212 political firogrefs of Britain. Oc/. l®. 



REVIEW. 

 The political progress of Britain; or an impartial ac- 

 covnt of the principal abuses in the government of 



THIS COUNTRY, FROM THE REVOLUTION IN 1688. ThE 

 WHOLE TENDING TO PROVE THE RUINOUS CONSEQUENCES OF 

 T«E PAPULAR SYSTEM OF WAR AND CONQUEST, PART FIRST.. 



Edinburgh, Rsbertson and Berry, 1792. is. 



The greatest part of this pamphlet as already ap. 

 peared in the Bee, under the form of letters from Timo- 

 thy Thunderproof, so that our readers are already in some 

 measure able to judge of it. The author, in a fliort intro- 

 duction, thus justly characterises the performance him- 

 self. 



" This pamphlet consists not of fluent declamation, but 

 of curious, authenticated, and important facts, with a few 

 flwrt observations ifiterspersed, which seemed necefsary to 

 explain them. The reader will meet with no mournful pe- 

 riods to the memory of anniial or triennial parliaments ; 

 for while the members are men, such as their predecefsors 

 have almost always been, it is but of small concern whe- 

 ther they hold their places for life, or but for a single day. 

 Some of our projectors are ot opinion, that to Ihorten %he 

 duration of parliament would be an ample remedy far all 

 our grievances. The advantages of a popular election have 

 likewise been much extolled. Yet an acquaintance with 

 Thucydides, or Plutarch, or Guicciardini, or Machiavel, 

 ■may tend to calm the raptures of a republican apostle. 

 The plan of universal suffrages has been loudly recom- 

 mended by the duke of Richmond; and, on the i6th of 

 May 1782, that nobleman, seconded by Mr Home Tooke, 

 and Mr Pitt, was sitting in a tavern, composing advertise- 

 ments of reiormation for the newspapers. Mutaktur 



