The Pennsylvania ledger, or, The Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, & New-Jersey weekly advertiser — Philadelphia, Pa., 1776-03-30 00:00:00, page 1

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PENNSYLVANI A
WEEKLY
To Cato, Cassandra, and all the Writers on the
Independent Controversy.
Gentlemen*,
THOUGH it might be deemed absolutely ne
cessary to suppress all publications, which
tend to disunite the colonies, in their present spiri
ted opposition to a cruel and unnatural attack from
the people of England; yet, as the quellion of In
dependency has been lately started, in a pamphlet
entitled Common Sense, and lupporced by a variety
of subsequent authors, I confels I was much pleas
ed on the appearance of a writer on the other fide
ci the quellion; for as I have no other view, than
peace and happiness for myfelf and posterity, I was
determined to give an earned attention to the argu
ments on both files It is no matter, with me,
whether 1 live under an Emperor, a Pope, a Ba
fhaw a King of England, or a Republick, provi
ded I can be convinced, by irrefutable arguments,
that such or such a Rate contained the greatest
quantity of happiness for the people at large, .and
for individuals in particular; for as I am in the fi
tuarion of 99 out of every 100 in the world, who
have no expectations of ever afeending into office,
and riding upon the top of the machine, and have
only to expe& to contribute my proportion of la
bour to wheel it along, 1 therefore think it my bufi
hefs, as well as my felloe labourers, to lee that it is
so conttruded, as to move with as little labour as
possible, and the machinery so contrived as to be
the least liable to get out of order in the variety of
rough and Smooth roads through which we must
inevitably pass — Now taking it for granted, that
the machine must necessarily be kept in proper mo
tion, I conclude, we are not to consult the ease and
convenience of the riders, but that of the draughts
men, who being the majority, and giving motion to
the machine for their own emolument (1 know cri
tics the simile wont run upon all fours, but I
shill nevertheless hick to it till you offer me a bet
ter) I fay, we move it along for our own emolu
ment; and if the riders should infill on having it
built, to contain only a single chair for a crowned
head, or to spread a larger floor over our heads to
Support a Common Wealth, we who pull, and not
they who ride, ought to be the judges of the mat
ter; for that some mufi pull, and that some will ride,
in every community on the face of the earth, must
be granted me; therefore, all I have to confider,
with the rest of my brethren on the ground, is to
attach myfelt to that machine (or if you wont let
me pursue the simile) to that form of government,
which will afford me the molt ease and give me leafl
pain.
People in general know so little of the different
movements of a Rate, and the complicated connex
ions and dependencies on the other powers of the
world, that they are almost unequal to the talk of
forming a proper judgment of the fitnefs or unfit
nefs of this or that mode; lor this reaion it gave
me great pleasure to think I was now about to have
the matter laid before me in an open and candid
manner, that I and the rest of my unlettered bre
thren might judge for ourselves. The writer signed
Cato, I should have liked much better, had his
actions corresponded with his declarations—fays
he " nor need any person be alarmed; for an inde
" cent nor angry expression, shall not difhonour my,
“ pen, nor yet a single sentiment, which is not cal
“ collated to cement all parties in the province, up
" on fafe and popular grounds, more firmly than
« ever, in executing the Resolves of the Congress,
« and maintaining American liberty"— had this de
cency really prevailed in Cato's breast, why did he,
a few lines before, charge the commentators on the
conduct of the AfTembly, with ' scurrilous misre
presentations ?" Decency and Jourrility can certainly
have no possible connexion—and unhappily for him,
in his second letter he proceeds to term a writer,
* Cassandra will please to excuse the appellati
on of " Gentlemen," for as Phcebus decreed that the
Prophetess Jbould never be credited, I am under the
necessity of disbelieving that the modern Cassandra
is a Lady.
March 30, 1776.
Or the Virginia, Maryland,
SATURDAY,
who stiles himfelf Cafindra—“ an enthusiast, a
madman, and a barbarian." Language of this kind,
Can be of no real use to men who are searching for
truth; and I will take the liberty to requell Cato,
in his future essays, to keep up to the decency he
profeffed to let out with. I could have wilhed to
have passed Cassandra unnoticed on this head; but
as be allo has given too much reason for censure,
I will juil make free to lay, that his arguments have
acquired no force with me, by direding personal
attacks on Cato, and endeavouring to point out the
real man to the public; nay, by introducing the ve
ry name of a private gentleman into his essays, and
obliquely glancing at him as the writer of Cato's
Letters. lam sensible it is so guarded, that Caf
landra may plead off, and declare, if he pleases,
that he had no such person in view; and Cato
might find it difficult to disprove his sincerity.
Cassandra may also assert, where he hints at the
danger which Cato runs of “ too far provoking
" the majelly of the people by the bold flourifhes of
" a pen which pays no refped to truth, least he
“ may find it expedient to end his days on the prin
" ciples of dependency, that he meant no such thing
as the threatning Cato with the chance of being
hanged by a mob; though his marking the word
" dependency" in Italics, will certainly convey that
idea to many minds.—Now gentlemen, with all
due refped to you both, I would wish you to avoid
indecency and personality: however sharp your minds
may be let against each other, upon a luppofition
that you have got at the secret of names on both
sides, I would request you to confider, that though
you are boty volunteers, yet you are in some mea
sure accountable to the public—ls two advocates
pleading a cause of great importance, before a
learned court, and an intelligent jury, were to
make ule of illiberal refleaions upon each other's
characters, and rip up a long lilt of charges of frau
dulent designs and wicked practices, would not
both court and jury think themlelves grossly insult
ed, and would not luch advocates deserve the fe
vered censure from the bench?—Be pleased to re
member, Gentlemen, you are pleading at the bar of
the public, upon a cause of greater importance than
ever came before any tribunal on earth, no less, than
whether it is expedient on inexpedient to make a total
Jefaration in government between the New and the
old World. Do you think, Gentleman that a
thoulandth part of your readers, either know, care
for, or desire to know who are the writers on this
popular fubjedt— If John a Nokes and Tom a Stiles
should be fixed on as the authors in this city, and
should hand forth to the public, every foible and
unfavourable incident of each others life, of what
importance, think you, would this be to those who
are Ilrangers to them both. —ls Kouli Khan's gardi
nur's daughter, had a child by the Grand Vifir's
brother, what has that to do with the revolution
in Perfia—'tis the matter and not the man that the
public are concerned with. If Lord North himfelf
was prisoner amongst us, and should issue forth from
his confinement, daily lucubrations on the fubjed,
now before us, I would give them as earned a read
ing, as if they flowed from the pen of a Cambden
or a Burke; and yet I am a zealous advocate against
Great-Britain in the prelent controversy; 'tis truth
alone I am hunting for, and this I believe to be the
case with nine-tenths of the people, therefore I beg
you will behave like gentlemen to yourselves, and
to the public; canvass the matter fairly, fully and
freely, and dont suppose yourselves of lb much im
portance, as to think we shall be pleased with your
calling off our attention, from the grand question,
to the unimportant difeuffions, of the characters or
febemes of either party.—l with a great number of
others, should be glad to fee you enter deeply into
the quellion, on both sides.—State the advantages
of an Independence,—the benefits to be derived from
a new mode of government; how it will affect in
dividuals ; the additional happiness and freedom it
will produce, particularized in a number of plain,
clear instances ; for though I, and some others,
might be fatisfied with the general assertion, “ that
the date will be much benefited by the change," yet
there is no gaining admission into /%, bosoms, but
fi"^ c{^^!m
\l^^^^^
i^ll^ii^^^
THE
ADVERTISER.
L E D G E R:
Pennsylvania, & New-Jersey
'y full and poJitive demonstration; and the number
of such is very great —to make mylelf better under
stood, I mean thus—ls A, being a shopkeeper in this
city, having a tolerable stand for bufmels, thougli
at a distance from the market, was to be advised
by B to remove his shop, to the outskirts of the
town, where he should be lure to make his for
tune; A would naturally require of B some proof
of its probability, as the prqpofal might feern
a strange one; but if B, being in the secret,
should inform him that the corporation had deter
mined to remove the market to that very spot, A
would not hesitate a moment about the matter; so
with reaped to Independence, some people will' be
fatisfied with nothing Short of such clear and demon-
Jlrative evidence; you must tell them, also, of the
particular new trades, whicli will be opened to us
the prices our goods will bear at home, to thej&r„%
and what they will bring at such and such ports, and
how much those prices exceed what we have been
used to get for them, at the markets we were allow'd
to trade to; in this you mull name the articles, the
prices, and the places; you must then tell us, the
advantages of buying linens, woolens, cottons,
silks, and hard ware, in France, Spain and Portu
gal, and other countries in Europe, and how much
cheaper they are than in England, and Ireland- in
this too you must name the goods, the places, 'and
prices; and whether these places will take in ex
change, our lumber, our naval fores, our tobacco,
fax jeed, &c. &c. and what prices they will give -
what credit it is customary for those several places
to allow to foreigners on what we commonly call
dry goods; for our country people generally re
quiring credit, the merchant-importer must have
credit too, otherwise trade will be confined to aft
rtch houses, who will exad what prices they please
upon the farmer and consumer. Next you must
'^^ '. he charge °f Supporting government
will be less, in a state of Independence, than it hath
been heretofore, during a connexion; you mull name
the expences we now pay, and the expences we
shall then pay; you must give an estimate of the
charge of lupporting such an army and navy, in
time of peace, as may always preserve the peace
there are many who wont be fatisfied, with your
telling them, that “ a well regulated militia will
save all the expence arising on the icore of an array,"
fay they, a mans time and labour, when he musters
will always be the fame to him, as money paid and
that therefore you must fix the number of men that
are to be enrolled every year, and the number of
times they shall appear; lor instance, if in Pennsyl
vania 25,000 should muster eight times in the year,
at 2s. 6d. per day, it would amount to £.25,000'
which would be just equal to the present is. 6d.'
tax on all the estates in the province; if they are to
receive no pay it will nevertheless be a loss to them
e^al to that sum; if they are to belaid, the amount'
of this tax, should certainly be estimated, because it
must be paid by the community at large in every
province, in proportion to the numbers so enrolled
as a militia. The expence of building a fufficient
fleet should also be afeertained, and also the number
of Ihips and men necessary to be kept in conflant pav
as guarda cofta s, occasional convoys, or dispatch
yeffels, conveying Ambassadors to the different ports
in Europe, and you must also estimate the annual
expence of watching, and keeping those vessels in
repair, which are laid up; alfo' the expences of
maintaining in every court of Europe Ambassadors,
Consuls, Messengers, Spies, and even bribe money
for intelligence of the designs of their refpeftive
Cabinets,—alfo the expences of the fleet and army
in time of war; for we may reasonably exped to
share the fate of other nations, and of being some
times unfortunately engaged in war, with some
troublesome ambitious Princeor other; perhaps they
may undertake to flop our trade up the Strei^hts
into the Mediterranean, or up the North Seas' to
Holland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Russia
we must then either give it up, or fight For IT,'
or pay some subsidy to a foreign power for pro
te&ion in those seas—the expences in any, or all,
of those cases, you should give to us—also in whai
(ror the remainder fee the lafl Page.)
March 30, 1776.
Numb. LXII.