1813.] The Sailor's Grave. Demand without reply, unsolved enigma, The coarse girl told-" They had forgotten nothing." 527 It was in the summer of 1830, I believe, that the young pair who inspired the poet with the above lines, arrived at the Cheval Blanc, at Montmorency. They passed two days as he has described the third, missed in their usual wanderings, their chamber door was opened, and they were found dead-the discharged pistols beside them. Both were extremely young, and the girl very beautiful. THE SAILOR'S GRAVE. Composed on seeing the grave of a young sailor, who had been shipwrecked, and was unknown, in a churchyard close to the seashore. "Tears for the weary ones who keep But sorrow not for those that sleep Their heritage is won."-FRANCES BROWN. Perhaps a tender mother's mournful eye For him who sleeps within this foreign grave. Perhaps perhaps each home returning sail Brings light to eyes from weary watching dim, Perchance his name-his dear familiar name And watchers in their fervency exclaim, "Ere summer's breath brings back the roses bloom, Ere the glad butterfly shall burst the gloom Weep not for him-the stormy strife is o'er, Weep not for him-he lies in sweet repose— ALICIA JANE Sparrow. CROWN FEDERALISM.-THE LATE BRITISH COLONIES IN AMERICA. Πολλὰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα ἔτι καὶ νῦν ὄντα καὶ οὐ χρόνῳ ἀμνηστούμενα καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι Ἕλληνες οὐκ ὀρθῶς οἴονται: οὕτως ἀταλαίπωρος τοῖς πολλοῖς ἡ ζήτησις τῆς ἀληθείας, καὶ ἐπὶ τὰ ἑτοῖμα μᾶλλον τρίπονται.—Thucydides, b. i. c. 20. It was remarked by Leland, that Ireland had never a philosophical historian. The period which has elapsed since that observation was made, has done nothing to remedy his complaint. The Clio of Irish history still holds a magic-lantern, of which the light is little, but the magnifier large: through it slide after slide is passed, exhibiting distorted and exaggerated, but, at the same time, fleeting and evanescent pictures of the crimes and miseries of departed ages. Sir Richard Musgrave, on the one hand, having kindled the torch of his history at the fire of Scullabogue, cast a lurid glare upon the wickedness and barbarism of the Celts. Mr. O'Connell, on the other part, has, more recently, disinhumed the buried recollection of Saxon cruelty and oppression, that their putrid remains, by causing a moral miasma, may pollute the political atmosphere, and make it a fit medium to propagate the contagion of Repeal. From the productions of these compilers, written, though they be, in the style of the proces verbal of an executioner, one valuable inference may be drawn, one important conclusion may be deduced, viz. :—that the history of Ireland, whilst she was united to England by that peculiar species of federalism, which was formed by the connecting link of the crown, is a record of alternate periods of despotism or anarchy, of the convulsion of passion, or of the paralysis of despair. But it is not Ireland alone that exhibits the disastrous consequences of such a connection; the experiments made in the European dominions of the Spanish monarchy, in Castile, Arragon, Catalonia, Biscay, and the Netherlands; in the kingdoms of England and of Scotland; in the British-American colonies, prove that it causes either servile submission or bloody resistance to the sovereign authority; and that the only means by which states so related can continue free, is an incorporating union, or a complete separation. As the menace of American power has been used, and the influence of American names has been employed to aid the recoil of European civilization, which the repeal of the union would certainly produce, we purpose in this paper to glance at the constitutional history of the United States; and it will be seen incidentally, that to the opinions of Tyler and Van Buren, and to the form of government they advocate for the British Islands, is opposed the authority of Washington, Franklin, Madison, Hamilton, Morris, Adams, and every other name illustrious in the revolutionary history of America; not excepting the apostle of anarchy, Jefferson, himself.* The quo warranto proceedings, in the reign of James II., against the chartered rights of the Americans, the tradition of despotism which the line of Stuart received from the Spanish branch of the house of Austria, as the means of assailing freedom, destroyed the union of the colonies,† "which was generally known, and had been frequently avowed to be essential to their safety, their greatness, and their prosperity, long before the late revolution, or the claims of the British parliament, which produced it," and left them equally exposed to internal oppression and foreign force, to the tyranny of Andros, which they experienced, and the cruelty of Kirk, which they narrowly, but fortunately, escaped. The revolution of 1688 restored representative government to the colonies; and, although the former intimate union among them was not * God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion (i. e. a rebellion for the purpose of cancelling debts). Jefferson's Letter to Colonel Smith, November, 1787. Jefferson's Letters, vol. ii. p. 268. Kent's Commentaries on American Law, vol. i. p. 203. revived, yet there are instances to be found of associations for their safety. A congress of governors and commissioners was occasionally held to make arrangements for the more effectual protection of the internal frontiers ; and one of these assembled at Albany in 1722; but a more interesting congress was held there in the year 1754. The British dominions in America, at that period divided into eleven separate states, exclusive of Georgia and Nova Scotia, were exposed along the whole line of their frontier to the attacks of hordes of Indian warriors, the most cruel and treacherous of the human race, and of the army of the hostile colony of Canada; thus having combined against them the skill of civilized and the craft of savage man. The English inhabitants, though numerous, were scattered over a vast tract of country; and if some of their towns were thickly inhabited, their settlements in the country were at a great distance from each other. The Indians, from their migratory habits, were perfectly acquainted with all the lines of communication, the number of the population, and their means of defence; but the English knew little of the immense forests by which they were surrounded, and which covered from observation the red man, until the moment he began to discharge the rifle, or to use the tomahawk; and supplied to him, in the event of defeat, a sure place of refuge. In each of the colonies nothing of importance could be transacted without the consent of their respective assemblies, and it was impossible to unite them in any plan of general defence; they appeared insensible to impending danger, when an immediate junction became necessary for their common safety. A cotemporary writer said,* “ that it was easy to conceive that a large body of men, part of them regular troops, (the French army in Canada,) with the assistance of the Indians scattered through the continent, upon the back of all the British settlements, might reduce a number of disunited and independent colonies, though much superior to them in point of numbers, and easily break a rope of sand." The instinct of the savage and the wisdom of the philosopher alike revolted from a form of government which induced such results; and at the instance of the Indians, who openly upbraided the English for their divisions and indolence, a congress of deputies from the different colonies was, by the order of the lords of trade, appointed to meet the chiefs of the six nations at Albany, in 1754, to concert a scheme of common defence. The legislature of Pennsylvania, although they did not like to treat out of the province, agreed to the recommendation of the governor, to appoint the speaker, Mr. Norriss, Mr. Secretary Peters, and Dr. Franklin, to act as their commissioners. On the road to Albany, Dr. Franklin projected and drew up a plan for the union of all the colonies under one government, so far as might be important for defence and all other general purposes. At New York he consulted on the subject Mr. James Alexander, and Mr. Kennedy, two gentlemen of great experience and knowledge in public affairs; confirmed in his opinion by their approbation, he laid his proposal before the congress. It was then discovered that several other commissioners had formed similar plans. A committee was therefore appointed to examine and report on the various proposals, and after investigating them, they preferred the scheme of Dr. Franklin. By this plan was proposed a general council of delegates, to be triennially chosen by the provincial assemblies, and a presidentgeneral to be appointed by the crown.‡ In this council, subject to the immediate negative of the president, and the eventual negative of the king in council, was the right of war and peace in respect to the Indian nations, and the confederacy was to embrace all the existing colonies from New Hampshire to Georgia. The council were to have authority to make laws for the government of new settlements, upon territories to be purchased from the History of the British Dominions in North America from 1497 to 15, 16. London: Strahan. 1772. i. p. 203. Ibid. p. 22. Memoir of the Life and Writings of B. Franklin, LL.D., by his Son, vol. Indians, to raise and build forts, and even to equip vessels of force to guard the coast, and to protect trade upon the ocean, as well as the lakes and rivers. They were likewise to make laws, to lay and levy imposts, duties, and taxes, for these necessary purposes. This plan was recommended to the crown and the various legislatures, for the following "reasons and motives" : "The commissioners from a number of the northern colonies being met at Albany, and considering the difficulties that have always attended the most necessary general measures for the common defence of the country, or for the annoyance of the enemy, when they were to be carried through the several particular assemblies of all the colonies or councils, and the several branches of the government not on terms of doing business with each other-others taking opportunity, when their concurrence is wanted, to push for favourite laws, powers, or points, that they think at other times could not be obtained, and so creating disputes and quarrels ; one assembly waiting to see what another will do, being afraid of doing more than its share, or desirous of doing less, or refusing to do anything, because its country is not at present so much exposed as others, or because another will reap more immediate advantage; from one or other of which causes, the assemblies of six (out of seven) colonies applied to, had granted no assistance to Virginia when lately invaded by the French, though purposely convened, and the importance of the occasion earnestly urged upon them -and considering that one principal encouragement to the French, in invading and insulting the British American dominions, was the knowledge of our disunited state, and our weakness arising from want of union; and from hence different colonies were at different times extremely harassed, and put to great expense, both of blood and treasure, who would have remained at peace if the enemy had cause to fear the drawing on themselves the resentment and power of the whole-the said commissioners, considering the present encroachment of the French, and the mischievous consequences that may be expected from them, if not opposed by our force, came to a unanimous resolution, That an union of the colonies is absolutely necessary for their preservation. "The manner of forming and establishing this union was the next point. "When it was considered that the colonies were seldom all in equal danger at the same time, or equally near the danger, or equally sensible of it; that some of them had particular interests to manage, with which an union might interfere; and that they were extremely jealous of each other: it was thought impracticable to obtain a joint agreement of all the colonies to an union, in which the expenses and burthen of defending any of them should be divided among them all; and if even acts of assembly in all the colonies could be obtained for that purpose, yet as any colony on the least dissatisfaction might repeal its own act, and thereby withdraw itself from the union, it would not be a stable one, or such as could be depended on: for if only one colony should, on any disgust, withdraw itself, others might think it unjust and unequal, that by continuing in the union, they should be at the expense of defending a colony which refused to bear its proportionable part, and would therefore one after another withdraw, till the whole crumbled into its original parts; therefore the commissioners came to another resolution, viz.: That it was necessary the union should be established by act of parliament. "It was proposed by some of the commissioners to form the colonies into two or three distinct unions; but, for these reasons, that proposal was dropped, even by those who made it : “I. In all cases where the strength of the whole was necessary to be used against the enemy, there would be the same difficulty in degree to bring the several unions to unite together, as now the several colonies, and consequently the same delay on one part, and advantage to the enemy. II. Each union would be separately weaker than when joined by the whole, obliged to exert more force, be oppressed by the expense, and the enemy less deterred from attacking it. "III. Where particular colonies have to the Indian trade and land; or being less exposed, being covered by others, as selfish views, as New York with regard New Jersey, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maryland; or have particular whims and prejudices against warlike measures, as Pennsylvania, where the Quakers predominate; such colonies would have more weight in a partial union, and be better able to obstruct and oppose the measures necessary for the * Kent's Commentaries on American Law, vol. i. p. 203. general good, than when they are swallowed up in the general union. 66 It was also thought, that by frequent meetings together of the commissioners or representatives of the colonies, the circumstances of the whole would be better known, and the good of the whole better provided for; and that the colonies by this connection would learn to consider themselves, not as so many independent states, but as members of the same body; and therefore be more ready to afford assistance and support to each other, and to make diversions in favour of even the most distant, and to join cordially in any expedition for the benefit of all against the common enemy. "Its fate," says Dr. Franklin, "was singular; the assemblies did not adopt it, as they all thought there was too much prerogative in it; and in England it was judged to have too much of the democratic. I am still of opinion that it would have been happy for both sides, if it had been adopted. The colonies so united would have been sufficiently strong to have defended themselves, and there would have been no need of troops from England; of course the subsequent pretext for taxing America, and the bloody contest it occasioned, would have been avoided."t The war commenced, the British government having been left to defray the expenses of offensive operations, each state depended on its own resources for individual defence, and relied on its own strength for its peculiar protection. Events rapidly demonstrated the dreadful consequences of the folly of those colonies which refused to combine to be free, and unite to be safe. The disaster of the Great Meadows, after which Colonel Washington had to capitulate, on conditions of surrendering his artillery and prisoners to the French, and to agree not to build any more establishments on that place, or beyond the mountains (Alleghany), for the space of a year, was followed by the defeat at Monongehala, the most terrible reverse, considering the numbers engaged, that ever was suffered by British soldiers, one half of the army and two thirds of the officers, including the Pennsylvania and Maryland, aroused I "Your honour may see," said he, "to what unhappy straits the distressed inhabitants, and myself, are reduced. am too little acquainted, sir, with pathetic language, to attempt a description of the people's distresses, though I have a generous soul, sensible of wrongs But what and swelling for redress. can I do? I see their situation, I know their danger, and I participate in their * Life and Writings of Franklin. Albany Papers, pp. 1 to 4. † Memoir of the Life of Franklin, vol. i. p. 202. The Writings of General Washington. By Jared Sparks. Vol. i. p. 67. Boston: Andrews. 1839. |