hrough the land, until all public virtue was lost, and the people were
inebriated with vice and profligacy, they were then taught in the
paroxysms of their infatuation and madness to cry out for havoc and war.
History could not show an instance of such an empire ruined in such a
manner. They had lost a greater extent of dominion in the first campaign
of a ruinous civil war, which was intentionally produced by their own
acts, than the most celebrated conquerors had ever acquired in so short
a space of time.

"The speech was said to be composed of a mixture of assumed and false
facts, with some general undefined and undisputed axioms, which nobody
would attempt to controvert. Of the former, that of charging the
colonies with aiming at independence was severely reprehended, as being
totally unfounded, being directly contrary to the whole tenor of their
conduct, to their most express declarations both by word and writing,
and to what every person of any intelligence knew of their general
temper and disposition.[384] But what they never intended, we may drive
them to. They will, undoubtedly, prefer independence to slavery. They
will never continue their connection with this country unless they can
be connected with its privileges. The continuance of hostility, with the
determined refusal of security for these privileges, will infallibly
bring on separation.

"The charge of their making professions of duty and proposals of
reconciliation only for the insidious purpose of amusing and deceiving,
was equally reprobated. It was insisted that, on the contrary, these had
from the beginning told them honestly, openly and bravely, without
disguise or reserve, and declared to all the world, that they never
would submit to be arbitrarily taxed by any body of men whatsoever in
which they were not represented. They did not whisper behind the door,
nor mince the matter; they told fairly what they would do, and have
done, if they were unhappily urged to the last extremity. And that
though the Ministers affected not to believe them, it was evident from
the armament which they sent out that they did; for however incompetent
that armament has been to the end, nobody could admit a doubt that it
was intended to oppose men in arms, and to compel by force, the
incompetence for its purposes proceeding merely from that blind
ignorance and total misconception of American affairs which had operated
upon the Ministers in every part of their conduct.