COBBETT'S WEEKLY POLITICAL PAMPHLET. 513] LONDON, SATURDAY, JULY 26, 1817. Number Fifteen, Saturday, July 12, contains a Letter to the People of Eng land, Scotland, and Ireland. Number Sixteen, Saturday, July 19, contains a Letter to Lord Viscount Sidmouth on his Circular to the Lords Lieutenant, dated on the 27th of March, 1817; and on divers other matter relating to the Situation and the Contrivances of the Bo. roughmongers. [514 in point of importance, compared with that which we have now witnessed. Then the Royal Family and the line of descent of the Crown was changed, because a tyrant had grossly violated some of the fundamental laws of the land; but now, all the fundamental laws of the land stand abrogated by Acts of the Parliament. In England, in that same England, which was the cradle of real liberty and just laws, or, at least, which was the spot, where law and justice and freedom were preserved while despotism reigned over Ending with the Passing of the Abso-the rest of the world; in that Englute-Power-of-Imprisonment Act, in land, which was so long held by the A HISTORY OF THE LAST HUNDRED DAYS OF the Month of March, 1817. ADDRESSED TO world to hold forth an example of all that was desirable in politics and in ju MR. JOHN GOLDSMITH, OF HAMBLE-risprudence; in that England, whence DON, AND MR. RICHARD HINXMAN, OF CHILLING, WHO WERE The Chairman and Seconder at the Meeting of the People of Hampshire on Portsdown Hill, in the Month of February 1817, to Petition for a Redress of Grievances, and for a Reform in the Commons House of Par liament. LETTER I. North Hampstead, Long Island, MY WORTHY AND BELOVED FRIENDS, the wise and brave men who first settled this now happy country brought all those principles of law and of government, which, by being adhered to, have been the cause of that happiness and virtue which are here every where apparent; in that same England what do we now behold? The very thought, though I am here beyond the reach of the evil, wrings my heart. We behold a system of taxation that has spread ruin, madness and starvation over the land; a band of Sinecurists, Pensioners, Bankers, and Funders who strip the land of all its fruits, except the portion which they share with the Standing Army who aid them in the work of seizing on those fruits; a people who have no voice in the choosing of those, who make laws afR Printed by W. Jackson, No. 11, Newcastle Street, Strand. if the people of this country had not successfully resisted the attempts of our government in 1814 and 1815, when SIR JOSEPH YORKE said, in the House of Commons, that there was Mr. PRESIDENT MADISON yet to be put down; and, when the TIMES newspaper told the then deceived people, that regular governments never could be safe, until the world was deprived of the “dan"gerous example of successful demo"cratic rebellion;" or, in other words, that the Boroughmongering System never could sleep in quiet, while there was one free country left on the face of the earth. The TIMES was right. The "Holy Alliance" is of no avail as long as this country remains what it now is. Hither, at last, all the oppressed, who harbour the just desire to resist, may fecting their property and their lives; a House of Commons, the sale and barter of seats in which has, within its own walls, been acknowledged to be as notorious as the Sun at Noon Day; and, finally, in answer to the nation's petitions for a redress of this enormous grievance, the cause of every calamity, we behold Acts passed by this same House of Commons, which have taken from the people all liberty of the press, all liberty of speech, and all the safety which the law gave to their very persons, it being now in the absolute power of Ministers to punish any man whom they may please to punish, in the severest possible manner short of instant death, not only without any trial by Jury, but without any trial at all; without hearing him themselves in his defence; with-come; and, in the end, resistance out letting him know the cause of his punishment; without telling him who are his accusers; and without any appeal, now or hereafter, from their decisions! They, or any one out of three of them, have the power to send for either of you at any hour; to cause you to be conveyed away to any jail in the kingdom; to be put into any dungeon or cell; to be deprived of pen, ink and paper; to be kept from all communication with wife, child, friend, or any body else; to be locked up in a solitary cell; to be kept in a damp or stinking hole; and to be kept without any limit as to time, other than what their own sole will and pleasure may dictate. would go from here, if it were to arise from no other quarter. The Revolution, which has taken place in England is not seen in its true character without our taking some time to look at all its parts. We are too apt to speak of it merely as a Suspension of the Act of Habeas Corpus; but, this is by no means doing the thing justice. That Act is, indeed, rendered nugatory; but, that is merely incidental. That Act, which was passed so late as the reign of Charles II., merely provided some checks to false imprisonment, and more clearly defined the remedy; but, in all times, since England has been England, the law of the land was, that no man could be imEng-prisoned, except by due course of law, and due course of law included all the circumstances of informations, warrants by ordinary magistrates, previous examinations, confronting with accusers, commitments stating the pre Such is the present state of land, and, thanks to the virtue and valour of our brethren on this side of the Atlantic, I have the power to describe that state to the world, a power, which I certainly should not have had, pose. cise crime, and a delivery or trial at the Dey of Algiers, or by any Bour the next Sessions or Assizes. This bon that ever existed? They do not was the due course of law in England want to kill or imprison all their peo'long before the Norman Conquest, ple. That would not suit their pur and it always continued to be due course of law. The Act of Habeas Corpus only defined more precisely the remedy in case of violations, or neglect of observance of this due course of law. Therefore, the Absolute-power-ofimprisonment Act does not call itself an Act to Suspend the Act of Habeas Corpus, which would have left the law as it stood before that Act was passed. Those who have made the Revolution knew what they intended too well to give their Act that title or that effect. They call it an Act to "empower His Majesty to imprison 66 any persons that he may suspect to "be guilty of treason, or treasonable "practices." We all know, that His Majesty has nothing to do with the matter; and, the provisions of the Act very explicitly state that this dreadful power is lodged in other hands. It is clear, then, that (without going into the acts against the liberty of speech and of the press) by this one act, all the fundamental laws of the land are effectually put an end to, seeing that it places every one's person at the absolute disposal of the Ministers, and, if the very body of a man be not safe, what absurdity is it to talk about property! That man, who has no safety for his person cannot be said to possess any thing. We are told by the hirelings of the press, that it is only the "disaffected" that this Revolution need to make uneasy. That is to say, only those whom the Ministers and Boroughmongers may dislike. But, what more is asked for by They do not destroy even those whom they know to hate them, provided they be still and give them no annoyance. But, the moment any one, who possesses the means, discovers the inclination to oppose or thwart them, that moment they begin to suspect him, and then they proceed to punish. They want to do nothing more. This is all that arbitrary government has ever wanted to do; and this is what the Ministers in England are now empowered to do by Act of Parliament! That they will not exercise this power against the "well-affected;" that is to say, against their own partizans, is sure enough; nor will they exercise it against sham opponents like the Morning Chronicle, nor against impotent opponents like the Independent Whig. But, it is not less sure, that they will exercise it against every man, who possesses the means, and the will at the same time, of opposing their unjust, and exposing their foolish measures. Why were there laws to protect men's persons and property? Why was there a trial by Jury for every alleged offence? The reason was, that no man should be in danger from the power of those who exercised the great functions of administering law and justice. These laws were not intended to protect those whom the government had no dislike to, but those whom it might dislike. These laws were not intended to protect those who stood in need of no protection, but those who did stand in need of it. These laws were intended to ་ prevent men in authority, or power-[tions of the Last Hundred Days of ful men of any description, from hurt- English Freedom, in which transacing those whom they might regard as tions I was so principal, an actor, and disaffected" towards them; and, of every thing belonging to which I yet, forsooth, we are to think nothing was so well acquainted. And, I of the abrogation of all these laws, address myself to you, my friends, because they put in jeopardy "only upon this occasion, because you are the disaffected!" amongst the men, for whom I have the greatest personal regard, for whose public spirit and understandings I have the greatest respect, and because you were my associates in the proposing and carrying of that memorable Petition, which the honest people of our County approved of and signed upon Portsdown Hill, which Petition contains a fair and modest statement of the chief of the nation's grievances and desires, by which Petition, I am sure you will stand to the last moment of your lives. The Dey of Algiers proceeds against his "disaffected" by chopping off their heads, and our Ministers proceed against their “disaffected" by shutting them up in prison during their pleasure, in any jail in the kingdom, and deprived of light, warmth, and all communication with relations and friends, if they please. That is all the difference, and, of the two, the Dey's power is, according to Blackstone, the less hateful and dangerous. There is this further difference indeed: that the Dey's power extends to every person in his dominions, whereas the Boroughmongers, in giving the Minis-gaged in your own private affairs the ters this dreadful power over the rest of the nation, not excepting the females of the Royal Family, have made an express clause to except their precious selves! At least, no Member of either House can be shut up without a notification to the House, and, of course, without a hearing of some sort or other." You will want nothing to convince you, then, that a real and total Revolution has taken place in England; and, it is a duty which we owe to mankind, to our country, to ourselves and our children to trace, if we pos`sess the means, this great event to its true causes. This is what I shall now do in the best manner that my abilities will enable me. I intend, after a short view of the previous period, to give a minute account of the transac You, who live constantly in the country, and who are necessarily en far greater part of your time, had no knowledge of many things, which took place in London, during the interesting period of which I mean to treat, and the detail of which, as it is necessary to you, and, in some instances, will fill you with astonishment, is, of course, much more necessary to be communicated to the People of England at large. But, before I proceed to the performance of this duty towards my country, it is necessary that I say something of what I am doing in order to take care of myself and family, which will not only be extremely interesting to you, but, I flatter myself, will be not uninteresting to many, many thousands of my countrymen, to many of whom (wholly unknown to me personally). I have to return my 3 unspeakable thanks for their attention vernment, knowing very well that the and their offers of service, solid sub- warrants of Lords Sidmouth and Cas stantial service, to my wife, who wastlereagh are much more to be dreaded left behind me in circumstances so even than the thunderbolts that struck very trying. Indeed, the wife and the ship, in which I sailed beyond the children of a man, chiefly for the reach of those warrants. purpose of stifling whose writings (loyal and legal as every line of them was) a Revolution has been made in the government of a great nation, may reasonably be deemed objects of interest and of care with men, who know how to estimate talent and zeal, who love truth, justice, and fairplay, and who mourn over the disgrace | of their country, exhibited in the at once mean and outrageous acts of its government in opposition to the talents of one single man, unassisted and unsupported by any thing on earth but the resources of his own mind, and those, too, unassisted by any trick, any craft, any finess, any disguise of aby sort, or by the employment of any blandishments or flattéries towards any human being. In the meanwhile, that is to say, while I wait to see the events which will arise out of the Bourbon Measures and out of the workings of our good old friend, the National Debt, I must eat and drink, say you. Very true, and, though a little serves me and all belonging to me, I have not the least doubt that we shall be able to get a plenty of both from the earth, which is never niggardly towards those, who will apply to her with earnestness and with care. To the earth, there fore, the untaxed earth, I will apply. It would be affectation to pretend, that I have not the means of living here by my pen; but it is my intention to be a downright farmer, and to depend solely upon what I can get in that way. I begin by counting upon nothing but what I can raise from the For the future, my kind and good friends, my mode of reasoning, my in-ground. If any thing else does come tentions, and my prospects, are these. I will be as frank with you and with the world as I would be with my own bosom. my children will be so much the richer, though they may not, perhaps, be so much the happier. I shall, I trust, set an example to my children, that, though suddenly bereft of fortune, no one need despair, who has freedom, industry and health. It is impossible that England can remain long in its present state. That is altogether impossible. More must be done, or that which is done must be undone; and, if the latter take place, and I am alive, I shall return. If the former take place: if a direct Censorship of the Press be adopted, which it must be very soon, and if it become evident, that this sort of Bourbon government is to remain as long as force will uphold it, I shall, of Euglishman, who will not only dis course, not go to live under that go-tinctly and explicitly disclaim all Whatever I send to be published in England I shall publish here in some shape or another, and, as you will see, though I have been so ill-treated by those who govern England, I shall never turn my back upon my country or my countrymen. There are per sons here, who will think well of no |