322 Danger of augmenting the PUBLIC DEBT, 
traordinary, tho’ not illegal methods to raife money : and let us- 
do it whilft our circumftances will admit of thinking coolly 
and deliberately. Men are apt to fee things in different lights, 
at different times : let us not trull: ourfelves in what manner 
we fhall think and a<fl under a prelling necellity. “ Lead us 
“ not into temptation,” ought to be our prayer in political as 
well as religious concerns. 
The caufes which have prevented our paying off any confider- 
able films in time of peace, feem to make ftrongly againft in- 
creasing the debt in time of war. Amongfl various motives: 
which have occafioned an indifference to what amount this 
debt is carried, fome have reafoned themfelves into a belief, that 
they fhould be undone, if they were under a necellity of re- 
ceiving their money • and imagine, the deeper the public is in 
debt, the better fecurity they fhall have of its remaining their 
debtor: and in one fenfe they are certainly in the right. It 
has been alfo thought a mystery,, if feventy-five millions were 
paid off, how the proprietors of the money could dispose of it. 
People reafon as if the whole would be paid into the hands of 
individuals in gold and silver. As there is now no borrower 
without a lender, nor seller without a buyer, they appre- 
hend that feventy-five millions of money would become a dead 
stock on hand. They do not conlider that there would 
not be a fmgle Shilling more money in the nation than there is, 
tho’ the Turns deposited in the bank might circulate. Seventy- 
five millions is not one tenth part of the computed value of 
our national flock ; and tho’ for the very reafon that great con- 
venience accrues to many, by having their money in the pub- 
lic 
