HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
another, on an improved plan, by 
any chemical or mechanical pro- 
cess.* 
- But if it had been safe and pru- 
dent to launch forth on the ocean 
of metaphysics without sight of 
Jand, with the mere compass. of 
human reason, the French philoso- 
phers, and. Constituent Assembly 
who had adopted their ideas, did 
not by any means act consistently 
with their own principles. Every 
nation has its fundamental or con- 
stituent laws: in conformity to 
these laws the states general were 
convened, for the purpose of re- 
presenting the grievances of the 
nation. They had no instruction 
from the people either to subvert 
the old government, or to form a 
democratical constitution; yet they 
proceeded, under the assumed name 
and authority of the Constituent 
Assembly, to do both the one and 
the other. They formed a consti- 
tution, not springing, like ripe 
fruit, according to the analogy just 
mentioned, out of the circumstan- 
ces, habits, and wishes of the peo- 
ple, but shaped after fancied mo- 
dels of perfection, and to be ap- 
proved by the general will after- 
wards. In order to procure a show 
and semblance of this will, they in- 
vited armed federates, as they were 
called, in July 1791, to Paris, for 
the celebration of the third anni- 
versary of the revolution, from all 
the departments ; but armed fede- 
rates were not the proper repre- 
, Sentatives of free citizens. 
_ Thus the Constituent Assembly 
' 
[49 
violated the rights of men in the 
very means they employed for their 
establishment. Nothing could be 
expected but destruction out of 2 
system so inconsequent and absurd. 
The American constitution has 
hitherto been durable, because it 
was founded on the general voice 
of the people deliberately collected 
and fairly represented. 
The depraved state of morals 
in France,+ private interests and 
views, consequent intrigues, and a 
general mistrust between individ- 
uals and parties, were incompati« 
ble with the duration of a consti- 
tution so popular as that which had 
been established in France. The 
animating spirit of free govern- 
ments is a sense of moral, includ- 
ing religious, obligation, and sim~ 
plicity of manners. 
In contemplating the great and 
complicated mass of events that 
more immediately preceded the 
fall of the French monarchy, from 
another point of view, we perceive 
three different eras, or rather pe= 
riods of revolution. 
The first, the declaration of the 
parliament of Paris in 1787, that 
they had no right to register im- 
posts not consented to by the na- 
tion, with a concomitant demand. 
of a convocation of the states gene= 
ral; and the invitation of the prime 
minister, the Cardinal de Lomenie, 
to all men of letters to publish their 
sentiments on the great questions 
‘that occupied the attention and 
cares of government, for the pur- 
pose of aiding the deliberations of 
* Tor a brief discussion of this subject in general, and this analogy in particular, 
see a letter from the Rey. Dr. Thomson, to Dr. Parr, published by the latter, in 
the Appendix to his Sequel to a Letter to Mr. Curtis, 
+ lt might be very dangerous for other nations to hazard the experiment of 
forming republics, on the supposition that their morals are much purer than those 
of their French neighbours, 
Vou. XXXIV. 
[EZ] the 
