Page:Common sense - addressed to the inhabitants of America.djvu/40

32 ity of a large and equal repreentation; and there is no political matter which more deerves our attention. A mall number of Electors, or a mall number of Repreentatives, are equally dangerous. But if the number of the Repreentatives be not only mall, but unequal, the danger is increaed. As an intance of this I mention the following; when the Aociators petition was before the Houe of Aembly of Pennylvania, 28 members only were preent; all the Bucks county members, being 8, voted againt it, and had 7 of the Cheter members done the ame, this whole Province had been governed by two counties only, and this danger it is always expoed to. The unwarrantable tretch likewie which that Houe made. in their lat itting, to gain an undue authority over the Delegates of that Province, ought to warn the people at large how they trut power out of their own hands. A ett of intructions for the Delegates were put together, which in point of ene and buines would have dihonored a chool-boy, and after being approved by a few, a very few without doors, were carried into the Houe, and there paed in behalf of the whole Colony; whereas, did the whole Colony know with what ill-will that Houe hath entered on ome neceary public meaures, they would not heitate a moment to think them unworthy of uch a trut.Immediate neceity makes many things convenient, which if continued would grow into oppreions. Experience and right are different things. When the calamities of America required a conultation, there was no method o ready, or at that time o proper, as to appoint perons from the everal Houes of Aembly for that purpoe; and the widom with which they have proceeded hath preerved this Continent from ruin. But as it is more than probable that we hall never be without a, every well-wiher to good order mut own, that the mode for chooing members of that body deerves conideration. And I put it as a quetion to thoe, who make a tudy of mankind, whether repreentation and election is not too great a power for one and the ame body of men to poes? When we are planning for poterity, we ought to remember, that virtue is not hereditary.It is from our enemies that we often gain excellent maxims, and are frequently urpried into reaon by their mitakes. Mr. Cornwall (one of the Lords of the Treaury) treated the petition of the New-York Aembly with contempt, becaue that Houe, he aid, conited but of twenty-ix members, which trifling number, he argued, could not with decency be put for the whole. We thank him for his involuntary honety.

, however trange it may appear to ome, or however unwilling they may be to think o, matters not; but many trong and triking reaons may be given to hew, that nothing can ettle our affairs o expeditiouly as an open and determined declaration for independence. Some of which are,Firt. It is the cutom of nations, when any two are at war, for ome other powers not engaged in the quarrel to tep in as mediators, and bring about the preliminaries of a peace: But while America