revolutionists--their answers were at first evasive, circuitous, and
unintelligible, but, by fixing them down precisely to the question, I
at length drew from them a positive confession that no violence, no
provocation on the part of the court, could prevail upon them to act
with the continent. Such, I am afraid, is the creed and principles of
the whole party great and small.--Sense, reason, argument, and
eloquence, have been expended in vain; and in vain you may still argue
and reason to the end of time. Even the common feelings and
resentments of humanity have not aroused them, but rather with a
malignant pleasure they have beheld the destruction of their
fellow-citizens and relations. But I am running into declamation,
perhaps impertinent and presuming, when I ought to confine myself to
the scheme I submit to your consideration. It is, sir, in the first
place, to disarm all the manifestly disaffected, as well of the lower
as the higher class, not on the principle of putting them in a state
of impotence (for this I observed before will not be the case) but to
supply our troops with arms of which they stand in too great need.
Secondly, to appraise their estates and oblige them to deposite at
least the value of one half of their respective property in the hands
of the continental congress as a security for their good behaviour.
And lastly, to administer the strongest oath that can be devised to
act offensively and defensively in support of the common rights. I
confess that men so eaten up with bigotry, as the bulk of them appear
to be, will not consider themselves as bound by this oath;
particularly as it is in some measure forced, they will argue that it
is by no means obligatory; but if I mistake not, it will be a sort of
criterion by which you will be able to distinguish the desperate
fanatics from those who are reclaimable. The former must of course be
secured and carried to some interior parts of the continent where they
can not be dangerous. This mode of proceeding I conceive (if any can)