + <p> + In a state of nature all men are equal in rights, but they are not equal + in power; the weak cannot protect themselves against the strong. This + being the case, the institution of civil society is for the purpose of + making an equalization of powers that shall be parallel to, and a + guarantee of, the equality of rights. The laws of a country, when properly + constructed, apply to this purpose. Every man takes the arm of the law for + his protection as more effectual than his own; and therefore every man has + an equal right in the formation of the government, and of the laws by + which he is to be governed and judged. In extensive countries and + societies, such as America and France, this right in the individual can + only be exercised by delegation, that is, by election and representation; + and hence it is that the institution of representative government arises. + </p> + <p> + Hitherto, I have confined myself to matters of principle only. First, that + hereditary government has not a right to exist; that it cannot be + established on any principle of right; and that it is a violation of all + principle. Secondly, that government by election and representation has + its origin in the natural and eternal rights of man; for whether a man be + his own lawgiver, as he would be in a state of nature; or whether he + exercises his portion of legislative sovereignty in his own person, as + might be the case in small democracies where all could assemble for the + formation of the laws by which they were to be governed; or whether he + exercises it in the choice of persons to represent him in a national + assembly of representatives, the origin of the right is the same in all + cases. The first, as is before observed, is defective in power; the + second, is practicable only in democracies of small extent; the third, is + the greatest scale upon which human government can be instituted. + </p> + <p> + Next to matters of <i>principle</i> are matters of <i>opinion</i>, and it + is necessary to distinguish between the two. Whether the rights of men + shall be equal is not a matter of opinion but of right, and consequently + of principle; for men do not hold their rights as grants from each other, + but each one in right of himself. Society is the guardian but not the + giver. And as in extensive societies, such as America and France, the + right of the individual in matters of government cannot be exercised but + by election and representation, it consequently follows that the only + system of government consistent with principle, where simple democracy is + impracticable, is the representative system. But as to the organical part, + or the manner in which the several parts of government shall be arranged + and composed, it is altogether <i>matter of opinion</i>, It is necessary + that all the parts be conformable with the <i>principle of equal rights</i>; + and so long as this principle be religiously adhered to, no very material + error can take place, neither can any error continue long in that part + which falls within the province of opinion. + </p> + <p> + In all matters of opinion, the social compact, or the principle by which + society is held together, requires that the majority of opinions becomes + the rule for the whole, and that the minority yields practical obedience + thereto. This is perfectly conformable to the principle of equal rights: + for, in the first place, every man has a <i>right to give an opinion</i> + but no man has a right that his opinion should <i>govern the rest</i>. In + the second place, it is not supposed to be known beforehand on which side + of any question, whether for or against, any man's opinion will fall. He + may happen to be in a majority upon some questions, and in a minority upon + others; and by the same rule that he expects obedience in the one case, he + must yield it in the other. All the disorders that have arisen in France, + during the progress of the revolution, have had their origin, not in the + <i>principle of equal rights</i>, but in the violation of that principle. + The principle of equal rights has been repeatedly violated, and that not + by the majority but by the minority, and <i>that minority has been + composed of men possessing property as well as of men without property; + property, therefore, even upon the experience already had, is no more a + criterion of character than it is of rights</i>. It will sometimes happen + that the minority are right, and the majority are wrong, but as soon as + experience proves this to be the case, the minority will increase to a + majority, and the error will reform itself by the tranquil operation of + freedom of opinion and equality of rights. Nothing, therefore, can justify + an insurrection, neither can it ever be necessary where rights are equal + and opinions free. + </p> + <p> + Taking then the principle of equal rights as the foundation of the + revolution, and consequently of the constitution, the organical part, or + the manner in which the several parts of the government shall be arranged + in the constitution, will, as is already said, fall within the province of + opinion. + </p> + <p> + Various methods will present themselves upon a question of this kind, and + tho' experience is yet wanting to determine which is the best, it has, I + think, sufficiently decided which is the worst. That is the worst, which + in its deliberations and decisions is subject to the precipitancy and + passion of an individual; and when the whole legislature is crowded into + one body it is an individual in mass. In all cases of deliberation it is + necessary to have a corps of reserve, and it would be better to divide the + representation by lot into two parts, and let them revise and correct each + other, than that the whole should sit together, and debate at once. + </p> + <p> + Representative government is not necessarily confined to any one + particular form. The principle is the same in all the forms under which it + can be arranged. The equal rights of the people is the root from which the + whole springs, and the branches may be arranged as present opinion or + future experience shall best direct. As to that <i>hospital of incurables</i> + (as Chesterfield calls it), the British house of peers, it is an + excrescence growing out of corruption; and there is no more affinity or + resemblance between any of the branches of a legislative body originating + from the right of the people, and the aforesaid house of peers, than + between a regular member of the human body and an ulcerated wen. + </p> + <p> + As to that part of government that is called the <i>executive</i>, it is + necessary in the first place to fix a precise meaning to the word. + </p> + <p> + There are but two divisions into which power can be arranged. First, that + of willing or decreeing the laws; secondly, that of executing or putting + them in practice. The former corresponds to the intellectual faculties of + the human mind, which reasons and determines what shall be done; the + second, to the mechanical powers of the human body, that puts that + determination into practice.(1) If the former decides, and the latter does + not perform, it is a state of imbecility; and if the latter acts without + the predetermination of the former, it is a state of lunacy. The executive + department therefore is official, and is subordinate to the legislative, + as the body is to the mind, in a state of health; for it is impossible to + conceive the idea of two sovereignties, a sovereignty to <i>will</i>, and + a sovereignty to <i>act</i>. The executive is not invested with the power + of deliberating whether it shall act or not; it has no discretionary + authority in the case; for it can <i>act no other thing</i> than what the + laws decree, and it is <i>obliged</i> to act conformably thereto; and in + this view of the case, the executive is made up of all the official + departments that execute the laws, of which that which is called the + judiciary is the chief. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine may have had in mind the five senses, with reference + to the proposed five members of the Directory.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But mankind have conceived an idea that <i>some kind of authority</i> is + necessary to <i>superintend</i> the execution of the laws and to see that + they are faithfully performed; and it is by confounding this + superintending authority with the official execution that we get + embarrassed about the term <i>executive power</i>. All the parts in the + governments of the United States of America that are called THE EXECUTIVE, + are no other than authorities to superintend the execution of the laws; + and they are so far independent of the legislative, that they know the + legislative only thro' the laws, and cannot be controuled or directed by + it through any other medium. + </p> + <p> + In what manner this superintending authority shall be appointed, or + composed, is a matter that falls within the province of opinion. Some may + prefer one method and some another; and in all cases, where opinion only + and not principle is concerned, the majority of opinions forms the rule + for all. There are however some things deducible from reason, and + evidenced by experience, that serve to guide our decision upon the case. + The one is, never to invest any individual with extraordinary power; for + besides his being tempted to misuse it, it will excite contention and + commotion in the nation for the office. Secondly, never to invest power + long in the hands of any number of individuals. The inconveniences that + may be supposed to accompany frequent changes are less to be feared than + the danger that arises from long continuance. + </p> + <p> + I shall conclude this discourse with offering some observations on the + means of <i>preserving liberty</i>; for it is not only necessary that we + establish it, but that we preserve it. + </p> + <p> + It is, in the first place, necessary that we distinguish between the means + made use of to overthrow despotism, in order to prepare the way for the + establishment of liberty, and the means to be used after the despotism is + overthrown. + </p> + <p> + The means made use of in the first case are justified by necessity. Those + means are, in general, insurrections; for whilst the established + government of despotism continues in any country it is scarcely possible + that any other means can be used. It is also certain that in the + commencement of a revolution, the revolutionary party permit to themselves + a <i>discretionary exercise of power</i> regulated more by circumstances + than by principle, which, were the practice to continue, liberty would + never be established, or if established would soon be overthrown. It is + never to be expected in a revolution that every man is to change his + opinion at the same moment. There never yet was any truth or any principle + so irresistibly obvious, that all men believed it at once. Time and reason + must co-operate with each other to the final establishment of any + principle; and therefore those who may happen to be first convinced have + not a right to persecute others, on whom conviction operates more slowly. + The moral principle of revolutions is to instruct, not to destroy. + </p> + <p> + Had a constitution been established two years ago, (as ought to have been + done,) the violences that have since desolated France and injured the + character of the revolution, would, in my opinion, have been prevented.(1) + The nation would then have had a bond of union, and every individual would + have known the line of conduct he was to follow. But, instead of this, a + revolutionary government, a thing without either principle or authority, + was substituted in its place; virtue and crime depended upon accident; and + that which was patriotism one day, became treason the next. All these + things have followed from the want of a constitution; for it is the nature + and intention of a constitution to <i>prevent governing by party</i>, by + establishing a common principle that shall limit and control the power and + impulse of party, and that says to all parties, <i>thus far shalt thou go + and no further</i>. But in the absence of a constitution, men look + entirely to party; and instead of principle governing party, party governs + principle. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The Constitution adopted August 10, 1793, was by the + determination of "The Mountain," suspended during the war + against France. The revolutionary government was thus made + chronic—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + An avidity to punish is always dangerous to liberty. It leads men to + stretch, to misinterpret, and to misapply even the best of laws. He that + would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from + oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that + will reach to himself. Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Paris, July, 1795. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0026" id="link2H_4_0026"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXV. THE CONSTITUTION OF 1795. + </h2> + <p> + SPEECH IN THE FRENCH NATIONAL CONVENTION, JULY 7, 1795. + </p> + <p> + On the motion of Lanthenas, "That permission be granted to Thomas Paine, + to deliver his sentiments on the declaration of rights and the + constitution," Thomas Paine ascended the Tribune; and no opposition being + made to the motion, one of the Secretaries, who stood by Mr. Paine, read + his speech, of which the following is a literal translation: + </p> + <p> + Citizens: + </p> + <p> + The effects of a malignant fever, with which I was afflicted during a + rigorous confinement in the Luxembourg, have thus long prevented me from + attending at my post in the bosom of the Convention, and the magnitude of + the subject under discussion, and no other consideration on earth, could + induce me now to repair to my station. + </p> + <p> + A recurrence to the vicissitudes I have experienced, and the critical + situations in which I have been placed in consequence of the French + Revolution, will throw upon what I now propose to submit to the Convention + the most unequivocal proofs of my integrity, and the rectitude of those + principles which have uniformly influenced my conduct. + </p> + <p> + In England I was proscribed for having vindicated the French Revolution, + and I have suffered a rigorous imprisonment in France for having pursued a + similar mode of conduct. During the reign of terrorism, I was a close + prisoner for eight long months, and remained so above three months after + the era of the 10th Thermidor.(1) I ought, however, to state, that I was + not persecuted by the <i>people</i> either of England or France. The + proceedings in both countries were the effects of the despotism existing + in their respective governments. But, even if my persecution had + originated in the people at large, my principles and conduct would still + have remained the same. Principles which are influenced and subject to the + controul of tyranny, have not their foundation in the heart. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 By the French republican calendar this was nearly the + time. Paine's imprisonment lasted from December 28, 1793, to + November 4, 1794. He was by a unanimous vote recalled to the + Convention, Dec 7, 1794, but his first appearance there was + on July 7, 1795.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + A few days ago, I transmitted to you by the ordinary mode of distribution, + a short Treatise, entitled "Dissertation on the First Principles of + Government." This little work I did intend to have dedicated to the people + of Holland, who, about the time I began to write it, were determined to + accomplish a Revolution in their Government, rather than to the people of + France, who had long before effected that glorious object. But there are, + in the Constitution which is about to be ratified by the Convention + certain articles, and in the report which preceded it certain points, so + repugnant to reason, and incompatible with the true principles of liberty, + as to render this Treatise, drawn up for another purpose, applicable to + the present occasion, and under this impression I presumed to submit it to + your consideration. + </p> + <p> + If there be faults in the Constitution, it were better to expunge them + now, than to abide the event of their mischievous tendency; for certain it + is, that the plan of the Constitution which has been presented to you is + not consistent with the grand object of the Revolution, nor congenial to + the sentiments of the individuals who accomplished it. + </p> + <p> + To deprive half the people in a nation of their rights as citizens, is an + easy matter in theory or on paper: but it is a most dangerous experiment, + and rarely practicable in the execution. + </p> + <p> + I shall now proceed to the observations I have to offer on this important + subject; and I pledge myself that they shall be neither numerous nor + diffusive. + </p> + <p> + In my apprehension, a constitution embraces two distinct parts or objects, + the <i>Principle</i> and the <i>Practice</i>; and it is not only an + essential but an indispensable provision that the practice should emanate + from, and accord with, the principle. Now I maintain, that the reverse of + this proposition is the case in the plan of the Constitution under + discussion. The first article, for instance, of the <i>political state</i> + of citizens, (v. Title ii. of the Constitution,) says: + </p> + <p> + "Every man born and resident in France, who, being twenty-one years of + age, has inscribed his name on the Civic Register of his Canton, and who + has lived afterwards one year on the territory of the Republic, and who + pays any direct contribution whatever, real or personal, is a French + citizen." (1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The article as ultimately adopted substituted "person" for + "man," and for "has inscribed his name" (a slight + educational test) inserted "whose name is inscribed."— + <i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + I might here ask, if those only who come under the above description are + to be considered as citizens, what designation do you mean to give the + rest of the people? I allude to that portion of the people on whom the + principal part of the labour falls, and on whom the weight of indirect + taxation will in the event chiefly press. In the structure of the social + fabric, this class of people are infinitely superior to that privileged + order whose only qualification is their wealth or territorial possessions. + For what is trade without merchants? What is land without cultivation? And + what is the produce of the land without manufactures? But to return to the + subject. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, this article is incompatible with the three first + articles of the Declaration of Rights, which precede the Constitutional + Act. + </p> + <p> + The first article of the Declaration of Rights says: + </p> + <p> + "The end of society is the public good; and the institution of government + is to secure to every individual the enjoyment of his rights." + </p> + <p> + But the article of the Constitution to which I have just adverted proposes + as the object of society, not the public good, or in other words, the good + of <i>all</i>, but a partial good; or the good only of a <i>few</i>; and + the Constitution provides solely for the rights of this few, to the + exclusion of the many. + </p> + <p> + The second article of the Declaration of Rights says: + </p> + <p> + "The Rights of Man in society are Liberty, Equality, Security of his + person and property." + </p> + <p> + But the article alluded to in the Constitution has a direct tendency to + establish the reverse of this position, inasmuch as the persons excluded + by this <i>inequality</i> can neither be said to possess liberty, nor + security against oppression. They are consigned totally to the caprice and + tyranny of the rest. + </p> + <p> + The third article of the Declaration of Rights says: + </p> + <p> + "Liberty consists in such acts of volition as are not injurious to + others." + </p> + <p> + But the article of the Constitution, on which I have observed, breaks down + this barrier. It enables the liberty of one part of society to destroy the + freedom of the other. + </p> + <p> + Having thus pointed out the inconsistency of this article to the + Declaration of Rights, I shall proceed to comment on that of the same + article which makes a direct contribution a necessary qualification to the + right of citizenship. + </p> + <p> + A modern refinement on the object of public revenue has divided the taxes, + or contributions, into two classes, the <i>direct</i> and the<i> indirect</i>, + without being able to define precisely the distinction or difference + between them, because the effect of both is the same. + </p> + <p> + Those are designated indirect taxes which fall upon the consumers of + certain articles, on which the tax is imposed, because, the tax being + included in the price, the consumer pays it without taking notice of it. + </p> + <p> + The same observation is applicable to the territorial tax. The land + proprietors, in order to reimburse themselves, will rack-rent their + tenants: the farmer, of course, will transfer the obligation to the + miller, by enhancing the price of grain; the miller to the baker, by + increasing the price of flour; and the baker to the consumer, by raising + the price of bread. The territorial tax, therefore, though called <i>direct</i>, + is, in its consequences, <i>indirect</i>. + </p> + <p> + To this tax the land proprietor contributes only in proportion to the + quantity of bread and other provisions that are consumed in his own + family. The deficit is furnished by the great mass of the community, which + comprehends every individual of the nation. + </p> + <p> + From the logical distinction between the direct and in-direct taxation, + some emolument may result, I allow, to auditors of public accounts, &c., + but to the people at large I deny that such a distinction (which by the by + is without a difference) can be productive of any practical benefit. It + ought not, therefore, to be admitted as a principle in the constitution. + </p> + <p> + Besides this objection, the provision in question does not affect to + define, secure, or establish the right of citizenship. It consigns to the + caprice or discretion of the legislature the power of pronouncing who + shall, or shall not, exercise the functions of a citizen; and this may be + done effectually, either by the imposition of a <i>direct or indirect</i> + tax, according to the selfish views of the legislators, or by the mode of + collecting the taxes so imposed. + </p> + <p> + Neither a tenant who occupies an extensive farm, nor a merchant or + manufacturer who may have embarked a large capital in their respective + pursuits, can ever, according to this system, attain the preemption of a + citizen. On the other hand, any upstart, who has, by succession or + management, got possession of a few acres of land or a miserable tenement, + may exultingly exercise the functions of a citizen, although perhaps + neither possesses a hundredth part of the worth or property of a simple + mechanic, nor contributes in any proportion to the exigencies of the + State. + </p> + <p> + The contempt in which the old government held mercantile pursuits, and the + obloquy that attached on merchants and manufacturers, contributed not a + little to its embarrassments, and its eventual subversion; and, strange to + tell, though the mischiefs arising from this mode of conduct are so + obvious, yet an article is proposed for your adoption which has a manifest + tendency to restore a defect inherent in the monarchy. + </p> + <p> + I shall now proceed to the second article of the same Title, with which I + shall conclude my remarks. + </p> + <p> + The second article says, "Every French soldier, who shall have served one + or more campaigns in the cause of liberty, is deemed a citizen of the + republic, without any respect or reference to other qualifications."(1) + </p> + <p> + It would seem, that in this Article the Committee were desirous of + extricating themselves from a dilemma into which they had been plunged by + the preceding article. When men depart from an established principle they + are compelled to resort to trick and subterfuge, always shifting their + means to preserve the unity of their objects; and as it rarely happens + that the first expedient makes amends for the prostitution of principle, + they must call in aid a second, of a more flagrant nature, to supply the + deficiency of the former. In this manner legislators go on accumulating + error upon error, and artifice upon artifice, until the mass becomes so + bulky and incongruous, and their embarrassment so desperate, that they are + compelled, as their last expedient, to resort to the very principle they + had violated. The Committee were precisely in this predicament when they + framed this article; and to me, I confess, their conduct appears specious + rather than efficacious.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This article eventually stood: "All Frenchmen who shall + have made one or more campaigns for the establishment of the + Republic, are citizens, without condition as to taxes."— + <i>Editor.</i> + + 2 The head of the Committee (eleven) was the Abbé Sieves, + whose political treachery was well known to Paine before it + became known to the world by his services to Napoleon in + overthrowing the Republic.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + It was not for himself alone, but for his family, that the French citizen, + at the dawn of the revolution, (for then indeed every man was considered a + citizen) marched soldier-like to the frontiers, and repelled a foreign + invasion. He had it not in his contemplation, that he should enjoy liberty + for the residue of his earthly career, and by his own act preclude his + offspring from that inestimable blessing. No! He wished to leave it as an + inheritance to his children, and that they might hand it down to their + latest posterity. If a Frenchman, who united in his person the character + of a Soldier and a Citizen, was now to return from the army to his + peaceful habitation, he must address his small family in this manner: + "Sorry I am, that I cannot leave to you a small portion of what I have + acquired by exposing my person to the ferocity of our enemies and + defeating their machinations. I have established the republic, and, + painful the reflection, all the laurels which I have won in the field are + blasted, and all the privileges to which my exertions have entitled me + extend not beyond the period of my own existence!" Thus the measure that + has been adopted by way of subterfuge falls short of what the framers of + it speculated upon; for in conciliating the affections of the <i>Soldier</i>, + they have subjected the <i>Father</i> to the most pungent sensations, by + obliging him to adopt a generation of Slaves. + </p> + <p> + Citizens, a great deal has been urged respecting insurrections. I am + confident that no man has a greater abhorrence of them than myself, and I + am sorry that any insinuations should have been thrown out upon me as a + promoter of violence of any kind. The whole tenor of my life and + conversation gives the lie to those calumnies, and proves me to be a + friend to order, truth and justice. + </p> + <p> + I hope you will attribute this effusion of my sentiments to my anxiety for + the honor and success of the revolution. I have no interest distinct from + that which has a tendency to meliorate the situation of mankind. The + revolution, as far as it respects myself, has been productive of more loss + and persecution than it is possible for me to describe, or for you to + indemnify. But with respect to the subject under consideration, I could + not refrain from declaring my sentiments. + </p> + <p> + In my opinion, if you subvert the basis of the revolution, if you dispense + with principles, and substitute expedients, you will extinguish that + enthusiasm and energy which have hitherto been the life and soul of the + revolution; and you will substitute in its place nothing but a cold + indifference and self-interest, which will again degenerate into intrigue, + cunning, and effeminacy. + </p> + <p> + But to discard all considerations of a personal and subordinate nature, it + is essential to the well-being of the republic that the practical or + organic part of the constitution should correspond with its principles; + and as this does not appear to be the case in the plan that has been + presented to you, it is absolutely necessary that it should be submitted + to the revision of a committee, who should be instructed to compare it + with the Declaration of Rights, in order to ascertain the difference + between the two, and to make such alterations as shall render them + perfectly consistent and compatible with each other. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0027" id="link2H_4_0027"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXVI. THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ENGLISH SYSTEM OF FINANCE.(1) + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + "On the verge, nay even in the gulph of bankruptcy." + + 1 This pamphlet, as Paine predicts at its close (no doubt on + good grounds), was translated into all languages of Europe, + and probably hastened the gold suspension of the Bank of + England (1797), which it predicted. The British Government + entrusted its reply to Ralph Broome and George Chalmers, who + wrote pamphlets. There is in the French Archives an order + for 1000 copies, April 27, 1796, nineteen days after Paine's + pamphlet appeared. "Mr. Cobbett has made this little + pamphlet a text-book for most of his elaborate treatises on + our finances.... On the authority of a late Register of Mr. + Cobbett's I learn that the profits arising from the sale of + this pamphlet were devoted [by Paine] to the relief of the + prisoners confined in Newgate for debt."—"Life of Paine," + by Richard Carlile, 1819.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Debates in Parliament. + </p> + <p> + Nothing, they say, is more certain than death, and nothing more uncertain + than the time of dying; yet we can always fix a period beyond which man + cannot live, and within some moment of which he will die. We are enabled + to do this, not by any spirit of prophecy, or foresight into the event, + but by observation of what has happened in all cases of human or animal + existence. If then any other subject, such, for instance, as a system of + finance, exhibits in its progress a series of symptoms indicating decay, + its final dissolution is certain, and the period of it can be calculated + from the symptoms it exhibits. + </p> + <p> + Those who have hitherto written on the English system of finance, (the + funding system,) have been uniformly impressed with the idea that its + downfall would happen <i>some time or other</i>. They took, however, no + data for their opinion, but expressed it predictively,—or merely as + opinion, from a conviction that the perpetual duration of such a system + was a natural impossibility. It is in this manner that Dr. Price has + spoken of it; and Smith, in his Wealth of Nations, has spoken in the same + manner; that is, merely as opinion without data. "The progress," says + Smith, "of the enormous debts, which at present oppress, and will in the + long run <i>most probably ruin</i>, all the great nations of Europe [he + should have said <i>governments</i>] has been pretty uniform." But this + general manner of speaking, though it might make some impression, carried + with it no conviction. + </p> + <p> + It is not my intention to predict any thing; but I will show from data + already known, from symptoms and facts which the English funding system + has already exhibited publicly, that it will not continue to the end of + Mr. Pitt's life, supposing him to live the usual age of a man. How much + sooner it may fall, I leave to others to predict. + </p> + <p> + Let financiers diversify systems of credit as they will, it <i>is</i> + nevertheless true, that every system of credit is a system of paper money. + Two experiments have already been had upon paper money; the one in + America, the other in France. In both those cases the whole capital was + emitted, and that whole capital, which in America was called continental + money, and in France assignats, appeared in circulation; the consequence + of which was, that the quantity became so enormous, and so disproportioned + to the quantity of population, and to the quantity' of objects upon which + it could be employed, that the market, if I may so express it, was glutted + with it, and the value of it fell. Between five and six years determined + the fate of those experiments. The same fate would have happened to gold + and silver, could gold and silver have been issued in the same abundant + manner that paper had been, and confined within the country as paper money + always is, by having no circulation out of it; or, to speak on a larger + scale, the same thing would happen in the world, could the world be + glutted with gold and silver, as America and France have been with paper. + </p> + <p> + The English system differs from that of America and France in this one + particular, that its capital is kept out of sight; that is, it does not + appear in circulation. Were the whole capital of the national debt, which + at the time I write this is almost one hundred million pounds sterling, to + be emitted in assignats or bills, and that whole quantity put into + circulation, as was done in America and in France, those English + assignats, or bills, would soon sink in value as those of America and + France have done; and that in a greater degree, because the quantity of + them would be more disproportioned to the quantity of population in + England, than was the case in either of the other two countries. A nominal + pound sterling in such bills would not be worth one penny. + </p> + <p> + But though the English system, by thus keeping the capital out of sight, + is preserved from hasty destruction, as in the case of America and France, + it nevertheless approaches the same fate, and will arrive at it with the + same certainty, though by a slower progress. The difference is altogether + in the degree of speed by which the two systems approach their fate, + which, to speak in round numbers, is as twenty is to one; that is, the + English system, that of funding the capital instead of issuing it, + contained within itself a capacity of enduring twenty times longer than + the systems adopted by America and France; and at the end of that time it + would arrive at the same common grave, the Potter's Field of paper money. + </p> + <p> + The datum, I take for this proportion of twenty to one, is the difference + between a capital and the interest at five per cent. Twenty times the + interest is equal to the capital. The accumulation of paper money in + England is in proportion to the accumulation of the interest upon every + new loan; and therefore the progress to the dissolution is twenty times + slower than if the capital were to be emitted and put into circulation + immediately. Every twenty years in the English system is equal to one year + in the French and American systems. + </p> + <p> + Having thus stated the duration of the two systems, that of funding upon + interest, and that of emitting the whole capital without funding, to be as + twenty to one, I come to examine the symptoms of decay, approaching to + dissolution, that the English system has already exhibited, and to compare + them with similar systems in the French and American systems. + </p> + <p> + The English funding system began one hundred years ago; in which time + there have been six wars, including the war that ended in 1697. + </p> + <p> + 1. The war that ended, as I have just said, in 1697. + </p> + <p> + 2. The war that began in 1702. + </p> + <p> + 3. The war that began in 1739. + </p> + <p> + 4. The war that began in 1756. + </p> + <p> + 5. The American war, that began in 1775. + </p> + <p> + 6. The present war, that began in 1793. + </p> + <p> + The national debt, at the conclusion of the war which ended in 1697, was + twenty-one millions and an half. (See Smith's Wealth of Nations, chapter + on Public Debts.) We now see it approaching fast to four hundred millions. + If between these two extremes of twenty-one millions and four hundred + millions, embracing the several expenses of all the including wars, there + exist some common ratio that will ascertain arithmetically the amount of + the debts at the end of each war, as certainly as the fact is known to be, + that ratio will in like manner determine what the amount of the debt will + be in all future wars, and will ascertain the period within which the + funding system will expire in a bankruptcy of the government; for the + ratio I allude to, is the ratio which the nature of the thing has + established for itself. + </p> + <p> + Hitherto no idea has been entertained that any such ratio existed, or + could exist, that would determine a problem of this kind; that is, that + would ascertain, without having any knowledge of the fact, what the + expense of any former war had been, or what the expense of any future war + would be; but it is nevertheless true that such a ratio does exist, as I + shall show, and also the mode of applying it. + </p> + <p> + The ratio I allude to is not in arithmetical progression like the numbers + 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9; nor yet in geometrical progression, like the + numbers 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256; but it is in the series of one half + upon each preceding number; like the numbers 8, 12, 18, 27, 40, 60, 90, + 135. + </p> + <p> + Any person can perceive that the second number, 12, is produced by the + preceding number, 8, and half 8; and that the third number, 18, is in like + manner produced by the preceding number, 12, and half 12; and so on for + the rest. They can also see how rapidly the sums increase as the ratio + proceeds. The difference between the two first numbers is but four; but + the difference between the two last is forty-five; and from thence they + may see with what immense rapidity the national debt has increased, and + will continue to increase, till it exceeds the ordinary powers of + calculation, and loses itself in ciphers. + </p> + <p> + I come now to apply the ratio as a rule to determine in all cases. + </p> + <p> + I began with the war that ended in 1697, which was the war in which the + funding system began. The expense of that war was twenty-one millions and + an half. In order to ascertain the expense of the next war, I add to + twenty-one millions and an half, the half thereof (ten millions and three + quarters) which makes thirty-two millions and a quarter for the expense of + that war. This thirty-two millions and a quarter, added to the former debt + of twenty-one millions and an half, carries the national debt to + fifty-three millions and three quarters. Smith, in his chapter on Public + Debts, says, that the national debt was at this time fifty-three millions. + </p> + <p> + I proceed to ascertain the expense of the next war, that of 1739, by + adding, as in the former case, one half to the expense of the preceding + war. The expense of the preceding war was thirty-two millions and a + quarter; for the sake of even numbers, say, thirty-two millions; the half + of which (16) makes forty-eight millions for the expense of that war. + </p> + <p> + I proceed to ascertain the expense of the war of 1756, by adding, + according to the ratio, one half to the expense of the preceding war. The + expense of the preceding was taken at 48 millions, the half of which (24) + makes 72 millions for the expense of that war. Smith, (chapter on Public + Debts,) says, the expense of the war of 1756, was 72 millions and a + quarter. + </p> + <p> + I proceed to ascertain the expense of the American war, of 1775, by + adding, as in the former cases, one half to the expense of the preceding + war. The expense of the preceding war was 72 millions, the half of which + (36) makes 108 millions for the expense of that war. In the last edition + of Smith, (chapter on Public Debts,) he says, the expense of the American + war was <i>more than an hundred millions</i>. + </p> + <p> + I come now to ascertain the expense of the present war, supposing it to + continue as long as former wars have done, and the funding system not to + break up before that period. The expense of the preceding war was 108 + millions, the half of which (54) makes 162 millions for the expense of the + present war. It gives symptoms of going beyond this sum, supposing the + funding system not to break up; for the loans of the last year and of the + present year are twenty-two millions each, which exceeds the ratio + compared with the loans of the preceding war. It will not be from the + inability of procuring loans that the system will break up. On the + contrary, it is the facility with which loans can be procured that hastens + that event. The loans are altogether paper transactions; and it is the + excess of them that brings on, with accelerating speed, that progressive + depreciation of funded paper money that will dissolve the funding system. + </p> + <p> + I proceed to ascertain the expense of future wars, and I do this merely to + show the impossibility of the continuance of the funding system, and the + certainty of its dissolution. + </p> + <p> + The expense of the next war after the present war, according to the ratio + that has ascertained the preceding cases, will be 243 millions. + </p> + <p> + Expense of the second war 364 + </p> + <p> + ———————— third war 546 + </p> + <p> + ———————— fourth war 819 + </p> + <p> + ———— fifth war 1228 + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 3200 millions; +</pre> + <p> + which, at only four per cent. will require taxes to the nominal amount of + one hundred and twenty-eight millions to pay the annual interest, besides + the interest of the present debt, and the expenses of government, which + are not included in this account. Is there a man so mad, so stupid, as to + sup-pose this system can continue? + </p> + <p> + When I first conceived the idea of seeking for some common ratio that + should apply as a rule of measurement to all the cases of the funding + system, so far as to ascertain the several stages of its approach to + dissolution, I had no expectation that any ratio could be found that would + apply with so much exactness as this does. I was led to the idea merely by + observing that the funding system was a thing in continual progression, + and that whatever was in a state of progression might be supposed to admit + of, at least, some general ratio of measurement, that would apply without + any very great variation. But who could have supposed that falling + systems, or falling opinions, admitted of a ratio apparently as true as + the descent of falling bodies? I have not made the ratio any more than + Newton made the ratio of gravitation. I have only discovered it, and + explained the mode of applying it. + </p> + <p> + To shew at one view the rapid progression of the funding system to + destruction, and to expose the folly of those who blindly believe in its + continuance, and who artfully endeavour to impose that belief upon others, + I exhibit in the annexed table, the expense of each of the six wars since + the funding system began, as ascertained by ratio, and the expense of the + six wars yet to come, ascertained by the same ratio. + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0004" id="linkimage-0004"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/table318.jpg" alt="Table318 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * The actual expense of the war of 1739 did not come up to + the sum ascertained by the ratio. But as that which is the + natural disposition of a thing, as it is the natural + disposition of a stream of water to descend, will, if + impeded in its course, overcome by a new effort what it had + lost by that impediment, so it was with respect to this war + and the next (1756) taken collectively; for the expense of + the war of 1756 restored the equilibrium of the ratio, as + fully as if it had not been impeded. A circumstance that + serves to prove the truth of the ratio more folly than if + the interruption had not taken place. The war of 1739 *** + languid; the efforts were below the value of money et that + time; for the ratio is the measure of the depreciation of + money in consequence of the funding system; or what comes + to the same end, it is the measure of the increase of paper. + Every additional quantity of it, whether in bank notes or + otherwise, diminishes the real, though not the nominal value + of the former quantity.—<i>Author</i> +</pre> + <p> + Those who are acquainted with the power with which even a small ratio, + acting in progression, multiplies in a long series, will see nothing to + wonder at in this table. Those who are not acquainted with that subject, + and not knowing what else to say, may be inclined to deny it. But it is + not their opinion one way, nor mine the other, that can influence the + event. The table exhibits the natural march of the funding system to its + irredeemable dissolution. Supposing the present government of England to + continue, and to go on as it has gone on since the funding system began, I + would not give twenty shillings for one hundred pounds in the funds to be + paid twenty years hence. I do not speak this predictively; I produce the + data upon which that belief is founded; and which data it is every body's + interest to know, who have any thing to do with the funds, or who are + going to bequeath property to their descendants to be paid at a future + day. + </p> + <p> + Perhaps it may be asked, that as governments or ministers proceeded by no + ratio in making loans or incurring debts, and nobody intended any ratio, + or thought of any, how does it happen that there is one? I answer, that + the ratio is founded in necessity; and I now go to explain what that + necessity is. + </p> + <p> + It will always happen, that the price of labour, or of the produce of + labour, be that produce what it may, will be in proportion to the quantity + of money in a country, admitting things to take their natural course. + Before the invention of the funding system, there was no other money than + gold and silver; and as nature gives out those metals with a sparing hand, + and in regular annual quantities from the mines, the several prices of + things were proportioned to the quantity of money at that time, and so + nearly stationary as to vary but little in any fifty or sixty years of + that period. + </p> + <p> + When the funding system began, a substitute for gold and silver began + also. That substitute was paper; and the quantity increased as the + quantity of interest increased upon accumulated loans. This appearance of + a new and additional species of money in the nation soon began to break + the relative value which money and the things it will purchase bore to + each other before. Every thing rose in price; but the rise at first was + little and slow, like the difference in units between two first numbers, 8 + and 12, compared with the two last numbers 90 and 135, in the table. It + was however sufficient to make itself considerably felt in a large + transaction. When therefore government, by engaging in a new war, required + a new loan, it was obliged to make a higher loan than the former loan, to + balance the increased price to which things had risen; and as that new + loan increased the quantity of paper in proportion to the new quantity of + interest, it carried the price of things still higher than before. The + next loan was again higher, to balance that further increased price; and + all this in the same manner, though not in the same degree, that every new + emission of continental money in America, or of assignats in France, was + greater than the preceding emission, to make head against the advance of + prices, till the combat could be maintained no longer. Herein is founded + the necessity of which I have just spoken. That necessity proceeds with + accelerating velocity, and the ratio I have laid down is the measure of + that acceleration; or, to speak the technical language of the subject, it + is the measure of the increasing depreciation of funded paper money, which + it is impossible to prevent while the quantity of that money and of bank + notes continues to multiply. What else but this can account for the + difference between one war costing 21 millions, and another war costing + 160 millions? + </p> + <p> + The difference cannot be accounted for on the score of extraordinary + efforts or extraordinary achievements. The war that cost twenty-one + millions was the war of the con-federates, historically called the grand + alliance, consisting of England, Austria, and Holland in the time of + William III. against Louis XIV. and in which the confederates were + victorious. The present is a war of a much greater confederacy—a + confederacy of England, Austria, Prussia, the German Empire, Spain, + Holland, Naples, and Sardinia, eight powers, against the French Republic + singly, and the Republic has beaten the whole confederacy.—But to + return to my subject. + </p> + <p> + It is said in England, that the value of paper keeps equal with the value + of gold and silver. But the case is not rightly stated; for the fact is, + that the paper has <i>pulled down</i> the value of gold and silver to a + level with itself. Gold and silver will not purchase so much of any + purchasable article at this day as if no paper had appeared, nor so much + as it will in any country in Europe where there is no paper. How long this + hanging together of money and paper will continue, makes a new case; + because it daily exposes the system to sudden death, independent of the + natural death it would otherwise suffer. + </p> + <p> + I consider the funding system as being now advanced into the last twenty + years of its existence. The single circumstance, were there no other, that + a war should now cost nominally one hundred and sixty millions, which when + the system began cost but twenty-one millions, or that the loan for one + year only (including the loan to the Emperor) should now be nominally + greater than the whole expense of that war, shows the state of + depreciation to which the funding system has arrived. Its depreciation is + in the proportion of eight for one, compared with the value of its money + when the system began; which is the state the French assignats stood a + year ago (March 1795) compared with gold and silver. It is therefore that + I say, that the English funding system has entered on the last twenty + years of its existence, comparing each twenty years of the English system + with every single year of the American and French systems, as before + stated. + </p> + <p> + Again, supposing the present war to close as former wars have done, and + without producing either revolution or reform in England, another war at + least must be looked for in the space of the twenty years I allude to; for + it has never yet happened that twenty years have passed off without a war, + and that more especially since the English government has dabbled in + German politics, and shown a disposition to insult the world, and the + world of commerce, with her navy. The next war will carry the national + debt to very nearly seven hundred millions, the interest of which, at four + per cent, will be twenty-eight millions besides the taxes for the (then) + expenses of government, which will increase in the same proportion, and + which will carry the taxes to at least forty millions; and if another war + only begins, it will quickly carry them to above fifty; for it is in the + last twenty years of the funding system, as in the last year of the + American and French systems without funding, that all the great shocks + begin to operate. + </p> + <p> + I have just mentioned that, paper in England has <i>pulled down</i> the + value of gold and silver to a level with itself; and that <i>this pulling + dawn</i> of gold and silver money has created the appearance of paper + money keeping up. The same thing, and the same mistake, took place in + America and in France, and continued for a considerable time after the + commencement of their system of paper; and the actual depreciation of + money was hidden under that mistake. + </p> + <p> + It was said in America, at that time, that everything was becoming <i>dear</i>; + but gold and silver could then buy those dear articles no cheaper than + paper could; and therefore it was not called depreciation. The idea of <i>dearness</i> + established itself for the idea of depreciation. The same was the case in + France. Though every thing rose in price soon after assignats appeared, + yet those dear articles could be purchased no cheaper with gold and + silver, than with paper, and it was only said that things were <i>dear</i>. + The same is still the language in England. They call it <i>deariness</i>. + But they will soon find that it is an actual depreciation, and that this + depreciation is the effect of the funding system; which, by crowding such + a continually increasing mass of paper into circulation, carries down the + value of gold and silver with it. But gold and silver, will, in the long + run, revolt against depreciation, and separate from the value of paper; + for the progress of all such systems appears to be, that the paper will + take the command in the beginning, and gold and silver in the end. + </p> + <p> + But this succession in the command of gold and silver over paper, makes a + crisis far more eventful to the funding system than to any other system + upon which paper can be issued; for, strictly speaking, it is not a crisis + of danger but a symptom of death. It is a death-stroke to the funding + system. It is a revolution in the whole of its affairs. + </p> + <p> + If paper be issued without being funded upon interest, emissions of it can + be continued after the value of it separates from gold and silver, as we + have seen in the two cases of America and France. But the funding system + rests altogether upon the value of paper being equal to gold and silver; + which will be as long as the paper can continue carrying down the value of + gold and silver to the same level to which itself descends, and no longer. + But even in this state, that of descending equally together, the minister, + whoever he may be, will find himself beset with accumulating difficulties; + because the loans and taxes voted for the service of each ensuing year + will wither in his hands before the year expires, or before they can be + applied. This will force him to have recourse to emissions of what are + called exchequer and navy bills, which, by still increasing the mass of + paper in circulation, will drive on the depreciation still more rapidly. + </p> + <p> + It ought to be known that taxes in England are not paid in gold and + silver, but in paper (bank notes). Every person who pays any considerable + quantity of taxes, such as maltsters, brewers, distillers, (I appeal for + the truth of it, to any of the collectors of excise in England, or to Mr. + White-bread,)(1) knows this to be the case. There is not gold and silver + enough in the nation to pay the taxes in coin, as I shall show; and + consequently there is not money enough in the bank to pay the notes. The + interest of the national funded debt is paid at the bank in the same kind + of paper in which the taxes are collected. When people find, as they will + find, a reservedness among each other in giving gold and silver for bank + notes, or the least preference for the former over the latter, they will + go for payment to the bank, where they have a right to go. They will do + this as a measure of prudence, each one for himself, and the truth or + delusion of the funding system will then be proved. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 An eminent Member of Parliament.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I have said in the foregoing paragraph that there is not gold and silver + enough in the nation to pay the taxes in coin, and consequently that there + cannot be enough in the bank to pay the notes. As I do not choose to rest + anything upon assertion, I appeal for the truth of this to the + publications of Mr. Eden (now called Lord Auckland) and George Chalmers, + Secretary to the Board of Trade and Plantation, of which Jenkinson (now + Lord Hawkesbury) is president.(1) (These sort of folks change their names + so often that it is as difficult to know them as it is to know a thief.) + Chalmers gives the quantity of gold and silver coin from the returns of + coinage at the Mint; and after deducting for the light gold recoined, says + that the amount of gold and silver coined is about twenty millions. He had + better not have proved this, especially if he had reflected that <i>public + credit is suspicion asleep</i>. The quantity is much too little. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Concerning Chalmers and Hawkesbury see vol. ii., p. 533. + Also, preface to my "Life of Paine", xvi., and other + passages.—-<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Of this twenty millions (which is not a fourth part of the quantity of + gold and silver there is in France, as is shown in Mr. Neckar's Treatise + on the Administration of the Finances) three millions at least must be + supposed to be in Ireland, some in Scotland, and in the West Indies, + Newfoundland, &c. The quantity therefore in England cannot be more + than sixteen millions, which is four millions less than the amount of the + taxes. But admitting that there are sixteen millions, not more than a + fourth part thereof (four millions) can be in London, when it is + considered that every city, town, village, and farm-house in the nation + must have a part of it, and that all the great manufactories, which most + require cash, are out of London. Of this four millions in London, every + banker, merchant, tradesman, in short every individual, must have some. He + must be a poor shopkeeper indeed, who has not a few guineas in his till. + The quantity of cash therefore in the bank can never, on the evidence of + circumstances, be so much as two millions; most probably not more than one + million; and on this slender twig, always liable to be broken, hangs the + whole funding system of four hundred millions, besides many millions in + bank notes. The sum in the bank is not sufficient to pay one-fourth of + only one year's interest of the national debt, were the creditors to + demand payment in cash, or demand cash for the bank notes in which the + interest is paid, a circumstance always liable to happen. + </p> + <p> + One of the amusements that has kept up the farce of the funding system is, + that the interest is regularly paid. But as the interest is always paid in + bank notes, and as bank notes can always be coined for the purpose, this + mode of payment proves nothing. The point of proof is, can the bank give + cash for the bank notes with which the interest is paid? If it cannot, and + it is evident it cannot, some millions of bank notes must go without + payment, and those holders of bank notes who apply last will be worst off. + When the present quantity of cash in the bank is paid away, it is next to + impossible to see how any new quantity is to arrive. None will arrive from + taxes, for the taxes will all be paid in bank notes; and should the + government refuse bank notes in payment of taxes, the credit of bank notes + will be gone at once. No cash will arise from the business of discounting + merchants' bills; for every merchant will pay off those bills in bank + notes, and not in cash. There is therefore no means left for the bank to + obtain a new supply of cash, after the present quantity is paid away. But + besides the impossibility of paying the interest of the funded debt in + cash, there are many thousand persons, in London and in the country, who + are holders of bank notes that came into their hands in the fair way of + trade, and who are not stockholders in the funds; and as such persons have + had no hand in increasing the demand upon the bank, as those have had who + for their own private interest, like Boyd and others, are contracting or + pretending to contract for new loans, they will conceive they have a just + right that their bank notes should be paid first. Boyd has been very sly + in France, in changing his paper into cash. He will be just as sly in + doing the same thing in London, for he has learned to calculate; and then + it is probable he will set off for America. + </p> + <p> + A stoppage of payment at the bank is not a new thing. Smith in his Wealth + of Nations, book ii. chap. 2, says, that in the year 1696, exchequer bills + fell forty, fifty, and sixty per cent; bank notes twenty per cent; and the + bank stopped payment. That which happened in 1696 may happen again in + 1796. The period in which it happened was the last year of the war of King + William. It necessarily put a stop to the further emissions of exchequer + and navy bills, and to the raising of new loans; and the peace which took + place the next year was probably hurried on by this circumstance, and + saved the bank from bankruptcy. Smith in speaking from the circumstances + of the bank, upon another occasion, says (book ii. chap. 2.) "This great + company had been reduced to the necessity of paying in sixpences." When a + bank adopts the expedient of paying in sixpences, it is a confession of + insolvency. + </p> + <p> + It is worthy of observation, that every case of failure in finances, since + the system of paper began, has produced a revolution in governments, + either total or partial. A failure in the finances of France produced the + French revolution. A failure in the finance of the assignats broke up the + revolutionary government, and produced the present French Constitution. A + failure in the finances of the Old Congress of America, and the + embarrassments it brought upon commerce, broke up the system of the old + confederation, and produced the federal Constitution. If, then, we admit + of reasoning by comparison of causes and events, the failure of the + English finances will produce some change in the government of that + country. + </p> + <p> + As to Mr. Pitt's project of paying off the national debt by applying a + million a-year for that purpose, while he continues adding more than + twenty millions a-year to it, it is like setting a man with a wooden leg + to run after a hare. The longer he runs the farther he is off. + </p> + <p> + When I said that the funding system had entered the last twenty years of + its existence, I certainly did not mean that it would continue twenty + years, and then expire as a lease would do. I meant to describe that age + of decrepitude in which death is every day to be expected, and life cannot + continue long. But the death of credit, or that state that is called + bankruptcy, is not always marked by those progressive stages of visible + decline that marked the decline of natural life. In the progression of + natural life age cannot counterfeit youth, nor conceal the departure of + juvenile abilities. But it is otherwise with respect to the death of + credit; for though all the approaches to bankruptcy may actually exist in + circumstances, they admit of being concealed by appearances. Nothing is + more common than to see the bankrupt of to-day a man in credit but the day + before; yet no sooner is the real state of his affairs known, than every + body can see he had been insolvent long before. In London, the greatest + theatre of bankruptcy in Europe, this part of the subject will be well and + feelingly understood. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Pitt continually talks of credit, and the national resources. These + are two of the feigned appearances by which the approaches to bankruptcy + are concealed. That which he calls credit may exist, as I have just shown, + in a state of insolvency, and is always what I have before described it to + be, <i>suspicion asleep</i>. + </p> + <p> + As to national resources, Mr. Pitt, like all English financiers that + preceded him since the funding system began, has uniformly mistaken the + nature of a resource; that is, they have mistaken it consistently with the + delusion of the funding system; but time is explaining the delusion. That + which he calls, and which they call, a resource, is not a resource, but is + the <i>anticipation</i> of a resource. They have anticipated what <i>would + have been</i> a resource in another generation, had not the use of it been + so anticipated. The funding system is a system of anticipation. Those who + established it an hundred years ago anticipated the resources of those who + were to live an hundred years after; for the people of the present day + have to pay the interest of the debts contracted at that time, and all + debts contracted since. But it is the last feather that breaks the horse's + back. Had the system begun an hundred years before, the amount of taxes at + this time to pay the annual interest at four per cent. (could we suppose + such a system of insanity could have continued) would be two hundred and + twenty millions annually: for the capital of the debt would be 5486 + millions, according to the ratio that ascertains the expense of the wars + for the hundred years that are past. But long before it could have reached + this period, the value of bank notes, from the immense quantity of them, + (for it is in paper only that such a nominal revenue could be collected,) + would have been as low or lower than continental paper has been in + America, or assignats in France; and as to the idea of exchanging them for + gold and silver, it is too absurd to be contradicted. + </p> + <p> + Do we not see that nature, in all her operations, disowns the visionary + basis upon which the funding system is built? She acts always by renewed + successions, and never by accumulating additions perpetually progressing. + Animals and vegetables, men and trees, have existed since the world began: + but that existence has been carried on by succession of generations, and + not by continuing the same men and the same trees in existence that + existed first; and to make room for the new she removes the old. Every + natural idiot can see this; it is the stock-jobbing idiot only that + mistakes. He has conceived that art can do what nature cannot. He is + teaching her a new system—that there is no occasion for man to die—that + the scheme of creation can be carried on upon the plan of the funding + system—that it can proceed by continual additions of new beings, + like new loans, and all live together in eternal youth. Go, count the + graves, thou idiot, and learn the folly of thy arithmetic! + </p> + <p> + But besides these things, there is something visibly farcical in the whole + operation of loaning. It is scarcely more than four years ago that such a + rot of bankruptcy spread itself over London, that the whole commercial + fabric tottered; trade and credit were at a stand; and such was the state + of things that, to prevent or suspend a general bankruptcy, the government + lent the merchants six millions in <i>government</i> paper, and now the + merchants lend the government twenty-two millions in <i>their</i> paper; + and two parties, Boyd and Morgan, men but little known, contend who shall + be the lenders. What a farce is this! It reduces the operation of loaning + to accommodation paper, in which the competitors contend, not who shall + lend, but who shall sign, because there is something to be got for + signing. + </p> + <p> + Every English stock-jobber and minister boasts of the credit of England. + Its credit, say they, is greater than that of any country in Europe. There + is a good reason for this: for there is not another country in Europe that + could be made the dupe of such a delusion. The English funding system will + remain a monument of wonder, not so much on account of the extent to which + it has been carried, as of the folly of believing in it. + </p> + <p> + Those who had formerly predicted that the funding system would break up + when the debt should amount to one hundred or one hundred and fifty + millions, erred only in not distinguishing between insolvency and actual + bankruptcy; for the insolvency commenced as soon as the government became + unable to pay the interest in cash, or to give cash for the bank notes in + which the interest was paid, whether that inability was known or not, or + whether it was suspected or not. Insolvency always takes place before + bankruptcy; for bankruptcy is nothing more than the publication of that + insolvency. In the affairs of an individual, it often happens that + insolvency exists several years before bankruptcy, and that the insolvency + is concealed and carried on till the individual is not able to pay one + shilling in the pound. A government can ward off bankruptcy longer than an + individual: but insolvency will inevitably produce bankruptcy, whether in + an individual or in a government. If then the quantity of bank notes + payable on demand, which the bank has issued, are greater than the bank + can pay off, the bank is insolvent: and when that insolvency is declared, + it is bankruptcy.(*) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * Among the delusions that have been imposed upon the + nation by ministers to give a false colouring to its + affairs, and by none more than by Mr. Pitt, is a motley, + amphibious-charactered thing called the <i>balance of trade</i>. + This balance of trade, as it is called, is taken from the + custom-house books, in which entries are made of all cargoes + exported, and also of all cargoes imported, in each year; + and when the value of the exports, according to the price + set upon them by the exporter or by the custom-house, is + greater than the value of the imports, estimated in the same + manner, they say the balance of trade is much in their + favour. + + The custom-house books prove regularly enough that so many + cargoes have been exported, and so many imported; but this + is all that they prove, or were intended to prove. They have + nothing to do with the balance of profit or loss; and it is + ignorance to appeal to them upon that account: for the case + is, that the greater the loss is in any one year, the higher + will this thing called the balance of trade appear to be + according to the custom-house books. For example, nearly the + whole of the Mediterranean convoy has been taken by the + French this year; consequently those cargoes will not + appear as imports on the custom-house books, and therefore + the balance of trade, by which they mean the profits of it, + will appear to be so much the greater as the loss amounts to; + and, on the other hand, had the loss not happened, the + profits would have appeared to have been so much the less. + All the losses happening at sea to returning cargoes, by + accidents, by the elements, or by capture, make the balance + appear the higher on the side of the exports; and were they + all lost at sea, it would appear to be all profit on the + custom-house books. Also every cargo of exports that is lost + that occasions another to be sent, adds in like manner to + the side of the exports, and appears as profit. This year + the balance of trade will appear high, because the losses + have been great by capture and by storms. The ignorance of + the British Parliament in listening to this hackneyed + imposition of ministers about the balance of trade is + astonishing. It shows how little they know of national + affairs—and Mr. Grey may as well talk Greek to them, as to + make motions about the state of the nation. They understand + only fox-hunting and the game laws,—<i>Author</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I come now to show the several ways by which bank notes get into + circulation: I shall afterwards offer an estimate on the total quantity or + amount of bank notes existing at this moment. + </p> + <p> + The bank acts in three capacities. As a bank of discount; as a bank of + deposit; and as a banker for the government. + </p> + <p> + First, as a bank of discount. The bank discounts merchants' bills of + exchange for two months. When a merchant has a bill that will become due + at the end of two months, and wants payment before that time, the bank + advances that payment to him, deducting therefrom at the rate of five per + cent, per annum. The bill of exchange remains at the bank as a pledge or + pawn, and at the end of two months it must be redeemed. This transaction + is done altogether in paper; for the profits of the bank, as a bank of + discount, arise entirely from its making use of paper as money. The bank + gives bank notes to the merchant in discounting the bill of exchange, and + the redeemer of the bill pays bank notes to the bank in redeeming it. It + very seldom happens that any real money passes between them. + </p> + <p> + If the profits of a bank be, for example, two hundred thousand pounds a + year (a great sum to be made merely by exchanging one sort of paper for + another, and which shows also that the merchants of that place are pressed + for money for payments, instead of having money to spare to lend to + government,) it proves that the bank discounts to the amount of four + millions annually, or 666,666L. every two months; and as there never + remain in the bank more than two months' pledges, of the value of + 666,666L., at any one time, the amount of bank notes in circulation at any + one time should not be more than to that amount. This is sufficient to + show that the present immense quantity of bank notes, which are + distributed through every city, town, village, and farm-house in England, + cannot be accounted for on the score of discounting. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, as a bank of deposit. To deposit money at the bank means to + lodge it there for the sake of convenience, and to be drawn out at any + moment the depositor pleases, or to be paid away to his order. When the + business of discounting is great, that of depositing is necessarily small. + No man deposits and applies for discounts at the same time; for it would + be like paying interest for lending money, instead of for borrowing it. + The deposits that are now made at the bank are almost entirely in bank + notes, and consequently they add nothing to the ability of the bank to pay + off the bank notes that may be presented for payment; and besides this, + the deposits are no more the property of the bank than the cash or bank + notes in a merchant's counting-house are the property of his book-keeper. + No great increase therefore of bank notes, beyond what the discounting + business admits, can be accounted for on the score of deposits. + </p> + <p> + Thirdly, the bank acts as banker for the government. This is the + connection that threatens to ruin every public bank. It is through this + connection that the credit of a bank is forced far beyond what it ought to + be, and still further beyond its ability to pay. It is through this + connection, that such an immense redundant quantity of bank notes, have + gotten into circulation; and which, instead of being issued because there + was property in the bank, have been issued because there was none. + </p> + <p> + When the treasury is empty, which happens in almost every year of every + war, its coffers at the bank are empty also. It is in this condition of + emptiness that the minister has recourse to emissions of what are called + exchequer and navy bills, which continually generates a new increase of + bank notes, and which are sported upon the public, without there being + property in the bank to pay them. These exchequer and navy bills (being, + as I have said, emitted because the treasury and its coffers at the bank + are empty, and cannot pay the demands that come in) are no other than an + acknowledgment that the bearer is entitled to receive so much money. They + may be compared to the settlement of an account, in which the debtor + acknowledges the balance he owes, and for which he gives a note of hand; + or to a note of hand given to raise money upon it. + </p> + <p> + Sometimes the bank discounts those bills as it would discount merchants' + bills of exchange; sometimes it purchases them of the holders at the + current price; and sometimes it agrees with the ministers to pay an + interest upon them to the holders, and keep them in circulation. In every + one of these cases an additional quantity of bank notes gets into + circulation, and are sported, as I have said, upon the public, without + there being property in the bank, as banker for the government, to pay + them; and besides this, the bank has now no money of its own; for the + money that was originally subscribed to begin the credit of the bank with, + at its first establishment, has been lent to government and wasted long + ago. + </p> + <p> + "The bank" (says Smith, book ii. chap. 2.) "acts not only as an ordinary + bank, but as a great engine of State; it receives and pays a greater part + of the annuities which are due to the creditors of the <i>public</i>." (It + is worth observing, that the <i>public</i>, or the <i>nation</i>, is + always put for the government, in speaking of debts.) "It circulates" + (says Smith) "exchequer bills, and it advances to government the annual + amount of the land and malt taxes, which are frequently not paid till + several years afterwards." (This advancement is also done in bank notes, + for which there is not property in the bank.) "In those different + operations" (says Smith) "<i>its duty to the public</i> may sometimes have + obliged it, without any fault of its directors, <i>to overstock the + circulation with paper money</i>."—bank notes. How its <i>duty</i> + to <i>the public</i> can induce it <i>to overstock that public</i> with + promissory bank notes which it <i>cannot pay</i>, and thereby expose the + individuals of that public to ruin, is too paradoxical to be explained; + for it is on the credit which individuals <i>give to the bank</i>, by + receiving and circulating its notes, and not upon its <i>own</i> credit or + its <i>own</i> property, for it has none, that the bank sports. If, + however, it be the duty of the bank to expose the public to this hazard, + it is at least equally the duty of the individuals of that public to get + their money and take care of themselves; and leave it to placemen, + pensioners, government contractors, Reeves' association, and the members + of both houses of Parliament, who have voted away the money at the nod of + the minister, to continue the credit if they can, and for which their + estates individually and collectively ought to answer, as far as they will + go. + </p> + <p> + There has always existed, and still exists, a mysterious, suspicious + connection, between the minister and the directors of the bank, and which + explains itself no otherways than by a continual increase in bank notes. + Without, therefore, entering into any further details of the various + contrivances by which bank notes are issued, and thrown upon the public, I + proceed, as I before mentioned, to offer an estimate on the total quantity + of bank notes in circulation. + </p> + <p> + However disposed governments may be to wring money by taxes from the + people, there is a limit to the practice established by the nature of + things. That limit is the proportion between the quantity of money in a + nation, be that quantity what it may, and the greatest quantity of taxes + that can be raised upon it. People have other uses for money besides + paying taxes; and it is only a proportional part of the money they can + spare for taxes, as it is only a proportional part they can spare for + house-rent, for clothing, or for any other particular use. These + proportions find out and establish themselves; and that with such + exactness, that if any one part exceeds its proportion, all the other + parts feel it. + </p> + <p> + Before the invention of paper money (bank notes,) there was no other money + in the nation than gold and silver, and the greatest quantity of money + that was ever raised in taxes during that period never exceeded a fourth + part of the quantity of money in the nation. It was high taxing when it + came to this point. The taxes in the time of William III. never reached to + four millions before the invention of paper, and the quantity of money in + the nation at that time was estimated to be about sixteen millions. The + same proportions established themselves in France. There was no paper + money in France before the present revolution, and the taxes were + collected in gold and silver money. The highest quantity of taxes never + exceeded twenty-two millions sterling; and the quantity of gold and silver + money in the nation at the same time, as stated by M. Neckar, from returns + of coinage at the Mint, in his Treatise on the Administration of the + Finances, was about ninety millions sterling. To go beyond this limit of a + fourth part, in England, they were obliged to introduce paper money; and + the attempt to go beyond it in France, where paper could not be + introduced, broke up the government. This proportion, therefore, of a + fourth part, is the limit which the thing establishes for itself, be the + quantity of money in a nation more or less. + </p> + <p> + The amount of taxes in England at this time is full twenty millions; and + therefore the quantity of gold and silver, and of bank notes, taken + together, amounts to eighty millions. The quantity of gold and silver, as + stated by Lord Hawkes-bury's Secretary, George Chalmers, as I have before + shown, is twenty millions; and, therefore, the total amount of bank notes + in circulation, all made payable on demand, is sixty millions. This + enormous sum will astonish the most stupid stock-jobber, and overpower the + credulity of the most thoughtless Englishman: but were it only a third + part of that sum, the bank cannot pay half a crown in the pound. + </p> + <p> + There is something curious in the movements of this modern complicated + machine, the funding system; and it is only now that it is beginning to + unfold the full extent of its movements. In the first part of its + movements it gives great powers into the hands of government, and in the + last part it takes them completely away. + </p> + <p> + The funding system set out with raising revenues under the name of loans, + by means of which government became both prodigal and powerful. The + loaners assumed the name of creditors, and though it was soon discovered + that loaning was government-jobbing, those pretended loaners, or the + persons who purchased into the funds afterwards, conceived themselves not + only to be creditors, but to be the <i>only</i> creditors. + </p> + <p> + But such has been the operation of this complicated machine, the funding + system, that it has produced, unperceived, a second generation of + creditors, more numerous and far more formidable and withal more real than + the first generation; for every holder of a bank note is a creditor, and a + real creditor, and the debt due to him is made payable on demand. The debt + therefore which the government owes to individuals is composed of two + parts; the one about four hundred millions bearing interest, the other + about sixty millions payable on demand. The one is called the funded debt, + the other is the debt due in bank notes. + </p> + <p> + The second debt (that contained in the bank notes) has, in a great + measure, been incurred to pay the interest of the first debt; so that in + fact little or no real interest has been paid by government. The whole has + been delusion and fraud. Government first contracted a debt, in the form + of loans, with one class of people, and then run clandestinely into debt + with another class, by means of bank notes, to pay the interest. + Government acted of itself in contracting the first debt, and made a + machine of the bank to contract the second. It is this second debt that + changes the seat of power and the order of things; for it puts it in the + power of even a small part of the holders of bank notes (had they no other + motives than disgust at Pitt and Grenville's sedition bills,) to control + any measure of government they found to be injurious to their interest; + and that not by popular meetings, or popular societies, but by the simple + and easy opera-tion of withholding their credit from that government; that + is, by individually demanding payment at the bank for every bank note that + comes into their hands. Why should Pitt and Grenville expect that the very + men whom they insult and injure, should, at the same time, continue to + support the measures of Pitt and Grenville, by giving credit to their + promissory notes of payment? No new emissions of bank notes could go on + while payment was demanding on the old, and the cash in the bank wasting + daily away; nor any new advances be made to government, or to the emperor, + to carry on the war; nor any new emission be made on exchequer bills. + </p> + <p> + "<i>The bank</i>" says Smith, (book ii. chap. 2) "<i>is a great engine of + state</i>." And in the same paragraph he says, "<i>The stability of the + bank is equal to that of the British government</i>;" which is the same as + to say that the stability of the government is equal to that of the bank, + and no more. If then the bank cannot pay, the <i>arch-treasurer</i> of the + holy Roman empire (S. R. I. A.*) is a bankrupt. When Folly invented + titles, she did not attend to their application; forever since the + government of England has been in the hands of <i>arch-treasurers</i>, it + has been running into bankruptcy; and as to the arch-treasurer <i>apparent</i>, + he has been a bankrupt long ago. What a miserable prospect has England + before its eyes! + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * Put of the inscription on an English guinea.—<i>Author</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Before the war of 1755 there were no bank notes lower than twenty pounds. + During that war, bank notes of fifteen pounds and of ten pounds were + coined; and now, since the commencement of the present war, they are + coined as low as five pounds. These five-pound notes will circulate + chiefly among little shop-keepers, butchers, bakers, market-people, + renters of small houses, lodgers, &c. All the high departments of + commerce and the affluent stations of life were already <i>overstocked</i>, + as Smith expresses it, with the bank notes. No place remained open wherein + to crowd an additional quantity of bank notes but among the class of + people I have just mentioned, and the means of doing this could be best + effected by coining five-pound notes. This conduct has the appearance of + that of an unprincipled insolvent, who, when on the verge of bankruptcy to + the amount of many thousands, will borrow as low as five pounds of the + servants in his house, and break the next day. + </p> + <p> + But whatever momentary relief or aid the minister and his bank might + expect from this low contrivance of five-pound notes, it will increase the + inability of the bank to pay the higher notes, and hasten the destruction + of all; for even the small taxes that used to be paid in money will now be + paid in those notes, and the bank will soon find itself with scarcely any + other money than what the hair-powder guinea-tax brings in. + </p> + <p> + The bank notes make the most serious part of the business of finance: what + is called the national funded debt is but a trifle when put in comparison + with it; yet the case of the bank notes has never been touched upon. But + it certainly ought to be known upon what authority, whether that of the + minister or of the directors, and upon what foundation, such immense + quantities are issued. I have stated the amount of them at sixty millions; + I have produced data for that estimation; and besides this, the apparent + quantity of them, far beyond that of gold and silver in the nation, + corroborates the statement. But were there but a third part of sixty + millions, the bank cannot pay half a crown in the pound; for no new supply + of money, as before said, can arrive at the bank, as all the taxes will be + paid in paper. + </p> + <p> + When the funding system began, it was not doubted that the loans that had + been borrowed would be repaid. Government not only propagated that belief, + but it began paying them off. In time this profession came to be + abandoned: and it is not difficult to see that bank notes will march the + same way; for the amount of them is only another debt under another name; + and the probability is that Mr. Pitt will at last propose funding them. In + that case bank notes will not be so valuable as French assignats. The + assignats have a solid property in reserve, in the national domains; bank + notes have none; and, besides this, the English revenue must then sink + down to what the amount of it was before the funding system began—between + three and four millions; one of which the <i>arch-treasurer</i> would + require for himself, and the arch-treasurer <i>apparent</i> would require + three-quarters of a million more to pay his debts. "<i>In France</i>," + says Sterne, "<i>they order these things better</i>." + </p> + <p> + I have now exposed the English system of finance to the eyes of all + nations; for this work will be published in all languages. In doing this, + I have done an act of justice to those numerous citizens of neutral + nations who have been imposed upon by that fraudulent system, and who have + property at stake upon the event. + </p> + <p> + As an individual citizen of America, and as far as an individual can go, I + have revenged (if I may use the expression without any immoral meaning) + the piratical depredations committed on the American commerce by the + English government. I have retaliated for France on the subject of + finance: and I conclude with retorting on Mr. Pitt the expression he used + against France, and say, that the English system of finance "is on the + verge, nay even in the + </p> + <p> + GULPH OF BANKRUPTCY." + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + PARIS, 19th Germinal. 4th year of the Republic, April 8, 1796. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0028" id="link2H_4_0028"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXVII. FORGETFULNESS.(1) + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This undated composition, of much biographical interest, + was shown by Paine to Henry Redhead Yorke, who visited him + in Paris (1802), and was allowed to copy the only portions + now preserved. In the last of Yorke's Letters from France + (Lond., 1814), thirty-three pages are given to Paine. Under + the name "Little Corner of the World," Lady Smyth wrote + cheering letters to Paine in his prison, and he replied to + his then unknown correspondent under the name of "The Castle + in die Air." After his release he discovered in his + correspondent a lady who had appealed to him for assistance, + no doubt for her husband. With Sir Robert (an English banker + in Paris) and Lady Smyth, Paine formed a fast friendship + which continued through life. Sir Robert was born in 1744, + and married (1776) a Miss Blake of Hanover Square, London. + He died in 1802 of illness brought on by his imprisonment + under Napoleon. Several of Paine's poems were addressed to + Lady Smyth.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + FROM "THE CASTLE IN THE AIR," TO THE "LITTLE CORNER OF THE WORLD." + </p> + <p> + Memory, like a beauty that is always present to hear her-self flattered, + is flattered by every one. But the absent and silent goddess, + Forgetfulness, has no votaries, and is never thought of: yet we owe her + much. She is the goddess of ease, though not of pleasure. + </p> + <p> + When the mind is like a room hung with black, and every corner of it + crowded with the most horrid images imagination can create, this kind + speechless goddess of a maid, Forgetfulness, is following us night and day + with her opium wand, and gently touching first one, and then another, + benumbs them into rest, and at last glides them away with the silence of a + departing shadow. It is thus the tortured mind is restored to the calm + condition of ease, and fitted for happiness. + </p> + <p> + How dismal must the picture of life appear to the mind in that dreadful + moment when it resolves on darkness, and to die! One can scarcely believe + such a choice was possible. Yet how many of the young and beautiful, timid + in every thing else, and formed for delight, have shut their eyes upon the + world, and made the waters their sepulchral bed! Ah, would they in that + crisis, when life and death are before them, and each within their reach, + would they but think, or try to think, that Forgetfulness will come to + their relief, and lull them into ease, they could stay their hand, and lay + hold of life. But there is a necromancy in wretchedness that entombs the + mind, and increases the misery, by shutting out every ray of light and + hope. It makes the wretched falsely believe they will be wretched ever. It + is the most fatal of all dangerous delusions; and it is only when this + necromantic night-mare of the mind begins to vanish, by being resisted, + that it is discovered to be but a tyrannic spectre. All grief, like all + things else, will yield to the obliterating power of time. While despair + is preying on the mind, time and its effects are preying on despair; and + certain it is, the dismal vision will fade away, and Forgetfulness, with + her sister Ease, will change the scene. Then let not the wretched be rash, + but wait, painful as the struggle may be, the arrival of Forgetfulness; + for it will certainly arrive. + </p> + <p> + I have twice been present at the scene of attempted suicide. The one a + love-distracted girl in England, the other of a patriotic friend in + France; and as the circumstances of each are strongly pictured in my + memory, I will relate them to you. They will in some measure corroborate + what I have said of Forgetfulness. + </p> + <p> + About the year 1766, I was in Lincolnshire, in England, and on a visit at + the house of a widow lady, Mrs. E____, at a small village in the fens of + that county. It was in summer; and one evening after supper, Mrs. E____ + and myself went to take a turn in the garden. It was about eleven o'clock, + and to avoid the night air of the fens, we were walking in a bower, shaded + over with hazel bushes. On a sudden, she screamed out, and cried "Lord, + look, look!" I cast my eyes through the openings of the hazel bushes in + the direction she was looking, and saw a white shapeless figure, without + head or arms, moving along one of the walks at some distance from us. I + quitted Mrs. E______, and went after it. When I got into the walk where + the figure was, and was following it, it took up another walk. There was a + holly bush in the corner of the two walks, which, it being night, I did + not observe; and as I continued to step forward, the holly bush came in a + straight line between me and the figure, and I lost sight of it; and as I + passed along one walk, and the figure the other, the holly bush still + continued to intercept the view, so as to give the appearance that the + figure had vanished. When I came to the corner of the two walks, I caught + sight of it again, and coming up with it, I reached out my hand to touch + it; and in the act of doing this, the idea struck me, will my hand pass + through the air, or shall I feel any thing? Less than a moment would + decide this, and my hand rested on the shoulder of a human figure. I + spoke, but do not recollect what I said. It answered in a low voice, "Pray + let me alone." I then knew who it was. It was a young lady who was on a + visit to Mrs. E———, and who, when we sat down to supper, + said she found herself extremely ill, and would go to bed. I called to + Mrs. E———, who came, and I said to her, "It is Miss N———." + Mrs. E——— said, "My God, I hope you are not going to do + yourself any hurt;" for Mrs. E——— suspected something. + She replied with pathetic melancholy, "Life has not one pleasure for me." + We got her into the house, and Mrs. E——— took her to + sleep with her. + </p> + <p> + The case was, the man to whom she expected to be married had forsaken her, + and when she heard he was to be married to another the shock appeared to + her to be too great to be borne. She had retired, as I have said, to her + room, and when she supposed all the family were gone to bed, (which would + have been the case if Mrs. E——— and I had not walked + into the garden,) she undressed herself, and tied her apron over her head; + which, descending below her waist, gave her the shapeless figure I have + spoken of. With this and a white under petticoat and slippers, for she had + taken out her buckles and put them at the servant maid's door, I suppose + as a keepsake, and aided by the obscurity of almost midnight, she came + down stairs, and was going to drown her-self in a pond at the bottom of + the garden, towards which she was going when Mrs. E———screamed + out. We found afterwards that she had heard the scream, and that was the + cause of her changing her walk. + </p> + <p> + By gentle usage, and leading her into subjects that might, without doing + violence to her feelings, and without letting her see the direct intention + of it, steal her as it were from the horror she was in, (and I felt a + compassionate, earnest disposition to do it, for she was a good girl,) she + recovered her former cheerfulness, and was afterwards a happy wife, and + the mother of a family. + </p> + <p> + The other case, and the conclusion in my next: In Paris, in 1793, had + lodgings in the Rue Fauxbourg, St. Denis, No. 63.(1) They were the most + agreeable, for situation, of any I ever had in Paris, except that they + were too remote from the Convention, of which I was then a member. But + this was recompensed by their being also remote from the alarms and + confusion into which the interior of Paris was then often thrown. The news + of those things used to arrive to us, as if we were in a state of + tranquility in the country. The house, which was enclosed by a wall and + gateway from the street, was a good deal like an old mansion farm house, + and the court yard was like a farm-yard, stocked with fowls, ducks, + turkies, and geese; which, for amusement, we used to feed out of the + parlour window on the ground floor. There were some hutches for rabbits, + and a sty with two pigs. Beyond, was a garden of more than an acre of + ground, well laid out, and stocked with excellent fruit trees. The orange, + apricot, and green-gage plum, were the best I ever tasted; and it is the + only place where I saw the wild cucumber. The place had formerly been + occupied by some curious person.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This ancient mansion is still standing (1895).—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Madame de Pompadour, among others.—<i>Editor.</i>» +</pre> + <p> + My apartments consisted of three rooms; the first for wood, water, etc., + with an old fashioned closet chest, high enough to hang up clothes in; the + next was the bed room; and beyond it the sitting room, which looked into + the garden through a glass door; and on the outside there was a small + landing place railed in, and a flight of narrow stairs almost hidden by + the vines that grew over it, by which I could descend into the garden, + without going down stairs through the house. I am trying by description to + make you see the place in your mind, because it will assist the story I + have to tell; and which I think you can do, because you once called upon + me there on account of Sir [Robert Smyth], who was then, as I was soon + afterwards, in arrestation. But it was winter when you came, and it is a + summer scene I am describing. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + I went into my chambers to write and sign a certificate for them, which I + intended to take to the guard house to obtain their release. Just as I had + finished it a man came into my room dressed in the Parisian uniform of a + captain, and spoke to me in good English, and with a good address. He told + me that two young men, Englishmen, were arrested and detained in the guard + house, and that the section, (meaning those who represented and acted for + the section,) had sent him to ask me if I knew them, in which case they + would be liberated. This matter being soon settled between us, he talked + to me about the Revolution, and something about the "Rights of Man," which + he had read in English; and at parting offered me in a polite and civil + manner, his services. And who do you think the man was that offered me his + services? It was no other than the public executioner Samson, who + guillotined the king, and all who were guillotined in Paris; and who lived + in the same section, and in the same street with me. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + As to myself, I used to find some relief by walking alone in the garden + after dark, and cursing with hearty good will the authors of that terrible + system that had turned the character of the Revolution I had been proud to + defend. + </p> + <p> + I went but little to the Convention, and then only to make my appearance; + because I found it impossible to join in their tremendous decrees, and + useless and dangerous to oppose them. My having voted and spoken + extensively, more so than any other member, against the execution of the + king, had already fixed a mark upon me: neither dared any of my associates + in the Convention to translate and speak in French for me anything I might + have dared to have written. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + Pen and ink were then of no use to me: no good could be done by writing, + and no printer dared to print; and whatever I might have written for my + private amusement, as anecdotes of the times, would have been continually + exposed to be examined, and tortured into any meaning that the rage of + party might fix upon it; and as to softer subjects, my heart was in + distress at the fate of my friends, and my harp hung upon the weeping + willows.(1) + </p> + <p> + As it was summer we spent most of our time in the garden, and passed it + away in those childish amusements that serve to keep reflection from the + mind, such as marbles, scotch-hops, battledores, etc., at which we were + all pretty expert. + </p> + <p> + In this retired manner we remained about six or seven weeks, and our + landlord went every evening into the city to bring us the news of the day + and the evening journal. + </p> + <p> + I have now, my "Little Corner of the World," led you on, step by step, to + the scene that makes the sequel to this narrative, and I will put that + scene before your eyes. You shall see it in description as I saw it in + fact. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This allusion is to the Girondins.—<i>Editor.</i>, + + 2 Yorke omits the description "from motives of personal + delicacy." The case was that of young Johnson, a wealthy + devotee of Paine in London, who had followed him to Paris + and lived in the same house with him. Hearing that Marat had + resolved on Paine's death, Johnson wrote a will bequeathing + his property to Paine, then stabbed himself, but recovered. + Paine was examined about this incident at Marat's trial. + (Moniteur, April 24, 1793.) See my "Life of Paine," vol. + ii., p. 48 seq.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <hr /> + <p> + He recovered, and being anxious to get out of France, a passage was + obtained for him and Mr. Choppin: they received it late in the evening, + and set off the next morning for Basle before four, from which place I had + a letter from them, highly pleased with their escape from France, into + which they had entered with an enthusiasm of patriotic devotion. Ah, + France! thou hast ruined the character of a Revolution virtuously begun, + and destroyed those who produced it. I might almost say like Job's + servant, "and I only am escaped." + </p> + <p> + Two days after they were gone I heard a rapping at the gate, and looking + out of the window of the bed room I saw the landlord going with the candle + to the gate, which he opened, and a guard with musquets and fixed bayonets + entered. I went to bed again, and made up my mind for prison, for I was + then the only lodger. It was a guard to take up [Johnson and Choppin], + but, I thank God, they were out of their reach. + </p> + <p> + The guard came about a month after in the night, and took away the + landlord Georgeit; and the scene in the house finished with the + arrestation of myself. This was soon after you called on me, and sorry I + was it was not in my power to render to [Sir Robert Smyth] the service + that you asked. + </p> + <p> + I have now fulfilled my engagement, and I hope your expectation, in + relating the case of [Johnson], landed back on the shore of life, by the + mistake of the pilot who was conducting him out; and preserved afterwards + from prison, perhaps a worse fate, without knowing it himself. + </p> + <p> + You say a story cannot be too melancholy for you. This is interesting and + affecting, but not melancholy. It may raise in your mind a sympathetic + sentiment in reading it; and though it may start a tear of pity, you will + not have a tear of sorrow to drop on the page. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + Here, my contemplative correspondent, let us stop and look back upon the + scene. The matters here related being all facts, are strongly pictured in + my mind, and in this sense Forgetfulness does not apply. But facts and + feelings are distinct things, and it is against feelings that the opium + wand of Forgetfulness draws us into ease. Look back on any scene or + subject that once gave you distress, for all of us have felt some, and you + will find, that though the remembrance of the fact is not extinct in your + memory, the feeling is extinct in your mind. You can remember when you had + felt distress, but you cannot feel that distress again, and perhaps will + wonder you felt it then. It is like a shadow that loses itself by light. + </p> + <p> + It is often difficult to know what is a misfortune: that which we feel as + a great one today, may be the means of turning aside our steps into some + new path that leads to happiness yet unknown. In tracing the scenes of my + own life, I can discover that the condition I now enjoy, which is sweet to + me, and will be more so when I get to America, except by the loss of your + society, has been produced, in the first instance, in my being + disappointed in former projects. Under that impenetrable veil, futurity, + we know not what is concealed, and the day to arrive is hidden from us. + Turning then our thoughts to those cases of despair that lead to suicide, + when, "the mind," as you say, "neither sees nor hears, and holds counsel + only with itself; when the very idea of consolation would add to the + torture, and self-destruction is its only aim," what, it may be asked, is + the best advice, what the best relief? I answer, seek it not in reason, + for the mind is at war with reason, and to reason against feelings is as + vain as to reason against fire: it serves only to torture the torture, by + adding reproach to horror. All reasoning with ourselves in such cases acts + upon us like the reason of another person, which, however kindly done, + serves but to insult the misery we suffer. If reason could remove the + pain, reason would have prevented it. If she could not do the one, how is + she to perform the other? In all such cases we must look upon Reason as + dispossessed of her empire, by a revolt of the mind. She retires herself + to a distance to weep, and the ebony sceptre of Despair rules alone. All + that Reason can do is to suggest, to hint a thought, to signify a wish, to + cast now and then a kind of bewailing look, to hold up, when she can catch + the eye, the miniature-shaded portrait of Hope; and though dethroned, and + can dictate no more, to wait upon us in the humble station of a handmaid. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0029" id="link2H_4_0029"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXVIII. AGRARIAN JUSTICE. + </h2> + <h3> + Editor's introduction: + </h3> + <p> + This pamphlet appeared first in Paris, 1797, with the title: "Thomas Payne + à La Législature et au Directoire. Ou la Justice Agraire opposée à la Loi + Agraire, et aux privilèges agraires. Prix 15 sols. À Paris, chez la + citoyenne Ragouleau, près le Théâtre de la République, No. 229. Et chez + les Marchands de Nouveautés." A prefatory note says (translated): "The + sudden departure of Thomas Paine has pre-vented his supervising the + translation of this work, to which he attached great value. He entrusted + it to a friend. It is for the reader to decide whether the scheme here set + forth is worthy of the publicity given it." (Paine had gone to Havre early + in May with the Monroes, intending to accompany them to America, but, + rightly suspecting plans for his capture by an English cruiser, returned + to Paris.) In the same year the pamphlet was printed in English, by W. + Adlard in Paris, and in London for "T. Williams, No. 8 Little Turnstile, + Holborn." Paine's preface to the London edition contained some sentences + which the publishers, as will be seen, suppressed under asterisks, and two + sentences were omitted from the pamphlet which I have supplied from the + French. The English title adds a brief resume of Paine's scheme to the + caption—"Agrarian Justice opposed to Agrarian Law, and to Agrarian + Monopoly." The work was written in the winter of 1795-6, when Paine was + still an invalid in Monroe's house, though not published until 1797. + </p> + <p> + The prefatory Letter to the Legislature and the Directory, now for the + first time printed in English, is of much historical interest, and shows + the title of the pamphlet related to the rise of Socialism in France. The + leader of that move-ment, François Noel Babeuf, a frantic and pathetic + figure of the time, had just been executed. He had named himself + "Gracchus," and called his journal "Tribune du Peuple," in homage to the + Roman Tribune, Caius Gracchus, the original socialist and agrarian, whose + fate (suicide of himself and his servant) Babeuf and his disciple Darthé + invoked in prison, whence they were carried bleeding to the guillotine. + This, however, was on account of the conspiracy they had formed, with the + remains of the Robespierrian party and some disguised royalists, to + overthrow the government. The socialistic propaganda of Babeuf, however, + prevailed over all other elements of the conspiracy: the reactionary + features of the Constitution, especially the property qualification of + suffrage of whose effects Paine had warned the Convention in the speech + printed in this volume, (chapter xxv.) and the poverty which survived a + revolution that promised its abolition, had excited wide discontent. The + "Babouvists" numbered as many as 17,000 in Paris. Babeuf and Lepelletier + were appointed by the secret council of this fraternity (which took the + name of "Equals") a "Directory of Public Safety." May 11, 1796, was fixed + for seizing on the government, and Babeuf had prepared his Proclamation of + the socialistic millennium. But the plot was discovered, May 10th, the + leaders arrested, and, after a year's delay, two of them executed,—the + best-hearted men in the movement, Babeuf and Darthé. Paine too had been + moved by the cry for "Bread, and the Constitution of '93 "; and it is a + notable coincidence that in that winter of 1795-6, while the socialists + were secretly plotting to seize the kingdom of heaven by violence, Paine + was devising his plan of relief by taxing inheritances of land, + anticipating by a hundred years the English budget of Sir William + Harcourt. Babeuf having failed in his socialist, and Pichegru in his + royalist, plot, their blows were yet fatal: there still remained in the + hearts of millions a Babeuf or a Pichegru awaiting the chieftain strong + enough to combine them, as Napoleon presently did, making all the nation + "Égaux" as parts of a mighty military engine, and satisfying the royalist + triflers with the pomp and glory of war. + </p> + <p> + AUTHOR'S INSCRIPTION. + </p> + <p> + To the Legislature and the Executive Directory of the French Republic. + </p> + <p> + The plan contained in this work is not adapted for any particular country + alone: the principle on which it is based is general. But as the rights of + man are a new study in this world, and one needing protection from + priestly imposture, and the insolence of oppressions too long established, + I have thought it right to place this little work under your safeguard. + When we reflect on the long and dense night in which France and all Europe + have remained plunged by their governments and their priests, we must feel + less surprise than grief at the bewilderment caused by the first burst of + light that dispels the darkness. The eye accustomed to darkness can hardly + bear at first the broad daylight. It is by usage the eye learns to see, + and it is the same in passing from any situation to its opposite. + </p> + <p> + As we have not at one instant renounced all our errors, we cannot at one + stroke acquire knowledge of all our rights. France has had the honour of + adding to the word <i>Liberty</i> that of <i>Equality</i>; and this word + signifies essentially a principal that admits of no gradation in the + things to which it applies. But equality is often misunderstood, often + misapplied, and often violated. + </p> + <p> + <i>Liberty</i> and <i>Property</i> are words expressing all those of our + possessions which are not of an intellectual nature. There are two kinds + of property. Firstly, natural property, or that which comes to us from the + Creator of the universe,—such as the earth, air, water. Secondly, + artificial or acquired property,—the invention of men. In the latter + equality is impossible; for to distribute it equally it would be necessary + that all should have contributed in the same proportion, which can never + be the case; and this being the case, every individual would hold on to + his own property, as his right share. Equality of natural property is the + subject of this little essay. Every individual in the world is born + therein with legitimate claims on a certain kind of property, or its + equivalent. + </p> + <p> + The right of voting for persons charged with the execution of the laws + that govern society is inherent in the word Liberty, and constitutes the + equality of personal rights. But even if that right (of voting) were + inherent in property, which I deny, the right of suffrage would still + belong to all equally, because, as I have said, all individuals have + legitimate birthrights in a certain species of property. + </p> + <p> + I have always considered the present Constitution of the French Republic + the <i>best organized system</i> the human mind has yet produced. But I + hope my former colleagues will not be offended if I warn them of an error + which has slipped into its principle. Equality of the right of suffrage is + not maintained. This right is in it connected with a condition on which it + ought not to depend; that is, with a proportion of a certain tax called + "direct." The dignity of suffrage is thus lowered; and, in placing it in + the scale with an inferior thing, the enthusiasm that right is capable of + inspiring is diminished. It is impossible to find any equivalent + counterpoise for the right of suffrage, because it is alone worthy to be + its own basis, and cannot thrive as a graft, or an appendage. + </p> + <p> + Since the Constitution was established we have seen two conspiracies + stranded,—that of Babeuf, and that of some obscure personages who + decorate themselves with the despicable name of "royalists." The defect in + principle of the Constitution was the origin of Babeuf's conspiracy. He + availed himself of the resentment caused by this flaw, and instead of + seeking a remedy by legitimate and constitutional means, or proposing some + measure useful to society, the conspirators did their best to renew + disorder and confusion, and constituted themselves personally into a + Directory, which is formally destructive of election and representation. + They were, in fine, extravagant enough to suppose that society, occupied + with its domestic affairs, would blindly yield to them a directorship + usurped by violence. + </p> + <p> + The conspiracy of Babeuf was followed in a few months by that of the + royalists, who foolishly flattered themselves with the notion of doing + great things by feeble or foul means. They counted on all the + discontented, from whatever cause, and tried to rouse, in their turn, the + class of people who had been following the others. But these new chiefs + acted as if they thought society had nothing more at heart than to + maintain courtiers, pensioners, and all their train, under the + contemptible title of royalty. My little essay will disabuse them, by + showing that society is aiming at a very different end,—maintaining + itself. + </p> + <p> + We all know or should know, that the time during which a revolution is + proceeding is not the time when its resulting advantages can be enjoyed. + But had Babeuf and his accomplices taken into consideration the condition + of France under this constitution, and compared it with what it was under + the tragical revolutionary government, and during the execrable reign of + Terror, the rapidity of the alteration must have appeared to them very + striking and astonishing. Famine has been replaced by abundance, and by + the well-founded hope of a near and increasing prosperity. + </p> + <p> + As for the defect in the Constitution, I am fully convinced that it will + be rectified constitutionally, and that this step is indispensable; for so + long as it continues it will inspire the hopes and furnish the means of + conspirators; and for the rest, it is regrettable that a Constitution so + wisely organized should err so much in its principle. This fault exposes + it to other dangers which will make themselves felt. Intriguing candidates + will go about among those who have not the means to pay the direct tax and + pay it for them, on condition of receiving their votes. Let us maintain + inviolably equality in the sacred right of suffrage: public security can + never have a basis more solid. Salut et Fraternité. + </p> + <p> + Your former colleague, + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + AUTHOR'S ENGLISH PREFACE. + </p> + <p> + The following little Piece was written in the winter of 1795 and 96; and, + as I had not determined whether to publish it during the present war, or + to wait till the commencement of a peace, it has lain by me, without + alteration or addition, from the time it was written. + </p> + <p> + What has determined me to publish it now is, a sermon preached by Watson, + <i>Bishop of Llandaff</i>. Some of my Readers will recollect, that this + Bishop wrote a Book entitled <i>An Apology for the Bible</i> in answer to + my <i>Second Part of the Age of Reason</i>. I procured a copy of his Book, + and he may depend upon hearing from me on that subject. + </p> + <p> + At the end of the Bishop's Book is a List of the Works he has written. + Among which is the sermon alluded to; it is entitled: "The Wisdom and + Goodness of God, in having made both Rich and Poor; with an Appendix, + containing Reflections on the Present State of England and France." + </p> + <p> + The error contained in this sermon determined me to publish my Agrarian + Justice. It is wrong to say God made <i>rich and poor</i>; he made only <i>male + and female</i>; and he gave them the earth for their inheritance. '... + </p> + <p> + Instead of preaching to encourage one part of mankind in insolence... it + would be better that Priests employed their time to render the general + condition of man less miserable than it is. Practical religion consists in + doing good: and the only way of serving God is, that of endeavouring to + make his creation happy. All preaching that has not this for its object is + nonsense and hypocracy. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The omissions are noted in the English edition of 1797.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + To preserve the benefits of what is called civilized life, and to remedy + at the same time the evil which it has produced, ought to be considered as + one of the first objects of reformed legislation. + </p> + <p> + Whether that state that is proudly, perhaps erroneously, called + civilization, has most promoted or most injured the general happiness of + man, is a question that may be strongly contested. On one side, the + spectator is dazzled by splendid appearances; on the other, he is shocked + by extremes of wretchedness; both of which it has erected. The most + affluent and the most miserable of the human race are to be found in the + countries that are called civilized. + </p> + <p> + To understand what the state of society ought to be, it is necessary to + have some idea of the natural and primitive state of man; such as it is at + this day among the Indians of North America. There is not, in that state, + any of those spectacles of human misery which poverty and want present to + our eyes in all the towns and streets in Europe. Poverty, therefore, is a + thing created by that which is called civilized life. It exists not in the + natural state. On the other hand, the natural state is without those + advantages which flow from agriculture, arts, science, and manufactures. + </p> + <p> + The life of an Indian is a continual holiday, compared with the poor of + Europe; and, on the other hand it appears to be abject when compared to + the rich. Civilization, therefore, or that which is so called, has + operated two ways: to make one part of society more affluent, and the + other more wretched, than would have been the lot of either in a natural + state. + </p> + <p> + It is always possible to go from the natural to the civilized state, but + it is never possible to go from the civilized to the natural state. The + reason is, that man in a natural state, subsisting by hunting, requires + ten times the quantity of land to range over to procure himself + sustenance, than would support him in a civilized state, where the earth + is cultivated. When, therefore, a country becomes populous by the + additional aids of cultivation, art, and science, there is a necessity of + preserving things in that state; because without it there cannot be + sustenance for more, perhaps, than a tenth part of its inhabitants. The + thing, therefore, now to be done is to remedy the evils and preserve the + benefits that have arisen to society by passing from the natural to that + which is called the civilized state. + </p> + <p> + In taking the matter upon this ground, the first principle of civilization + ought to have been, and ought still to be, that the condition of every + person born into the world, after a state of civilization commences, ought + not to be worse than if he had been born before that period. But the fact + is, that the condition of millions, in every country in Europe, is far + worse than if they had been born before civilization began, or had been + born among the Indians of North America at the present day. I will shew + how this fact has happened. + </p> + <p> + It is a position not to be controverted that the earth, in its natural + uncultivated state was, and ever would have continued to be, <i>the common + property of the human race</i>. In that state every man would have been + born to property. He would have been a joint life proprietor with the rest + in the property of the soil, and in all its natural productions, vegetable + and animal. + </p> + <p> + But the earth in its natural state, as before said, is capable of + supporting but a small number of inhabitants compared with what it is + capable of doing in a cultivated state. And as it is impossible to + separate the improvement made by cultivation from the earth itself, upon + which that improvement is made, the idea of landed property arose from + that inseparable connection; but it is nevertheless true, that it is the + value of the improvement only, and not the earth itself, that is + individual property. Every proprietor, therefore, of cultivated land, owes + to the community a <i>ground-rent</i> (for I know of no better term to + express the idea) for the land which he holds; and it is from this + ground-rent that the fund proposed in this plan is to issue. + </p> + <p> + It is deducible, as well from the nature of the thing as from all the + histories transmitted to us, that the idea of landed property commenced + with cultivation, and that there was no such thing as landed property + before that time. It could not exist in the first state of man, that of + hunters. It did not exist in the second state, that of shepherds: neither + Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, nor Job, so far as the history of the Bible may be + credited in probable things, were owners of land. Their property + consisted, as is always enumerated, in flocks and herds, and they + travelled with them from place to place. The frequent contentions at that + time, about the use of a well in the dry country of Arabia, where those + people lived, also shew that there was no landed property. It was not + admitted that land could be claimed as property. + </p> + <p> + There could be no such thing as landed property originally. Man did not + make the earth, and, though he had a natural right to occupy it, he had no + right to locate as his property in perpetuity any part of it; neither did + the creator of the earth open a land-office, from whence the first + title-deeds should issue. Whence then, arose the idea of landed property? + I answer as before, that when cultivation began the idea of landed + property began with it, from the impossibility of separating the + improvement made by cultivation from the earth itself, upon which that + improvement was made. The value of the improvement so far exceeded the + value of the natural earth, at that time, as to absorb it; till, in the + end, the common right of all became confounded into the cultivated right + of the individual. But there are, nevertheless, distinct species of + rights, and will continue to be so long as the earth endures. + </p> + <p> + It is only by tracing things to their origin that we can gain rightful + ideas of them, and it is by gaining such ideas that we discover the + boundary that divides right from wrong, and teaches every man to know his + own. I have entitled this tract Agrarian Justice, to distinguish it from + Agrarian Law. Nothing could be more unjust than Agrarian Law in a country + improved by cultivation; for though every man, as an inhabitant of the + earth, is a joint proprietor of it in its natural state, it does not + follow that he is a joint proprietor of cultivated earth. The additional + value made by cultivation, after the system was admitted, became the + property of those who did it, or who inherited it from them, or who + purchased it. It had originally no owner. Whilst, therefore, I advocate + the right, and interest myself in the hard case of all those who have been + thrown out of their natural inheritance by the introduction of the system + of landed property, I equally defend the right of the possessor to the + part which is his. + </p> + <p> + Cultivation is at least one of the greatest natural improvements ever made + by human invention. It has given to created earth a tenfold value. But the + landed monopoly that began with it has produced the greatest evil. It has + dispossessed more than half the inhabitants of every nation of their + natural inheritance, without providing for them, as ought to have been + done, an indemnification for that loss, and has thereby created a species + of poverty and wretchedness that did not exist before. + </p> + <p> + In advocating the case of the persons thus dispossessed, it is a right, + and not a charity, that I am pleading for. But it is that kind of right + which, being neglected at first, could not be brought forward afterwards + till heaven had opened the way by a revolution in the system of + government. Let us then do honour to revolutions by justice, and give + currency to their principles by blessings. + </p> + <p> + Having thus in a few words, opened the merits of the case, I shall now + proceed to the plan I have to propose, which is, + </p> + <p> + To create a National Fund, out of which there shall be paid to every + person, when arrived at the age of twenty-one years, the sum of fifteen + pounds sterling, as a compensation in part, for the loss of his or her + natural inheritance, by the introduction of the system of landed property: + </p> + <p> + And also, the sum of ten pounds per annum, during life, to every person + now living, of the age of fifty years, and to all others as they shall + arrive at that age. + </p> + <p> + MEANS BY WHICH THE FUND IS TO BE CREATED. + </p> + <p> + I have already established the principle, namely, that the earth, in its + natural uncultivated state was, and ever would have continued to be, the + <i>common property of the human race</i>; that in that state, every person + would have been born to property; and that the system of landed property, + by its inseparable connection with cultivation, and with what is called + civilized life, has absorbed the property of all those whom it + dispossessed, without providing, as ought to have been done, an + indemnification for that loss. + </p> + <p> + The fault, however, is not in the present possessors. No complaint is + intended, or ought to be alleged against them, unless they adopt the crime + by opposing justice. The fault is in the system, and it has stolen + imperceptibly upon the world, aided afterwards by the agrarian law of the + sword. But the fault can be made to reform itself by successive + generations; and without diminishing or deranging the property of any of + the present possessors, the operation of the fund can yet commence, and be + in full activity, the first year of its establishment, or soon after, as I + shall shew. + </p> + <p> + It is proposed that the payments, as already stated, be made to every + person, rich or poor. It is best to make it so, to prevent invidious + distinctions. It is also right it should be so, because it is in lieu of + the natural inheritance, which, as a right, belongs to every man, over and + above the property he may have created, or inherited from those who did. + Such persons as do not choose to receive it can throw it into the common + fund. + </p> + <p> + Taking it then for granted that no person ought to be in a worse condition + when born under what is called a state of civilization, than he would have + been had he been born in a state of nature, and that civilization ought to + have made, and ought still to make, provision for that purpose, it can + only be done by subtracting from property a portion equal in value to the + natural inheritance it has absorbed. + </p> + <p> + Various methods may be proposed for this purpose, but that which appears + to be the best (not only because it will operate without deranging any + present possessors, or without interfering with the collection of taxes or + emprunts necessary for the purposes of government and the revolution, but + because it will be the least troublesome and the most effectual, and also + because the subtraction will be made at a time that best admits it) is at + the moment that.. property is passing by the death of one person to the + possession of another. In this case, the bequeather gives nothing: the + receiver pays nothing. The only matter to him is, that the monopoly of + natural inheritance, to which there never was a right, begins to cease in + his person. A generous man would not wish it to continue, and a just man + will rejoice to see it abolished. + </p> + <p> + My state of health prevents my making sufficient inquiries with respect to + the doctrine of probabilities, whereon to found calculations with such + degrees of certainty as they are capable of. What, therefore, I offer on + this head is more the result of observation and reflection than of + received information; but I believe it will be found to agree sufficiently + with fact. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, taking twenty-one years as the epoch of maturity, all + the property of a nation, real and personal, is always in the possession + of persons above that age. It is then necessary to know, as a datum of + calculation, the average of years which persons above that age will live. + I take this average to be about thirty years, for though many persons will + live forty, fifty, or sixty years after the age of twenty-one years, + others will die much sooner, and some in every year of that time. + </p> + <p> + Taking, then, thirty years as the average of time, it will give, without + any material variation one way or other, the average of time in which the + whole property or capital of a nation, or a sum equal thereto, will have + passed through one entire revolution in descent, that is, will have gone + by deaths to new possessors; for though, in many instances, some parts of + this capital will remain forty, fifty, or sixty years in the possession of + one person, other parts will have revolved two or three times before those + thirty years expire, which will bring it to that average; for were one + half the capital of a nation to revolve twice in thirty years, it would + produce the same fund as if the whole revolved once. + </p> + <p> + Taking, then, thirty years as the average of time in which the whole + capital of a nation, or a sum equal thereto, will revolve once, the + thirtieth part thereof will be the sum that will revolve every year, that + is, will go by deaths to new possessors; and this last sum being thus + known, and the ratio per cent, to be subtracted from it determined, it + will give the annual amount or income of the proposed fund, to be applied + as already mentioned. + </p> + <p> + In looking over the discourse of the English minister, Pitt, in his + opening of what is called in England the budget, (the scheme of finance + for the year 1796,) I find an estimate of the national capital of that + country. As this estimate of a national capital is prepared ready to my + hand, I take it as a datum to act upon. When a calculation is made upon + the known capital of any nation, combined with its population, it will + serve as a scale for any other nation, in proportion as its capital and + population be more or less. I am the more disposed to take this estimate + of Mr. Pitt, for the purpose of showing to that minister, upon his own + calculation, how much better money may be employed than in wasting it, as + he has done, on the wild project of setting up Bourbon kings. What, in the + name of heaven, are Bourbon kings to the people of England? It is better + that the people have bread. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Pitt states the national capital of England, real and personal, to be + one thousand three hundred millions sterling, which is about one-fourth + part of the national capital of France, including Belgia. The event of the + last harvest in each country proves that the soil of France is more + productive than that of England, and that it can better support + twenty-four or twenty-five millions of inhabitants than that of England + can seven or seven and a half millions. + </p> + <p> + The thirtieth part of this capital of 1,300,000,000L. is 43,333,333L. + which is the part that will revolve every year by deaths in that country + to new possessors; and the sum that will annually revolve in France in the + proportion of four to one, will be about one hundred and seventy-three + millions sterling. From this sum of 43,333,333L. annually revolving, is to + be subtracted the value of the natural inheritance absorbed in it, which, + perhaps, in fair justice, cannot be taken at less, and ought not to be + taken for more, than a tenth part. + </p> + <p> + It will always happen, that of the property thus revolving by deaths every + year a part will descend in a direct line to sons and daughters, and the + other part collaterally, and the proportion will be found to be about + three to one; that is, about thirty millions of the above sum will descend + to direct heirs, and the remaining sum of 13,333,333L. to more distant + relations, and in part to strangers. + </p> + <p> + Considering, then, that man is always related to society, that + relationship will become comparatively greater in proportion as the next + of kin is more distant, it is therefore consistent with civilization to + say that where there are no direct heirs society shall be heir to a part + over and above the tenth part due to society. If this additional part be + from five to ten or twelve per cent., in proportion as the next of kin be + nearer or more remote, so as to average with the escheats that may fall, + which ought always to go to society and not to the government (an addition + of ten per cent, more), the produce from the annual sum of 43,333,333L. + will be: + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0005" id="linkimage-0005"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/table361.jpg" alt="Table361 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + Having thus arrived at the annual amount of the proposed fund, I come, in + the next place, to speak of the population proportioned to this fund, and + to compare it with the uses to which the fund is to be applied. + </p> + <p> + The population (I mean that of England) does not exceed seven millions and + a half, and the number of persons above the age of fifty will in that case + be about four hundred thousand. There would not, however, be more than + that number that would accept the proposed ten pounds sterling per annum, + though they would be entitled to it. I have no idea it would be accepted + by many persons who had a yearly income of two or three hundred pounds + sterling. But as we often see instances of rich people falling into sudden + poverty, even at the age of sixty, they would always have the right of + drawing all the arrears due to them. Four millions, therefore, of the + above annual sum of 5,666,6667L. will be required for four hundred + thousand aged persons, at ten pounds sterling each. + </p> + <p> + I come now to speak of the persons annually arriving at twenty-one years + of age. If all the persons who died were above the age of twenty-one + years, the number of persons annually arriving at that age, must be equal + to the annual number of deaths, to keep the population stationary. But the + greater part die under the age of twenty-one, and therefore the number of + persons annually arriving at twenty-one will be less than half the number + of deaths. The whole number of deaths upon a population of seven millions + and an half will be about 220,000 annually. The number arriving at + twenty-one years of age will be about 100,000. The whole number of these + will not receive the proposed fifteen pounds, for the reasons already + mentioned, though, as in the former case, they would be entitled to it. + Admitting then that a tenth part declined receiving it, the amount would + stand thus: + </p> + <p> + <a name="linkimage-0006" id="linkimage-0006"> + <!-- IMG --></a> + </p> + <div class="fig" style="width:80%"> + <img src="images/table362.jpg" alt="Table362 " width="100%" /><br /> + </div> + <p> + There are, in every country, a number of blind and lame persons, totally + incapable of earning a livelihood. But as it will always happen that the + greater number of blind persons will be among those who are above the age + of fifty years, they will be provided for in that class. The remaining sum + of 316,666L. will provide for the lame and blind under that age, at the + same rate of 10L. annually for each person. + </p> + <p> + Having now gone through all the necessary calculations, and stated the + particulars of the plan, I shall conclude with some observations. + </p> + <p> + It is not charity but a right, not bounty but justice, that I am pleading + for. The present state of civilization is as odious as it is unjust. It is + absolutely the opposite of what it should be, and it is necessary that a + revolution should be made in it.(1) The contrast of affluence and + wretchedness continually meeting and offending the eye, is like dead and + living bodies chained together. Though I care as little about riches, as + any man, I am a friend to riches because they are capable of good. I care + not how affluent some may be, provided that none be miserable in + consequence of it. But it is impossible to enjoy affluence with the + felicity it is capable of being enjoyed, whilst so much misery is mingled + in the scene. The sight of the misery, and the unpleasant sensations it + suggests, which, though they may be suffocated cannot be extinguished, are + a greater drawback upon the felicity of affluence than the proposed 10 per + cent, upon property is worth. He that would not give the one to get rid of + the other has no charity, even for himself. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This and the preceding sentence axe omitted in all + previous English and American editions.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + There are, in every country, some magnificent charities established by + individuals. It is, however, but little that any individual can do, when + the whole extent of the misery to be relieved is considered. He may + satisfy his conscience, but not his heart. He may give all that he has, + and that all will relieve but little. It is only by organizing + civilization upon such principles as to act like a system of pullies, that + the whole weight of misery can be removed. + </p> + <p> + The plan here proposed will reach the whole. It will immediately relieve + and take out of view three classes of wretchedness—the blind, the + lame, and the aged poor; and it will furnish the rising generation with + means to prevent their becoming poor; and it will do this without + deranging or interfering with any national measures. To shew that this + will be the case, it is sufficient to observe that the operation and + effect of the plan will, in all cases, be the same as if every individual + were <i>voluntarily</i> to make his will and dispose of his property in + the manner here proposed. + </p> + <p> + But it is justice, and not charity, that is the principle of the plan. In + all great cases it is necessary to have a principle more universally + active than charity; and, with respect to justice, it ought not to be left + to the choice of detached individuals whether they will do justice or not. + Considering then, the plan on the ground of justice, it ought to be the + act of the whole, growing spontaneously out of the principles of the + revolution, and the reputation of it ought to be national and not + individual. + </p> + <p> + A plan upon this principle would benefit the revolution by the energy that + springs from the consciousness of justice. It would multiply also the + national resources; for property, like vegetation, increases by offsets. + When a young couple begin the world, the difference is exceedingly great + whether they begin with nothing or with fifteen pounds apiece. With this + aid they could buy a cow, and implements to cultivate a few acres of land; + and instead of becoming burdens upon society, which is always the case + where children are produced faster than they can be fed, would be put in + the way of becoming useful and profitable citizens. The national domains + also would sell the better if pecuniary aids were provided to cultivate + them in small lots. + </p> + <p> + It is the practice of what has unjustly obtained the name of civilization + (and the practice merits not to be called either charity or policy) to + make some provision for persons becoming poor and wretched only at the + time they become so. Would it not, even as a matter of economy, be far + better to adopt means to prevent their becoming poor? This can best be + done by making every person when arrived at the age of twenty-one years an + inheritor of something to begin with. The rugged face of society, + chequered with the extremes of affluence and want, proves that some + extraordinary violence has been committed upon it, and calls on justice + for redress. The great mass of the poor in all countries are become an + hereditary race, and it is next to impossible for them to get cut of that + state of themselves. It ought also to be observed that this mass increases + in all countries that are called civilized. More persons fall annually + into it than get out of it. + </p> + <p> + Though in a plan of which justice and humanity are the + foundation-principles, interest ought not to be admitted into the + calculation, yet it is always of advantage to the establishment of any + plan to shew that it is beneficial as a matter of interest. The success of + any proposed plan submitted to public consideration must finally depend on + the numbers interested in supporting it, united with the justice of its + principles. + </p> + <p> + The plan here proposed will benefit all, without injuring any. It will + consolidate the interest of the Republic with that of the individual. To + the numerous class dispossessed of their natural inheritance by the system + of landed property it will be an act of national justice. To persons dying + possessed of moderate fortunes it will operate as a tontine to their + children, more beneficial than the sum of money paid into the fund: and it + will give to the accumulation of riches a degree of security that none of + the old governments of Europe, now tottering on their foundations, can + give. + </p> + <p> + I do not suppose that more than one family in ten, in any of the countries + of Europe, has, when the head of the family dies, a clear property left of + five hundred pounds sterling. To all such the plan is advantageous. That + property would pay fifty pounds into the fund, and if there were only two + children under age they would receive fifteen pounds each, (thirty + pounds,) on coming of age, and be entitled to ten pounds a-year after + fifty. It is from the overgrown acquisition of property that the fund will + support itself; and I know that the possessors of such property in + England, though they would eventually be benefited by the protection of + nine-tenths of it, will exclaim against the plan. But without entering + into any inquiry how they came by that property, let them recollect that + they have been the advocates of this war, and that Mr. Pitt has already + laid on more new taxes to be raised annually upon the people of England, + and that for supporting the despotism of Austria and the Bourbons against + the liberties of France, than would pay annually all the sums proposed in + this plan. + </p> + <p> + I have made the calculations stated in this plan, upon what is called + personal, as well as upon landed property. The reason for making it upon + land is already explained; and the reason for taking personal property + into the calculation is equally well founded though on a different + principle. Land, as before said, is the free gift of the Creator in common + to the human race. Personal property is the effect of society; and it is + as impossible for an individual to acquire personal property without the + aid of society, as it is for him to make land originally. Separate an + individual from society, and give him an island or a continent to possess, + and he cannot acquire personal property. He cannot be rich. So inseparably + are the means connected with the end, in all cases, that where the former + do not exist the latter cannot be obtained. All accumulation, therefore, + of personal property, beyond what a man's own hands produce, is derived to + him by living in society; and he owes on every principle of justice, of + gratitude, and of civilization, a part of that accumulation back again to + society from whence the whole came. This is putting the matter on a + general principle, and perhaps it is best to do so; for if we examine the + case minutely it will be found that the accumulation of personal property + is, in many instances, the effect of paying too little for the labour that + produced it; the consequence of which is, that the working hand perishes + in old age, and the employer abounds in affluence. It is, perhaps, + impossible to proportion exactly the price of labour to the profits it + produces; and it will also be said, as an apology for the injustice, that + were a workman to receive an increase of wages daily he would not save it + against old age, nor be much bet-ter for it in the interim. Make, then, + society the treasurer to guard it for him in a common fund; for it is no + reason, that because he might not make a good use of it for himself, + another should take it. + </p> + <p> + The state of civilization that has prevailed throughout Europe, is as + unjust in its principle, as it is horrid in its effects; and it is the + consciousness of this, and the apprehension that such a state cannot + continue when once investigation begins in any country, that makes the + possessors of property dread every idea of a revolution. It is the hazard + and not the principle of revolutions that retards their progress. This + being the case, it is necessary as well for the protection of property, as + for the sake of justice and humanity, to form a system that, whilst it + preserves one part of society from wretchedness, shall secure the other + from depredation. + </p> + <p> + The superstitious awe, the enslaving reverence, that formerly surrounded + affluence, is passing away in all countries, and leaving the possessor of + property to the convulsion of accidents. When wealth and splendour, + instead of fascinating the multitude, excite emotions of disgust; when, + instead of drawing forth admiration, it is beheld as an insult upon + wretchedness; when the ostentatious appearance it makes serves to call the + right of it in question, the case of property becomes critical, and it is + only in a system of justice that the possessor can contemplate security. + </p> + <p> + To remove the danger, it is necessary to remove the antipathies, and this + can only be done by making property productive of a national blessing, + extending to every individual. When the riches of one man above another + shall increase the national fund in the same proportion; when it shall be + seen that the prosperity of that fund depends on the prosperity of + individuals; when the more riches a man acquires, the better it shall be + for the general mass; it is then that antipathies will cease, and property + be placed on the permanent basis of national interest and protection. + </p> + <p> + I have no property in France to become subject to the plan I propose. What + I have which is not much, is in the United States of America. But I will + pay one hundred pounds sterling towards this fund in rance, the instant it + shall be established; and I will pay the same sum in England whenever a + similar establishment shall take place in that country. + </p> + <p> + A revolution in the state of civilization is the necessary companion of + revolutions in the system of government. If a revolution in any country be + from bad to good, or from good to bad, the state of what is called + civilization in that country, must be made conformable thereto, to give + that revolution effect. Despotic government supports itself by abject + civilization, in which debasement of the human mind, and wretchedness in + the mass of the people, are the chief enterions. Such governments consider + man merely as an animal; that the exercise of intellectual faculty is not + his privilege; <i>that he has nothing to do with the laws but to obey them + </i>; (*) and they politically depend more upon breaking the spirit of the + people by poverty, than they fear enraging it by desperation. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + * Expression of Horsley, an English bishop, in the English + parliament.—Author. +</pre> + <p> + It is a revolution in the state of civilization that will give perfection + to the revolution of France. Already the conviction that government by + representation is the true system of government is spreading itself fast + in the world. The reasonableness of it can be seen by all. The justness of + it makes itself felt even by its opposers. But when a system of + civilization, growing out of that system of government, shall be so + organized that not a man or woman born in the Republic but shall inherit + some means of beginning the world, and see before them the certainty of + escaping the miseries that under other governments accompany old age, the + revolution of France will have an advocate and an ally in the heart of all + nations. + </p> + <p> + An army of principles will penetrate where an army of soldiers cannot; it + will succeed where diplomatic management would fail: it is neither the + Rhine, the Channel, nor the Ocean that can arrest its progress: it will + march on the horizon of the world, and it will conquer. + </p> + <p> + MEANS FOR CARRYING THE PROPOSED PLAN INTO EXECUTION, AND TO RENDER IT AT + THE SAME TIME CONDUCIVE TO THE PUBLIC INTEREST. + </p> + <p> + I. Each canton shall elect in its primary assemblies, three persons, as + commissioners for that canton, who shall take cognizance, and keep a + register of all matters happening in that canton, conformable to the + charter that shall be established by law for carrying this plan into + execution. + </p> + <p> + II. The law shall fix the manner in which the property of deceased persons + shall be ascertained. + </p> + <p> + III. When the amount of the property of any deceased person shall be + ascertained, the principal heir to that property, or the eldest of the + co-heirs, if of lawful age, or if under age the person authorized by the + will of the deceased to represent him or them, shall give bond to the + commissioners of the canton to pay the said tenth part thereof in four + equal quarterly payments, within the space of one year or sooner, at the + choice of the payers. One half of the whole property shall remain as a + security until the bond be paid off. + </p> + <p> + IV. The bond shall be registered in the office of the commissioners of the + canton, and the original bonds shall be deposited in the national bank at + Paris. The bank shall publish every quarter of a year the amount of the + bonds in its possession, and also the bonds that shall have been paid off, + or what parts thereof, since the last quarterly publication. + </p> + <p> + V. The national bank shall issue bank notes upon the security of the bonds + in its possession. The notes so issued, shall be applied to pay the + pensions of aged persons, and the compensations to persons arriving at + twenty-one years of age. It is both reasonable and generous to suppose, + that persons not under immediate necessity, will suspend their right of + drawing on the fund, until it acquire, as it will do, a greater degree of + ability. In this case, it is proposed, that an honorary register be kept, + in each canton, of the names of the persons thus suspending that right, at + least during the present war. + </p> + <p> + VI. As the inheritors of property must always take up their bonds in four + quarterly payments, or sooner if they choose, there will always be <i>numéraire</i> + [cash] arriving at the bank after the expiration of the first quarter, to + exchange for the bank notes that shall be brought in. + </p> + <p> + VII. The bank notes being thus put in circulation, upon the best of all + possible security, that of actual property, to more than four times the + amount of the bonds upon which the notes are issued, and with <i>numéraire</i> + continually arriving at the bank to exchange or pay them off whenever they + shall be presented for that purpose, they will acquire a permanent value + in all parts of the Republic. They can therefore be received in payment of + taxes, or emprunts equal to numéraire, because the government can always + receive numéraire for them at the bank. + </p> + <p> + VIII. It will be necessary that the payments of the ten per cent, be made + in numeraire for the first year from the establishment of the plan. But + after the expiration of the first year, the inheritors of property may pay + ten per cent either in bank notes issued upon the fund, or in numeraire, + If the payments be in numeraire, it will lie as a deposit at the bank, to + be exchanged for a quantity of notes equal to that amount; and if in notes + issued upon the fund, it will cause a demand upon the fund, equal thereto; + and thus the operation of the plan will create means to carry itself into + execution. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0030" id="link2H_4_0030"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXIX. THE EIGHTEENTH FRUCTIDOR. + </h2> + <p> + To the People of France and the French Armies (1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 This pamphlet was written between the defeat of Pichegru's + attempt, September 4, 1794, and November 12, of the same + year, the date of the Bien-informé in which the publication + is noticed. General Pichegra (Charles), (1761-1804) having + joined a royalist conspiracy against the Republic, was + banished to Cayenne (1797), whence he escaped to England; + having returned to Paris (1804) he was imprisoned in the + Temple, and there found strangled by a silk handkerchief, + whether by his own or another's act remaining doubtful. + —Editor. +</pre> + <p> + When an extraordinary measure, not warranted by established constitutional + rules, and justifiable only on the supreme law of absolute necessity, + bursts suddenly upon us, we must, in order to form a true judgment + thereon, carry our researches back to the times that preceded and + occasioned it. Taking up then the subject with respect to the event of the + Eighteenth of Fructidor on this ground, I go to examine the state of + things prior to that period. I begin with the establishment of the + constitution of the year 3 of the French Republic. + </p> + <p> + A better <i>organized</i> constitution has never yet been devised by human + wisdom. It is, in its organization, free from all the vices and defects to + which other forms of government are more or less subject. I will speak + first of the legislative body, because the Legislature is, in the natural + order of things, the first power; the Executive is the first magistrate. + </p> + <p> + By arranging the legislative body into two divisions, as is done in the + French Constitution, the one, (the Council of Five Hundred,) whose part it + is to conceive and propose laws; the other, a Council of Ancients, to + review, approve, or reject the laws proposed; all the security is given + that can arise from coolness of reflection acting upon, or correcting the + precipitancy or enthusiasm of conception and imagination. It is seldom + that our first thought, even upon any subject, is sufficiently just.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 For Paine's ideas on the right division of representatives + into two chambers, which differ essentially from any + bicameral system ever adopted, see vol. ii., p. 444 of this + work; also, in the present volume, Chapter XXXIV.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + The policy of renewing the Legislature by a third part each year, though + not entirely new, either in theory or in practice, is nevertheless one of + the modern improvements in the science of government. It prevents, on the + one hand, that convulsion and precipitate change of measures into which a + nation might be surprised by the going out of the whole Legislature at the + same time, and the instantaneous election of a new one; on the other hand, + it excludes that common interest from taking place that might tempt a + whole Legislature, whose term of duration expired at once, to usurp the + right of continuance. I go now to speak of the Executive. + </p> + <p> + It is a principle uncontrovertible by reason, that each of the parts by + which government is composed, should be so constructed as to be in + perpetual maturity. We should laugh at the idea of a Council of Five + Hundred, or a Council of Ancients, or a Parliament, or any national + assembly, who should be all children in leading strings and in the cradle, + or be all sick, insane, deaf, dumb, lame or blind, at the same time, or be + all upon crutches, tottering with age or infirmities. Any form of + government that was so constructed as to admit the possibility of such + cases happening to a whole Legislature would justly be the ridicule of the + world; and on a parity of reasoning, it is equally as ridiculous that the + same cases should happen in that part of government which is called the + Executive; yet this is the contemptible condition to which an Executive is + always subject, and which is often happening, when it is placed in an + hereditary individual called a king. When that individual is in either of + the cases before mentioned, the whole Executive is in the same case; for + himself is the whole. He is then (as an Executive) the ridiculous picture + of what a Legislature would be if all its members were in the same case. + The one is a whole made up of parts, the other a whole without parts; and + anything happening to the one, (as a part or sec-tion of the government,) + is parallel to the same thing happening to the other. + </p> + <p> + As, therefore, an hereditary executive called a king is a perfect + absurdity in itself, any attachment to it is equally as absurd. It is + neither instinct or reason; and if this attachment is what is called + royalism in France, then is a royalist inferior in character to every species + of the animal world; for what can that being be who acts neither by + instinct nor by reason? Such a being merits rather our derision than our + pity; and it is only when it assumes to act its folly that it becomes + capable of provoking republican indignation. In every other case it is too + contemptible to excite anger. For my own part, when I contemplate the + self-evident absurdity of the thing, I can scarcely permit myself to + believe that there exists in the high-minded nation of France such a mean + and silly animal as a royalist. + </p> + <p> + As it requires but a single glance of thought to see (as is before said) + that all the parts of which government is composed must be at all times in + a state of full maturity, it was not possible that men acting under the + influence of reason, could, in forming a Constitution, admit an hereditary + Executive, any more than an hereditary Legislature. I go therefore to + examine the other cases. + </p> + <p> + In the first place, (rejecting the hereditary system,) shall the Executive + by election be an <i>individual or a plurality</i>. + </p> + <p> + An individual by election is almost as bad as the hereditary system, + except that there is always a better chance of not having an idiot. But he + will never be any thing more than a chief of a party, and none but those + of that party will have access to him. He will have no person to consult + with of a standing equal with himself, and consequently be deprived of the + advantages arising from equal discussion. + </p> + <p> + Those whom he admits in consultation will be ministers of his own + appointment, who, if they displease by their advice, must expect to be + dismissed. The authority also is too great, and the business too + complicated, to be intrusted to the ambition or the judgment of an + individual; and besides these cases, the sudden change of measures that + might follow by the going out of an individual Executive, and the election + of a new one, would hold the affairs of a nation in a state of perpetual + uncertainty. We come then to the case of a plural Executive. + </p> + <p> + It must be sufficiently plural, to give opportunity to discuss all the + various subjects that in the course of national business may come before + it; and yet not so numerous as to endanger the necessary secrecy that + certain cases, such as those of war, require. + </p> + <p> + Establishing, then, plurality as a principle, the only question is, What + shall be the number of that plurality? + </p> + <p> + Three are too few either for the variety or the quantity of business. The + Constitution has adopted five; and experience has shewn, from the + commencement of the Constitution to the time of the election of the new + legislative third, that this number of Directors, when well chosen, is + sufficient for all national executive purposes; and therefore a greater + number would be only an unnecessary expence. That the measures of the + Directory during that period were well concerted is proved by their + success; and their being well concerted shews they were well discussed; + and, therefore, that five is a sufficient number with respect to + discussion; and, on the other hand, the secret, whenever there was one, + (as in the case of the expedition to Ireland,) was well kept, and + therefore the number is not too great to endanger the necessary secrecy. + </p> + <p> + The reason why the two Councils are numerous is not from the necessity of + their being so, on account of business, but because that every part of the + republic shall find and feel itself in the national representation. + </p> + <p> + Next to the general principle of government by representation, the + excellence of the French Constitution consists in providing means to + prevent that abuse of power that might arise by letting it remain too long + in the same hands. This wise precaution pervades every part of the + Constitution. Not only the legislature is renewable by a third every year, + but the president of each of the Councils is renewable every month; and of + the Directory, one member each year, and its president every three months. + Those who formed the Constitution cannot be accused of having contrived + for themselves. The Constitution, in this respect, is as impartially + constructed as if those who framed it were to die as soon as they had + finished their work. + </p> + <p> + The only defect in the Constitution is that of having narrowed the right + of suffrage; and it is in a great measure due to this narrowing the right, + that the last elections have not generally been good. My former colleagues + will, I presume, pardon my saying this to day, when they recollect my + arguments against this defect, at the time the Constitution was discussed + in the Convention.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See Chapters XXIV. and XXV., also the letter prefaced to + XXVIII., in this volume.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + I will close this part of the subject by remarking on one of the most + vulgar and absurd sayings or dogmas that ever yet imposed itself upon the + world, which is, "<i>that a Republic is fit only for a small country, and + a Monarchy for a large one</i>." Ask those who say this their reasons why + it is so, and they can give none. + </p> + <p> + Let us then examine the case. If the quantity of knowledge in a government + ought to be proportioned to the extent of a country, and the magnitude and + variety of its affairs, it follows, as an undeniable result, that this + absurd dogma is false, and that the reverse of it is true. As to what is + called Monarchy, if it be adaptable to any country it can only be so to a + small one, whose concerns are few, little complicated, and all within the + comprehension of an individual. But when we come to a country of large + extent, vast population, and whose affairs are great, numerous, and + various, it is the representative republican system only, that can collect + into the government the quantity of knowledge necessary to govern to the + best national advantage. Montesquieu, who was strongly inclined to + republican government, sheltered himself under this absurd dogma; for he + had always the Bastile before his eyes when he was speaking of Republics, + and therefore <i>pretended</i> not to write for France. Condorcet governed + himself by the same caution, but it was caution only, for no sooner had he + the opportunity of speaking fully out than he did it. When I say this of + Condorcet, I know it as a fact. In a paper published in Paris, July, 1791, + entitled, "<i>The Republican, or the Defender of Representative + Government?</i>" is a piece signed <i>Thomas Paine</i>.(1) That piece was + concerted between Condorcet and myself. I wrote the original in English, + and Condorcet translated it. The object of it was to expose the absurdity + and falsehood of the above mentioned dogma. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Chapter II. of this volume. See also my "Life of Paine," + vol. i., p. 311.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + Having thus concisely glanced at the excellencies of the Constitution, and + the superiority of the representative system of government over every + other system, (if any other can be called a system,) I come to speak of + the circumstances that have intervened between the time the Constitution + was established and the event that took place on the 18th of Fructidor of + the present year. + </p> + <p> + Almost as suddenly as the morning light dissipates darkness, did the + establishment of the Constitution change the face of affairs in France. + Security succeeded to terror, prosperity to distress, plenty to famine, + and confidence increased as the days multiplied, until the coming of the + new third. A series of victories unequalled in the world, followed each + other, almost too rapidly to be counted, and too numerous to be + remembered. The Coalition, every where defeated and confounded, crumbled + away like a ball of dust in the hand of a giant. Every thing, during that + period, was acted on such a mighty scale that reality appeared a dream, + and truth outstript romance. It may figuratively be said, that the Rhine + and the Rubicon (Germany and Italy) replied in triumphs to each other, and + the echoing Alps prolonged the shout. I will not here dishonour a great + description by noticing too much the English government. It is sufficient + to say paradoxically, that in the magnitude of its littleness it cringed, + it intrigued, and sought protection in corruption. + </p> + <p> + Though the achievements of these days might give trophies to a nation and + laurels to its heroes, they derive their full radiance of glory from the + principle they inspired and the object they accomplished. Desolation, + chains, and slavery had marked the progress of former wars, but to conquer + for Liberty had never been thought of. To receive the degrading submission + of a distressed and subjugated people, and insultingly permit them to + live, made the chief triumph of former conquerors; but to receive them + with fraternity, to break their chains, to tell them they are free, and + teach them to be so, make a new volume in the history of man. + </p> + <p> + Amidst those national honours, and when only two enemies remained, both of + whom had solicited peace, and one of them had signed preliminaries, the + election of the new third commenced. Every thing was made easy to them. + All difficulties had been conquered before they arrived at the government. + They came in the olive days of the revolution, and all they had to do was + not to do mischief. + </p> + <p> + It was, however, not difficult to foresee, that the elections would not be + generally good. The horrid days of Robespierre were still remembered, and + the gratitude due to those who had put an end to them was forgotten. + </p> + <p> + Thousands who, by passive approbation during that tremendous scene, had + experienced no suffering, assumed the merit of being the loudest against + it. Their cowardice in not opposing it, became courage when it was over. + They exclaimed against Terrorism as if they had been the heroes that + overthrew it, and rendered themselves ridiculous by fantastically + overacting moderation. The most noisy of this class, that I have met with, + are those who suffered nothing. They became all things, at all times, to + all men; till at last they laughed at principle. It was the real + republicans who suffered most during the time of Robespierre. The + persecution began upon them on the 31st of May 1793, and ceased only by + the exertions of the remnant that survived. + </p> + <p> + In such a confused state of things as preceded the late elections the + public mind was put into a condition of being easily deceived; and it was + almost natural that the hypocrite would stand the best chance of being + elected into the new third. Had those who, since their election, have + thrown the public affairs into confusion by counter-revolutionary + measures, declared themselves beforehand, they would have been denounced + instead of being chosen. Deception was necessary to their success. The + Constitution obtained a full establishment; the revolution was considered + as complete; and the war on the eve of termination. In such a situation, + the mass of the people, fatigued by a long revolution, sought repose; and + in their elections they looked out for quiet men. They unfortunately found + hypocrites. Would any of the primary assemblies have voted for a civil + war? Certainly they would not. But the electoral assemblies of some + departments have chosen men whose measures, since their election, tended + to no other end but to provoke it. Either those electors have deceived + their constituents of the primary assemblies, or they have been themselves + deceived in the choice they made of deputies. + </p> + <p> + That there were some direct but secret conspirators in the new third can + scarcely admit of a doubt; but it is most reasonable to suppose that a + great part were seduced by the vanity of thinking they could do better + than those whom they succeeded. Instead of trusting to experience, they + attempted experiments. This counter-disposition prepared them to fall in + with any measures contrary to former measures, and that without seeing, + and probably without suspecting, the end to which they led. + </p> + <p> + No sooner were the members of the new third arrived at the seat of + government, than expectation was excited to see how they would act. Their + motions were watched by all parties, and it was impossible for them to + steal a march unobserved. They had it in their power to do great good, or + great mischief. A firm and manly conduct on their part, uniting with that + of the Directory and their colleagues, would have terminated the war. But + the moment before them was not the moment of hesitation. He that hesitates + in such situation is lost. + </p> + <p> + The first public act of the Council of Five Hundred was the election of + Pichegru to the presidency of that Council. He arrived at it by a very + large majority, and the public voice was in his favour. I among the rest + was one who rejoiced at it. But if the defection of Pichegru was at that + time known to Condé, and consequently to Pitt, it unveils the cause that + retarded all negotiations for peace.(1) They interpreted that election + into a signal of a counter-revolution, and were waiting for it; and they + mistook the respect shown to Pichegru, founded on the supposition of his + integrity, as a symptom of national revolt. Judging of things by their own + foolish ideas of government, they ascribed appearances to causes between + which there was no connection. Every thing on their part has been a comedy + of errors, and the actors have been chased from the stage. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé (1736-1818), + organized the French emigrants on the Rhine into an army + which was incorporated with that of Austria but paid by + England. He converted Pichegru into a secret partisan of the + Bourbons. He ultimately returned to France with Louis + XVIII., who made him colonel of infantry and master of the + royal household.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + Two or three decades of the new sessions passed away without any thing + very material taking place; but matters soon began to explain themselves. + The first thing that struck the public mind was, that no more was heard of + negotiations for peace, and that public business stood still. It was not + the object of the conspirators that there should be peace; but as it was + necessary to conceal their object, the Constitution was ransacked to find + pretences for delays. In vain did the Directory explain to them the state + of the finances and the wants of the army. The committee, charged with + that business, trifled away its time by a series of unproductive reports, + and continued to sit only to produce more. Every thing necessary to be + done was neglected, and every thing improper was attempted. Pichegru + occupied himself about forming a national guard for the Councils—the + suspicious signal of war,—Camille Jordan about priests and bells, + and the emigrants, with whom he had associated during the two years he was + in England.1 Willot and Delarue attacked the Directory: their object was + to displace some one of the directors, to get in another of their own. + Their motives with respect to the age of Barras (who is as old as he + wishes to be, and has been a little too old for them) were too obvious not + to be seen through.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine's pamphlet, addressed to Jordan, deals mainly with + religions matters, and is reserved for oar fourth volume.— + <i>Editor.</i>. + + 2 Paul François Jean Nicolas Barras (1755-1899) was + President of the Directory at this time, 1797.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + In this suspensive state of things, the public mind, filled with + apprehensions, became agitated, and without knowing what it might be, + looked for some extraordinary event. It saw, for it could not avoid + seeing, that things could not remain long in the state they were in, but + it dreaded a convulsion. That spirit of triflingness which it had indulged + too freely when in a state of security, and which it is probable the new + agents had interpreted into indifference about the success of the + Republic, assumed a serious aspect that afforded to conspiracy no hope of + aid; but still it went on. It plunged itself into new measures with the + same ill success, and the further it went the further the public mind + retired. The conspiracy saw nothing around it to give it encouragement. + </p> + <p> + The obstinacy, however, with which it persevered in its repeated attacks + upon the Directory, in framing laws in favour of emigrants and refractory + priests, and in every thing inconsistent with the immediate safety of the + Republic, and which served to encourage the enemy to prolong the war, + admitted of no other direct interpretation than that something was rotten + in the Council of Five Hundred. The evidence of circumstances became every + day too visible not to be seen, and too strong to be explained away. Even + as errors, (to say no worse of them,) they are not entitled to apology; + for where knowledge is a duty, ignorance is a crime. + </p> + <p> + The more serious republicans, who had better opportunities than the + generality had, of knowing the state of politics, began to take the alarm, + and formed themselves into a Society, by the name of the Constitutional + Club. It is the only Society of which I have been a member in France; and + I went to this because it was become necessary that the friends of the + Republic should rally round the standard of the constitution. I met there + several of the original patriots of the revolution; I do not mean of the + last order of Jacobins, but of the first of that name. The faction in the + Council of Five Hundred, who, finding no counsel from the public, began to + be frightened at appearances, fortified itself against the dread of this + Society, by passing a law to dissolve it. The constitutionality of the law + was at least doubtful: but the Society, that it might not give the example + of exasperating matters already too much inflamed, suspended its meetings. + </p> + <p> + A matter, however, of much greater moment soon after presented itself. It + was the march of four regiments, some of whom, in the line of their route, + had to pass within about twelve leagues of Paris, which is the boundary + the Constitution had fixed as the distance of any armed force from the + legislative body. In another state of things, such a circumstance would + not have been noticed. But conspiracy is quick of suspicion, and the fear + which the faction in the Council of Five Hundred manifested upon this + occasion could not have suggested itself to innocent men; neither would + innocent men have expostulated with the Directory upon the case, in the + manner these men did. The question they urged went to extort from the + Directory, and to make known to the enemy, what the destination of the + troops was. The leaders of the faction conceived that the troops were + marching against them; and the conduct they adopted in consequence of it + was sufficient to justify the measure, even if it had been so. From what + other motive than the consciousness of their own designs could they have + fear? The troops, in every instance, had been the gallant defenders of the + Republic, and the openly declared friends of the Constitution; the + Directory had been the same, and if the faction were not of a different + description neither fear nor suspicion could have had place among them. + </p> + <p> + All those manouvres in the Council were acted under the most professional + attachment to the Constitution; and this as necessarily served to enfeeble + their projects. It is exceedingly difficult, and next to impossible, to + conduct a conspiracy, and still more so to give it success, in a popular + government. The disguised and feigned pretences which men in such cases + are obliged to act in the face of the public, suppress the action of the + faculties, and give even to natural courage the features of timidity. They + are not half the men they would be where no disguise is necessary. It is + impossible to be a hypocrite and to be brave at the same instant. + </p> + <p> + The faction, by the imprudence of its measures, upon the march of the + troops, and upon the declarations of the officers and soldiers to support + the Republic and the Constitution against all open or concealed attempts + to overturn them, had gotten itself involved with the army, and in effect + declared itself a party against it. On the one hand, laws were proposed to + admit emigrants and refractory priests as free citizens; and on the other + hand to exclude the troops from Paris, and to punish the soldiers who had + declared to support the Republic In the mean time all negociations for + peace went backward; and the enemy, still recruiting its forces, rested to + take advantage of circumstances. Excepting the absence of hostilities, it + was a state worse than war. + </p> + <p> + If all this was not a conspiracy, it had at least the features of one, and + was pregnant with the same mischiefs. The eyes of the faction could not + avoid being open to the dangers to which it obstinately exposed the + Republic; yet still it persisted. During this scene, the journals devoted + to the faction were repeatedly announcing the near approach of peace with + Austria and with England, and often asserting that it was concluded. This + falsehood could be intended for no other purpose than to keep the eyes of + the people shut against the dangers to which they were exposed. + </p> + <p> + Taking all circumstances together, it was impossible that such a state of + things could continue long; and at length it was resolved to bring it to + an issue. There is good reason to believe that the affair of the 18th + Fructidor (September 4) was intended to have taken place two days before; + but on recollecting that it was the 2d of September, a day mournful in the + annals of the revolution, it was postponed. When the issue arrived, the + faction found to its cost it had no party among the public. It had sought + its own disasters, and was left to suffer the consequences. Foreign + enemies, as well as those of the interior, if any such there be, ought to + see in the event of this day that all expectation of aid from any part of + the public in support of a counter revolution is delusion. In a state of + security the thoughtless, who trembled at terror, may laugh at principles + of Liberty (for they have laughed) but it is one thing to indulge a + foolish laugh, quite another thing to surrender Liberty. + </p> + <p> + Considering the event of the 18th Fructidor in a political light, it is + one of those that are justifiable only on the supreme law of absolute + necessity, and it is the necessity abstracted from the event that is to be + deplored. The event itself is matter of joy. Whether the manouvres in the + Council of Five Hundred were the conspiracy of a few, aided l>y the + perverseness of many, or whether it had a deeper root, the dangers were + the same. It was impossible to go on. Every thing was at stake, and all + national business at a stand. The case reduced itself to a simple + alternative—shall the Republic be destroyed by the darksome + manouvres -of a faction, or shall it be preserved by an exceptional act? + </p> + <p> + During the American Revolution, and that after the State constitutions + were established, particular cases arose that rendered it necessary to act + in a manner that would have been treasonable in a state of peace. At one + time Congress invested General Washington with dictatorial power. At + another time the Government of Pennsylvania suspended itself and declared + martial law. It was the necessity of the times only that made the apology + of those extraordinary measures. But who was it that produced the + necessity of an extraordinary measure in France? A faction, and that in + the face of prosperity and success. Its conduct is without apology; and it + is on the faction only that the exceptional measure has fallen. The public + has suffered no inconvenience. If there are some men more disposed than + others not to act severely, I have a right to place myself in that class; + the whole of my political life invariably proves it; yet I cannot see, + taking all parts of the case together, what else, or what better, could + have been done, than has been done. It was a great stroke, applied in a + great crisis, that crushed in an instant, and without the loss of a life, + all the hopes of the enemy, and restored tranquillity to the interior. + </p> + <p> + The event was ushered in by the discharge of two cannon at four in the + morning, and was the only noise that was heard throughout the day. It + naturally excited a movement among the Parisians to enquire the cause. + They soon learned it, and the countenance they carried was easy to be + interpreted. It was that of a people who, for some time past, had been + oppressed with apprehensions of some direful event, and who felt + themselves suddenly relieved, by finding what it was. Every one went about + his business, or followed his curiosity in quietude. It resembled the + cheerful tranquillity of the day when Louis XVI. absconded in 1791, and + like that day it served to open the eyes of the nation. + </p> + <p> + If we take a review of the various events, as well conspiracies as + commotions, that have succeeded each other in this revolution, we shall + see how the former have wasted consumptively away, and the consequences of + the latter have softened. The 31st May and its consequences were terrible. + That of the 9th and 10th Thermidor, though glorious for the republic, as + it overthrew one of the most horrid and cruel despotisms that ever raged, + was nevertheless marked with many circumstances of severe and continued + retaliation. The commotions of Germinal and Prairial of the year 3, and of + Vendemaire of the year 4, were many degrees below those that preceded + them, and affected but a small part of the public. This of Pichegru and + his associates has been crushed in an instant, without the stain of blood, + and without involving the public in the least inconvenience. + </p> + <p> + These events taken in a series, mark the progress of the Republic from + disorder to stability. The contrary of this is the case in all parts of + the British dominions. There, commotions are on an ascending scale; every + one is higher than the former. That of the sailors had nearly been the + overthrow of the government. But the most potent of all is the invisible + commotion in the Bank. It works with the silence of time, and the + certainty of death. Every thing happening in France is curable; but this + is beyond the reach of nature or invention. + </p> + <p> + Leaving the event of the 18th Fructidor to justify itself by the necessity + that occasioned it, and glorify itself by the happiness of its + consequences, I come to cast a coup-d'oil on the present state of affairs. + </p> + <p> + We have seen by the lingering condition of the negociations for peace, + that nothing was to be expected from them, in the situation that things + stood prior to the 18th Fructidor. The armies had done wonders, but those + wonders were rendered unproductive by the wretched manouvres of a faction. + New exertions are now necessary to repair the mischiefs which that faction + has done. The electoral bodies, in some Departments, who by an injudicious + choice, or a corrupt influence, have sent improper deputies to the + Legislature, have some atonement to make to their country. The evil + originated with them, and the least they can do is to be among the + foremost to repair it. + </p> + <p> + It is, however, in vain to lament an evil that is past. There is neither + manhood nor policy in grief; and it often happens that an error in + politics, like an error in war, admits of being turned to greater + advantage than if it had not occurred. The enemy, encouraged by that + error, presumes too much, and becomes doubly foiled by the re-action. + England, unable to conquer, has stooped to corrupt; and defeated in the + last, as in the first, she is in a worse condition than before. + Continually increasing her crimes, she increases the measure of her + atonement, and multiplies the sacrifices she must make to obtain peace. + Nothing but the most obstinate stupidity could have induced her to let + slip the opportunity when it was within her reach. In addition to the + prospect of new expenses, she is now, to use Mr. Pitt's own figurative + expression against France, <i>not only on the brink, but in the gulph of + bankruptcy</i>. There is no longer any mystery in paper money. Call it + assignats, mandats, exchequer bills, or bank notes, it is still the same. + Time has solved the problem, and experience has fixed its fate.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See Chapter XXVI. of this volume.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + The government of that unfortunate country discovers its faithlessness so + much, that peace on any terms with her is scarcely worth obtaining. Of + what use is peace with a government that will employ that peace for no + other purpose than to repair, as far as it is possible, her shattered + finances and broken credit, and then go to war again? Four times within + the last ten years, from the time the American war closed, has the + Anglo-germanic government of England been meditating fresh war. First with + France on account of Holland, in 1787; afterwards with Russia; then with + Spain, on account of Nootka Sound; and a second time against France, to + overthrow her revolution. Sometimes that government employs Prussia + against Austria; at another time Austria against Prussia; and always one + or the other, or both against France. Peace with such a government is only + a treacherous cessation of hostilities. + </p> + <p> + The frequency of wars on the part of England, within the last century, + more than before, must have had some cause that did not exist prior to + that epoch. It is not difficult to discover what that cause is. It is the + mischievous compound of an Elector of the Germanic body and a King of + England; and which necessarily must, at some day or other, become an + object of attention to France. That one nation has not a right to + interfere in the internal government of another nation, is admitted; and + in this point of view, France has no right to dictate to England what its + form of government shall be. If it choose to have a thing called a King, + or whether that King shall be a man or an ass, is a matter with which + France has no business. But whether an Elector of the Germanic body shall + be King of England, is an <i>external</i> case, with which France and + every other nation, who suffers inconvenience and injury in consequence of + it, has a right to interfere. + </p> + <p> + It is from this mischievous compound of Elector and King, that originates + a great part of the troubles that vex the continent of Europe; and with + respect to England, it has been the cause of her immense national debt, + the ruin of her finances, and the insolvency of her bank. All intrigues on + the continent, in which England is a party, or becomes involved, are + generated by, and act through, the medium of this Anglo-germanic compound. + It will be necessary to dissolve it. Let the Elector retire to his + Electorate, and the world will have peace. + </p> + <p> + England herself has given examples of interference in matters of this + kind, and that in cases where injury was only apprehended. She engaged in + a long and expensive war against France (called the succession war) to + prevent a grandson of Louis the Fourteenth being king of Spain; because, + said she, <i>it will be injurious</i> to me; and she has been fighting and + intriguing against what was called the family-compact ever since. In 1787 + she threatened France with war to prevent a connection between France and + Hoi-land; and in all her propositions of peace to-day she is dictating + separations. But if she look at the Anglo-germanic compact at home, called + the Hanover succession, she cannot avoid seeing that France necessarily + must, some day or other, take up that subject, and make the return of the + Elector to his Electorate one of the conditions of peace. There will be no + lasting peace between the two countries till this be done, and the sooner + it be done the better will it be for both. + </p> + <p> + I have not been in any company where this matter aas been a topic, that + did not see it in the light it is here stated. Even Barthélémy,(1) when he + first came to the Directory (and Barthélémy was never famous for + patriotism) acknowledged in my hearing, and in company with Derché, + Secretary to the Legation at Lille, the connection of an Elector of + Germany and a King of England to be injurious to France. I do not, + however, mention it from a wish to embarrass the negociation for peace. + The Directory has fixed its <i>ultimatum</i>; but if that ultimatum be + rejected, the obligation to adhere to it is discharged, and a new one may + be assumed. So wretchedly has Pitt managed his opportunities» that every + succeeding negociation has ended in terms more against him than the + former. If the Directory had bribed him, he could not serve his interest + better than he does. He serves it as Lord North served that of America, + which finished in the discharge of his master.* + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Marquis de Barthélémy (François) (1750-1830) entered the + Directory in June, 1796, through royalist influence. He + shared Pichegru's banishment, and subsequently became an + agent of Louis XVIII.—<i>Editor.</i> + + * The father of Pitt, when a member of the House of Commons, + exclaiming one day, during a former war, against the + enormous and ruinous expense of German connections, as the + offspring of the Hanover succession, and borrowing a + metaphor from the story of Prometheus, cried out: "Thus, + Hie Prometheus, is Britain chained to the barren rock of + Hanover; whilst the imperial eagle preys upon her vitals."— + Author. +</pre> + <p> + Thus far I had written when the negociation at Lille became suspended, in + consequence of which I delayed the publication, that the ideas suggested + in this letter might not intrude themselves during the interval. The <i>ultimatum</i> + offered by the Directory, as the terms of peace, was more moderate than + the government of England had a right to expect. That government, though + the provoker of the war, and the first that committed hostilities by + sending away the ambassador Chauvelin,(**) had formerly talked of + demanding from France, <i>indemnification for the past and security for + the future</i>. France, in her turn, might have retorted, and demanded the + same from England; but she did not. As it was England that, in consequence + of her bankruptcy, solicited peace, France offered it to her on the simple + condition of her restoring the islands she had taken. The ultimatum has + been rejected, and the negociation broken off. The spirited part of France + will say, <i>tant mieux</i>, so much the better. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + ** It was stipulated in the treaty of commerce between + France and England, concluded at Paris, that the sending + away an ambassador by either party, should be taken as an + act of hostility by the other party. The declaration of war + (Feb. M *793) by the Convention, of which I was then a + member and know well the case, was made in exact conformity + to this article in the treaty; for it was not a declaration + of war against England, but a declaration that the French + Republic is in war with England; the first act of hostility + having been committed by England. The declaration was made + immediately on Chauvelin's return to France, and in + consequence of it. Mr. Pitt should inform himself of things + better than he does, before he prates so much about them, or + of the sending away of Malmesbury, who was only on a visit + of permission.—Author. +</pre> + <p> + How the people of England feel on the breaking up of the negociation, + which was entirely the act of their own Government, is best known to + themselves; but from what I know of the two nations, France ought to hold + herself perfectly indifferent about a peace with the Government of + England. Every day adds new strength to France and new embarrassments to + her enemy. The resources of the one increase, as those of the other become + exhausted. England is now reduced to the same system of paper money from + which France has emerged, and we all know the inevitable fate of that + system. It is not a victory over a few ships, like that on the coast of + Holland, that gives the least support or relief to a paper system. On the + news of this victory arriving in England, the funds did not rise a + farthing. The Government rejoiced, but its creditors were silent. + </p> + <p> + It is difficult to find a motive, except in folly and madness, for the + conduct of the English government. Every calculation and prediction of Mr. + Pitt has turned out directly the contrary; yet still he predicts. He + predicted, with all the solemn assurance of a magician, that France would + be bankrupt in a few months. He was right as to the thing, but wrong as to + the place, for the bankruptcy happened in England whilst the words were + yet warm upon his lips. To find out what will happen, it is only necessary + to know what Mr. Pitt predicts. He is a true prophet if taken in the + reverse. + </p> + <p> + Such is the ruinous condition that England is now in, that great as the + difficulties of war are to the people, the difficulties that would + accompany peace are equally as great to the Government. Whilst the war + continues, Mr. Pitt has a pretence for shutting up the bank. But as that + pretence could last no longer than the war lasted, he dreads the peace + that would expose the absolute bankruptcy of the government, and unveil to + a deceived nation the ruinous effect of his measures. Peace would be a day + of accounts to him, and he shuns it as an insolvent debtor shuns a meeting + of his creditors. War furnishes him with many pretences; peace would + furnish him with none, and he stands alarmed at its consequences. His + conduct in the negociation at Lille can be easily interpreted. It is not + for the sake of the nation that he asks to retain some of the taken + islands; for what are islands to a nation that has already too many for + her own good, or what are they in comparison to the expense of another + campaign in the present depreciating state of the English funds? (And even + then those islands must be restored.) + </p> + <p> + No, it is not for the sake of the nation that he asks. It is for the sake + of himself. It is as if he said to France, Give me some pretence, cover me + from disgrace when my day of reckoning comes! + </p> + <p> + Any person acquainted with the English Government knows that every + Minister has some dread of what is called in England the winding up of + accounts at the end of a war; that is, the final settlement of all + expenses incurred by the war; and no Minister had ever so great cause of + dread as Mr. Pitt. A burnt child dreads the fire, and Pitt has had some + experience upon this case. The winding up of accounts at the end of the + American war was so great, that, though he was not the cause of it, and + came into the Ministry with great popularity, he lost it all by + undertaking, what was impossible for him to avoid, the voluminous business + of the winding up. If such was the case in settling the accounts of his + predecessor, how much more has he to apprehend when the accounts to be + settled are his own? All men in bad circumstances hate the settlement of + accounts, and Pitt, as a Minister, is of that description. + </p> + <p> + But let us take a view of things on a larger ground than the case of a + Minister. It will then be found, that England, on a comparison of strength + with France, when both nations are disposed to exert their utmost, has no + possible chance of success. The efforts that England made within the last + century were not generated on the ground of <i>natural ability</i>, but of + <i>artificial anticipations</i>. She ran posterity into debt, and + swallowed up in one generation the resources of several generations yet to + come, till the project can be pursued no longer. It is otherwise in + France. The vastness of her territory and her population render the burden + easy that would make a bankrupt of a country like England. + </p> + <p> + It is not the weight of a thing, but the numbers who are to bear that + weight, that makes it feel light or heavy to the shoulders of those who + bear it. A land-tax of half as much in the pound as the land-tax is in + England, will raise nearly four times as much revenue in France as is + raised in England. This is a scale easily understood, by which all the + other sections of productive revenue can be measured. Judge then of the + difference of natural ability. + </p> + <p> + England is strong in a navy; but that navy costs about eight millions + sterling a-year, and is one of the causes that has hastened her + bankruptcy. The history of navy bills sufficiently proves this. But strong + as England is in this case, the fate of navies must finally be decided by + the natural ability of each country to carry its navy to the greatest + extent; and France is able to support a navy twice as large as that of + England, with less than half the expense per head on the people, which the + present navy of England costs. + </p> + <p> + We all know that a navy cannot be raised as expeditiously as an army. But + as the average duration of a navy, taking the decay of time, storms, and + all circumstances and accidents together, is less than twenty years, every + navy must be renewed within that time; and France at the end of a few + years, can create and support a navy of double the extent of that of + England; and the conduct of the English government will provoke her to it. + </p> + <p> + But of what use are navies otherwise than to make or prevent invasions? + Commercially considered, they are losses. They scarcely give any + protection to the commerce of the countries which have them, compared with + the expense of maintaining them, and they insult the commerce of the + nations that are neutral. + </p> + <p> + During the American war, the plan of the armed neutrality was formed and + put in execution: but it was inconvenient, expensive, and ineffectual. + This being the case, the problem is, does not commerce contain within + itself, the means of its own protection? It certainly does, if the neutral + nations will employ that means properly. + </p> + <p> + Instead then of an <i>armed neutrality</i>, the plan should be directly + the contrary. It should be an <i>unarmed neutrality</i>. In the first + place, the rights of neutral nations are easily defined. They are such as + are exercised by nations in their intercourse with each other in time of + peace, and which ought not, and cannot of right, be interrupted in + consequence of war breaking out between any two or more of them. + </p> + <p> + Taking this as a principle, the next thing is to give it effect. The plan + of the armed neutrality was to effect it by threatening war; but an + unarmed neutrality can effect it by much easier and more powerful means. + </p> + <p> + Were the neutral nations to associate, under an honourable injunction of + fidelity to each other, and publicly declare to the world, that if any + belligerent power shall seize or molest any ship or vessel belonging to + the citizens or subjects of any of the powers composing that Association, + that the whole Association will shut its ports against the flag of the + offending nation, and will not permit any goods, wares, or merchandise, + produced or manufactured in the offending nation, or appertaining thereto, + to be imported into any of the ports included in the Association, until + reparation be made to the injured party,—the reparation to be three + times the value of the vessel and cargo,—and moreover that all + remittances on money, goods, and bills of exchange, do cease to be made to + the offending nation, until the said reparation be made: were the neutral + nations only to do this, which it is their direct interest to do, England, + as a nation depending on the commerce of neutral nations in time of war, + dare not molest them, and France would not. But whilst, from the want of a + common system, they individually permit England to do it, because + individually they cannot resist it, they put France under the necessity of + doing the same thing. The supreme of all laws, in all cases, is that of + self-preservation. + </p> + <p> + As the commerce of neutral nations would thus be protected by the means + that commerce naturally contains within itself, all the naval operations + of France and England would be confined within the circle of acting + against each other: and in that case it needs no spirit of prophecy to + discover that France must finally prevail. The sooner this be done, the + better will it be for both nations, and for all the world. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine had already prepared his "Maritime Compact," and + devised the Rainbow Flag, which was to protect commerce, the + substance and history of which constitutes his Seventh + Letter to the People of the United States, Chapter XXXIII. + of the present volume. He sent the articles of his proposed + international Association to the Minister of Foreign + Relations, Talleyrand, who responded with a cordial letter. + The articles of "Maritime Compact," translated into French + by Nicolas Bouneville, were, in 1800, sent to all the + Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Europe, and to the + ambassadors in Paris.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0031" id="link2H_4_0031"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXX. THE RECALL OF MONROE. (1) + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Monroe, like Edmund Randolph and Thomas Paine, was + sacrificed to the new commercial alliance with Great + Britain. The Cabinet of Washington were entirely hostile to + France, and in their determination to replace Monroe were + assisted by Gouverneur Morris, still in Europe, who wrote to + President Washington calumnies against that Minister. In a + letter of December 19, 1795, Morris tells Washington that he + had heard from a trusted informant that Monroe had said to + several Frenchmen that "he had no doubt but that, if they + would do what was proper here, he and his friends would turn + out Washington." On July 2, 1796, the Cabinet ministers, + Pickering, Wolcott, and Mo-Henry, wrote to the President + their joint opinion that the interests of the United States + required Monroe's recall, and slanderously connected him + with anonymous letters from France written by M. + Montflorence. The recall, dated August 22, 1796, reached + Monroe early in November. It alluded to certain "concurring + circumstances," which induced his removal, and these "hidden + causes" (in Paine's phrase) Monroe vainly demanded on his + return to America early in 1797. The Directory, on + notification of Monroe's recall, resolved not to recognize + his successor, and the only approach to an American Minister + in Paris for the remainder of the century was Thomas Paine, + who was consulted by the Foreign Ministers, De la Croix and + Talleyrand, and by Napoleon. On the approach of C. C. + Pinckney, as successor to Monroe, Paine feared that his + dismissal might entail war, and urged the Minister (De la + Croix) to regard Pinckney,—nominated in a recess of the + Senate,—as in "suspension" until confirmed by that body. + There might be unofficial "pourparlers," with him. This + letter (State Archives, Paris, États Unis, vol. 46, fol. 425) + was considered for several days before Pinckney reached + Paris (December 5, 1796), but the Directory considered that + it was not a "dignified" course, and Pinckney was ordered to + leave French territory, under the existing decree against + foreigners who had no permit to remain.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Paris, Sept. 27, 1797. Editors of the Bien-in formé. + </p> + <p> + Citizens: in your 19th number of the complementary 5th, you gave an + analysis of the letters of James Monroe to Timothy Pickering. The + newspapers of Paris and the departments have copied this correspondence + between the ambassador of the United States and the Secretary of State. I + notice, however, that a few of them have omitted some important facts, + whilst indulging in comments of such an extraordinary nature that it is + clear they know neither Monroe's integrity nor the intrigues of Pitt in + this affair. + </p> + <p> + The recall of Monroe is connected with circumstances so important to the + interests of France and the United States, that we must be careful not to + confound it with the recall of an ordinary individual. The Washington + faction had affected to spread it abroad that James Monroe was the cause + of rupture between the two Republics. This accusation is a perfidious and + calumnious one; since the main point in this affair is not so much the + recall of a worthy, enlightened and republican minister, as the + ingratitude and clandestine manoeuvering of the government of Washington, + who caused the misunderstanding by signing a treaty injurious to the + French Republic. + </p> + <p> + James Monroe, in his letters, does not deny the right of government to + withdraw its confidence from any one of its delegates, representatives, or + agents. He has hinted, it is true, that caprice and temper are not in + accordance with the spirit of paternal rule, and that whenever a + representative government punishes or rewards, good faith, integrity and + justice should replace <i>the good pleasure of Kings</i>. + </p> + <p> + In the present case, they have done more than recall an agent. Had they + confined themselves to depriving him of his appointment, James Monroe + would have kept silence; but he has been accused of lighting the torch of + discord in both Republics. The refutation of this absurd and infamous + reproach is the chief object of his correspondence. If he did not + immediately complain of these slanders in his letters of the 6th and 8th + [July], it is because he wished to use at first a certain degree of + caution, and, if it were possible, to stifle intestine troubles at their + birth. He wished to reopen the way to peaceful negotiations to be + conducted with good faith and justice. + </p> + <p> + The arguments of the Secretary of State on the rights of the supreme + administration of the United States are peremptory; but the observations + of Monroe on the hidden causes of his recall are touching; they come from + the heart; they are characteristic of an excellent citizen. If he does + more than complain of his unjust recall as a man of feeling would; if he + proudly asks for proofs of a grave accusation, it is after he has tried in + vain every honest and straightforward means. He will not suffer that a + government, sold to the enemies of freedom, should discharge upon him its + shame, its crimes, its ingratitude, and all the odium of its unjust + dealings. + </p> + <p> + Were Monroe to find himself an object of public hatred, the Republican + party in the United States, that party which is the sincere ally of + France, would be annihilated, and this is the aim of the English + government. + </p> + <p> + Imagine the triumph of Pitt, if Monroe and the other friends of freedom in + America, should be unjustly attacked in France! + </p> + <p> + Monroe does not lay his cause before the Senate since the Senate itself + ratified the unconstitutional treaty; he appeals to the house of + Representatives, and at the same time lays his cause before the upright + tribunal of the American nation. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0032" id="link2H_4_0032"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXXI. PRIVATE LETTER TO PRESIDENT JEFFERSON. + </h2> + <p> + Paris, October 1, 1800. + </p> + <p> + Dear Sir,—I wrote to you from Havre by the ship Dublin Packet in the + year 1797. It was then my intention to return to America; but there were + so many British frigates cruising in sight of the port, and which after a + few days knew that I was at Havre waiting to go to America, that I did not + think it best to trust myself to their discretion, and the more so, as I + had no confidence in the captain of the Dublin Packet (Clay).(1) I + mentioned to you in that letter, which I believe you received thro' the + hands of Colonel [Aaron] Burr, that I was glad since you were not + President that you had accepted the nomination of Vice President. + </p> + <p> + The Commissioners Ellsworth & Co.(2) have been here about eight + months, and three more useless mortals never came upon public business. + Their presence appears to me to have been rather an injury than a benefit. + They set themselves up for a faction as soon as they arrived. I was then + in Belgia.(3) Upon my return to Paris I learnt they had made a point of + not returning the visits of Mr. Skipwith and Barlow, because, they said, + they had not the confidence of the executive. Every known republican was + treated in the same manner. I learned from Mr. Miller of Philadelphia, who + had occasion to see them upon business, that they did not intend to return + my visit, if I made one. This, I supposed, it was intended I should know, + that I might not make one. It had the contrary effect. I went to see Mr. + Ellsworth. I told him, I did not come to see him as a commissioner, nor to + congratulate him upon his mission; that I came to see him because I had + formerly known him in Congress. "I mean not," said I, "to press you with + any questions, or to engage you in any conversation upon the business you + are come upon, but I will nevertheless candidly say that I know not what + expectations the Government or the people of America may have of your + mission, or what expectations you may have yourselves, but I believe you + will find you can do but little. The treaty with England lies at the + threshold of all your business. The American Government never did two more + foolish things than when it signed that Treaty and recalled Mr. Monroe, + who was the only man could do them any service." Mr. Ellsworth put on the + dull gravity of a Judge, and was silent. I added, "You may perhaps make a + treaty like that you have made with England, which is a surrender of the + rights of the American flag; for the principle that neutral ships make + neutral property must be general or not at all." I then changed the + subject, for I had all the talk to myself upon this topic, and enquired + after Samuel Adams, (I asked nothing about John,) Mr. Jefferson, Mr. + Monroe, and others of my friends; and the melancholy case of the yellow + fever,—of which he gave me as circumstantial an account as if he had + been summing up a case to a Jury. Here my visit ended, and had Mr. + Ellsworth been as cunning as a statesman, or as wise as a Judge, he would + have returned my visit that he might appear insensible of the intention of + mine. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The packet was indeed searched for Paine by a British + cruiser.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Oliver Ellsworth (Chief Justice), W. V. Murray, and W. R. + Davie, were sent by President Adams to France to negotiate a + treaty. In this they failed, but a convention was signed + September 30, 1800, which terminated the treaty of 1778, + which had become a source of discord, and prepared the way + for the negotiations of Livingston and Monroe in 1803.— + <i>Editor.</i> + + 3 Paine had visited his room-mate in Luxembourg prison, + Vanhuele, who was now Mayor of Bruges.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I now come to the affairs of this country and of Europe. You will, I + suppose, have heard before this arrives to you, of the battle of Marengo + in Italy, where the Austrians were defeated—of the armistice in + consequence thereof, and the surrender of Milan, Genoa etc. to the french—of + the successes of the french Army in Germany—and the extension of the + armistice in that quarter—of the preliminaries of Peace signed at + Paris—of the refusal of the Emperor [of Austria] to ratify these + preliminaries—of the breaking of the armistice by the french + Government in consequence of that refusal—of the "gallant" + expedition of the Emperor to put himself at the head of his Army—of + his pompous arrival there—of his having made his will—of + prayers being put in all his churches for the preservation of the life of + this Hero—of General Moreau announcing to him, immediately on his + arrival at the Army, that hostilities would commence the day after the + next at sunrise unless he signed the treaty or gave security that he would + sign within 45 days—of his surrendering up three of the principal + keys of Germany (Ulm, Philipsbourg, and Ingolstadt) as security that he + would sign them. This is the state things are now in, at the time of + writing this letter; but it is proper to add that the refusal of the + Emperor to sign the preliminaries was motived upon a note from the King of + England to be admitted to the Congress for negociating Peace, which was + consented to by the french upon the condition of an armistice at Sea, + which England, before knowing of the surrender the Emperor had made, had + refused. From all which it appears to me, judging from circumstances, that + the Emperor is now so compleatly in the hands of the french, that he has + no way of getting out but by a peace. The Congress for the peace is to be + held at Lunéville, a town in France. Since the affair of Rastadt the + French commissioners will not trust themselves within the Emperor's + territory. + </p> + <p> + I now come to domestic Affairs. I know not what the Commissioners have + done, but from a paper I enclose to you, which appears to have some + authority, it is not much. The paper as you will perceive is considerably + prior to this letter. I know that the Commissioners before this piece + appeared intended setting off. It is therefore probable that what they + have done is conformable to what this paper mentions, which certainly will + not atone for the expence their mission has incurred, neither are they, by + all the accounts I hear of them, men fitted for the business. + </p> + <p> + But independently of these matters there appears to be a state of + circumstances rising, which if it goes on, will render all partial + treaties unnecessary. In the first place I doubt if any peace will be made + with England; and in the second place, I should not wonder to see a + coalition formed against her, to compel her to abandon her insolence on + the seas. This brings me to speak of the manuscripts I send you. + </p> + <p> + The piece No. I, without any title, was written in consequence of a + question put to me by Bonaparte. As he supposed I knew England and English + Politics he sent a person to me to ask, that in case of negociating a + Peace with Austria, whether it would be proper to include England. This + was when Count St. Julian was in Paris, on the part of the Emperor + negociating the preliminaries:—which as I have before said the + Emperor refused to sign on the pretence of admitting England. + </p> + <p> + The piece No. 2, entitled <i>On the Jacobinism of the English at sea</i>, + was written when the English made their insolent and impolitic expedition + to Denmark, and is also an auxiliary to the politic of No. I. I shewed it + to a friend [Bonneville] who had it translated into french, and printed in + the form of a Pamphlet, and distributed gratis among the foreign + Ministers, and persons in the Government. It was immediately copied into + several of the french Journals, and into the official Paper, the Moniteur. + It appeared in this paper one day before the last dispatch arrived from + Egypt; which agreed perfectly with what I had said respecting Egypt. It + hit the two cases of Denmark and Egypt in the exact proper moment. + </p> + <p> + The Piece No. 3, entitled <i>Compact Maritime</i>, is the sequel of No. 2, + digested in form. It is translating at the time I write this letter, and I + am to have a meeting with the Senator Garat upon the subject. The pieces 2 + and 3 go off in manuscript to England, by a confidential person, where + they will be published.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The substance of most of these "pieces" are embodied in + Paine's Seventh Letter to the People of the United States + (infra p. 420).—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + By all the news we get from the North there appears to be something + meditating against England. It is now given for certain that Paul has + embargoed all the English vessels and English property in Russia till some + principle be established for protecting the Rights of neutral Nations, and + securing the liberty of the Seas. The preparations in Denmark continue, + notwithstanding the convention that she has made with England, which + leaves the question with respect to the right set up by England to stop + and search Neutral vessels undecided. I send you the paragraphs upon the + subject. + </p> + <p> + The tumults are great in all parts of England on account of the excessive + price of corn and bread, which has risen since the harvest. I attribute it + more to the abundant increase of paper, and the non-circulation of cash, + than to any other cause. People in trade can push the paper off as fast as + they receive it, as they did by continental money in America; but as + farmers have not this opportunity, they endeavor to secure themselves by + going considerably in advance. + </p> + <p> + I have now given you all the great articles of intelligence, for I trouble + not myself with little ones, and consequently not with the Commissioners, + nor any thing they are about, nor with John Adams, otherwise than to wish + him safe home, and a better and wiser man in his place. + </p> + <p> + In the present state of circumstances and the prospects arising from them, + it may be proper for America to consider whether it is worth her while to + enter into any treaty at this moment, or to wait the event of those + circumstances which if they go on will render partial treaties useless by + deranging them. But if, in the mean time, she enters into any treaty it + ought to be with a condition to the following purpose: Reserving to + herself the right of joining in an Association of Nations for the + protection of the Rights of Neutral Commerce and the security of the + liberty of the Seas. + </p> + <p> + The pieces 2, 3, may go to the press. They will make a small pamphlet and + the printers are welcome to put my name to it. (It is best it should be + put.) From thence they will get into the newspapers. I know that the + faction of John Adams abuses me pretty heartily. They are welcome. + </p> + <p> + It does not disturb me, and they lose their labour; and in return for it I + am doing America more service, as a neutral Nation, than their expensive + Commissioners can do, and she has that service from me for nothing. The + piece No. 1 is only for your own amusement and that of your friends. + </p> + <p> + I come now to speak confidentially to you on a private subject. When Mr. + Ellsworth and Davie return to America, Murray will return to Holland, and + in that case there will be nobody in Paris but Mr. Skipwith that has been + in the habit of transacting business with the french Government since the + revolution began. He is on a good standing with them, and if the chance of + the day should place you in the presidency you cannot do better than + appoint him for any purpose you may have occasion for in France. He is an + honest man and will do his country justice, and that with civility and + good manners to the government he is commissioned to act with; a faculty + which that Northern Bear Timothy Pickering wanted, and which the Bear of + that Bear, John Adams, never possessed. + </p> + <p> + I know not much of Mr. Murray, otherwise than of his unfriendliness to + every American who is not of his faction, but I am sure that Joel Barlow + is a much fitter man to be in Holland than Mr. Murray. It is upon the + fitness of the man to the place that I speak, for I have not communicated + a thought upon the subject to Barlow, neither does he know, at the time of + my writing this (for he is at Havre), that I have intention to do it. + </p> + <p> + I will now, by way of relief, amuse you with some account of the progress + of iron bridges. + </p> + <p> + [Here follows an account of the building of the iron bridge at Sunderland, + England, and some correspondence with Mr. Milbanke, M. P., which will be + given more fully and precisely in a chapter of vol. IV. (Appendix), on + Iron Bridges, and is therefore omitted here.] + </p> + <p> + I have now made two other Models [of bridges]. One is pasteboard, five + feet span and five inches of height from the cords. It is in the opinion + of every person who has seen it one of the most beautiful objects the eye + can behold. I then cast a model in metal following the construction of + that in paste-board and of the same dimensions. The whole was executed in + my own Chamber. It is far superior in strength, elegance, and readiness in + execution to the model I made in America, and which you saw in Paris.(1) I + shall bring those models with me when I come home, which will be as soon + as I can pass the seas in safety from the piratical John Bulls. I suppose + you have seen, or have heard of the Bishop of Landaff's answer to my + second part of the Age of Reason. As soon as I got a copy of it I began a + third part, which served also as an answer to the Bishop; but as soon as + the clerical society for promoting <i>Christian Knowledge</i> knew of my + intention to answer the Bishop, they prosecuted, as a Society, the printer + of the first and second parts, to prevent that answer appearing. No other + reason than this can be assigned for their prosecuting at the time they + did, because the first part had been in circulation above three years and + the second part more than one, and they prosecuted immediately on knowing + that I was taking up their Champion. The Bishop's answer, like Mr. Burke's + attack on the french revolution, served me as a back-ground to bring + forward other subjects upon, with more advantage than if the background + was not there. This is the motive that induced me to answer him, otherwise + I should have gone on without taking any notice of him. I have made and am + still making additions to the manuscript, and shall continue to do so till + an opportunity arrive for publishing it. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 "These models exhibit an extraordinary degree not only of + skill, but of taste, and are wrought with extreme delicacy + entirely by his own hands. The largest is nearly four feet + in length; the iron-works, the chains, and every other + article belonging to it, were forged and manufactured by + himself. It is intended as the model of a bridge which is to + be constructed across the Delaware, extending 480 feet, with + only one arch. The other is to be erected over a lesser + river, whose name I forget, and is likewise a single arch, + and of his own workmanship, excepting the chains, which, + instead of iron, are cut out of paste-hoard by the fair hand + of his correspondent, the 'Little Corner of the World' (Lady + Smyth), whose indefatigable perseverance is extraordinary. + He was offered £3000 for these models and refused it."— + Yorke's <i>Letters from France</i>, These models excited much + admiration in Washington and Philadelphia. They remained for + a long time in Peale's Museum at Philadelphia, but no trace + is left of them.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + If any American frigate should come to france, and the direction of it + fall to you, I will be glad you would give me the opportunity of + returning. The abscess under which I suffered almost two years is entirely + healed of itself, and I enjoy exceeding good health. This is the first of + October, and Mr. Skipwith has just called to tell me the Commissioners set + off for Havre to-morrow. This will go by the frigate but not with the + knowledge of the Commissioners. Remember me with much affection to my + friends and accept the same to yourself. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0033" id="link2H_4_0033"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXXII. PROPOSAL THAT LOUISIANA BE PURCHASED.(1) + </h2> + <p> + (SENT TO THE PRESIDENT, CHRISTMAS DAY, 1802.) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine, being at Lovell's Hotel, Washington, suggested the + purchase of Louisiana to Dr. Michael Leib, representative + from Pennsylvania, who, being pleased with the idea, + suggested that he should write it to Jefferson. On the day + after its reception the President told Paine that "measures + were already taken in that business."—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Spain has ceded Louisiana to France, and France has excluded Americans + from New Orleans, and the navigation of the Mississippi. The people of the + Western Territory have complained of it to their Government, and the + Government is of consequence involved and interested in the affair. The + question then is—What is the best step to be taken? + </p> + <p> + The one is to begin by memorial and remonstrance against an infraction of + a right. The other is by accommodation,—still keeping the right in + view, but not making it a groundwork. + </p> + <p> + Suppose then the Government begin by making a proposal to France to + re-purchase the cession made to her by Spain, of Louisiana, provided it be + with the consent of the people of Louisiana, or a majority thereof. + </p> + <p> + By beginning on this ground any thing can be said without carrying the + appearance of a threat. The growing power of the Western Territory can be + stated as a matter of information, and also the impossibility of + restraining them from seizing upon New Orleans, and the equal + impossibility of France to prevent it. + </p> + <p> + Suppose the proposal attended to, the sum to be given comes next on the + carpet. This, on the part of America, will be estimated between the value + of the commerce and the quantity of revenue that Louisiana will produce. + </p> + <p> + The French Treasury is not only empty, but the Government has consumed by + anticipation a great part of the next year's revenue. A monied proposal + will, I believe, be attended to; if it should, the claims upon France can + be stipulated as part of the payment, and that sum can be paid here to the + claimants. + </p> + <p> + ——I congratulate you on <i>The Birthday of the New Sun</i>, + </p> + <p> + now called Christmas Day; and I make you a present of a thought on + Louisiana. + </p> + <p> + T.P. <a name="link2H_4_0034" id="link2H_4_0034"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXXIII. THOMAS PAINE TO THE CITIZENS OF THE UNITED STATES, + </h2> + <p> + And particularly to the Leaders of the Federal Faction, LETTER I.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The National Intelligencer, November 15th. The venerable + Mr. Gales, so long associated with this paper, had been in + youth a prosecuted adherent of Paine in Sheffield, England. + The paper distinguished itself by the kindly welcome it gave + Paine on his return to America. (See issues of Nov. 3 and + 10, 1802.) Paine landed at Baltimore, Oct. 30th.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + After an absence of almost fifteen years, I am again returned to the + country in whose dangers I bore my share, and to whose greatness I + contributed my part. + </p> + <p> + When I sailed for Europe, in the spring of 1787, it was my intention to + return to America the next year, and enjoy in retirement the esteem of my + friends, and the repose I was entitled to. I had stood out the storm of + one revolution, and had no wish to embark in another. But other scenes and + other circumstances than those of contemplated ease were allotted to me. + The French revolution was beginning to germinate when I arrived in France. + The principles of it were good, they were copied from America, and the men + who conducted it were honest. But the fury of faction soon extinguished + the one, and sent the other to the scaffold. Of those who began that + revolution, I am almost the only survivor, and that through a thousand + dangers. I owe this not to the prayers of priests, nor to the piety of + hypocrites, but to the continued protection of Providence. + </p> + <p> + But while I beheld with pleasure the dawn of liberty rising in Europe, I + saw with regret the lustre of it fading in America. In less than two years + from the time of my departure some distant symptoms painfully suggested + the idea that the principles of the revolution were expiring on the soil + that produced them. I received at that time a letter from a female + literary correspondent, and in my answer to her, I expressed my fears on + that head.(1) + </p> + <p> + I now know from the information I obtain upon the spot, that the + impressions that then distressed me, for I was proud of America, were but + too well founded. She was turning her back on her own glory, and making + hasty strides in the retrograde path of oblivion. But a spark from the + altar of <i>Seventy-six</i>, unextinguished and unextinguishable through + the long night of error, is again lighting up, in every part of the Union, + the genuine name of rational liberty. + </p> + <p> + As the French revolution advanced, it fixed the attention of the world, + and drew from the pensioned pen (2) of Edmund Burke a furious attack. This + brought me once more on the public theatre of politics, and occasioned the + pamphlet <i>Rights of Man</i>. It had the greatest run of any work ever + published in the English language. The number of copies circulated in + England, Scotland, and Ireland, besides translations into foreign + languages, was between four and five hundred thousand. The principles of + that work were the same as those in <i>Common Sense</i>, and the effects + would have been the same in England as that had produced in America, could + the vote of the nation been quietly taken, or had equal opportunities of + consulting or acting existed. The only difference between the two works + was, that the one was adapted to the local circumstances of England, and + the other to those of America. As to myself, I acted in both cases alike; + I relinquished to the people of England, as I had done to those of + America, all profits from the work. My reward existed in the ambition to + do good, and the independent happiness of my own mind. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine here quotes a passage from his letter to Mrs. Few, + already given in the Memorial to Monroe (XXI.). The entire + letter to Mrs. Few will be printed in the Appendix to Vol. + IV. of this work.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 See editorial note p. 95 in this volume.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + But a faction, acting in disguise, was rising in America; they had lost + sight of first principles. They were beginning to contemplate government + as a profitable monopoly, and the people as hereditary property. It is, + therefore, no wonder that the <i>Rights of Man</i> was attacked by that + faction, and its author continually abused. But let them go on; give them + rope enough and they will put an end to their own insignificance. There is + too much common sense and independence in America to be long the dupe of + any faction, foreign or domestic. + </p> + <p> + But, in the midst of the freedom we enjoy, the licentiousness of the + papers called Federal, (and I know not why they are called so, for they + are in their principles anti-federal and despotic,) is a dishonour to the + character of the country, and an injury to its reputation and importance + abroad. They represent the whole people of America as destitute of public + principle and private manners. As to any injury they can do at home to + those whom they abuse, or service they can render to those who employ + them, it is to be set down to the account of noisy nothingness. It is on + themselves the disgrace recoils, for the reflection easily presents itself + to every thinking mind, that <i>those who abuse liberty when they possess + it would abuse power could they obtain it</i>; and, therefore, they may as + well take as a general motto, for all such papers, <i>We and our patrons + are not fit to be trusted with power</i>. + </p> + <p> + There is in America, more than in any other country, a large body of + people who attend quietly to their farms, or follow their several + occupations; who pay no regard to the clamours of anonymous scribblers, + who think for themselves, and judge of government, not by the fury of + newspaper writers, but by the prudent frugality of its measures, and the + encouragement it gives to the improvement and prosperity of the country; + and who, acting on their own judgment, never come forward in an election + but on some important occasion. When this body moves, all the little + barkings of scribbling and witless curs pass for nothing. To say to this + independent description of men, "You must turn out such and such persons + at the next election, for they have taken off a great many taxes, and + lessened the expenses of government, they have dismissed my son, or my + brother, or myself, from a lucrative office, in which there was nothing to + do"—is to show the cloven foot of faction, and preach the language + of ill-disguised mortification. In every part of the Union, this faction + is in the agonies of death, and in proportion as its fate approaches, + gnashes its teeth and struggles. My arrival has struck it as with an + hydrophobia, it is like the sight of water to canine madness. + </p> + <p> + As this letter is intended to announce my arrival to my friends, and to my + enemies if I have any, for I ought to have none in America, and as + introductory to others that will occasionally follow, I shall close it by + detailing the line of conduct I shall pursue. + </p> + <p> + I have no occasion to ask, and do not intend to accept, any place or + office in the government.(1) There is none it could give me that would be + any ways equal to the profits I could make as an author, for I have an + established fame in the literary world, could I reconcile it to my + principles to make money by my politics or religion. I must be in every + thing what I have ever been, a disinterested volunteer; my proper sphere + of action is on the common floor of citizenship, and to honest men I give + my hand and my heart freely. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The President (Jefferson) being an intimate friend of + Paine, and suspected, despite his reticence, of sympathizing + with Paine's religions views, was included in the + denunciations of Paine ("The Two Toms" they were called), + and Paine here goes out of his way to soften matters for + Jefferson.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + I have some manuscript works to publish, of which I shall give proper + notice, and some mechanical affairs to bring forward, that will employ all + my leisure time. I shall continue these letters as I see occasion, and as + to the low party prints that choose to abuse me, they are welcome; I shall + not descend to answer them. I have been too much used to such common stuff + to take any notice of it. The government of England honoured me with a + thousand martyrdoms, by burning me in effigy in every town in that + country, and their hirelings in America may do the same. + </p> + <p> + City of Washington. + </p> + <p> + THOMAS PAINE. LETTER II(1) + </p> + <p> + As the affairs of the country to which I am returned are of more + importance to the world, and to me, than of that I have lately left, (for + it is through the new world the old must be regenerated, if regenerated at + all,) I shall not take up the time of the reader with an account of scenes + that have passed in France, many of which are painful to remember and + horrid to relate, but come at once to the circumstances in which I find + America on my arrival. + </p> + <p> + Fourteen years, and something more, have produced a change, at least among + a part of the people, and I ask my-self what it is? I meet or hear of + thousands of my former connexions, who are men of the same principles and + friendships as when I left them. But a non-descript race, and of equivocal + generation, assuming the name of <i>Federalist</i>,—a name that + describes no character of principle good or bad, and may equally be + applied to either,—has since started up with the rapidity of a + mushroom, and like a mushroom is withering on its rootless stalk. Are + those men <i>federalized</i> to support the liberties of their country or + to overturn them? To add to its fair fame or riot on its spoils? The name + contains no defined idea. It is like John Adams's definition of a + Republic, in his letter to Mr. Wythe of Virginia.(2) <i>It is</i>, says + he, <i>an empire of laws and not of men</i>. But as laws may be bad as + well as good, an empire of laws may be the best of all governments or the + worst of all tyrannies. But John Adams is a man of paradoxical heresies, + and consequently of a bewildered mind. He wrote a book entitled, "<i>A + Defence of the American Constitutions</i>," and the principles of it are + an attack upon them. But the book is descended to the tomb of + forgetfulness, and the best fortune that can attend its author is quietly + to follow its fate. John was not born for immortality. But, to return to + Federalism. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 National Intelligencer, Nov. 23d, 1802.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Chancellor Wythe, 1728-1806.—<i>Editor.</i> vol m—«5 +</pre> + <p> + In the history of parties and the names they assume, it often happens that + they finish by the direct contrary principles with which they profess to + begin, and thus it has happened with Federalism. + </p> + <p> + During the time of the old Congress, and prior to the establishment of the + federal government, the continental belt was too loosely buckled. The + several states were united in name but not in fact, and that nominal union + had neither centre nor circle. The laws of one state frequently + interferred with, and sometimes opposed, those of another. Commerce + between state and state was without protection, and confidence without a + point to rest on. The condition the country was then in, was aptly + described by Pelatiah Webster, when he said, "<i>thirteen staves and ne'er + a hoop will not make a barrel</i>."(1) + </p> + <p> + If, then, by <i>Federalist</i> is to be understood one who was for + cementing the Union by a general government operating equally over all the + States, in all matters that embraced the common interest, and to which the + authority of the States severally was not adequate, for no one State can + make laws to bind another; if, I say, by a <i>Federalist</i> is meant a + person of this description, (and this is the origin of the name,) <i>I + ought to stand first on the list of Federalists</i>, for the proposition + for establishing a general government over the Union, came originally from + me in 1783, in a written Memorial to Chancellor Livingston, then Secretary + for Foreign Affairs to Congress, Robert Morris, Minister of Finance, and + his associate, Gouverneur Morris, all of whom are now living; and we had a + dinner and conference at Robert Morris's on the subject. The occasion was + as follows: + </p> + <p> + Congress had proposed a duty of five per cent, on imported articles, the + money to be applied as a fund towards paying the interest of loans to be + borrowed in Holland. The resolve was sent to the several States to be + enacted into a law. Rhode Island absolutely refused. I was at the trouble + of a journey to Rhode Island to reason with them on the subject.(2) Some + other of the States enacted it with alterations, each one as it pleased. + Virginia adopted it, and afterwards repealed it, and the affair came to + nothing. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 "Like a stare in a cask well bound with hoops, it [the + individual State] stands firmer, is not so easily shaken, + bent, or broken, as it would be were it set up by itself + alone."—Pelatiah Webster, 1788. See Paul L. Ford's + Pamphlets cm the Constitution, etc., p. 128.—Editor + + 2 See my "Life of Paine." vol i., p. 103.—Editor, +</pre> + <p> + It was then visible, at least to me, that either Congress must frame the + laws necessary for the Union, and send them to the several States to be + enregistered without any alteration, which would in itself appear like + usurpation on one part and passive obedience on the other, or some method + must be devised to accomplish the same end by constitutional principles; + and the proposition I made in the memorial was, to <i>add a continental + legislature to Congress, to be elected by the several States</i>. The + proposition met the full approbation of the gentlemen to whom it was + addressed, and the conversation turned on the manner of bringing it + forward. Gouverneur Morris, in walking with me after dinner, wished me to + throw out the idea in the newspaper; I replied, that I did not like to be + always the proposer of new things, that it would have too assuming an + appearance; and besides, that <i>I did not think the country was quite + wrong enough to be put right</i>. I remember giving the same reason to Dr. + Rush, at Philadelphia, and to General Gates, at whose quarters I spent a + day on my return from Rhode Island; and I suppose they will remember it, + because the observation seemed to strike them.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The Letter Books of Robert Morris (16 folio volumes, which + should be in our national Archives) contain many entries + relating to Paine's activity in the public service. Under + date Aug. 21, 1783, about the time referred to by Paine in + this letter, Robert Morris mentions a conversation with him + on public affairs. I am indebted to General Meredith Read, + owner of these Morris papers, for permission to examine + them.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + But the embarrassments increasing, as they necessarily must from the want + of a better cemented union, the State of Virginia proposed holding a + commercial convention, and that convention, which was not sufficiently + numerous, proposed that another convention, with more extensive and better + defined powers, should be held at Philadelphia, May 10, 1787. + </p> + <p> + When the plan of the Federal Government, formed by this Convention, was + proposed and submitted to the consideration of the several States, it was + strongly objected to in each of them. But the objections were not on + anti-federal grounds, but on constitutional points. Many were shocked at + the idea of placing what is called Executive Power in the hands of a + single individual. To them it had too much the form and appearance of a + military government, or a despotic one. Others objected that the powers + given to a president were too great, and that in the hands of an ambitious + and designing man it might grow into tyranny, as it did in England under + Oliver Cromwell, and as it has since done in France. A Republic must not + only be so in its principles, but in its forms. The Executive part of the + Federal government was made for a man, and those who consented, against + their judgment, to place Executive Power in the hands of a single + individual, reposed more on the supposed moderation of the person they had + in view, than on the wisdom of the measure itself. + </p> + <p> + Two considerations, however, overcame all objections. The one was, the + absolute necessity of a Federal Government. The other, the rational + reflection, that as government in America is founded on the representative + system any error in the first essay could be reformed by the same quiet + and rational process by which the Constitution was formed, and that either + by the generation then living, or by those who were to succeed. If ever + America lose sight of this principle, she will no longer be the <i>land of + liberty</i>. The father will become the assassin of the rights of the son, + and his descendants be a race of slaves. + </p> + <p> + As many thousands who were minors are grown up to manhood since the name + of <i>Federalist</i> began, it became necessary, for their information, to + go back and show the origin of the name, which is now no longer what it + originally was; but it was the more necessary to do this, in order to + bring forward, in the open face of day, the apostacy of those who first + called themselves Federalists. + </p> + <p> + To them it served as a cloak for treason, a mask for tyranny. Scarcely + were they placed in the seat of power and office, than Federalism was to + be destroyed, and the representative system of government, the pride and + glory of America, and the palladium of her liberties, was to be overthrown + and abolished. The next generation was not to be free. The son was to bend + his neck beneath the father's foot, and live, deprived of his rights, + under hereditary control. Among the men of this apostate description, is + to be ranked the ex-president <i>John Adams</i>. It has been the political + career of this man to begin with hypocrisy, proceed with arrogance, and + finish in contempt. May such be the fate of all such characters. + </p> + <p> + I have had doubts of John Adams ever since the year 1776. In a + conversation with me at that time, concerning the pamphlet <i>Common Sense</i>, + he censured it because it attacked the English form of government. John + was for independence because he expected to be made great by it; but it + was not difficult to perceive, for the surliness of his temper makes him + an awkward hypocrite, that his head was as full of kings, queens, and + knaves, as a pack of cards. But John has lost deal. + </p> + <p> + When a man has a concealed project in his brain that he wants to bring + forward, and fears will not succeed, he begins with it as physicians do by + suspected poison, try it first on an animal; if it agree with the stomach + of the animal, he makes further experiments, and this was the way John + took. His brain was teeming with projects to overturn the liberties of + America, and the representative system of government, and he began by + hinting it in little companies. The secretary of John Jay, an excellent + painter and a poor politician, told me, in presence of another American, + Daniel Parker, that in a company where himself was present, John Adams + talked of making the government hereditary, and that as Mr. Washington had + no children, it should be made hereditary in the family of Lund + Washington.(1) John had not impudence enough to propose himself in the + first instance, as the old French Normandy baron did, who offered to come + over to be king of America, and if Congress did not accept his offer, that + they would give him thirty thousand pounds for the generosity of it(2); + but John, like a mole, was grubbing his way to it under ground. He knew + that Lund Washington was unknown, for nobody had heard of him, and that as + the president had no children to succeed him, the vice-president had, and + if the treason had succeeded, and the hint with it, the goldsmith might be + sent for to take measure of the head of John or of his son for a golden + wig. In this case, the good people of Boston might have for a king the man + they have rejected as a delegate. The representative system is fatal to + ambition. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See supra footnote on p. 288.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 See vol. ii. p. 318 of this work.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Knowing, as I do, the consummate vanity of John Adams, and the shallowness + of his judgment, I can easily picture to myself that when he arrived at + the Federal City he was strutting in the pomp of his imagination before + the presidential house, or in the audience hall, and exulting in the + language of Nebuchadnezzar, "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built + for the honour of my Majesty!" But in that unfortunate hour, or soon + after, John, like Nebuchadnezzar, was driven from among men, and fled with + the speed of a post-horse. + </p> + <p> + Some of John Adams's loyal subjects, I see, have been to present him with + an address on his birthday; but the language they use is too tame for the + occasion. Birthday addresses, like birthday odes, should not creep along + like mildrops down a cabbage leaf, but roll in a torrent of poetical + metaphor. I will give them a specimen for the next year. Here it is— + </p> + <p> + When an Ant, in travelling over the globe, lift up its foot, and put it + again on the ground, it shakes the earth to its centre: but when YOU, the + mighty Ant of the East, was born, &c. &c. &c, the centre + jumped upon the surface. + </p> + <p> + This, gentlemen, is the proper style of addresses from <i>well-bred</i> + ants to the monarch of the ant hills; and as I never take pay for + preaching, praying, politics, or poetry, I make you a present of it. Some + people talk of impeaching John Adams; but I am for softer measures. I + would keep him to make fun of. He will then answer one of the ends for + which he was born, and he ought to be thankful that I am arrived to take + his part. I voted in earnest to save the life of one unfortunate king, and + I now vote in jest to save another. It is my fate to be always plagued + with fools. But to return to Federalism and apostacy. + </p> + <p> + The plan of the leaders of the faction was to overthrow the liberties of + the new world, and place government on the corrupt system of the old. They + wanted to hold their power by a more lasting tenure than the choice of + their constituents. It is impossible to account for their conduct and the + measures they adopted on any other ground. But to accomplish that object, + a standing army and a prodigal revenue must be raised; and to obtain + these, pretences must be invented to deceive. Alarms of dangers that did + not exist even in imagination, but in the direct spirit of lying, were + spread abroad. Apostacy stalked through the land in the garb of + patriotism, and the torch of treason blinded for a while the flame of + liberty. + </p> + <p> + For what purpose could an army of twenty-five thousand men be wanted? A + single reflection might have taught the most credulous that while the war + raged between France and England, neither could spare a man to invade + America. For what purpose, then, could it be wanted? The case carries its + own explanation. It was wanted for the purpose of destroying the + representative system, for it could be employed for no other. Are these + men Federalists? If they are, they are federalized to deceive and to + destroy. + </p> + <p> + The rage against Dr. Logan's patriotic and voluntary mission to France was + excited by the shame they felt at the detection of the false alarms they + had circulated. As to the opposition given by the remnant of the faction + to the repeal of the taxes laid on during the former administration, it is + easily accounted for. The repeal of those taxes was a sentence of + condemnation on those who laid them on, and in the opposition they gave in + that repeal, they are to be considered in the light of criminals standing + on their defence, and the country has passed judgment upon them. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + City of Washington, Lovett's Hotel, Nov. 19, 1802. + </p> + <p> + LETTER III.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The National Intelligencer, Dec. 29th, 1802.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + To ELECT, and to REJECT, is the prerogative of a free people. + </p> + <p> + Since the establishment of Independence, no period has arrived that so + decidedly proves the excellence of the representative system of + government, and its superiority over every other, as the time we now live + in. Had America been cursed with John Adams's <i>hereditary Monarchy</i> + or Alexander Hamilton's <i>Senate for life</i> she must have sought, in + the doubtful contest of civil war, what she now obtains by the expression + of public will. An appeal to elections decides better than an appeal to + the sword. + </p> + <p> + The Reign of Terror that raged in America during the latter end of the + Washington administration, and the whole of that of Adams, is enveloped in + mystery to me. That there were men in the government hostile to the + representative system, was once their boast, though it is now their + overthrow, and therefore the fact is established against them. But that so + large a mass of the people should become the dupes of those who were + loading them with taxes in order to load them with chains, and deprive + them of the right of election, can be ascribed only to that species of + wildfire rage, lighted up by falsehood, that not only acts without + reflection, but is too impetuous to make any. + </p> + <p> + There is a general and striking difference between the genuine effects of + truth itself, and the effects of falsehood believed to be truth. Truth is + naturally benign; but falsehood believed to be truth is always furious. + The former delights in serenity, is mild and persuasive, and seeks not the + auxiliary aid of invention. The latter sticks at nothing. It has naturally + no morals. Every lie is welcome that suits its purpose. It is the innate + character of the thing to act in this manner, and the criterion by which + it may be known, whether in politics or religion. When any thing is + attempted to be supported by lying, it is presumptive evidence that the + thing so supported is a lie also. The stock on which a lie can be grafted + must be of the same species as the graft. + </p> + <p> + What is become of the mighty clamour of French invasion, and the cry that + our country is in danger, and taxes and armies must be raised to defend + it? The danger is fled with the faction that created it, and what is worst + of all, the money is fled too. It is I only that have committed the + hostility of invasion, and all the artillery of popguns are prepared for + action. Poor fellows, how they foam! They set half their own partisans in + laughter; for among ridiculous things nothing is more ridiculous than + ridiculous rage. But I hope they will not leave off. I shall lose half my + greatness when they cease to lie. + </p> + <p> + So far as respects myself, I have reason to believe, and a right to say, + that the leaders of the Reign of Terror in America and the leaders of the + Reign of Terror in France, during the time of Robespierre, were in + character the same sort of men; or how is it to be accounted for, that I + was persecuted by both at the same time? When I was voted out of the + French Convention, the reason assigned for it was, that I was a foreigner. + When Robespierre had me seized in the night, and imprisoned in the + Luxembourg, (where I remained eleven months,) he assigned no reason for + it. But when he proposed bringing me to the tribunal, which was like + sending me at once to the scaffold, he then assigned a reason, and the + reason was, <i>for the interests of America as well as of France, "Pour + les intérêts de l'Amérique autant que de la France</i>" The words are in + his own hand-writing, and reported to the Convention by the committee + appointed to examine his papers, and are printed in their report, with + this reflection added to them, "<i>Why Thomas Paine more than another? + Because he contributed to the liberty of both worlds</i>."(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See my "Life of Paine," vol. ii., pp. 79, 81. Also, the + historical introduction to XXI., p. 330, of this volume. + Robespierre never wrote an idle word. This Paine well knew, + as Mirabeau, who said of Robespierre: "That man will go far + he believes every word he says."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + There must have been a coalition in sentiment, if not in fact, between the + Terrorists of America and the Terrorists of France, and Robespierre must + have known it, or he could not have had the idea of putting America into + the bill of accusation against me. Yet these men, these Terrorists of the + new world, who were waiting in the devotion of their hearts for the joyful + news of my destruction, are the same banditti who are now bellowing in all + the hacknied language of hacknied hypocrisy, about humanity, and piety, + and often about something they call infidelity, and they finish with the + chorus of <i>Crucify him, crucify him</i>. I am become so famous among + them, they cannot eat or drink without me. I serve them as a standing + dish, and they cannot make up a bill of fare if I am not in it. + </p> + <p> + But there is one dish, and that the choicest of all, that they have not + presented on the table, and it is time they should. They have not yet <i>accused + Providence of Infidelity</i>. Yet according to their outrageous piety, + she(1) must be as bad as Thomas Paine; she has protected him in all his + dangers, patronized him in all his undertakings, encouraged him in all his + ways, and rewarded him at last by bringing him in safety and in health to + the Promised Land. This is more than she did by the Jews, the chosen + people, that they tell us she brought out of the land of Egypt, and out of + the house of bondage; for they all died in the wilderness, and Moses too. + </p> + <p> + I was one of the nine members that composed the first Committee of + Constitution. Six of them have been destroyed. Sièyes and myself have + survived—he by bending with the times, and I by not bending. The + other survivor joined Robespierre, he was seized and imprisoned in his + turn, and sentenced to transportation. He has since apologized to me for + having signed the warrant, by saying he felt himself in danger and was + obliged to do it.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Is this a "survival" of the goddess Fortuna?—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Barère. His apology to Paine proves that a death- + warrant had been issued, for Barère did not sign the order + for Paine's arrest or imprisonment.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Hérault Sechelles, an acquaintance of Mr. Jefferson, and a good patriot, + was my <i>suppléant</i> as member of the Committee of Constitution, that + is, he was to supply my place, if I had not accepted or had resigned, + being next in number of votes to me. He was imprisoned in the Luxembourg + with me, was taken to the tribunal and the guillotine, and I, his + principal, was left. + </p> + <p> + There were two foreigners in the Convention, Anarcharsis Clootz and + myself. We were both put out of the Convention by the same vote, arrested + by the same order, and carried to prison together the same night. He was + taken to the guillotine, and I was again left. Joel Barlow was with us + when we went to prison. + </p> + <p> + Joseph Lebon, one of the vilest characters that ever existed, and who made + the streets of Arras run with blood, was my <i>suppléant</i>, as member of + the Convention for the department of the Pas de Calais. When I was put out + of the Convention he came and took my place. When I was liberated from + prison and voted again into the Convention, he was sent to the same prison + and took my place there, and he was sent to the guillotine instead of me. + He supplied my place all the way through. + </p> + <p> + One hundred and sixty-eight persons were taken out of the Luxembourg in + one night, and a hundred and sixty of them guillotined next day, of which + I now know I was to have been one; and the manner I escaped that fate is + curious, and has all the appearance of accident. + </p> + <p> + The room in which I was lodged was on the ground floor, and one of a long + range of rooms under a gallery, and the door of it opened outward and flat + against the wall; so that when it was open the inside of the door appeared + outward, and the contrary when it was shut. I had three comrades, fellow + prisoners with me, Joseph Vanhuele, of Bruges, since President of the + Municipality of that town, Michael Rubyns, and Charles Bastini of Louvain. + </p> + <p> + When persons by scores and by hundreds were to be taken out of the prison + for the guillotine it was always done in the night, and those who + performed that office had a private mark or signal, by which they knew + what rooms to go to, and what number to take. We, as I have stated, were + four, and the door of our room was marked, unobserved by us, with that + number in chalk; but it happened, if happening is a proper word, that the + mark was put on when the door was open, and flat against the wall, and + thereby came on the inside when we shut it at night, and the destroying + angel passed by it.(1) A few days after this, Robespierre fell, and Mr. + Monroe arrived and reclaimed me, and invited me to his house. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Painefs preface to the "Age of Reason" Part IL, and his + Letter to Washington (p. 222.) show that for some time after + his release from prison he had attributed his escape from + the guillotine to a fever which rendered him unconscious at + the time when his accusation was demanded by Robespierre; + but it will be seen (XXXI.) that he subsequently visited his + prison room-mate Vanhuele, who had become Mayor of Bruges, + and he may have learned from him the particulars of their + marvellous escape. Carlyle having been criticised by John G. + Alger for crediting this story of the chalk mark, an + exhaustive discussion of the facts took place in the London + Athenoum, July 7, 21, August 25, September 1, 1894, in which + it was conclusively proved, I think, that there is no reason + to doubt the truth of the incident See also my article on + Paine's escape, in The Open Court (Chicago), July 26,1894. + The discussion in the Athenoum elicited the fact that a + tradition had long existed in the family of Sampson Perry + that he had shared Paine's cell and been saved by the + curious mistake. Such is not the fact. Perry, in his book on + the French Revolution, and in his "Argus," told the story of + Paine's escape by his illness, as Paine first told it; and + he also relates an anecdote which may find place here: + "Mr. Paine speaks gratefully of the kindness shown him by his + fellow-prisoners of the same chamber during his severe + malady, and especially of the skilful and voluntary + assistance lent him by General O'Hara's surgeon. He relates + an anecdote of himself which may not be unworthy of + repeating. An arrêt of the Committee of Public Welfare had + given directions to the administrators of the palace + [Luxembourg] to enter all the prisons with additional guards + and dispossess every prisoner of his knives, forks, and + every other sharp instrument; and also to take their money + from them. This happened a short time before Mr. Paine's + illness, and as this ceremony was represented to him as an + atrocious plunder in the dregs of municipality, he + determined to avert its effect so far as it concerned + himself. He had an English bank note of some value and gold + coin in his pocket, and as he conceived the visitors would + rifle them, as well as his trunks (though they did not do so + by any one) he took off the lock from his door, and hid the + whole of what he had about him in its inside. He recovered + his health, he found his money, but missed about three + hundred of his associated prisoners, who had been sent in + crowds to the murderous tribunal, while he had been + insensible of their or his own danger." This was probably + the money (£200) loaned by Paine to General O'Hara (who + figured at the Yorktown surrender) in prison.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + During the whole of my imprisonment, prior to the fall of Robespierre, + there was no time when I could think my life worth twenty-four hours, and + my mind was made up to meet its fate. The Americans in Paris went in a + body to the Convention to reclaim me, but without success. There was no + party among them with respect to me. My only hope then rested on the + government of America, that it would <i>remember me</i>. But the icy heart + of ingratitude, in whatever man it be placed, has neither feeling nor + sense of honour. The letter of Mr. Jefferson has served to wipe away the + reproach, and done justice to the mass of the people of America.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Printed in the seventh of this series of Letters.— + <i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + When a party was forming, in the latter end of 1777, and beginning of + 1778, of which John Adams was one, to remove Mr. Washington from the + command of the army on the complaint that <i>he did nothing</i>, I wrote + the fifth number of the Crisis, and published it at Lancaster, (Congress + then being at Yorktown, in Pennsylvania,) to ward off that meditated blow; + for though I well knew that the black times of '76 were the natural + consequence of his want of military judgment in the choice of positions + into which the army was put about New York and New Jersey, I could see no + possible advantage, and nothing but mischief, that could arise by + distracting the army into parties, which would have been the case had the + intended motion gone on. + </p> + <p> + General [Charles] Lee, who with a sarcastic genius joined a great fund of + military knowledge, was perfectly right when he said "<i>We have no + business on islands, and in the bottom of bogs, where the enemy, by the + aid of its ships, can bring its whole force against apart of ours and shut + it up</i>." This had like to have been the case at New York, and it was + the case at Fort Washington, and would have been the case at Fort Lee if + General [Nathaniel] Greene had not moved instantly off on the first news + of the enemy's approach. I was with Greene through the whole of that + affair, and know it perfectly. + </p> + <p> + But though I came forward in defence of Mr. Washington when he was + attacked, and made the best that could be made of a series of blunders + that had nearly ruined the country, he left me to perish when I was in + prison. But as I told him of it in his life-time, I should not now bring + it up if the ignorant impertinence of some of the Federal papers, who are + pushing Mr. Washington forward as their stalking horse, did not make it + necessary. + </p> + <p> + That gentleman did not perform his part in the Revolution better, nor with + more honour, than I did mine, and the one part was as necessary as the + other. He accepted as a present, (though he was already rich,) a hundred + thousand acres of land in America, and left me to occupy six foot of earth + in France.(1) I wish, for his own reputation, he had acted with more + justice. But it was always known of Mr. Washington, by those who best knew + him, that he was of such an icy and death-like constitution, that he + neither loved his friends nor hated his enemies. But, be this as it may, I + see no reason that a difference between Mr. Washington and me should be + made a theme of discord with other people. There are those who may see + merit in both, without making themselves partisans of either, and with + this reflection I close the subject. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Paine was mistaken, as many others were, about the gifts + of Virginia (1785) to Washington. They were 100 shares, of + $100 each, in the James River Company, and 50 shares, of + £100 each, in the Potomac Company. Washington, accepted on + condition that he might appropriate them <i>to public uses</i> + which was done in his Will.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + As to the hypocritical abuse thrown out by the Federalists on other + subjects, I recommend to them the observance of a commandment that existed + before either Christian or Jew existed: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Thou shalt make a covenant with thy senses: + With thine eye that it behold no evil, + With thine ear, that it hear no evil, + With thy tongue, that it speak no evil, + With thy hands, that they commit no evil. +</pre> + <p> + If the Federalists will follow this commandment, they will leave off + lying. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Federal City, Lovett's Hotel, Nov. 26,1802. + </p> + <p> + LETTER IV.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The National Intelligencer, Dec. 6th. 1802.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + As Congress is on the point of meeting, the public papers will necessarily + be occupied with the debates of the ensuing session, and as, in + consequence of my long absence from America, my private affairs require my + attendance, (for it is necessary I do this, or I could not preserve, as I + do, my independence,) I shall close my address to the public with this + letter. + </p> + <p> + I congratulate them on the success of the late elections, and <i>that</i> + with the additional confidence, that while honest men are chosen and wise + measures pursued, neither the treason of apostacy, masked under the name + of Federalism, of which I have spoken in my second letter, nor the + intrigues of foreign emissaries, acting in concert with that mask, can + prevail. + </p> + <p> + As to the licentiousness of the papers calling themselves <i>Federal</i>, + a name that apostacy has taken, it can hurt nobody but the party or the + persons who support such papers. There is naturally a wholesome pride in + the public mind that revolts at open vulgarity. It feels itself + dishonoured even by hearing it, as a chaste woman feels dishonour by + hearing obscenity she cannot avoid. It can smile at wit, or be diverted + with strokes of satirical humour, but it detests the <i>blackguard</i>. + The same sense of propriety that governs in private companies, governs in + public life. If a man in company runs his wit upon another, it may draw a + smile from some persons present, but as soon as he turns a blackguard in + his language the company gives him up; and it is the same in public life. + The event of the late election shows this to be true; for in proportion as + those papers have become more and more vulgar and abusive, the elections + have gone more and more against the party they support, or that supports + them. Their predecessor, <i>Porcupine</i> [Cobbett] had wit—these + scribblers have none. But as soon as his <i>blackguardism</i> (for it is + the proper name of it) outran his wit, he was abandoned by every body but + the English Minister who protected him. + </p> + <p> + The Spanish proverb says, "<i>there never was a cover large enough to hide + itself</i>"; and the proverb applies to the case of those papers and the + shattered remnant of the faction that supports them. The falsehoods they + fabricate, and the abuse they circulate, is a cover to hide something from + being seen, but it is not large enough to hide itself. It is as a tub + thrown out to the whale to prevent its attacking and sinking the vessel. + They want to draw the attention of the public from thinking about, or + inquiring into, the measures of the late administration, and the reason + why so much public money was raised and expended; and so far as a lie + today, and a new one tomorrow, will answer this purpose, it answers + theirs. It is nothing to them whether they be believed or not, for if the + negative purpose be answered the main point is answered, to them. + </p> + <p> + He that picks your pocket always tries to make you look another way. + "Look," says he, "at yon man t'other side the street—what a nose he + has got?—Lord, yonder is a chimney on fire!—Do you see yon man + going along in the salamander great coat? That is the very man that stole + one of Jupiter's satellites, and sold it to a countryman for a gold watch, + and it set his breeches on fire!" Now the man that has his hand in your + pocket, does not care a farthing whether you believe what he says or not. + All his aim is to prevent your looking at <i>him</i>; and this is the case + with the remnant of the Federal faction. The leaders of it have imposed + upon the country, and they want to turn the attention of it from the + subject. + </p> + <p> + In taking up any public matter, I have never made it a consideration, and + never will, whether it be popular or unpopular; but whether it be <i>right</i> + or <i>wrong</i>. The right will always become the popular, if it has + courage to show itself, and the shortest way is always a straight line. I + despise expedients, they are the gutter-hole of politics, and the sink + where reputation dies. In the present case, as in every other, I cannot be + accused of using any; and I have no doubt but thousands will hereafter be + ready to say, as Gouverneur Morris said to me, after having abused me + pretty handsomely in Congress for the opposition I gave the fraudulent + demand of Silas Deane of two thousand pounds sterling: "<i>Well, we were + all duped, and I among the rest!</i>"(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 See vol. I., chapters xxii., xxiii., xxiv., of this work. + Also my "Life of Paine," vol. I., ch. ix., x.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Were the late administration to be called upon to give reasons for the + expence it put the country to, it can give none. The danger of an invasion + was a bubble that served as a cover to raise taxes and armies to be + employed on some other purpose. But if the people of America believed it + true, the cheerfulness with which they supported those measures and paid + those taxes is an evidence of their patriotism; and if they supposed me + their enemy, though in that supposition they did me injustice, it was not + injustice in them. He that acts as he believes, though he may act wrong, + is not conscious of wrong. + </p> + <p> + But though there was no danger, no thanks are due to the late + administration for it. They sought to blow up a flame between the two + countries; and so intent were they upon this, that they went out of their + way to accomplish it. In a letter which the Secretary of State, Timothy + Pickering, wrote to Mr. Skipwith, the American Consul at Paris, he broke + off from the official subject of his letter, to <i>thank God</i> in very + exulting language, <i>that the Russians had cut the French army to pieces</i>. + Mr. Skipwith, after showing me the letter, very prudently concealed it. + </p> + <p> + It was the injudicious and wicked acrimony of this letter, and some other + like conduct of the then Secretary of State, that occasioned me, in a + letter to a friend in the government, to say, that if there was any + official business to be done in France, till a regular Minister could be + appointed, it could not be trusted to a more proper person than Mr. + Skipwith. "<i>He is</i>," said I, "<i>an honest man, and will do business, + and that with good manners to the government he is commissioned to act + with. A faculty which that BEAR, Timothy Pickering, wanted, and which the + BEAR of that bear, John Adams, never possessed</i>."(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 2 By reference to the letter itself (p. 376 of this volume) + it will be seen that Paine here quotes it from memory.— + <i>Editor.</i> vol III— +</pre> + <p> + In another letter to the same friend, in 1797, and which was put unsealed + under cover to Colonel Burr, I expressed a satisfaction that Mr. + Jefferson, since he was not president, had accepted the vice presidency; "<i>for</i>," + said I, "<i>John Adams has such a talent for blundering and offending, it + will be necessary to keep an eye over him</i>." He has now sufficiently + proved, that though I have not the spirit of prophecy, I have the gift of + <i>judging right</i>. And all the world knows, for it cannot help knowing, + that to judge <i>rightly</i> and to write <i>clearly</i>, and that upon + all sorts of subjects, to be able to command thought and as it were to + play with it at pleasure, and be always master of one's temper in writing, + is the faculty only of a serene mind, and the attribute of a happy and + philosophical temperament. The scribblers, who know me not, and who fill + their papers with paragraphs about me, besides their want of talents, + drink too many slings and drams in a morning to have any chance with me. + But, poor fellows, they must do something for the little pittance they get + from their employers. This is my apology for them. + </p> + <p> + My anxiety to get back to America was great for many years. It is the + country of my heart, and the place of my political and literary birth. It + was the American revolution that made me an author, and forced into action + the mind that had been dormant, and had no wish for public life, nor has + it now. By the accounts I received, she appeared to me to be going wrong, + and that some meditated treason against her liberties lurked at the bottom + of her government. I heard that my friends were oppressed, and I longed to + take my stand among them, and if other times to <i>try mens souls</i> were + to arrive, that I might bear my share. But my efforts to return were + ineffectual. + </p> + <p> + As soon as Mr. Monroe had made a good standing with the French government, + for the conduct of his predecessor [Morris] had made his reception as + Minister difficult, he wanted to send despatches to his own government by + a person to whom he could confide a verbal communication, and he fixed his + choice on me. He then applied to the Committee of Public Safety for a + passport; but as I had been voted again into the Convention, it was only + the Convention that could give the passport; and as an application to them + for that purpose, would have made my going publicly known, I was obliged + to sustain the disappointment, and Mr. Monroe to lose the opportunity.(1) + </p> + <p> + When that gentleman left France to return to America, I was to have gone + with him. It was fortunate I did not. The vessel he sailed in was visited + by a British frigate, that searched every part of it, and down to the + hold, for Thomas Paine.(2) I then went, the same year, to embark at Havre. + But several British frigates were cruizing in sight of the port who knew I + was there, and I had to return again to Paris. Seeing myself thus cut off + from every opportunity that was in my power to command, I wrote to Mr. + Jefferson, that, if the fate of the election should put him in the chair + of the presidency, and he should have occasion to send a frigate to + France, he would give me the opportunity of returning by it, which he did. + But I declined coming by the <i>Maryland</i>, the vessel that was offered + me, and waited for the frigate that was to bring the new Minister, Mr. + Chancellor Livingston, to France. But that frigate was ordered round to + the Mediterranean; and as at that time the war was over, and the British + cruisers called in, I could come any way. I then agreed to come with + Commodore Barney in a vessel he had engaged. It was again fortunate I did + not, for the vessel sank at sea, and the people were preserved in the + boat. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The correspondence is in my "Life of Paine," vol. ii., + pp. 154-5.—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 The "Dublin Packet," Captain Clay, in whom Paine, as he + wrote to Jefferson, "had no confidence."—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Had half the number of evils befallen me that the number of dangers amount + to through which I have been pre-served, there are those who would ascribe + it to the wrath of heaven; why then do they not ascribe my preservation to + the protecting favour of heaven? Even in my worldly concerns I have been + blessed. The little property I left in America, and which I cared nothing + about, not even to receive the rent of it, has been increasing in the + value of its capital more than eight hundred dollars every year, for the + fourteen years and more that I have been absent from it. I am now in my + circumstances independent; and my economy makes me rich. As to my health, + it is perfectly good, and I leave the world to judge of the stature of my + mind. I am in every instance a living contradiction to the mortified + Federalists. + </p> + <p> + In my publications, I follow the rule I began with in <i>Common Sense</i>, + that is, to consult nobody, nor to let any body see what I write till it + appears publicly. Were I to do otherwise, the case would be, that between + the timidity of some, who are so afraid of doing wrong that they never do + right, the puny judgment of others, and the despicable craft of preferring + <i>expedient to right</i>, as if the world was a world of babies in + leading strings, I should get forward with nothing. My path is a right + line, as straight and clear to me as a ray of light. The boldness (if they + will have it to be so) with which I speak on any subject, is a compliment + to the judgment of the reader. It is like saying to him, <i>I treat you as + a man and not as a child</i>. With respect to any worldly object, as it is + impossible to discover any in me, therefore what I do, and my manner of + doing it, ought to be ascribed to a good motive. + </p> + <p> + In a great affair, where the happiness of man is at stake, I love to work + for nothing; and so fully am I under the influence of this principle, that + I should lose the spirit, the pleasure, and the pride of it, were I + conscious that I looked for reward; and with this declaration, I take my + leave for the present.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The self-assertion of this and other letters about this + time was really self-defence, the invective against him, and + the calumnies, being such as can hardly be credited by those + not familiar with the publications of that time.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Federal City, Lovett's Hotel, Dec. 3, 1802. + </p> + <p> + LETTER V.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The National Intelligencer, Feb., 1803. In the Tarions + collections of these Letters there appears at this point a + correspondence between Paine and Samuel Adams of Boston, but + as it relates to religious matters I reserve it for the + fourth volume.—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + It is always the interest of a far greater part of the nation to have a + thing right than to have it wrong; and therefore, in a country whose + government is founded on the system of election and representation, the + fate of every party is decided by its principles. + </p> + <p> + As this system is the only form and principle of government by which + liberty can be preserved, and the only one that can embrace all the + varieties of a great extent of country, it necessarily follows, that to + have the representation real, the election must be real; and that where + the election is a fiction, the representation is a fiction also. <i>Like + will always produce like</i>. + </p> + <p> + A great deal has been said and written concerning the conduct of Mr. Burr, + during the late contest, in the federal legislature, whether Mr. Jefferson + or Mr. Burr should be declared President of the United States. Mr. Burr + has been accused of intriguing to obtain the Presidency. Whether this + charge be substantiated or not makes little or no part of the purport of + this letter. There is a point of much higher importance to attend to than + any thing that relates to the individual Mr. Burr: for the great point is + not whether Mr. Burr has intrigued, but whether the legislature has + intrigued with <i>him</i>. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Ogden, a relation of one of the senators of New Jersey of the same + name, and of the party assuming the style of Federalists, has written a + letter published in the New York papers, signed with his name, the purport + of which is to exculpate Mr. Burr from the charges brought against him. In + this letter he says: + </p> + <p> + "When about to return from Washington, two or three <i>members of Congress</i> + of the federal party spoke to me of <i>their views</i>, as to the election + of a president, desiring me to converse with Colonel Burr on the subject, + and to ascertain <i>whether he would enter into terms</i>. On my return to + New York I called on Colonel Burr, and communicated the above to him. He + explicitly declined the explanation, and <i>did neither propose nor agree + to any terms</i>." + </p> + <p> + How nearly is human cunning allied to folly! The animals to whom nature + has given the faculty we call <i>cunning</i>, know always when to use it, + and use it wisely; but when man descends to cunning, he blunders and + betrays. + </p> + <p> + Mr. Ogden's letter is intended to exculpate Mr. Burr from the charge of + intriguing to obtain the presidency; and the letter that he (Ogden) writes + for this purpose is direct evidence against his party in Congress, that + they intrigued with Burr to obtain him for President, and employed him + (Ogden) for the purpose. To save <i>Aaron</i>, he betrays <i>Moses</i>, + and then turns informer against the <i>Golden Calf</i>. + </p> + <p> + It is but of little importance to the world to know if Mr. Burr <i>listened</i> + to an intriguing proposal, but it is of great importance to the + constituents to know if their representatives in Congress made one. The + ear can commit no crime, but the tongue may; and therefore the right + policy is to drop Mr. Burr, as being only the hearer, and direct the whole + charge against the Federal faction in Congress as the active original + culprit, or, if the priests will have scripture for it, as the serpent + that beguiled Eve. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In the presidential canvas of 1800, the votes in the + electoral college being equally divided between Burr and + Jefferson, the election was thrown into the House of + Representatives. Jefferson was elected on the 36th ballot, + but he never forgave Burr, and between these two old friends + Paine had to write this letter under some embarrassment. The + last paragraph of this Letter shows Paine's desire for a + reconciliation between Burr and Jefferson. Aaron Burr is one + of the traditionally slandered figures of American history. + —<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + The plot of the intrigue was to make Mr. Burr President, on the private + condition of his agreeing to, and entering into, terms with them, that is, + with the proposers. Had then the election been made, the country, knowing + nothing of this private and illegal transaction, would have supposed, for + who could have supposed otherwise, that it had a President according to + the forms, principles, and intention of the constitution. No such thing. + Every form, principle, and intention of the constitution would have been + violated; and instead of a President, it would have had a mute, a sort of + image, hand-bound and tongue-tied, the dupe and slave of a party, placed + on the theatre of the United States, and acting the farce of President. + </p> + <p> + It is of little importance, in a constitutional sense, to know what the + terms to be proposed might be, because any terms other than those which + the constitution prescribes to a President are criminal. Neither do I see + how Mr. Burr, or any other person put in the same condition, could have + taken the oath prescribed by the constitution to a President, which is, "<i>I + do solemnly swear (or affirm,) that I will faithfully execute the office + of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability + preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States</i>." + </p> + <p> + How, I ask, could such a person have taken such an oath, knowing at the + same time that he had entered into the Presidency on terms unknown in the + Constitution, and private, and which would deprive him of the freedom and + power of acting as President of the United States, agreeably to his + constitutional oath? + </p> + <p> + Mr. Burr, by not agreeing to terms, has escaped the danger to which they + exposed him, and the perjury that would have followed, and also the + punishment annexed thereto. Had he accepted the Presidency on terms + unknown in the constitution, and private, and had the transaction + afterwards transpired, (which it most probably would, for roguery is a + thing difficult to conceal,) it would have produced a sensation in the + country too violent to be quieted, and too just to be resisted; and in any + case the election must have been void. + </p> + <p> + But what are we to think of those members of Congress, who having taken an + oath of the same constitutional import as the oath of the President, + violate that oath by tampering to obtain a President on private + conditions. If this is not sedition against the constitution and the + country, it is difficult to define what sedition in a representative can + be. + </p> + <p> + Say not that this statement of the case is the effect of personal or party + resentment. No. It is the effect of <i>sincere concern</i> that such + corruption, of which this is but a sample, should, in the space of a few + years, have crept into a country that had the fairest opportunity that + Providence ever gave, within the knowledge of history, of making itself an + illustrious example to the world. + </p> + <p> + What the terms were, or were to be, it is probable we never shall know; or + what is more probable, that feigned ones, if any, will be given. But from + the conduct of the party since that time we may conclude, that no taxes + would have been taken off, that the clamour for war would have been kept + up, new expences incurred, and taxes and offices increased in consequence; + and, among the articles of a private nature, that the leaders in this + seditious traffic were to stipulate with the mock President for lucrative + appointments for themselves. + </p> + <p> + But if these plotters against the Constitution understood their business, + and they had been plotting long enough to be masters of it, a single + article would have comprehended every thing, which is, <i>That the + President (thus made) should be governed in all cases whatsoever by a + private junto appointed by themselves</i>. They could then, through the + medium of a mock President, have negatived all bills which their party in + Congress could not have opposed with success, and reduced representation + to a nullity. + </p> + <p> + The country has been imposed upon, and the real culprits are but few; and + as it is necessary for the peace, harmony, and honour of the Union, to + separate the deceiver from the deceived, the betrayer from the betrayed, + that men who once were friends, and that in the worst of times, should be + friends again, it is necessary, as a beginning, that this dark business be + brought to full investigation. Ogden's letter is direct evidence of the + fact of tampering to obtain a conditional President. He knows the two or + three members of Congress that commissioned him, and they know who + commissioned them. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + Federal City, Lovett's Hotel, Jan. 29th, 1803. + </p> + <p> + LETTER VI.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 The Aurora (Philadelphia).—<i>Editor.</i>. +</pre> + <p> + Religion and War is the cry of the Federalists; Morality and Peace the + voice of Republicans. The union of Morality and Peace is congenial; but + that of Religion and War is a paradox, and the solution of it is + hypocrisy. + </p> + <p> + The leaders of the Federalists have no judgment; their plans no + consistency of parts; and want of consistency is the natural consequence + of want of principle. + </p> + <p> + They exhibit to the world the curious spectacle of an <i>Opposition</i> + without a <i>cause</i>, and conduct without system. Were they, as doctors, + to prescribe medicine as they practise politics, they would poison their + patients with destructive compounds. + </p> + <p> + There are not two things more opposed to each other than War and Religion; + and yet, in the double game those leaders have to play, the one is + necessarily the theme of their politics, and the other the text of their + sermons. The week-day orator of Mars, and the Sunday preacher of Federal + Grace, play like gamblers into each other's hands, and this they call + Religion. + </p> + <p> + Though hypocrisy can counterfeit every virtue, and become the associate of + every vice, it requires a great dexterity of craft to give it the power of + deceiving. A painted sun may glisten, but it cannot warm. For hypocrisy to + personate virtue successfully it must know and feel what virtue is, and as + it cannot long do this, it cannot long deceive. When an orator foaming for + War breathes forth in another sentence a <i>plaintive piety of words</i>, + he may as well write hypocrisy on his front. + </p> + <p> + The late attempt of the Federal leaders in Congress (for they acted + without the knowledge of their constituents) to plunge the country into + War, merits not only reproach but indignation. It was madness, conceived + in ignorance and acted in wickedness. The head and the heart went partners + in the crime. + </p> + <p> + A neglect of punctuality in the performance of a treaty is made a <i>cause</i> + of war by the <i>Barbary powers</i>, and of remonstrance and explanation + by <i>civilised powers</i>. The Mahometans of Barbary negociate by the + sword—they seize first, and ex-postulate afterwards; and the federal + leaders have been labouring to <i>barbarize</i> the United States by + adopting the practice of the Barbary States, and this they call honour. + Let their honour and their hypocrisy go weep together, for both are + defeated. Their present Administration is too moral for hypocrites, and + too economical for public spendthrifts. + </p> + <p> + A man the least acquainted with diplomatic affairs must know that a + neglect in punctuality is not one of the legal causes of war, unless that + neglect be confirmed by a refusal to perform; and even then it depends + upon circumstances connected with it. The world would be in continual + quarrels and war, and commerce be annihilated, if Algerine policy was the + law of nations. And were America, instead of becoming an example to the + old world of good and moral government and civil manners, or, if they like + it better, of gentlemanly conduct towards other nations, to set up the + character of ruffian, that of <i>word and blow, and the blow first</i>, + and thereby give the example of pulling down the little that civilization + has gained upon barbarism, her Independence, instead of being an honour + and a blessing, would become a curse upon the world and upon herself. + </p> + <p> + The conduct of the Barbary powers, though unjust in principle, is suited + to their prejudices, situation, and circumstances. The crusades of the + church to exterminate them fixed in their minds the unobliterated belief + that every Christian power was their mortal enemy. Their religious + prejudices, therefore, suggest the policy, which their situation and + circumstances protect them in. As a people, they are neither commercial + nor agricultural, they neither import nor export, have no property + floating on the seas, nor ships and cargoes in the ports of foreign + nations. No retaliation, therefore, can be acted upon them, and they sin + secure from punishment. + </p> + <p> + But this is not the case with the United States. If she sins as a Barbary + power, she must answer for it as a Civilized one. Her commerce is + continually passing on the seas exposed to capture, and her ships and + cargoes in foreign ports to detention and reprisal. An act of War + committed by her in the Mississippi would produce a War against the + commerce of the Atlantic States, and the latter would have to curse the + policy that provoked the former. In every point, therefore, in which the + character and interest of the United States be considered, it would ill + become her to set an example contrary to the policy and custom of + Civilized powers, and practised only by the Barbary powers, that of + striking before she expostulates. + </p> + <p> + But can any man, calling himself a Legislator, and supposed by his + constituents to know something of his duty, be so ignorant as to imagine + that seizing on New Orleans would finish the affair or even contribute + towards it? On the contrary it would have made it worse. The treaty right + of deposite at New Orleans, and the right of the navigation of the + Mississippi into the Gulph of Mexico, are distant things. New Orleans is + more than an hundred miles in the country from the mouth of the river, + and, as a place of deposite, is of no value if the mouth of the river be + shut, which either France or Spain could do, and which our possession of + New Orleans could neither prevent or remove. New Orleans in our + possession, by an act of hostility, would have become a blockaded port, + and consequently of no value to the western people as a place of deposite. + Since, therefore, an interruption had arisen to the commerce of the + western states, and until the matter could be brought to a fair + explanation, it was of less injury to have the port shut and the river + open, than to have the river shut and the port in our possession. + </p> + <p> + That New Orleans could be taken required no stretch of policy to plan, nor + spirit of enterprize to effect. It was like marching behind a man to knock + him down: and the dastardly slyness of such an attack would have stained + the fame of the United States. Where there is no danger cowards are bold, + and Captain Bobadils are to be found in the Senate as well as on the + stage. Even <i>Gouverneur</i>, on such a march, dare have shown a leg.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Gouverneur Morris being now leader of the belligerent + faction in Congress, Paine could not resist the temptation + to allude to a well-known incident (related in his Diary and + Letters, i., p. 14). A mob in Paris having surrounded his + fine carriage, crying "Aristocrat!" Morris showed his + wooden leg, declaring he had lost his leg in the cause of + American liberty. Morris was never in any fight, his leg + being lost by a commonplace accident while driving in + Philadelphia. Although Paine's allusion may appear in bad + taste, even with this reference, it was politeness itself + compared with the brutal abuse which Morris (not content + with imprisoning Paine in Paris) and his adherents were + heaping on the author on his return to America; also on + Monroe, whom Jefferson had returned to France to negotiate + for the purchase of Louisiana.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + The people of the western country to whom the Mississippi serves as an + inland sea to their commerce, must be supposed to understand the + circumstances of that commerce better than a man who is a stranger to it; + and as they have shown no approbation of the war-whoop measures of the + Federal senators, it becomes presumptive evidence they disapprove them. + This is a new mortification for those war-whoop politicians; for the case + is, that finding themselves losing ground and withering away in the + Atlantic States, they laid hold of the affair of New Orleans in the vain + hope of rooting and reinforcing themselves in the western States; and they + did this without perceiving that it was one of those ill judged + hypocritical expedients in politics, that whether it succeeded or failed + the event would be the same. Had their motion [that of Ross and Morris] + succeeded, it would have endangered the commerce of the Atlantic States + and ruined their reputation there; and on the other hand the attempt to + make a tool of the western people was so badly concealed as to extinguish + all credit with them. + </p> + <p> + But hypocrisy is a vice of sanguine constitution. It flatters and promises + itself every thing; and it has yet to learn, with respect to moral and + political reputation, it is less dangerous to offend than to deceive. + </p> + <p> + To the measures of administration, supported by the firmness and integrity + of the majority in Congress, the United States owe, as far as human means + are concerned, the preservation of peace, and of national honour. The + confidence which the western people reposed in the government and their + representatives is rewarded with success. They are reinstated in their + rights with the least possible loss of time; and their harmony with the + people of New Orleans, so necessary to the prosperity of the United + States, which would have been broken, and the seeds of discord sown in its + place, had hostilities been preferred to accommodation, remains + unimpaired. Have the Federal ministers of the church meditated on these + matters? and laying aside, as they ought to do, their electioneering and + vindictive prayers and sermons, returned thanks that peace is preserved, + and commerce, without the stain of blood? + </p> + <p> + In the pleasing contemplation of this state of things the mind, by + comparison, carries itself back to those days of uproar and extravagance + that marked the career of the former administration, and decides, by the + unstudied impulse of its own feelings, that something must then have been + wrong. Why was it, that America, formed for happiness, and remote by + situation and circumstances from the troubles and tumults of the European + world, became plunged into its vortex and contaminated with its crimes? + The answer is easy. Those who were then at the head of affairs were + apostates from the principles of the revolution. Raised to an elevation + they had not a right to expect, nor judgment to conduct, they became like + feathers in the air, and blown about by every puff of passion or conceit. + </p> + <p> + Candour would find some apology for their conduct if want of judgment was + their only defect. But error and crime, though often alike in their + features, are distant in their characters and in their origin. The one has + its source in the weakness of the head, the other in the hardness of the + heart, and the coalition of the two, describes the former + Administration.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 That of John Adams.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + Had no injurious consequences arisen from the conduct of that + Administration, it might have passed for error or imbecility, and been + permitted to die and be forgotten. The grave is kind to innocent offence. + But even innocence, when it is a cause of injury, ought to undergo an + enquiry. + </p> + <p> + The country, during the time of the former Administration, was kept in + continual agitation and alarm; and that no investigation might be made + into its conduct, it entrenched itself within a magic circle of terror, + and called it a SEDITION LAW.(1) Violent and mysterious in its measures + and arrogant in its manners, it affected to disdain information, and + insulted the principles that raised it from obscurity. John Adams and + Timothy Pickering were men whom nothing but the accidents of the times + rendered visible on the political horizon. Elevation turned their heads, + and public indignation hath cast them to the ground. But an inquiry into + the conduct and measures of that Administration is nevertheless necessary. + </p> + <p> + The country was put to great expense. Loans, taxes, and standing armies + became the standing order of the day. The militia, said Secretary + Pickering, are not to be depended upon, and fifty thousand men must be + raised. For what? No cause to justify such measures has yet appeared. No + discovery of such a cause has yet been made. The pretended Sedition Law + shut up the sources of investigation, and the precipitate flight of John + Adams closed the scene. But the matter ought not to sleep here. + </p> + <p> + It is not to gratify resentment, or encourage it in others, that I enter + upon this subject. It is not in the power of man to accuse me of a + persecuting spirit. But some explanation ought to be had. The motives and + objects respecting the extraordinary and expensive measures of the former + Administration ought to be known. The Sedition Law, that shield of the + moment, prevented it then, and justice demands it now. If the public have + been imposed upon, it is proper they should know it; for where judgment is + to act, or a choice is to be made, knowledge is first necessary. The + conciliation of parties, if it does not grow out of explanation, partakes + of the character of collusion or indifference. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Passed July 14, 1798, to continue until March 3, 1801. + This Act, described near the close of this Letter, and one + passed June 35th, giving the President despotic powers over + aliens in the United States, constituted the famous "Alien + and Sedition Laws." Hamilton opposed them, and rightly saw + in them the suicide of the Federal party.—<i>Editor.</i>, +</pre> + <p> + There has been guilt somewhere; and it is better to fix it where it + belongs, and separate the deceiver from the deceived, than that suspicion, + the bane of society, should range at large, and sour the public mind. The + military measures that were proposed and carrying on during the former + administration, could not have for their object the defence of the country + against invasion. This is a case that decides itself; for it is self + evident, that while the war raged in Europe, neither France nor England + could spare a man to send to America. The object, therefore, must be + something at home, and that something was the overthrow of the + representative system of government, for it could be nothing else. But the + plotters got into confusion and became enemies to each other. Adams hated + and was jealous of Hamilton, and Hamilton hated and despised both Adams + and Washington.(1) Surly Timothy stood aloof, as he did at the affair of + Lexington, and the part that fell to the public was to pay the expense.(2) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Hamilton's bitter pamphlet against Adams appeared in 1800, + but his old quarrel with Washington (1781) had apparently + healed. Yet, despite the favors lavished by Washington on + Hamilton, there is no certainty that the latter ever changed + his unfavorable opinion of the former, as expressed in a + letter to General Schuylor, Feb. 18, 1781 (Lodge's + "Hamilton's Works," vol. viii., p. 35).—<i>Editor.</i> + + 2 Colonel Pickering's failure, in 1775, to march his Salem + troops in time to intercept the British retreat from + Lexington was attributed to his half-heartedness + in the patriotic cause.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + But ought a people who, but a few years ago, were fighting the battles of + the world, for liberty had no home but here, ought such a people to stand + quietly by and see that liberty undermined by apostacy and overthrown by + intrigue? Let the tombs of the slain recall their recollection, and the + forethought of what their children are to be revive and fix in their + hearts the love of liberty. + </p> + <p> + If the former administration can justify its conduct, give it the + opportunity. The manner in which John Adams disappeared from the + government renders an inquiry the more necessary. He gave some account of + himself, lame and confused as it was, to certain <i>eastern wise men</i> + who came to pay homage to him on his birthday. But if he thought it + necessary to do this, ought he not to have rendered an account to the + public. They had a right to expect it of him. In that tête-à-tête account, + he says, "Some measures were the effect of imperious necessity, much + against my inclination." What measures does Mr. Adams mean, and what is + the imperious necessity to which he alludes? "Others (says he) were + measures of the Legislature, which, although approved when passed, were + never previously proposed or recommended by me." What measures, it may be + asked, were those, for the public have a right to know the conduct of + their representatives? "Some (says he) left to my discretion were never + executed, because no necessity for them, in my judgment, ever occurred." + </p> + <p> + What does this dark apology, mixed with accusation, amount to, but to + increase and confirm the suspicion that something was wrong? + Administration only was possessed of foreign official information, and it + was only upon that information communicated by him publicly or privately, + or to Congress, that Congress could act; and it is not in the power of Mr. + Adams to show, from the condition of the belligerent powers, that any + imperious necessity called for the warlike and expensive measures of his + Administration. + </p> + <p> + What the correspondence between Administration and Rufus King in London, + or Quincy Adams in Holland, or Berlin, might be, is but little known. The + public papers have told us that the former became cup-bearer from the + London underwriters to Captain Truxtun,(1) for which, as Minister from a + neutral nation, he ought to have been censured. It is, however, a feature + that marks the politics of the Minister, and hints at the character of the + correspondence. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Thomas Truxtun (1755-1822), for having captured the French + frigate "L'Insurgente," off Hen's Island, 1799, was + presented at Lloyd's coffee-house with plate to the value of + 600 guineas. Rufus King (1755-1827), made Minister to England + in 1796, continued under Adams, and for two years under + Jefferson's administration.—<i>Editor.</i> +</pre> + <p> + I know that it is the opinion of several members of both houses of + Congress, that an enquiry, with respect to the conduct of the late + Administration, ought to be gone into. The convulsed state into which the + country has been thrown will be best settled by a full and fair exposition + of the conduct of that Administration, and the causes and object of that + conduct. To be deceived, or to remain deceived, can be the interest of no + man who seeks the public good; and it is the deceiver only, or one + interested in the deception, that can wish to preclude enquiry. + </p> + <p> + The suspicion against the late Administration is, that it was plotting to + overturn the representative system of government, and that it spread + alarms of invasions that had no foundation, as a pretence for raising and + establishing a military force as the means of accomplishing that object. + </p> + <p> + The law, called the Sedition Law, enacted, that if any person should write + or publish, or cause to be written or published, any libel [without + defining what a libel is] against the Government of the United States, or + either house of congress, or against the President, he should be punished + by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars, and by imprisonment not + exceeding two years. + </p> + <p> + But it is a much greater crime for a president to plot against a + Constitution and the liberties of the people, than for an individual to + plot against a President; and consequently, John Adams is accountable to + the public for his conduct, as the individuals under his administration + were to the sedition law. + </p> + <p> + The object, however, of an enquiry, in this case, is not to punish, but to + satisfy; and to shew, by example, to future administrations, that an abuse + of power and trust, however disguised by appearances, or rendered + plausible by pretence, is one time or other to be accounted for. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + BORDENTOWN, ON THE DELAWARE, + </p> + <p> + New Jersey, March 12, 1803. vol. III—27 + </p> + <p> + LETTER VII. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + EDITOR'S PREFACE. + + This letter was printed in <i>The True American</i>, Trenton, New + Jersey, soon after Paine's return to his old home at + Bordenton. It is here printed from the original manuscript, + for which I am indebted to Mr. W. F. Havemeyer of New York. + Although the Editor has concluded to present Paine's + "Maritime Compact" in the form he finally gave it, the + articles were printed in French in 1800, and by S. H. Smith, + Washington, at the close of the same year. There is an + interesting history connected with it. John Hall, in his + diary ("Trenton, 20 April, 1787") relates that Paine told + him of Dr. Franklin, whom he (Paine) had just visited in + Philadelphia, and the Treaty he, the Doctor, made with the + late King of Prussia by adding an article that, should war + ever break out, Commerce should be free. The Doctor said he + showed it to Vergennes, who said it met his idea, and was + such as he would make even with England. In his Address to + the People of France, 1797 (see p. 366), Paine closes with a + suggestion on the subject, and a year later (September 30, + 1798), when events were in a critical condition, he sent + nine articles of his proposed <i>Pacte Maritime</i> to + Talleyrand, newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. The + letters that passed are here taken from the originals (State + Archives, Paris, États Unis, vol. 48). +</pre> + <p> + "Rue Theatre française, No. 4, 9 Vendemaire, 6 year. + </p> + <p> + "Citizen Minister: I promised you some observations on the state of things + between France and America. I divide the case into two parts. First, with + respect to some Method that shall effectually put an end to all + interruptions of the American Commerce. Secondly, with respect to the + settlement for the captures that have been made on that Commerce. + </p> + <p> + "As to the first case (the interruption of the American Commerce by + France) it has foundation in the British Treaty, and it is the continuance + of that treaty that renders the remedy difficult. Besides, the American + administration has blundered so much in the business of treaty-making, + that it is probable it will blunder again in making another with France. + There is, however, one method left, and there is but one that I can see, + that will be effectual. It is a <i>non-importation Convention; that + America agrees not to import from any Nation in Europe who shall interrupt + her Commerce on the seas, any goods, wares, or merchandize whatever, and + that all her ports shall be shut against the Nation that gives the offence</i>. + This will draw America out of her difficulties with respect to her treaty + with England. + </p> + <p> + "But it will be far better if this non-importation convention were to be a + general convention of Nations acting as a Whole. It would give a better + protection to Neutral Commerce than the armed neutrality could do. I would + rather be a Neutral Nation under the protection of such a Convention, + which costs nothing to make it, than be under the protection of a navy + equal to that of Great Britain. France should be the patron of such a + Convention and sign it. It would be giving both her consent and her + protection to the Rights of Neutral Nations. If England refuse to sign it + she will nevertheless be obliged to respect it, or lose all her Commerce. + </p> + <p> + "I enclose you a plan I drew up about four months ago, when there was + expectation that Mr. Madison would come to France. It has lain by me ever + since. + </p> + <p> + "The second part, that of settlement for the captures, I will make the + subject of a future correspondence. Salut et respect." + </p> + <p> + Talleyrand's Reply ("Foreign Relations, 15 Vendemaire An. 6," Oct. 6, + 1797): "I have the honor to return you, Citizen, with very sincere thanks, + your Letter to General Washington which you have had the goodness to show + me. + </p> + <p> + "I have received the letter which you have taken the trouble to write me, + the 9th of this month. I need not assure you of the appreciation with + which I shall receive the further indications you promise on the means of + terminating in a durable manner the differences which must excite your + interest as a patriot and as a Republican. Animated by such a principle + your ideas cannot fail to throw valuable light on the discussion you open, + and which should have for its object to reunite the two Republics in whose + alienation the enemies of liberty triumph." + </p> + <p> + Paine's plan made a good impression in France—He writes to + Jefferson, October 6, 1800, that the Consul Le Brun, at an entertainment + given to the American envoys, gave for his toast: "À l'union de 1' + Amérique avec les Puissances du Nord pour faire respecter la liberté des + mers." + </p> + <p> + The malignant mind, like the jaundiced eye, sees everything through a + false medium of its own creating. The light of heaven appears stained with + yellow to the distempered sight of the one, and the fairest actions have + the form of crimes in the venomed imagination of the other. + </p> + <p> + For seven months, both before and after my return to America in October + last, the apostate papers styling themselves "Federal" were filled with + paragraphs and Essays respecting a letter from Mr. Jefferson to me at + Paris; and though none of them knew the contents of the letter, nor the + occasion of writing it, malignity taught them to suppose it, and the lying + tongue of injustice lent them its aid. + </p> + <p> + That the public may no longer be imposed upon by Federal apostacy, I will + now publish the Letter, and the occasion of its being written. + </p> + <p> + The Treaty negociated in England by John Jay, and ratified by the + Washington Administration, had so disgracefully surrendered the right and + freedom of the American flag, that all the Commerce of the United States + on the Ocean became exposed to capture, and suffered in consequence of it. + The duration of the Treaty was limited to two years after the war; and + consequently America could not, during that period, relieve herself from + the Chains which the Treaty had fixed upon her. This being the case, the + only relief that could come must arise out of something originating in + Europe, that would, in its consequences, extend to America. It had long + been my opinion that Commerce contained within itself the means of its own + protection; but as the time for bringing forward any new system is not + always happening, it is necessary to watch its approach, and lay hold of + it before it passes away. + </p> + <p> + As soon as the late Emperor Paul of Russia abandoned his coalition with + England and become a Neutral Power, this Crisis of time, and also of + circumstances, was then arriving; and I employed it in arranging a plan + for the protection of the Commerce of Neutral Nations during War, that + might, in its operation and consequences, relieve the Commerce of America. + The Plan, with the pieces accompanying it, consisted of about forty pages. + The Citizen Bonneville, with whom I lived in Paris, translated it into + French; Mr. Skipwith, the American Consul, Joel Barlow, and myself, had + the translation printed and distributed as a present to the Foreign + Ministers of all the Neutral Nations then resident in Paris. This was in + the summer of 1800. + </p> + <p> + It was entitled Maritime Compact (in French <i>Pacte Maritime</i>), The + plan, exclusive of the pieces that accompanied it, consisted of the + following Preamble and Articles. + </p> + <p> + MARITIME COMPACT. + </p> + <p> + Being an Unarmed Association of Nations for the protection of the Rights + and Commerce of Nations that shall be neutral in time of War. + </p> + <p> + Whereas, the Vexations and Injuries to which the Rights and Commerce of + Neutral Nations have been, and continue to be, exposed during the time of + maritime War, render it necessary to establish a law of Nations for the + purpose of putting an end to such vexations and Injuries, and to guarantee + to the Neutral Nations the exercise of their just Rights, + </p> + <p> + We, therefore, the undersigned Powers, form ourselves into an Association, + and establish the following as a Law of Nations on the Seas. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE FIRST. Definition of the Rights of neutral Nations. + </p> + <p> + The Rights of Nations, such as are exercised by them in their intercourse + with each other in time of Peace, are, and of right ought to be, the + Rights of Neutral Nations at all times; because, + </p> + <p> + First, those Rights not having been abandoned by them, remain with them. + </p> + <p> + Secondly, because those Rights cannot become forfeited or void, in + consequence of War breaking out between two or more other Nations. + </p> + <p> + A War of Nation against Nation being exclusively the act of the Nations + that make the War, and not the act of the Neutral Nations, cannot, whether + considered in itself or in its consequences, destroy or diminish the + Rights of the Nations remaining in Peace. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE SECOND. + </p> + <p> + The Ships and Vessels of Nations that rest neuter and at Peace with the + World during a War with other Nations, have a Right to navigate freely on + the Seas as they navigated before that War broke out, and to proceed to + and enter the Port or Ports of any of the Belligerent Powers, <i>with the + consent of that Power</i>, without being seized, searched, visited, or any + ways interrupted, by the Nation or Nations with which that Nation is at + War. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE THIRD. + </p> + <p> + For the Conservation of the aforesaid Rights, We, the undersigned Powers, + engaging to each other our Sacred Faith and Honour, declare, + </p> + <p> + That if any Belligerent Power shall seize, search, visit, or any ways + interrupt any Ship or Vessel belonging to the Citizens or Subjects of any + of the Powers composing this Association, then each and all of the said + undersigned Powers will cease to import, and will not permit to be + imported into the Ports or Dominions of any of the said undersigned + Powers, in any Ship or Vessel whatever, any Goods, wares, or Merchandize, + produced or manufactured in, or exported from, the Dominions of the Power + so offending against the Association hereby established and Proclaimed. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE FOURTH. + </p> + <p> + That all the Ports appertaining to any and all of the Powers composing + this Association shall be shut against the Flag of the offending Nation. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE FIFTH. + </p> + <p> + That no remittance or payment in Money, Merchandize, or Bills of Exchange, + shall be made by any of the Citizens, or Subjects, of any of the Powers + composing this Association, to the Citizens or Subjects of the offending + Nation, for the Term of one year, or until reparation be made. The + reparation to be —— times the amount of the damages sustained. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE SIXTH. + </p> + <p> + If any Ship or Vessel appertaining to any of the Citizens or Subjects of + any of the Powers composing this Association shall be seized, searched, + visited, or interrupted, by any Belligerent Nation, or be forcibly + prevented entering the Port of her destination, or be seized, searched, + visited, or interrupted, in coming out of such Port, or be forcibly + prevented from proceeding to any new destination, or be insulted or + visited by any Agent from on board any Vessel of any Belligerent Power, + the Government or Executive Power of the Nation to which the Ship or + Vessel so seized, searched, visited, or interrupted belongs, shall, on + evidence of the fact, make public Proclamation of the same, and send a + Copy thereof to the Government, or Executive, of each of the Powers + composing this Association, who shall publish the same in all the extent + of his Dominions, together with a Declaration, that at the expiration of + —— days after publication, the penal articles of this + Association shall be put in execution against the offending Nation. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE SEVENTH. + </p> + <p> + If reparation be not made within the space of one year, the said + Proclamation shall be renewed for one year more, and so on. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE EIGHTH. + </p> + <p> + The Association chooses for itself a Flag to be carried at the Mast-head + conjointly with the National Flag of each Nation composing this + Association. + </p> + <p> + The Flag of the Association shall be composed of the same colors as + compose the Rainbow, and arranged in the same order as they appear in that + Phenomenon. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE NINTH. + </p> + <p> + And whereas, it may happen that one or more of the Nations composing this + Association may be, at the time of forming it, engaged in War or become so + in future, in that case, the Ships and Vessels of such Nation shall carry + the Flag of the Association bound round the Mast, to denote that the + Nation to which she belongs is a Member of the Association and a respecter + of its Laws. + </p> + <p> + N. B. This distinction in the manner of carrying the Flag is mearly for + the purpose, that Neutral Vessels having the Flag at the Mast-head, may be + known at first sight. + </p> + <p> + ARTICLE THE TENTH. + </p> + <p> + And whereas, it is contrary to the moral principles of Neutrality and + Peace, that any Neutral Nation should furnish to the Belligerent Powers, + or any of them, the means of carrying on War against each other, We, + therefore, the Powers composing this Association, Declare, that we will + each one for itself, prohibit in our Dominions the exportation or + transportation of military stores, comprehending gunpowder, cannon, and + cannon-balls, fire arms of all kinds, and all kinds of iron and steel + weapons used in War. Excluding therefrom all kinds of Utensils and + Instruments used in civil or domestic life, and every other article that + cannot, in its immediate state, be employed in War. + </p> + <p> + Having thus declared the moral Motives of the foregoing Article, We + declare also the civil and political Intention thereof, to wit, + </p> + <p> + That as Belligerent Nations have no right to visit or search any Ship or + Vessel belonging to a Nation at Peace, and under the protection of the + Laws and Government thereof, and as all such visit or search is an insult + to the Nation to which such Ship or Vessel belongs and to the Government + of the same, We, therefore, the Powers composing this Association, will + take the right of prohibition on ourselves to whom it properly belongs, + and by whom only it can be legally exercised, and not permit foreign + Nations, in a state of War, to usurp the right of legislating by + Proclamation for any of the Citizens or Subjects of the Powers composing + this Association. + </p> + <p> + It is, therefore, in order to take away all pretence of search or visit, + which by being offensive might become a new cause of War, that we will + provide Laws and publish them by Proclamation, each in his own Dominion, + to prohibit the supplying, or carrying to, the Belligerent Powers, or + either of them, the military stores or articles before mentioned, annexing + thereto a penalty to be levied or inflicted upon any persons within our + several Dominions transgressing the same. And we invite all Persons, as + well of the Belligerent Nations as of our own, or of any other, to give + information of any knowledge they may have of any transgressions against + the said Law, that the offenders may be prosecuted. + </p> + <p> + By this conduct we restore the word Contraband (<i>contra</i> and <i>ban</i>) + to its true and original signification, which means against Law, edict, or + Proclamation; and none but the Government of a Nation can have, or can + exercise, the right of making Laws, edicts, or Proclamations, for the + conduct of its Citizens or Subjects. + </p> + <p> + Now We, the undersigned Powers, declare the aforesaid Articles to be a Law + of Nations at all times, or until a Congress of Nations shall meet to form + some Law more effectual. + </p> + <p> + And we do recommend that immediately on the breaking out of War between + any two or more Nations, that Deputies be appointed by all Neutral + Nations, whether members of this Association or not, to meet in Congress + in some central place to take cognizance of any violations of the Rights + of Neutral Nations. + </p> + <p> + Signed, &c. + </p> + <p> + For the purpose of giving operation to the aforesaid plan of an <i>unarmed + Association</i>, the following Paragraph was subjoined: + </p> + <p> + It may be judged proper for the order of Business, that the Association of + Nations have a President for a term of years, and the Presidency to pass + by rotation, to each of the parties composing the Association. + </p> + <p> + In that case, and for the sake of regularity, the first President to be + the Executive power of the most northerly Nation composing the + Association, and his deputy or Minister at the Congress to be President of + the Congress,—and the next most northerly to be Vice-president, who + shall succeed to the Presidency, and so on. The line determining the + Geographical situation of each, to be the latitude of the Capital of each + Nation. + </p> + <p> + If this method be adopted it will be proper that the first President be + nominally constituted in order to give rotation to the rest. In that case + the following Article might be added to the foregoing, viz't. The + Constitution of the Association nominates the Emperor Paul to be <i>first + President</i> of the Association of Nations for the protection of Neutral + Commerce, and securing the freedom of the Seas. + </p> + <p> + The foregoing plan, as I have before mentioned, was presented to the + Ministers of all the Neutral Nations then in Paris, in the summer of 1800. + Six Copies were given to the Russian General Springporten; and a Russian + Gentleman who was going to Petersburgh took two expressly for the purpose + of putting them into the hands of Paul I sent the original manuscript, in + my own handwriting, to Mr. Jefferson, and also wrote him four Letters, + dated the 1st, 4th, 6th, 16th of October, 1800, giving him an account of + what was then going on in Europe respecting Neutral Commerce. + </p> + <p> + The Case was, that in order to compel the English Government to + acknowledge the rights of Neutral Commerce, and that free Ships make free + Goods, the <i>Emperor Paul</i>, in the month of September following the + publication of the plan, shut all the Ports of Russia against England. + Sweden and Denmark did the same by their Ports, and Denmark shut up + Hamburgh. Prussia shut up the Elbe and the Weser. The ports of Spain, + Portugal, and Naples were shut up, and, in general, all the ports of + Italy, except Venice, which the Emperor of Germany held; and had it not + been for the untimely death of Paul, a <i>Law of Nations</i>, founded on + the authority of Nations, for establishing the rights of Neutral Commerce + and the freedom of the Seas, would have been proclaimed, and the + Government of England must have consented to that Law, or the Nation must + have lost its Commerce; and the consequence to America would have been, + that such a Law would, in a great measure if not entirely, have released + her from the injuries of Jay's Treaty. + </p> + <p> + Of all these matters I informed Mr. Jefferson. This was before he was + President, and the Letter he wrote me after he was President was in answer + to those I had written to him and the manuscript Copy of the plan I had + sent here. Here follows the Letter: + </p> + <p> + Washington, March 18, 1801. Dear Sir: + </p> + <p> + Your letters of Oct. 1st, 4th, 6th, 16th, came duly to hand, and the + papers which they covered were, according to your permission, published in + the Newspapers, and in a Pamphlet, and under your own name. These papers + contain precisely our principles, and I hope they will be generally + recognized here. <i>Determined as we are to avoid, if possible, wasting + the energies of our People in war and destruction, we shall avoid + implicating ourselves with the Powers of Europe, even in support of + principles which we mean to pursue. They have so many other Interests + different from ours that we must avoid being entangled in them. We believe + we can enforce those principles as to ourselves by Peaceable means, now + that we are likely to have our Public Councils detached from foreign + views. The return of our citizens from the phrenzy into which they had + been wrought, partly by ill conduct in France, partly by artifices + practiced upon them, is almost extinct, and will, I believe, become quite + so</i>, But these details, too minute and long for a Letter, will be + better developed by Mr. Dawson, the Bearer of this, a Member of the late + Congress, to whom I refer you for them. He goes in the Maryland Sloop of + War, which will wait a few days at Havre to receive his Letters to be + written on his arrival at Paris. You expressed a wish to get a passage to + this Country in a Public Vessel. Mr. Dawson is charged with orders to the + Captain of the Maryland to receive and accommodate you back if you can be + ready to depart at such a short warning. Rob't R. Livingston is appointed + Minister Plenipotentiary to the Republic of France, but will not leave + this, till we receive the ratification of the Convention by Mr. Dawson. I + am in hopes you will find us returned generally to sentiments worthy of + former times. In these it will be your glory to have steadily laboured and + with as much effect as any man living. That you may long live to continue + your useful Labours and to reap the reward in the thankfulness of Nations + is my sincere prayer. Accept assurances of my high esteem and affectionate + attachment. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Jefferson. + </p> + <p> + This, Citizens of the United States, is the Letter about which the leaders + and tools of the Federal faction, without knowing its contents or the + occasion of writing it, have wasted so many malignant falsehoods. It is a + Letter which, on account of its wise economy and peaceable principles, and + its forbearance to reproach, will be read by every good Man and every good + Citizen with pleasure; and the faction, mortified at its appearance, will + have to regret they forced it into publication. The least atonement they + can now offer is to make the Letter as public as they have made their own + infamy, and learn to lie no more. + </p> + <p> + The same injustice they shewed to Mr. Jefferson they shewed to me. I had + employed myself in Europe, and at my own expense, in forming and promoting + a plan that would, in its operation, have benefited the Commerce of + America; and the faction here invented and circulated an account in the + papers they employ, that I had given a plan to the French for burning all + the towns on the Coast from Savannah to Baltimore. Were I to prosecute + them for this (and I do not promise that I will not, for the Liberty of + the Press is not the liberty of lying,) there is not a federal judge, not + even one of Midnight appointment, but must, from the nature of the case, + be obliged to condemn them. The faction, however, cannot complain they + have been restrained in any thing. They have had their full swing of lying + uncontradicted; they have availed themselves, unopposed, of all the arts + Hypocrisy could devise; and the event has been, what in all such cases it + ever will and ought to be, <i>the ruin of themselves</i>. + </p> + <p> + The Characters of the late and of the present Administrations are now + sufficiently marked, and the adherents of each keep up the distinction. + The former Administration rendered itself notorious by outrage, + coxcombical parade, false alarms, a continued increase of taxes, and an + unceasing clamor for War; and as every vice has a virtue opposed to it, + the present Administration moves on the direct contrary line. The + question, therefore, at elections is not properly a question upon Persons, + but upon principles. Those who are for Peace, moderate taxes, and mild + Government, will vote for the Administration that conducts itself by those + principles, in whatever hands that Administration may be. + </p> + <p> + There are in the United States, and particularly in the middle States, + several religious Sects, whose leading moral principle is PEACE. It is, + therefore, impossible that such Persons, consistently with the dictates of + that principle, can vote for an Administration that is clamorous for War. + When moral principles, rather than Persons, are candidates for Power, to + vote is to perform a moral duty, and not to vote is to neglect a duty. + </p> + <p> + That persons who are hunting after places, offices, and contracts, should + be advocates for War, taxes, and extravagance, is not to be wondered at; + but that so large a portion of the People who had nothing to depend upon + but their Industry, and no other public prospect but that of paying taxes, + and bearing the burden, should be advocates for the same measures, is a + thoughtlessness not easily accounted for. But reason is recovering her + empire, and the fog of delusion is clearing away. + </p> + <p> + Thomas Paine. + </p> + <p> + BORDENTOWN, ON THE DELAWARE, + </p> + <p> + New Jersey, April 21, 1803.(1) + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 Endorsed: "Sent by Gen. Bloomfield per Mr. Wilson for Mr. + Duane." And, in a later hand: "Paine Letter 6. Found among + the Bartram Papers sent by Col. Carr."—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0035" id="link2H_4_0035"> + <!-- H2 anchor --> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + XXXIV. TO THE FRENCH INHABITANTS OF LOUISIANA.(1) + </h2> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + 1 In a letter to Albert Gallatin, Secretary of the Treasury + (Oct 14, 1804), John Randolph of Roanoke proposed "the + printing of — thousand copies of Tom Paine's answer to + their remonstrance, and transmitting them by as many + thousand troops, who can speak a language perfectly + intelligible to the people of Louisiana, whatever that of + their government may be," The purchase of Louisiana was + announced to the Senate by President Jefferson, October 17, + 1803.—Editor. +</pre> + <p> + A publication having the appearance of a memorial and remonstrance, to be + presented to Congress at the ensuing session, has appeared in several + papers. It is therefore open to examination, and I offer you my remarks + upon it. The title and introductory paragraph are as follows: + </p> + <p> + "<i>To the Congress of the United States in the Senate and House of + Representatives convened</i>: We the subscribers, planters, merchants, and + other inhabitants of Louisiana, respectfully approach the legislature of + the United States with a memorial of <i>our rights</i>, a remonstrance + against certain laws which contravene them, and a petition for that + redress to which the laws of nature, sanctioned by positive stipulations, + have entitled us." + </p> + <p> + It often happens that when one party, or one that thinks itself a party, + talks much about its rights, it puts those of the other party upon + examining into their own, and such is the effect produced by your + memorial. + </p> + <p> + A single reading of that memorial will show it is the work of some person + who is not of your people. His acquaintance with the cause, commencement, + progress, and termination of the American revolution, decides this point; + and his making our merits in that revolution the ground of your claims, as + if our merits could become yours, show she does not understand your + situation. + </p> + <p> + We obtained our rights by calmly understanding principles, and by the + successful event of a long, obstinate, and expensive war. But it is not + incumbent on us to fight the battles of the world for the world's profit. + You are already participating, without any merit or expense in obtaining + it, the blessings of freedom acquired by ourselves; and in proportion as + you become initiated into the principles and practice of the + representative system of government, of which you have yet had no + experience, you will participate more, and finally be partakers of the + whole. You see what mischief ensued in France by the possession of power + before they understood principles. They earned liberty in words, but not + in fact. The writer of this was in France through the whole of the + revolution, and knows the truth of what he speaks; for after endeavouring + to give it principle, he had nearly fallen a victim to its rage. + </p> + <p> + There is a great want of judgment in the person who drew up your memorial. + He has mistaken your case, and forgotten his own; and by trying to court + your applause has injured your pretensions. He has written like a lawyer, + straining every point that would please his client, without studying his + advantage. I find no fault with the composition of the memorial, for it is + well written; nor with the principles of liberty it contains, considered + in the abstract. The error lies in the misapplication of them, and in + assuming a ground they have not a right to stand upon. Instead of their + serving you as a ground of reclamation against us, they change into a + satire on yourselves. Why did you not speak thus when you ought to have + spoken it? We fought for liberty when you stood quiet in slavery. + </p> + <p> + The author of the memorial injudiciously confounding two distinct cases + together, has spoken as if he was the memorialist of a body of Americans, + who, after sharing equally with us in all the dangers and hardships of the + revolutionary war, had retired to a distance and made a settlement for + themselves. If, in such a situation, Congress had established a temporary + government over them, in which they were not personally consulted, they + would have had a right to speak as the memorial speaks. But your situation + is different from what the situation of such persons would be, and + therefore their ground of reclamation cannot of right become yours. You + are arriving at freedom by the easiest means that any people ever enjoyed + it; without contest, without expense, and even without any contrivance of + your own. And you already so far mistake principles, that under the name + of <i>rights</i> you ask for <i>powers; power to import and enslave + Africans</i>; and <i>to govern</i> a territory that <i>we have purchased</i>. + </p> + <p> + To give colour to your memorial, you refer to the treaty of cession, (in + which <i>you were not</i> one of the contracting parties,) concluded at + Paris between the governments of the United States and France. + </p> + <p> + "The third article" you say "of the treaty lately concluded at Paris + declares, that the inhabitants of the ceded territory shall be + incorporated in the union of the United States, and admitted <i>as soon as + possible, according to the principles</i> of the Federal Constitution, to + the enjoyment of all the rights, advantages, and immunities of citizens of + the United States; and <i>in the mean time</i>, they shall be protected in + the enjoyment of their liberty, property, and the exercise of the religion + they profess." + </p> + <p> + As from your former condition, you cannot be much acquainted with + diplomatic policy, and I am convinced that even the gentleman who drew up + the memorial is not, I will explain to you the grounds of this article. It + may prevent your running into further errors. + </p> + <p> + The territory of Louisiana had been so often ceded to different European + powers, that it became a necessary article on the part of France, and for + the security of Spain, the ally of France, and which accorded perfectly + with our own principles and intentions, that it should be <i>ceded no more</i>; + and this article, stipulating for the incorporation of Louisiana into the + union of the United States, stands as a bar against all future cession, + and at the same time, as well as "<i>in the mean time</i>" secures to you + a civil and political permanency, personal security and liberty which you + never enjoyed before. + </p> + <p> + France and Spain might suspect, (and the suspicion would not have been + ill-founded had the cession been treated for in the administration of John + Adams, or when Washington was president, and Alexander Hamilton president + over him,) that we <i>bought</i> Louisiana for the British government, or + with a view of selling it to her; and though such suspicion had no just + ground to stand upon with respect to our present president, Thomas + Jefferson, who is not only not a man of intrigue but who possesses that + honest pride of principle that cannot be intrigued with, and which keeps + intriguers at a distance, the article was nevertheless necessary as a + precaution against future contingencies. But you, from not knowing the + political ground of the article, apply to yourselves <i>personally</i> and + <i>exclusively</i>, what had reference to the <i>territory</i>, to prevent + its falling into the hands of any foreign power that might endanger the + [establishment of] <i>Spanish</i> dominion in America, or those of the <i>French</i> + in the West India Islands. + </p> + <p> + You claim, (you say), to be incorporated into the union of the United + States, and your remonstrances on this subject are unjust and without + cause. + </p> + <p> + You are already <i>incorporated</i> into it as fully and effectually as + the Americans themselves are, who are settled in Louisiana. You enjoy the + same rights, privileges, advantages, and immunities, which they enjoy; and + when Louisiana, or some part of it, shall be erected into a constitutional + State, you also will be citizens equal with them. + </p> + <p> + You speak in your memorial, as if you were the only people who were to + live in Louisiana, and as if the territory was purchased that you + exclusively might govern it. In both these cases you are greatly mistaken. + The emigrations from the United States into the purchased territory, and + the population arising therefrom, will, in a few years, exceed you in + numbers. It is but twenty-six years since Kentucky began to be settled, + and it already contains more than <i>double</i> your population. + </p> + <p> + In a candid view of the case, you ask for what would be injurious to + yourselves to receive, and unjust in us to grant. <i>Injurious</i>, + because the settlement of Louisiana will go on much faster under the + government and guardianship of Congress, then if the government of it were + committed to <i>your</i> hands; and consequently, the landed property you + possessed as individuals when the treaty was concluded, or have purchased + since, will increase so much faster in value.—<i>Unjust to ourselves</i>, + because as the reimbursements of the purchase money must come out of the + sale of the lands to new settlers, the government of it cannot suddenly go + out of the hands of Congress. They are guardians of that property for <i>all + the people of the United States</i>. And besides this, as the new settlers + will be chiefly from the United States, it would be unjust and ill policy + to put them and their property under the jurisdiction of a people whose + freedom they had contributed to purchase. You ought also to recollect, + that the French Revolution has not exhibited to the world that grand + display of principles and rights, that would induce settlers from other + countries to put themselves under a French jurisdiction in Louisiana. + Beware of intriguers who may push you on from private motives of their + own. + </p> + <p> + You complain of two cases, one of which you have <i>no right</i>, no + concern with; and the other is founded in direct injustice. + </p> + <p> + You complain that Congress has passed a law to divide the country into two + territories. It is not improper to inform you, that after the + revolutionary war ended, Congress divided the territory acquired by that + war into ten territories; each of which was to be erected into a + constitutional State, when it arrived at a certain population mentioned in + the Act; and, in the mean time, an officer appointed by the President, as + the Governor of Louisiana now is, presided, as Governor of the Western + Territory, over all such parts as have not arrived at the maturity of <i>statehood</i>. + Louisiana will require to be divided into twelve States or more; but this + is a matter that belongs to <i>the purchaser</i> of the territory of + Louisiana, and with which the inhabitants of the town of New-Orleans have + no right to interfere; and beside this, it is probable that the + inhabitants of the other territory would choose to be independent of + New-Orleans. They might apprehend, that on some speculating pretence, + their produce might be put in requisition, and a maximum price put on it—a + thing not uncommon in a French government. As a general rule, without + refining upon sentiment, one may put confidence in the justice of those + who have no inducement to do us injustice; and this is the case Congress + stands in with respect to both territories, and to all other divisions + that may be laid out, and to all inhabitants and settlers, of whatever + nation they may be. + </p> + <p> + There can be no such thing as what the memorial speaks of, that is, <i>of + a Governor appointed by the President who may have no interest in the + welfare of Louisiana</i>. He must, from the nature of the case, have more + interest in it than any other person can have. He is entrusted with the + care of an extensive tract of country, now the property of the United + States by purchase. The value of those lands will depend on the increasing + prosperity of Louisiana, its agriculture, commerce, and population. You + have only a local and partial interest in the town of New-Orleans, or its + vicinity; and if, in consequence of exploring the country, new seats of + commerce should offer, his general interest would lead him to open them, + and your partial interest to shut them up. + </p> + <p> + There is probably some justice in your remark, as it applies to the + governments under which you <i>formerly</i> lived. Such governments always + look with jealousy, and an apprehension of revolt, on colonies increasing + in prosperity and population, and they send governors to <i>keep them down</i>. + But when you argue from the conduct of governments <i>distant and despotic</i>, + to that of <i>domestic</i> and <i>free</i> government, it shows you do not + understand the principles and interest of a Republic, and to put you right + is friendship. We have had experience, and you have not. + </p> + <p> + The other case to which I alluded, as being founded in direct injustice, + is that in which you petition for <i>power</i>, under the name of <i>rights</i>, + to import and enslave Africans! + </p> + <p> + <i>Dare you put up a petition to Heaven for such a power, without fearing + to be struck from the earth by its justice?</i> + </p> + <p> + <i>Why, then, do you ask it of man against man?</i> + </p> + <p> + <i>Do you want to renew in Louisiana the horrors of Domingo?</i> + </p> + <p> + Common Sense. + </p> + <p> + Sept 22, 1804. + </p> + <p> + END OF VOLUME III. <br /> <br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <br /> + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Writings Of Thomas Paine, Volume +III., by Thomas Paine + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WRITINGS OF THOMAS PAINE *** + +***** This file should be named 31271-h.htm or 31271-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/3/1/2/7/31271/ + +Produced by David Widger + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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