"That the sovereign of this country is not amenable to any form of trial known to the laws, is unquestionable; but exemption from punishment is a singular privilege annexed to the royal character, and no way excludes the possibility of deserving it. How long and to what extent a king of England may be protected by the forms, when he violates the spirit of the constitution, deserves to be considered. A mistake in this matter proved fatal to Charles and his son."--Preface to Junius. "Wherefore, laying aside all national pride and prejudice in favor of modes and forms, the plain truth is that _it is wholly owing to the constitution of the people, and not the constitution of the government_, that the crown is not as oppressive in England as in Turkey." "The consequences of this attack upon the constitution are too plain and palpable not to alarm the dullest apprehension. I trust you will find that the people of England are neither deficient in spirit or understanding, though you have treated them as if they had neither sense to feel, nor spirit to resent. We have reason to thank God and our ancestors that there never yet was a minister in this country who could stand the issue of such a conflict, and, with every prejudice in favor of your intentions, I see no such abilities in your grace as should enable you to succeed in an enterprise in which the ablest and basest of your predecessors have found their destruction.... Never hope that the freeholders will make a tame surrender of their rights, or that an English army will join with you in overturning the liberties of their country."--Let. 11. I will now present their doctrine of _equal rights_: _Common Sense._ "Mankind being originally equals in the order of creation, the equality could not be destroyed by some subsequent circumstance.... "As the exalting one man so greatly above the rest, can not be justified on the equal rights of nature...." _Junius._ "In the rights of freedom we are all equal.... "The least considerable man among us has an interest equal to the proudest nobleman."--Let. 37. "When the first original right of the people, from which all laws derive their authority," etc.--Let. 30. "Those sacred original rights which belonged to them before they were soldiers."--Let. 11.