death of that prince, nor of others in the present
confederacy. Were we to forget that the King of Prussia encouraged the
Brabanters to revolt, and then left them to their fate? Were we to
forget the recent conduct with respect to Poland? Were we to forget
the taking of Dantzic and Thorn? Indeed he thought that those who
every day told us, in pompous language, of the necessity there was
for kings, and of the service they did to the cause of humanity, they
should at least have spared the public the pain of thinking of
these subjects, by not entering into the views of that unnatural
confederacy. Indeed it was impossible for him to dismiss the
consideration of Poland, without adverting to an eloquent passage in
the work of a right honourable gentleman, who was an enthusiastic
admirer of the late revolution there. Here Mr. Sheridan quoted the
following passage of Mr. Burke's Appeal from the Old to the New Whigs:

The state of Poland was such, that there could scarcely
exist two opinions, but that a reformation of its constitution,
even at some expense of blood, might be seen without
much disapprobation. No confusion could be feared in such
an enterprise; because the establishment to be reformed was
itself a state of confusion. A King without authority,
nobles without union or subordination, a people without
arts, industry, commerce, or liberty; no order within, no
defence without; no effective public force, but a foreign
force, which entered a naked country at will, and disposed
of everything at pleasure. Here was a state of things
which seemed to invite, and might, perhaps, justify bold
enterprise and desperate experiment. But in what manner
was this chaos brought into order? The means were as
striking to the imagination, as satisfactory to the reason,
and soothing to the moral sentiments. In contemplating
that change, humanity has everything to rejoice and to
glory in, nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to suffer. So
far as it has gone, it probably is the most pure and defecated
public good which ever has been conferred on mankind.
We have seen anarchy and servitude at once removed,
a throne strengthened for the protection of the people,
without trenching on their liberties, all foreign cabal
banished, by changing the crown from elective to hereditary;
and what was a matter of pleasing wonder, we have
seen a reigning King, from an heroic love to his country,
exerti