Page:Common sense - addressed to the inhabitants of America.djvu/37

Rh quently excluded from the poibility of rivalling her. Africa is in a tate of barbarim; and no power in Europe hath either uch an extent of coat, or uch an internal upply of materials. Where nature hath given the one, he has with-held the other; to America only hath he been liberal of both. The vat empire of Ruia is almot hut out from the ea; wherefore her boundles forets, her tar, iron and cordage, are only articles of commerce.

In point of afety, ought we to be without a fleet? We are not the little people now, which we were ixty years ago; at that time we might have truted our property in the treets, or fields rather, and lept ecurely without locks or bolts to our doors and windows. The cae now is altered, and our methods of defene ought to improve with our increae of property. A common pirate, twelve months ago, might have come up the Delaware, and laid the city of Philadelphia under intant contribution for what um he pleaed; and the ame might have happened to other places. Nay, any daring fellow, in a brig of 14 or 16 guns, might have robbed the whole Continent, and carried off half a million of money. Thee are circumtances which demand our attention, and point out the neceity of naval protection.Some perhaps will ay, that after we have made it up with Britain he will protect us. Can we be o unwie as to mean, that he hall keep a navy in our harbors for that purpoe? Common ene will tell us, that the power which hath endeavored to ubdue us, is of all others the mot improper to defend us. Conquet may be effected under the pretence of friendhip; and ourelves, after a long and brave reitance, be at lat cheated into lavery. And if her hips are not to be admitted into our harbours, I would ak, how is he to protect us? A navy three or four thouand miles off can be of little ue, and on udden emergencies, none at all. Wherefore if we mut hereafter protect ourelves, why not do it for ourelves? Why do it for another?The Englih lit of hips of war is long and formidable, but not a tenth part of them are at any one time fit for ervice, numbers of them not in being; yet their names are pompouly continued in the lit, if only a plank is left of the hip; and not a fifth part of uch as are fit for ervice, can be pared on any one tation at one time. The Eat and Wet-Indies, Mediterranean, Africa, and other parts over which Britain extends her claim, make large demands upon her navy. From a mixture of prejudice and inattention, we have contracted a fale notion repecting the navy of England, and have talked as if we hould have the whole of it to encounter at once, and for that reaon uppoed that we mut have one as large, which not being intantly practicable, have been made ue of by a ett of diguied tories to dicourage our beginning thereon. Nothing can be farther from truth than this, for if America had only a twentieth part of the naval force of Britain, he would be by far an over-match for her; becaue as we neither have, nor claim any foreign dominion, our whole force would be employed on our own coat, where we hould, in the long run, have two to one the advantage of thoe who had three or four thouand miles to ail over, before they could attack us, and the ame ditance to return in order to refit and recruit. And although Britain by her fleet hath a check