The Pennsylvania evening post — Philadelphia, Pa., 1776-11-05 00:00:00, page 1

' An evening's difepurfe between Andrew and Ben
jamin, two countrymen. [Continued from
pa,^e 550.]
B. I° W w °^d that come to pass?
& A. 1 will tell you how, when this second
&branch of the legislature and other alterations
" take place; firft, there will be no King to con
trolihem ; second, No promulgation of laws—they may
manage the people's representatives thus—bills may originate
in either Council or Afiembly ; the Council, watching their
opportunity, may in time to ceme make a bill to secure to peo
ple of great fortunes and high life feme special privileges. If
the Assembly refufe their assent, it is only to keep it in
reserve till the Assembly want some very necessary bill to
pass; and then, fay the Council, pass our bill and we
will pass yours; and here they may overreach the people,
and by such stratagems take away the peoples liberties inch by
inch; and then you will fee them shine with star and garter,
and your posterity and mine shall give them the wall, speak to
them with heads uncovered, &c. and we shall be as happy as
they are in England. Something like to this the grandees in
Maryland have none. Their Council, on a certain time,
would not pals a bill from the Assembly, till they would
give them so much of the people's money as would build an
elegant church for their ioidfhips t< worship in by themselves.
Many other mlGnces of this fort might be produced.
B. This indeed looks probable, but our townsmen seem to
hint there should be a third legislature, a Governor, to have a
negative upor the laws.
A. -That might be worse yet; there would be tw© branches
agamft one, as it has been in England, till they have swal
lowed up the Commons, and so the more effectually gain their
point.
B. But I reasoned from the reason and justice of the thing
itfelf. I look upon it that there is no reason a free people
should be controlled with refpedt to their internal police ; and
why they themselves should lei up a body of men to check the
proceedings of the people themselves, especially when the
constitution provides there shall be a promulgation of bills be
fore they pals into laws, that the people may approve or dif
appicve, 1 cannot tell. And farther, look at it in this view ;
lluppolt the whole Assembly, confiding of lixty, should pass
a bill which would be for the good of the people, and fend it
up to the Council, conhfting of twelve, for their consent; but
in considering oi it, five are for it and seven against it; here
seven men rule the whole state, and deprive them of a good
law, and what s your Assembly then ? And again, if your
,?"".'" °°°" be proved to be perfect men, men that were
infallible, there would be some lente in it; but as they are
not, and lie under greater temptations than the Assembly, 1
cannot fee but that it is rather a dangerous movement; and
moreover, I never heard any other reason offered for it but a
check to hasty proceedings of the Assembly. Now if this can
be accompli in another way as f^y and less dangerous, I
„ ° u ^ ht to be preferred; and 1 think the promulgation
of bills, before they pass into laws, € £ds this as fully as a
Council could do.'
The PENNSYLVANIA EVENING POST.
Vol. 11.1
Price Threepence Published every Tuesday, Tburfday, and Saturday Evenings.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1775.
553
REMARKS on the Resolves published against the
Plan of Government, by a gentleman of nei
ther party.
Supposed OMISSIONS.
ift, °NTO court of appeals."
But power to ere& new courts, which is enough,
if not better. The court of appeals will certainly be new.
No such jurifdiaion subsisted here, saving that the fupeme
court heard causes in error, which had been tried in the in
ferior judicatures. But in New-York, New-Jersey, Mary
land, and other provinces, the Governors and Councils were
Mr. Towne,
IN your last Evening Post I saw the remark of an Eastern
Delegate, upon our Frame of Government, which re
called to my mind an observation made by, another Eastern
Delegate, to whom America owes as much as to the former,
which, corresponding with that already published, may serve
as an explanatory comment upon it. “ No men of
“ fortune (said he) will live under such a Government.
" Men of fortune are the support of Government, and they
" will have the management of it. Gentlemen will have the
" controul, and they cannot have it unless there is a diftinc
“ tion made between the common people and them' . A man
" of fifty thousand pounds fortune will not stay in a state
" where the Government is so much in the hands of the
“ people." The gentlemen may therefore pray for a recon
ciliation in less than two years, according to the Eattern Dele
gate's observation, that they may enjoy that power from a
crowned head, which they are too proud to accept from the
hands of the people.
Let gentlemen rule, and the people pay the public expen
ces, and all will be well.
A. I think it does, but you know some have said the Coun
cil would be men of learning, experienced &c. and matters
would be better digested by them—But why cant these fine
men be put into your Assembly, and answer the fame great
purposes there ?
B. Truly I cant tell ; they would be every bit as likely,
for any thing 1 can fee ; and if the constitution had pro
vided that the Assembly should choose the Council from
among themselves, and they chose the ablest men, and put
them into another body, to check themselves, it seems a little
strange, firft to disable themselves, to enable others the more
to find fault with them, when the fame purposes could be
otherwise anfivered ; and the fame thing holds good, if the
Council are chose by the people.
A. Yes, and I'll tell you farther; the fame reasoning that
would overturn our fingle'legiflature, would also overturn the
Congress—they are a single legislature, and wh@ have done
better, and a£ted, every thing considered, with more wisdom ?
B. I think if we dont hold fall to our Constitution, we shall
repent it hereafter.
A. lam of your opinion, and think we ought to exert
ourselves in favor of it—Well, it grows late—Good evening.
[Num. 280.