found and fhow, fhall vanish from the touch of reason as mifts and vapors from the noon-day fun. Agreeably then to the viciffitudes which have in a long feries of eventful years taken place in the views and fentiments of the oppofing parties of the ftate, a WHIG muft now be understood to mean a man who, in addition to the fpeculative principles of liberty civil and religious which have defcended to him from his ancestors, entertains a lively and well-founded jealousy left the prerogative of the crown fhould, in confequence of the prodigious increase of its influence, ultimately abforb the whole power and authority of the other branches of the government, and with them the liberties of the nation at large, in its vast and tremendous vortex. A modern whig acknowledges and deeply regrets the improvidence of his ancestors in contributing, by the facility of their compliances, to the accumulation of an immenfe public debt, and the establishment of a standing army, both of which are yet in a state alarmingly progreffive. He can fcarcely forgive thofe extravagant ebullitions of loyalty which could facrifice the most facred principles of the conftitution to the intereft or ambition of the reigning family, in prolonging by a most unjustifiable stretch of power the existence of parliaments to a term of dangerous duration, and in furnishing to a minif ter little fcrupulous of expedients, and regardless of consequences, the means of univerfal and unbounded corruption. Whatever palliations of the fatal fyftem then adopted, the peculiarity of that minister's fituation, and the fituation of the country at large in a political view, might then afford, had it was affirmed been long fince entirely at an end; but the fame fyftem is nevertheless refolutely and uninterruptedly pursued, recovering Antæus-like from every apparent or accidental fall with renewed and redoubled vigor. On the other hand, the modern tories, although the defcendants of those who long entertained a moft inveterate enmity enmity against the family upon the throne, and who from motives not of the purest patriotifm vehemently oppofed in the former reigns the unconftitutional measures of the whigs, having at length entirely fhaken off their old attachments, and being taken into favor and invested with power under the marked and too partial protection of the court, fuddenly became its open and zealous advocatescombining, as far as the spirit of the times would admit, the fpeculative errors of one party with the practical errors of the other. The neceffity of ftrengthening the prerogative of the monarch, and of fupporting the DIGNITY of the CROWN, was from this time the inceffant theme of their argument and declamation. Concéffions and indulgencies were in their estimation things incompatible with the majefty of the regal character. The high, harsh, and peremptory tone of AUTHORITY uniformly marked every act of government under the almoft conftant predominance of this dangerous faction during the prefent reign, from the commitment of a printer, or the profecution of a libeller, to those measures of provocation and oppreffion terminating in a war which rent in twain and had well nigh fubverted the empire. This party, now grown strong and confident by an unexpected return of profperity, affumed with oftentatious audacity the appellation of the KING'S FRIENDS, in which novel capacity they befitated not to give their eager and ardent fupport to those measures of court policy which had been ever reprobated by the tories of elder days as in the highest degree pernicious and unconstitutional. The STANDING ARMY, fo long the theme of their invective and reproach, was now affirmed to be neceffary for the prefervation of the national tranquillity; the public debt was pronounced a public benefit; the connection with Hanover was honorable and useful; the influence of the crown was the happy means of confolidating the harmony of the different branches of government; a long parliament was faid to to be attended with no fuch inconvenient confequences as had been previously and erroneously apprehended; and every attempt to reftore that equality in the representation, or rather to remove those glaring inequalities. fo inconfistent with the fpirit of the conftitution and the practice of former ages, was oppofed and rejected by them in terms of unbounded obloquy and deteftation, as leading to nothing lefs than the abfolute fubverfion of government. They profeffed on all occafions their dread of innovation and novelty-not adverting to the conftant declaration of the antient tories, that the things to which they objected were themselves innovations wholly extraneous to the conftitution-and that they who merely wished to restore were moft unjustly accused of a fondnefs for innovation, or a dangerous propenfity to tamper with the conftitution by trying new and hazardous experiments. Although the high and prepofterous notions once prevalent refpecting the AUTHORITY of the CHURCH had, in common with the old opinions relative to civil government, gradually fallen into difrepute, the tories of the prefent reign have been invariably characterized by the ftrength of their attachment to the ecclefiaftical establishment, which they are delighted to applaud and extol as a model of purity and perfection. Any fuggeftions of the expediency of a reform in the church, whether in relation to the irregularities of its difcipline, or the errors of its doctrine as exhibited in a set of obfolete and unintelligible articles of faith, are received by this clafs of men with a fort of horror, as leading to foul fufpicions of fectarian herefy or atheistical profaneness; while the diffenters of all denominations are on the contrary viewed by them with eyes of jealoufy and hatred, and affiduoufly held up on all occafions as the inveterate enemies of at least one part of the conftitution, and as the doubtful friends at best of the other and every idea of enlarging the limits of the toleration allowed them by law, and much more of extend ing ing to them the common privileges of citizens, they have uniformly exclaimed against with affected terror and real malignity. By these grand and leading features are the opposite parties of the prefent reign clearly difcriminated; and whether these parties fhall continue to be known under the established denominations of whig and tory, whether by the appellations of court and country, king's friends or patriots, is of little importance, fo that the terms be diftinctly defined and generally understood; although in different individuals these different fyftems will of course be blended and diverfified by all the poffible tints and fhades of moral and political variety. No fooner had the whigs, after a long and laborious oppofition, driven their antagonists the tories from the helm, and found themfelves in full poffeffion of the powers of government and the confidence of the people, than, in consequence of the unfortunate misunderstanding and subfequent conflict of their leaders, they were again broken and divided; and each divifion was under the necessity of ftrengthening itself by forming new and dangerous connections with their former opponents. On the fucceffion of Mr. Fox, the earl of Shelburne called in the aid, though in a fomewhat covert manner, of the Jenkinfon party; and when a fair profpect of fupplanting that nobleman in a fhort time occurred, Mr. Fox fcrupled not, to the aftonishment and indignation of the kingdom, publicly to coalefce with lord North and his numerous partifans. The earl of Shelburne having been far more guarded in his previous declarations, as well as his subsequent political affociations, efcaped the obloquy which attended the more flagrant inconfiftency of his once popular rival; who, by openly connecting himself with that individual minister of the crown whom he had fo long and fo fuccefsfully labored to. vilify and difgrace, had for ever forfeited his claim claim to the flattering appellation of "the man of the people." On the difmiffion of the coalition adminiftration, Mr. Pitt, the head of the new miniftry, was in a manner compelled, like his predeceffor lord Shelburne, to admit no inconfiderable proportion of the tories to fhare in the honors and emoluments of government; and the nation, equally enraged at the whigs and the tories of the coalition, willingly excufed the re-admiffion of thofe members. of the old tory administration who could plead the recent merit of inveighing against the coalition, and of oppofing the India bill of Mr. Fox. From this mixture of toryism in the new administration, nevertheless, the moft pernicious and direful confequences have ultimately resulted. The reign of the prefent monarch has indeed been diftinguished by a strange and dreadful fatality; and the deplorable infatuation almost invariably actuating the national councils, and which has been productive of fuch mighty mifchiefs, may well appear to the contemplative and philofophic mind-penetrating beyond the dark cloud which bounds' the view of common obfervers-the destined means of accomplishing the grand and beneficent purposes of that wisdom in comparison with which the highest human fagacity is as weaknefs and folly. But these are reflections which more pro perly appertain to the province of the theologift than the hiftorian. After the divifion which took place on the address, and which terminated in the complete triumph of the new mi niftry, the bufinefs which chiefly for a time occupied the attention of the house and of the public, was the complaint ftated by Mr. Fox refpecting the conduct of the high bailiff of Westminster, who had obftinately and daringly refused to make the return in his favor, although he had upon the face of the poll a majority of 235 votes. Mr, Fox, however, was not deprived of his feat in parlia ment |