LETTERI FRIENDS and FELLOW-CITIZENS, I FIND, it has feemed expedient to your Tafk-Mafters, the Board of Aldermen, or rather, the CONCLAVE of CARDINALS, of this infatuated City, to call You, Gentlemen of the COMMONS, together. As I understand, the Purport of your Meeting is a Matter of the utmoft Confequence to You and to Pofterity, I think it incumbent on me, to ftep a little out of my Way, in order to offer You fome cautionary Hints upon this important Occafion. I HAVE long looked upon Poft-Affemblies, which were not appointed by Adjournment of the Quarter-Affembly, as anticonftitutional, if not unjust and unlawful, though they have the Sanction of Cuftom, and that, for the following, among many other, obvious Reasons. IN the Quarter-Affemblies, the feveral Corporations are fummoned to fend their Reprefentatives to the COMMON-COUNCIL; by which, the Spirits and Attention of the Citizens are raised: They have an Opportunity of inftructing their Representatives, how to act, and of attending in the Court of Darein Hundred, to prevent Surprise, by prohibiting all unjust or illicit Acts. BUT, in our modern Poft-Affemblies, the Summons is private and perfonal, and generally, at a short Warning. The Citizens know nothing of it, unless by Accident. And the Acts of the Day, are, of late, feldom or never fubmitted to the Judgement of the Citizens, in the Court of Darein Hundred. BESIDES, there have been Instances, where the Summons have been, but partially made, to such, as were prepared to fulfil the Intentions of their good Godfathers in the Conclave. As a Proof of this melancholy Truth, look back into your wretched Records, and You will find, that all your unjust and injurious Contracts, unequal and clandeftine Purchases, finifter and deftructive Leafes, fulsome and false Addresses, and illicit and oppressive By-Laws, have all been made and passed in packed Poft-Alfemblies. MOREOVER, MOREOVER, remember the Cardinals, who have had You called together, have always Time to prepare and lay their deepest, darkest and moft jefuitical Schemes, unknown to You; and they, then, call You together, to give Sanction to fome of the few Tranfactions, they have not yet prefumed to perform, without, at left, the Appearance of a Common-Council. HENCE, judge what is, in general, to be thought of Poft Affemblies. At beft, they are not conftitutional, as generally convoked and exercised. And they must always be dangerous, as the Purport of their Meeting can onely be known to the chief Cardinals, who take the neceffary Time to prepare and document their Minions, to perpetrate the dark Defigns of their Mafters. HAD You been now called together for the Affairs of any pri vate Perfon, I fhould have been lefs alarmed, less attentive, lefs watchful; for, there would have been lefs Danger. But, when You are called upon, to ratify any Contract, made by the Conclave, or a few of their Creatures in a Committee, or FEWER of the Creatures of their Creatures, in that unheared-of sham Council, called, a Sub-Committee, Who can be filent, that is not fupine, or infenfible? I Do not want a juft Opinion of the Integrity and good Intentions of the prefent Commons. But, as the Cardinals take Care to keep all experienced Citizens, that ever dared to oppose their Measures, out of the Council, I muft confefs, I have no fmall Fears from their approved Subtilty, and your known Inexperience. AND, as for the Alderman, for whofe Purpose You are to be fhortly convoked, I want not due Regard for him, in his private Capacity; but, in his public, or political, as an Alderman, I can never think, a Commoner, or Citizen, can be too cautious in dealing with him. I UNDERSTAND You are called to meet To-morrow, to perfect a Leafe of the Tolls, or Cuftoms, or both, to an Alderman. Now, whether this Alderman's Propofals, at present, appear juft and advantageous, or the contrary, I can not take upon me to fay. But, whether or no, I think You can not confiftently fuffer an Alderman to be a Tenant to the Corporation: For this, there are many plane, evident Reasons: They have always too great a Sway in the Council, to be called to Account: And, by their Influence, may alienate or deftroy the chief Branch of your Revenue, whenever it is fettled upon one of the Board. Ir is always neceffary and juft Policy to prevent Governors being Tenants to a Corporation. For want of paying due Regard to this wife Maxim, the City Eftate and Revenues have already been difmembered, by the Cardinals; many of whofe Offspring, now enjoy lordly Eftates, furreptitiously taken from that of this poor City. TAKE Warning from the great Alderman of confcious Innocence, who is Tenant to the Blue-Coat Hofpital, against a pofitive Precept, in the Charter.But, what are Charters*, Precepts, or Laws, to Cardinals, when Cardinals, or GIANTS, are the Judges!-See how many hundred Pounds this Man of confular Dignity owes, and yet, justly, refuses to pay the Corporation, a fingle Farthing? -What cares he?-His confcious Innocence, and his, no less guiltless, Brethren of the Conclave, powerfully protect him. It is ten to one, I shall have a smart, cunning, intraping Letter, to afk, Whom I here mean? which I may expect to fee in Print, to fhew, that Aldermen can write, now at Days. To obviate which, K NOW all Men by thefe Prefents, that I hereby mean the worshipful Gentleman, who calls him felf, ALDERMAN NATHANIEL KANE, Author or Editor of The Genuine Letters between Alderman Kane and Charles Lucas.-But, of this, more hereafter.- -To return then; FOR the above Reasons, with many more too obvious to require reciting, I hope You will never permit an Alderman to be a Tenant to the Corporation. I AM not infenfible, that the Tolls and Customs, or what are left of them, by your good Friends, the Honorable Mr. Juftice Yorke, and the Right Honorable Thomas Carter, Efq; require being put under fome ufeful Regulation. They are, at present, next to being in the Hands of Aldermen, collected by their Relations and Creatures. I fhould be well pleased, the Revenue of all the Gates were let; but, not to any one Man, though he were an Alderman, or a GIANT. If You purpose to let them, let them by the Gate; not more than one to one Man. I REMEMBER a Scheme once offered, for increafing the Tolls and Customs, by a very fenfible Citizen, and rejected by the Conclave, as unreasonable. HE propofed eftimating the annual Income of the Gates, upon a Medium, for any feven Years. He was willing to let the largeft Computation be the Standard. He did not defire to have the putting in, or removing, a Collector, or Servant, nor the receiving or handling a Penny of the Money; but, that it fhould all be payed, in the ufual Manner, into the Hands of the City-Treasurer. He would, then, lay his Schemes for raising the Revenue at great Expence of Time and Treasure, folely to him felf; and onely defired, that he might have one Moiety of the Increase, for a Term of feven Years, for his Trouble. THE onely Objection publicly made to this, was, that he might get too much by it. And fo, rather than a Citizen fhould gain one or two hundred Pounds a Year, more or lefs, the Conclave would have the City lofe fo much!-But, now, the true Reason ap *A Set of thefe Gentlemen, in a Grand Jury, in Eafer Term, 1750, prefented the Great Charter of the City, and prayed the Court to order it to be burned by the Hands of the common Hangman. |