with the title of king, or any other appellation of diftinction, acts its own choice, be it wife or foolish, as a free agent for itfelf. The perfon fo fet up is not hereditary, but selected and appointed; and the generation who sets him up, does not live under a hereditary government, but under a government of its own choice and establishment. Were the generation who sets him up, and the perfon fo fet up, to live for ever, it never could become hereditary fuc. ceffion; and, of confequence, hereditary fucceffion can only follow on the death of the first parties.

1

As, therefore, hereditary fucceffion is out of the queftion, with respect to the first generation, we have now to confider the character in which that generation acts, with refpect to the commencing generation, and to all fucceeding ones. It affumes a character to which it has neither right nor title. It changes itself from a legiflator to a teftator, and affects to make its will, which is to have operation after the demife of the makers, to bequeath the government; and it not only attempts to bequeath, but to establish on the fucceeding generations, a new and different form of government to that under which itself lived. Itself, as is already obferved, lived not under a hereditary government, but under a government of its own choice and establishment; and it now attempts, by virtue of a will and teftament-which it has no authority to make to take from the commencing generation,

and all future ones, the rights and free agency by which itself acted.

But exclufively of the right which any generation has to act collectively as a teftator, the objects to which it applies itself, in this case, are not within the compass of any law, or of any will or teftament. The rights of men, in society, are nei❤ ther devifeable nor transferrable, nor annihilable, but are defcendable only; and it is not in the power of any generation to interrupt finally and cut off the defcent. If the prefent generation, or any other are difpofed to be flaves, it does not leffen the right of the fucceeding generation to be free.Wrongs cannot have a legal descent.

In whatever light hereditary fucceffion, as growing out of the will and teftament of fome former generation, presents itself-it is an abfurdity. A cannot make a will to take from B the property of B, and give it to C. Yet this is the manner in which, what is called, hereditary fucceffion, by law, operates.

A certain former generation made a will, to take away the rights of the commencing generation, and all future ones, and convey their rights to a third perfon, who afterwards comes forward and tells them that they have rights-that their rights are already bequeathed to him, and that he will govern in contempt of them. From such principles, and fuch ignorance, good Lord deliver the world!

But

But after all, what is this metaphor, called a crown -or rather-what is monarchy ? Is it a thing, or is it a name, or is it a fraud? Is it a contrivance of human wisdom, or of human craft, to obtain money from a nation under fpecious pretences? Is it a thing necessary to a nation? If it is, in what does that neceffity confift? What fervices does it perform? What is its bufinefs, and what are its merits? Doth the virtue confift in the metaphor, or in the man? Doth the goldfmith that makes the crown make the virtue alfo? Doth it operate like Fortunatus's wifhing-cap, or Harlequin's wooden fword? Doth it make either a man or a conjurer? In fine, what is it? It is an ideal fomething that is going out of fashion-is falling into ridicule―and, is rejected in fome countries both as unneceffary and expenfive.

If there exifted a man fo tranfcendently wife above all others, that his wifdom was neceffary to inftruct a nation, fome reafon might be offered for. monarchy; but when we caft our eyes about a country, and obferve how every part understands its own affairs; and when we look around the world and fee, that of all men in it the race of kings is the most infignificant in capacity, our reason cannot fail to ask us, what are those men kept for?

If monarchy is a useless thing, why is it kept up any where? and, if a neceffary thing, how can it be dispensed with? It is eafy to conceive that a

band

band of interested men, fuch as place-men-lords of the bed-chamber-lords of the kitchen-and lords of the neceffary-houfe-and the Lord knows. what befides-can find as many reasons for monarchy as their falaries-paid at the expence of the: country-amount to; but if I afk the farmer, the. manufacturer, the merchant, the tradefman, and down through all the occupations of life to the common labourer, what service monarchy is of to him? he can give me no answer. If I afk him what monarchy is ? he believes it is fomething like a finecure.

CHAP IV.

OF GOVERNMENT.

REASON and Ignorance, the oppofites of each other, influence the great bulk of mankind. If either of these can be rendered fufficiently exten five in a country, the machinery of government goes easily on. Reason obeys itself, and ignorance fubmits to whatever is dictated to it.

The two modes of government that prevail in the world are

Firft-Government by Election and Reprefen

tation.

Seconly-Government by Hereditary Succeffion. "The former is generally known by the name of Republic

Republic the latter, by that of Monarchy and Aristocracy. Those two diftin&t and oppofite terms erect themselves on the two distinct and oppofite bales of reafon and ignorance.

As the exercise of government requires talents and abilities--and, as talents and abilities cannot have hereditary defcent, it is evident that hereditary fucceffion requires a belief from man to which his reafon, cannot fubfcribe, and which can only be established upon his ignorance and, the more ignorant any country is, the better it is fitted for this fpecies of government. On the contrary, government in a well established republic, requires no belief from man beyond what his reason can give. He fees the rationale of the whole system, its origin, and its operation-and, as it is beft fupported when beft understood, the human faculties act with boldnefs, and acquire, under this form of government, a gigantic manlinefs.

As, therefore, each of those forms act on a dif ferent base, the one moving freely by the aid of reafon, the other by ignorance, we have next to confider what it is that gives motion to that fpecies of government, which is called mixed government; or, as it is fometimes ludicrously tiled, a government of this, that, and t’other.

The moving power in this fpecies of government is, of neceffity, corruption. However imperfect election and reprefentation may be in mixed governments,