home, which the monopolists of Cadiz sought to give it; and the asperity which so frequently mixed in the debates of the Cortes, was a certain index of the growing exasperation they felt, on the dread of losing their gains. In popular governments, the representatives of the people, may, generally, be considered as a mirror reflecting the opinions of their constituents; but, the Cortes, rather reflected the passions of the trading interests, amongst whom they had taken refuge; and their deliberations were decided, by principles, which could not exist, unless under the dominion of blind infatuation. The conduct of the Spanish government, relating to the ultramarine provinces, may, consequently, be considered, rather as the effort of a party, than the free, regular, and deliberate act of the nation, who may certainly be pronounced as perfectly ignorant of the question, of the real grounds on which the war has been continued, of the immediate and chief points of the contest. Neither can Spain, generally, be acquainted with the extent of that rigid and compulsive system, to which the Spanish Americans have been subjected, or with the horrors to which they have been exposed. Scarcely masters of their conduct, the Cortes were, indeed, sometimes, im pelled by a furious multitude; but it was on so import ant an occasion as this, that they ought to have vindicated their own rights, in order to do justice to a suffering party, and to evince their sincerity and zeal. But in fact, they were not disposed to extend their salutary influence to Spanish America, or be the means of introducing such political principles and practice, as might tend to the improvement and regeneration of her inhabitants, and remoye from their shoulders, the galling weight under

which they had long groaned. War was the only means to which they chose to resort, and Neros were commissioned to enforce unconditional subjection, by burning the towns of an unoffending people, and pouring desola. tion over their ravaged plains.

§ With what truth, and with what justice, might not the Spanish Americans, then, have addressed themselves, in the following manner, to the government of the Peninsula, and to all those who contributed to the horrors by which they were surrounded.-The first discoverers and settlers of this vast country, brought with them, and transmitted to their posterity, all the privileges and immunities, that, at any time, have been enjoyed by the people of Spain. These were secured to them, on the faith of kings, and sanctioned by the most solemn legislative acts. Yet we, their descendents, strenuously mani fest to you, that, gradually, by the despotism of our kings, as well as by the corruption of their ministers, we had been divested of the enjoyment of our charters and prerogatives, till at last, we had been dragged into a system of govern ment, that could be compared to nothing else, but a de graded state of vassalage. That we have long complained of our restraints and privations, but they have been aggra vated, by pointed contempt and disdain, notwithstanding which, we have not failed to evince our sincere alle giance, and the veneration we had to our rightful and unfortunate monarch. That, bent down by oppression, and fatigued by the domestic calamities by which we were harassed, we conceived, that in moments of peril and uncertainty, the administration of our own concerns, was safer in our own hands, than in the grasp of arbitrary despots; and that by virtue of our own inherent rights,

and in accord with the example of our sister provinces of the Peninsula, we changed our form of government, without varying our allegiance, or ceasing to be liege and faithful subjects of the same monarch, to whom we always belonged. That, in so doing, our object was to promote our own security, and to remove the galling shackles by which we were bound. That for this, a cruel and devastating war, was declared against us.

That, whereas, the power, but not the justice, the vengeance but not the wisdom of Spain, the same which, of old, nearly stripped this country of its primitive population, now pursues their guiltless children and the other races, who, in the course of time, have been blended with them. And whereas, this land on which we now live, was purchased by the toil and treasure, or acquired by the blood and valour of our venerable progenitors, who in many cases, shared their fortunes with the daughters of its ancient possessors, to us they bequeathed the dear-bought inheritance; to our care and protection they consigned it, and the most sacred obligations are upon us, to transmit the glorious purchase, unfettered by undue power, and unclogged by galling shackles, to our innocent and beloved offspring. From fatal experience, we begin to know the value of those precious rights, for which our forefathers lavished their blood and treasure, which they handed down to their descendants, but which, our invaded laws, could no longer secure, The time is now come, when a boundless continent, inhabited by seventeen millions of people, can no longer submit, to have their being at the arbitrary will of a licentious minister, or basely yield to the despotism of European chiefs, bent only on their own aggrandizement,

to our wants.

and our debasement. We ask no more than a form of government, suited to our circumstances, and congenial We do not seek to cease to be subjects, but we will, no longer, be the tools of arbitrary power. We revere the land from whence we derive our origin, but we cannot, unmoved, behold the sacred inheritances we have derived from nature, thus snatched from us. We have beheld our charters, which ought to have served as a sacred barrier against the encroachments of tyranny, mutilated and trampled to the ground; and we now seek to replace them, on their ancient basis. We only demand the right of being governed by our own assemblies, in the articles of taxes and internal police—a right we have never yielded up. We ask no more, than that practical equality, which our ancient laws, reason, and even recent edicts, give us the authority to claim. We ask for just and equitable laws, but we assert, that no man is bound, in conscience, to obey any; in the forma tion of which, he has not given his consent, in person or by representative. We cannot but express our concern, that in praying for the interposition of the Cortes of Spain, in favour of our violated rights, and to relieve us from our galling burdens, we have not met with that at tention our situation and services deserved, and we fur ther declare, that the rigorous prosecutions by informa tion, which we have so often witnessed amongst us, are insupportable grievances on the people. In short, we solemnly avow, that the war carried on against us, is a war of aggression, and that the justice of our resistance, consequently, cannot be questioned, as far as self-preserva tion and indispensable necessity, can furnish motives to take up arms. We deplore the horrors and ravages, by

which we are surrounded, but they did not originate with us. As citizen-soldiers, we know, and approve the cause for which we are fighting. We lament the calamities, by which the bosom of our common country, is rent, and the course of barbarity, practised against us. We appeal to that God, who searcheth the hearts of men, for the rectitude of our intentions; and, in his holy presence, we declare, that we are not moved by any hasty symptoms of anger and revenge; so, through every change of fortune, we will adhere to the same determination, of laying down our arms, as soon as our freedom and happiness are safely secured, and properly guaranteed.

§ The object of the preceding details, has been to place the Spanish American question, in a proper point of view, and to state, from the best attainable data, the origin and causes of those unfortunate dissentions, which have, so long, desolated the South Columbian continent. In carrying my reader through the various stages of this complicated dispute, and after giving him an idea of the degraded state in which the inhabitants of that country, had been kept, I have particularly endeavoured to convey a just conception of the redress sought, and the manner in which it was denied. I have pointed out the defects of that constitution, which, from being ill-balanced, can never be permanent; manifesting that, though in its formation, the Spanish Americans have not had an adequate part, they are, nevertheless, warred upon, because they refuse to give it, an unmodified admission. I have proved the war carried on against them, to be a war of aggression, to have orignated in a manifest violation of principles of right and equity; and I have stated, that it is accompanied by horrors, which chill the feelings of