This method of gaining the reputation of patriotism, has been unknown
till the present age, and reserved for the present leaders of the
people, who will have the honour to stand recorded as the original
authors of anarchy, the great subverters of order, and the first men who
dared to pronounce, that all the secrets of government ought to be made
publick.
It has been hitherto understood in all nations, that those who were
intrusted with authority, had likewise a claim to respect and
confidence; that they were chosen for the superiority of their
abilities, or the reputation of their virtue; and that, therefore, it
was reasonable to consign to their management, the direction of such
affairs as by their own nature require secrecy.
But this ancient doctrine, by which subordination has been so long
preserved, is now to be set aside for new principles, which may flatter
the pride, and incite the passions of the people; we are now to be told,
that affairs are only kept secret, because they will not bear
examination; that men conceal not those transactions in which they have
succeeded, but those in which they have failed; that they are only
inclined to hide their follies or their crimes, and that to examine
their conduct in the most open manner, is only to secure the interest of
the publick.
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