amorous one. The late D. of Y. (it is well affured) availed himself of the Abbe's Mercurial services in more points of view than one; and the late Sir F. D. found him a very useful inftrument in removing and transferring of female property. With fuch qualifications he came ftrongly recommended to lord A/and he foon difplayed his talents to the greatest advantage. The first proof he gave of his abilities, was in feducing her lady fhip's chambermaid, whom he prefently converted into his lordship's. This ftroke fo cleanly and speedily executed, induced his lordfhip to employ the Abbe in negociations of far greater importance; and the county of Suffex redounded with his extraordinary talents in this kind of commerce. Illicit as his trade might appear, he was a profeffed foe to fmuggling, and exerted his abilities upon the daughter of a celebrated Contrebandier, whom he refolved to convert, and was fo fuccefsful as to make her protest against her father's practices, and engage in the lauful fervice of a Commiffioner of the Cultoms. To enumerate all the negociations of the Abbe would swell a volume, and we do not think him of fufficient importance to engage above a page. We cannot, however, difmifs him without recording a whimsical anecdote that is well authenticated. Lady V, or lady Frail, found the Abbe a very useful negociator to fupply her ladyship's wants. He tranfacted her bufinefs in a very honourable way, and received no other gratification than her ladyfhip's charms. In the course of this traffic, it became neceffary to call in a furgeon- the Abbe vowed he was conftant, her ladyfhip infifted upon her innocency-the furgeon then was appointed umpire, and he determined (for very substantial reasons) that her ladyship should pay the whole bill.

It is almost time that the Abbe should retire, and Mrs. P make her appearance; not, however, without being introduced by that able mafter of the ceremonies.

This lady was the daughter of a cornfactor, who did not live far from Lothbury. She received that fort of education which is usually ftiled genteel; that is to fay, dance an aukward minuet, fing a bad fong, and pronounce French after the English manner. With these qualifcations the figured in winter at city balls, and at the watering-places in fumHaving, however, a good perfon

and an engaging countenance, she was foon thought by men of fome rank, worthy of being debauched. Her father confidered her as a prodigy, her mother a phœnix, and she was to ennoble the whole race by marrying a coronet. This refolve being once taken, no expence was fpared to fhew her to the greatest advantage. A French milliner and an Italian mantua-maker were appointed to decorate her, and Mifs P- was, under their patronage, literally put up to fale. She was, indeed, foon bid for, but not in the way her wife parents proposed. Her mantua-maker got her a fweetheart with a coronet, and her milliner received the douceurs of the rendezvous.

Miss P was vain enough to boast of this honourable connexion, and the was foon ranked amongst the lift of comeatable Demy-reps. The moment a female is claffed in this catalogue, there is not a tavern-pimp in town who does not fet his engines at work to introduce her into company. The Abbe was however more au fait than any of these subordinate negociators: he flattered her vanity-perfmaded her the spoke French better than Madame Barre, and that the danced far fuperior to Heinel. These two points Mifs P― plumed herself upon, and had the French king died but a twelvemonth fooner, he would have given it under his hand that Mifs Phould be mistress of Lewis the Sixteenth. As it was, lord A was to fupply his place, and if fhe could not be allied to one of the first monarchs in Europe, he infured her being connected with the second baron in the universe.

The preliminaries being settled, lord A was introduced. A fettlement and an equipage were agreed upon: a town and a country-house were not omitted: the Abbe was to have the run of her table if he chose it, but not to be admitted a ruelle vifiter. Ri (as the moft celebrated of his profeffion) was appointed her dentist, and the was allowed to vifit women of eafy virtue, who were only fufpected of cheating at cards. Thefe articles being figned, the treaty was ratified in the presence of the Abbe, who had provided a proper spot for the amorous conference.

Mifs P foon proving pregnant, the judged it advifeable in throwing off the veftal zone, to make an addition to her title, and (if we may be allowed the pun) to add a firefs to her name, We therefore now call her mistress P—~; a lady,

whom our engraver, being particularly intimate with, has happily pourtrayed in the fubjoined plate.

An anthentic Account of the Rife of the prefent Ill-Humour in America.

F

'ROM the time the colonies were fir ft confidered as capable of granting aids to the crown, down to the end of the last war, the conftant mode of obtaining those aids was by requifition, fetting forth the occafion, and expreffing a reliance on their prudence, duty, and affection, to grant fuch fums, or raife fuch numbers of men, as were fuitable to their respective circumftances. The colonies being accuftomed to this method, have from time to time granted money to the crown, or raifed troops for its fervice, in proportion to their abilities, and, during the laft war, beyond their abilities; fo that confiderable fums were returned them yearly by parliament as exceeding the proportion.

There is no doubt but all the money that could reasonably have been expected from them might have been obtained without the leaft murmuring or difcon

tent.

It has been thought wisdom in governors to pay fome regard to the prevailing and established opinions among the people to be governed, wherever fuch opinions might in their effects promote or obftruct public measures. This had been the wifdom of our government with refpect to raising money in the colonifts. It was well known, that the colonies univerfally were of opinion, that no money could be levied from English fabjects, but by their own confent; that therefore whatever money was to be raifed from the people in the colonies, muft firit be granted by their affemblies; that this right of granting their own money was effential to English liberty; and that, if any man, or body of men, in which they had no reprefentative of their chufing, could tax them at pleafure, they could not be faid to have any property, any thing they could call their

own.

I do not undertake here to support thofe opinions; they have been refuted by a late act of parliament, declaring its own power; which very parliament, however, fhewed wifely fo much tender regard to thofe inveterate prejudices as to repeal a tax that had odioufly militated against them; and those is are still so fixed and root

ed in the Americans, that it is supposed not a fingle man among them has been convinced of his error by that act of parliament.

The Minifter, therefore, who first laid afide the accustomed method of requifition, and affumed to raise money on America by ftamps, was not ignorant that what he was about would give a great offence; he was even apprehenfive that it might occafion fome diforders, to prevent or fupprefs which he projected another bill, whereby it was to be made lawful for military officers in the colonies to quarter their foldiers in private houfes. Great oppofition, however, being raifed here against this bill, the colonifts declaring that, under fuch a power in the army, no one could look on his house as his own, or think he had a home, when foldiers might be thrust into it, and mixed with his family, at the pleasure of an officer, that part of the bill was dropt; but there ftill remained a clause, when it paffed into a law, to oblige the feveral affemblies to provide quarters for the foldiers, furnishing them with fire, beds, candles, fmall beer or rum, and fundry other articles, at the expence of the feveral provinces.-And this act continued in force when the ftamp act was repealed, though, if obligatory on the affemblies, it equally militated against the American principle above mentioned.

The colonies, nevertheless, being put into high good humour by the repeal of the flamp act, chofe to avoid a fresh difpute upon the other, it being temporary, and foon to expire, and in the mean time they, by various ways, provided for quartering the troops, either by acts of their own affemblies, without taking notice of the acts of parliament, or by fome variety or fmall diminution (as of falt and vinegar) in the fupplies required by the act, that what they did might appear a voluntary act of their own, and not done in obedience to an act of parliament, which they thought unconftitutional, and therefore void in

itfelf.

It might have been well if the matter had thus palled without notice; but an officious governor having written home an angry and aggravating letter upon this conduct in the affembly of his province, the outed projector of the ftamp act, and his adherents, then in the oppofition, raifed fuch a clamour against America.. as if in rebellion. &c. and

against thofe who had been for the repeal of the stamp act, as having thereby been encouragers of this supposed rebellion, that it was thought neceflary to enforce the quartering act by another act of parliament, taking away from the province of New-York, which had been moft explicit in its refufal, all the powers of legiflation, till it complied with that act; the news of which greatly alarmed the people every where in America, as the language of fuch an act feemed to beObey implicitly laws made by the parliament of Great Britain, to force money from you without your confent, or you fhall enjoy no rights or privileges at all. At the fame time the late Chancellor of the Exchequer, defirous of ingratiating himself with the oppofition, or driven to it by their clamours, projected the levying more money from America, by new duties on various articles of our own manufacture, as glass, paper, painters colours, &c. appointing a new board of customs, and fending over a fet of commiffioners (with large falaries) to be eftablished at Boflon, who were to have the care of collecting thefe duties; and which were, by the act, exprefsly men-tioned to be intended for the payment of the falaries of governors, judges, and other officers of the crown in America, it being a pretty general opinion here, that thofe officers ought not to depend on the people there for any part of their fupport.

It is not my intention to combat this opinion: but perhaps it may be fome fatisfaction to the public to know what ideas the Americans have on the fubject. They fay then, as to Governors, that they are not like Princes whofe pofterity have an inheritance in the government of a nation, and therefore an intereft in its profperity; they are generally ftrangers to the provinces they are fent to govern; have no eftate, natural connection, or relation there, to give them an affection for the country; that they come only to make money as faft as they can, are frequently men of vicious characters and broken fortunes, fent merely to get them off the hands of a Minifter fomewhere out of the way; that, as they intend itaying in the country no longer than their government continues, and purpose to leave no family behind them, they are apt to be regardless of the goodwill of the people, and care not what faid or thought of them after they are one. Their fituation gives them many

;

opportunities of being vexatious; and they are often fo, notwithstanding their dependance on the affemblies for all that part of their fupport that does not arise from fees established by law but would probably be much more fo, if they were to be fully fupported by money drawn from the people without the confent or good-will of the people, which is the profeffed defign of this act.

This is what they fay as to Governors. As to Judges, they allege, that, being appointed from hence by the crown, and holding their commiffions, not during good behaviour, as in Britain, but during pleasure, all the weight of intereft would be thrown into one of the fcales (which ought to be held even), if the falaries are alfo to be paid out of duties forced from the people without their confent, and, independent of their affemblies approbation or difapprobation of the judges behaviour; that whenever the crown will grant commiffions to able and honeft judges, during good behavior, the affemblies will fettle permanent and ample salaries on them during theis commiflions; but at present they have no other means of getting rid of an ignorant, unjuft Judge, (and fome of fcandalous character have, they fay, been fent them) but by starving him out.

I do not suppose these reasonings of the Americans will appear here to have much weight in them. I do not produce them with an expectation of convincing your readers. I relate them merely in purfuance of the task I have impofed on myfelf, to be an impartial hiftorian of Ámerican facts and opinions.

On the impofition of these new duties, profeffedly for fuch difagreeable and dangerous purposes, the colonists began ferioufly to confider their fituation, and to revolve afresh in their minds grievances, which, from their refpect and love for this country, they had long borne, and feemed almoft willing to forget. They reflected how lightly the interests of all America had been eiteemed here, when the interest of a few inhabitants of Great Britain happened to have the smallest competition with it; that thus the whole American people were forbidden the advantage of a direct importation of wine, oil, and fruit from Portugal, but must take them loaded with all the expences of a voyage of one thousand leagues round about, being to be landed firit in England to be re-shipped for America, merely that a few Portugal mer

chants in London might gain a commiffion of thofe goods paffing through their hands; that on a frivolous complaint of a few Virginia merchants here, nine colonies were restrained from making paper, though become abfolutely neceflary to their internal commerce, from the conftant remittance of their gold and filver to Britain. But thefe are not all; the hatters of England prevailed fo far as to obtain an act in their own favour, reftraining that manufacture in America, in order to oblige the Americans to fend their beaver to England to be manufac tured, and to purchase back the hats loaded with the expence of manufacturing, and the charges of a double tranfportation. In the fame manner have a few nail-makers, and a still smaller number of steel-makers (perhaps there are not half a dozen of them in England), prevailed totally to forbid, by an act of Parliament, the erecting of flitting-mills and steel furnaces in America, that the Americans may be obliged to take nails for their buildings, and fteel for their tools from these artificers, under the fame difadvantages. Added to thefe, the Americans remembered the act authorifing the most cruel infult that perhaps was ever offered by one people to another, that of emptying our gaols into their fettlements (Scotland, too, has within these few years obtained the privilege it had not before, of fending its rogues and villains to the plantations); an infult aggravated by that barbarous, illplaced farcafm in a report of the Board of Trade, when one of the provinces complained of the act, "It is neceffary that it fhould be continued for the better peopling his Majefties colonies." I fay, reflecting on thefe things, the Americans faid to one another (their news-papers are full of such difcources), Thefe people are not content with making a monopoly of us, forbidding us to trade with any other country of Europe, and compelling us to buy every thing of them, though in many articles we could furnish ourselves

elsewhere, but not percent cheaper now they have as good as declared they have a right to tax us, ad libitum, internally and externally; and that our conftitution and liberties fhall all be taken away, if we do not submit to that claim. It is time, then, to take care of ourselves by the beft means in our power. Let us unite in folemn refolutions and engagements with and to each o

ther

that we will give the new officers

as little trouble as poffible by not confuming the British manufactures on which they are to levy the duties; let us agree to live frugally; and let us induftriously manufacture what we can ourselves. Thus we shall be able honourably to difcharge the debts we already owe them, and after that we may be able to ke p fome money in our country, not only for the uses of our internal commerce, but for the fervice of our gracious Sovereign, whenever he fhall think proper to require it of us in the old conftitutional' manner for notwithflanding the reproaches thrown out against us in their public papers and pamphlets, notwithftanding we have been reviled in their fenate as rebels and traitors, we are truly loyal people. Scotland has had its rebellions, and England its plots, against the prefent royal family; but America is untainted with thofe crimes; there is in it fcarce a man, there is not a fingle na tive of our country, who is not firmly attached to his King by principle and affection.

But a new kind of loyalty feems to be required of us, a loyalty to Parliament; a loyalty that is to extend, it feems, to a furrender of all our properties, whenever a Houfe of Commons, in which there is not a fingle Member of our chufing, fhall think fit to grant them away without our confent, and to a patient fuffering the lofs of our privileges, as Englifhmen, if we cannot fubmit to make fuch furrender. We were feparated too far from Britain by the ocean, but we were united ftrongly to it by repect and love; fo that we could at any time freely have spent our lives and little fortunes in its caufe; but this unhappy new fytiem of politics tends to diffolve those bands of union, and to fever us for ever. Woe to the man that firft adopted it! Both countries will long have caule to execrate his memory. F. B.

Account of the Proceedings of the American Colonifts, fince the Paffing the Bofion Port Bill. (Continued from p. 560.)

IN confequence of the Refolution of the

inhabitants of Charles-Town, the capital of South Carolina, to call a general meeting, in order to obtain the fenfe of the freeholders of the whole province, on the prefent alarming ftate of American affairs (fee p. 557), the largest body of refpectable inhabitants affembled at the Exchange of that town, on the 6th of July, that had ever been brought together on any former occafion, and, after

chufing the Hon. Col. Powell (who had prefided at all the former general meetings) for their chairman, and the fame fecretary as had hitherto served, proceeded to confider the fteps neceflary to be purfued, in union with the inhabitants of the fifter colonies, to avert the dangers impending over American liberties in general by the late hoftile act of parliament against Bofton, and other arbitrary measures of the British miniftry.

On this and other important matters they continued in folemn deliberation for three days; on the day of meeting they read and approved the Refolutions of other colonies, and formed Refolutions not unfimilar to thofe that had been tranfmitted to them by the committees of the feveral colonies with whom they correfponded.

Thursday July 7. They appointed deputies to attend at the general congrefs to be held at Philadelphia on the firit Monday in September, there to confider the act lately paffed, and bills depending in parliament, with regard to the Port of Boston and Province of MaffachusettsBay; alfo the grievances under which America labours, by reafon of the feveral acts of parliament that impofe taxes or duties for raifing a revenue, and laying unneceffary restraints and burthens on trade-and of the ftatutes, parliamentary acts, and royal inftructions, which make an invidious diftinction between his Majefty's fubjects in Great-Britain and in America with full power and authority to concert, agree to, and effectually profecute, fuch legal measures as in the opinion of the faid deputies and of the deputies fo to be affembled, thall be moft likely to obtain a repeal of the faid acts, and a redress of thofe grievances, They at the fame time agreed to pay the expences of their deputies, and to contribute towards the relief of thofe unfortunate perfons who were fuffering under the operation of those acts which had produced fuch universal disgust.

Friday, July 8. Refolved, That copies of all the Refolutions entered into by the inhabitants of this Province, at the prefent meeting, be tranfmitted to every colony on this continent, from Canada to Weft-Florida, accompanied with a letter to each refpectively, figned by the chairman, inviting them to unite.

Refolved, That a committee of ninety-nine perfons be now appointed, to act as a general committee, to correfpond ith the committees of the other colonies,

and do all matters and things neceffary to carry thefe Refolutions into execution: and that any twenty-one of them met together may proceed on business, their power to continue till the next general meeting.

The colony was ready to go into Refolutions of non-importation, and non-exportation, if it had been found abfolutely neceffary; but it was thought most proper to invest the deputies with abfolute power to agree with the other members of the congrefs, that fo they might take place from one end of the extenfive Continent to the other, on one and the fame day.

Charles Town, July 25. Last Tuesday morning the general committee met, in confequence of their adjournment the day before to fee Captain Maitland destroy fome tea that had been landed the preceding day: when, upon reconfidering the matter, and that it could not be got out of the collector's cuftody, without violence or paying the duty, both which the committee were equally difpofed to prevent, it was agreed, that the faid tea hould remain as a seizure, not to be fold in this colony, unless the duty thereon fhould be repealed.

The populace being much enraged in not feeing Capt. Maitland burn the tea, it was impoffible to prevent their going in queft of him. He, however, eluded their fearch, by flipping away, and taking refuge on board his Majefty's fhip the Glasgow, in Rebellion-road, whither his fhip foon followed him.

Capt. Urquhart, having brought five chefts of tea, upon being informed of what had happened to Capt. Maitland, declared, that he knew nothing of having any on board, till he examined his papers, and faw to whom it was configned, and promifed to bring no more till the act was repealed.

In like manner, as at Charles-Town, a provincial meeting of the Pennfylvanians was held at Philadelphia, on the 15th of July, which was adjourned from day to day till the following Refolutions were framed and paffed:

Unan. I. That we acknowledge ourfelves, and the inhabitants of this province, liege fubjects of his Majelly King George the Third, to whom they and we owe and will bear trne and faithful allegiance.

Unan. II. That, as the idea of an unconftitutional independence on the parent ftate is utterly abhorrent to our princi