The Online Library of Liberty

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• The Preface.
• Part I.: The Notions of Mr. Locke, &c.
• Chap. I.: Quotations From Mr. Locke.
• Chap. IX.: Of the Ends of Political Society and Government.
• Chap. XI.: Of the Extent of the Legislative Power.
• Chap. XVII.: Extracts From Mr. Molyneux’s Case of Ireland Being Bound By Acts of Parliament In England. Dublin, Printed 1698, and Dedicated to King William: and Lately Reprinted By Mr. Almon, With a Long Preface, Exciting the Irish to Rebel
• Extracts From Dr. Priestly’s Essay On the First Principles of Government. Second Edition. London, Printed For J. Johnson, 1771.
• Section I.: Of the First Principles of Government, and the Different Kinds of Liberty.
• Section II.: Of Political Liberty.
• Extracts From Dr. Price ’s Famous Treatise, Observations On the Nature of Civil Liberty, &c. a New Edition, 12 Mo. Corrected By the Author, Price Three-pence, Or One Guinea Per Hundred.
• Preface to the Fifth Edition.
• Section I.: Of the Nature of Liberty In General.
• Section II.: Of Civil Liberty, and the Principles of Government.
• Section III.: Of the Authority of One Country Over Another.
• Observations On the Foregoing Extracts.
• Chap II.: Several Very Gross Errors and Absurdities Chargeable On the Lockian System.
• Chap. III.: An Enquiry How Far Either the Revolution In England,— Or the Reduction of Ireland,— Or the Present Proceedings of the Congress In America, Can Or May Be Justified According to the Leading Principles of Mr. Locke, and His Followers.
• I.: Of the Revolution In England.
• II.: The Reduction of Ireland.
• III.: The Cafe of the Present Congress In America.
• Chap. IV.: On the Abuse of Words, and the Perversion of Language, Chargeable On the Lockian System.
• Conclusion.
• Part II.: Containing the True Basis of Civil Government, In Opposition to the System of Mr. Locke and His Followers, By Josiah Tucker, D. D. Dean of Glocester.
• The Preface to the Second Part.
• Chap. I.: Concerning Those Principles In Human Nature, Which May Serve As a Basis For Any Species of Civil Government to Stand Upon, Without the Actual Choice, Or Personal Election of Every Member of the Community Either Towards the First Erection, Or the
• Chap. II.: Objections Answered.
• Objection I.
• Objection II.
• Objection III.
• Objection IV.
• Chap. III.: A Comparison of the Different Forms of Government With Each Other,—a Preference Given to the Mixt, and the Reasons Why,—the Republics of Sparta, Athens, and Rome, Proved to Be Improper Models For a Commercial State,—the Supp
• I.: Monarchy.
• II.: On Aristocracy.
• III.: A Mere Democracy.
• Chap. IV.: Of a Limited Monarchy, and Mixt Government. Its Component Parts, Monarchy, Aristocracy, and Democracy. of the Comparative Influence of Each:—on Which Side the Greatest Danger Is Now to Be Apprehended.—the Remedy Proposed, and Proper Regulations
• The Qualifications of Voters.
• The Qualification of Candidates.
• Part III.: Divers Collateral Circumstances Corroborating the Foregoing System, and Confuting the Lockian
• Chap. I.: The General Nature of the Gothic Constitution Described, Which the Barbarous Nations Introduced and Settled In Every Part of Europe, and Particularly In England.—various Antiquated Customs and Laws Explained Relative Thereto.—these Laws Either N
• Chap. II.: Certain Objections and Cavils Answered and Confuted.
• Chap. III.: An Enquiry How Far the Authorities of Great Names, and Particularly How Far the Opinions of Aristotle, Cicero, Grotius, and Hooker Can Be Serviceable to the Lockian Cause.
• Chap. IV.: The Doctrine of Scripture Relative to the Obedience Due From Subjects to Their Sovereigns; Together With the Grounds Of, and Reasons For the Duty.

II.

TheReductionof Ireland.

The Reduction of Ireland about the Year 1690 is another capital Affair, which is to receive Sentence either of Justification, or Condemnation, at Mr. Locke’s Tribunal. For if Ireland was reduced, and the Constitution thereof peaceably settled according to the Lockian Plan, the Founder of this Sect and his Followers have certainly a good deal to glory in. But if the very Reverse should prove to have been the Case, what shall we say?—And with what Front could Mr. Molineux, the Friend of Mr. Locke, dedicate his Book on the Independency of Ireland to King William, if King William’s own Conduct in the Reduction of that Kingdom was altogether repugnant to the Principles of his Book? Now it unfortunately happens, that all the Lockians have precluded themselves from making Use of the very best Arguments, which could be brought in Justification of this memorable Event:—I say, they have precluded themselves, by chusing to rest the Merits of their Cause on one single Point,—The Universality of Consent;—that is to say, the Consent of the People,—at least of the major Part of them, expressly obtained, and freely given. For they have solemnly declared over and over, and do continue to declare, that no Title whatever in the reigning Powers can be valid, if this be wanting. Mr. Molineux’s own Words will best speak his Sentiments, and those of his Party on this Occasion; which therefore I shall beg Leave to repeat.

“I shall venture to assert, that the Right of being subject only to such Laws, to which Men give their own Consent, is so inherent in all Mankind, and founded on such immutable Laws of Nature and Reason, that ’tis not to be aliened, or given up by any Body of Men whatever.” And a little lower: “I have no Notion of Slavery, but being bound by a Law, to which I do not consent.—If one Law may be imposed without Consent, any other Law whatever may be imposed on us without our Consent. This will naturally introduce Taxing us without our Consent. And this as necessarily destroys our Property. I have no other Notion of Property, but a Power of disposing of my Goods, as I please, and not as another shall command. Whatever another may rightfully take from me, I have certainly no Property in. To tax me without Consent is little better, if at all, than down-right robbing me.”

And now, Reader, having just observed, that this Mr. Molineux of Ireland was to all Intents and Purposes, the Precursor of the Congress of America, let us consider what Right had King William to invade Ireland at first, and what Pretensions could be have afterwards for establishing a Protestant Constitution in that Popish Country, according to the Principles of Messrs. Locke and Molineux.

King James the Second fled from England, and, after having made some Stay in France, landed in Ireland, and was received by the whole Body of the Irish Nation with open Arms. A few Protestants in the North made some Opposition; and at last, being driven to Despair, they made a most surprizing Resistance, under the Conduct of the Rev. Mr Walker, Governor of Londonderry. But it is their Number, as haying an unalienable Right to vote,—and not their Courage or Valour, as Heroes, which is the subject Matter of our present Inquiry. Now in respect to this, the Protestants were vastly the Minority of the Natives, and are so still, according to every Mode of Computation. Why therefore if the Votes or Consents of a Majority are to decide the Question,—Why, I say, did these few Protestants resist at all?—Or if a Lockian will not submit to be governed by this Rule of a Majority concluding the Minority [for sometimes he will, and at other Times he will not] Why did not the Handful of Protestants desire Leave to retire peaceably into some other Country, instead of committing Hostilities in that? Nay more, why did they send to England for Succours, to drive out King James, and establish King William? For surely according to the Lockian Hypothesis, that every Man ought to be governed only by Laws of his own appointing,—the great Majority of the Irish Nation had at least as good a Right to refuse Obedience to King William, as the Minority had to refuse it to King James. But notwithstanding all this, King William sailed with a large Reinforcemement of Troops to Ireland; he landed, and he conquered; and in a short Space of Time the Peace of the Country was settled by the Capitulation and Treaty of Limeric.

Now in order to reconcile the Reduction of Ireland to the Lockian Standard of Right and Wrong, of just Government, and of Usurpation, we must believe first of all, that this Handful of Protestants, who appeared in Arms at Inniskillen and Londonderry, were the great Majority of the Irish Nation: And when we have digested this Pill, we must believe further that all Things were quite inverted, or in other Words, That the few Natives of Ireland, who were Papists [not more perhaps than ten to one Protestant] we must believe, I say, that these few Papist all voluntarily consented to be governed by the many, who were Protestants: And having proceeded thus far in our Credulity, we must not hesitate at swallowing the rest, viz. That the Papists of Ireland sent an Embassy to invite King William to come over, and offered to swear Fealty and Allegiance to him at the Battle of the Boyne;—yea, and that all the Laws successively made afterwards for disarming them, for taking their Estates from them, for banishing them, for exciting their own Children to rebel against them, and for subjecting them to Fines and Imprisonments, and to Pains and Penalties in Thousands of Instances;—we must believe, I say, that all these Laws were made with the whole Assent, and Consent, Will, and Agreement of the Papists of Ireland. O Genius of Popish Legends, confess thou art fairly outdone by Protestant Patriots! O Purgatory of St. Patrick, hide thy diminished Head!