THE POLITICAL REGISTER, AND IMPARTIAL REVIEW, FOR MDCCLXXI. VOLUME THE EIGHTH. LONDON: Printed for HENRY BEEVOR in Little-Britain. THE POLITICAL REGISTER For JANUARY 1771. NUMBER XLVII. For the POLITICAL REGISTER. POLITICAL REFLECTIONS adapted to the prefent Situs ation of our domeftic Affairs. TH HERE is nothing in which the generality of mankind are fo much mistaken as when they talk of government. The different effects of it are obvious to every man, but few can trace the causes. Moft men having indigefted ideas of the nature of civil inftitutions, attribute all public mifcarriages to the corruption of mankind. They think the whole mafs of adminiftration is infected, and that it is impoffible to make any reformations for the honour and intereft of our country, but by fudden and violent innovations or revolutions: thus miftaking the proper end of oppofition, which is the general good, they divide the body of the nation by their ill judged proceedings into two parties, the one compofed of thofe, who, difapproving their measures, yet fenfible that we really labour under fome national grievances, fubmit patiently to their country's calamities, becaufe they will not herd with hotheaded, felfifh, popular demagogues; the other of those, who, nicely fcrutinizing the characters of the mock patriots of the age, piously refolye, "fince their country is in a fair way of being ruined by impolitic contentions," rather to fhare in the fpoil, and accumulate riches and falfe honours as fast as pofVol. VIII. fible, B fible, than to be the laughing ftock of one half of the nation, or the tools of the other. But if we would reflect that complaints against the conduct of their governors, has been as infeparable from the nature of government as any of its fixed principles; that they are as antient as its origin; and that every age, and every people, have thought their grievances the worst of any that ever were endured, we should not make the afpect of public affairs wear fo horrid a face, nor give our foreign enemies occafion to judge from our difaffection to government, that we are ripe for conqueft. We loudly exclaim against the adminiftrators of our government; and we arraign them for the meafures they pursue to secure their power and influence, without confidering, that we have not only our own experience, but the example of all past times, to prove, that men in the fame circumstances will do the fame things, call them by what names of distinction you please. Our bufinefs then is, to take care not to place our rulers in fuch fituations as fhall neceffitate them to follow the example, if bad, of all their predeceffors under fimilar circumftances.. A government is a mere piece of clock-work; certain fprings and wheels, muft act in a precife, given mode, or the whole movement ftops; and therefore the art is, fo to conftitute it, that every component part may contribute to the producing one equal, fteady, uniform motion for the public advantage. For the attainment of this political art but one rule is required, which is, to make the intereft of the governors and the governed one and the fame: for it is well known that every individual will act for his own intereft; and all wife governments, well convinced of this truth, ftudy to make the public intereft, and that of every individual, compatible with each other. In an abfolute MONARCHY this defirable end of government cannot be attained; for where all power is vefted in one man, his intereft alone will be regarded in an ARISTOCRACY the intereft of a few will be partially preferred to that of the majority; but, in a free government, the intereft of every private man will be the rule and measure of adminiftration, if the people are true to themfelyes. For no Minifter or King, in a free fate, will prefume to fet up an intereft separate from, or repugnant to the intereft of the people, if they do not lead the way, by fhewing, that they prefer temporary advantages to folid rights; and this they do, when they barter for titles and gold, integrity and freedom. The The freedom of England depends upon the people's making a right choice of an House of Commons, and not, as fome have foolishly imagined, on the power alone of choofing; for if they make a wrong choice, then the right of election becomes the very means of enflaving the nation. The fole power of voting the people's money to be given to the adminiftrators of government being in the Commons; and abuses in the application of that money being the only inlet to flavery under our present happy conftitution; it follows neceffarily, that he who makes a wrong choice of a reprefentative, gives his neighbour, who has not the privilege of a vote, just reafon to with, that he had no fuch power of difpofing of his property, that is to say, of using the means to enflave him. That the intereft of every private member of the community, confiftent with the good of the whole, is provided for by the conftitution of England, no man will doubt; nor yet that the abuses which have of late crept into our mode of conducting elections for members of parliament, have been productive of the most dangerous evils to a well regulated community like that of England. Minifterial influence, and popular prejudice, are alike prejudicial to the freedom of the nation; for, in both cafes, the abilities of the candidate are generally put out of the queftion. This, I apprehend, has been fully proved in the choice made by both parties at the late ever memorable elections for the county of Middlefex. The independent freeholders, zealous for the prefervation of their facred rights from every fhadow of violation, perfifted in their choice of a man difqualified, not by any act or refolution of the House of Commons, but by a catalogue of vices, which are incompatible with the dignity of the important office of reprefentative of fo refpectable a county; and who had not given any diftinguished proofs of being pofleffed of those accomplishments which conftitute the character of an able Senator. These freeholders then, are undoubtedly right in contending for that moft inestimable privilege, freedom of election; but they were as clearly wrong in the object of their choice; a bad man had been oppreffed by a foolish, corrupt adminiftration; and, to reward him for this, it was not fufficient to load him with prefents, to pay off his debts, and to advance him to inferior dignities, but blind zeal went a step further, and affronted every good, every worthy, every independant gentleman in the county, willing and properly qualified to ferve them in parliament; and, in fo populous a county, it may well be fuppofed there are numbers of thofe, who would have offered themfelves, if they had not feen the tide of popular favour all centered in their adored IDOL. Still more pernicious to the ftate was the exertion of B 2 mini |