by the Restoration of King Charles II. and above all or generous and frank Concurrence with them in the late happy Revolution and Advancement of King William III. We did verily think that all these things deserv'd a better Treatment And to evince that they did we shall beg leave to insist a little upon the first and last The English have no cause to think that we were ignorant of the Reason why their Politick Henry VII chose rather to Match his Eldâ—st Daughter with the King of Scots than with the King of France because he foresaw that if the King of Scots should by that means come to the Crown of England he would remove the Seat of his Government thither which would add to the Grandure and Riches of England Whereas if the King of France did by that means fall Heir to the English Crown he would certainly draw the Court of England to Paris This the Scots were so far from being ignorant of that many of the Nobility and Gentry did express their dislike of the Union of the Crowns as well knowing that it would reduce our Kingdom into a Subjection and Dependance upon England and drain us of what Substance we had and therefore some of them express'd themselves on that occasion That Scotland was never Conquer'd till then Yet such was our Zeal for the Common Welfare of the Island the Interest of the Protestant Religion and of Europe in general which were then almost in as much danger by Spain as they have been since by France that we quietly and freely parted with our King and suffer'd him to accept the English Crown rather than that Nation should be involv'd in War and Confusion and the Protestant Religion endanger'd by another Successor as it must necessarily have been had the Infanta of Spain whose Title was then promoted by the Popish Interest succeeded And all the Reward we had for this Condescension and Kindness was a Contemptuous and Disdainful Refusal on the part of England of an Union of the Nations when proposed tho' the same would visibly have tended to the Benefit of the whole Island the general Advantage of Europe and the Security and Increase of the Protestant Interest And our King was so little thankful on his part that tho' he promis'd solemnly in the Great Church of Edinburgh before his Departure that he would visit his Ancient Kingdom once in three Years he never saw it after but once and that not till Fourteen Years after And by the influence of that same Faction in England who are still our Enemies he made Innovations both in Church and State These were the first Advantages we had by the Union of the Crowns His Son King Charles I. had scarce ascended the Throne when we had new Proofs of the Disadvantages we labour'd under by that Union for he by the Advice of some Enemies to our Nation did in an Imperious and Arbitrary manner send for our Crown tho' the only Monument almost left us of our Independency and Freedom but was generously answer'd by him that had it in keeping That if he would come and be Crown'd in Scotland he should have all the Honour done him that ever was to his Ancestors but if he did not think it worth his while they might perhaps be inclin'd to make choice of another Soveraign or to that effect as recorded in the Continuation of Sir Richard Baker's History Another Disadvantage we had by that Union of the Crown was this That that Unfortunate Prince being inspir'd with an Aversion to the Constitution of our Country by his Education made War upon us to bring us to a Conformity with England in Church-Matters We shall not here offer to debate which of the Churches was best Constituted or most agreeable to the Scripture-Pattern It suffices for our Argument That we were Injur'd in having a Foreign Model offer'd to be obtruded upon us which was the Consequence of the Union of the Crowns and of having our King Educated in another Nation but that was not all another mischievous Effect of the Union was this That whatever King Charles had deserv'd at our Hands yet out of Natural Affection Conscience and Honour we were oblig'd to do what we could to prevent his Illegal Trial and Death and to defend his Son's Title which threw us into Convulsions at Home occasion'd us the loss of several Armies and expos'd our Nation afterwards to Ruine and Devastation by our implacable Enemy the Usurper which together with the Ungrateful Retributions made us by the Government after the Restoration were enough to have wearied any Nation under Heav'n but our selves of the Union of the Crowns ANSWER Our Caledonian as I believe being somewhat mistrustful of the strength of the Scotâ— Title as well as of his Arguments to perswade the English that it is for their Interest to maintain the Scots in their New Settlement thinks it best to take other Measures now and to try whether he can hector them into a Compliance with the Scots he sets the best Countenance upon the Matter and labours very hard to give the World to understand that the English are highly indebted to the Scots for suffering as he terms it their Crown to be United with that of England I will not enter into a Dispute with him about the design of Henry VII in Marrying his Daughter to the King of Scots I will allow him to have acted in this Point as much for the Interest of England as our Author would have him but what is all this to their suffering the two Crowns to be United under one Head I hope he will grant me that both the English and Scots Crowns were Hereditary and being such how was it in the Power of the Scots to alter the Succession upon that Score I will further allow him that whenever two Kingdoms or States are United under one Head the less Potent will in some measure be independent on the other But I would also have him grant me this Position That if at that Juncture the Infanta of Spain had succeeded in England the Protestant Interest both in England and Scotland must have been brought into no small Jeopardy and our Author would have had no great occasion at this time to brag of the Soveraignty and Independency of the Scots He makes a large Rehearsal of the Miscarriages in the Reign of King James I. and King Charles I. especially of their Innovations in Church Matters in Scotland but our Author might have remembred if they introduced Episcopacy among them they were not behind hand in furnishing England with Presbytery What he alledges concerning their Sufferings in the Civil Wars for the Defence of K. Charles I. and his Sons Title ought not to be put upon the English Score I wonder how he can be so forgetful as not to remember That the Scots Covenanters were of that Gang that begun the Dance and all the reason in the World they should help to pay the Fidler And
Emergency we should be forc'd to break off the Union of the Crowns and enter again into a French Alliance It 's in vain for them to Object that in such a case we should betray our Religion for we see the persecuted Hungarians were protected in that by the Turks tho' sworn Enemies to it Nor is it impossible but there may be a change as to that matter in France L. XIV is not immortal And even Julian the Apostate himself found it his Interest for some time to protect the Orthodox Christians whom he mortally hated But supposing as indeed there 's no great likelihood of it that no such Alliance as this should ever happen yet however if these two Nations be not more closely united it may be of ill Consequence to England if any of their Kings at any time should be so far disgusted as to betake themselves to us What a Field of Blood and Slaughter must England have become had we carried off K. Charles I. when he came to our Army or iâ— we had join'd him against the Parliament of England What great Efforts did a Party of our Nation make to inthrone K. Charles II. when England was against him And how did our Concurrence afterwards with General Monk effect it How soon did our Espousing the Duke of York's Interest turn the Tables upon those that opposed him in England And if our Nation had likewise Espous'd his Cause before the Revolution the Viscount of Dundee gave a sufficient proof what we could have done for him This makes it evident That it is not the Interest of England to slight an Union with us so much as they have done For so long as we remain divided any King that is so minded may make use of us and any envious Neighbour whose Interest it is to keep this Island low will be sure to blow the Coals If they 'd but turn the Tables and make our Case their own they would quickly be satisfied of the Truth of what we advance Supposing that the Government of Scotland should traverse the Actings of the Government of England in relation to their Trade c. as they have done ours and supposing that a Parliament of Scotland when the King were there should question him for the Navigation Act and that for the Incouragement of Trade in England by King Charles II. which lays us under such hard Circumstances and Restrictions the English would certainly very much resent it and speedily tell us we meddled with what did not belong to us Then why should they deny us the like liberty in reference to their Proceedings against us seeing we are a free Nation as well as they Nor can any thing less than joining with us and protecting that Settlement against all opposition in case of Attacks by the French or others sufficiently atone for what is already done or heal the Wound those Proclamations have giv'n to the common Interest of the Island ANSWER These several Pages are no more than a Repetition of what he has urged before with this difference only that he intermixes them with some bitter and unseemly Expressions which are altogether insufferable in a private Person and a Subject He as good as denounces War against England in case the Scots should miscarry and sounds alarm without any publick Authority I cannot forbear to take notice of one Passage when he says That if the Scots had carried off K. Charles I. when he came to their Army what a Field of Slaughter and Blood must England have become whereas before to excuse the Scots for their surrendring the said King he had told us with a great deal of Confidence that they were necessitated so to do What he says concerning their Endeavours to Inthrone King Charles II. is not altogether to be denied but he might also have remembred upon what Terms they did it which is I think a sufficient warning to any King not to relie upon their Gencrosity and he might have very well saved himself the trouble of offering the Assistance of the Scots to the English Court there being no great likelihood thanks be to God at this time that they will have any occasion for them or if they should they would scarce think fit to accept of them Their Concurrence with General Monk has been spoken off before as most of all the other Points which he treats of here so that we think it needless to make a Repetition of them here And so will take a short View of his Description of Darien WE come in the next place to give a Description of the Isthmus of Darien It lies betwixt the 8th and 10th Degrees of Northern Latitude and in the narrowest place is betwixt 60 and 80 Italian Miles over We shall not trouble our selves with the Description of any more of it than is in the possession of the Natives which is in length from E. to W. on the N. side from the mouth of the River Darien to Port Scrivan above 140 Italian Miles from Caret Bay to the River of Cheapo on the Southside it is about 160 in length It is supposed to take its Name from the great River of Darien that bounds its Northern Coast to the Eastward It is bounded on the North and South with the vast Oceans that carry the names of the North and South Seas It s Situation is very pleasant and agreeable and very commodious for a speedy and short Communication of Trade betwixt the North and South Seas and preventing that vast Compass that must otherwise be fetch'd round either of the Extremes of North and South America By this means also it lies convenient for a speedier Communication of Trade betwixt Europe and the East Indies than any that hath hitherto been found out Mr. Dampier says That from Cheapo or Santa Maria River a Man may pass from Sea to Sea in three days and that the Indians do it in a day and a half There are abundance of valuable Islands on both sides the Isthmus which prevent the breaking in of the Ocean upon it at once and besides the Conveniences of Wood Fish Fowl and Water afford good and safe Riding in all Weathers to any number of Ships especially those call'd the Sambaloes that lie along the Northern Coast The Continent is agreeably intermix'd with â—â—ills and Valleys of great variety for height depth and extent The Vallies are water'd with Rivers Brooks and Springs which take their rise from a great ridge of Hills that run along the Isthmus but nearest to the Northern Shore from which it is seldom above 15 Miles distant and from whence the Sambaloes Islands and the various Makings of the Shore and the continued Forest all along the Country gratifie the Eye with a very fine prospect The Rivers on the Northern Coast are generally small because their Course from the above-mentioned ridge of Hills is but short yet the River of Darien is very large but the depth of its entrance not answerable to its width yet
this is so unquestionably true that many of the wiser sort are of Opinion That the Presbyterian Faction would never have carried Matters to that heighth under that unfortunate Prince's Reign if they had not been back'd by the Covenanting Party in Scotland So that England may in a great measure lay the Calamities of the late Civil Wars and its fatal Consequences to their Doors which our Author would fain put altogether upon the English But let us see how he goes on in magnifying his beloved Scots DEFENCE Yet such was our Zeal for the Protestant Interest the Welfare of the Island and the Liberty of Europe that tho' we had a fair opportunity of providing otherwise for our security and the Advancement of our Trade and of forming our selves into a Commonwealth or of bringing England to our own Terms yet we frankly and generously concurr'd with them to settle our Government on the same Persons and in the same manner as they did theirs and all the Reward we had from them is that an Union of the Nations tho' twice propos'd by His Majesty in Parliament hath been rejected To this they have added an opposition to our receiving Foreign Subscriptions at Hamburgh and elsewhere refus'd us a Supply of Corn for our Money to relieve us in our Distress and discourag'd our Settlement at Darien by forbidding their Subjects to Trade with us there If these continued Slights be not enough to make us weary of the Union of the Crowns let any Man judge To discover a little of the unreasonableness of this sort of Treatment we dare Appeal to the calm thoughts of such of our Neighbours in England as prefer the Interest of the Publick to private Animosities and foolish ill-grounded Piques either as to Church or State whether at the time of the Revolution and before we declar'd our selves they would not have been willing to have assur'd themselves of our Friendship at the rate of Uniting with us as one Nation Had we but demurr'd upon forfeiting the late K. James or made but a Proffer of renewing our ancient League with France and joyning with that Crown to keep that Prince upon the Throne of Great Britain they know we might have made what Terms we pleas'd with the late King and Louis XIV on that condition and might have been restor'd to all the Honours and Privileges that our Ancestors enjoy'd in France which were almost equal to those of the Natives and yet that gallant Nation thought it no disparagement to them however we be despis'd and undervalued now by a certain Party in England Had we but seem'd to have made such Overtures the English must needs have foreseen that the natural Consequences of such a Design if it had taken effect must have been these viz. The late King's Adherents in England would certainly have join'd us and our Nation would have afforded them a safe Retreat in case of any Disaster till they could have concerted Matters to the best Advantage The late King would not have yielded himself such an easie Conquest not disbanded his Army in such a manner as he did Ireland had certainly revolted since every one knows that the Revolution was begun and in a great measure perfected there by the Scots of the North so that England must have become the Theatre of the War and been liable to an Invasion from France These must certainly have been the Consequences of our adhering to the late King and the English would have thought they had had a very good Bargain if they could have bought us off in that case with Uniting both the Kingdoms into one and granting us a joint Trade to their own Plantations whereas now they will not allow us to settle a foreign Colony of our own and treat us as Foreigners in theirs ANSWER Our Author has so entangled himself in pleading for the Scots that he is almost beyond his Senses for what Man who is in his right Wits could propose an Alliance with France which is in effect no less than to make Scotland a Province of France as more advantageous to the Scots than their Concurrence with England in the last Revolution for if they were become so indifferent as to their so much bragg'd of Liberty and Soveraignty and their Religion to Boot what need they have chang'd Masters since King James would have eased them of both and it appears to me as if our Caledonian was rather for the last since he takes so much pains to represent to us the consequences of it in the most passionate manner that could be But if the matter be duly weigh'd he has shot much beyond the mark for supposing the Scots to have stood it out against England for King James tho' I must confess it implies almost an absurdity to suppose it the consequences would not have been half so terrible as he would persuade us for Scotland being by reason of its Situation not easie to be relieved by France as long as the English and Dutch were Masters at Sea they might perhaps have proved troublesome but not so dangerous Neighbours as to make England the Theatre of War and it is I think odds on the English side that they might have served them as Cromwel did that is to bring them under an entire Subjection whereas they now enjoy many Priviledges beyond other Foreigners and have born but a very slender share in those vast Sums expended for the Glory and Interest of the Island in general It is not to be denied but that their ready Concurrence did hasten the Conquest of Ireland but I am apt to believe that their refusal would scarce have appear'd so dreadful to the English as to make them receive Laws from the Scots I cannot pass by in silence here with what Arrogance he is pleased to reflect upon the Measures taken in England on the account of the Scots East-India Company when it is beyond all question That every independent Nation has an inherent Right to secure their Commerce against the encroachments of a Neighbouring Nation which is the true state of the Case which our Author terms Ingratitude and I know not what in the English who did no more than to represent their Grievance to His Majesty's Consideration He runs on further thus DEFENCE To shew that this is not a mere Conjecture that has no other ground but a Vision of the Brain they may be pleas'd to consider the honourable Privileges granted us by their Ancestors and some of the greatest Princes that ever sway'd their Scepter viz. King Edward and William the Conqueror who by the Consent of the States in Parliament assembled Enacted That the Scots should be accounted Denizons of England and injoy the same Privileges with themselves because of their frequent Intermarriages with the English and that they did ever stood stoutly as one Man with them for the common Vtility of the Crown and Kingdom against the Danes and Norwegians fought it most valiantly and unanimously against the common
Enemy and bore the burden of most fierce Wars in the Kingdom This they will find in a Book call'd Archaionomia translated from the Saxon by William Lambard and Printed at London by John Day in 1568. It must be granted that the Reasons of such a grateful Retribution are redoubled now Intermarriages betwixt the two Nations are more frequent than ever the Union of the Kingdoms under one Crown for almost 100 years the generous Concurrence of the Scots in the last Revolution their loss of so many gallant Officers and brave Soldiers in the common Cause during the late War and the preservation of Ireland which hath been twice owing to our Country-men might reasonably entitle us to the same Privileges now that our Ancestors were formerly allow'd by K. Edward and William the Conqueror We need not insist on another sort of Obligation that we have put upon England twice within this 60 years viz. The delivering them from their Oppressions in the time of K. Charles I. the Anarchy of the Rump and several Models of Armies and Junto's by encouraging General Monk's Undertaking for it cannot be denied that we had the Balance of Europe in our hands at the time of the last Revolution and that we turn'd the Scale to the advantage of England in particular and of Europe in general which must be allow'd to be as great a Service as that which was so thankfully rewarded by Edward and William the Conqueror whence it is evident that those Englishmen who at present oppose our Settlement in America don't inherit the gratitude of their Ancestors when they not only will not allow us to Trade in Conjunction with them but withstand our doing any thing that may advance a Trade by our selves If they object That what we did in all those Cases was no more than our Duty and what we ow'd to our own Preservation as well as to theirs it is easie to reply That admitting it to be so yet by the Laws of God and Men People are incourag'd to perform their Duties by Rewards and their Ancestors were so sensible of this that tho' they knew we were equally concern'd to defend the Island against foreign Invaders as well as they yet they thought themselves oblig'd in Policy as well as Gratitude to Reward us which they not only did by that Honorary Praemium of allowing us to be Denizons of England as above-mention'd but sometimes gave to us and at other times confirm'd to us the three Northern Counties of Northumberland Westmorland and Cumberland to be held in Fee of the Crown of England It is likewise very well known with how much Honour the Parliament of England treated us when they courted our Assistance against King Charles I. and what large Promises that Prince made us if we would have but stood Neuter which tho' we had reason to think many of those that opposed him had no great kindness neither for our Civil nor Ecclesiastical Constitution yet the sense that we had of the common Danger that our Religion and Liberties were in at that time made us proof against all those Tentations so that after all Endeavours for a Reconciliation betwixt the King and the Parliament of England prov'd unsuccessful we sent in an Army which cast the Balance on the side of the latter who before that time were reduc'd low enough by the King's Army as is very well known to such as are acquainted with the History of those times and is own'd by my Lord Hollis in his Memoirs lately publish'd ANSWER Our Caledonian most extreamly misses his aim in relating those Matters as Obligations done to England for which they have but little reason to be thankful to them Their behaviour under the Reign of K. Charles I. was such that the English ought to keep it in eternal Remembrance and in lieu of Acknowledgment rather ought to take care of them so that they may not be able for the future to be the Incendiaries of a Civil War as they were at that time For after they had put all England into Confusion by their Encouraging and afterwards declaring for the Presbyterian Faction after I say they had been instrumental in bringing this unfortunate Prince to his fatal End they took the opportunity of siding with his Son not out of any love to his Person or to maintain his rightful Title as may appear by those Conditions they imposed upon him but to Revenge themselves upon those who had wrested the Power out of their Hands and afterwards made them bear their share in those Miseries they had brought upon England Certainly our Author must think the English to be very ill versed in their own History when he alledges the Scots to have had any share in General Monk's Undertaking who can be so ignorant as not to know that all what this General desired from and was granted by the Convention of the Scots was to furnish him with so much Money as might maintain his Army in their march to London and there is no question but they understood their Interest so well as that they would have parted with a far greater Sum to rid their hands of a conquering Army in their Bowels and to set the English together by the Ears among themselves by which means they might hope to recover their lost Liberty For the rest it is sufficiently evident That if General Monk had at that time any Thoughts of recalling the King which I much question he had more Prudence than to Communicate it to the Scots or any body else For if the Rump had had the least suspicion of his design they would scarce have made him General of all the Forces in the three Nations This is the true state of the Case as to the first of these Obligations our Calidonian brags of What he says of Scotland's turning the Balance in the time of the late Revolution when it was in their hands shews so much Vanity and want of Judgment in point of Policy that it deserves no Answer and I am apt to believe the wiser sort among the Scots will owe him but little thanks for representing them as a People who could fall under a possibility of mistaking their own Interest and Preservation so far as to let slip so extraordinary an opportunity as was offered them by Providence to secure their Religion and Liberty and in lieu of that to Embrace a foreign Protection or to speak truer to submit their Necks under a Foreign Yoke rather than to Unite themselves with the English under one Head who perhaps notwithstanding their foreign Alliances might have taken this opportunity to bring them once for all to Reason as Cromwel did who 's Title to Scotland as their Conqueror was own'd by all Europe He goes on thus DEFENCE But to return to the last Revolution Tho' we must own that we owe our Deliverance to His Majesty and were oblig'd in Conscience and Honour to concur with him yet who could have blam'd us to have stood
Revenge themselves upon their Conquerors For if they had been in a Condition to make War against them without a foreign Assistance What need had there been for them to call in the Buccaneers and to allow them so large a share in the Booty Our Calidonian Gentleman further tells us That the Spaniards have no other Plea for Possession but what was granted them by one of the Darien Princes to Work as Labourers in some Golden Mines I must confess this is somewhat difficult to be contradicted at so vast a distance and I would have pass'd by this Point in silence if Pag. 78. he had not himself furnish'd me with an Argument against his Assertion where he says That they had been informed by a Frenchman who married one of the Natives there That the Spaniards have Gold and Silver Mines on the Isthmus which they might make themselves Masters of with a 100 Mâ—n This I say and the Hostilities committed already by the Spaniards against the Scots in their New Settlement does I think carry with it a great probability that to this day they are not excluded from the Province of Darien but remain in actual Possession of so much of that Province as they think consistent with their own Interest What he alledges of Captain Sharp's being acquitted in England by reason of his Commission from one of the Darien Princes can in no wise affect the Spanish Title for supposing the Court of England was at that time not sufficiently inform'd concerning their Pretensions What detriment could that be to their real Pretensions If our Author could have given us an instance of a Person who had been acquitted upon the same Account in Spain his Argument would have been of unquestionable Validity which bears not the least weight now at least not in reference to Spain But let us hear the rest of his Arguments against the Spanish Title DEFENCE It remains then that the Spaniards can lay no other Claim to Darien but what they plead from the Pope's general Grant of America its being bounded by their Dominions and the Treaties with England which shall be consider'd in their Order To urge the Pope's Grant amongst Protestants is ridiculous and amongst Papists themselves but precarious But admitting it were sufficient to justifie their Title it is easie to prove that the Spaniards have forfeited all the Right they can Claim by virtue of that Grant The Church of Rome will not publickly own her Power to grant a Right of Conquest but in order to propagate the Faith and not that neither except the Infidel Prince or People be guilty of a Breach of Treaty So that the Pope's Grant with those Restrictions is so far from establishing the Title of the Spaniards that it plainly overthrows it That the Indians were committed to the Spaniards by Pope Alexander VI. on condition that they should teach them the Christian Religion is prov'd by Don Bartholomew de las Casas Bishop of Chiapa in his Account of the first Voyages and Discoveries made by the Spaniards in America and the Relation of their unparallell'd Cruelties Pag. 195. and there he likewise owns That by their acquitting themselves so ill of that Commission they ought to make Restitution of all they have taken from them under this pretext And Pag. 200. he charges them with breach of the Terms prescrib'd by the Apostolical Brief tho' Queen Isabella to whom it was granted earnestly intreated them in her last Will to keep exactly to it Pag. 218. he says That the Title of the King of Spain to the Indians is founded only on the Obligation he had taken upon himself to instruct them in the true Faith as appears by the Apostolick Brief Which they were so far from performing that instead of converting their Souls they destroyed their Bodies having in those early days viz. in the time of the Emperor Charles V. murâ—her'd above 40 Millions of them and took so little care to instruct them in the Christian Religion that they perfectly obstructed their Conversion and sold those very Idols that some of the poor People had thâ—own away with Abhorrence to others of the Indians Ib. P. 194. which together with their other horrid Impieties created an Aversion in those poor Infidels for Heaven it self according to the known Story of Hathwey an Indian Prince Ibid. Pag. 21. Who being fasten'd to a Stake by the Spaniards in order to be burnt for no other Crime but indeavouring to defend himself and his Subjects against their Cruelties ask'd a Friar that was discoursing to him of Heaven promising him eternal Happiness there if he would believe and threatning him with Hell if he did not whether Heaven was open to the Spaniards and being answer'd that it was to such of them as were good replied immediately that he would not go thither for fear of meeting such cruel and wicked Company as they were but would much rather chuse to go to Hell where he might he deliver'd from the troublesome sight of such kind of People So that their forfeiture of all Right or Title to Darien by the Pope's Grant if it were of any validity is plainly demonstrated ANSWER Our Author takes a great deal of Pains to demonstrate that supposing the Pope's Grant of America to be valid in its self they have forfeited the same I believe there will scarce be any body so void of Humanity who is acquainted with the most barbarous Cruelties committed by the Spaniards against the poor Natives of that Country as to take upon himself the Defence of them in this Point But how far this affects their Title is the matter in Question at present Not to enter upon the Topick here How far the Miscarriages of Governours and other Officers who transgress the Bounds of their Commission affects the Titles of their Sovereigns I will only insist upon this Head which I believe will scarce admit of a Contradiction by any body who has a true insight into the matter That supposing some of those Cruelties to have been committed by publick Authority there is no body who can be acknowledg'd a competent Judge of the Forfeiture of the Spanish Title but the Pope himself who admitted he has a Power to Grant it must of necessity be the only Person who can Recal it and till any such thing be done their Title will stand unshaken upon that bottom at least on the Spaniards side whatever our Author may alledge against it out of the Bishop of Chiapa whose Authority is in sufficient to maintain his Assertion in this Point as being only a Bishop under the Jurisdiction of Spain and as being a Church-man he might as well make use of a Dragoon for a Pilot as make those of his Profession competent Judges of the Titles of Princes But let us see further DEFENCE Their next Plea is That Darien is bounded or inclosed by their Dominions viz. By Porto-Bello and Carthagena with their Territories on the North and Panama and Sancta Maria on the
powerful Colony in Darien which lying in the very Centre of their American Dominions and within reach of their Silver and Gold Mines will be an effectual Curb upon them and not only prevent their own Hostilities but their joining at any time with our Enemies or if they do being Masters of their Money we shall speedily cut the Sinews of their War ANSWER That Spain is no Match for England at this time in case of a Rupture is scarce to be denied by any who have the least insight into the Affairs of Europe but this does not answer the Question in hand which is Whether it be for the Interest of England to run the hazard of a Rupture with Spain on the Account of the Scots Settlement which I answer in the Negative For tho' the Monarchy of Spain be brought to so low an Ebb as not to be formidable to us yet at this juncture when the French as well as the Austrian Family endeavour to court this Crown at any rate I see not the least reason why the English should run the hazard of such a Rupture which at the best would Ruin their Traffick in Spain endanger that in the Mediterranean or at least put us to the charge of keeping a great Fleet at Sea for the security of our Commerce and all this for what purpose to maintain the Scots Settlement which we look upon as against our own Interest But if it was not Who would Reimburse the Charges I question whether the Scots Company or perhaps the whole Kingdom would be able to do it But if notwithstanding all this the Spaniards should transgress their Bounds we have a King who knows how to maintain his Authority and the Glory of the British Nation of which he has given us an Instance in the Spanish Ambassador but a few Days ago But let us hear how our Auther proceeds further DEFENCE In the next place we urge That it will be very much for the Interest and Advantage of England to incourage and support us in this Settlement 1. Because by this means the Scots will increase their Shipping and come in time to have a Naval Force capable of assisting the English in the common Defence of the Island in maintaining the Soveraignty of the Seas and Convoying their Merchantmen in time of War The English can't always promise to themselves the Amity of the Dutch who are their Rivals in Trade and differ far enough from them both in Temper and Interest there 's nothing to cement them but the Life of our present Soveraign Whereas the Scots being united with the English under the same Government and Inhabiting the same Island must of necessity have the same Interest as to Trade and to defend the Country against all Foreign Invaders as they constantly did in former times against Romans Danes Saxons and Normans notwithstanding their living then under a separate Prince and their frequent Wars with England Nor is that brave Resistance which a few of them made to the Dutch at Chathaâ— to be forgotten which did in a great measure repair the Honour of England ANSWER Our Caledonian puts the probability of increasing the Naval Strength of Scotland in the Front which he supposes to be absolutely necessary for the English Interest at Sea But I am afraid it will be a great while before the Scots will be able to make any considerable addition to it It is the more safe way for us to encourage our own Commerce and Naval Force which is such that if rightly managed we need not be beholding to the Scots for what assistance they are able in all likelihood to give us at Sea But says he The Dutch may not be always our Friends because they differ from us in Temper and Interest and so do the Scots as the case now stands in reference to the last and as to the first I know not whether it be not as different from the English as that of the Dutch Besides if we may take this Gentleman's Word for it the Scots may not be always our Friends neither but look for Alliances abroad to support their Interest against ours which is a seasonable Caution he has been pleased to give us as we shall see anon DEFENCE 2. As Scotland increases in Shipping they will increase in Wealth and by consequence be able to bear a greater share of the Burden of any Foreign War which will save Men and Money to England and lighten their Taxes 3. The Success of the Scots in their American Colony will be an additional Strength to the English Plantations in the West-Indies as well as an advancement of their Trade by consuming their Product and giving them theirs in exchange 4. The Success of the Scots at Darien will be of great advantage to England for the more Money the Scots acquire by their Trade the more they will spend in England which being the Seat of the Government must frequently be visited by their Nobility and Gentry who generally furnish themselves in England with their best Apparel Houshold Furniture Coaches and Horses c. besides the Money that the Young Noblemen and Gentlemen spend in their Passage through that Nation when they go and come from their Travels These things occasion their laying out vast Sums of Money annually in the City of London which being the Seat of the Government will as certainly draw Money from Scotland as the Sun draws Vapours after it ANSWER We will take it for granted that the Scots would consume more Money in England than they do now if they were more wealthy but I deny that thereby we should draw Money from Scotland For if they could under-sell our East-India Commodities that would be such an over-balance to what they can in all likelihood spend in England that it bears not the least proportion to it whereas now the Scots are obliged to England for all these things they having no considerable Manufactures among themselves or any better conveniency to supply the want of them but from England which considering how little we stand in want of the Products of their Country and how little it affords must needs draw Money from Scotland The Products of our West-India Plantations consisting chiefly in Sugar and Tobacco I don't see what great prospect of advantage the Consumption of them in one Colony can bring to the English when they furnish the greatest part of Europe with them to a much greater advantage and as to the Scots beâ—â—ing a share in the Burthen of a Foreign War the Supposition of it is built upon so an uncertain a Foundation that it scarce deserves to be mentioned considering especially that the Scots hitherto have not been the most forward in parting with their Money upon that account DEFENCE 5. The Success of the Scots in their Foreign Plantation will not only ease England of great numbers of their Pedlars so frequently complain'd of in Parliament by Country Corporations and Shopkeepers but it will occasion the return Home and
English to assist them with a Naval Force to maintain their Possession The Dutch are known to be a People that seldom or never mistake their Interest They are sensible how useful the Alliance of Scotland may be to them both in regard of their Liberty to Fish in our Seas without controul and of being a Curb upon England in case the old Roman Maxim of delenda est Carthago should come any more to be applied by the English to that Republick as in the Reign of King Charles II. They are likewise sensible of the Advantage it would be to their Trade to be Partners with the Scots at Darien and how effectual it may be to disable the French to pursue their Claim to Spain and by consequence to revive the old Title of that Crown upon their own seven as well as to swallow up the other Ten Provinces These things together with a long continued Amity and Trade betwixt Scotland and Holland and their Union in Religion and Ecclesiastical Discipline are sufficient to evince that the Dutch would become our Partners in America with little Courtship That they are able to assist us in that case with a Naval Force sufficient is beyond contradiction and that they would soon be convinc'd it is their Interest to do it to prevent that monstrous Increase of the French Monarchy is obvious enough from the Part they Acted in the late War But admitting that none of those Considerations should prevail with the Dutch and that they should likewise abandon us it is not impossible for us to obtain an Alliance and Naval Force from the Northern Crowns It 's well enough known that those Kingdoms abound with Men and Shipping and that they would be glad with all their hearts to make an Exchange of these for the Gold and Silver of America which they might easily carry from Town to Town and from Market to Market without the trouble of a Wheel-barrow as they are now obliged to do with their Copper From all which it is evident enough that it is not impossible for the Scots to maintain themselves in Darien without the Assistance of England ANSWER Tho' it may not be altogether impossible yet it appears to me very improbable that the Scots shou'd be able to maintain their Settlement without the Assistance of the English who by reason of their many and considerable Plantations in the West-Indies are the only People from whom the Scots might have seasonable assistance especially with Provisions what our Caledonian says concerning the Alliances with the Dutch or the Northern Crowns are meer Chimera's For first I would ask him how the Scots can enter into any such Alliance in opposition to England But supposing they could the Dutch who as he tells us himself seldom mistake their Interest have the same Reasons that England has to oppose the Scots East-India Company because of their vast Commerce in those Parts and the Spanish Trade is of such consequence to them that they will scarce be perswaded by our Author to break with Spain and consequently to lose the Advantage of their Traffick in that Kingdom for the uncertain hopes of his Darien Mines What he says of the Usefulness of the Scots Alliance to Holland in case of a Rupture with England is said to no purpose at this time of the day and is besides this Founded upon another supposition viz That the Scots must be in a Condition to assist them which they are not likely to do as long as they are united with England under one Head But our Caledonian tells us strange Wonders about the Northern Crowns he takes a great deal of pains to give us to understand that Gold and Silver would be much more convenient for the Swedes and Danes than Copper truly I will not quarrel with him upon this Point but I am apt to believe that they will scarce part with their Men and Shipping before they are better convinced what share they are to have of them and whether the Scots are able to make good their Promises for without that they had better keep to their Copper which yields them good Money in Foreign Countries Besides that their great distance makes their assistance very difficult and uncertain if not quite useless it being the Opinion of most People who have a true insight into this matter that the want of seasonable Supplies which must be sent at so great a distance will oblige the Scots to quit their Settlement of Darien unless they will rather chuse their Graves amongst their imaginary Mines where we will leave them to their own Destiny and apply to them the Epitaph the Poet made upon the Hare-brain'd Phaeton Hic situs est Phaeton currus auriga paterni Quem si non tenuit magnis tamen excidit ausis But we must hear what he further says upon the fourth and last Head DEFENCE The next thing to be discours'd of is what the Consequences may probably be if the English should oppose us in this Settlement We could heartily wish there had never been any ground for this Suggestion and that the Opposition we have met with from England hath been less National than that which we had from both their Houses of Parliament after the passing an Act for an African Company c. in ours And it were to be wished that so many of the English had not given us such proofs of an alienated Mind and Aversion to our Welfare as they have done since by their Resident at Hambourgh and their late Proclamations in their West-India Plantations And we could have wish'd above all that His Majesty of England had not in the least concurr'd or giv'n his Countenance to that Opposition And we could wish that his English Counsellors who put him upon those things would remember that Strafford and Laud lost their Heads for giving King Charles I. that fatal Advice of oppressing and opposing the Scots ANSWER It is not denied but that those two Lords were by the Presbyterian Party Sacrificed to their Covenanting Brethren in Scotland but what is that to the Point in question since what has been done in opposition to the Scots Settlement is by his own Confession a National Concern back'd by the Authority of both Houses of Parliament in England and it cannot be look'd upon any otherwise than as a most unaccountable Arrogance in our Caledonian who stiles himself a Private Man in his Dedication to call in question and that in so gross a manner what has been done in this Matter by His Majesty and His Parliament for the promoting and maintaining their own Commerce But let us see how he proceeds further upon this Head DEFENCE We did verily think says he that the suffering of our Crown to be United with that of England in the Person of King James their I. and our VI our seasonable coming to the Rescue of their expiring Liberties in the Reign of King Charles I. our being so instrumental to rescue them from Anarchy and Confusion
upon Terms before we had fallen in with England especially considering how ungratefully nay villainously we were treated by Cromwel and his Party after we had sav'd them and the Parliament of England from the Scorpions that the Cavaliers had prepar'd to Chastise them with as is own'd by the said Lord Hollis Nor could we have been any way culpable if we had stood upon surer Terms considering how unthankfully we were used and Enslav'd by our late Kings for whom we had acted and suffered so much And tho' we must own That no less Present than that of our Crown was sufficient to testifie our Gratitude for what the Prince of Orange had done for us yet we were under no necessity of gratifying him in that manner since our Deliverance was effected before-hand and that he himself in his Declaration express'd it to be no part of his Design to come for the Crown so that our Reward was as Frank and Generous Then as to England we were under no manner of obligation to continue the Union with them We might have insisted upon having our King obliged to reside as much amongst us as amongst them That we should be govern'd without any consideration or respect to their Interest any further than it fell in with our own We might have insisted upon an Act that we should not be oblig'd to attend His Majesty at any time at the Court of England about our Affairs but that he should either attend upon our Administration in Person pro râ— nata as he does now upon the Affairs of Holland or lay down Methods to have his Pleasure signified to us at Home in such Cases as it was requir'd which would save a vast deal of Money annually to the Kingdom of Scotland Then as to the Succession we were under no necessity of settling it in the same manner as they did in England For since they had made a Breach in the Line they could not handsomly have blam'd us to have made an improvement of it and either to have limited the Reversion after His present Majesty's Death as we should have thought best for the security of our Civil and Religious Liberties or we might have settled it upon the Prince of Orange and his Issue bâ— anâ— other Wife there being cause enough then to conceive that he was never like to have any by his late Excellent Princess Had we taken any of these Methods it must be own'd that England would have been considerably weakned by it that we should have thereby had an opportunity of making such Foreign Alliances with France as formerly or with any other Nation as would have made England uneasie and perhaps unsafe on occasion and therefore it must be reckon'd highly Impolitick in our Neighbours to treat us continually at such a rate since we have so many open Doors to get out at They must not think that we have so far degenerated from the Courage and Honour of our Ancestors as tamely to submit to become their Vassals when for Two Thousand Years we have maintain'd our Freedom and therefore it is not their Interest to oppress us too much If they consult their Histories they will find that we always broke their Yoke at long run if at any time we were brought under it The best way to assure themselves of us is to treat us in a Friendly manner Tho' we be not so Great and Powerful as they it is not impossible for us to find such Allies as may enable us to defend our selves now as well as formerly None of these things are suggested with an ill design to raise Animosity betwixt the Nations or to perswade to a Separation of the Crowns but merely to shew those of our Neighbours who use us so unkindly that they are bound in Gratitude and Interest to do otherwise and particularly to support us in our American Settlement and not to discourage us in that Undertaking as they have hitherto done and continue still to do in their American Colonies by their Proclamations against having any Commerce or Trade with the Scots at Darien tho' they be settled there according to the Terms of an Act of Parliament in Scotland ANSWER It is a most unaccountable piece of Insolence not to say worse in our Caledonian to make use of such harsh Expressions for no other reason but because the English Parliament represented to His Majesty in a most Humble Address the Danger the Commerce of England was likely to be exposed to by the Encroachments of the New Scots Company and His Majesty's Answer to their Address might have been a sufficient Warning to our Scots Polititian that he was sensible of the Justice of their Request and that as he had shewn himself a good King to the Scots in granting them His Letters Patents He thought it reasonable not to deny His English Subjects any legal means to relieve themselves against that Danger But our Author is so much overcome with the Conceits of his own Politicks that he spares the Scots Convention as little as the English Parliament whom he boldly accuses for want of Conduct at the Time of the late Revolution because they did not make better Terms with the English before their Concurrence with them But those Wise Patriots who compos'd that great Assembly were too sensible of the Danger that threatned them if in lieu of Uniting their Strength with ours they should miss this Opportunity of Rescuing themselves from the Weight of those Oppressions they had groan'd under for some Years before and spend their Time in insisting upon such Trifles as are mentioned here by ouâ— Caledonian and don 't deserve any Answer I will only insist upon one Point I believe there is scarce any Body but what will grant me that considering they had a considerable Party Headed by the Lord Dundee who were their Enemies within their Bowels it was impossible for them to stand Neuter and considering how dangerous an Alliance with France might have proved at that Juncture nay how useless it must have been to them when the English and Dutch were Masters aâ— Sea what other way had they left for their own Preservation than to settle the Government upon the same Bottom as they did which being most conformable to the true ancient Constitution of an Hereditary Monarchy did free them from the danger of falling into new Dissentions at Home in case of any sinister Accident He goes on in his Plea DEFENCE We are not insensible that the present Juncture of Affairs obliges the Kingdom of England to carry fair with Spain and may admit that in part as an Apology for some of that Opposition we have met with from them but the questioning our Act of Parliament at first and their hindring our Subscriptions at Hamburgh afterward before ever they knew what our design was make that Excuse of little weight But allowing it all the force they would have it to bear it may be worth their while to consider whether it be more
there is a Party in that Nation who bear ours no good will it 's to be hop'd they will never be able so far to leaven the sound part of the English Nation as to occasion a Rupture betwixt them and us Yet we must needs say that we look upon their way of treating us to be a very unaccountable thing and that it was no small Surprize to us to find that the English should look on our taking Subscriptions in England in order to admit them Joint-Sharers with our selves in the Benefit of the Act to encourage our Trade to be no less than a high Misdemeanour We have reason likewise to complain of their constant practice of pressing our Seamen in time of War as if they were their own Subjects and that they should treat us in other respects as if we were Aliens And sometimes confiscate Ships by reckoning Scots Mariners as such So that the English have not only depriv'd us of the warm Influences of our Court the want of which is a considerable addition to the natural coldness of our Climate but they likewise oppress us on all occasions and do manifestly endeavour to prevent our Application to Trade We know there 's a Party in that Nation who think we sustained no great loss by the removal of our Princes but we would wish them to consider what a murmuring they themselves make when the King goes annually to the Netherlands tho' the Safety of Europe requires it because of the Damp it puts upon Trade and the Money it carries out of the Kingdom Let them consider then what our Nation has suffer'd in that respect now for almost an Hundred years besides the lessening our esteem in the Eyes oâ— the World and yet they will neither admit us to the Privileges of Fellow-Subjects with themselves nor suffer us to take such measures as may inable us stand on our own bottom We know that it was a Maxim in some of the late Reigns That it would never be well till all that part of Scotland on this side Forth were reduc'd to a Hunting-field but we were in hopes the bitterness of those days had been past yet it seems that Party have still so far the ascendant amongst our Neighbours as to procure a publick opposition to all our Endeavours for raising our Nation by Trade It will upon due Examination be found as bad Policy as it is Christianity to urge as some of our Neighbours do that it is the Interest of England to keep the Scots low because they are an independent and free Nation and were our ancient Enemies and therefore may be dangerous Neighbours if they grow rich and potent Nothing but Rancour and inveterate Malice can suggest such sour thoughts as these It were fit that sort of Men should be purg'd of their Choler The Scots to obviate all dangers from that Head have tho' they be much the ancienter Nation condescended so far as several times to propose an Union which the Gentlemen of that Kidney have hitherto prevented and therefore we would wish them to look back into their Histories and upon casting up their Accounts make a true Estimate of whatever they gain'd by a War with Scotland They will find that their Ancestors as well as the Romans have been sensible as Tacitus expresses it Quâ—s sibi Viros Caledonia sepâ—suerit and that as it was true what our Historian says of the War made upon us by Edward I. that Scotorum Nomen pene delevit it was also true what he says on the other hand that Angliam vehementer conâ—ussit So that those Gentlemen take the direct way by opposing us to run into those Dangers they would avoid for they may assure themselves that if the English Opposition to our American Settlement should once break out into Hostilities the Scots will find some Allies ancient or new that will be glad of the opportunity to join with them Or if which is most probable tho' highly impolitick the English should so far neglect the Scots as to suffer them to be over-power'd by the French they may be sure that the Scots when put to their last shift can always make an honourable Capitulation with France It 's not to be doubted but that Crown would be very willing to renew their ancient Alliance with us and besides allowing us a share at least in the Trade of Darien would on condition of giving them the Possession of New Caledonia restore us likewise to all our ancient Privileges in France They would think it a very good purchase if they could secure themselves of that Colony by doing so granting us what security we could resonably desire for the uninterrupted Injoyment of the Protestant Religion and a Freedom of Trade to all places of the World where it did not actually interfere with their own Settlements and Colonies So that if this should be the case we leave it to our Neighbours to judge what would become of their East and West-India Trade and Plantations and whether they would not find it difficult to stand out against France and us now that they have no footing on the Continent since formerly when they had so many Provinces of that Kingdom in their possession they found it a hard matter to do it and at last lost every foot of their French Dominions whereas had they been in Union with us they might certainly have retained them and by consequence have prevented the great Calamities that Europe hath since groan'd under by the prodigious Increase of the French Monarchy This we think sufficient to convince those angry Gentlemen in our Neighboring Nation that are so very much disgusted with our American Settlement that it is the Interest of England to join with us and support it and that it may be of dangerous consequence to them either to oppose or neglect us Whereas by joyning cordially in this matter they may unite us inseparably to themselves for ever inrich their own Nation secure and advance the Protestant Interest keep the Balance of Europe in their hands and prevent the returns of its danger their own expence of Blood and Treasure to save its being threatened with Slavery any more either by the House of Bourbon or Austria Therefore we cannot believe after all but our wise and politick Neighbours will at last see it their Interest to protect and incourage us in this matter that we may mutually strengthen and support one another against the French who are loudest in their Clamours against our Settlement because if incouraged and improved it will defeat all their ambitious and Antichristian Designs and thereby we shall also be in a condition to assist the English Plantations in the West-Indies who as we find by the proceedings of the Earl of Bellamont and the Assemblies of New England and New York are sufficiently sensible of their danger from the incroaching temper of the French which increases every day and it is evident that their new design'd Colony in Mississipi River looks
with a dangerous Aspect upon all the English Plantations in America and may be more justly esteemed an Incroachment upon Spain as being in the Bay of Mexico than our Plantation in Darien which argues the Humour of that Nation to make such an Out-cry against the Scots who have invaded no Man's Property when they themselves are so notoriously guilty of it and therefore it would seem to be the Interest of England rather to strengthen themselves by our Friendship and to look after the French than to provoke us to look out for other Allies by their opposition and neglect ANSWER I am apt to believe our Caledonian begins to have but a very indifferent Opinion of the success of their New Settlement and so like a desperate Gamester who is reduced to the 〈◊〉 Stake throws at all and is for Sacrificing the â—â—rien Settlement nay their own Religion and 〈◊〉 as well as that of Europe rather than to 〈…〉 â—hare in it For what he says of security to be gâ—â—â—n by the French for the Enjoyment of the Protâ—â—â—â—nt Religion are nothing but Chimerical Notions as indeed are all the rest For supposing the French should be so fond of the Possession of Darien which they don't seem to be as has been demâ—â—strated before it is only a vain Speculation thâ—â—â—â—â—â—eby they would become so Potent as to become an over-match for England and its Allies who are so nearly concern'd in its Preservation and it is more than probable that the Scots in such a case would pay the Fidler since considering the Situation of Scotland its want of good Harbours and Barrenness in many Places it would be very difficult for the French to send them any considerable Supplies of Men or Provisions when the English and Dutch are Masters of the Channel which was the reason that the French never so much as attempted the Relieving of my Lord Dundee who gave them the fairest opportunity in the World of getting a footing in Scotland if they had either thought it practicable or worth their while But we must go on to see how he winds up the thread of his Arguments DEFENCE We shall conclude this matter with one or two more Arguments to prove That it is the Interest of England to joyn with us in this Affair by which also it will appear that there is nothing advanc'd in these Sheets out of any ill Design against the English Nation or to persuade to a disuniting of the Crowns but on the contrary that a stricter Union is absolutely necessary that both Nations may have but one Interest which will render us less liable to Convulsions and intestine Commotions at home and put us out of danger of being attacked by Enemies from abroad The first Argument is this That by incouraging our Settlement at Darien English Ships that have occasion to pass by those Coasts will there be certain of a place of Retreat in case of attack either by Enemy or Tempest without danger of being confiscated by the Spaniards and having their Men condemn'd to be perpetual Slaves in the Mines 2. If we be incouraged in our American Colony it will contribute much to heighten the Consumption of the English Product since what we have not of our own or wherein we are wanting either as to quality or quantity we shall supply our selves for the use of our Plantation in England which may be of great benefit to the Northern Counties especially whence we may conveniently furnish our selves with Beeves for Victualling our Ships our own Cattel being for the most part too small for that use besides many other things that we shall have occasion to export from England for the use of the Plantation and to maintain a Commerce with the Natives 3. By joining with us in this Colony and securing a Post on the South-Sea which the Princes of Darien will no doubt very readily agree to they may shorten their Voyages to the East-Indies and by that means be able to out-do all their Rivals in that Trade but if they will be so far wanting to themselves as to suffer those advantages to fall into the Hands of others who are Enemies to our Religion and common Country they cannot blame the Scots who have made them such fair Offers 4. If after all the English should continue in their Opposition to us as their late Proclamations in America and other Passages would seem to imply they have a mind to the World cannot blame the Scots to provide for themselves by such other Alliances as they shall think meet since the English are so unkind especially since the Restoration of K. Charles II. to which we did so much contribute that without our Concurrence it could never have been effected This will appear to be incontrovertibly true if we consider that in the time of K. James I. we were under no Restrictions as to matters of Trade more than they except as to the Exportation of Wool and a few other Things of English Product and so we continu'd till the Restoration when K. Charles II. and the English did very ungratefully lay such Preclusions and Restrictions upon us contrary to the Laws relating to the Postnati by the 12 Car. II. For the incouraging and increasing Shipping and Navigation and the 15 Car. II. For the Encouragement of Trade by which we are put in the same Circumstances as to Traffick with France and Holland and in a worse Condition than Ireland that is a Conquest which is so much the more unreasonable since we are always involv'd and ingag'd in the Wars betwixt England and other Countries And those with whom they have most frequent Wars being Holland and France the only two Nations with whom the Scots have almost any Commerce our Trade must of necessity sink during such Wars whereas England hath still a great Trade to other parts of the World and by this means we are forc'd to be sharers in their Troubles tho' they will not allow us to partake of their Profits nor suffer us to take any measures to procure such as we may call our own It is plain from the Instance of Darien and the Proclamations in the English American Colonies against their Subjects entertaining any Commerce with our Settlement there that we are in a worse condition than ever for when any thing happens wherein the Interest of England seems to be contrary to ours it is certainly carried against us so that in this respect we are in a worse condition than any Foreigners with relation to England for if a foreign People discover any thing that may be of Advantage to them they are at liberty to pursue it by themselves or to take in the Assistance of others and if they find themselves aggriev'd by England they have their respective Governments to make Application to for Redress To let them see that it is their Interest as well as ours it should be so we shall only desire them to consider how fatal it may be if by any