never felves. On what then was this Houfe to found its competence? There was another code on which men in all ages had acted, viz. the Law of Nations; and on this code, he thought, the competence of the Houfe muft reft. This country had acquired the power of legiflating for Canada by right of conqueft; and, in virtue of that right, all the rights and duties of the old Government had devolved on us. In the fecond place, came the right by the ceffion of the old Government; and in the third, the right of poffeffion, which we had held for about thirty years. All thefe, according to the law of nations, enabled us to legiflate for the people of Canada, bound us to afford them an equitable government, and them to allegiance. Setting afide then the doctrine of the rights of men, which was preached any where without mifchief, the Houfe was bound to give the people of Canada the beftGovernment that their local fituation, and connection with this country, would admit. How was this to be done? He could not refer to the experience of old governments, for that was exploded by the academies of Paris, and the clubs of London, who faw too much by the light of their new lantern to have recourse to any other. The great examples to be confidered, were the conftitutions of America, of France, and of Great Britain. To that of America, great attention, no doubt, was due, because it was of importance that the people of Canada fhou'd have nothing to envy in the conftitution of a country fo near to their own. Situation and circumstances were first to be confidered-Non mihi res fed rebus me fubmittere conor. They were not to imitate the examples of countries that had difregarded circumftances, torn afunder the bonds of fociety, and even the ties of nature. In the local fituation, was there any thing to give a preference to the American confitution, or in the habits of the people? Part of the province was inhabited chiefly by perfons who had migrated from the United States. Thefe men had fled from the bleffings of American government, and there was no danger of their going back. There might be many caufes of emigration, not connected with Government, fuch as a more fertile foil, or more genial climate; but they had forfaken all the advantages of a more fertile foil, and more fouthern latitude, for the bleak and barren regions of Canada. There was no danger of their bei. g fo much fhecked, by the introduction of the British conftitution, as to return. The people of America had, he believed, formed a confitution as well adapted to their circumftances as they could. But, compared with the French, they had a certain quantity of phlegm of old English good-nature, that fitted them be tor for a republican Government. They had allo a republican education; their former internal Government was republican, and the principles and vices of it were restrained by the beneficence of an over-ru'ing Monarchy in this coun try. The formation of their conftitution was preceded by a long war,▲ in the courie of which, by military difcipline, they learned order, fubmillion to command, and a regard for great men. They learned what, if it was allowab'e in fo enlightened an age as the prefent to allude to antiquiry, a king of Sparta had faid was the great wisdom to be learned in his country-to command and to obey. They were trained to government by war, not by plots, murders, and aff.finations. In the next place, they had not the materials of monarchy or ariftocracy among them. They did not, however, fet up the abfurdity that the nation fhould govern the nation that Prince Prettyman fhould govern Prince Prettyman; but formed their government, as near as they could, according to the model of the British conftitution. Yet he did not fay, give this conftitution to a British coTony, becaufe, if the imitation of the British conftitution was fo good, why not give them the thing itself; as he whe who profeffed to fing like a nightin gale, was told by the perfon to whom he offered his talents, that he could hear the nightingale her felf. Hence, he thought, the greater number of inhabitants, of that defcrip ion, would have no objection to the British conftitution; and the British inhabitants were, probably, not fo much corrupted by the clubs of London, and the academies of Paris, as to think any form of government preferable to an cld one. The ancient Canadians were next to be confidered, and being the most numerous, they were entitled to the grea eft attention. Were we to give them the French conftitution-a conflitution founded on principles diametrically oppofite to ours, that could not affimilate with it in a fingle point; as different from it as wildom from folly, as vice from virtue, as the most oppofite extremes in nature--a confitution founded on what was called the rights of man? But let this conftitution be examined by its practical effects in the French Weft-India coloies. Thefe, notwithstanding three caftrous wars, were moft happy and flourishing till they heard of the rights of men. As foon as this fyftem arrived among them, Pandora's box, replete with every mortal evil, feemed to fly open, hell itfelf to yawn, and every demon of mifchief to overspread the face of the earth. Blacks rofe again ft whites, whites against blacks, and each one against another in murderous hoftility; fubordination was deftroyed, the bonds of fociety torn afunder, and each man feemed to thirst for the blood of his neighbour; "Black fpirits and white, "Blue fpirits and grey, "Mingle, mingle, mingle." All was toil and trouble, difcord and blood, from the moment that this doctrine was promulgated among them; and he verily believed, that wherever the rights of men were preached, fuch ever had been and ever would be the confequences. France, who had genercully fent them the precious gift of the rights of men, did not like this image of herself reflected in her child, and fent out a body of troops, well fealoned too with the rights of men, to reitore order and obedience. Thefe troops, as foon as they arrived, inftructed as they were in the principle of government, felt themselves bound to become parties in the general rebellion, and, like most of their brethren at home, began afferting their rights by cutting off the head of their General. Mr. Burke read the late account from St. Domingo, delivered to the National Affembly, and added, that by way of equivalent for this information, M. Barnave announced the return of the members of the late Colonial Affembly to the true principles of the conftitution. The Members of an Affembly no longer in existence had bequeathed their return to the principles of the conflitution, as their laft act and deed as a body, and this was an equivalent for all the horrors occafioned by troops joining in a rebellion which they were fent to quell Ought this example to induce us to fend to our colonies a cargo of the rights of men? As foon would he fend them a bale of infected cotton from Marfeilles. If we had fo little regard for any of our colonies, as to give them that, for the fake of an experiment, which we would not take to ourf:lves,-if we were for periculum in corpore vili, let us think how it would operate at home. Let us confider the effects of the French conititution on France, a conftitution on which he looked not with approbation, but with horror, as involving every principle to be detefted, and pregnant with every confequence to be dreaded and abominated, and the ufe which they propofed to make of it. They had told us themfelves, and their par tizans in this country, the Revolution and the Unitarian Societies, had told us, that they had erected a great monument for the inftruction of mankind. This was certainly done, not without a view to imitation. Let us fee what we we were to be called on to imitate; He faid, he had no objection, on any occafion, when queftions of this fort came properly before the House, fairly and fully, openly and explicitly, to ftate his opinion. He had called the right honourable gentleman to order, merely for the fake of the Houfe, and of the peace of the country; and he had a right to fay, that the right honourable gentleman's conduct was inconfiftent with the order of debate, and the regularity of the proceedings of that Houfe. what were the last acts of the contrivers of this glorious form of Government. There were here no doubts of the facts, for they were related by the authors; and there were cafes in which the falfeft of men might be believed, namely, when they gave a true character of themselves. When they had got a conftitution, moulded according to the newest pattern of the rights of man; when they had got a King, who was every thing in name, and nothing in reality, over whom, as a State prifoner, the Marquis de la Fayette, the chief jailer of Paris, mounted guard: he was defirous of taking a little fresh air, and a little recreation in the country, and they granted him a day rule to go five miles from Paris. But then recollecting, as it is the quality of the rights of men never to be fecure, that this temporary releafe from imprifonment might afford the means of elcape, they furrounded his carriage, commanded him to flop, and one of the grenadiers of his faithful and loyal body guard, prefented his bayonet to the breaft of the fore horse- Mr. Baker here called Mr. Burke to order. He faid he had fat many years in Parliament, and no man entertained a higher opinion of the integrity and abilities of the right honourable gentleman than he did. His eloquence was great, and his powers, on many occafions, had been irrefiftible. His abilities might enable him to involve the House in unneceffary altercation: this, perhaps, the right honourable gentleman might do unwittingly for others, and not to ferve any purpose of his own; he himself, perhaps, might be the unwilling inrument, and might involve the country itself in a conteft with another nation; he could not, therefore, fit any longer, without calling him to order; and he should infift upon every perfon adhering to the queftion, and that the Chairman ftate what the queftion before the committee was. The Chairman ftated, that the queftion before the Committee was, whether the clauses of the Quebec Bill thould be read paragraph by paragraph? Mr. Fox now rofe and faid, that he conceived his right honourable friend could hardly be faid to be out of order. It feemed that this was a day of privilege, when any body might stand up, felect his mark, and abufe any government he pleafed, whether it had any reference or not to the point in queftion. Although no body had faid a word on the fubjet of the French revolution, hi right honourable friend had gotten up and abufed that event. He might have treated the Gentoo government, or that of China, or the government of Turkey, or the laws of Confucius, precifely in the fame manner, and with equal appofitenefs to the queftion before the Houfe. Every gentleman had a right that day to abuse the gcvernment of every country as much as he pleafed, and in as grofs terms as he thought proper, or any government, either ancient or modern, with his right honourable friend. Mr. Burke replied, that the honourable gentleman's conclufion was very ill drawn from his premises. If he was diforderly he was forry for it. His right honourable friend had also accufed him of abufing governments in very grofs terms. He conceived his right honourable friend meant to abufe him in unqualified terms. He had called him to an account for the decency decency and propriety of his expref- vour to meet the moft captious ideas of order. He declared he would not fuffer friend nor foe to come between his affertion, and his argument, and thereby to make him a railer. His honou able friend had faid, that although he did not do it himself, he was probably, though unwittingly, the inftrument of fome other people's folly. He declared, he had not brought forward this bufinefs from any views of his own. If they did not fuffer the affair to be difcuffed, if they fhewed a reluctance to it Here Mr. St. John called Mr. Burke to order, and faid the difcuffion could not be brought forward with any regard to order. He really afked it as a favour of his right honourable friend, that he would fix a day on which he would bring on the difcuffion of the French conftitution. He faid he knew the English constitution; he admired it: he daily felt; the bleffings of it. He fhould be ex-cremely forry if any perfon in England fhould endeavour to perfuade any man, or body of men, to alter the conftitution of the country. If his right hencurable friend had made the French revolution the fubject of a diftinct difcuffion, that would be bringing it on in a fair way. If his friend felt the mifchiefs of the French conftitution as applicable to the Englith confiitution, let him appoint a day for that difcuffion. This he requefted of his right honourable friend as a particular favour. Mr. Burke fubmitted to the Committee, whether he was or was not in order? The queftion was, whether the bill was then to be read, paragraph by paragraph? It was in a fair way in reafoning to fee what experiments had been made in other countries. His right honourable friend had faid, that nobody had the lea idea of borrowing any thing of the French revolution in the bill. Mr. Burke afked how his right honourable friend knew that? For any thing he knew, he, (Mr. Burke) himfelf, might mean to infert fome claufe. If he were to be flopped, he afked, why was it not in the beginning, and before he had fully declared the French revolution to be the work of folly and not of wifdom? It was the work of vice and not of virtue. If the Committee would Mr. Burke in reply faid, he meart permit him to go on, he fhould endea to take the fenfe of the Committee, POL. MAG. VOL. XXI. Dec. 1791. Mr. Martin was of opinion that the right honourable gentleman (Mr. Burke) was not irregular in fpeaking of the French conftitution. He had formerly heard a right honourable gentleman fay, that the public had a right to the fentiments of public men on public meafures, and therefore he hoped the right honourable gentleman would be permitted to go on. whether or not he was in order. He declared he had not made any reflection, nor did he mean any, on any one gentleman whatever. He was as fully convinced as he could be, that no one gentleman in that Houfe wanted to alter the conftitution of England. The reason why, on the firft regular opportunity that prefented itself, he was anxious to make his reflections on the subject, was, because it was a matter of great public concern, and occafion called for his observations. As long as they held to the conftitution he should think it his duty to act with them; but he would not be the flave of any whim that might arife. On the contrary, he thought it his duty not to give any countenance to certain doctrines which were supposed to exist in this country, and which were intended fundamentally to fubvert the conftitution. They ought to confider well what they were doing. Here there was a loud call of Order!-Order!-and Go on!-Go on! Mr. Burke faid, there was fuch an enthusiasm for order, that it was not eafy to go on, but he was going to ftate what the refult of the French conftitution perfected was, and to fhew that we ought not to adopt the principles of it. He might be afked, why ftate it, when no man meant to alter the English conftitution? Why raise animofities, where none existed? And why endeavour to ftir up paffions, where all was quiet before? He confeffed a thing might be orderly, and yet that it might be very improper to difcufs it. Was there any reafon for doing this, or did they think the country was in danger? He declared he was ready to answer that question. He was perfectly convinced that there was no immediate danger. He believed the body of the country was perfectly found, although attempts were made to take the conftitution from their heads by abfurd theories. He firmly believed the English confti tution was enthroned in their botoms; that they cherished it as part of their nature; and it was as infeparable frem Englishmen, as their fouls and their bodies. Some minifters, and others had, at times, apprehended danger, even from a minority; and hiftory had fhewn that in this way a conftitution had been overturned. The question, he faid, would be, what had they to do with the French conftitution? They had no right to have recourfe to the proceedings of the National Affembly, because the government of this country had not yet recognized it. If they had,.they would filence him. If the French revolutionifts were to mind their own affairs, and had fhewn no inclination to go abroad and to make profelytes in other countries, Mr. Burke declared, that neither he for one should have thought, nor any other Member of the House, had any right to meddle with them. If they were not as much difpofed to gain profelytes as Lewis XIVth had been to make conqueft, he should have thought it very improper and indifcreet to have touched on the fubject. He would quote the National Affembly itself, and a correfpondent of his at Paris, whe had declared that he appeared as the ambassador of the whole human race. Mr. Anftruther interrupting Mr. Burke, here fpoke to order. He faid, his right honourable friend had tranfgreffed fomething of what he looked upon to be the bounds of order in that Houfe. It was a role of order for Members to confine themselves to the queftion in debate. When he stated this, he begged it to be understood, that if any minority in the country had any intentions to alter the conftitution, there was no man more ready to take ftrong and decided measures to check that minority, and to crush that fpirit than he fhould be Here Colonel Phipps called Mr. Anftruther to order, and faid, that a declaration of his attachment to the |