fearing Crows and ftg at old Women, is fa proper an one, that nobody envies his Godfhip. Inftances of this Nature are frequent in every Walk of Life; but they ftrike us in the strongest Manner, and are attended with the worft Confequences, when the Log, thus cut out by fome partial Hand, is raised to Power over others, and vefted with Dignity, which it wears with equal Awkardness and Infolence. How ridiculous, how dangerous is fuch an Elevation? General Contempt would be the firft and leaft Misfortune, that would attend fuch an Administration. I am, SIR, Your Humble Servant, C. JOHN ENGLISH. T From my own Chambers. HE News-Papers continue to give us pompous Accounts of the Manner, in which feveral great Cities and Corporations have received thofe Gentlemen, who oppofed the Excife-Bill, either in Compliance with their Requests, or from the natural Result of their own Judgments; and if We may give Credit to private Advices, another Set of Gentlemen are very much di ftrefs'd how to behave in the prefent Conjuncture, or what to fay in Juftification of their late Conduct. I am inform'd that many of Them, at firit, congratulated their Neighbours on the Defeat of the Scheme, and gave Themfelves an Air of being againft it; but the Lifts, that are now fpread through moft Parts of the Kingdom, have undeceived the People, as to that Point, and reduced thefe Gentlemen to feveral little Shifts, which I fhall but just touch upon at prefent. Some Some of them, it feems, are fo modeft as to confine Themselves at home, or skulk amongst their Friends and Acquaintance, who are fo good as to take Compaffion upon their Cafe, and fcreen Them from those Reproaches, which They might happen to meet with abroad at this Juncture. In the mean time, their Creatures are employ'd to put the belt Glofs They can on a bad Cause, and corrupt, where They cannot perfuade. There are others, of a more fanguine Complexion, who are refolved to put a bold Face on the Matter, and perfift in it very fturdily that They oppofed the Project, in fome Shape or other, however They may be mi reprefented by their Enemies. For this Purpofe, They have procured falfe Lifts to be difperfed in their refpective Neighbourhoods, calculated to impofe upon Thofe, whofe Confidence They have already abused. But fuch poor Artifices will foon be difcover'd, and expose the Authors of Them to the Ridicule, as well as the Refentment, of their Countrymen. Some again are so ingenuous as to acknowledge that They were for the Scheme; but alledge, in their Defence, that They did it with a View of preventing Frauds, and relieving the Nation from the Burthen of a Land-Tax. As to Frauds, it will be proper to defer the Confideration of that Point till the REPORT, which hath been fo long expected, is laid before the Publick; and if any Body can be ftill fo weak as to be perfuaded that an Excife on Tobacco would have eafed us from the Land-Tax, the Improbability and Ridiculoufnefs of that ftale Pretence may be fhewn from the Accounts of the Produce of thofe Duties, as they were laid before the Houfe. But amongst all the Arguments of thefe Gentlemen, in their own Behalf, I must confefs there is one, with which I am highly pleased, and cannot forbear thinking very ingenious. It is true, fay thefe Gentlemen, that we voted for the Excife; but We did it only io gain Credit with the Projector, and by thofe Means prevail d upon Him to drop it. I am told that this Plea hath been already made Ufe of in feveral Boroughs, and will no doubt be propagated through the whole Kingdom. Nay, I fhall not be furprized to hear that the Projector hath iffued out Certificates of this Kind to every one of his Creatures, affuring their Corporati ons that it was folely at their Request, (though many of Them depended on Him for their Bread) that He laid afide fuch a glorious Project, for improving the Power and Revenues of the Crown, and fecuring a perpetual Dictatorship to Himself. But I think the best Way for thefe Gentlemen would be to take the Advice of one of their late Advocates in the * Courant, who propofed, with a great deal of Reafon, that every Gentleman, who voted for the Excife, fhould be catechifed upon a little Stool by the Minister of the Parif, to which He belongs, and be obliged to explain the Grounds and Motives of his Conduct, in the Face of a full Congregation. * See the Courant of the 19th of June laft. D. N° 368. SATURDAY, June 21, 1733. H AUDI ALTERAM PARTEM. AVING given my Readers the poli Them with a Counter-Part to it. Indeed, I find my felf anticipated in this Act of Justice and Impartiality by by the learned Madam Osborne, who hath been pleased to exhibit the Articles of my political Faith, with her ufual Candour and Strictness of Reasoning; but as I can truly declare, upon a thorough Examination of my own Breaft, that he hath not hit exactly upon my Principles of Government; the Publick may, perhaps, have the Curiofity to fee her Miftakes rectified, and a Point of fuch Importance fet in a true Light. To confels the Truth, the following Articles were drawn up long before Mrs. Osborne's Paper was publifh'd; and I was not a little mortify'd, laft Saturday Morning, to find myself forestall'd in this Defign; being fully fenfi ble, from my own Experience and the frequent Remonftrances of my Readers, that the Craftsman is never fo ill received as when it appears in the Form of Replies to the common Trafh of minifterial Scribblers. But as this Paper will fave me the Trouble of writing another, I hope my Readers will be fo good as to accept of it, at this idle Seafon of the Year. They will perceive that I have vamp'd it a little in the Preface and Application, out of Regard to the good old Dame, my Antagonist; which I must likewife defire Them to excufe for once, under a folemn Promise that I will not make a common Practice of it. I fhall there fore proceed to the principal Articles of my civil Faith, which are as follows; viz., 1. That Government was originally ordain'd for the Good of the Governed; and that the Supreme Magiftrate, by whatever Name He may be call'd, is properly fpeaking the Servant of the People, when confider'd in their collective Capacity, though fuperior to every Individual, by virtue of that Authority, which is repofed in Him by the whole Body, for their common Protection. 2. That all arbitrary Governments are tyranical Ufurpations on the natural Rights of Mankind; and, if We trace their Original, We fhall find them establish'd in Force, or Fraud. 3. That 3. That although our Government is commonly call'd a Monarchy, becaufe We have a King at the Head of it, yet it partakes very much of democratical Principles, and is therefore more properly ftyled a limited, mixt Monarchy; or, if I may so speak, a Sort of regal Commonwealth. 4. That as the Effence of our Conftitution confifts in keeping a proper Ballance between the feveral Branches of the Legiflature, and preferving them free from any corrupt Dependence, the utmoft Care ought to be taken to fecure the Freedom of Elections without Doors, and the Virtue of our Reprefentatives within. 5. That Liberty is the Birthright of Englishmen and Britons, which hath been confirm'd to Them on many Occafions, in the most folemn Manner; and if any future Prince fhould attempt to deprive Them of it, as many former ones have done, They have an undoubted Right to refift Him by Arms, notwithstanding their Oaths of Allegiance, which are to be look'd upon only as conditional, whilft the Prince obferves his own Oath, and fulfils the Ends of his Inftitution. 6. That the late glorious Revolution, and the present Eftablishment in the Proteftant Line, were founded on these Principles, and cannot be juftified on any other. 7. That the prefent royal Family being feated on the Throne, by the Confent of the People in Parliament, (the first and beft Title to Government in the World) it is both our Intereft and Duty to support Them in it, as long as They comply with the Defign of their Eftablifbment, and obferve those Limitations, with which the Succeffion is circumfcribed by Law. 8. That Prerogative is a Word of no determinate Meaning; and was firft invented in arbitrary Reigns, to fuperfede the Law, and impofe upon the People. But whatever exorbitant Claims may have been formerly made by the Crown, under this Pretence, no Prince, fince the Revolution, hath a Right to any Prerogative, |