TO MR. DUBOURG,

CONCERNING THE DISSENSIONS BETWEEN

ENGLAND AND AMERICA.

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London, October 2, 1770.

SEE with pleasure that we think pretty much alike on the subjects of English America. We of the colonies have never infifted that we ought to be exempt from contributing to the common expences neceffary to fupport the profperity of the empire. We only affert, that having parliaments of our own, and not having representatives in that of Great Britain, our parliaments are the only judges of what we can and what we ought to contribute in this cafe; and that the English parliament has no right to take our money without our confent. In fact the British empire is not a fingle state; it comprehends many; and though the parliament of Great-Britain has arrogated to itself the power of taxing the colonies, it has no more right to do fo, than it has to tax Hanover. We have the fame king, but not the fame legiflatures.

The difpute between the two countries has already loft England many millions sterling, which it has loft in its commerce, and America has in this respect been a proportionable gainer. This commerce confifted principally of fuperfluities; objects of luxury and fashion, which we can well do without; and the refolution we have formed of importing no more till our grievances are redreffed, has enabled many of our infant manufactures to take root; and it will not be eafy to

make

make our people abandon them in future, even fhould a connection more cordial then ever fucceed the prefent troubles.-I have, indeed, no doubt that the parliament of England will finally abandon its prefent pretenfions, and leave us to the peaceable enjoyment of our rights and pri vileges.

B. FRANKLIN.

A Com

A Comparison of the Conduct of the Ancient JEWS, and of the ANTIFEDERALISTS in the United States of AMERICA.

A ZEALOUS advocate for the propofed Federal Conftitution in a certain public affembly, faid, that "the repugnance of a great part of mankind "to good government was fuch, that he believ"ed, that if an angel from heaven was to bring "down a conftitution formed there for our use, it "would nevertheless meet with violent oppofiti

on." He was reproved for the fuppofed extravagance of the fentiment; and he did not justify it. -Probably it might not have immediately occurred to him that the experiment had been tried, and that the event was recorded in the most faithful of all hiftories, the Holy Bible; otherwise he might, as it seems to me, have supported his opinion by that unexceptionable authority.

The Supreme Being had been pleased to nourifh up a fingle family, by continued acts of his attentive Providence, 'till it became a great people: and having refcued them from bondage by many miracles performed by his fervant Mofes, he perfonally delivered to that chofen fervant, in prefence of the whole nation, a conftitution and code of laws for their obfervance; accompanied and fanctioned with promifes of great rewards, and threats of fevere punishments, as the confequence of their obedience or difobedience.

This conftitution, though the Deity himself was to be at its head (and it is therefore called by political writers a Theocracy) could not be carried into execution but by the means of his minifters; Aaron and his fons were therefore commiffioned

commiffioned to be, with Mofes, the firft eftablifhed miniftry of the new government.

One would have thought, that the appointment of men who had diftinguifhed themselves in procuring the liberty of their nation, and had hazarded their lives in openly oppofing the will of a powerful monarch who would have retained that nation in flavery, might have been an appointment acceptable to a grateful people; and that a conftitution, framed for them by the Deity himself, might on that account have been fecure of an univerfal welcome reception. Yet there were, in every one of the thirteen tribes, fome discontented, reftlefs fpirits, who were continually exciting them to reject the propofed new go-、 vernment, and this from various motives.,

Many ftill retained an affection for Egypt, the land of their nativity, and these, whenever they felt any inconvenience or hardfhip, though the natural and unavoidable effect of their change of fituation, exclaimed against their leaders as the authors of their trouble; and were not only for returning into Egypt, but for ftoning their deliverers *. Those inclined to idolatry were dif pleased that their golden calf was destroyed. Ma

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of the chiefs thought the new conftitution might be injurious to their particular interefts, that the profitable places would be engroffed by the families and friends of Mofes and Aaron, and others equally well-born excluded +.-In Jofephus, and the Talmud, we learn fome particulars, not fo fully narrated in the fcripture. We are there

*Numbers, chap. xiv.

Numbers, chap. xvi. ver. 3. "And they gathered themfelves together againft Mofes and against Aaron, and "faid unto them, ye take too much upon you, feeing all the "congregations are holy, every one of them,-wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation."

told,

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told, "that, Corah was ambitious of the priesthood; and offended that it was conferred on "Aaron; and this, as he said, by the authority of

Mofes only, without the confent of the people. He "accufed Mofes of having, by various artifices, "fraudulently obtained the government, and de"prived the people of their liberties; and of con

fpiring with Aaron to perpetuate the tyranny "in their family. Thus, though Corah's real "motive was the fupplanting of Aaron, he per"fuaded the people that he meant only the pub"lic good; and they, moved by his infinuations, began to cry out,- Let us maintain the common liberty of our respective tribes; we have "freed ourselves from the flavery impofed upon

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us by the Egyptians, and fhall we fuffer our"felves to be made flaves by Mofes? If we must "have a mafter, it were better to return to "Pharaoh, who at least fed us with bread and oni"ons, than to ferve this new tyrant, who has brought us into danger of famine.' Then they "called in queftion the reality of his conference "with God; and objected to the privacy of the "meetings, and the preventing any of the people from being prefent at the colloquies, or even

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approaching the place, as grounds of great "fufpicion. They accufed Mofes alfo of pecula"tion; as embezzling part of the golden fpoons "and the filver chargers, that the princes had "offered at the dedication of the altar *, and the

offerings of gold by the common people †, as "well as moft of the poll tax ; and Aaron they "accused of pocketing much of the gold of which "he pretended to have made a molten calf. Be"fides peculation, they charged Mofes with am* Numbers, chap. vii.

+ Exodus, chapter xxxv. ver. 22.

Numbers, chap. iii. and Exodus, chap. xxx.

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