old friends Jack and Tom are perpetually afking what hurt does poor lord Sulky? Why, as to lord Sulky himself I own my compaffion for him. He is pufhed by his underlings to become a publick man and a politician, and is not poffeffed of any one neceffary qualification for either, an understanding very contracted and an aukward addrefs; his affability constrained, and mirth would, in fpite of your humanity, mix itself with compaffion, to fee him with an affected air of familiarity taking one of his fmall vaffals under the arm, and bending himfelf to a difplay of condefcenfion and humility, fo unnaturally does he attempt the part! If mites could avail themfelves of the example of the Elephant, I would advise his lordfhip in imitation of Richard, the fon of the ufurper, to retire prudently from that ftation which he is not able to maintain. The coalition formed by his father will not do, for altho' two good heads are allowed to be better than one, yet two blockheads are known to do more mischief than one, and to confound one the other. We are determined to be free, nor is his late fuccefs owing to the real ftrength of his party. It was the laft convulfion of the expiring influence of his father, like the motion of the fea which continues for fome time after the ftorm is over. Many gentlemen are now difcharged of their engagements, and will never hereafter join with an intereft which is the principal obftruction of those bleffings we hope to derive from the Octennial Law, that law for which we are moft thankful to our gracious Sovereign. As to our lord lieutenant, to whom the drunken part of our nation beftows fo much credit on that score, I hall fay nothing, until his adminiftration is closed; if it turns out to be of a piece with the Octennial Law, then fhall I believe that he really counfelled and advised it, if not, you may expect a very particular detail of his conduct. I very well know the little dignity of character which the men you fend over to rule here usually maintain at home, and I am determined, uniefs facts fhall fupport them, fo far as lies in my power, to hinder them from pilfering any reputation from this poor harraffed country. Be affured, my dear Sir, that my motives for troubling you with this letter are truly laudable. I wish to draw you over where your prefence will ftrengthen the caufe of Liberty; I wish to remove that defpair of ever feeing this ifland do well, which had once. feized you; I wish to fee you fhare the glory of unfhackling your fellow fubjects. England is at laft afhamed of supporting the fcoundrel junto, and you may be affured that the day is come when the generous toils of an Irish Patriot shall meet meet their defired reward, I mean the happiness of seeing them crowned with fuccefs. I am, Your affectionate, &c. To the EDITOR of the POLITICAL REGISTER. SIR, There was lately published a pamphlet entitled, "Thoughts 66 on the Caufes and Confequences of the prefent high "Price of Provifions," upon which I have made fome OBSERVATIONS, and have added a few further Thoughts; together, with an attempt to fhew how the price may be rendered more moderate for the future; all which are at your fervice, THE I am, Sir, Your friend and hun ble fervant, A Country GENTLEMAN. HE author of the thoughts, &c. fets out with an opinion that the high price of provifions and all the neceffaries of life, is an evil; undoubtedly it is fo, and one of the worst evils that attend this nation; but it cannot be immediately cured, no more than the ableft phyfician can immediately cure a man of a violent fever. A little time may do much towards it, and if it is not incurable, a little more time with honeft endeavours, will most certainly overcome it; but I beg leave to fay, that I think, (contrary to the opinion of that author) the allowing general importations of provifions is not the way to cure fuch an evil, but has a contrary tendency, There is but one way to make a lafting plenty of provifions, and that plenty only will make them cheap; that cheapness will promote commerce, commerce promote fociety, and fociety promote a multiplication of people: That multiplication is the greateft riches any trading kingdom can have; but a fhoit temporary plenty, or cheapnefs, by general importations, can only draw the fkin over the wound: X 2 It It will foon break out again, and be more fore and difficult 'to cure than it was at firft. The encouragement of agriculture will make plenty and cheapnefs; the difcouragement, fcarcity and dearnefs. To allow an importation of foreign provifions, is encouraging foreign agriculture and difcouraging our own; for the farmer will not labour and difburfe his money, when he fees the public are endeavouring to depreciate his commodities therefore, notwithstanding the great quantity imported, I apprehend in two or three years time, there will be no more in the kingdom than if n ne had been imported, but much Jefs; and I think, that if we had imported none and paid more for our own produce this year, we should have fuperabounded with them in the next, confequently, faved our money, not encouraged foreign agriculture, and been able to bring home money by the exportation of our overplus: but if foreign provifions fhall for any length of time be admitted here, I fhall fully expect to fee the prices much higher than they have ever been yet. In fuch a trading kingdom as this is, provifions are and ought to be as much a trading commodity as any other thing whatever, within the kingdom; alfo for exportation when there is an overplus. For freedom to buy and fell at pleasure is the life of trade, and a very great promoter of plenty. Trade may be compared to a moving machine, the more clogs and burthens that are added to it, the flower it will move, with any certain force: on the contrary, without any clog or burthen, it will move with the utmoft velocity it is capable to do. As to the frequent dictate in News paper letters and chance converfations, that "Provifions fhould be prized and fold by certain rules." It is fo oppofite to any fort of reasonable argument, and fo contradictory to our general experience aş a trading people, that I think I may with much propriety dictate the contrary, and fay, That it is not in the power of the legislature, if it acts for the benefit of the nation, to have provifions prized and fold by certain rules; therefore they ought not to attempt it, and I fuppofe, will not. They may as well fet a price upon fhoes and ftockings, and all forts of clothing, which I understand to be fome of the forts of neceffary provifions, though I believe most people don't look upon them in that light. It does not appear to me, that provifions and all the ne cefiaries of life have increafed in price more than any other things: if not, their prefent price is not excrbitant; but they have have nearly kept their rank in price with all other things, When I fpeak of the neceffaries of life, I mean to fpeak of fuch only as are abfolutely neceffary; fuch as victuals and drink, clothes and lodging: Thefe, I fay, rank nearly in price with all other things, and the poor, if they are induftrious, may purchase a fufficiency of them, and to those poor and impotent who are not able, the law has fufficiently provided for them, and if they don't obtain a fufficiency the parish officers, not the legislature, ought to be blamed. To the evil before-mentioned, the word SCARCITY is of ten added, and frequently turned over and over in all converfations upon the fubject, but fuch a scarcity has never appeared; on the contrary, there has always been a fufficiency at a price, and provifions might have been, and may now be at a lower price than they are in fome parts of the kingdom, could the dealers in that commodity be affured of fafety in transferring their property from one part to another, About ten or eleven years ago, bread corn fold at a higher price all over the kingdom, than it has done lately, and yet tumults and disorder were not fo fréquent then as now, which fhows that the populace grow ripe more for mischief. No won der that they do fo, confidering what examples in luxury are fet them by their fuperiors, in which no power on earth can hinder them of a fhare; that luxury brings them to poverty, and poverty makes them tumultuous and defperate. If, upon mature confideration, the public fhall differ with me in opinion, and perfuade themselves that provifions are fcarce and at an exorbitant price, I hope they will confider too, that all forts of tumults, riots and disorders, will infallibly make them both more scarce and more dear, and that we may import provifions until we shall have no money left in the kingdom to pay for them, I am afraid we have not fo much now as we are fuppofed to have. In page 3, the author gives it as his opinion, that the prefent price of provifions arifes from the increase of our national debt, but not as to the riches; for the debt is a thing certain, but the riches are only comparative and uncertain: Inftead of riches I would fay, paper credit, the fhadow of riches. The debt of the nation and the riches of individuals (I fuppofe he means individuals by applying the word OUR) as I apprehend, are in no wife related to each other; for the former is a mere impulfe of ftate by the ufe of paper, with regard only to the inernal concerns of the kingdom; the latter is a term relative to individuals only, and fignifies money. The riches of a nation confift in the number, ftrength, and in wisdom of its inhabitants; the riches of individuals confift in money, and fuch things as will produce money, as well abroad as at home; therefore the price of provifions cannot be owing to our national riches, not having much connection with them; nor, I believe, to the riches of individuals, for they don't appear. But the price of provifions may be owing, in part to the national debt, and will continue to be fo as long as paper fhall have the effect of fpecie. Indeed, paper money is now become almoft general in the metropolis, and feems to be, not only one caufe of the dearnefs of provifions, but a caufe of the dearnefs of every thing else. Now, fuppofe paper credit fhould fail, where will be the debt? why? where it is now, in idea only; but then those who in idea may be worth twenty thousand pounds to-day, may not be worth any thing to-morrow. For this reafon it is neceffary to fupport paper credit for the fake of public justice, but furely it ought not to be increased. It is the general opinion, that the national debt will be the ruin of the nation; I make no doubt but it will, unless our ftate phyficians fhall be pleased to alter their practice: it is not too late for them yet to do fo. Parliament is not obliged to increase the national debt as it has hitherto done. In this time of peace it has a good opportunity of leffening it, and if it was to go heartily about it, it would be much leffened in a few years. It feems to me, that the price of luxury in this town would foon pay off a great part of it. In confequence of that, the town would, in a few years, be reduced to a moderate number of fuperfluous people, and make room for great improvements in manufactures and laudable commerce, and put a stop to that bane of the country, and (in part) caufe of the increafed price of provifions, the great How of country people into the metropolis. It is now a general complaint all over the kingdom, that hands are wanted for the farmer's ufe, and fuch want has greatly increased the price of country labour, and that has added to the price of provifions. It is faid, that the increase of taxes, the chief method by which I should propofe to decrease the national debt, muft increase the price of every thing. This, I suppose, is meant in a general way; but furely taxes upon luxuries only, would foon ftop the great flow of people inta the metropolis, confequently decrease the price of neceffaries, by staying them in, the country for the use of husbandry; and as to all other things, articles of foreign trade excepted, the |