THE RIGHT CONSTITUTION OF A COMMON WEALTH
EXAMINED.
(continuation.)
A SEVENTH reason, why a people qualified with a due and
orderly fucceflion of their supreme aflemblies, are the bell keep
ers of their own liberties is, " bccaufe, as in other forms, those
4C persons only have access to government who are apt to serve
" the lull ana will of the prince, or else are parties or
*' compliers with some popular faction ; so in this form ol
" government by the people, the door of dignity (lands open
" to all, without exception, that ascend thither by Heps of
44 worth and virtue : the consideration whereof hath this noble
" efFe£l in free Hates, that it edges men's spirits with an a£live em
" ulation, and raifeth them to a lofty pitch of design and attion."
This is a mass of popular aflertions, either hazarded at random,
x or, if aimed at a point, very little guarded by the love of
truth. It is no more true, that in other forms U.ofe per
sons onlyhave access to government who are apt to serve the lust
and will of a princc or a fa&ion, than it is that, in our author's
lorm, those only would obtain elettions who will serve the lulls
and wills of the mod idle, vicious, and abandoned of the peo
ple, at the expence of the labour, wealth, and reputation of the
moll indufti ious, virtuous, and pious. The door of dignity, in
such governments, is so far from Handing open to all of worth
and virtue, that, if the executive and judicial powers are manag
ed in it, virtue and worth will soon be excluded. In absolute
monarchy the road to preferment may lie open to all. In an ari
llocracy, the way of promotion may be open to all, and all offices
in the executive department, as in the army, navy, courts ot jul
tice, foreign embaflies, revenues, &c. may be filled from any class
of the people. In a mixed government, cqnfilling of three branch
es, all offices ever will be open, for when the popular branch is
dellined expressly to defend the rights of the people, it is not prob
able they will ever consent to a law which lnall exclude any class
of their conllituents. In this kind of government, indeed, the
chance for merit to prevail is greater than in any other. The ex
ecutive having the appointment to all offices, and the ministers of
that executive being responsible for every exercise of their power,
they are more cautious; they are refponf>ble to their mailer for
the recommendations they give, and to the nation and its repre
sentatives for the appointments that are made : Whereas a lingle
representative alTembly is accountable to nobody. If it is admit
cd that each member is accountable to his conllituents for the vote
he gives, what is the penalty? No other than not to vote for
him at 'the next ele&ion. And what punilhment is that ? His
conllituents neither know nor care any thing about offi es or offi
cers but such as lie within the limits of their parish; and let him
vote right or wrong about all others, he has equally their thanks
and future votes. What can the people of the cities, counties,
boroughs, and corporations in England know of the chara£Lrs of
all the generals, admirals, ambafladors, judges, and bishops,
"whom they never saw, nor perhaps heard of?
But was there never a Sully, Colbert, Malelherbes, Turgot or
Neckar, called to power in France? nor a Burleigh, nor a Pitt
in England ? Was there never a Camillus appointed by a Senate,
nor a De Ruyter, Van Tromp, nor a De Witt by an arillocratical
body ? When a writer is not careful to confine himfclf to truth,
but allows himfelf a latitude of affirmation and denial, merely
OGdrelTed to an ignorant populace, there is no end of ingenuity
in invention. In this cafe his obje£l was to run down an exiled
king and a deprelTed nobility; and it mull be confefled he is not
very delicate in his means. There are, in truth, in
numerable of excellent generals, admirals, judges, ambafladors,
bilhops, and all other officers and magillrates appointed by mon
arch?, absolute as well as limited, and by hereditary senates; excel
lent appointments have been alio made by popular aflemblies :
but candour mull allow, that very weak, injudicious, and unfor
tunate choices have been sometimes made by such aflemblies too.
the bell appointments for a course of time have invariably
been made in mixed governments. The 44 attive emulation" in
iree states is readily allowed : but it is not less a&ive, less general,
or less lofty, in design or action, in mixed governments than in
nmple ones, even fimpie democrats, or those which approach
nearest to that description: And the instances alledgcd from the
Roman hillory are full proofs of this.
44 During the vaflalage of the Rofbans under kings, we read
<4 not of any notable exploits, but find them confined within a
" narrow compass ; opprefled at home, and ever ana anon ready
"to be swallowed up by their enemies." It is really impofli
ble to guess where this author learnt his hillory. The reigns of
the kings are a complete confutation of his assertions. The vaf
lalage was to the nobles, if to any body, under the kings. The
kings were friends and fathers of the people in general. If the
people were opprefled at home, it was by tne patricians ; but they
appear to have been much less opprefled than they were under the
arillocracy which succeeded the abolition of monarchy as our author
himfelf confefles. 44 But when the people were madefree, indeed,
44 and were admitted into a lhare and interell in the government, as
" well as the great ones, then it was that their power began to
44 exceed the bounds of Italy, and aspire towards that prodigi
-44 ous empire." Was Rome ever a free Hate, according to our au
thor's idea of a free Hate ? Were the people ever governed by a
fucceflion of sovereign power in their aflemblies ? Was not the
senate the real sovereign, through all the changes, from Romulus
to Julius Caifar ? When the tribunes were inllituted, the people
obtained a check upon the senate, but not a balance. The ut
moll that can with truth be said is, that it was a mixed government
composed of three powers; the monarchical in the kings or con
suls, the arillocratical in the senate, and the democratical in the
people and their tribunes, with the principal lhare and real sove
reignty in the senate. The mixture was unequal, and the balance
inadequate; but it was this mixture, with all its imperfections,
that " edged men's spirits with an a&ive emulation, and raised
" them to a lofty pitch of design and a£lion." It was in conse
quence of this composition, that 44 their thoughts and power be
-44 gan to exceed the bounds of Italy, and aspire towards that pvo
-4 4 digious empire." In such a mixture, where the people have
a share, and " the road to preferment lies plain to every man, no
" public work is done, nor any conq.uqft made, but every man
44 thinks he does and conquers for himfelf," in some degree.
Sutthis sentiment is as vivid and a£live, surely, where the peo
ple have an equal lhare with the senate, as where they have only
an imperfett check by their tribunes. When our author advances,
44 that it was not alliance, nor fricndlhip, nor fa&ion, nor rich
-44 es that could advance men," he affirms more, than can be pro
ved from any period of the Roman or any other hillory. If he
had contented himfelf with faying, that these were not exclusive
or principal causes of advancement, it would have been as great a
panegyric as any nation at any period has deserved. Knowlcge,
valour, and virtue, were often prefered above them all; and, if
we add, geveraHy, it is as much as the truth will bear. Our au
thor talks of a preference of virtuous poverty ; but there was no
moment in the Roman, or any other hillory, when poverty,
however virtuous, was orefered for its own fake. There have
been times and countries wher. poverty was not an insuperable ob
jection to the employment of a man in the highest llations ; but
an absolute love of povert), and a preference of a man for that
attribute alone, never exilted out of the imaginations of enthu
fiallic writers.
From the DAILY ADVERTISER.
Sketch of the " PHILOSOPHY of HOUSE KEEPING."
Addrcjfcd by Doflor Mitchell to Miss S .
IN many parts of the country, bread of a bad quality is
so commonly eaten in families, that it seems furpriling why the
people do not learn the art of making it better. The grand faults
are two—j. In manufacturing the flour, which must
necefTavily he bad* if the wheat is foul, the millstones illy fct, or
the bran imptirfe£lly boulted out. 2. In makinc the bread,
where the best flour may be lpoiled by laziness in kneading, by
lack of fixed air, and by an halt heated oven.
When I was engaged theother day in taking care ofmyharveft,
I put into my mouth a few grains of wheat and chewed them ; 3s I
ground them to pieces between my teeth, the pulp, stirred about
by the motion ot my jaws, and mixed with the Ipiitle was made
to separate into three different parts : at firft a subtle powder was
disengaged from the mass, and diffufed through the fluid, tinging it
with a white hue, and when left at roft, falling to the bottom in
the form ofJlarch : after this lb me scaly husks were set loose, that
were taftelels and harfti, and of the outer covering of
the feeds, being evidently the bran ; and lastly, a quantity of dough
was left behind, which was thick, viscid, ropy, tough, and elailic,
and by drying became gluey, hard and brittle, consisting of pajlc,
or the glutinous part of the meal. I persuaded myielf that this
analysis was a fairone, and that for these experiments the human
mouth was preferable to all theartificial chemical apparatus in the
world. Thus it appeared that wheat, the grain affording the best
bread, consisted of Jlarch, bran and fajle.
But here you will be ready to alk, what a young lady has to do
with the analysis of wheat and chemical experiments ? Have a
little patience and you shall be informed. It may soon happen
that you will become the mistress of a family, and then may find
it conlilUnt both with and prudence to have an eye to
domestic affairs.. You may perhaps at that time recollect with
some degree of fatisfa&ion, these hints, calculated to assist you in
providing wholesome food for your h.oufehold» and in preserving
the serenity of your temper, in spite of the mifcondu& of Bakers,
The fault of the lirlt class, that is, in Ihe manufacturing of floui
must be prevented by the farmer and miller, chaff fl>ould be remov
ed by the fan ; duff Dy winnowing, and cockle, drips, rye See. by
(kreening ; besides, I have remarked at the Albion mills near Lon
don, that wheat to be made perfectly clean, is bruffied, washed and
kijr> dried. The operations of grinding and boulting make fine
the parts, them mechanically together, and separate the brai
from the Jlarch and pajle.
As to the faults of the second class, that is of making the bread
you will naturally be led by the principles laid down, to avoid
them. Hence may be afligned the reason why biscuit and unle
venpd bread of all forts, made by mixture with water alone, is fc
dry, hard and solid ; because the paste throughout the mass when
moistened, attra&s the starch, ana on the evaporation of the wa
ter, they bind and cement more firmly together. In like man
ner you can explain why they ought to be kneaded ; to the end
that the two ingredients now joined with water may be brought
into chemical union, and be more intimately blended together.
And hence it may be understood why some bread after baking,
ffiortly becomes ill tailed, and on breaking exhibits {lender threads
reaching from piece to like cobwebs ; becatvfe through de
ficient kneading, theftarch is not well incorporated with the paste,
which remaining in considerable masses by itfelf throughout a
moist loaf soon ferments and spoils. Why are barm, yeast, leaver
and other like substances necessary to raise fermentation in bread i
It is not necessary that bread undergo fermentation in order to
be good, but it is fimplyrequifitethat a quantity of fixed air ftiould
be extricated to raise and puff it up; this divides and parts affun
der the dough, and renders it porous and foft, prevents exceflivc
toughness and hardness, and makes the bread cafy to be broken,
cut and eaten; further, fixed air, although a poison, when appli
ed to the organs of smell and respiration,is an agreeable ftimulous
when taken into the stomach, and may operate when an ingredient
in bread, just as it does in porter and other malt liquors. What
good does pot-ash do in cakes? Pot-ash contains a'great portion
of fixed air, which is fct at liberty by the heat necelfary to bake
the cake, and therefore pot-ash fupercedes the use of fermenting
mixtures.—How is the water of the Saratoga spring ufeful ? In
the fame manner, the water decomposed by the heat, lets go the
fixed air, which insinuates itfelf into part of the bread and caufea
it to be light and spungy. For what reason are holes pricked in
to loaves of bread ? The heat of the oven not only sets free a large
quantity of fixed air, but also greatly rarifics it ; if therefore there
is no outlet given to it,the loaf would beburft in an unsightly man
ner, or an exienfive blister would be formed beneath the uppei
crust, to the damage of the bread. Why is a moderate degree of
heat necessary to prepare bread for the oven ? The component
parts of bread as has been said ought to ast upon each other and
become chemically aflimilated, and there can be no chemical ac
tion of bodies without heat. Whence does it happen that bread
made of Cornell and the branny part of wheat is so course, fc
apt to crumble, and so destitute of nourishment ? Pure bran con
tains very little more of nutricious matter thau saw-dust, on which
account it becomes fit to be eaten only in proportion to the quanti
ty of ft arch and paste mixed with it; but these are chiefly fifted
out when Cornell is manufactured ; therefore bread mad of such
matter must be defe&ive in finenefs, cohesion and nutriment. To
what is it owing then that other kinds of grain, although capable
of being made intobread, fall fo'far short of wheat in goodness ?
The general cause of this seems to be that Indain-corn, barley,
rice, oats and buck-wheat have too fmajl a proportion of pajle in
their composition, and consist. almost. wholly of bran andJlarch ;
now when the bran comes to be feparated,and the starch left alone,
it is not to be wondered at, that the bread made of it (hould be in
ferior in quality, ftnee it is destitute of that capital ingredient, the
pajle. It is not so necessary to employ fixed air or fermentation
in these kinds of bread, but it will answer to bake them imme
diately into cakes occasionally : The journey-cakes and buck
wheat cakes of America will do tolerable well without, but are
preferable with fixed air. The common use of oat and barley
meal in this form, has occasioned Scotland to be emphatically
called 44 The Land of Cakes." Rye approaches nearer to wheat,
and requires almost the fame management. Can lint-feed be
wrought into good bread ? No, becaufc it is composed chiefly of
bran, mucilage and oil. Are potatoes capable of being worked
into bread of the best quality ? No, for they consist mostly of
zuatcr and Jlaich\ there is nopajlein them ; yet by proper manage
ment they may be baked into brown cakes like caffada. Peas af
ford meal ; can they be conveniently made into bread ? The ce
lebrated profeffor Heme of the univerfuy of Edinburgh, told me
that since his time, the poor boors of North-Britain used to make
most of their bread from peas ; but this pra&ice has much declined
jjnee the introduaion of the potatoe. If the purest and best
flour contains the greatest quantity of nutritious matter in any
given bulk, must it not follow that for family uses, the best flour
is thechcapeft A learned and ingenious gentleman, with whom
I talked on this iubjeft not long ago, warmly contended that it
was so, and his reasoning was exceedingly plausible and fpec.ous ;
" If, said he, one cwt. of wheaten flour cost twenty-four fhil
lmgs, it contains nouriftimcnt as fix, and although Indian meal
may be purchased for twelve shillings the hundred, it does not af
ford nutriment as three, therefore although an equal weight of
maize may be bought with half the money, yet it does not yield
halt the quantity of nutritious matter that wheat does ; sod be
ing ufeful only in proportion to the nouriftiment derived from it
the richer the food, the less will fuffice ; consequently wheat, with
difcreet management, will go farther than com, and be cheapdt
to support a family upon. But the reasoning if true in fpecula
tioo will certainly not be true in praft.ee. Xt i s vain to think
that men will be confined to a ftnftly necessary allowance ot bread
when the tempting morsels lie! before them ; they eat not barely
to allay hunger s but to gratify their palate ; nothing i s more eom
befusrTen?t T" T™ * W ° ° r tlmeS M mUch as woul( l
r 1 PP ° rt th f, m ; even among servants and laborers
foi e ofaH l ° * con ft d erabl C degree m
lpite ot all your endeavors to prevent it- ind if U
variable rule in lioufe keeping that food of the belt A/Wj'-f
Regardless thereof Cbffitourifcm^
workman without theor.zin £ ou the matter at all. will Iwallow a
larger quantity of a wheat, a loaf, an Ind ar. dnmr>] ur
fufterno Mjury by the redundancy The (late of the que i», o °\"f
then lie thus: The human ftornacn requires* hulk of f I "
three, and this even of maize'is enough to fatisl'y iiunu-r •°K *
wheat, 011 account of its preferable' taste and finer look' it™ '
receive the proportion of fix ; now, if themaje as three
triment enough, the surplus in the wheat as fix, is 'dear J'"'
Therelore -here can fee.ningly no doubt remain 'that the colrf'
kinds of bread are not only in appearance but in reality then, (I
cheap and economical—l prcfum - vou will not wonder 1
in this epillle, my attention has been turned to dame Ce
rather than to inafter Cupid and his mama, when you U J| tn
the Roman adage, without Certs and Bacchus,Vctv i rcoffl „ J7
bly frigid and lijdtfs. Moreover, ssDr Franklin has beautifc
plnloiophifei on the cmurs, and Mr. IJrydone on the ,
of ladies garments. 1 thought myfelf highly excufeabic iW
example of fucli great men in attempting the elucidation l of ml
tiler important object of female attention. I am, with &-
HUMANITY.
RULES of the Philadelphia Dispensary, forth,,,,
dical relief of the poor. Inflituttd April !2) '
ift. EACH lady or gentleman, who pays aana
ally into the hands of the treasurer one guinea
'hall be intitled to the privilege of havi,, ff tWo '
patients atone time, under the care of the di r
penfary j those who pay annually two gui nfas '
shall have four, and so on in the fame propor.'
tion: and those who fubfcribc ten guineas a
once, {hall be intitled, during life, to thepriv>
lege of having two patients attended at onetime
by the physicians of the dispensary.
2d. A board, consisting of twelve manage!?
fha.ll be annually elected on the firft Mondayia
January, by a majority of the contributors. Votes
may be given at all elections, either in pert®
or by proxy. Five managers shall conftituteaqjj.
rum. Their business lhall be to provide mcii
cines for the sick, and to regulate all affairs it
lative to the institution.
3d. Sixattending, and fonr confuting pliyfiri.
ans ond surgeons, an apothccary, and a treasurer
of the dispensary, shall be annually elected ky
the managers of the institution.
4th. The physicians and surgeons in ordinary
shall regularly attend at the dispensary on Mon
days, Wednesdays, and Fridays, from 12 to I
o'clock ; And such patients as are unabletogoa
broad on dispensary days, shall be regularly vis
!ted at their refpedtive places of abode.
jth. Every cafe shall be duly attended, whether
acute, chronic, surgical, or obstetrical, if recom
mended by a contributor in a written note ad
drefled to the attending physicians, agreeablyto
the firft rule. The attending physicians and sur
geons shall have a right to apply for advice and
alfiftance to the consulting physicians and sur
geons, when they think proper, in all difficultand
extraordinary cases.
6th. The apothecary shall reftde at the dispen
sary. His business shall be to compound andde
liver medicines ; to keep an exadt account of the,
names, places of abode, diseases, times ofad
mifiion, discharge, See. of the patients, for v.hich
he shall receive a salary of per annum-
Officers for 1 789.
Managers. Right Rev. Dr. Wm. White, Mi.
Thomas Clifford, Samuel Powell, Esq. Rev. Dr.
George Duffield, Henry Hill, Esq. Samuel Milts,
Esq. Lawrence Seckel, Esq. Mr. Samuel Plea
fants, Mr. Thomas Franklin, Rev. Dr. Rob.
Blackwell, Rev. Dr. Henry Helmuth, George
Meade, Esq.
Attending physicians and surgeons. Dr. Samuel
P. Griffiths, Dr. John Morris, Dr. Willi®
Clarkfon, Dr. Caspar Wiftar, Dr. Michael Leibe,
Dr. Nicholas B. Waters.
Consulting physicians and surgeons. Dr. John
Jones, Dr. VVm. Shippen, jun. Dr. Adam KuH
Dr. Benjamin Rush.
Treasurer. Mr. John Clifford.
Apothecary. Mr. vVilliam Forreft.
By the following returns of patients admitted,
cured Sec. since the institution of the dispensary,
to the 1 jth December, 1788, the publie will he
enabled to form a judgment of its utility.
From April 12, to December 12. 1786-
Patients admitted 719 —Cured 562 —Died 32
Relieved 33 —Discharged disorderly 7—Remo'-
ed to the hospital and house of employment 1--
Discharged incurable I—Remaining under care
82 71 9
From December 12, 1786, to December I, i 73 .
Patients admitted 1647 —Cured 1297 —Died
—Relieved 131 —Difchargcd disorderly I\—
moved to the hospital and house of employm" 1
13 —Remaining under care 12c- 1647- .
From December 1, 1787, to December 1, '7 •
Patients admitted 1 596 —Cured 1294 —Dea 1
—Relieved 84 —Discharged disorderly '
moved to the hospital and house of employ® 16 '
6—Remaining under care 97- j
Besides which 1280 patients have been admi^
from December 1, 1788, toAuguft t, 17®9' . j
tkj number of patients who have been atten „
under the care of the dispensary, since its
institution in April 1 786, to the present B® '
FIVE THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED AW
FORTY-TWO.
Published by order of the board of ,lian ?;-nn
WILLIAM WHITE, THOMAS CLIFFCHW
GEORGE DUFFIELD, SAMUEL POWELL
Published by JOHN FEN NO, No. 9,
Lanf., near the Ofwcgo-Market, New-Yosk.—[3"°