date

2 Sep. 1809 Parl y Reform B
2 Sep. 1809

Parl y Reform

B. I. Necessity

Ch.18. Mischief of Idol-worship

§.2. King’s interest. 2. power

Elogiums mischievous

Elogiums &c

6

4

4

4

The King is a good King – may be so: the King is a good King – so says every body,

that speaks of him.

May be so. But does this afford any the smallest evidence of his being so? – Not it

indeed.

The King is a most gracious and religious King. So says every body that ever enters

into a church. But in all this is there any thing in which by a rational man by which

any the slightest reason can be found for thinking him so.

This was said of Charles the 1 st who was a religious King but

not a gracious one: this was said of Charles the 2 who was a gracious King but not a

religious one. This was said again of James the 2 d who though not

a gracious King was indeed a religious one /King/, but with such a religion as to the

purpose of the Church of England was worse than none.

When then in a solemn & religious service all regard to truth is thus

solemnly and regularly trodden under foot by every man of the Ecclesiastical

profession, the same praise being in the same words poured out like the holy chrism

upon the head of every royal person /crowned head/ in whatsoever degree the object

thus bepowered is in the estimation of the bepowerer deserving of it or undeserving,

what degree of credence is it possible for any man of that profession to make title

to, when on every profane /political/ occasion without the special /present/ sanction

of religion to put a bridle upon his pen or his tongue, he is seen occupied in

bedawbing[?] the same idol with the same /that or any other/ praise?
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    Description: 2 Sep. 1809

    Parl y Reform

    B. I. Necessity

    Ch.18. Mischief of Idol-worship

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    Elogiums mischievous

    Elogiums &c

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    In the character of evidence of desert what can be the value of praise when at the

    same time that praise, how well so ever or how ill so ever deserving it, sees

    /beholds/ rewards in store for it, and when if the royal person be spoken of in any

    way it must be in the way of praise, speaking of him in the way of dispraise having

    been /being/ made a punishable crime?
  • Title: [2 Sep r 1809 Parl y Reform : Necessity]
    Description: 2 Sep r 1809

    Parl y Reform : Necessity

    B. I. Necessity

    Ch. 18 Mischief of Idol worship

    Ch. Elogiums mischievous

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    1 Ellenboro’ should he punish men for false eulogy?

    2 Mischief of this eloquence when applied to probable successors. Most religious of

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    3 Particular praise good: general, evidence of sycophancy.

    To this topic belongs the consideration of the tendency and effect of those elogiums

    which have the personal virtues of the Monarch for their themes.

    The indulgence of social affection is at once so natural so amiable and so

    beneficial /and so amiable/, the Monarch of the country is at once so conspicuous and

    so natural an object of it /that amiable affection/, the figure of speech by which

    this exalted personage is placed /seated/ in the imagination of every man and more

    especially of every woman /imagination of the public/ in the character of a common

    father, the efficient cause and cement of a correspondently kind affection the

    affection of fraternity on the part of his subjects, one towards another, that it is

    not reluctance /a certain amount of uneasiness/ that a man in whose bosom the

    dissocial affections do not predominate can bring himself to bring to view any

    considerations, by the effect of which it may happen that to the warmth of so

    generous an affection to be /find itself/ diminished. /A cap/ It is indeed a cap, but

    a cap which on so serious /important/ an occasion must not be put away.

    If indeed the effect of those elogiums terminated with what is most commonly though

    not always their professed object – if in a word they never had either for their

    effect or for their tendency the disposing men to take the supposed personal will of

    the Monarch (for it is scarce ever other than the supposed one) for the rule of

    action and standard of propriety and rule of action, the error of these elogiums

    supposing it such would by the supposition be a harmless one, and so far as it were

    embraced with security, would even be preferable to the truth.

    Sure I am that in my own instance it is matter of uneasiness to me to find myself

    doing what depends on me towards opposing checks and objections to to what taken in

    itself is so innocent as well as harmless an exercise. Neither the /any/

    qualification which it may be supposed capable of affording to the royal person who

    is the object, not any which it may be the lot of the performer to experience – most

    assuredly it is not in the contemplation of pleasure in those or any other shapes

    that I find /feel/ the inducement which has engaged me in so ungracious a task.
  • Title: [2 Sep r 1809 Parl y Reform]
    Description: 2 Sep r 1809

    Parl y Reform

    B. I. Necessity

    Ch. 18 Mischief of Idol-worship

    §.3. King’s interest. 2. power

    Elogiums &c

    5

    3

    3

    3

    2. All praisers praised for praising

    3. All punished for praising

    In case of parl y reform such praiser would be […?]

    Every King is religious: every Vil[?] is pretty.

    Note well the mischievousness of these elogiums, note well their absurdity as often

    as /if ever/ /should ever/ any attempt is made to form out of such matter an argument

    in support of this or that individual measure.

    1. The King is a good King; 2 this measure or line of conduct or that which he has

    chosen. 3. therefore believe it to be such /consider it as such/, and submitt to it

    without opposition, whatever it may be! Of such reasoning what is the practical

    result? on the one part despotism on the other part slavery – nothing short of it The

    King is a good King: good not this day only nor the next, but every day: so the day

    for resistance /opposition/, when then can it come? Not on any day during his life

    1. The King is a good King: - may be so. But how do this[?] you[?] know it

    2. The King is a good King. Why so? Because every body says so. True: but /in

    England. But in France/ does not every body say so, yea and still louder of

    Bonaparte?

    No. Under such inducements for saying so, so far from being evidence of the thing

    itself a man’s saying so is not so much as an evidence of his believing it: any more

    than is what a lawyer says from his belief is evidence so much as of his believing it to be true. Be he what he may, so long as there

    abuse /are abuses which whether by his will or by his name, and the use made of it he

    protects/, he will be a good King and the best of Kings in the eyes of all those who

    derive any the least particle of profit from any of those abuses. So many profiters

    by abuse so many retained advocates of it and of every thing as well as every person

    that contribute or are supposed to contribute to the support of it.