UNION. 



order, fome of whom were their prifoners and felons, fcan- 

 dalous fignatures againft the conftitution : that, notwith- 

 ftanding thefe attempts to procure a fallacious appearance 

 of ftrength and mufter againft parliament, the people have 

 exprefled their fentiments decidedly againft the union ; and 

 twenty-one counties at public meetings legally convened, 

 and alfo many other counties by petitions figned by the 

 freeholders, and many cities and towns, have exprefled 

 either to your majefty, or to this houfc, or to both, their de- 

 cided and unalterable hoflility to this union; yet your minif- 

 ters have, as we believe, taken upon them to ftate to your 

 majefty and your minifters in Britain, in defiance of all thefe 

 fafts, that the fenfe of the nation is not adverfe to the mea- 

 fure : that if there could be any doubt that your majefty's 

 minifters in the appointment of (heriff^s did confider how 

 they might obftruA the people in delivering their opinion 

 regarding the union, that doubt is fully explained by their 

 continuing in of&ce the fheriff of the former year in more 

 than one inftance, whence it alfo appears how decidedly the 

 fenfe of the country is againft this meafure, when your 

 majefty's minifters found it difficult to procure any perfon 

 to ferve the office of flieriff who was properly qualified, and 

 was alfo a friend to the meafure : that, finding the fenfe of 

 the people as well as the parliament to be againft it, your 

 majefty's minifters attempted to change the parliament itfelf, 

 and refufing to take the fenfe of the nation by a general 

 eleftion, they procured a partial diflolution, and did io pub- 

 licly abufe the dilquahfying claufe in the place -bill (which 

 was enafted for the exprefs purpofe of preferving the free- 

 dom and independence of parliament), that by vacating feats 

 under its authority, very many new returns were made to 

 this houfe for the purpofe of carrying it ; and thus did they 

 change the parliament without reforting to the people : that 

 before the miniftry had perverted the place-bill, the fenfe of 

 parliament was againft their union ; and if that bill had not 

 been fo perverted, that fenfe had remained unaltered : that 

 of thofe who voted for the union, we beg leave to inform 

 your majefty, feventy-fix had places or penfions under the 

 crown, and others were under the immediate influence of 

 conftituents who held great offices under the crown : that 

 the praftices of influence above-mentioned, were accompa- 

 nied by the removal from office of various fervants of the 

 crown who had feats in parliament, particularly the chan- 

 cellor of the exchequer, the prime ferjeant, three commif- 

 fioners of the revenue, a commiffioner of accounts, a com- 

 miffioner of barracks, and the curfitor of the court of 

 chancery, bccaufe they would not vote away the parhament ; 

 alfo by their withdrawing their confidence from others of 

 your majefty's faithful and able counfellors for the fame rea- 

 fon : that they procured or encouraged the purchafe of feats 

 in this houfe to return members to vote for the union ; alfo 

 the introduftion of perfons unconnefted with this country 

 to vote away her parliament : that they have alfo attempted 

 to proftitute the peerage by promifing to perfons, not even 

 commoners in parhament, her facred honours, if they would 

 come into this houfe and vote for the union : and that, 

 finally, they have annexed to their plan of union an artful 

 device, whereby a million and a half of m6ney is to be 

 given to private perfons pofleffing returns, who are to re- 

 ceive faid fum on the event of the union, for the carrying 

 of which to fuch an amount faid perfons are to be paid ; 

 and this nation is to make good the fale by which ihe is 

 thus difinherited of her parliament, and is to be taxed for 

 ever to raife the whole amount, although, if your minifters 

 ffiall perfevere in fuch a flagrant, unconftitutional fcheme, 

 and the money is to be raifed, it is for the union, and being 

 therefore an imperial concern, ought to be borne in the pro- 



portion already laid down for impenal expences, that is, two 

 feventeenths by Ireland, and fifteen feventeenths by Britain : 

 that under thefe unconftitutional circumftances your ma- 

 jefty's minifters have endeavoured, againft the declared fenfe 

 of the people, to impofe upon them a new conftitution, fub- 

 verting the old one. 



" That when we confider the peculiar iituation of this king- 

 dom, with the annual drains of money from it by perfons 

 pofleffing property in it, who do not refide, to the ellimated 

 amount of at leaft two millions annually ; when we advert to 

 the further inevitable drain of a million a year by the public 

 revenue, to be remitted to Britain for the annual charges of 

 our public debt ; and that to countervail thefe great and tre- 

 meridous iffues of money, amounting to three millions, we 

 have only our general balance of trade, not 6oo,ocx)/. a year, 

 to fet againft them ; we look with dread at a meafure which 

 muft on the one hand neceflarlly add to thofe drains, by 

 adding a new and large portion of our wealthieft fellow- 

 fubjefis to the prefent abfentees, and which muft on the 

 other hand decreafe that balance, by encouraging and pro- 

 moting new imports of manufafture in the room of thofe 

 which will decline here. We look to it vnth the more 

 dread, becaufe, notwithftanding the great loans from Eng- 

 land, to the amount of fix millions in the laft three years, we 

 have not been able to counterbalance the exifting drains 

 from hence, and the exchange has been and ftill continues 

 regularly and uniformly againft us. And further, becaufe 

 our inability to raife the neceflary loans within this kingdom, 

 even to the fmall extent that has been expefted, is unfortu- 

 nately now too evident ; and the continuing to fupply our 

 treafury by loans from Britain, though it may afford fome 

 temporai-y relief, will regularly increafe the evil. Your ma- 

 jefty's minifters, therefore, if they promife to themfelves or 

 to the Britifh nation any eafement to their own taxes, from 

 the fuppofed acceffion of power over our wealth and over our 

 refources, will find themfelves moft thoroughly difappointed ; 

 and if the difficulty of remittance ffiall increafe, the manu- 

 fafturers of Britain, who have hitherto fupplied this king- 

 dom, will find the demand for their goods decreafe in pro- 

 portion as that difficulty ffiall rife. 



" That we undcrftand one benefit which they hold out from 

 the propofed meafure is, what your minifters affecl to call 

 tranquillizing Ireland ; but that when we look to our parlia- 

 ment, and fee with what efficacy and promptnefs it has con- 

 tributed to put down the late unfortunate rebellion, how 

 inadequate a parliament not refident would have been ; when 

 we refleft that in a kingdom containing four and a half mil- 

 hons of people, a refident parliament muft poflefs the quick 

 and authoritative means of giving energy to the executive, 

 which a parliament in another country cannot have ; that 

 the removing of the parliament tends to remove with it 

 from the kingdom thofe men of large property and influence, 

 of talents and rcfpeftabihty, whofe prefence is at all times 

 eflential to tranquillity, and may at fome conjunfture be 

 alone capable of preferving it ; that their abfence will leave 

 room for pohtical agitators and men of talents, without 

 principle or property, to difturb and irritate the public 

 mind ; we tremble for the confequences of a meafure at once 

 the moft raffi and unnecefl'ary, that ever was brought for- 

 ward by any minifters, and at a time moft fitted to produce 

 every evil dreaded, and leaft fitted to promote any one be- 

 nefit held forth. 



" That when we confider the time chofen to introduce fuch 

 a meafure, we feel additional repugnance, it being the mo- 

 ment of our weaknefs and diftrefs, when the country is of 

 courfe lefs free to deliver its full and heartfelt fentiments 

 againft the illiberality of fuch an attempt ; peculiarly mor- 

 tifying 



