The Pennsylvania ledger, or, The Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, & New-Jersey weekly advertiser — Philadelphia, Pa., 1776-04-27 00:00:00, page 1

^ Philadelphia: Printed by James Humphreys, junr. in Front-Jireet, at the Corner of Black
horfe Alley:—Where Essays, Articles of News, Advertisements, &c. are gratefully received and impartially inserted. And
Where Subscriptions are taken in for this Paper, at Ten Shillings per Year.
Had the author of Common Sense considered this,
or were he possessed witli the least reverence for tlie
judgement or feelings of a great and enlightened
people, whom he has thought himfelf fit to address,
his performance would liave been of a different na
ture. It would at lead have woin the relemblance
of argument, and contained lomething which had
a chance to meet the reason of wile men, and to
stand the tell of their candid examination. He would
have listened patiently to their remarks upon his
production, and would have coolly replied to their
objections. He would not have dared to offer such
an indignity to the public, as to throw out impotent
threats (instead of answers) againrt the meanest of
his fellow-citizens (it fellow-citizens he has in this
place) merely for endeavouring, in a country yet
free, to detect his misrepresentations, to lupply his
defect of materials, and thereby enable a people to
judge fairly of their own weighty concerns.
The contest in which America is engaged was not
lightly undertaken. The sword was drawn in de
fence of our laws and liberties. Till these are ren
dered fafe, let it not be returned to the scabbard;
but Rill let not the scabbard be thrown away. If
our just rights can be bell secured by reconciliation
with our own fleSh and blood —with a yet powerful
nation, whole religion, laws and manners, in our
former happy days, we gloried to call our own—
God forbid that we Should shut the door against it,
by any hasty measure among ourselves. This happy
period to our miseries is Rill hoped for and devoutly
wished, not only by multitudes of the zealous friends
of America through all the colonies, but by whole
colonies in their public capacity, regardless of any
thing that has yet been offered to the contrary.
While this continues to be the case, he who leeks
to disturb the union which we nobly supported on
our former ground, is the word foe to this country.
If the British administration has a tool here, la
bouring to forward their ruinous purpoles by divi
Rons and diStraCtions, Thou art the man —even
thou the author of Common Sense, who halt Started
thine ignis fatuus to draw the unwary into untried
regions, full of tremendous precipices and quag
mires treacherous to the toot; whither the wife and
confidcrate think it not fafc to follow. Couldft thou
succeed in this, thou doll effectually confirm all the
slanders of our minißerial foes againif us; and,
instead of America strong in domefic union and
supported by a refpeCtable part of Britain, thou
wilt give us Britain united, and America rent by
divifons, amidst the mighty contest. Thou fayed
that now is the exaft time for adopting thy plan,
and holdeft up ruin as the lure consequence of the
least delay !——Thou faid'R the fame, and did'R
To the PEOPLE of Pennsylvania.
LETTER VIII.
TH E all-wife Creator having enabled every
man to judge, in Some degree, what is good
for himfelf, the study of government is a duty of
the highest concern to all the members of a free
state. But men, in general, may be laid to feel
better than they can Jee ; and therefore Seldom take
the trouble to employ their thoughts on public af
fairs, while they arc tolerably administered, nor is it
till oppreffiou becomes flagrant, and even palpable
to the light, that a people are universally routed
into a serious attention to abuses in government.
Numerous are the evils whicli spring from dif
tradfions and convulsions in a state; but they are
often productive of one advantage which outweighs
them all. she civil constitution of countries, al
though long negie&ed, through the indolence of
the people, and tottering on the verge of dissolution,
have nevcrthclels been thus purged of their corrup
tions, brought back to their firß principles, and
made to flourish, with renewed vigour, through
many Succeeding ages. But as this can only be the
work of heroism, conduced by wildom, virtue and
prudence, every writer who, upon luch great and
trying occasions, leeks to exaggerate, or conceal
fids, to Rate but one fide of a question, to warp
the judgment by partial representations, to give
railing for reason, invectives for arguments, and to
urge a people into hahy resolutions, by addressing
the inflamed passions, rather than the sober reason
•—every luch writer, I lay, inlults his country in
distress, and is a fellow-worker with its enemies to
batten its ruin.
WEEKLY
PENNSYLVANIA
April 27, 1776.
Or the Virginia, Maryland,
SATURDAY,
threaten the fame, near three months ago, if we
hesitated a moment to follow thy advice. Poßibly
any time may be thy no w, especially if thou
fhould'R have nothing to lose, and peradventure
miy'R hope to gain lomething by the change. But
wlien the Almighty Shall be pleased to fay now,
thy interpretations will be unnecessary. He will
fend conviction along with it, in circumstances so
clear and unambiguous, that they who run may read
them.
But I have no immediate occasion to enter into
such an enquiry, and am happy to find that, although
near a dozen answers have been given in one Hope
or another to my two or three firit letters, nothing
has been yet offered worthy of a particular reply.
The Forester leenis the chief champion against me.
He makes me write what he pleales, that lie may
answer as he pleales.—The following is a fpecimcn
of his justice, in quoting from me.
“ If we now effect independence, we mud be
“ considered as a faithlels people, in the light of all
“ mankind, and could scarcely expect the confidence
“ of any nation upon earth, or look up to heaven
" for its approving lenience;" —and upon this he
exclaims, —" Art thou mad, Cato, or art thou
foolilh, or art thou both, or art thou morfe than
both ?" Now, I can fairly leave those who have read
my Letters, to apply any or all of these epithets to
me as their candour Shall direct. But those who
read but one paper (in which it is thought proper
only to publilh the answers to my letters, without
the letters themielves) may verily believe I have
asserted, that, if ever me efedt independence, neither
heaven nor earth mill J-mile upon as. It is hoped,
therefore, that the publishers of that paper, If they
should never mlert any other part oi.my letters (in
which they may use their own plealure) will be 10
just as to give this mangled paragraph entire; and
then it will be in there words :—
The public will excuse the occasional notice I am
forced to take of the answers hitherto given to my
Letters. Were I disposed to deviate from my plan,
or,, by immediate retaliation, to draw the attention
of the reader to the " political characters, connecti
ons and dependencies" of my antagonists (which
the author of Common Sense, in his new character
of the Forelter, allows to be very essential in such
a controverly) I believe it would add little to the
credit of their works; especially if upon enquiry it
should be found, that they have neither" character
nor connexions" in this place; and that they are
the avowed instruments and dependents of some,
who, having no concern in our domestic affairs, are
nevertheless constantly intermeddling witli them,
to the great dillurbance ot the province, and injury
of the public cause.
" In Short, (it ) thus contradicting all our former
" public profeffi^s foxe)Jhould (now affect inde
" pendency) as our own all, before it appears
" clearly to the world to have been forced upon us by
" the cruel band oj the parent-jiate, me could neither
''hope for union nor Juccefs in the attempt. (We
" mud be considered as a laithlefs people in the
" fight of all mankind, and could scarcely expert
" the confidence of any nation upon earth, or look
“ up to Heaven for its approving sentence.")
The dilcerning reader will easily fee that our
honest Forester has not Icrupled to take part of one
sentence and connect it with another 5 which wholly
alters the fenle. He gives us only what is included
within the above parentheles, and fupprcffesall that
cflential part which is in Italics. He who can thus
pilfer from the fenle of another, is come to his laR
ihift, and it may be prelumed would not Rick at
any thing to promote his cause. But what can 1
exped from one who uses the immortal Milton much
in the fame way?
In the pamphlet called Common Sense, endeavour
ing to eßablifh his favourite do&rine, that reconci
liation with Great-Britain is now impoffible', and
urging us on to blood, whatever terms may be
offered, he has the unparalleled confidence to add
as follows.—" For, as Milton wifely expreßcs—
never can true reconcilement grow, where wounds
ot deadly hate have pierced so deep." —How unluc
ky is this quotation! Our author thinks he has
thatched a coal irom the altar; but it is like that
which the foolilh eagle hole, and thereby set her
nelt on lire, which confuted hcrfelf and her brood.
M_
THE
L E D G E R:
advertiser;
Would not the reader believe that the author had
here given us some wife sentiment of Milton, fit
to be copied in the conduct of a chriffian people'
But look at the place (Parad. Loft, B. iv.) and you
will find that it was the Jpeech of the Devil, medi
tating tlie delfiuHion of mankind; and luited only
to thv deipei ate purpoles of those, who are in tlie
fame di eadful llate 01 mind in whicli our divinepoct
describes the Devil to have been at the time.
— Horror and doubt diftraH
His trouoled tlioughts; and from the bottom Rir
The hell within him. For within him hell
He brings, and round about him, nor from hell
One Rep, no more than from himfelf, can Ry
" Get thee behind me" thou abandoned writer;
and take back another of thy compliments ! For
can ft thou " have the feelings of a man"- thou who
art labouring to fill the hearts of thy fellow-mortals
with irreconcileable hatred, and thefeelings 0, the
Devil? As for myjeelings^on this occafioit, 1 trud
they are founded 011 the dodiines of' the Saviour
of Mankind, who teaches that no offences in this
world can be so great among brethren as to preclude
reconciliation. " if tliy brother repent forgive liim"
—and it thou can'll not forgive, How can ft thou
lift up tliine eyes to tliy Heavenly father for for
givenefs of thy fins, or even those of thy single pain,
plilct? Had It 111011 done jußice to Milton, tliott
mighteß have Ihewn him in his own proper perlon,
upon my fide 01 the quellion; proclaiming the doc
trines ot his Heavenly Mailer.—
Oh ihame to men! Devil with Devil damn'd
lim concord liolds; men only disagree
Of creatures rational, though under hope
Of Heavenly Grace : and God proclaiming peace,
let live in hatred, enmity and Rrife
Among themielves, and levy cruel wars,
1k ailing tlie eai th, eacn oilier to destroy.
1 lion may it apply this to our cruel oppressors; and
I lay nounug againß tliee therein, except where
thou tn gen tliy tciribk doctrine of tlie impoflibility
01 ieconcilidtioii; and to make it wholly impossible
art striving to umpire sentiments into thy brethren
winch would disgrace their chriftian profcßion.
But 1 leave thee on tins head; and if thou dost not
voo mucn intci 1 tipi me, Ihall, in two or three letters
inoie, leave tlie pubuc and posterity finally to judge
between tlne anti me. Suurncuique deewspofteritas
lependit. I proceed then, with my remarks upon
thy furious antipathy to mixt fovermnents, in
xi iiich tiiou halt iurpalled all tlie writers 1 liave met
witli; 1101 Ihali 1 quote any agamß thee except:
thole who are acknowledged to have Rood foremolt
in then oppolition to the encroaclimentsoi me narchy
I tie popular leaders, who overturned the monarchy
in th. fall age, were not themselves friends to re
publics. liity oniy made me of the name to pro
cure the favour of the people; and whenever by
fucli means they had mounted to the proper height,
eacli of tnein, in his turn, began to kick the people,
from him, as a ladder then ulelefs.
Pennsylvania, & New-Jersey
Cromwell exercited the power of a King, and if
the 1110 R absolute King under the specious name oj
a ProteCor.the instrument of republican govern
ment, Width lie had at firft extolled as tlie molt
parted work of human invention, he began (as loon
as he thought his authority Rifficiently eftablilhed)
to iepielenu as a locteii plank, upon which no
man could trud himfelf without finking." He had
his eye fixed upon the crown; but when lie procu
red an offer of it from a packed Parliament, his
courage faded nim. He had outwitted himfelf, by
his own hypocniy; and in his way to cower, had
thrown luch an 'odium upon the name of Kine # ,
that his own family, apprehensive he would be mur
dered the moment the diadem should touch his brow,
periuaded him to decline that honour.
Ihe great Sidney never meant more, by Ids
celebrated work, than to reform the abuses of mixt
government; and to retrain the rapid prurrefs
which the nation was making, in his time, towards
absolute monarchy. And he was as much a foe to
Cromwell as to Charles the First, considering both
as governing above the laws. But he did nos write
against Kings generally, more than o&r rulers
who might abule their power.
" Nothing, lays he, is farther from my intention
than to speak irreverently cf Kings," and be ex
plains what Kings he means, viz. 'thofe limited .br
April 27, 1776.
Numb. LXVI.