are misrepresented by the merchants' wives, or they are growing deplorably extravagant. If his excellency introduces such a spirit, I am sure his popularity will be ill founded. Wilkes's suit with Lord Halifax is at length determined, with £4000 damages, which it was provided in court the treasury was to pay. Inadequate as these would, in any case, have been, the manner in which they are to be paid, prevents them from being exemplary; since no minister will be deterred from repeating this injury by a fine which he is not to pay. Our houses, liberties, and most interesting secrets, are thus at the mercy of any minister who will pay this sum out of the treasury, which, with the present furniture of St. Stephen's chapel, he might do to-morrow without danger of impeachment. Yet there are many men so wicked or so weak, as to deny that the constitution is in danger. There are men who will never believe their houses are near the flames, till they are on fire; so long as they walk free, they care not who is illegally imprisoned. The Parliament will probably meet about the middle of January; it will be an important session, but I believe attended with no farther good, than convincing the people their complaints are just, and their desire of a dissolution perfectly proper. I am extremely well with Lord S-e, the lord mayor, the sheriffs, Mr. Wilkes, Horne, Macauley, Belles, &c. ; the two first and the last are those only of whose principles I have a good opinion; but I am so sensible of my own deficiency in judgment, that, while I act in the integrity of my heart, I do not suffer my suspicions to influence my actions. I dine frequently in the King's Bench, where I meet the declared patriots; of whom I shall be satisfied, if we find one Sidney in twelve elect. The city of London is, however, in our possession, and will support the character it has always maintained, of standing foremost and firm in opposition to arbitrary power. It is a chance whether you ever meet with a series of letters signed Junius Americanus, in which the enemies of America are chiefly attacked; though, to make what was written in defence of the colonies acceptable, it was necessary to give now and then a stroke to the characters obnoxious here. It is desirable to make a signature popular, when that is effected, I shall be able to write for America under it with success, which it is otherwise extremely difficult to accomplish. Send copies of Parker's edition of the Farmer's Letters to Lord Shelburne, Mrs. Macauley, and Colonel Barre. Farewell. ARTHUR LEE.

A very ill timed fever, my dear sir, confining me to my bed and room for some days past, has for the present marred my Mississippi and political operations. Of the former, therefore, I can say nothing more, than what the enclosed, written a week since, contains; of politics little certain can be said, for no one yet knows, what the Parliament, which meets to-morrow, will determine. The ministry are entirely Bedfordian, neither much in confidence of the landed or mercantile part of the nation, but they are of Lord Bute's complexion, and have therefore the royal ear and protection. Grafton is the premier, profligate, arbitrary and contemptible; Weymouth, abandoned to gaming and drinking, totally involved, but extremely clever; North, Gower, and Bristol, nothing; Hillsborough or Pownall, arbitrary, opinionated, subtle, and severe of these the present council are formed, without one speaker or advocate in the House of Commons. All parties will, it is probable, be opposed to them, but virtue and real patriotism are so little the objects of pursuit to any party, that it is rather a scuffle who shall enjoy the power and wealth of office, than who shall administer peace and welfare to the nation. This being the case, the sovereign will always turn the scale, since such ministers can never acquire the confidence of the nation, so as to be independent of court influence; this makes me apprehend that the present ministry, as being certainly that of the favourite, though he be now abroad, will stand, and they are, to all intents and purposes, enemies to America. They delude us here with talking of conciliating measures, but it is only to try once more the effect of art and management, in disuniting the colonies, while it is evident they are collecting a great force at Boston, to crush, as they fondly flatter themselves, the head of opposition at one blow; from the perseverence of your colony much is feared, and greatly is it expected, that the address, powers, and beguiling splendor of his excellency, will detach it from the cause of liberty, obtain a vote subversive of your former resolves, and acknowledging your promptitude to bend the servile knee, and fawning take the splendid robbers' boon. Severe will be the trial, but more exemplary, therefore, the virtue that triumphs over it; alas! I fear it will not be found, where meanness and servility are already to prevalent among the little great people of your colony: yet on the issue of this essay must I hereafter glory in being a Virginian, or hide my head when it is mentioned. Subtlety and arbitrariness being the characteristics of the present ministry, great prudence, caution and management, will be requisite to frustrate their measures, or elude their revenge.

You may be assured, if they stand this session, and their present policy succeeds not in America, the first step to enforcement, will be the seizing and executing the patriotic leaders; in your conduct therefore let me recommend an attention to the conduct of the first prince of Orange, which saved him from an ignominious death, and effectually vindicated the liberties of his country, while the incaution of his associates made them victims to the bloody and revengeful purposes of the tyrant they opposed. Our first duty is to our country unquestionably, and her dearest right is liberty; but if this be not the sense of the people, if there is no prospect of opposing tyrannous measures with success, 'twere better wait the favourable moment, since once engaged, success, eternal enmity, or death, must be the issue. Cato, Brutus, and Cassius, did not precipitately undertake a hopeless cause, but they made a glorious and dreadful struggle, that failing, death was the only worthy end of such a beginning. O how my soul swells with the great idea, methinks I could smile in the very pangs of death, and pity the insulting tyrant. Should such a trial come, and my weak flesh shrink from the nobler purposes of my soul, to what contempt it would reduce me. Inured to war and death, habit had steeled their bodies, and made them equal to the achievement of every daring resolution; happy had I been bred a soldier, or these trying times had not arrived in my day. These are reflections which I cannot avoid, though they leave stings behind them; the very doubt of bearing unmoved the utmost efforts of afflicting power, and telling the tyrant or his minion to the last, I scorned him, is to me grievous.

I have not sent you the Museum Rusticum, because it is certainly too dear for its usefulness; and another publication is daily expected, which perhaps may be preferable. I reserve Tissot, till I have leisure to read him, and make some annotations for you. There is a book, some time since published, called a Handmaid to the Arts, which should be useful to you; if I think so upon examining, it shall be sent. The Court Register will be published the 28th of this month, therefore I hardly think it worth while sending the old one

I know of nothing else worth your attention.

October 9th. The great debate is passed, administration has carried her point, forcing by the sword, over the colonies, those laws which reason and justice cannot support or establish. Dreadful idea, that even suggested in a free house, ought to have excited indignation and abhorrence. To the king's speech, containing an account of America, being in an alienated state of allegiance and submission to law;

and one part, namely Boston, in the verge of rebellion through the agency of some seditious persons. An address was moved for by Lord Henly, Lord Northington's son, approving the steps which had been taken by the King in America, and promising him support. This was seconded by Mr. Stanley, who said the late acts were intended to bring this contest of right to an issue; that the troops had been drawn together in America, to enforce it with more facility, and had now commenced the operation in Boston. Mr. Dowdswall, late chancellor of the exchequer, moved for an amendment, using milder terms towards the Americans, and not expressing any approbation of ministerial measures. Lord Clare, and Lord North, supported the former, with heavy, if not unwarrantable charges, against the people of Boston, and high ideas of absolute power. The amendment was then supported by Sir G. Seville, but not on American principles. Mr. Burke next entered more largely, and with more masterly eloquence into the transactions of Governor Bernard and the administration. He showed, the present disturbances arose from a concerted plan, and intentional injuries offered the people of Boston; that the right of taxing, and the laws founded on it, were repugnant to the feelings of America, which never could be overcome; he insisted, that the requiring the Assembly of Boston, to rescind a vote, under penalty, was absolutely illegal and unconstitutional; that sending soldiers there and demanding provision for them, was directly repugnant to the act of Parliament, which directs that provision to be made by the Assembly. Mr. Grenville then advised unanimously supporting the measures of administration in subduing the colonies; he praised his S. A. talked much about himself, and condemned the minister's mandate for rescinding, as totally illegal. Colonel Barre next spoke with great judgment, upon the question in favour of the amendment; he questioned the right, disapproved the measures, and demonstrated that they were urging a quarrel with their colonies, from an ill grounded jealousy, when the state of Europe made harmony absolutely requisite to our preservation. Mr. Wedderburn then pointed out with great justice, that government, both at home and abroad, was executed by files of musketeers; that laws were obeyed not from a respect and confidence in the people for the legislature and government, but from terror; a dreadful state existed by some unhappy defect in the executive part, which threatened our ruin; he declared against the legality of the ministerial mandate at Boston. Many others spoke on both sides, but the ministry carried it without a division.

All this I consider as done in heat, and hope better information and more dispassionate deliberation, will produce the conciliating measures of recalling Bernard, and repealing the duty acts; should this not be done, I apprehend that the present establishment of the military in America, will pre- . vent any armed opposition to the measures of administration; but I conceive the Americans will endeavour by those means, of not consuming British manufactures, which are absolutely in their power, to bring this ungrateful country to a better sense of their usefulness to her, and how vain the attempt is to rule by force, a free people.

Mr. Burke asserted, that Chatham and Camden, had both acted towards America inconsistently with those principles; which, coming from such great authorities, had confirmed the colonists in their opinion, the Parliament having no right to tax them.

God knows whether this will be suffered to reach you; for the administration are determined to sacrifice the most active in the American cause, and may probably stop letters.

Yours, &c.

ARTHUR LEE.

The author has here added some letters written to Arthur Lee, by some of his English friends, who were distinguished men of their day.

The following letter is from Lord Cardross, afterwards Lord Buchan, a well known friend of America, who made General Washington, a present of a snuff-box, from the wood of the tree, which sheltered Wallace, the Scotch hero.

you

WALCOT, near Bath, Oct. 31, 1769. MY DEAR SIR-I should be very happy to be entrusted with the welfare of Virginia, and I am sure, I should pass my time most agreeably among you; but I am afraid I love all too well, to have that charge committed to me at present, after what has passed; not that I think any plan is likely to be adopted, of a disagreeable tendency, but that my avowed sentiments, with respect to my countrymen on the other side of the Atlantic, might be thought too strongly favourable to certain demands which may be made. There remains another obstacle, and that is, as my father is, I am sorry to say, in a very precarious state of health; it would seem odd for an Earl, according to the ideas of this country, to be deputy to Sir Jeffery Amherst.