[iv] History must record the events that happen in time, that future ages may know what has paffed in former periods of the world, and take an example and warning from the transactions of their predeceffors. An Hiftorian should know no party, but record truth. Adulation and flattery, as well as rancor and prejudice, are inconfiftent with the character of an honest historian. The author prefumes that your Majesty will meet with none of these in this History. Love of liberty, and of his fovereign, has made him write freely; and if he have any ruling prejudice, it is infavour of his Country, his King, and the Law. Your Majefty will be graciously pleased to accept of this humble addrefs of a fubject, who is fincerely attached to the Brunswick family; who loves his King and country, values liberty and religion, and reveres the British conftitution: who fincerely wishes that your Majesty, your royal confort, and family, may live long, that it may be your happiness to rule with wisdom, live in tranquillity, and make your fubjects happy,---and at laft enjoy a kingdom, incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away; Such is the fincere prayer, Of your Majefty's moft humble, And most dutiful Subject, JAMES MURRAY, Newcastle upon Tyne, BOOK War more celebrated in history than the arts of peacethe American War proceeded from two caufes-an account of the Cyder Act-the Stamp Act-debates concerning it-an abridgment thereof-arguments for and against it-the proceeding of the Colonists against it-the Americans would have defended themfelves without our help-the parliament would not fuffer. them-Doctor Franklin's letter to Governor Shirley, WAR, though of all things the most destructive to the human fpecies, and contrary to the original dictates of nature, has in all ages of the world filled up a great part of the hiftory of nations. The laws and constitutions of kingdoms, and the improvements of virtue and science, make a fmall figure in the annals of empires, when compared with the ponderous volumes that contain the atchievements of foldiers, and the rife and progrefs of war. The works of Archimedes, Socrates, and Plato; the laws of Solon and other eminent legiflators, fill up but a few pages in comparison of the hiftory of the wars of Greece and Rome. It is cuftom that renders the most difagreeable things familiar, makes things difgustful at first, firft, afterwards pleafant; and ftamps the most abandoned of all actions with the epithet of glory. The glory of war is a creature of the imagination; often formed by caprice, nurfed by policy, and manumitted by public authority; when yet this unnatural creature of fancy, instead of promoting public or private happinefs, is the torment of the poffeffor, and the univerfal bane of all fociety. A thirst after this glory, and a propenfity for renown in martial exploits, have made fruitful countries a wilderness, cities a defolation, and empires scenes of flaughter; this unnatural appetite drags the parent from his family, the children from their pa rents, renders the widow defolate, the children fartherlefs, and the father without offspring. Hence it becomes glorious to thirst for blood, an honour to fpoil our neighbours, and the dignity of men to live by rapine. It is magnanimity to fall at the command of princes; and to return maimed from battle, though in an unjust cause, is accounted bravery in the lowest individual. By giving falfe names and epithets to things, and by frequently repeating them as mat, ters of the highest importance, they at laft leave an impreffion which becomes a principle of action in the minds of fuch as do not examine them. The prefent war in America feems to have proceeded from two general caufes; an exceffive defire of dominion in government, and an exceeding great jealoufy in the people of the colonies, of ministerial defigns against their natural rights and liberties. It cannot be difputed that the legiflature in. Great Britan, as well as the executive power, by modern flatutes of parliament, which had all the appearance of felfifhnefs, and domination, gave fufficient ground of jealoufy to the colonies. From the pretence of expences and difbursements, laid out for the defence defence of America, the government of the mother country claimed a right of internal taxation, unknown to the English constitution; and proceeded to frame new laws, which in their own nature declared that the fole right of legislation remained in the parliament of England. In this case the subjects of the empire in that western part of the world were confidered, not as other fubjects, but as vaffals, under abfolute authority, to a legislature, in which they had none to reprefent them, and who were not under fufficient obligations to pay regard to their intereft. The late war with France and Spain, had added an enormous weight of debt to our former national burdens, and the peace that was but lately concluded had given us an addition of territory, without making us any richer than we were before. As foon as peace gave the nation time to reflect, it was found that the flattering ideas of conqueft could not remove the feelings, which the preffure of fo many millions of debt, had impreffed on. our national conftitution. It was expected that our debts would have been leffened, our taxes reduced, and our burdens lightened; but the hot fever of war had fo relaxed the folids of the body politic, and weakened the whole frame of the constitution, that the nation foon after the ratification of the peace, appeared in the second stage of a confumption. The conductors of the laft ftages of the war, who had only proceeded upon the plan which a minifter, the glory of his country, had formed before, were obliged ig-. nominiously to drop it, for want of credit and capacity to carry it on; and ratified a peace as inglorious as the war had been fuccefsful. Though an indifferent peace. is preferable to even a fuccessful state of war, yet when a nation is laden with a burden of enormous debt, contracted for its own defence against a perverse ene my, my, wisdom and political prudence, will certainly vin dicate a nation, in making their enemies, when they are in their power, pay as much of the debt contracted as it is poffible to obtain from them. The negotiators of the peace were confidered by the nation as men unfriendly to the common intereft, and perfons, who, when they were fenfible of their incapacity to carry on the war, were determined to conclude a peace, with as much advantage to their own private intereft as poffible. Demands which might have protracted a war, which they neither had genius nor credit to carry on, were induftrioufly avoided, and the more mild requifitions of private douceurs were fupposed to have been adopted. Whether this jealoufy of the nation proceeded from a fufpicion founded in distrust, or from fignatures which implied moral certainty, I will not pretend to determine; but it was the general opinion of the people at that period, that the French miniftry purchafed the peace, and that fome perfons of no fmall diftinction in England, received the price thereof. What gave more weight to these fufpicions of the people on this occafion was, that their favourite minifter, who had recovered the nation from difgrace, and exalted it to an high pitch of glory and renown, had for fome time been difplaced, through the influence of the royal favourite, who now was fuppofed to manage all the fprings of government. It is fo feldom that a prime minifter is univerfally esteemed, that when fuch a phænomenon happens in the political world, it must be an unpopular action in a fovereign, to turn him out of office, without fetting forth fome confpicuous acts of his mal-adminiftration. The whole tranfactions concerning the peace, being carried on by men of different complexions and characters from their former minifter, afforded ground of fufpicion |