Newspaper Page Text
[No. LXI.] THE TABLE T. No. LXI. " When men art certain that the truth of a thing is not to be known, they "will alio ay s differ, and endea vor to ivipofe on one anothtr." THOUGH men difputefor the purpose of ascertaining truth, yet there are few men who find less of it, than those who dispute acreat deal. The habit of disputation is a dan gerous one. It creates fucha love oi triumph that jnen acquire a dexterity of handling unintelligible subjects, with a view only toconqueft. By this means, eager disputants abandon the plain paths of reason and truth, and wander into the fields of imagination and conjecture. When men confine their investigations to such points as admit of de monstration, he who takes the light fide of the quellion will, with equal abilities, put liisadver fary to silence. The fubjetft will be ltripped of all adventitious glare, and the light of truth will ihine confpicuouily over error and sophistry. But those, who dispute merely from the love of such a practice, know too well that they ihould have very little to do with reason and common sense. It ihould be their main objeeft to elude the argu ments of other people by the refinements of art and evasion. Discussion is no doubt an important medium of inveiligating truth. It opens a spirit of enquiry in the world, and excites, in cool, disinterested men, a desire of coming at the real knowlege of i'uch things, as are capable of being known. The warm diiputants, however, only start the game. The acquilition falls to men of candor and impar tiality, who take the right track, and often over take their objedt. It is easy to observe that the rnoft violent disputes, that prevail among men, are of such a nature, as cannot be reduced to a certain ty. Many points of disputation are invelopedin such unkown or remote contingencies, as elude all the powers of investigation. After all the discussion that can be had on foine subjects, truth •will keep out of fight, and the point of debate remain undetermined. If men however ma nage their altercations with good humor and mo deration, some benefit will result from them.— Discussion gives scope to the imagination and ha bituates the reasoning faculty to a dexterity in its procefles. No reflects more diflionor on hu man nature, than the ill-will and persecutions, that have been instigated by such disputes, as are not only unimportant in tliemfelves, but utterly incapable of being demonstrated- The periods ofecclefiaftical contention draw over the charac ter of man some of its darkest fliades. To a per fbn of a liberal mind, it feemsan incredible thing that a useless quellion, unattended with any ra tional data of solution should throw whole cities, dilVritfts and countries into broils, persecutions, and wars. Though a free fjjirit of enquiry iliould at all times be tolerated, I would still recommend it to prudent individuals to have little conneiftion with those, who have the principal management of dis putes. They are not the men, from whom truth flows with purity and force. It is easy to per ceive, that the originator of any system or ques tion; will be apt to commence his enquiries with an aim to victory. Truth is no further to be re garded in his pursuit, than as it coincides with the favorite doctrine under examination. The sys tem must not yield to the dictates of reason j but whenever they come in competition, reason must be facrificed to system. Lovers of altercation are not only to be ihunned as bad guides in our researches after truth, but as troublesome allbciates and dangerous friends. A warm partizan eilimates the merit of his acquain tance according as lie promotes or defeats the fchcines he has in contemplation. As these fche.mes generally will be wrong, his friend 111 ufl either quarrel with him or participate iii his er rors and quarrels. AGAINST PRIVATEERING: Or Rcafon's in support of ncvi proposed in Treaties of Commerce, which may be formed by the United States of America. B? Dr. FRANKLIN. BY the original la\v of nations, war and extir pation were the punilhment of injury—Hu manizing by degrees, it admitted slavery instead of death : A farther Hep was the exchange of pri soners,inftead of slavery : Another, to refpecft more the property of private persons tinder conquest, and be content with acquired dominion - —Why fiiould not this law of nations go on improving ? Ages have intervened between its several steps— but as knowlegc of late increases rapidly, tV hv lliotild not tliofe steps be quickened ? Why fhoulcl it not be agreed lo as t!«e future law of nations (iAncttc ; ~/?aX(xi i tcb irtfu to*. WEDNESDAY, November ir, 1739 that in any war hereafter the following descrip tions of men should be undisturbed—have the pro tection of both fides, and be permitted to follow their employments in security, viz. 1. Cultivators of the earth, because they labor for the fubfifte nee of mankind. 0. Fiflieriren, for the fame reason. 3. Merchants and Traders, in un-armedJhips— who accommodate different nations by communi eating and exchanging the nefceilaries and con veniences of life. 4. Artilts and mechanics, inhabiting and work ing in open towns : It is hardly neceilary to add, that the hospitals of enemies ihould be tinmoleft ed—they ought to be alliiled. It is for the inter est ofhutnanity ill general, that the occasions of war, and the inducements to it ihould be diminish* ed. II rapine is aboliilied, one of the encourage ments to war is taken away, and peace therefore more likely to continue and be lasting. The practice of robbing merchants on the high seas, a remnant of the ancient piracy, tho it may be accidentally beneficial to particular persons, is far from being profitable to all engaged in it, or tothe nation that authorises it : In the begin ingof awar fomerich iliips, notupon their guard, are surprized and taken—This encourages the firft adventurers to fit out more armed vefiels, and many others to do the fame : But the enemy attlie fame time become more careful—arm their merchant ihips better, and render them not so easy to be taken ; they go also more under the protection of convoys : Tlius, while the priva teers to take them are multiplied, the veflels fub jeCtto be taken, and the chances t>f profit, are di miniihed, so that many cruises are made wherein the expences overgo the gains—and as it is the cafe in other lotteries, tho particulars have got prizes, the mass of adventurers are losers, the whole expence of siting out all the privateers during a war, being much greater than the whole amount of goods taken. Then there is the national loss of all the labor of so many men, during the time they have been employed in robbing—who besides spend what they get in riot, drunkenness and debauchery— lose their habits ofinduftry—are rarely fit for any foberbufinefs after a peace, and serve only toin creafe the number of highwaymen and lioufe breakers.—Even the undertakers who have been fortunate, are by sudden wealth led into expend ve living, the habit of which continues, when the means of supporting it cease, and finally ruins them A just punifliment for their having wan tonly and unfeelingly ruined many honest, inno cent traders and their families, whose substance was employed in serving the common interest of mankind. B. F. THE OBSERVER. No. IV. The people have fi/jjtred an'tmmenfe sum by the deran ged /late of the national debt. AFTER all that the public have fuffercd by the confufion of finance in the union and seve ral states, it is not strange that their patience is nearly exhausted. The want of a general go vernment hath cost millions to the people, which are now very happily lhared and enjoyed among a let of people who have been very Icrupulous about liberty, the collectors of the taxes you have paid, and speculators in your disordered funds. It is time the truth fliould be fairly spoken to the people at large, and the Observer will do it whatever may be the consequence. Some of the fame scrupulous people now wish to play over the old game, and fill you with jealousies that they may have a second liarveft ; but \heir day ispali. For our ownprefervation it is neceflary we should attendto the sources of pad confufion. By the national debt I mean all those funis which the union at large, and the particular States Hand obligated to pay. Tliefe funis were incurred in one common cause, Our defence in the general war—it was chance and not option which fixed men's names to the lift of Continental or State creditors. The general idea is a true one, that the whole must stand or fall together, and most people had little preference to either kind of fecurily. There is not at present any reason in equity why one class of creditors Ihould be prefered to the other —the whole ought to stand 011 the fame funds, and have equal justice. Soon after the war a new constitution of government was found neceflary to set things right, but at that juncture the coun try was not fufficiently enlightened to obtain it. The consequence was, the continent without any power of creating funds, began in a desultory manner to arrange their own finances. The several Statesfinding the weakness of the union, began to make partial arrangements for that very ..debt, which 011 every principle of justice ought. f Publijhed on Wednesday and Saturday .J to be fuftainedby the whole iiation. Such reme dies as tliefe, adopted by different bodies of men, and at distant places and very different tinies, mull in their nature be different and confafed. From this source yoti have feeri more than fifty i kinds of paper securities, at one time, within the United States, differing but a small matterin lvalue, but enough to spread confufion over the whole, and betray the honell into the hdnds of designing men. The people liavfe paid enough to make the creditors had it come to their hands ia a regular and equal method ; but in the midst of this darkness nothing has been ef fected. The members of the old Congress, and of your aflemblies, were men of. wisdom, but what conld wisdom do in such different and dis tant bodies, which had no conllitutional connec tion, and of course conld have no general system. Matters of this kind cannot be planned in a nu merous body of men, be they erer so wife. A treasury board of proper convpafs, system atically arranged, and furniflied with information, mult concert ; and the legiflatnre after proper discus sions mult give the authority to executc. The firft flep towards order and light is to re duce the whole national debt to one kind, and onefetof regulations, and unless something of this nature takes place, you have millions more to pay without coming any nearer to the desired end. It is impossible that a plain man, who is an industrious and good fubjecft, should diftinguifli between so many kinds of taxes of different val ues. I.et the whole sum of this debt be brought together—placed on common and fiinilar funds, and regularity introduced to the business—the public will then know their fitnation—thirty men will do that business for the whole union which now employs thro' the fe-.'eral States two hun dred and fifty, all of whom are supported by the people—The creditors will understand a plain and honest plan, and be saved from a thousand iin pofitions—taxes will be of one kind, andtheman who purchases to pay them will know the price he ought to give. I can forefce there will |be objections to wliat I advance, and fomevery cun ning men will cry danger ! danger ! but I never yet saw any evil from Amplifying money matters, where all the people have to pay. It is the roll ing up together of a number of half madefyfteins, which endangers the people ; for they cannot fee thro' them, and the man that mufl borrow his neighbours wits to manage his own affairs, mufl soon borrow money to pay his debts. The pre sent is a fortunate moment for this country, and the only one they will ever have to Amplify their treasury matters. , Let one great ana inclusive system for the whole be adopted, and your finan ces may soon be reduced to perfect order. Should the present bpportunity be past and the federal system not takfc in the whole of your national clebt, another opportunity uiuft not be expected —confufion will continue—- the poor and unsus picious will be cheated—jealousy will pervade all orders of citizens—there will be no public faith, and your monied men will hide their property — a liable medium for business will be severely want ed—and your future agriculture, manufactures and commerct, be denied that spring which might now be givfeh them. P. S. In the second number of this paper, some observations were made, on the compensation, the gen tlemen oj Congress have voted themfelves —I think th: public mind mufl be easy on this fubjeCi, when it is un der flood that the pay they have taken, is not greater than was allowed by the State assemblies to the mem bers of the eld Congress—take the State of Connec ticut for an example—The atfembly of this State until May 178 7, allowed their delegate/ three dollars per diem and their expences—the expences of the delegates were different and from two to four dollars per diem —probably the average of expences was three dollars, which added to the compensation for services, makes the sum now given to the Representatives. Since May 1787, the aljembly of ConneClicut have allowed five dollars per diem for service and expences. The al lowance given by Connetticut, was much smaller than in most of the other States—l am informed that the a verage allowance made, by the\affemb'lies of the thirteen States to their delegates, used to be eight dollars per diem, nearly, one fourth more than the gentlemen have allowed themfelves —the members might then if they pleased, take a feat and continue under pay the whole year ; now it will be but a small part of the year— then they might leave Congress when private business called them ; now they are constrained by authority to be present, let their own concerns be ever so urge?.t —then they 7night and actually did hold offices of pro fit under their own States ; now it is the popular sense they should .7at, and many in confeauence have made a great facrifice. These fatts mufl jujlify the prefect comper Cation. \ From the AMERICAN MERCURY."]