Junius Unmasked Part 25

{236}"_Resolved_, That it be an instruction to the said deputies, when a.s.sembled in General Congress, with the deputies from the other states of British America, to propose to the said Congress that an humble and dutiful address be presented to his Majesty, begging leave to lay before him, as Chief Magistrate of the British empire, the united complaints of his Majesty's subjects in America; complaints which are excited by many unwarrantable encroachments and usurpations, attempted to be made by the legislature of one part of the empire upon the rights which G.o.d and the laws have given equally and independently to all. To represent to his Majesty that these, his states, have often individually made humble application to his imperial Throne to obtain through its intervention some redress of their injured rights, to none of which was ever even an answer condescended.

Humbly to hope that this, their joint address, penned in the language of truth, and divested of those expressions of servility which would persuade his Majesty that we are asking favors, and not rights, shall obtain from his Majesty a respectful acceptance; and this his Majesty will think we have reason to expect, when he reflects that he is no more than the chief officer of the people, appointed by the laws, and circ.u.mscribed with definite powers to a.s.sist in working the great machine of government, erected for their use, and consequently subject to their superintendence, and in order that these our rights, as well as the invasions of them, may be laid more fully before his Majesty, to take a view of them from the origin and first settlement of these countries."

It will be observed in the above extract from Mr. Jefferson, that there is no proportion between the members of the sentences. We have them of all lengths, interlarded with phrases, and thrown into a confused ma.s.s.

Hence, there is no _harmony_. Mr. Paine's periods are almost faultless in this regard; the members of the periods follow each other like the waves of the ocean, which gives _evenness_ of "_tread_" and _majesty_ of _expression_. While the style of Mr. Jefferson is absolutely devoid of all _harmony_, for the members of the periods move on like the rumbling of a government wagon over a rough and stony road.

This peculiarity of style is one of mental const.i.tution. It is an effect of nature which education can never remedy. No art can reach it, for no mental training can annul a law of nature. It may be said of the writer in this regard as of the poet: "He is born, not made." It is herein nature made these two men entirely unlike. Paine was a poet; Jefferson was not. The former had the most lively imagination; the latter had none at all. It is this quality of the mind--_imagination_--which adorns language with the figure.

In the proper use of the figure Mr. Paine can not be excelled. Mr.

Jefferson makes but infrequent use of figures of speech, and when he goes out of the ruts of custom, he almost always fails in his efforts.

Two or three examples will suffice. In vol. i, p. 58, he says: "I never heard either of them speak ten minutes at a time, nor to any but the main point which was to decide the question. They laid their shoulders to the great points, knowing that the little ones would follow of themselves." In this men are arguing the _points_ of a question. But Mr.

Jefferson says they "laid their shoulders" to them, instead of their tongues. In vol. i, p. 358, he says: "The Emperor, to satisfy this tinsel pa.s.sion, _plants_ a dagger in the heart of every Dutchman, which no time will extract." Perhaps these planted daggers will take root. He speaks also about "confabs" and "swallowing opinions."

Let us look now, for a moment, at the grand requisites of style, _Precision_, _Unity_, and _Strength_.

Of the first, I would say, I have never yet seen an ambiguous sentence in Paine's works. Mr. Jefferson's style is confused, labored, and prolix. There is no paragraph he ever wrote, especially in the first half of his life, but will bear me out in the a.s.sertion, that he uses a great many words to express a few ideas. The above quotation I cite on this point. It could all have been put into one-fourth of the s.p.a.ce, and thus have been rendered clear and distinct. His style, however, grew better as he grew older. He is diffuse, which at once destroys _Unity_ of expression. He puts subject after subject into one period, often into one sentence. The consequence is, there is no order in his style, and his ideas tumble over each other in the greatest confusion; and the consequence of this is, there is no _Strength_ to his style.

That the reader may see all these faults, I will make a brief a.n.a.lysis of the Introduction to the "Summary View," quoted above:

FIRST PERIOD.

1. Instruction, to deputies.

2. When a.s.sembled in Congress.

3. With other deputies.

4. To propose to Congress.

5. To present an address to his Majesty.

6. Begging leave to lay before him complaints.

7. Complaints excited.

8. By encroachments and usurpations.

9. By the legislature of a part of the empire.

10. On the rights which G.o.d and the laws have given 11. Equally to all.

This is the first sentence. In it he has put the Introduction, the Bill of Rights, the Indictment, a proposition to Congress to go a begging before his Majesty, and several other particulars. But let us continue with the next sentence:

SECOND PERIOD.

12. To represent to his Majesty.

13. That his states.

14. Humble application.

15. To Imperial Throne.

16. To get redress of injured rights.

17. No answer.

Here there is no relation between the _beginning_ of the sentence and the conclusion.

THIRD PERIOD.

18. Humbly to hope.

19. By joint address.

_a._ Penned in truth.

_b._ Divested of terms of servility.

20. Would persuade his Majesty.

21. That we ask no favors.

22. But rights.

23. Shall obtain a respectful acceptance.

24. His Majesty will think.

25. We have reason to expect.

26. When he reflects.

_a._ That he is only the chief officer.

_b._ Appointed by law.

_c._ Circ.u.mscribed with powers.

_d._ To a.s.sist in working the great machine of government.

_e._ Erected for their use.

_f._ Are therefore subject to their superintendence.

27. And that these our rights.

28. As well as invasions.

29. May be laid before his Majesty.

_a._ To take a view of them.

_b._ From their origin.

_c._ And first settlement of these countries.

It is only necessary to remark on the above, that thirty or forty subjects can hardly be handled successfully in three periods. How different is this from the Declaration, or, in fact, from any production of Mr. Paine's.

In the three great requisites of style, _Precision_, _Unity_, and _Strength_, where Mr. Paine is so perfect, we see great defects in Jefferson; and in the fourth, _Harmony_, a complete failure.

If we now take the "Summary View," and submit it to the same critical a.n.a.lysis as I have the Declaration of Independence, we will find the same defects in it, as a whole, that we find in the first paragraph, which I have just a.n.a.lyzed. There is a complete mixture of all subjects.

But this I leave to the reader, should he question the truth of my a.s.sertion.

If we now turn to the synopsis of the Declaration, we will find an exhibition of the most perfect _order._ The Introduction is short, to the point, and complete. The Bill of Rights contains the _first principles_. These apply to mankind universally. It then proceeds as a specialty. The Indictment is divided into three grand divisions, Usurpation, Abdication, and War, and the separate counts are stated, clearly containing but one subject. Nowhere do we find a mixing up of different subjects. We do not find a count of war under the head of usurpation, nor one of usurpation under the head of war.

There is also seen the pa.s.sion for alliteration throughout the whole instrument, and especially in the following pa.s.sages: "Fostered and fixed in principles of freedom." Paragraph 22 is filled with examples.

But in paragraph 15 it seems he uses this power of the mind to aid him in itemizing counts. He takes t for the letter under which he marshals this army of charges: "Troops," "trial," "trade," "taxes," "trial,"

[No. 2,] "transportation," "tried." Here are seven words comprising as many charges following in succession. He follows it with others, but never uses the t again. This shows a pa.s.sion for order and alliteration.

I presume there is no other doc.u.ment in the world with these peculiarities so marked, and I presume there is no writer in the world who ever exhibited to such a remarkable degree these peculiarities of style, as did Thomas Paine. [See on this subject Junius Unmasked, p.

107.] Now, these peculiarities are almost entirely wanting in Thomas Jefferson, and without them it is absolutely impossible for him to be the author of the Declaration of Independence.

I wish now to call attention to the word "hath." It is found but once in the Declaration, and is in paragraph 2, in the following connection: "And accordingly all experience hath shown." It is put in here for the sake of harmony and force in sound, for if we subst.i.tute the word has, there will be a halting at shown, and a disagreeable hissing sound. At the time this was written Mr. Paine frequently used the word, and it may have slipped in unnoticed, on account of sound, or he may have put it in so that the critic could track him. I have never seen the word in any of Jefferson's writings.

SPECIAL CHARACTERISTICS.

I have heretofore shown that Mr. Paine had the Declaration of Independence in view in the production of Common Sense, and that he sketched therein the outlines in the same order in which they afterward appeared. I have shown its architecture and plan, and also its style, to be that of Mr. Paine's, and not Mr. Jefferson's. I have shown this somewhat in detail, but not more than the subject demanded. Herein I have given the grand outlines and general features, but I shall now review the whole, to point out its special characteristics, that, in the mult.i.tude of small things all tending one way, it will be made conclusive to the mind of the reader that it is Mr. Paine's, and not Jefferson's. In this I shall be compelled, some times, to refer to propositions already proven in the first part of this work, to shorten the argument, not wis.h.i.+ng to go over the same ground twice. In the demonstration of a theorem in geometry, what has been proven is made to aid what shall come after. I shall proceed with the same method, and not be guilty of taking any thing which Mr. Paine may have written afterward, to prove something which has gone before. But mental _characteristics_ may be taken wherever we can find them. I am confined to Common Sense, and shall use also Junius as aiding, but never to _entirely_ prove a point. In my references to Common Sense, I shall be compelled to refer to the page. I use the political works of Mr. Paine as published by J. P. Mendum, Boston, as they are most generally known and read in this country. With these explanations, the reader can not go wrong.