A king of France is never more happy than when he enjoys their love and fidelity; but it is I only who am to judge of the use and neceffity of thofe affemblies, and I will not fuffer myself to be indifcretely importuned for that which ought to be expected from my wifdom, and the love I have for my people, whofe interefts are infeparable from my own. The act of adminiftration which I propofe to myfelf is an edict, containing a creation of fucceflive loans for five years. I wished to have no farther recourse to the refource of loans; but order and economy must have time to make them effectual. Limited and well calculated loans will retard the operations of the former, but they will not prevent them. No new impofts will be eftablifhed, and my engagements will be fulfilled. I will ever maintain by the most constant and undivided protection, the holy religion in which I have the happiness to be born, and I will not permit it to fuffer the leaft diminution in my kingdom. But I am of opinion that this fame religion commands me not to leave a part of my fubjects deprived of their natural rights, and what the ftate of fociety promifes them. You will fee in my anfwer upon the fubject of the parliament of Bourdeaux, to what a degree its conduct is reprehenfible. My parliament ought to reckon upon my confidence and affection; but they ought to merit them, in confining them!elves within the functions confided to their execution by the kings my predeceffors; being careful not to depart from, nor refuse them, and more particularly never to fail in giving to my fubjects an example of fidelity and fubmiffion. My keeper of the feals will more fully communicate to you my intentions.

The Address of the fift Prefident of of the Parliament of Paris to the King at Verfailles, on the Exile of the Duke of Orleans and two Counsellors of the Parliament. Sire,

Your parliament is come, in obedience to your orders. It has this morning been informed, at the opening of the fitting, that a prince of your auguft blood has incurred your difpleafure, and that two counfellers of your court are deprived of their liberty. Your parliament, in confternation, humbly fupplicates your majefty, to restore to the prince of your blood, and to the two magiftrates, the liberty which they have lot, having, in your prefence, freely declared what their duty and confciences dictated, in a fitting wherein your majesty had announced that you came to take the fenfe of the affembly by a plu rality of fuffrages.

The KING'S Answer.

When I put away from my perfon a prince of my blood, my par liament ought to believe, that I have very frong reafons for fo doing. I have punished two magiftrates, with whom I ought to be diffatisfied.

the truth in the prefence of your majely. Your majefty came among us to demand our free fuffrages to give them on every occation is the right and duty of your parliament, and the intereft of your majefty to hear them. It is true, the keeper of the feals expreffed the fentiments of your majefty; but our counfel to you would no longer come from the fanctuary of truth, if restrained by the terror of offending. If the duke of Or leans is guilty, we are alfo. It was worthy the first prince of your blood, to reprefent to your majesty, that you were transforming a meet ing of the parliament into a bed of juftice. His declaration has but announced our fentiments; his feel ings have judged of ours; and if by the effect of that concord, which nothing can deftroy, between the wifhes and the duty of your parliament, the duke of Orleans has fhewn a courage worthy his birth and rank, he has no lefs manifefted a heart zealous for your glory. In fact, fire, foreigners cannot conceive, pofterity will not believe, that we could be expofed to any danger in telling your majefty that truth, which you have demanded in perfon. Your prefence has ever been accompanied with favour: muft it henceforth produce fear and affliction? A bed of juftice would be lefs terrible than a fitting of parliament; and our loyalty to your majefty would fupprefs our voices, were our confidence, encouraged by yourself, no other than the fignal of our exile or imprisonment. And what imprisonment, fir? Honour and humanity, as well as juftice, tremble at it; the bafeft men have laid hands on the perfon of

one of your magiftrates *; his houfe has been befieged; inftruments of the police have driven away his family. It was by prayers and entreaties to thofe ungracious men, that he was permitted to fee his wife, his children, and his fifters, on his departure. They have forced him away without a fervant; and that magiftrate, who, on Monday, thought himfelf under the perfonal protection of your majesty, is gone to a diftant prifon, unattended but by three men, the devotees of arbitrary power. The fecond of these magiftrates feized by your orders, though treated in his own house lefs cruelly than the other, has nevertheless been constrained to depart with a fever, and threatened with an inflammatory diforder, to a place where life is a continual punishment. His dwelling is a rock; his prifon beat by the waves of the fea; the air he breathes unwholfome; all affittance is remote, and your majefty, without wifhing it, without knowing it, in figning the order of imprisonment, has perhaps figned that of his death. If exile is the recompence of the fidelity of the princes of your blood; if outrages and captivity threaten the uprightness of the first magiftrates of the kingdom; we may ask ourselves with terror and grief, what will become of the laws, the public liberty, the national honour, and the manners of your majefty's fubjects; thofe manners fo mild, fo neceffary to be preferved for the common intereft of the throne, and of the people. Such defigns, fire, are not in your heart; fuch examples are not the principles of your majefty. They arife from another fource. Your parliament, fire, most humbly be

2

feeches

feeches your majesty, as you value your glory, your high renown; to remove thofe afflicting counfels, to confult and liften only to your own heart; and then, juftice with hu. manity, encouraged by the return of the first prince of your blood, and by the releafe of your two magiftrates, will begin to efface an example which would end by the deftruction of the laws, the degradation of the magiftracy, univerfal difcouragement, and the triumph of the enemies to the honour of the French."

His Majefty's Anfiver to the foregoing

Addrefs, Nov. 26, 1787.

When I held a fitting among you, gentlemen, the keeper of the feals told you, by my order, that the more kindness I fhewed when I followed the inclinations of my heart, the more firmnefs I difcovered when I thought I perceived any attempts to abuse that kindness.

This might be a fufficient anfwer to your fecond petition; but I will condefcend to add, that if I do not blame the intereft you exprefs for the detention of your two magiftrates, I difapprove, however, your exaggerating the circumstances and confequences of it. You seem to attribute the whole of this tranfaction to motives, which the free liberty I permitted you to exprefs your opinions does not warrant.

I am accountable to no perfon for the motives of my refolutions.

It is time you should feparate the particular cafe of thofe I have punifhed from the intereft of my other fubjects, and that of the laws.

All my fubjects are fenfible that the goodness of my heart is ever watchful for their happinefs, and must acknowledge the effects of it, even in my acts of justice.

Every individual is interefted in the prefervation of public order, and that order effentially depends on the fupport of my authority.

If thofe I have charged to execute my orders have behaved in a manner contrary to my intentions, I will punish them; and if the place of confinement can any ways be detrimental to the health of the two magistrates, I will order them to be removed to more falutary pots; for the feelings of humanity are infeparable from my heart, even in the execution of my justice.

In regard to the duke of Orleans' abfence from the capital, and from my court, I have nothing to add to what I have already faid to my parliament.

The Third Remonftrance of the Par liament of Paris to the King, on the fame Subject, Dec. 10, 1787. Sire,

Your parliament, the princes and peers of your realms, being feated, have charged us with the commiffion of laying at the foot of your throne their most refpectful reprefentations on your majesty's anfwer to their fupplication.

The magiftracy of your kingdom, as well as every true citizen, are equally aftonished at the reproaches it contains, and the principles which are manifested in it.

We are, however, far from attributing thefe reproaches to the perfonal fentiments which inspire your majefty.

Public decency received a fevere wound in the choice of the executors of your orders. If their crime was not carried to the perfonal arreft of one of your magiftrates, the expofition of other facts, far from being exaggerated, is yet incom

plete ;

plete; and your parliament may add, that this magiftrate, whofe houfe was invefted by armed men, himfelf delivered up to the agents of the police, like a malefactor, faw himself reduced to the humiliation of being liable to the fummons of an officer, from a fubmiffion to your majesty's order.

May we be allowed, Sire, to represent to you, that, in devoting ourfelves to the public fervice; in promifing to releafe your majefty of the first duty you owe your nation, namely, that of justice; in bringing up our children to be fubject to the fame facrifices, we never could have fuppofed we were delining ourselves and our children to the misfortunes, ftill leis to outrages of fo heinous a nature.

But we do not come fo much to claim your benignity, as the protection of the laws. It is not to your humanity alone that we addrefs ourselves; it is not a favour which your parliament folicits; it comes, Sire, to demand juftice.

This juice is fubject to regulations independent of the will of man-even kings themfelves are fubfervient to them; that glorious prince, Henry the Fourth, acknow. ledged he had two fovereigns, God and the laws.

One of these regulations is, to condemn no one without a hearing; it is a duty in all times, and in all places; it is the duty of all men; and your majesty will allow us to represent to you, that it is as obligatory on you as on your fubjects.

But your majefty has not to execute this function; and your parliament with pleasure brings to your recollection your glorious privileges, that of fhewing mercy to condemn ed criminals. To condemn them yourself, is not a function belong ing to majesty. This painful and 1787.

dangerous task the king cannot exercife but through his judges. Those who find a pleature in hearing your majefly pronounce the dreadful word of punishment, who advise you to punish without a trial, to punish of your own accord, to or der exiles, arrefts, and imprifonments; who fuppofe that acts of rigour are compatible with a benign difpofition, equally force a wound to external justice-the laws of the realm, and the most confolating prerogative belonging to your ma jefty.

It does not allow, that opinions delivered in parliaments fhould be confidered as motives for your rigour, and in fome measure a confolation for us. But if strong reafons fhould actuate you to the exile of the duke of Orleans-if it can be called a kindness that you no longer leave two magiftrates expofed to perish in diftant prifons, or unwhole fome places-if it is confidered as an act of humanity, which tempers juftice, in releafing them from fuch a fituation-they must indeed be guilty! But it is the duty of your parliament to judge themand we demand only, that their crimes fhould be published.

The meanest of your fubjects is not lefs interested in the fuccefs of our reclamations, than the first prince of your blood-Yes, Sire, not only a prince of your blood, but every Frenchman punished by your majefty, and efpecially who is punished without a hearing, be comes neceffarily the fubject of públic alarm. The union of these ideas is not the work of your parliament: it is that of nature, it is the voice of reafon, it is the principle of the most wholesome laws, of thofe laws which are engraved in every man's heart, which is the principle of yours, and which af(F)

fures

fures us of your perfonal approbation. The caufe of his royal highnefs the duke of Orleans, and of the two magistrates, is then without our confent, and, by forcing those principles, the act of the throne, whofe only foundation is justice, and without which no nation can be happy.

It is, therefore, in the name of thofe laws which preferve empires, in the name of that liberty for which we are the refpectful interpreters and the lawful mediators, in the name of your authority, of which we are the first and most confidential minifters, that we dare demand the trial or the liberty of the duke of Orleans and the two exiled magiftrates, who are imprisoned by a fudden order, as contrary to the fentiments as the interefts of your najesty.

to fee peace re-established; and his majefty will be always difpofed to co-operate on his part, in fuch a manner as your high mightineffes may judge proper.

His majefty having obferved that the ftates of the provinces of Zealand and Friesland, have declared their difpofition to afk the mediation of fome neighbouring powers, (in cafe that your high mightineffes judge fuch intervention neceffary) and that of Zealand has called to mind, on this occafion, the repeated affurances which the king has given of his friendship for the United Provinces: the underfigned has exprefs orders to affure your high mightineffes that his majesty has conftantly ftrongly at heart the reestablishment of the tranquillity of the republic, the prefervation of the true conftitution, and the maintenance of the just rights and pri vileges of all its members. His majesty feels the greatest fatisfaction, in having reafon to think that the internal means, furnished by the constitution itself, have power fufficient to accomplish fo falutary an object. But at the fame time, if your high mightineffes are decided, that it is neceffary to recur to a foreign mediation, and to invite his majefty; then, in natural confequence of his affection, and of his good will for the republic, the king will be eager to prove to your high mightineffes his fincere defire to employ all the care that may depend on his majefty to bring the negotiation to a happy, folid, and permanent iffue.

JAMES HARRIS.