Difcuffion fa

vourable to the

denomination has been borrowed from the effect, and not from the origin or cause. No fovereign in fact from King Egbert to his prefent majesty, has ever owed his crown to any other, than these identical principles.

It would be very unwarrantable in me to fubmit to this fentiment, *« that it has been our misfortune, and not the glory of this age, that every thing is to be difcuffed. Wherever misrecaufe of truth. prefentation of truth has exifted, and that mifreprefentation has been attended with pernicious confequences, difcuffion alone can cure the evil. I openly avow this to be the intent of my making this publication; and with this view am I induced to make the most public and unequivocal profeffion of those principles, which have engendered, nurtured, and maturated our conftitution; and which, if ftrictly adhered to, must ever preferve it in full vigour, and fo perpetuate it to the latest pof terity. I am very far from wishing to draw a veil over the principles, which justified the alterations in the conftitution of our government at the revolution; for if that great event had never taken place, and any circumftance had provoked the difcuffion of the principles, upon which it was formed, I should

• Burke, ubi fupra,

have explained and profeffed them in the fame manner, in which I now do.

As well might it be denied, that a revolution in this kingdom exifted in the year 1638, as that very effential alterations were at that time introduced into the conftitution. It is immaterial to the fubject under our present confideration, whether thefe alterations were prudent to be made, or whether they could be, or were, recommended by each individual of the community. The effential alterations were two: the first was, the alteration in the fucceffion of the crown; the fecond was the alteration in the tenure of the crown. As for all the other rights, liberties, and privileges, which are commonly faid to have been acquired, fecured, or confirmed unto us at that period by the bill of rights, or otherwife, it appears evident, from the reflections already offered, that nothing more was in fact gained by the people at the revolution, than an exprefs acknowledgment or recogni, tion by the fovereign, that the people were entitled unto, and might for ever enjoy thofe rights, to which without any fuch acknowledgment or recognition, they ever had an indefeasible title, not coeval and co-equal with, but prior to, the fovereign's title to the crown; for the rights of the people pre

ceded

Alterations in erected by the

the conftitution

revolution.

The right of toho of the

there, lepror

fovereigu.

Few writers have fairly reprefented the revolution.

ceded the original compact, upon which fociety was formed; and the rights of the fovereign were granted by the community for their better prefervation.

Few writers appear to me to have treated the revolution of 1688 with fair unbiaffed candor. Most of them feem to have been checked by a delicate timidity from fpeaking the whole truth, or avowing the real fpirit of the revolution; fome of them appear to have been impelled by a reftlefs difcontented difpofition, to go far beyond the real spirit of the revolution, by facilitating the means, and inventing neceffities for a repetition of the scene. None of them appear ever to have fufficiently diftinguished between the facts, which occafioned, and the principles, which justified the revolution.

As to the principles, I hope I have evinced my readers, that they are prior to the conftitution itself, and fully adequate to every purpose of preserving and improving it, as the exigencies of circumftances and the wishes The facts which of the community may require. The facts, which gave rife to the revolution were fuch, as in all human probability never can again recur in that combination, as to occafion another fuch revolution upon the strength of precedent. I fhall therefore confider a

occafioned the

revolution never again likely

to recur.

repe

repetition of fuch an event, as amongst the moral impossibilities. In fpeaking with freedom of this great event, I mean not to difplease nor offend thofe, who have viewed and treated it in a light and manner very different from that, in which I fhall take the liberty of representing it.

«The constituent parts of a state are obliged to hold their public faith with each other, and with all thofe, who derive any ferious intereft under their engagements, as much as the whole ftate is bound to keep its faith with separate communities." And this fame great man, fpeaking of the common law and the ftatute law, fays, † "both thefe defcriptions of law are of the fame force, and are derived from an equal authority, emanating from the common agreement and original compact of the ftate, communi fponfione reipublice, and fuch as are equally binding on king and people too, as long as the terms are obferved, and they continue the fame body politic."

Upon the fame principles, upon which the revolution was effected, very important alterations have been formerly made in the

Mr. Burke's Reflections on the Revolution of France, p. 28.

The reforma,

tion an altera

conftitution and government of this king

dom, before that event took place. The tion in the con- moft material of thefe alterations was the ftitution before

the revolution. reformnation, or change of the national religion. For upwards of 900 years, the church establishment of this nation was of the Roman catholic perfuafion or doctrine; and during that period, it as certainly made a part of our conftitution, as the protestant religion makes a part of our conftitution at this day, and as it did alfo in the year 1688; for, as I have endeavoured to prove before, the community must ever retain an indefeafible right of making a civil eftablishment of that religion, which the majority fhall have thought it their duty to adopt; for this duty lies upon each individual independently of the community. King James the Second had adopted the Roman catholic religion, whilft he was duke of York and the prefumpApprehenfions tive heir to the crown: the apprehenfions of

of the nation for

eftablifhent

under a Roman

catholic prince.

their religious the nation were upon this account much alarmed, left, if the crown fhould devolve upon a perfon of that perfuafion, fome alteration or change would be attempted, and, perhaps effected in their religious establishment, which they esteemed their first and deareft conftitutional right and liberty, as being the immediate effect of their own free

election.