The Connecticut courant and Hartford weekly intelligencer — Hartford, Conn., 1777-12-16 00:00:00, page 1

For the Connecticut Courant.
CATO continued.
AGREEABLE to my engagement I am
jirft to shew that the expences of fop
porting our army, the emission of bills, and
what I trust will be more sensibly felt, our
taxes, must increase exactly in the fame pro
portion with the depreciation of our bills, and
f may add all expenccs of government, the
support of our clergy and fcuoo+s, and even of
our own families, at leaf! inch as do not raise
a competent supply for themselves, will be
advanced in like proportion. Aid, #
Secondly, That the burden of all these ex
traordinary expences, occasioned by the de
preciation of our bills, mud and will center
Upon those farmers, who do not raise more
than a competent supply for their own fami
lies, and to pay their blacksmiths, &c. &c.
To pretend in a formal manner to' prove
that the Spences of our army, the emission
of bills, and our taxes will increase in pro
portion as our bills depreciate, as they are
felf-erident truths, would be really an af
front to every intelligent reader; I fhali
therefore paG to the next thing proposed,
and m e w, that the burden of all extraordi
nary expenses, occasioned by the deprecia
tion of our bills, ^ and will cento upon
such farmers, whose farms do not produce
more than, a Competent support for their
own families, and consequently, it is of the
highest importance for every farmer to ek
er^himfelf, and do every thing in his power,
to prevent the depreciation of our bills, to
avoid every appearance of it himielf, care,
fully to examine the real cause of it, and
then cheerfully submit to every measure that
may be thought neceflary to retrieve its cre
dit,' and if any ffiall be found criminally guilty
of depreciating its value, if they cannot be
brought to make restitution to the public
in such a way and manner as that the public
. will be equally benefited by it, by reasonable
measures, that in every such cak, they fhoufd
be obliged to do justice to the public by
force. I would not be uhderftood to mean
by irtobs, or lawless afrmbliel, rtiy foul abhors
them ; they have been too frequent alrea
dy ; but by forte of laws framed with judg
ment, founded on fofice and ftrift ©s)
laws thus framed all men will submit to
with chearfulnefs, but lav/s which wry in
them, evident marks of partiality or injustice,
no man of spirit will y^f/ to, nor no man
of common honesty will enforce.
It may perhaps be asked, whether I would
have laws eroded which ihoukt look back ?
To this 1 answer, I would not have in flic
firft place a law made to make any thing &
crime that never was a crime, before the law
was made,, and then to puniffi any for the
violation of it; but I would have a law
made to punifh 1 men for violating the eternal
taw of right ahdwreng, a law coeval with
the ROCK- of ages.
The cause in which we are engaged is of
the highest importance to ouffelVeS and pof
ferity, a'^ if we are about to erect a riev;
empire, I pray God the foundation Of it ma^
not be kid in imrighteoufoejs
CONNECTICUT
TUESDAY, D^ff 16, 1,7%
Containing the Fr&ft ADYICE3,
WEEKLY
aMD
The present grandeur and importance of
this State, is very much owing to the pru
dent care taken by our anceftor3 the firft
founders of it, to prevent the monopolizing
of large tracts of lands , and if by this strug
gle, by means of our paper medium, large
lums Should be engrofled by individuals,
the collecting and finking the fame if done
by a tax, (and it may be relied upon? it muff
and will be paid to the possessor in fllver, of
what he will accept as an equivoleht) our
little farms now owned in fee, will soon be
converted into manors, ourselves into mere
vassals, and we shall soon be in a hate as
bad, as that out of which we should be glad
to emerge. ^But to return tb prove that
those farmers who raise no rhore than to
support their own families inuft bear the
whole burden of the depreciation of the
bills, it will be necessary to turn it in our
minds and reflect for what purposes the mo
ney is paid, and where it will be found, when
called for to be paid in by a tax;
The money was issued, for the pay both
of the offices and soldiers, their victualling
and cloathipgj for military stores, camp equi^
page, carting, &c. &c. &c.
That part of the bills emitted for the pay
of the army, at the cl^&fltfc w^i will be
found in tAeir pockets, if they should not
happen to spend it.—Thepay of the officers
has by many been thought too high, com
pared with the pay of the conimon foldim
In this I differ very much from many of
my neighbouring farmers; and I have nei
ther son nor nephew, either in quality of ofc
ficer or soldier fn the arniy, so that my judg
ment may not be fuppofea to be under any
bias in that matter, and therefore shall deli-
ver my ferttiments with freedom ' bn the sub-
Places of high trust, otiga't always to be
filled by perlons of fidelity and Capacity,
equal to the importance of theit Ration:
A governor of afoise, or a general of an arriy
who commands deferfe more wages than d
d^y labourer as heme^ or a common soldier
who fights,in the field, at the fame time there
are soldiers doubtless Who deferVe to wear d
cem%,wn, and officers who Ought to be re
duced to the ranks -, b'tit ^ due fubordinatioh
rughtto be hiaintdined bo^h at ko^s, and in
the fold. Such as four officers are, fach your
army will be; it is of the ufmpft ton®-,
quence tnar your officers should be men of
Spirit and influence at botee, in order to Inp
port government and difeiphrie abroad : But;
high $ their wages are, and how rafidly fe
ever they have been faifid, it obght to be'
remembered, the farmer and er^r^er are the*
true cause of it, they , went in the front in
their prices, ^nd the officers and soldiers only
bring u^ the rear in their dhmahds; and foe
amount ofthe greater part of the wages of
both, will be found fa the (%^ of the fr
tners ft home, for the support of their fami
lies while they Were fighfing nor bafttes i^
the field, or left by t'fe m^mon Soldier
abroad, in the hands of the drderlra retailers
to fomeg/eW Burger, from whoffi be has
Iran obliged from, mere nectyig so p^chata
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M^^aWiM
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now and then 4 gill of rum well watered, to
secure him against the inclemency of the
weather, or forile difofders frequent in ta.taps
at the moderate price of half 1 dollar j and
in those iwtettetydrta ±t the elofe of the mr,
Will be found by far the greater part of thd
wages of the whole drrfly. And when th^
army returns home, and find their pocked'
empty, froth their necessary wants being fap.'
plied at the most extravagant price when
abroad, and their fam"ies distressed, pinched,
and extorted upon by the farmer at fofa [
make no doubt the army jtill think'th elite'
selves injured ^ the monopo^ers, who have
raised the price of all those articles which
they were obliged to purchase abroad, and
by the farmers, who for the pyrpofe of est
tortihg an exorbitant price for every hecef
fary article their families wanted at home, b,
an unrighteous Withholding them, will incline
to look into the chefs of both those ft -ts of
men, and oblige them to refund some fall
part of the monies which have been thus ex^
torted from them, and if they should stand
In need of recruiting their army in order to
e^ect their purposes, there will vol&hleerrfbon
appear who have felt the fame iron hand of
op,report here at home insufficient numbers
to carry it into etectitioc. j his j§ ^
fericus affair, and ought to be seriously tho 4
of b, every engrosser, extortioner and With^
bolder, throughout these Whited ^tatbs, and 1
must think every legislature of the United
States will e,&t titemfelves, and adopt some
prudent measures to effect a speedy reforms.
Hon, and avert such impending evils, f or £
Cannot yet be bright to believe a Whole
army wiR return home With their swords i A
their scabbards, and find their families Rarv
ifo and their Wages all expended ty untight
'f"' extortion# and fit down contented^
Wefound it difficult to faife an arm% but
it will bte more difficult to difoand theth un
der such , fixation, hr toy own part t
tremble for the co, Sequences Of it. The
monopolizer, extortioner, and the withholder
may think I do this to fit the army upon
them' , but 1 fmCetel, declare, I do it to pte
fat it, by their Reformation, and to prevent
others being involved in the calamity ^ ^ s for
them tonfi'dered in their proper charafler, t
do not think ^y puniffirhat too ore* for
them on this fide fhc grave.
, in the next place, ,111 th^tfohi^ paid' for
the vifltialfc and dodibihg the arm,, thtff
certainly Will Center in the hands of the far!
mer. Such part of the cloathin'g as corner
from a'3ro< B p^idfor by oW beef, pork;
Wheat, flour; bread, ^b^co, &c. &t and
as n^r^l, Centers m the hands of the far
mer, as rityrt-s run info vhe ocean. The fatoc
may be faicf with regard to Military stores,
camp eartfafc; carting, forage, &c. && &c.
%hat we cannot futniffi oter ^fve's meffi b^
paid for, if K^ h& ,^j ?6ne, ty fbete
like aftietes, :h6 p/ddute of ou'rfarm's;
'™ *^~ ^ c °' farmers' will have'fife
mone, in their chuffs ^hen it comes to trf
paid id % ^ fax ? Cerfak not that firmer
who radds np more from his own farni, than
tp IbpDorc hisfon family with bre^d, Q
INTELLIGENCER,
Both FOREIGN and DOMESTIC.
COURANT,
# 4^f> bite
110 MM&%.