. 
222] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1797. 
“Influence of French opinion and 
example, and the rapid progress of 
popular claims and combinations. 
‘Lhe snppression of this rebellion 
illustrated the prudence and vigour 
of administration more than any 
other of their transactions at home 
or abroad had ever done. On the 
other hand, the systematic order 
and moderation of the sailors, and 
the chearful return to obedience, 
of at least the great body of seamen, 
their claims being granted, illustrate 
the mighty adyantages of a free 
government, in which men can as- 
sume the manly air of freedom, with- 
out abandoning themselves to the 
licentiousness and phrenzy of slaves 
broken loose from bondage. From 
this event it was said, by many can- 
did persons, far removed fromenthu- 
siasm of any kind, that there might 
notimprobably be much less danger 
in complying with the numerous 
petitions which had been presented, 
in the course of 1707, for a par- 
jiamentary reform, than was gene- 
sally apprehended. 
It is not often that governments 
anticipate the just complaints of 
the _ people, or any class of the 
people, by unconstrained: acts of 
justice. It isnot, commonly, until 
some intolevable grievance be on the 
point of an explosion, that’ must 
endanger the stability of their own 
power, that they do much for the re- 
liefof human misery, ‘The mutiny 
in the fleet, would scarcely, ‘perhaps, 
have sufficed, to have turned the 
attention of our ministry to the 
miserable pittance to which the 
gradual depreciation in the’ value 
of money had reduced the pay of 
the soldiers, that is, from privates 
to serjeants inclusive, if a disposition 
to claim a redress of this great evil 
had not become quite apparent in 
the whole army, particularly in the 
corps stationed in the near vicinity 
of London, and in other populous 
cities and towns; and if the in- 
terests and claims of the army had 
not been taken care of by the com- 
mander-in-chief, his royal highness 
the duke of York.t 
to mount up from the particular clreamstances of particular situations, to general prin- 
ciples common toall. 
No: but different in diferent cases. 
examples Of punishment strike terror. 
What is the effect of puuishment? Is it the same in all cases ? 
When men are conscious of guilt, even a few 
Whcere no such consciousness exists, whether 
from truth, error, or insensibility of disposition, even multiplied examples. of severity 
serve only to heighten the resolution, and add fuel to the fame of mastyrdom.— 
** In conscious virtue men are bold.” * 
“* Grief is bold, and makes its owners stout.” + 
*« Tet not our desien be misunderstood—we mean not to extenuate the guilt of the 
leading mutineers: but let the nature and the evidence of their crime be made plain to 
the whole world ; and let every allowance be made to the unsuspicious credulity of 
saliors, who may, possibly, have been induced to espousea bad, under the idea ofitsbeing 
ajust and honourable, cause. If delegates were to be punished, quoad delegates, this 
might occasion disapprobation, perhaps, and alarm! But the oyert-acts of rebellion, 
and particularly the efforts to carry the British ships of war into the ports of France, 
may with safety, and ought, in justice and sound policy, to be punished.” ; 
The industry of journalists is seldom more happily directed than it was, at such a 
time, in the publication of this paper. 3 
> Astatement of the former, and the advanced pay of the soldiers, will be found 
Among the State-Papers in this volume, page 252. : 
* Addison. + Shakespeare, 
CHAP. 
