The New Hampshire Gazette And General Advertiser

For the New-Hampshire Gazette.

Mess. Printers,

When I reflect upon the fatal consequences which are always attendant upon feuds, animosities and divisions, in a young state, I tremble for the safety of this. The party spirit which at this time prevails, tho' it may not at present be productive of any evil, will lay a foundation for future calamities; and unless it is soon suppressed, we may look upon this period as the beginning of sorrow!

The prosperity of a state in a time of peace, as well as its safety in a time of war, depends wholly upon the unanimity of its inhabitants. Experience fully evinces the truth of this proposition, and we may very justly infer, that similar causes will always produce similar events. The Greeks, Romans, and every other nation of antiquity, whose actions excite our admiration, owed their greatness to the same cause; and we find when that spirit of union droops, they begin to decay; and that their destruction is oftener owing to their internal divisions than to the superior power of their enemies.

An emulation to excel in virtue is laudable, it gives vigor to every political nerve, advances the meritorious, and produces the most happy effects in a community; but a desire of excelling in power, grandeur & popularity, tends to the certain ruin of a society.

Our present situation is truly alarming, and calls loudly for a speedy reparation.

We are delivered from our fears and anxieties on the side of Britain, we have gained from her every thing that we could hope or wish for: but we have yet a more formidable enemy to contend with—the vices incident to humanity.

We have no regular form of government established, and the disposition of the people is such, that I fear it will be a long time before any can take place: this opens an ample field for ambition, and we have among us but too many who eagerly grasp at the favorable opportunity of raising their fame at the expense of their country, and who may under the specious appearances of charity and benevolence, hide designs not very favorable to the liberties of the people.

We have (more particularly in this town) many who have never exerted themselves in the cause of liberty, and who have never strove for the independence of America;—such characters might at least be content to enjoy the sweets of a peace gained by the exertions of the sons of freedom, and not endeavor to foment divisions which may involve this country in greater difficulties than she has yet encountered, and from which she cannot be so easily extricated.

Justice demands that those who have stood foremost in the contest, and have been firmly and uniformly attached to the cause of their country, should be rewarded with honors and dignities, equal to the toils and hardships which they have borne, and adequate to the merits of their intentions.

A TRUE REPUBLICAN.