The RIGHT CONSTITUTION of a COMMON
WEALTH EXAMINED.
[Continued from our
IT was by flattery,bribery,artifice,and violence,
that Marius andApuleius prevailed with the peo
ple to continue tlieir power, in opposition to all
that the senate could do to prevent it. Wliat
Mould have been the consequence then if there
had been no senate ? Would not the majority of
the people in the tribes have continued their
power, againit all that could have been done by
the minority ? Would not ftillmore of the pub
lic lands, money, and grain, have been laviihed
npon proper inftruinents among the majority, and
the minority have been compelled to pay the ex
pence ? Our author affects to fay, that the " fe
" l-.ate and people continued the power of Pom*
" pey and Cxfar." But Ctefar himielf knew it
was the people, and notthe senate ; and if the
senate continued Pompey,it was because Ctefar and
the people laid them under the necessity of doing
it in their own defence. Would Csefar have had
lels " command in Gallia," if the people, or their
successive assemblies, had been poifeffed of all
power ? It is molt obvious, that a majority of
the people, in that cafe, would have continued
Caelar as long as he desired, and have given him
a-; much power as he wilhed : so that every Hep
of our author's progress demonllrates his fyftein
tobefalfe. It is idle to fay, that a continuation
of power increases influence, and spreads cor
ruption, unless you point out a way to prevent
such a continuation of power. To give all power
to the people's successive single representative as
semblies, is to make the continuance of power,
•with all its increasing influence and corruption,
certain and inevitable. You may as wifely preach
to the winds, as gravely exhort a triumphant
majority to lay down their power.
It is undoubtedly honorable in any man, who
has acquired a great influence, unbounded confi
dence, and unlimited power, to resign it volunta
rily ; and odious to take advantage of such an
opportunity to destroy a free government : but
it would be madness in a legislator to frame his
policy upon a supposition that such magnanimity
would often appear. It is hisbufinefs to contrive
his plan in such a manner, that such unlimited
influence, confidence, and power, lhall never be
obtained by any man. The laws alone can be
rruftedwith unlimited confidence :—Tliofe laws,
which alone can secure equity between all and
every one * ; which are the bond of that dignity
which we enjoy in the commonwealth ; the foun
dation of liberty, and the foundation of equity ;
the mind, the foul, the counsel, and judgment of
the city ; whose ministers are the magistrates,
whose interpreters the judges,whofe servants are
all men who mean to be fieef: —Those laws,
which are right reason, derived from the Divini
ty,commanding lionefty,and forbidding iniquity;
which are silent magiltrates, where the magis
trates are only speaking laws ; which,as they are
fotmded in eternal morals, are emanations of the
Divine mind:f.
If, the life of liberty, and the only remedy
" against felf-intereft, lies in lucceffion of powers
" and persons," the United States of America
have taken the molt effectual measures to secure
that life and that remedy, in establishing annual
elections of their governors, senators, and repre
sentatives. This will probably be allowed to be
as perfect aneftablifhmentof afucceflion of pow
ers and persons as human laws can make : but in
what manner annual elec'tions of governors and
senators will operate remains to be ascertained.
It should always be remembered, that this is not
the fii-ft experiment that was ever made in the
world of elections to great offices of state : how
they have hitherto operated in every great nation,
and what has been their end, is very well known.
Mankind have univerf.illy difcoveredthat chance
was preferable to a corrupt choice, and have trufl
ed providence rather than themfeives. Firlt ma
giltrates and Senators had better be made here
ditary at once, than that the people should be uni
versally debauched and bribed,go to loggerheads,
and fly to arms regularly every year. Thank
Heaven ! Americans underftancl calling conven
tions ; and if the time should come, as it is Very
poiiible it may, when hereditary descent shall be
come a less evil than annual fraud and violence,
iucli a convention may still prevent the firlt ma
gistrate from becoming absolute as well as here
ditary.— 15ut if this argument of our author is
considered as he intended it, as a proof that a
fucceflion of powers and persons in one aflembiy
is the most perfect commonwealth, it is totally
fallacious.
* Quod <equabile inter omncs atqueunum, omnibus efTc protest.
Cic. p. Cstcin.
t Hoc vinculum eft hujus dignitatis qua fruimtr in republica,
hoc fundamentum libertatis, his tons acquitatis. Mens, et animus,
et confiliirm, et fententia civitatis, pofita eft in legibus. Ut corpo
ra noftraiine mente, ficcivitas fine lege fuis partibus, ut nervis ac
sanguine et menfbris, uti non poteft. Legum minifti i,magiflratus :
legum interpreter }udices : legum denique idcirco omn u fervi
lumus, ut lib-eri effe polTimus. Cic. pro Clucnt. 146.
J Lex nihil aliucl ell nisi retta, ft a numine Deorumtra&a ratio,
imperans hoiiefta, prohibens contraria. Cic. ii. in Anton, 28.
Ilia Divirra mens fumma lex eft, DcLeg. ii. I{. legem
cife loquendem, legem magilfratuin mutum. Dc Leg iii. 2.
Though Ave allow benevolence ancl generous
affections to exilt in the human brealt, yet every
moral rlieorilt will allow the felfifli palfions in the
generality of men to be the strongest. There
are few who love the public better than them
selves, though all may have foine affection for the
public. We are not, indeed, commanded to love
our neighbour better than ourselves. Self-in
tereft, private avidity, ambition, and avarice,
will exilt in every state of society, and under every
form of government. A fuccellion of powers and
persons, by frequent elections,will not lellen tliefe
passions in any cafe, in a governor, senator, or re
presentative ; nor will the apprehension of an ap
proaching election restrain them from indulgence
if they have the power. The only remedy is to
take away the power, by controuling the felfifh
avidity of the governor, by the senate and house ;
of the senate, by the governor and house ; and
of the house, by the governor and senate. Of
all pollible forms of government, a sovereignty
in one aHembly, fuccelTively chosen by the people,
is perhaps thebeft calculated to facilitate the gra
tification of felf-love, and the pursuit of the pri
vate intereftof a few individuals ; a few eminent
conspicuous characters will be continued in their
feats in the sovereign aflembly, from one election
to another, whatever changes are made in the
feats around them ; by superior art, addrels, and
opulence, by more splendid birth, reputations,
and connections, they will be able to intrigue
with the people and their leaders out of doors,
until they worm out most of their oppofcrs, and
introduce their friends : to this end they will
bellow all offices, contracts, privileges in com
merce, and other emoluments, 011 the latter and
their connexions, and throw every vexation and
disappointment in the way of the former, until
they eftablilh such a fyftein of hopes and fears
throughout the state as shall enable them to carry
a majority in every frefh eledtion of the house.
The judges will be appointed by thein and their
party, and of consequence will be obsequious
enouglito their inclinations. The whole judicial
authority, as well as the executive, will be em
ployed, perverted, and prostituted to the purpo
ses of electioneering. No justice will be attain
able, nor will innocence or virtue be fafe, in the
judicial courts, but for the friends of the prevail
ing leaders : legal prosecutions will be instituted
and carried on against oppofers, to their vexation
and ruin ; and as they have the public purse at
command, as well as the executive and judicial
power, the public money will be expended in the
fame way. No favours will be attainable but by
those who will court the ruling demagogues in
the house, by voting for their friends and inftru
menfs ; and pensions and pecuniary rewards and
gratifications, as well as honors and offices of e
very kind, voted to friends and partisans. The
leading minds and most influential characters a
mong the clergy will be courted, and the views
of the youth in this department will be turned
upon those men, and the road to promotion and
employment in the church will be obftrudted a
gainst such as will not worship the general idol.
Capital characters among the physicians will not
be forgotten, and the means of acquiring reputa
tion and practice in the healing art will be to get
the state trumpeters on the fide of youth. The
bar too will be made so subservient, that a youiif*
gentleman will have no chance to obtain a cha
racter or clients, but by falling in with the views
of the judges and their creators. Even the
theatres, and adtors and actrefles, must become
politicians, and convert the public pleasures into
engines of popularity for the governing members
of the house. Theprefs, the great barrier and
bulwark of the rights of mankind, when it is pro
tected in its freedom by law, can now no longer
be free : if the authors, writers, and printers,
will not accept of the hire that will be offered
them, they must submit to the ruin that will be
denounced against them. The prefles, with
much secrecy and concealment, will be made the
vehicles of calumny against the minority, and of
panegyric and empirical applauses of the leaders
of the majority, and 110 remedy can possibly be
obtained. In one word, the whole fyltem of af
fairs, and every conceivable motive of hope.and
fear, will be employed to promote private
interests of a few, and their obsequious majority:
and there is no remedy but in arms. Accordingly
we find in all the Italian republics the minority
always were driven to arms in despair. " The
" attaining of particular ends requires length of
" time ; designs must lie in fermentation to train
" the opportunity to bring matters to perfection."
It is true ; but less time will be neceflkry in this
cafs, in general, than even in a simple heredita
ry monarchy or aristocracy.
(To be continued.)
ALBANY.
SKETCH OF' PROCEEDINGS OF THE LEGI
SLATURE OF NEW-YORK.
MONDAY, JUI. Y IJ.
The bill for the relief of Abraham Lott and
others, was read a third time ; on the question
for paflmg the bill, a division was called for.
For the affirmative— 45.
For the negative—lo.
On motion of Mr. Clarkfon, the hous e CAmeto
the following resolution : t0
Resolved, as the sense of the legislature tl
Fort George in the city of New-York and th*
lands adjoining to the fame, ought to be referred
and fetured for public uses : and tliar a ,
house ought to be erected on part of the <L°£
for the residence and accomodation of the PreO
dent of the United States ; and that the
«vill at their next meeting make the neceffar!
legislative provision in the premises. a. t i"
Governorof thisStateis hereby requeued tocaul*
the street commonly called the Broad-wav to''*
continued through the said foi t, and to direVt tV
materials of the said fort and battery to be col
leifled and l'ecured at the expence of the ihte
This resolution was agreed to without'a single
diflentient.—lt has fincebcen agreed to by the!
Nate —seventeen to three.
They also agreed to the amendments made
the bill tor the relief of Abraham Lott.
The house resolved itfelf into a committee on
the bill for appointing commiflioners to declare
the independence of Vermont.
Mr. Barker in the chair.
The bill was read in the words following-
An ad: appointing cominiffloners with power to
declare the consent of the legislature of the state
of New-York, that a certain territory within the
jurifditftion thereof, ftiould be formed or erected
into a new State.
Be it enatfted, &c. That lhall be
and hereby are appointed commiflioners, with full
power to them, or any of them in their dis
cretion, as they lhall judge the peace and interest
of the United States in general, and this state in
particular to require the fame, and on such terms
and conditions, and in such manner and form as
they lhall judge neceflary and proper, to declare
the consent ot the legislature of this State, that
such district or territory within the jurifdidtion
and in the porth-eaftern and northern part there
of, as the said commissioners lhall judge most con
venient. shall be formed and erected into anew
state. And every atft of any of the coinmif
fioners hereby appointed in the execution ol the
power aforefaid, lhall be as effectual to every pur
pose as if the fame had been an immediate aCtof
the legislature of this state.
A motion was then made by Mr. J. Smith toadd
the following proviso . —" Provided always and it
is hereby declared, that nothing in this ast con
tained is intended or lhall be construed to give
any person claiming lands in such diftridt so to be
erecftcd into an independent state, any right to
any compensation whatsoever from this state."
This motion was carried 34 to 24.
Tuesday, jur.Y 14.
The committee appointed to prepare the draught
of an address to the President of the United States,
made a report. The address reported by them
having been read and considered by paragraphs,
was unanimously agreed to.
The house resolved itfelf into a committee on
the Vermont bill;
Mr. Barker in the chair.
The committee proceeded to fill up the blanks;
it was resolved that there Ihould be five commif
lioners, three to be named by the aflembly and
two by the senate. The members were then call
ed on to nominate three commiflioners ; Judge
Yates had 54 votes—Mr. King 43 —Mr. Speaker 29,
Judge Hobart and the attorney general each 17.
The names of Robert Yates, Rufus King, and
Gulian Verplanck were then inserted.
IN SENATE, JtJI.Y 15-
On the question to concur in the appointment
of Genera] Schyier one of the senators to re
present this State inCongrefs, it was carriedin the
affirmative—i 3to 6.
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY, JULY 16.
A meflage was received from the senate, informingthat they had
pafTcd the Vermont bill, and added the names of four gentlemen
as commiflioners in addition to those nominated by the aflertbly;
the names are Robert R. Livingfton, Richard Varick, Simeon
Dewitt, John Lanfing, jun.
This amendment having been taken into conf;deration, wasa
greed to.
The bill was then sent to the council of revision.
A resolution was then moved for to appoint Rufus King one
of the senators to represent this State in Congrcfs.
The question on Mr. King was then put aud carried unnn'.moufly.
A meflage was received from the council of revision that they
had agreed to the Vermont bill.
A resolution was then moved for, that the next meeting of the
legislature should be at the city of New-York; a motion wa*
made for Poughkeepfie ; on the question being put on Poughkeep
fie, it was negatived, 45 to 14. —New-York was then carried, 32
t°27.
Same day in the senate, on the question for concurring in the re
solution of the aflcmbly, appointing Rufus King a senator, it
was agreed to—ll to 8. .
The question on the resolution for holding the next feflion?
New-York was then taken into confidcrtion and agreed to t?Jo .
The two houses then adjourned to meet at the cityofNew-Yor'
on the second Monday in January next.
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