[No. LX.j THE TABLE T. No. LX. " Among a people well-educated, the ladies have more flattery bejlowed on them than the gentlemen t and it begins sooner." IT cannot be supposed that women have naturally more prideof characteror more personal vanity, than men. Both alike have their paflions and propenlities in nature. The different modes of male and female education create a difference in opinions and manners, which is merely artificial. Vanity, when it is well managed, is perhaps one of the moit ufeful quali ties, that either sex pollefles. It is so elastic a lpringof action as generally stimulates very vi goroully to the attainment of the object it has in view. The hero glories in his martial achieve ments ; the rich man in his riches ; the strong man in the ftrengthof his arms. But the effeifts ofvanity are no where foconfpicuoufly, orfo ufe fully displayed as in regulating the female cha racter and conduct. It is therefore peculiarly elfential that it should be cultivated in women, becaule the cuftomsof society cxpofe the actions of a female to a scrutiny rigorously exact. She must be restrained from error by motives Angu larly strong and lively, or her deportment will scarcely bear such rigor of inspection. The flattery bestowed on the ladies by all civiliz ed people operates upon their vanity, in such a degree, as to guard them against the temptations, ty which they are on all fides aflailed. Fondness for personal decorations, andatafte for elegance highly cultivated, form an almost impregnable barrier against the allurements of vice, or the art 9 of pernicious seduction. It must be confefled, however, this paflion may be misapplied, and through the address of artful men, may become a snare rather than a protection to the unwary fe male. But the usual efleet of it is different, and it much oftener protects virtue than betrays it. Those, who set the highest value upon charac ter, will be the molt cautious to avoid those stains that defile it. The complimentary language, in which ladies are frequently addrelled, encreafes the ardor of their pride. Of course, they are less ealily beguiled in to actions that will expose them to alofs of reputation, than they would be, liad they less elevated ideas of the worth of cha racter. The partaffigned to females, in the ma nagement of domestic concerns, makes it requi site that they should observe the ftriiteft purity of manners. Thus it appears that flattery is at tended with real utility, whatever may be the mo tive thatgivesrife to it. Indeed when it becomes a general custom to gratify ladies with polite and flattering expreflions, men acquire habits of po liteness as a matter of course, and use such a ci vility, when they are prompted by no other mo tives, than merely to appear civil and well-bred. The mi (application of flattery, in some instances, should not be urged as an argument against the general advantages it produces. It saves fifty characters, where it destroys one. Pride is a paflion,that with proper management, may controul many of the excefles of otlier pas sions. A proud man will scarcely become akna viih one, and he must lose part of his pride before he can become a drunkard. With women it has Hill greater efficacy. The felf-denials they so cheerfully bear, in many instances, where men give themselves indulgence, is owing very much to those lively sentiments of pride, which become a predominating motive of action. Those who direct the education of females should give great attention to the manner in which flattery is paid to ihem. They should learn to prize such 'virtues and accomplishments as are in themselves most valuable. The inconvenience, that some women have derived fron. being too much flat tered, proceeds from an improper choice of the qualifications that have been made the ob» jeets of commendation. When care is taken to inspire them with just ot character, their veneration for it can never be too much en creased by complimentsandpralfes. MR. ADAMS'S LETTERS. LETTER IX. Amsterdam, Oct. 16, 17S0. S 7 R, THE .ninth question is, " Hc-.u flrong the Eng lijh land force is in A?nerica ? How Jlrong it vas at the beginning ? And -whether it increafcs or diminijhes ? ACCORDING to the eftiroates laid before par liament, the army under General Howe, General Carlton, and General Burgoyne, amount to fifty five thonfand men, besides volunteers, refugees, tories, in lhort all the recruits raised in Canada, «iul all other parts of America, under whatever denomination. If wc suppose that all these, in SATURDAY, November 7; 17^9. Canada, and elsewhere, amounted to five thousand men, the whole, according to this computation, amounted to sixty tlioufand land forces. This eltimate, however, mull have been made from the number of regiments, and must have supposed them all to be full. General Howe, however, in his Narrative, page 4J, tells us, that his whole force, at the time when he landed on Long-Island, in 1776, amounted to twenty thousand one hundred and twenty one rank and file—of which one thousand fix hundred and seventy-seven were sick. By a regular return of General Burgoyne's ar my, after its captivity in 1777, it amounted, in Canadian provincials, British and German troops, to upwards of ten thousand men. We may sup pose, that four thousand men were left in Cana da for the garrison of Quebec, Montreal, and the great number of other posts in that province. To these numbers, if we add the oilicers, we may fairly allow the whole land force at that time to be forty tlioufand combatants. Tliis is all the answer that I ain able to give, from memory, to the quellion, " How ftrongthe British army was }" In order to give an answer to the other, " How strong it is !" let us consider : 1. There has been no large reinforcement ever feat to America since that time. They havefent some troops every year—but these never amount ed to more than recruits, and, probably, rather fall short of filling up the vacancies which were made in the cOurfeof the year, by desertion and death, by sickness and the sword—Co that, upon the whole, I think it may be fafely said, that the army never has been greater than it was in 1 776. But we mull: deduct from this ten thousand men taken with Burgoyne,one thousand HeJlians taken at Trenton and Princeton, and indeed, many more, taken by two or three hundred at a time, upon other occaiions. In the next place, we must dedud:, I suppose, about ten thousand more, sent, since the French war, to Jamaica, St. Lucia, and the other Weft-India iiiands. So that, upon the whole, I think we make an ample allowance, if we state the whole number nowin New-York,Carolina, and Georgia,includ ing all refugees,&c. at twenty thousand men, of ficers included. This is, in part, an answer to the question,— " Whether their force increases or diminilhes ?" But it fliould be farther considered, that there is a constant and rapid consumption of their men. Manydie of sickness, numbers desert, there have been frequent fkirmiflies, in which they have ever had more men killed and wounded than the A mericans:—And now, so many of their troops are in Carolina and Georgia, where the climate is so unhealthy, that there is great reason to expecft that thegreateft part of that army will die of dis ease. And whoever considers the efforts the Eng lish have made in Germany, Ireland, Scotland, and England, as well as in America, for seven years fucceifiTely, to raise men—the vast bounties they have offered, and the few they have obtain ed :—Whoever eonfiders the numbers they must lose, this year, by the fevei ity of duty, and by fickuefs, in New-York, Carolina, Georgia, and theWeft-India islands—and the numbers that have been taken going to Quebec, North-America, the East and Weft-Indies, will be convinced, that all the efforts they can make will not enable them for the future to keep their numbers good. I have the honor to be, &c. JOHN ADAMS. MR. CALKOEN. THE OBSERVER. No. 111. The public debt of the union may be so managed as to prove a great national benefit. FEW evils are so great but wisdom and appli cation may derive from them eventual ad vantages, which -will more than balance the loss at firft apprehended. Ot all the evils consequent upon your late glorious war, the immense debt incurred by the public hath been esteemed the great-eft, and one for which a remedy was the inoft difficult without doing such injufticeto indi viduals, as must excite the abhorence of lioneft men. That this hath as yet been a perplexed bu (iuefs, all will allow—That this debt with its past management, hath diftrefled both the people and the creditors is undeniable—but we ought not to impute those diftrettes to the debt itfelf, which have arofealtnoft wholly from impolitic manage ment. The people of this country were as new in the arts of finance, as those of war—in the last you have excelled and conquered ; and in the firft may soon become eminent, iffome popular preju dices donor prevent. It is not strange that your finances were deranged, and the people and ere- \Publijbid on IV edutjday and Saturday ,'j ditors both in a state of fuff'eringunder an admi liiltration without lyftem or energy, and which was unable to bring any exertions to a point. To load the people with enormous taxes would be wicked and impolitic, and for this there is 110 need. In foine future numbers of this paper, I shall endeavor to point out the means of doing such jnftice to the public creditors, that if reason able men, they will feel thenifelves contented, without a burden on the people half as heavy as they have borne. At present I will mention a number of national benefits to be derived from the public debt, if managed wifely. There are very few instances in which an individual can be bene fited by credit, beyond his present ability to pay ; but Wvth a nation the cafe is different. Great Bri tain lies under the lieavieft debt of any nation on earth—and this very debt hath in a number of instances been the means of Iter prefcrvation, by interesting rich subjects to afford their aid, w'hen 110 other could be obtained—they advanced new sums to preserve those national funds, in which they had a great property already vested. Tlii) we hope America will never have need to profit by her debt in this way, there are other ad vantages she may derive. A public debt is a band of union, and interests a powerful and opulent class of citizens tofupport the government under which it is contracted. An increase of transfer able property is another advantage which may be derived from the national debt. Commerce, ma nufactures, and the conveniencies of life, require that a certain proportion of property be of such a uature as may be easily negociated or transferee! from man toman. Of this kind are articles of barter, gold and silver coin, and bills of credit.— TodeteVmins exactly how great a proportion of :his kind of property would be a public advantage is impossible. Many of the belt judges imagine that the whole national debt, upon a proper estab lishment, 'would not be too great for this extensive and growing country. There has been a specieS as transferal commonly called speculating in pub lic securities, which is but a kind of gaming, and is attended with 110 advantage to the State :his hasarifen not as much from an undue quanti ty, as from a distrust of public faich, and a want offyftetfi in the finance of the Union, and of par ticular States.—Let this debt be funded in honor mdjuftice, and it will foonhave a regular value, :lie transferal will no longer be the work of fpe rulators, but take place between citizens of ano ther character, the commercial and the induftri sus, as their own interest may require, and thus become an immense ftockfor the benefit of trade md manufactures. The true interest of agricul ture and commerce naturally embrace each other, and in the state of this country cannot be fepera ted. All clalfes of citizens have right to protec tion for thenifelves and their property; but if there be anyone which hath the best claim to be regarded in public measures, it is the American Farmers, as they constitute the most numerous part of the people. The national debt may be so funded as to produce great consequential advan tages to the F artners—and prove the means of their procuring a much better price for their produce and raw materials, than can otherwise be expect ed. So far as relates to the present question, a landed property may be considered as fixed, and not transferable. 111 anew country, and where land is cheap as in the United. States, the inhabi tants when they have power to do it, will reft their property in solid foil. The produce of the Farm ers land is loose and transferable property, and. that it may bear a just price, it is neceflary there should be an equal quantity of property within the community, in such a situation that it may be commanded to make pay to the farmer, for the fruit of his toil. The produce of the country and our raw ma terials for manufactures, will always command a just price in some part of the world ; and it is the business of commerce to collect and tranfporc them to the place in which they are wanted. If foreigners are under the neceffityof coming to us and collecting the articles they need, the price received by the farmer will be limited as they please. Make the supposition that one half the property now in commerce within the UnitcJ States, were to be annihilated ; tho' our produce might bear the fame price in the markets of Eu» rope, it would probably diminish the home price one third. The purchasers would be few—the markets would be over stocked—the produce of your farms being in its nature perishable, must be soon vended, and the remaining half of com mercial property would command out of your hands, nearly the fame quantity of produce, as the whole would have done,if preserved. In this cafe the loss would be as sensibly felt by the far mers as by the merchant. It Ls always the cafe in a new and agricultural country, that the trans*
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