The RIGHT CONSTITUTION of a COMMON WEALTH EXAMINED. ContinuedJrom our laji. The Romans never granted peace to tlieir ene mies until tney had taken some of their territo ry from them. Part of f'uch conquests were fold to defray the expence of the war : another por tion was distributed among the poor plebeians. Some cantons were fanned out for the public : rapacious patricians, solely intent upon enrich ing themselves, took poileHion of some ; and tliefe lands, unjultly usurped by the rich, Caflius was for having diitributed anew in favor of the ple beians. The ariftocratical pride, avarice, and ambiti on were all incensed, and the senators greatly alarmed. The people discovered symptoms that they begun to think rhemfelves of the lame species with their rulers: and one patrician of consular dignity dared to encourage them in fucli presump tuous and aspiring thoughts. Some device or other mull be invented to dupe the people, and ruin their leader : Virginiis the consul soon hit upon an expedient. Rabuleius the tribune alked him in aflembly,what he thought of this law ? He answered, he would willingly confentthat the lands ihould be diitributed among the Roman people, provided the Latines had no Jhare ; divide etimpera. This dillin<ftion with out the lealt appearance of equity, was addrefled limply to the popular hatred between the Ro mans and Latines, and the bait was greedily fvval lowed. The people were highly pieafed with the consul, and began to despise CaHius, and to fufpedt him of ambition to be king. He conti nued his friendly intentions towardsthe people, and proposed in senate to reimburl'e, as it was but juft„out of the public treasury, the money which the poorer citizens had paid for the corn of which Gelo, king of Syracuse, had made the common wealth a present during the scarcity. But even this was now represented by the senate, and fuf pe&ed by the people, to be only soliciting popu lar favour , and although the people felt every hour the necelfity of a king to protetft them a gainst the tyranny of the senate, yet they had been gulled by patrician artifice into an oath a gainlt kings, and although they felt the want of liich a magistrate, they had not sense enough to fee it. The Agrarian laws was opposed in senate by Appius and Sempronius, and evaded by the appointment of ten commiflioners to survey the lands. The next yearCaffius was cited before the peo ple, and accused by the quaestors of having taken lecret measures for opening a way to thefover eignty ; of having provided arms, and received money from the Latines and Hernici; and of hav ing made a very great party among the most ro bult of their youth, who were continually seen in his train. The people heard the quseftors, but gave no attention to Caflius's answer and defence. No consideration for his children, his relations, and friends, who appeared in great numbers to sup port him ; 110 remembrance of his great ac tions, by which he had raised himfelf to the firft digaities; nor three consulships and two triumphs, which had rendered him very illultrious, could delay his condemnation ; so unpardonable acrime with the Romans was the slightest suspicion of as piring at regal pawer ! so ignorant, so unjult, so ungrateful, and so ltupid were that very body of plebeians, who were continually fuffering the cruel tyranny of patricians, and continually soli citing protectors against it ! Without regarding any moderation or proportion, the blind tools of the hatred and vengence of their enemies, they condemned Caffius to die, and the quxftors in stantly carried him to the Tarpeian rock, which fronted the forum, and threw him down, in the p: e r enct of the whole people. His lioufe was demolished, and his eltate fold, to purchase afta tueto Ceres ; and the fatftion of the great grew more powerful and liaughty,androfe in tlieircon tempt for the plebeians, who loft courage in pro portion, and soon reproached themselves with injustice, as well as imprudence in the condemna tion of the zealous defender of their interefls. They found themselves cheated in all things. The consuls neither executed the senate's decree for distributing the lands, nor were the ten commiflioners elected. They complained, with great truth, that the senate did not act with sincerity ; and accused the tribunes of the last year of betraying their interefrs. The tribunes of this year warmly demanded the execution of the decree : to eludewhicha newwarwas invent ed. The patricians pref'erved their ariftocrati cal tyranny for many centuries, by keeping up continually some quarrel with foreigners, and by frequently creating dictators. The patricians, in the afl'emblies by centuries, had an immense ad vantage over the plebeians. The consuls were here chof'en by the patricians, as Caflius and Man lius were murdered bv aflemblies in centuries. In 2?o Cxfo Fabius, one of Caflius's accusers was chosen consul, though very unpopular. In 271 the other of Caflius's accusers was chosen consul. In tliefe contests the steadiness of the patricians is as remarkable as the inconstancy ot the ple beians ; the l'agacity of the former as obvious as die stupidity of the latter ; and the cruelty of the former as conspicuous as the ingratitude of the latter. Prejudice, pallion, and luperftition, ap pear to have altogether governed the plebeians, without the least appearance of their being ra tional creatures, or moral agents ; fucliwas their total ignorance of arts and letteis, all the little advantages of education which then existed be ing monopolized by the patricians. The arii tocracy appears in precisely the fame character, in all these anecdotes, as we before saw it in Ve nice, Poland, Bern and elfewere. The fame indilpenfable necellity appears in all of them, in order to preserve even the appearance of equity and liberty, to give the patricians a master in the firft executive magistrate, and another master in a house of commons :—I fay, master ; for each of the three branches must be, in its turn, both mas ter and servant, governing and being governed by turns. To understand how the people were duped upon these occasions, and particularly how Man lius was condemned to death, we mull recoiled: that the tribunes cited him before the people, not in their curis, but centuries. The centuries were formed on an artful idea, to make power accompany wealth. The people were divided into clafies, according to the proportion of their fortunes : each clal's was divided into centuries ; but the number of centuries in the different clafies was so unequal, that thole of the firft, or richest class, made a majority of the whole, and when the centuries ofthis class were unanimous they decid ed the question. By this institution the rich were matters of the legislature. State of the C/aJfes and Centuries. Class. Roman Sterling. No of Valuation. £. s. Centuries. 1 — ico,ooo — 322 18 — 98 2 — 75,000 — 242 3 — 21 3 — jo,ooo — 161 9 — 21 4 — 25,000 — 80 14 — 21 5 — 11,000 — 35 io — 31 6——— — — 1 Total 193 from 98 sub. Majority of the firft class 3 So that by citing Manlius before the people by centuries, the senate were sure of a vote for his deftrudtion, and the people "had not sense to fee it, or spirit to alter it. Nedham thus far appears to reason fairly and conclusively, when he adduces the examples of Melius and Manlius, and he might have added Calfius, to prove that the people are ever in dan ger of losing their liberty, and indeed he might have advanced that they never have any liberty, while they are governed by one senate. But these examples do v not prove what he alludes them to prove, viz. that the people, in their supreme as semblies, successively cliofen, are the belt keepers of their liberty ; becaufefuch anaflembly is f'ub jeci to every danger of a Handing hereditary se nate ; and more, the firft vote divides it into two parties, and the majority is omnipotent, and the minority defencelels. He.should have adduced thele examples to prove the necellity of separat ing the executive, legislative, and judicial, and of dividing the legislature into three branches, making the executive one of them, and inde pendent of the other jwo. This is the only fci entific government; the only plan which takes in to conficleration all the principles in nature, and provides for all cases that occur. He is equally right, and equally wrong, in the application of his other examples. " The people," fays he, " were sometimes in danger of a furprffe by a " grandee cabinet or junto, as that upstart ty " rannyof the decemviri, where ten men made " a fhift to enslave the Senate as well as the peo " pie." It is no wonder that Caflius, Melius, and Manlius, were facrificed to the paflions of the senate, for until the year of Rome 300, the Romans had no certain laws ; so that the consuls and senators ,ad:ing as judges, were absolute abiters ofthefate of the citizens. Terentillus, a tribune had propofecl an ordinance that laws should be instituted, as rules of right, both in public and private aftairs. The senate had eluded and poit poned, by various artifices, the law of Terentillus until this year, 300, when the tribunes solicited the execution ofit with great spirit ; and the senate, weary of contention, or apprelienfive of o-reater danger,atlenghtli decreed, << That ambafladors should be sent to Athens, and to the Greek cities 111 Italy, to colled; fucli laws as they should find rnoft conformable to the constitution of the Ro man commonwealth; and that at their return the consuls should deliberate with the senate upon the choice of legislators, of the power to be con fided to them, and the time they were to continue 111 office." Sp. Pofthumius, Servius Sulpicius, and A. Manlius, three persons of consular dig nity, were appointed deputies. Three Rallies were prepared by the public, of a magnificence that might do honor to the Roman people. To be continued. SKETCH OF IHE POLJIILAL S'lA'lE ut AMEIiJt i THE common observation, that many bands make light work, but illy applies to the affairs of" government ; and the advantages to be deriv ;d from Amplifying the great concerns of a nation by placing them in separate departments, and at the head of each, one tnan, competent to the du ties of his station, not only obtrude thimfelv'es 011 the mind by a general reflection on the sub jec r t, but are supported by the example and prac tice of all other nations.—l Mill quote two balan ces from the two firlt in Europe—France and England. A well informed writer upontlie com mercial interest of England, fays, " that fre quent complaints were for a long while made as to the bulk and form of the Britilh customs while their apparent confufed Hate feeined to basle all attempts for reform, and that it was to the liberality, not less than the perseverance of the Houie of Peers, that the public were at lait indebted, in 1696, for the cltabliihment of the Infpedtor General of the imports and exports and for the cuftom-lioufe Ledger, which contains the particulars and value of both ; and there fore formed the molt ufeful record in regard to trade, that any country poflefles." And the great financier of France, Mr. Neckar, obfeives 011 the perplexed slate in which he found the fifcal legislation of thatcountry, as follow : " This llrange arrangement of our customs,' fays lie, " has absolutely supported itfelf by its own de fers, the multiplicity of particular cases, the accumulation of rules, the ronfufion of piinci ples, in short all that antique contexture wove in. to so many knots has continually presented the idea of an iminen fe enterprize where attempts have been made to proceed to a reform 'jy stu dying details :—But when I took a contraryine tliod, and by makingjjiyfelf master of the whole collectively by reflection ; and by taking pains to discern the principal decisions, and the ele ments as well as theinterefts of each, the whole affair became fimplyfied." But I query whether a subjeCt like this committed to several hands, poflelling various opinions and drawing in differ ent directions, would not have thereby become still more entangled and confufed ?—.Aine -1 • nca has it in her power to correct many er rors, which for want of example before them, other nations have been led into. It is for her, by making proper arrangements in the early part of the adminiltration of the national govern ment, to avoid much future confufion.—Let her seek " mult a in parvo," rather than " farvum /'« multis." Among those arrangements which claim atten tion may be well placed the Poft-Officcj which may be made an important vehicle of informa tion through this extensive country ; and produce a valuable income to the public—however it may now answer the former purpose, I think but lit tle benefit arises in the latter view. In England so early as 1 711 to 1714 the average nett produce of the Poll-Office, was about £.90, and though I will not pretend to calculate the probable a mount which ours may be made to nett—there remans no doubt, that the circulation resulting from the extention of trade, the progress of a griculture and manufactures,and the general con cerns of the nation, will give an opportunity of deriving aconfiderable revenue from thisfoiyce : Towards which, the postage may be raised, and all letters not official or on special public service made fubjeCi to charge : And as every nieafure which will tend to relieve the internal trade of these States from embarrafment, to afliniilatethe ideas, manners and customs of the inhabitants, and render more easy their general intercourse with each other, will be for national advantage— the affixing of one equal value to our currency, and a general standard for weight s and measures through the union, is a subjeCt which government inuft elteem of importance in producing this va luable consequence. AMERICANUS. This Day is publijhsd, (Price 2/6) And to be fold by Berry & Rocers, Hanover-Square, by Robert Hodge, Corner of King and Queen-Street, and by the Editor hereof; TWENTY- SIX LETTERS, trroN INTERESTING SUBJECTS, respecting the REVOLUTION of AMERICA. II fit ten in Holland, in the Year Af,i)CC,Z.AAA. By his Excellency JOHN ADAMS, WHILE HE WAS SOLE MINISTER PLENITOT ENTI AR Y FROM THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, FOR NEGOCIATING A PEACE, AND A TREATY OF COMMERCE, WITH GREAT-BRITAIN. Never before publijhed. (PT SUBSCRIPTIONS for the " COURIER DE BOSTON '< ftrtu weekly paper, publifked at Bojlon in the Trench Language, arc re ceived at No. 9, Maiden Lane. [ Theutility of apaperinthis almo universal language need not be hinted to those, who wilh to ac quire the French tongue.] f£f* Ccmpletefettsfrom the beginning of the GAZETTE Ot UNITED STAIES, ma\ at any time be obtained bx those toho chujt " subscribe for that publication, at the Editors Office, No. 9, Maidcn-Lam. Publifhcd by JOHN FENNO, No. 9, Maide*- Lan r., near the Ofwego-Market, New-York. — fr.it- 1
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers