The writings of George Washington; being his correspondence, addresses, messages, and other papers, official and private, selected and published from the original manuscripts; with a life of the author, notes and illustrations. By Jared Sparks.

400 WASHINGTON'S WRITINGS. [AET. 42.
express my sorrow, that fortune should place you in a
service, that must fix curses to the latest posterity upon
the contrivers, and, if success (which, by the by, is
impossible) accompanies it, execrations upon all those,
who have been instrumental in the execution.
I do not mean by this to insinuate, that an officer is
not to discharge his duty, even when chance, not choice,
has placed him in a disagreeable situation; but I conceive, when you condemn the conduct of the Massachusetts people, you reason from effects, not causes; otherwise you would not wonder at a people, who are every
day receiving fresh proofs of a systematic assertion of
an arbitrary power, deeply planned to overturn the laws
and constitution of their country, and to violate the most
essential and valuable rights of mankind, being irritated,
and with difficulty restrained from acts of the greatest
violence and intemperance. For my own part, I confess to you candidly, that I view things in a very different point of light from the one in which you seem to
consider them; and though you are led to believe by
venal men, —for such I must take the liberty of calling
those new-fangled counsellors, who fly to and surround
you, and all others, who, for honors or pecuniary gratifications, will lend their aid to overturn the constitution,
and introduce a system of arbitrary government, —although you are' taught, I say, by discoursing with such
ter hearts should draw a line for their guidance. Even when this is done,
it is much to be feared, that they will follow it no further, than it coincides
with their present sentiments.
c" Amidst all these jarrings we have until lately lived in a camp of pleasure; but the rebellious and numerous meetings of men in arms, their scandalous and ungenerous attacks upon the best characters in the province,
obliging them to save themselves by flight, and their repeated but feeble
threats to dispossess the troops, have furnished sufficient reasons to General Gage to put the town in a formidable state of defence, about which we
are now fully employed, and which will be shortly accomplished to their
great mortification."