and what is very remarkable, both friends and foes are for once in the right. I was mistaken; but the mistake was of a very peculiar kind; your virtue, my excellent fellow-citizens! having far exceeded my most sanguine expectations. I accept your honorable invitation; and may your virtue conduct you to victory, and save your country from the fangs of harpies. I remain, With gratitude and esteem, Your friend, And the friend of the liberties of mankind, THOMAS NORTHMORE. Cleve, 9th December, 1816. To the Gentlemen, Clergy, Freemen, & Freeholders, of the City of Exeter. GENTLEMEN, In consequence of the determination of my highly respectable colleague, Mr. Buller, to retire from the representation of your city in parliament, I feel, in justice to my friends, that my intentions ought not to remain the least doubtful, and therefore explicitly avow my fixed determination to offer myself again to your notice, whenever an election is likely to recur. In making this declaration, allow me to assure you, that whilst I feel proud of the honor you did me in electing me one of your representatives, it will be my most anxious study to discharge with integrity, the various duties annexed to so important a situation, and to prove myself deserving of your future confidence and support. I have the honor to be, With sincere esteem, Your most obliged and obedient humble servant, London, 9th December, 1816, W. COURTENAY. TAXES at the will of the BOROUGH FACTION, OR, TAXES according to the CONSTITUTION." "Choose you this day which you prefer: as for me and my house, we prefer the Constitution." 、A PATRIOT, Freemen of Exeter! Promise no man your vote who will not pledge himself to support a REFORM in the REPRESENTATION of the PEOPLE in the COMMONS HOUSE of Parliament, which is the only measure that affords any hope of seeing USELESS OFFICES, SINECURE PLACES, and UNMERITED PENSIONS abolished; the POOR RATES considerably reduced; and such economy in every department of the state introduced, as to enable a virtuous parliament materially to lessen those taxes which bear the most on the GROWERS of CORN, and on the LABOURING CLASSES of the community; namely the TAXES on CANDLES, SOAP, Salt, SUGAR, MALT, LEATHER, &c. &c. &c. &c. P. S If any elector has rashly engaged his vote, and on that account thinks himself obliged to give it without such pledge from the candidate, let him know that all such engagements are conditional, and that therefore he may lawfully refuse to vote till the candidate has so pledged. No man is obliged to employ a servant (whatever he may rashly have promised) who refuses to give a proper pledge for his faithfulness. December, 1816, To the Gentlemen, Clergy, Freemen & Freeholders, of the City of Exeter. GENTLEMEN, I offered myself as a candidate for the honor of being elected one of your representatives in the event of Mr. Buller's retiring at the next general election. As it now appears that many persons in Exeter wish to bring Mr. Buller forward, and re-elect him, free of expence to him, I lose no time in assuring you, that I will be no obstacle to your wishes in that respect; on the contrary, it is a plan which meets my most hearty concurrence, and the success of which, if adopted, I shall with pleasure use my exertions to effect. At the same time I must add, that should Mr. Buller decline the acceptance of this offer, which on your part is truly dignified, honorable and independent, I shall consider myself pledged to the city to come forward and again solicit the favor of your support, during that contest, which I never will decline, but to meet your wishes in favor of your very worthy represen tative Mr. Buller. I have the honor to remain, GENTLEMEN, Your very obedient and faithfully obliged servant, WILLIAM ARUNDEL HARRIS. Kenegie, December 13, 1816. To the Gentlemen, Clergy, Freemen, and Freeholders of the City of Exeter. GENTLEMEN, When I last did myself the honor of addressing you, I fully intended before now, to have paid you my personal respects; but the distressing events which have since taken place in my family, will, for the present, deprive me of that honor. I beg leave, however, to assure you, that I shall avail myself of the earliest opportunity, which my peculiar situation will allow, to solicit, at your hands, that favor I am so anxious to obtain. And remain, GENTLEMEN, With the utmost respect, Your obliged and faithful humble Servant, W. COURTENAY. Grangehall, Yorkshire, Dec. 14, 1816. Electors of Exeter! You are this week to be either bought, sold, given away, or independent!! Remember, your forefathers bled for the FRANCHISE of choosing their own representatives, and your children will censure your memory if you barter it away. Let your motto be, the constitution, the whole constitution, and nothing but the constitution !!! Brother-Electors, -Be loyal to your king and country--obedient to the laws, and respectful to the magistracy; but never! never! sell yourselves, or permit others to sell you. Citizens of Exeter! The friends of Mr. Northmore have this day made their first trial of your independence, your good sense, and your patriotism. They are happy to have to congratulate the friends of good government, that their success has been thus far complete. The residents of those parts of the city which cannot be immediately canvassed, are warned not to be inveigled to promise their votes, until they have heard what the friends of Mr. Northmore have to say in favor of sound representation, economical administration, and the reform of public abuses. Exeter, December 16th, 1816. Y To the Gentlemen, Clergy, Freemen, & Freeholders, of the City of Exeter. BOGENTLEMEN, The declaration which I made when first I had the honor of addressing you, I considered would clearly have pointed out the line of conduct it was my B determination to pursue, and I did trust that my ins variable and unceasing exertions for the prosperity of the country, since I have been in Parliament, would have precluded the necessity of my entering into any further explanation. It has, however, been intimated to me, in the course of paying my respects to you, that apprehensions are by some persons entertained as to my political principles: Permit me, gentlemen, to repeat tò you, that I am wholly unattached to any party, and totally uncons nected with either of the other candidates; and I beg leave to assure you, that I shall at all times be pre pared to support any measure in parliament that will tend to ameliorate the representation; and to relieve the burthens of public expenditure, without violating the principles of the constitution; and nothing shall induce me to deviate from that independence to which I have hitherto strictly adhered. I embrace this opportunity of returning you my most sincere and grateful thanks, for the prompt and highly flattering assurances of support with which I have been already favored, and I trust that the time is not distant, when I shall have paid my personal respects to every individual elector residing in the city of Exeter. I have the honor to be, GENTLEMEN, Your much obliged and very faithful servant; Exeter, Dec. 16th, 1816. Electors of the City of Exeter, You are here honestly appealed to by a part of yourselves in behalf of a cause which is purely your own. A body of freemen have been led by the general |