, 1840-08-22

to constitute commercial capital, operating
by corruption, a predominant element o.
political power. To the poor, the mass
of the people, it brought no relief: on the
contrary, by its introduction Of the credit
system into the management of the national
finances, it imposed on them an intolerable
burden, while by strengthing the tyrannical
powers of the government, it still! more firm,
ly riveted their chains.
As, in England, those who opposed the alb
solute Stuarts had been called wings, it Is not
strange that, in this country, those who OPP
posed the British Government and sought the
independence of the colonies should also re-
ceive that name. 1t was here applied to all
who were in favor of throwing of the yoke
of the mother country.-but not to desig-
nate any particular views with regard to the
principles upon which the enfranchised na-
ton should proceed in establishing its new
and independent government. Hamilton and
Adams, Jefferson and Madison, were all
wings, according to the then received mean
ing of the term; although, as it soon appear
ed. the two latter gentlemen entertained po-
litIcal sentiments wide as the poles asunder
from those of the two former.
Hamilton, a true disciple of that great
apostle of British %whiggery. Sir Robert Wal
pole, wished TO adopt the British form o fgov-
eminent, with all its supposed defecks,"-he
wished TO take it in the, precise shape into
which Walpole had moulded it, and like
Walpole, his greatest reliance for sustaining
it, was on the system of corruption.
Adams, more fond Of arbitrary power, and
d~isdaining the use of indirect means for its
support, preferred a limited monarchy, TO be
sustained by brute force, rather than by cor
ruption, by Seuere la,rs and a merccRdry SOL
diery, rather than by management and bri-
berry.
As n natural consequence Of the different
dispositions and temperaments of those two
great leaders, it will be found that, while the
reign Of corruption was introduced by Ham,
ilton the reign ofterror was introduced by Ad-
ans, the two, combined, completing the Brit
ish whig system. Thus, Hamilton adopting
one portion Of that system. and Adams the
other, when the views of both came to be
adopted by their common followers, united
into one party under the name of fcderalist,
the creed of that party became precisely
that of the British maigs. And consequent
ly, if a political cognomen be rendered prop
er by its exact designation of the principles
Of the party to which it is applied. then cer-
tainiy there can be neither injustice nor i'm
propriety 10 calling early federalists "B itish
Dhigs."
If there were ever 4 time when they might,
with any propriety, have been styled .1mcri-
can WhigS. it could have been only during that
brief period when they yet hoped to procure
the adoption Of monarchial or at least aristo-
cratic institutions in this country. When
they found that the mass of the people were
democratic, and would accept of none but
democratic institutions, and when experience
taught them that the people were too intelli
gent and too wary TO permit them 10 pervert
those institutions, a change undoubtedly
came DER the spirit of their dream. From
the very moment Of Jeilerson's election, the
federalists regretted the success of
the revolution, and would gladly have gone
back to the state OF colonial vassalage rath-
than live under what they called the gov
eminent OF the rabbic. From that moment
they were Unidentified in feeling and princi-
pie, rs they had become united in action,
with the revolutionary tories and refugees
This united federal party, however, composed
but a minority of the people; and that por.
ton of it who had ever had any claim to the
name Of wings were only a minority of that
party. The tories and refugees took the lead,
and by giving it the impress of their charac-
ter, feelings, and principles, constituted in the
British party. And this is the reason why
the name of federakst became synonymous
with that Of tory, and equally abhorrent to
all true friends to the equal rights of man.
They became sensible of this. They saw
that their name, like the mark set upon the
first man who could not bear that this brother
should be equal with him, served only TO
point them out as objects OF reprobation and
avoidance, and hence their multiplied and
reserving efforts to shake it of. In Jefrer-
sons time, however, they had not the I'm.
blushing impudence TO call themselves mhigs.
Necessity had not then made them sufficient
ly familiar with imposture, nor experience
sufficiently expert in its practice. They
and all the world knew, that they were
monarchists and aristocrats at heart, that
their devotion TO British principles had over.
come their dread Of British domination, and
consequently, that, if they were wings at all,
were " British phigs."
II - IL Il. RI