do refer; and I must infift upon faying, That according as this cafe feems to be understood by the court and Mr. Attor ney, it is not law at this day: for though I own it to be base and unworthy to scandalize any man, nay 1 think it is even villainous to fcandalize a perfon of public character, and I will go fo far into Mr. Attorney's doctrine, as to agree, that if the faults, mistakes, nay even the vices of fuch a perfon be private and personal, and do not affect the peace of the public, or the liberty or property of our neighbour, it is unmanly and unmannerly to expose them either by word or writing. But when a ruler of a people brings his perfonal failings, but much more his vices, into his adminiftration, and the people find themselves affected by them, either in their liberties or properties, that will alter the cafe mightily, and all the high things that are faid in favour of rulers, and of dignities, and upon the fide of power, will not be able to ftop people's mouths when they feel themfelves oppreffed, I mean in a free government. It is true in times paft it was a crime to fpeak truth, and in that terrible court of star-chamber, many worthy and brave men fuffered for fo doing; and yet even in that court, and in those bad times, a great and good man durft fay, what I hope will not be taken amifs of me to fay in this place, to wit, "The practice of informations for libels, is a fword in the hands of a wicked king, and an arrand coward, to cut down and deftroy the innocent; the one cannot, becaufe of his high ftation, and the other dares not, because of his want of venge himself in another manner."

courage, re

Mr. Attorney. Pray, Mr. Hamilton, have a care what you fay, do not go too far neither; I do not like those liberties.

Mr. Hamilton. Sure, Mr. Attorney, you won't make any applications; all men agree, that we are governed by the best of kings, and I cannot fee the meaning of Mr. Attorney's caution: my well-known principles, and the fenfe I have of the bleffings we enjoy under his prefent majefty, makes it impoffible for me to err, and I hope, even to be fufpected, in that point of duty to my king. May it please your honour, I was faying, That notwithstanding all the duty and reverence claimed by Mr. Attorney to men in authority, they are not exempt from obferving the rules of common juftice, either in their private or public capacities; the laws of our mothercountry know no exemption. It is true, men in power are harder to be come at for wrongs they do, either to a private perfon or to the public; especially a governor in the plantations, where they infift upon an exemption from anfwering

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complaints of any kind in their own government. We are indeed told, and it is true they are obliged to answer a suit in the king's courts at Westminster, for a wrong done to any perfon here; but do we not know how impracticable this is to moft men among us, to leave their families (who depend upon their labour and care for their livelihood) and carry evidences to Britain, and at a great, nay a far greater expence than almost any of us are able to bear, only to profecute a governor for an injury done here. But when the oppreffion is general, there is no remedy even that way: however, our constitution has (bleffed be God) given us an opportunity, if not to have fuch wrongs redreffed, yet by our prudence and refolution we may in a great measure prevent the committing of fuch wrongs, by making a governor fenfible that it is his intereft to be just to thofe under his care; for fuch is the fenfe that men in general (I mean freemen) have of common juftice, that when they come to know, that a chief magiftrate abuses the power with which he is trufted, for the good of the people, and is attempting to turn that very power against the innocent, whether of high or low degree; I fay, mankind in general feldom fail to interpofe, and, as far as they can, prevent the deftruction of their fellow-fubjects. And has it not often been feen (and I hope it will always be feen) that when the reprefentatives of a free people are, by juft reprefentations or remonftrances, made fenfible of the fufferings of their fellow fubjects, by the abufe of power in the hands of a governor, they have declared (and loudly too) that they were not obliged by any law to fupport a governor who goes about to deftroy a province or colony, or their privileges, which by his majefty he was appointed, and by the law he is bound, to protect and encourage. But I pray it may be confidered of what ufe is this mighty privilege, if every man that suffers must be filent? And if a man must be taken up as a libeller for telling his fufferings to his neighbour? I know it may be anfwered, Have you not a legiflature? Have you not a house of reprefentatives to whom you may complain? And to this I answer, we have. But what then? Is an affembly to be troubled with every injury done by a governor? Or are they to hear of nothing but what thofe in the adminiftration will please to tell them? Or what fort of a trial must a man have? And how is it to be remedied; efpecially if the cafe were, as I have known it to happen in America in my time, That a governor who has places (I will not fay penfions, for I believe they feldom give that to another which they can take to themselves) to beftow, and can or will keep the fame affembly (after he

has

has modelled them fo as to get a majority of the houfe in his intereft) for near twice feven years together? I pray, what redrefs is to be expected for an honeft man, who makes his complaint against a governor, to an affembly who may properly enough be faid, to be made by the fame governor against whom the complaint is made? The thing anfwers itself. No, it is natural, it is a privilege; I will go farther, it is a right which all freemen claim, and are intitled to complain when they are hurt; they have a right publicly to remonftrate against the abuses of power in the ftrongeft terms, to put their neighbours upon their guard against the craft or open violence of men in authority, and to affert with courage the fenfe they have of the bleffings of liberty, the value they put upon it, and their refolution at all hazards to preferve it, as one of the greatest bleffings Heaven can beftow. And when a house of affembly compofed of honest freemen fees the general bent of the people's inclinations, That is it which muft and will (I am fure it ought to) weigh with a legiflature, in fpite of all the craft, careffing and cajoling, made ufe of by a governor, to divert them from hearkening to the voice of their country. As we all very well understand the true reafon, why gentlemen take fo much pains and make fuch great intereft to be appointed governors, fo is the design of their appointment not lefs manifeft. We know his majefty's gracious intentions to his fubjects; he defires no more than that his people in the plantations should be kept up to their duty and allegiance to the crown of GreatBritain, that peace may be preferved amongst them, and justice impartially administered; that we may be governed so as to render us ufeful to our mother-country, by encouraging us to make and raise such commodities as may be useful to GreatBritain. But will any one fay, that all or any of these good ends are to be effected by a governor's fetting his people together by the ears, and by the affiftance of one part of the people to plague and plunder the other? The commiffion which governors bear, while they execute the powers given them, according to the intent of the royal granter, expreffed in their commiffions, requires and deserves very great reverence and fubmiffion but when a governor departs from the duty enjoined him by his fovereign, and acts as if he was lefs accountable than the royal hand that gave him all that power and honour which he is poffeffed of; this fets people upon examining and enquiring into the power, authority, and duty, of fuch a magiftrate, and to compare those with his conduct; and just as far as they find he exceeds the bounds of his authority, or falls fhort of doing impartial juftice to the people under

his administration, fo far they very often, in return, come fhort in their duty to fuch a governor. Power alone will not make a man beloved; and I have heard it obferved, That the man who was neither good nor wife before his being made a governor, never mended upon his preferment; but has been generally obferved to be worfe: for men who are not endued with wisdom and virtue, can only be kept in bounds by the law; and by how much the further they think themselves out of the reach of the law, by fo much the more wicked and cruel men are. I wish there were no inftances of the kind at this day. And wherever this happens to be the cafe of a governor, unhappy are the people under his adminiftration, and in the end he will find himself fo too; for the people will neither love him nor fupport him. I make no doubt but there are those here, who are zealously concerned for the fuccefs of this profecution; and yet I hope they are not many, and even some of those, I am perfuaded, (when they confider what lengths fuch profecu tions may be carried, and how deeply the liberties of the people may be affected by fuch means) will not all abide by their prefent fentiments; I fay, not all: for a man who from an intimacy and acquaintance with a governor, has conceived a perfonal regard for him; the man who has felt none of the strokes of his power, the man who believes that a governor has a regard for him and confides in him, it is natural for fuch men to with well to the affairs of fuch a governor; and as they may be men of honour and generofity, may, and no doubt will, with him fuccefs, fo far as the rights and privileges of their fellow citizens are not affected. But as men of honour, I can apprehend nothing from them; they will never exceed that point. There are others that are under ftronger obligations, and those are fuch as are in fome fort engaged in fupport of a governor's caufe, by their own or their relations' dependence on his favour, for fome poft or preferment; fuch men have what is commonly called duty and gratitude, to influence their inclinations, and oblige them to go his lengths. I know mens' intererefts are very near to them, and they will do much rather than forego the favour of a governor, and a livelihood at the fame time; but I can with very juft grounds hope, even from thefe men, whom I will fuppofe to be men of honour and confcience too, that when they fee the liberty of their country in danger, either by their concurrence, or even by their filence, they will, like Englifhmen, and like themselves, freely make a facrifice of any preferment or favour rather than be acceflary to deftroying the liberties of their country, and entailing flavery upon their pofterity. There

are

are indeed another fet of men, of whom I have no hopes, I mean fuch, who lay afide all other confiderations, and are ready to join with power in any fhape, and with any man or fort of men, by whofe means or intereft they may be affifted to gratify their malice and envy against those whom they have been pleased to hate; and that for no other reafon, but becaufe they are men of abilities and integrity, or at least are poffeffed of fome valuable qualities far fuperior to their own. But as envy is the fin of the devil, and therefore very hard, if at all, to be repented of, I will believe there are but few of this deteftable and worthless fort of men, nor will their opi❤ nions or inclinations have any influence upon this trial. But to proceed; I beg leave to infift, that the right of complaining or remonftrating is natural; and the restraint upon this natural right is the law only, and that thofe reftrains can only extend to what is falfe: for as it is truth alone which can excufe or juftify any man for complaining of a bad administration, I as frankly agree, that nothing ought to excufe a man who raifes a falfe charge or accufation even against a private perfon, and that no manner of allowance ought to be made him who does fo against a public magiftrate. Truth ought to govern the whole affair of libels, and yet the party accufed runs rifque enough even then; for if he fails of proving every tittle of what he has wrote, and to the fatisfaction of the court and juny too, he may find to his coft, that, when the profecution is fet on foot by men in power, it feldom wants friends to favour it. And from thence (it is faid) has arifen the great diverfity of opinions among judges, about what words were or were not fcandalous or libellous. I believe it will be granted, that there is not greater uncertainty in any part of the law, than about words of fcandal; it would be mifpending of the court's time to mention the cafes; they may be faid to be numberless; and therefore the utmost care ought to be taken in following precedents; and the times when the judgments were given, which are quoted for authorities in the cafe of libels are much to be regarded. I think it will be agreed, That ever fince the time of the ftar-chamber, where the most arbitrary and deftructive judgments and opinions were given, that ever an Englishman heard of, at leaft in his own country; I fay, profecutions for libels fince the time of that arbitrary court, and until the glorious revolution, have generally been fet on foot at the inftance of the crown or its ministers; and it is no fmall reproach to the law, that thefe profecutions were too often and too much countenanced by the judges, who held their places at pleasure, (a disagreeable tenure to any officer,

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