himfelf, in various parts of his writings, feems plainly enough to hint, that, along with kingly government, the Scriptures alfo muft be extruded. And now, where his principles are reduced to practice, his colleagues of the rump convention, have found it neceffary, in order to justify their abolition of kings, to abolish Christianity too. What else could be their defign, in abolishing the Christian fabbath, which is appointed by God, not only as a weekly commemoration of his two great works, of creation and redemption, but likewife as the distinguishing badge of his religion: or, as the Scriptures express it, a fign between him and his people for ever? Yet thefe are the men, and this is the constitution, which some men in Britain, and eveni fome who pretend to be zealous Christians, wish to imi tate. My foul, come not thou into their fecrets; unto their affembly, mine honour, be not thou united!

ESSAY

ESSAY V.

On PARLIAMENTARY REPRESENTATION and

REFORM.

ONE of the principal advantages of the British con

ftitution lies in this, that one branch of the legislature is compofed of reprefentatives chofen by the people. Yet there is nothing that is more complained of by difcontented perfons, than the present state of that representation. And the mode now introduced into France is extolled, as incomparably better than ours. But a very moderate degree of attention will convince any one, that our fyftem of representation is incomparably better than theirs. To mention only two parti

culars:

1. In France, by the constitution of 1791, no perfon was to have a voice in the primary affemblies, but fuch as contributed directly towards the expences of the ftate, the value of three days labour; nor any menial fervant; nor any that was not enrolled in the national guards. And no perfon could vote for the national representátives, in the electoral affemblies, who was not valued, on the rolls of contribution, at an yearly revenue, equal, at leaft, to 150 days labour. But in England, every

perfon

perfon is entitled to vote for a member of Parliament, who enjoys a free income of forty fhillings a year, which is not earned by fervitude: and this right is not forfeited by his receiving wages. Many electors in England pay nothing directly to Government: and what every one pays indirectly, it is impoffible to determine. Thus it is plain, that in England, many are electors, who, in France, could have no place, even in a primary affembly: and many more, who could not be chofen elec

tors *.

2. In France, according to the above mentioned conftitution, he who was to reprefent the department in the legiflature, might be chofen, contrary to the mind of a great majority of the active citizens, who were entitled to vote in their primary affemblies: which may be clearly illustrated thus. In France, every 100 active citizens were to choose an elector. Thefe electors were to meet in what was to be called an electoral affembly; where the reprefentative of the department was to be chofen. Now, fuppofe this mode adopted in Britain, and suppose the number of active citizens in any county, amounts to ten thousand; every hundred of these is to choose one elector, making an hundred in all. Thefe hundred electors are to choofe one to reprefent the county in Parliament, or, if you please, in convention. Suppose the nation, as it ufually is, divided into two parties; and, for diftinction's fake, It Mr Pitt be at the head of one party, and Mr Fox at the head of the other. Of the hundred primary affemblies, confifting

of

*How these matters ftand in that thing called a constitution, which the prefent convention have framed, I know not; having never seen more of it than what was exhibited in public news-papers.

of a hundred active citizens each, fifty-one choose elecs tors of Mr Pitt's faction, by a majority of fixty to for ty, at a medium. It is plain, that among all these, there are in Mr Pitt's intereft, three thousand and fixty active citizens, and two thousand and forty in that of Mr Fox. The other forty-nine affemblies choose electors of Mr Fox's party, by a majority of eighty to twenty, one with another: here there must be three thousand-nine hundred and twenty citizens in favours of Mr Fox, and only nine-hundred and eighty for Mr Pitt.-Thus, in the whole county, Mr Fox has five thousand nine hundred and fixty on his fide, while Mr Pitt has only four thoufand and forty: yet the election is carried in Mr Pitt's favours, by fifty-one against forty-nine. Thus almost three fifths of the active citizens are really against the perfon who is chofen to reprefent them: but, among us, whoever the electors be, we are fure that their re prefentatives are chofen by the majority of them.

Various other mistakes people labour under, with regard to the affair of reprefentation, which we fhall en deavour to rectify, by the following obfervations.

I. A man may be truly, fairly, and equitably reprefented, by one whom he has never chofen for that purpofe. Every member of the Houfe of Commons reprefents those who voted against him, as well as them who voted for him. Yea, whenever a man is chosen, he ceafes to be a reprefentative of that city or county only, by which he was chofen: and becomes a reprefentative of the British people at large. And every individual among that people is reprefented, not by any particular member of Parliament only; but by the whole house. This doctrine has been fupported by the best writers on

our

Our government, and by thofe moft favourable to liber ty*.

There are various ways, in which a true and just representation may be conftituted, without the choice of those who are reprefented. Every man has a natural right to represent his own family, and even his posterity, to the latest generations. As this right is founded in the law of nature, it is recognized by the municipal laws of all civilized nations. And every man exercifes it in every civil tranfaction. If I enter into any contract, and do not live to fulfill it, my obligation is binding upon my heirs and executors to the end of time; because 1 truly reprefented them in that transaction, though it took place long before they were born. Under the feudal fyftem, every great man was the reprefentative of his vaffals and dependents; and thus the people in Britain were, in a fort, represented in Parliament, before a choice of reprefentatives was known By the British conftitution, the king is the reprefentative of the whole nation. It is the majefty and authority of the nation, that is collected, and centers in his perfon. It is in the name of the whole nation, that he tranfacts with foreign powers, whether in making peace or war, or alliances of any kind: and as a proof that every individual is included in this reprefentation, every one in the nation is as much bound by the king's tranfactions as himfelf is. Yet I need not add, that there is not a perfon now alive in the nation, that had any active hand in choofing him to be king.

To Chriftians we may addrefs an argument of still greater weight, in support of reprefentation, where there

has

* Blackstone's Comm. v. I. 7. 159.