respecting that great man, have been copied by Dr. M'Cormick, either from their publications, or, perhaps, fome fource common to both, and equally impure; this has furnished them with an opportunity of referring to thofe charges, and repeating their former malignant attacks upon him, which they have feized with avidity; each of them will form the fubject of a letter to you. On the use which these and many other Gallicizing writers make of the propagation of deceptions of every defcription, and of the perpetual repetitions of the fame falfehoods, as political engines, I fhall alfo bestow fome attention.

In the article here referred to they have these words :-" In tracing him (Mr. Burke) through the artifice with which he attempted to cover his desertion of thofe old friends, and old principles, which he had fo long, and fo honourable for himself, fupported, Mr. M'C. disclofes fome interesting anecdotes."

This charge of desertion they here advance as their own, and as an established fact; and of the writer of the Memoirs they only fay, that he has given fome interefting anecdotes relating to it. The charge itfelf is double; that of the desertion of his old principles, and of his old friends. As it is my intention to confider each of these separately, it is the firft I fhall advert to at prefent. The defertion of good principles, and embracing the defence of bad, is the crime of apoftacy; the charge of these journalists fully amounts to this, and it is frequently fo brought against Mr. Burke.

1

By his former principles they must be understood to mean thofe profeffed by him, prior to the firft of the multiplied revolutions of France. What are the new principles which these felf-named reformers of the conftitutions of governments will fay he afterwards took up? Have they not repeatedly advanced, as fpecific charges against him, that, at that period, he firft became, what they choose to denominate, the defender of the corruptions of the conftitution, the advocate of arbitrary power?

Now the best defence to this would be to fhow, that he never held the relaxed fubverfive principles that the Reviewers have attri buted to him, or fuch as were corrupt and arbitrary; each branch of it would be eafy, but I will proceed another way with them for the prefent, and fuppofe, (although contrary to fact,*) that no proof of the falfity of the fecond charge exifts, and that his latter principles were those above imputed to him. I will then fhow, on authorities which they perpetually extol, and to which they contend the highest deference is due, that this charge of apoftacy is a calumny, and that they must shift their ground.

It was in 1770 that he published his "Thoughts on the prefent Difcontents," a publication most attentively weighed, having been exprefsly defigned as his political creed, and that of his party. In what words did the faction of the reformers, for they already had an

* See Mr. B.'s excellent work, "The Appeal to the Old Whigs."

04

existence,

existence, deferibe it? as a pamphlet defigned "to guard against the poffible confequence of an effectual reformation, in the vitiated parts of our conftitution and government." Enlightened, liberal, philofophic patriots of 1770!* refolve this difficulty for us. Was this a malignant invention of your own, to traduce those enlarged and noble principles of pure patriotifm, the enlightened Monthly Reviewers, in 1798, fay, that Mr. B. had, fo honourably for himfelf, throughout his former life, fupported? Or have the learned and political Wittena-Gemot, who now fucceeded you in your illuftrious labours for the happiness of nations, and in your fplendid rewards of public gratitude and confidence, invented this fable of the coincidence of his principles with yours, at that time, a malignant forgery, to difquiet a precipitated old age and increafing infirmities; and afterwards blaft his pofthumous reputation with the charge of apoftacy? Or have they ventured, in contempt of your authority, to adopt this new commodious invention from others?

I come now to the charge of apoftacy against Mr. B. as proved by his fuppofed defence of arbitrary power. The Monthly Reviewers are, in politics, the followers of Dr. Price; let them turn to his remarks made on Mr. B.'s Letter to the Sheriffs of Bristol, written in 1777, a period at which we are to fuppofe that they mean to admit that his fentiments of freedom continued to merit their approbation. If the venerable fhade of Price could rife in the middle of their divan, with what indignation would he treat their having made "honourable mention" of the principles he then entertained, in their report of laft June on Dr. M'Cormick? What other principles of government do they ever admit to be honourable to fupport, but thofe of Dr. Price? Is it not for the fupport of them

* I copy this citation from the preface to the two Letters on Domeftic Parties, by Mr. Burke, but continuing to admit the grofs charge ftated above, against the formal declaration of the principles of the Rockingham party, contained in Mr. B.'s tract, let us add a fecond by Dr. Price, who not obfcurely taxes it with containing doctrines favourable to arbitrary power. We fhall then fee that this argument may be pushed a little farther. The Rockingham party, at the death of the Marquis, ranged themselves under the Duke of Portland. Such of them as continue in this depraved creed to this day, fuppofing the above condemnation of it juft, cannot therefore be called apoftates. Admit alfo, in this argument, for it is fafe enough here to be very prodigal in our conceffions, that the principles of the phalanx have been, fince the French revolutions, of the pureft political orthodoxy; thofe of them who had been of the Rockingham party, of which this work was drawn up as the creed, must have reformed their princi. ples very confiderably; and how this confiderable reform should have taken place, without a confiderable change in them, plain men will not easily find out; neither can thofe who change bad political principles for good ones give to their late affociates, who continue in their errors, the name of apoftates. The original Proteftants, at the Reformation, almost exhaufted all the topics of crimination against the members of the Romish church; but I never heard they charged them as apoftates, for continuing to profefs the fame erroneous doctrines. The fchifm in that party, however, was made by an apoftacy. A fection of it has renounced all thofe principles on which any thing of Monarchy, but the name, can exift.

at

that time, their praife was in that article given to Mr. Burke ? And did not Price complain "that he was charged with maintaining opinions which tend to fubvert all civil authority," and does he not add, that it was by Mr. B. in that letter? Did he publicly fupport, and as publicly condemn, the fame opinions at the fame time? In effect Dr. P. employs five pages in the cenfure of Mr. B. as then maintaining the fame overftrained principles of kingly power, which the Reviewers fay he but LATELY took up. It is thus that only by falfifying the circumftances of time, and denying the authorities in which they place their highest confidence, that they can substantiate this charge of apoftacy. If they were ignorant of this document to prove the falfity of their fentence, how contemptible are their qualifications to judge in this matter? If they knew of its exiftence, how fallacious and fhameful to give to the world a strong accusation, contradicted by their better knowledge? Not but that Mr. Burke, as far back as his opinion can be traced, appears conftantly to have held, that in every community, and at all periods, the subject ought to poffefs that quantum of liberty, which would make the aggregate of happinefs of a whole people the greatest then possible; what the mathematicians call a maximum. And no truth is more certain, than that those who contend for more are fanatics or hypocrites,

The eye of the fanatic of liberty is always tinctured by a vitiated humour; and, when it is directed to an object perfectly white, fees it obfcured, and of a fordid hue. This regulates the account he gives of it to those who never have had an opportunity of accurately furveying it. The hypocrite interpofes his finoaked glass between the light and the object; and, by this optical delufion, perfuades the fpectator that its real colour is dark and murky. By this clafs of reformers or that, placed in fuch a light, or fo furveyed, Mr. Burke's principles have, at all times, been reprefented as of the fame cloudy, dark, and ominous dye. Men muft prefume, therefore, from the uniformity of these invectives against him, that his fentiments had at no time undergone any change. During the American war, an oppofition to it was a great but fecondary objet to two defcriptions of men, the republicans and femi-republicans of England; although all its opponents certainly did not fall under one or other of these two claffes. With these two, however, Mr. Burke concurred in the defence of the caufe of the colonies; but against fome of the very principles on which THEY arraigned the war, the fame which he is taxed now by the Reviewers for deferting, he entered, as we have feen, a regular proteft. This heretical act they then wished to look on with indulgence. It was their temporary intereft; it might be unmarked by most of them, as he zealously promoted their nearest object; it might be unmarked by others of better fentiments, who miftook temporary unity of object for unity of principle. But nothing can be more fallacious than to infer the one from the other.

The

The temporary coincidence of object between Mr. Burke and the two factions, resembles that of two lines which interfect each other at right angles, they concur in one point, but their direction is not therefore the fame; fteering due east and weft is a very different course from steering due north and fouth. It has been seen, on his first declaration against their main tenets, that the two factions were inclined to be indulgent to him for the reafon given; but the cafe was very different, when this oppofition of principle was brought forward again on another occafion, which agitated the mind of every one, the French revolutions; here they found themselves opposed by him, as well in object as in principle; their interefts lead the factious to be content with a tolerably plain protest against his doctrines in the first instance, in which the flattery of regret was mixed with that of esteem; but being no longer joined with them in the commons' defence of the fame fect of infurgents, the fame principles were oppofed by them with great vigour and virulence; even Dr. Price's proteft, whom they must admit to have spoken the fentiments of the most intelligent divifion of the party at the time he wrote, was forgotten, or dexterously paffed by unnoticed, as if it had no existence; and thus the charge of apoftacy is brought forward against him.

Men of different political principles may, at certain junctures, have one great common political object, and it may be very important to both; they may purfue it with united efforts, and it may be a long task to obtain it; and to vulgar obfervation, (being feen to act long together,) they will feem to be joined. This leads us to the true conception of what political apoftacy is, both real and apparent. If, after the obtaining of this point, they do not again divaricate, but either of them continues to aid the views and meafures of the other, from that inftant it has apoftacized in reality; but to the grofs obfervers here mentioned, every thing will appear confiftent in fuch continued union. Again, if the parties, at fuch inftant, had broken off all connection, and acted against each other, their confiftency would have been perfect; yet, in this cafe, to fuperficial reafoners, (rate their proportion in every party as you please,) there would be an apparent act of apoftacy committed; and the more factious of the two divifions would moft loudly charge apoftacy upon the other; and on fuch occafion these fanatics, if they be numerous, have always fome acute hypocritical politicians ready to put themselves at their head. The arfenical acid does not seize upon a certain alkaline bafis with more avidity, or remain united to it with more pertinacity; and fuch leaders will, on any promifing occafion, give out the watch-word for these calumnies, or lend them point and fupport as long as they expect fervice from them. Their internal conviction is honeft, indeed, and belies their loudeft declarations.

Never was a political falfehood more malignant, more groundless, and kept alive with more pertinacious repetition, than the charge of defertion of principle against Mr. Burke. This has led me into a few reflections on the abufe which may be, and, in this inftance, has

been,

been, made of anonymous periodical publications; not only to eftablith, but, by a fyftematic repetition, to perpetuate any political falfehood in principle, or fact, as long as it fhall be fubfervient to any political purpose. This fubject, although hitherto almost unconfidered, yet is of fuch extent, that it can be only partially entered into here. If any other set of writers, either in time paft, fhall have given an example, or, in future, fhall copy the conduct of the Monthly Reviewers, in the inftance here given, and many other might be added-this may ferve as part of the declaration of an individual against them.

It has been obferved, that a number of men, individually, poffeffing much private honour, even when the term is conftrued in a fenfe lefs viciously narrowed down than its common abuse permits, may, as a party, do very fhameless things, although they all act openly; because reproach enters for a large part of the motive, which, ordinarily, keeps mens' conduct right; and, if an individual member might not be hardy enough to take the whole of the obloquy of a bad act upon himself, he ftill may be willing to bear his almost evanefcent share of it in common with many; as it is, in addition, to be fuppofed, that fuch a party will have a numerous and fubordinate fet of defenders. A cabal of ill-disposed men, the known and avowed leaders of a faction in the ftate, will not hesitate to advance any thing as a fact, or a principle, from which they fhall derive even a temporary advantage. Shaftesbury, without doubt, had his predeceffors, but he has his fucceffors alfo; who, when they are told by men they can confide in, that their fictions will go down only with tantum non ideots, will profefs better hopes of the power of impofture, and their determination to have recourse to it in larger measures, if it fhall be expedient?*

If men, acting oftenfibly, can dare these things, what lengths would they not go, when they carry on their meafures with a great degree of perfonal fecrecy? The political, the moral, the practical principles of Shafte bury, did not flee into a voluntary exile, nor quit the world with him; and if a private cabal of men, of those principles, fhould join in an anonymous periodical publication, it is certain they would poffefs all the fecurity to their reputation which they could have, were their acts and declarations to pafs on the public stage, and one more; they would be known to very few, and thofe, almost entirely, their confidential partifans. Even the feeble reftraint they would feel in acting as an open party must be much relaxed; and a work of this kind, which thould obtain fo extensive a reception as the patrons of the Monthly Review fay that it poffeffes, (and extenfive enough to do great detriment it unfortunately is,) if it were turned against the religion or the conftitution of government of a country, might, as it went on, generate groundless discontents-heighten them into fomen

Roger North's Examen, R. 95, as quoted in Dalrymple's Memoirs of Great Britain, P. 43.

tation,