The sacredness of contracts honourably and fairly entered into by parties competent to make and consummate them, should be held in high veneration by all. The individual and the social compact from the co-partnership of the common business firm up to the most exalted nation, are bound by the laws of God, of man and of honour to keep inviolate their plighted faith. A deviation from the path of rectitude in this particular, is uniformly attended with evil consequences and often with those of the most direful kind. The party that violates its engagements without accruing causes of justification, and to advance its own interests regardless of those of the other, comes to court with a bad cause. I have repeatedly remarked, that the American revolution was produced by a violation on the part of the mother country of chartered rights secured to the colonists by the crown under the British constitution. To enter into a full exposition of the relations between the two high contracting parties, would require more space than can be allowed in this work. A reference to some of the prominent points in a single charter, will give the reader an idea of the nature of the whole as originally granted, although some of a later date are rather more limited in their privileges than that of Rhode Island, to which I refer. This charter secured religious freedom, personal liberty, personal rights of property, excluding the king from all interference with the local concerns of the colony and was virtually democratic in its features. One of the early acts of parliament, referring to Rhode Island, contains the following language. “That no person within the said colony at any time hereafter shall be in any way molested, punished, disquieted, or called in question for any difference of opinion in matters of religion that does not actually disturb the civil peace of the said colony.” The feelings of the inhabitants from the time they received their charter up to the time oppressions were commenced by Great Britain, may be inferred from the following extract taken from the ancient records of the secretary of state of that province addressed to the king. “The general assembly judgeth it their duty to signify his majesty’s gracious pleasure vouchsafed to us,” &c.; and also from the following extract of a letter written at a later period to Sir Henry Vane then in England. “We have long drunk of the cup of as great liberties as any people we can hear of under the whole heavens. We have not only been long free together with all English from the yokes of wolfish bishops and their popish ceremonies, against whose grievous oppressions God raised up your noble spirit in parliament, but we have sitten down quiet and dry from the streams of blood spilt by war in our native country. * * * We have not known what an excise means. We have almost forgotten what tythes are, yea, or taxes either to church or common weal.” In addition to other declaratory acts of