any proprietary, and defeat any popular, points whatsoever, could venture to slip the following clause into his commission, to wit: saving always to me and my heirs, our final assent to all such bills as thou shalt pass into laws in the said government, &c.'

The assembly, however, to whom this commission was communicated, were shrewd enough to start the following doubt upon it, and to send it by way of message to the council, to wit: whether the said vote is void in itself, and does not vacate the rest of the said commission or render it invalid?' And the council, with the proprietary's eldest son at the head, and secretary Logan at the rear of it, were so startled at it, that, in order to evade the last inference, they found themselves under a necessity to return the following answer.

'We of the council, whose names are hereunto subscribed, are of opinion, that the said saving is void in itself: and that those bills which the present lieutenant-governor shall think fit to pass into laws, and cause the proprietary's great seal to be affixed thereunto, cannot afterwards be vacated or annulled by the proprietary, without assent of the assembly of this province.'

The next piece of practice, to answer the same purpose, that was found out, was to impose certain conditions of government on the deputy, under the penalty of a certain sum. This was first submitted to by Keith, and has been a rule to all his successors, with this difference, that whereas the penalty exacted from him was but one thousand pounds sterling, it has been since raised to two or three thousand pounds.

If ever the case of this colony should come before parliament, which is not altogether improbable, no doubt these conditions will be called for; and if they should then be found irreconcilable with the charter, and a check upon the legislative, altogether unconstitutional and illegal, the wisdom of the nation will, no doubt, pronounce upon such a trespass according to the heinousness of it.

Again: the widow Penn, in her private instructions to sir William Keith, having admitted and complained, that

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the powers of legislature were lodged in the governor and assembly, without so much as a negative reserved to the proprietary when absent, proceeds to avow, that it was never intended [by the proprietary must be understood] the said governor and assembly should have the exercise of these powers; as also to pronounce it a dangerous invention of Keith's, to enact laws in conjunction with the assembly, and transmit them directly to the king's ministers without any other check; and then, after thus arrogantly interposing between the king and his lieges of this province, clenches the whole with the following injuction: therefore, for remedy of this grievance, it is required, that thou advise with the council, upon every meeting or adjournment of the assembly, which requires any deliberation on the governor's part: that thou make no speech, nor send any written message to the assembly, but what shall be first approved in council; that thou receive all messages from them in council, if practicable at the time; and shall return no bills to the house, without the advice of the council; nor pass any whatsoever into a law, without the consent of a majority of that board, &c.'

What, therefore, the governor's bond had not been sufficient to obtain, this new expedient was to extort. If the governor would not act as required, he was thus to be disabled from acting at all: and after so many various frames of government had been granted and regranted, proprietary will and pleasure was to be the last resort of all.

In vain both governor and assembly freely and fully remonstrated against such an innovation, in a government supposed to be guarded by charter against all innovations whatsoever; more especially such as were neither consistent with the rights of the people, the powers already vested in the governor, nor the respect due to the crown.

Logan discovered the assembly were not authorised by charter to advise, though they were to enact; because the word advice was not to be found in that last given to them: that governors were not to be trusted to act without advice; consequently the said expedient to bridle them was a good

one; and if we may judge by events, his sophistry has given the law ever since.

From what has been thus far recited, it is obvious, that the proprietary of Pennsylvania was of too little consideration here at home, to be of much use to the province either as a protector or advocate; and yet, that he was there so much above the level of his freemen and tenants, that, even in their legislative capacity confederated with the governor, they could hardly maintain their rights they were so many ways intitled to, against the artifices and encroachments of his emissaries.

As lord of the soil, is the light he is next to be considered in. The charter Mr. Penn obtained of the crown, comprehended a far greater extent of territory, than he thought fit to take up of the Indians at his first purchase.

And even in the very infancy of his colony, it was by act of assembly inconsiderately, because unconditionally, provided, that in case any person should presume to buy land of the natives, within the limits of the province, &c. without leave first obtained from the proprietary, the bargain and purchase so made should be void.

Rendered thus the only purchaser, he reckoned he might always accommodate himself at the Indian market, on the same terms, with what quantity of land he pleased; and till the stock in hand, or such parts of it as he thought fit to dispose of, were in a fair way of being sold off, he did not think it for his interest to incumber himself with more.

This happened sooner than he foresaw; though it must be acknowleged the founders of few cities appear to have had more foresight than he. The growth of his colony exceeded his most sanguine expectations; and, when successive new purchases came to be made, an inconvenience by degrees became manifest, which, perhaps, had not been thought of before, or if thought of, had not been guarded against.

Men who want a present convenience must not be oversolicitous about future contingencies; and, in general, we

chuse to be blind to such objects as we fear we have not strength enough to remove: he that is too much of a huckster often loses a bargain; as he that is too little so, often purchases a law-suit.

It was no hard matter to induce a belief, that occasional treaties with the Indians, under the pretence of keeping up the same brotherly correspondence which had been at first established with them, was a necessary measure of government; nor to prevail with the province, while this was understood to be the sole consideration, to bear the expense of them.

But when it appeared, as in the course of time was unavoidable, that a treaty and a purchase went on together; that the former was a shoeing-horn for the latter; that the governor only made the compliments, and the assembly the presents, &c. it could not but appear also, that there must be somewhat unfair in a procedure where one paid all the cost, and the other ingrossed all the profit; and that it was high time to put some stop to a practice so injurious to their understandings.

It is not indeed necessary in private life to bargain, that those who purchase for their own use and advantage, should pay the price out of their own pockets; but in public it is.

Persons who stand on the same ground will insist on the same rights; and it is matter of wonder, when any one party discovers folly or insolence enough to demand or expect any pre-eminence over the other.

Whereas prerogative admits of no equality; and pre-supposes, that difference of place alters the use of language, and even the very nature of things.

Hence, though protection is the reason, and, consequently, should be the end of government, we ought to be as much upon our guard against our protectors as against our

enemies.

Power, like water, is ever working its own way; and wherever it can find or make an opening, is altogether as prone to overflow whatever is subject to it.

And though matter of right overlooked, may be reclaimed and re-assumed at any time, it cannot be too soon reclaimed and re-assumed.

That assembly then, which first discovered this lapse, or which, at the requisition of their constituents, first endeavoured to retrieve it, did no more than their duty; and the precedent they set cannot be too closely followed.

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Again the distinction made by Mr. Penn in the case of the quit-rents, between his two capacities of governor and proprietary, had an use, which even he, with all his shrewdness, did not perhaps advert to, when it was made; or at least expect it would be adverted to by any body else.

For the support of the governor and government, it must be recollected they were submitted to; for the support of the proprietary, when absent from his government, and when the government charge was otherwise supported, they were paid and as he and his agents went on, not only to reserve such rents out of all the parcels of lands they disposed of, but even to rise in their demands, as the value of lands rose; so it could not but follow, that in process of time these quit-rents would of themselves become an im

mense estate.

When, therefore, the proprietary no longer acted as governor, nor even resided in the province, nor expended a fifth of his income there, could it be supposed, that this estate, thus obtained and thus perverted from its original purpose, should not be liable, in common with all other estates, to contribute to those charges it was first in the intire allotted for, and the whole amount of which it so many fold exceeds?

No property in England is tax-free: no difference in the amount, or value of property, makes any difference in the duty of subjects: and nothing is more consonant to reason, than that he who possesses most, should contribute most to the public service.

And yet, for want of a specific clause to declare their property taxable, the present proprietaries insist on having it exempted from every public obligation, and upon charging the difference on the public, who, it cannot be too often re

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