The Pennsylvania evening post — Philadelphia, Pa., 1776-10-26 00:00:00, page 1

Mr. Towne,
The following Essay upon Government was written by Mr.
Addilon, a gentleman whole knowledge, piety and bene
volence, procured him the admiration of his countrymen,
and deitrvedly intitle him to the refpeft of every friend
to civil and religious liberty. By giving it a place in your
useful paper, you will oblige yours, SIDNEY.
The PENNSYLVANIA EVENING POST
Dear native land, bondo the good and nife
Ib, bast, dime and counilejs blessings prize !
Translated from Menand;
I LOOK upon it as a peculiar happiness, that were Ito
chooie of what religion I would be, and under what
government 1 would live, I should most certainly give
the preference to that form of religion and government
which is established in my own country. In this point I think
I am determined by leafon and conviction ; but if 1 Shall be
told that I am adtea by prejudice, I am lure it is an noneft
prejudice, it is a prejudice that ariies from the love of my
country, and therefore such an one as I will always indulge.
I have in Several papers endeavoured to express my duty and
esteem for the church of England, and design this as an essay
upon the civil part of our constitution, having < ften enter
tained mylelf with reflexions on this lubjed, which 1 have
not met with in other writers.
1 hat form of government appears to me the most reason
able, which is most conformable to the equality that we find
in human nature, provided it be confident with public peace
and tranquillity. This is what may properly be called liber
ty, which exempts one man from Subjection to another so far
as the order and oeconemy of government will permit.
Liberty should reach every individual of a people, as they
all Share one common nature ; if it only spreads among par
ticular branches, there had better be none at all, since such
a liberty only aggravates the misfortune of thole who are de
prived of it, by fitting before them a disagreeable fubjeft of
comparison.
This liberty is best preserved, where the legislative power
is lodged in several persons, elpecially if those persons are of
different ranks and interests ; for where they are of the fame
rank, and consequently have an interest to manage peculiar
to that rank, it differs but little from a deipotical govern
ment in a single perlon. But the greatest security a people
can have for their liberty, is when the legillative power is in
the hands of persons so happily diftingu.lhed, tnat by pro
viding for the particular interests of their several ranks, they
are providing for the whole body of the people; or in other
words, when there is no part of the people that has not a
common interest with at least one part of the legislators.
If there be but ONE body of legislators, it is no bet
ter than a tyranny ; if there are only TWO, there will want a
calling voice, and one of them mutt at length be swallowed
up by disputes and contentions that will necessarily arise be
tween them. FOUR would have the fame inconvenience as
TVvO, and a greater number would ckuie too much cornu-
Vol. ll.]
Price Three Coffers. Published every Puejday, IburJday, and Saturday Evenings.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1776.
537
fion. I could never read a passage in Polybius, and another
in Cicero, to this purpose, without a secret pleafu e in ap.
plying it to the English constitution, which it suits much
better than the Roman. Both these great authors give the
preeminence to a mixt government, confifling of three
brane les, the regal, the noble, and the popular. They had
doubtleis in their thoughts the constitution of the Roman
commonwealth, in which the Consul represented the King,
the Senate the nobles, 'and the Tribunes the people. This
division of the three powers in the Roman constitution was by
no means so dilbrid and natural, as it is in the English forui
cf government. Among several objections that might be
m^de to it, I think the chief are those that affect the confo
iar power, which had only t^e ornaments without the force of
the regal authority. Their number had not a calling voice in
it ; for which reason, if one cid not chance to be employed
abroad, while the ether fat at home, the public business was
Sometimes at a Stand, while the Cenfuls pulled two different
ways in it. Besides, Ido not find chat the Consul, had ever
a negative voice in the palling of a law, or decree of Senate,
so th t indeed they were rather the chief body of the nobi
lity, or the firft M nifters of State, than a diftind branch of
the Sovereignty, in which none can be looked upon as a part,
who are not a part of the legislature. Had the Conluls been
invested with the regal authority to as great a degree as our
Mo iarch% there would never have been any occafi ins for a
dictatorship, which had in it the power of all the three orders,
and ended in toe subversion of the whole constitution.
Such an history as that of Suetonius, which gives us a
succession of absolute Princes, is to me an unanswerable ar
gument against despotic power. Where the Prince is a man
of wisdom and virtue, it is indeed happy for his people that
he is absolute ; but since in the common run cf mankind, for
one that is wile and good y u find ten of a c ntrary charac
ter, it is very dangerous for a nation to stand to its chance,
or to have its public happiness or misery d pend on the vir
tues or vices of a fingleperfon. Look into the history I
have mentioned, or into any Series of absolute Princes, how
many tyrants must you read through, before you come to an
Emperor that is Supportable. But this is not all; an honest
private man >ften grows cruel and abandoned, when convert
ed into an absolute Prince. Give a man power of doing what
he pleases with impunity, you extinguish his fear, and conse
quently overturn in him one of the greatest pillars of mo al ty.
This too we find confirmed by matter of fad. How many
hopeful heirs apparent to grand empires, when in the possession
of them, have become Such monitors of lull and cruelty as
are a reproach to human nature ?
Some tell us we ought to make our governments on earth
like that in heaven, which, lay they, is altogether monar
chical and unlimited. Was man like his Creator in gco.nefs
and justice, 1 Should be for following this great model ; but
where goodneis and juiiice are not eflential to tn uler, I
would by no means put myfelf into his hards, to be disposed
of according to his particular will and ok afure.
It is odd to consider the connexion between despotic gd«
[Num. 276.