fund to conduct it with advantage, and to crown it with fuccefs.

No one shall be more ready than myself to agree to a fufficient fupply of men and money, to ftrengthen the hands of government, in a juft and neceffary war; to maintain the honour and dignity of the British crown; to defend our poffeffions, and to protect our trade and commerce: but we ought not to run precipitately into all the measures of a ministry: fomething ought to be done towards preventing both the increase of our national debt, and the abuses of public trufts, by which these kingdoms have greatly fuffered under former administrations, and to which the present difficulties in raising money must be ascribed.

DEBT is the ready way to poverty: a wife people, no more than a wife man, will ever place their fecurity in a load of debts. They, that borrow more than they are able to pay, must fink under the weight: their credit must fail in proportion to their infolvency: and their strength will abfolutely wafte with their credit. This is not mere fpeculation; daily experience in private life, and frequent examples of whole nations, ruined by their debts, will support my afsertion, and my care for the well-being of my dear country. No nation ever fubmitted to flavery till its finances were confumed, and till the fubjects vitals were exhaufted. Riches are the vital fpirits of the body politic, and when they

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they are spent the body can never support itself against oppreffion and tyranny.

HE that is in debt, in Cicero's ftile, is loft; loft to the fociety, of which he is a member; because they can receive no benefit or affiftance from him; and loft to himself, because he will be no longer trufted, and is expofed by his neceffitous circumftances to the caprice, contempt and power of his enemies, and too often to the ingratitude and flight of thofe, who have lived upon him. And can it be imagined that a nation, which goes to war with money borrowed at a high intereft; which maintains large armies to defend foreign countries; pays extraordinary fubfidies for the friendship of states, that can do them neither good nor harm; and confumes more treasure in penfions and needlefs falaries than would fuffice to defray the ordinary expence of the government; can ever subsist where thefe difbursements are always to be made with other people's property? fuch a nation must fooner or later be loft. The poor labourer and manufacturer will be diftreffed; the farmer difabled from paying his rent; the merchant and tradefman will be ruined, and even gentlemen of plentiful eftates will be reduced to the greateft difficulties in making a tolerable provifion for their families, in a country where taxes are fo multiplied, as to double the price of the common neceffaries of life. It is much to be feared that a nation oppreffed with debt, will but too much refemble the prodigal child, who having

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fquandered away his patrimony in luxury and profufeness, gives himself up to corruption and venality. For, as national debts and taxes enable one fet of men to corrupt, fo they lay a multitude of others under the temptation of being corrupted. And it is well known, that poverty and bad examples will drive men to fell their dearest birthright. Therefore it is the duty of our representatives before they grant fupplies, to confider in what condition their conftituents are to pay them; to be well fatisfied, how they are to be applied, and to whofe care and management they are to be entrusted.

THE granting fupplies, though neceffary, is always laying a burden upon the nation, But to grant them implicitly, without confidering the prefent diftreffes of the people, already fubject to the payment of eighty millions; loaded with innumerable taxes, and eat up by penfions, falaries, and ftock-jobbing! without enquiring, what men and money will be proper and neceffary to grant; and without due information how we are fituated in regard to our affairs abroad, is unparliamentary, and a breach of truft in the reprefentatives of the nation.

THEREFORE, whatever arguments shall be urged for ftrengthning the crown against a foreign enemy: whatever eftimates fhall be offered to the house by the minifter; and whatever fubfidies fhall be reported as neceffary to be paid by Great Britain to princes on the continent; the national debt fhould be firft confidered; not

with a view to distress the throne, nor to cramp a miniftry, who fhall deferve the character of honeft and true Britons, by their good œconomy and wife conduct; and hall apply the money intrusted to them, not to the payment of foreign fubfidies, but to a naval armament, which is our natural strength and fecurity: but in order to guard against that profufion and misapplication of the public treasure by thofe, whofe abilities have been distinguished, both in public and private life, for their bad œconomy and venality: by which so much money has been confumed; and the people are ftill left exposed to their enemies abroad, and groan under debts and taxss, which are the ruin of their trade at home.

We should never placean implicit faith in the wisdom and integrity of ministers of state; because they feldom deserve so much confidence. Befides, it is inconfiftent with the dignity of parliament to give away the money of their conftituents, without firft taking the utmost care, that what shall be demanded for any branch of the public fervice, fhall, beyond all contradiction, be made appear to be abfolutely neceffary.

SHOULD it be proposed to increase our national debt, by entering into another war on the continent; and it fhall appear, that we are not able to form a confederacy fufficient to maintain the balance of power by land; all motions for fubfidies to pay foreign troops, which can be of no fervice to Great Britain, ought to be rejected; and the money to be raised ought to be applied

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in a vigorous exertion of our naval force, on which alone we muft depend for our future fafety and protection.

NOR will all these precautions deliver us from our grievances, fhould our representatives neglect to place the truft of the national affairs under better management. Can there be expected any favings, fhould the public money be intrufted to the care and conduct of men that have loaded us with taxes in time of peace, heavier than our forefathers ever felt in the time of war; and contracted a debt, which, I fear, the whole British dominions are not able to pay? SHOULD any any unthinking Briton, over zealous in the revenge of the insults, depredations, and hoftilities of the French, imagine, that this advice is unfeasonable; let me refer him to a moft memorable instance in the reign of Richard II. when the house of commons infifted to have the grievances of the nation redressed, before they would grant the neceffary fupplies. The French had then affembled a very formidable army, and a fleet to invade us, which England was in no condition to refift: and all their naval power was within a day's fale of the Thames mouth. Richard in this imminent danger fummoned his parliament, and demanded the neceffary fupplies to pay and fupport his army, then living at free quarters about London. What did the parliament in this terrible fituation? did they inconfiderately grant the king's demand? No: the king had been ill advised, the people had E 4

been