than in the conduct of the late American Continental Congress, who, in most of their proceedings, have exceeded the powers delegated to them, and in still more have counteracted the design of their appointment. That there are some grievances, or rather, that the time is come explicitly to define and settle the rights of the Americans, and the bounds of Parliamentary authority, will be denied by none who wish well to Great Britain and her Colonies. But to demand too much of a Nation that is wealthy, powerful, and brave, that we may obtain enough, discovers a childish petulance and frowardness, tending much more to irritate and inflame, than to soften and appease. She will, like a kind parent, correct our insolence, and reduce us to due subjection, and then allow us every indulgence that we ought reasonably to desire. As it is not her interest, so we can never suppose it her inclination, to injure or oppress us; but we may be equally satisfied that she will never see her just and constitutional authority abused and trampled on.

We cannot wonder, then, that the conduct of the Congress is so displeasing and provoking to Great Britain, when, among the articles of complaint, they have inserted matters which concerned them no more than the mandates of the Great Mogul, or the edicts of the King of France; matters which, if true, even in their very extensive construction, afford no real ground of uneasiness; matters which discover more a wanton exercise of their usurped authority, than a wish or inclination to restore harmony and peace between Great Britain and her Colonies. Indeed, when we review their proceedings, the manifest intention, tendency, and complexion of them force us to make a construction over which charity and candour would wish to throw a veil, if it was not too plain to mistake it, being written in the most legible characters. They have precluded every hope of accommodation, by the exorbitancy of their demands, and the illegality of the measures they have adopted. They have sacrificed their honour, honesty, and reputation, to a lawless, ambitious thirst of independence, and have purchased the worthless, transitory shouts and eclat of the restless and seditious multitude, at the expense of that lasting and satisfactory esteem and applause of the virtuous and the good, which alone ought to have been the object of their wishes, and the end of all their pursuits. The propriety of these observations will be apparent, in the consideration of the fifteenth and last general article of grievance, which, like the famed Cerberus of old, abounds with various sources of complaint.

“In the last session of Parliament an Act was passed for blocking up the Harbour of Boston; another empowering the Governour of the Massachusetts-Bay to send persons indicted for murder in that. Province, to another Colony, or even to Great Britain, for trial, where by such offenders may escape legal punishment; a third for altering the chartered Constitution of Government in that Province; and a fourth for extending the limits of Quebeck, abolishing the English, and restoring the French Laws, where by great numbers of British freemen are subject to the latter, and establishing an absolute Government, and the Roman Catholick Religion throughout those vast regions that border on the westerly and northerly boundaries of the free Protestant English settlements; and a fifth for the better providing suitable quarters for Officers and Soldiers in His Majesty’s service in North America.” The Boston Port Act, when it first arrived, filled all parties with astonishment and surprise; the peculiarity of the mode of punishment; the severity with which it was attended; the sufferings inflicted thereby on many innocent individuals, at first’ raised a suspicion of the justice, equity, and policy of the British Nation; but on a nearer view, and more mature consideration of the spirit and design of the Act, we plainly discovered that, in the midst of judgment they had remembered mercy. The authority of Parliament had been most iniquitously and flagrantly abused, insulted, and opposed, by the destruction of a large quantity of Tea, the private property of the East-India Company, by a number of the inhabitants of the Town of Boston and the adjacent Towns, in the most riotous and daring manner. This Tea was sent here in consequence of a particular Act of Parliament, empowering the East-India Company to do it, merely for the regulation of Trade; as the Dutch Tea was smuggled in by the way of the Northern Colonies, in such quantities, and so cheap, as totally destroyed the sale of the English Tea, which, by being sold at publick auction in London to the merchant there, and by him with his advance upon it, to the merchant here; by the latter with his advance, to the retailer, and by him with his profits upon it, to the consumer, was raised to such a price as gave the Dutch Company the sole advantage of that article of commerce, as it came from them without any of these impositions, or the payment of any duty upon it.

We all profess to be subject to the Acts for the regulation of Trade; for this purpose solely was this Act made; by it no new duty was imposed, but some heavy restrictions taken off, so that the destruction of the Tea could be considered as arising only from the most wanton and unreasonable desire of throwing off all subjection to the Parent State, and setting up for independence. Proportionate, therefore, to the criminality and atrocious nature of the offence, might we reasonably suppose the punishment would be. Not only the private property of the East-India Company had been destroyed, but the honour and authority of the Nation had been injured and violated. The former was to be compensated, and the latter to be satisfied arid repaired. The inhabitants of Boston and the other towns concerned, could not be more generally and immediately affected by any other way whatever. It will here be said it is hard for the innocent to suffer with the guilty; but the answer is obvious: the offenders were disguised and unknown; no one appeared at the time to oppose it; all might, therefore, be considered as involved in the guilt in some measure. The friends of Government, by their silence and inactivity in the first of these troubles, when they might have prevented the mischiefs that have since ensued, and the daring outrage which was now the cause of their punishment, had they properly exerted themselves, have therefore little reason to” complain of the disadvantages they suffer, or the loss they sustain on this account. However, admitting they were quite innocent, and had done their duty on this occasion, it should be remembered, that as in general calamities of lightning, earthquakes, famine, war, and pestilence, inflicted by Heaven on mankind, there is no respect to persons, the wicked and the good are equally exposed and actually affected; so in States and Kingdoms in this world, when general punishments of a people are found necessary, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to discriminate and screen the innocent from the misfortunes which the guilty suffer. But in this instance, as was hinted above, with such wisdom, with so much lenity was the Port Act constructed, that the severity of its operation depended entirely upon the reasonable compliance or obstinacy of those who were to suffer by it. It was an indispensable act of common justice to pay for the Tea that had been destroyed, or it was equally just to punish those who were concerned in doing it. It has been said, that had the Act been conditional, to take place only if the terms were not complied with, there would have been some reason in it; no one would have complained; but not to be able to prevent the execution of it, had they been disposed to submit to the requisitions, was a degree of rigour without an example. Let us attend to the circumstances. It was made to take place the first of June; fourteen days after that were allowed for any vessels to fit out and sail; upon payment for the Tea being made, and some other trifling matters complied with, and a certificate procured from the Governour of the fulfilment of the terms of the Act, power was given to His Majesty in privy Council to suspend its execution. The Act arrived near the beginning of May, if I recollect right. Now, as the Spring ships are generally all arrived before the time that the Act was to take place, it would have little effect for some time after that upon foreign importation. If the Tea had been immediately paid for, and the requisite certificate procured, which might easily have been done, and transmitted home, the operation of the Act might have ceased at once; as it seems to have been particularly provided for this purpose, that the King in Council might suspend it, that so no delay might be occasioned by calling the Parliament together to repeal it. Orders for Fall goods might have been sent at the same time, and the Fall ships might have returned at their usual time, into an open and free Port; so that by a prudent conduct, the trade with Great Britain might not have been interrupted at all; other

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