Page:Common sense - addressed to the inhabitants of America.djvu/14

6 in the mean time would urge him from his work, and every different want call him a different way. Dieae, nay even mifortune, would be death; for though neither might be mortal, yet either would diable him from living, and reduce him to a tate in which he might rather be aid to perih, than to die.

Thus neceity, like a gravitating power, would oon form our newly arrived emigrants into ociety, the reciprocal bleings of which would uperede, and render the obligations of law and government unneceary, while they remained perfectly jut to each other: But as nothing but heaven is impregnable to vice, it will unavoidably happen, that in proportion as they urmount the firt difficulties of emigration, which bound them together in a common caue, they will begin to relax in their duty and attachment to each other: And this remines will point out the neceity of etablihing ome form of government, to upply the defect of moral virtue.

Some convenient tree will afford them a tate-houe, under the branches of which the whole colony may aemble to deliberate on public matters. It is more than probable that their firt laws will have the title only of, and be enforced by no other penalty than public di-eteem. In this firt Parliament every man by natural right will have a eat.

But as the colony encreaes, the public concerns will encreae likewie, and the ditance at which the members may be eparated, will render it too inconvenient for all of them to meet on every occaion as at firt, when their number was mall, their habitations near, and the public concerns few and trifling. This will point out the convenience of their conenting to leave the legilative part to be managed by a elect number choen from the whole body, who are uppoed to have the ame concerns at take which thoe have who appointed them, and who will act in the ame manner as the whole body would act, were they preent. If the colony continue encreaing, it will become neceary to augment the number of the repreentatives, and that the interet of every part of the colony may be attended to, it will be found bet to divide the whole into convenient parts, each part ending its proper number: And that the elected might never form to themelves an interet eparate from the electors, prudence will point out the propriety of having elections often; becaue as the elected might by that means return and mix again with the general body of the electors in a few months, their fidelity to the public will be ecured by the prudent reflection of not making a rod for themelves. And as this frequent interchange will etablih a common interet with every part of the community, they will mutually and naturally upport each other, and on this (not on the unmeaning name of King) depends the trength of government, and the happines of the governed.

Here then is the rie and origin of government; namely a mode rendered neceary by the inability of moral virtue to govern the world; here too is the deign