Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1809-08-25
qu.ntly sent and .ntlda..d for hi. pur.

Iu|utiJ SCat diI SutilalSQ .Or MS pur-
pose.
1t is, besides, no objection to this
conniv5nc-, thar Mr.. Erskine was for
ucrly attached to the wing party. So
was EIr. Pitt, so WAS Burke, so was the
present and In naculate Canning. But
they all observed that there was a pro-
per time when a statesman should learn
to renounce his political principles for
his personal emolument.
The great political parties of Eng
land are those who are IN and those
who are out Of Office. Her wings of
modern days differ from the wings of
the revolution as much as things do
which are of quite different nature.
Charles Fox was called wing, so
were the two Pitts, father and son.
Vet in what did Fox's administration
diifor from that of his predecessors.
When out of Office, he promised mag
nitcently, and was a warm stickler for
the rights of the people: but within
the walls of st. Stephens Chapel, he
either forgot his promises or was obi
ged to sail with the current. The ex-
ertion of no individual talents, be they
OF tho greatest possible magnitude, will
ever be able to remedy the systematic
corruption of the English government:
nothing can purge it but revolution.
The government of England is no.
thing but a monied aristocracy, COM
posed of the mercantile and landed in
terests. These advance to the money
that gives motion to wheels of the ma
tional adm inistration. The followers
an d dependents of the former find en-
ployment in the naval and military de-
partments OF the crown and the
wealth ofthe other is aug mented by the
monoPolies that are necessarily conse-
quent upon her present system of neu-
trail trade. Have we not proof of this
In the late meeting of the London mer-
chants
Great Britain defended her orders
In council, on the alleged motive Off
taliating on the enemy for the Berlin
decree to. distress the internal admi-
nistration Of his government, by cut
ting him off from every branch of for
eign commerce. The disavowal of che
stipulations of her minister and his re-
call, left the American trade exposed
to the well known violence OF her cruz
zers, and to the subtil tyranny of her
courts of admiralty. Considering that
In such circumstances, she owed some
thing to reputation, (for even the vii.
lain must observe some forms of con-
duct to ensure his after-success) she
permitted our vessels to have parti-
al access to some of the enemy's ports.
Here, if the real object Of her govern
ment was to distress the enemy's trade
whilst she unwillingly accorded to us
the concession, she would have taken
the most vigorous measures to prevent
her own subjects from trading 70 those
ports. But mark the spirit of the hug
ster. The London merch ants COM
plain that their trade will suffer by this
concession, and that the time allowed
the Americans is too long. The peri
cd is accordingly abridged, and gov
eminent grants licences to her own sub.
jects 70 trade to the ports of her ene-
my. Does not Holland communicate
by navigable rivers with that part of
modern Francewhich was formerly cal
led the Netherlands 4: & will not the IN
ternal provinces of France, through this
means be supplied with commodities
is this, therefore, the way England
makes use of to distress an enemy
Is it not glaringly absurd in her advo-
Gates to say that England is fighting
for the liberties of the world No
She is fighting for the benefits of an u
Universal mercantile dominion abroad,
and OF a trading and landed aristocra-
cy at home.
What is the situation Of England?
Three fourIhs of her representation is
purchased by this aristocracy, which
gives laws to the remainder, 100000
persons, or the one fftieth of her DO
.pulation possess the representative
powers OF Ireland: the people of Scot
land, who, until the year IS, were the
veryest slaves in Europe, with their
property and their lives, subject to the
caprice of their res pective chiefs, had