Jenks's Portland gazette. [volume] (Portland [Me.]) 1799-1802, 1799-12-23

appoiatrd: The pam of want uniatished, Is
incfelfsa by a felentment of an iniulice as be
thnksit: He aceules his rival o. theft or
| robbery, and the public of taking away, what
WAS his property and gipins. IT to another.
Theft feelings and reienteDtments, are but
other names for jealouiy and envy and alto.
gether they produce fone of the keensl and
melt torm-n,ing of all fenlimeats. Theie fer
menta,ions of the palions are 70 common and
70 well known, that the reopl. generally pre-
fume thar pefon in fnch circumstances, is de-
prived Of his judgement, if aot of his veraci;y
and realon 1t is too generally a fuAicient an
fSer 10 any complaint to any fact alledsed !;
or argdpeat advaaeed, TO fay that it comes
IRON asdilappoiuied man.
Thee is voice within us, which fecms to in
innate, that real merit ihould govern the world
Aud that gen ought to be reipeded only IN
proportion y their talents, virtues and fer
vices Bn, the qneaion always has been, how
can this arrangement he accomplished !? How
tball tie men of merit be difcovered? How ihall
the proportions of merit be a!eertained and gra.
duale3, Who hdl be the Judge? When the
The government of great nation is IN queition,
fhaH tlie whole nation choofe VIII iuch
choce be better than cbanees Shall the whole
nation vote for fenat0rs9 Thirty millions OF
votes for example, for each fenator in France
1t sobyous that this would b. lottery Of
millions of blanks TO one prize, and tina, the
chance of having wifdom and integrity in
fen tor By hereditary defcenr would be far bet
ter. There is no individual psrianaiiy known
TO an hundredth part OF the nation. The vot.
crs then mua be expsf-d to deception, from 10
trguss and manGav.es, without number, that is
10 fay, from all The ehicansry, impoaures and
faillspods imaginable, Wi fearce poiGbity of
prefeung teal merit. Will you divide tbs ma
a ienaior? Ills is giving up the idea OF merit,
and annexing thu honor and the trult to an ac-
cdeat, that of living on particular lpot. An
hundred or lloufand mea OF the frlt merit in
nation may live 10 one city and none al all
in fsvcral whole provinces. Real merit is e.
remore from the knowledge Of whole nations,
thar were magistrates to be ehofcn by that critic
ZION alone, and by an univeria, outrage, diien.
tions and venality would be eadlefs he dii-
cuties ariling from this fource are 70 obvious
and univeria, that nations have tried all forts
of experiments to avoid them.
As no appetite in human nature is more uni
vetfal Than that fer honor, and real merit is
csnSnej to very few, The numbers who thira
for refpta, are out Of all proportion to thole
who feek il only by merit. The gfe5t majority
trouble lhemleives little abouI meiit, but apply
,hemlelyes to l.ek for honor by which they fee
they will more eafly and certainly OBTAIN it;
by Displaying their tate and addreis, then
wealth and magni6cence; their ancient parch.
ments, pi1ures, and iia,ues, and the virtues of
their anceaors; andif theie fail, as they feldom
have done, they have recourfe TO article, diff
Emulation, hypoc,icy, hattery, impoituie, en-
piricim quaekery and bribery. What chance
| has humbl:, modet, obfcure and poor merit, in
fuch fcramb,e Nations, perceiving tina: the
Gill fmall voice of merit was @drowee1 in the
infolent roar of fllch impofures and that they
were conaant'y the dupes of impuience and
knaycry, in national elections, without poi.
iibility of remedy, have fought for fohethinS
more permanent than the popular voice to de
6anate honor. Many nations have attempted
to annex to land, prefuming that good eltate
would az Leaf firnifh the means of>a good
education; aad have reiolved that thoic who
Mould podcis certain territories, ihould have
lse,tain Legislative, executive and judicial pow
Ters. over The people. Other nations have en-
deavored to connect honor with Offices and the
names and ideas at leaf Of certain moral virtues
and Intellectual qualities have been by law an
nexea 10 certain offices, as veneration, grace,
excellence, honor ferenity, majeay.-OtheI IA.
tons have attempted to annex honor to FAINT
lies, without regard to lands or offices. The
Romans allowed none but thoie who had poi
(eGed curule Offices, to have fatuss or portraits
He, who had images or pictures of his ancettors'
was called noble. He who had no itatues or
pictures bu, his own, was called a new man.
| Thoie who had non, at all, were ignoble.. O.
Their nations have united all thole inititutons
connected lands offices and tamii,cs--mads
| hem all defend together, and honor, public
attention, CONFEDERATION and congratulauon
| along with Them. This has beea the Poicy oil
| Europe; and it is this inaitu,ion which In:
owes her fIperioli,y, in war and re ice, in legf
lation and commerce, in agriculture, navlga-
lion, ar,s, licences and manufactures, to Aha,
| and Africa. Thela families thus diltingulihed