inhabitants, and to convey them from their own country to
Great Britain, to be tried for their lives. What was all this
for?
Just because a small number of people, provoked by an open and
dangerous attack upon their liberties, destroyed a parcel of Tea
be-
longing to the East India Company. It was not public but private
property they destroyed. It was not the act of a whole province,
but the act of a apart of the citizens; instead of trying to
disco-
ver the perpetrators, and commencing a legal prosecution
against them; the parliament of
Great-Britain interfered in
an
unprecedented manner, and inflicted a punishment upon a whole
province, "untried, unheard, unconvicted of any crime." This
may be justice, but it looks so much like cruelty, that a man of
a humane heart would be more apt to call it by the latter, than
the former name."
The affair of
Cananda, is possible, is still worse. The English
laws have been superceded by the French laws. The Romish
faith is made the established religion of the land, and his
Ma-
jesty is placed a the head of it. The free exercise of the
pro-
testant faith depends upon the pleasure of the Governor and
Council. The subject is divested of the right of trial by jury,
and an innocent man may be imprisoned his whole life, without
being able to obtain any trial at all. The parliament was not
contented with introducing arbitrary power and popery in
Cana-
da, with its former limits, but they have annexed to it the
vast
tracts of land that surround all the colonies.
Does not your blood run cold, to think an English parliament
should pass an act for the establishment of arbitrary power and
popery in such an extensive country? If they had had any re-
gard to the freedom and happiness of mankind, they would
ne
ver have done it. If they had been friends to the protestant
cause, they would never have provided such a nursery for its
great enemy: They wold not have given such encouragement
to popery. The thought of their conduct, in this particular
shocks me. It must shock you too my friends. Beware of
trusting yourselves to men, who are capable of such an action!
They may as well establish popery in
New-York and the other
colonies as they did in
Canada. They had no more right to do
it there than here.
Is it not better, I ask, to suffer a few present inconveniencies,
than to put yourselves in the way of losing every thing that is
precious. Your lives, your property, your religion are all at