Though Sir John Turner gained his election, as one of our parliamentary representatives, in his contest with Molineaux, and was sometime after chosen mayor of this town; yet his influence here soon appeared to be fast declining. His friends in the Hall resigned and withdrew, one after another, till the interest of that family became at last quite annihilated, after having been very great, and almost unrivalled, for a whole century. But there is nothing strange or wonderful in this. It is the usual course of things in this world. Families, as well as nations and empires, have their day, beyond which they cannot extend their power, or their greatness.
About the year 1769 our corporation had a great lawsuit with a Mr. Carr of Massingham, father of our late merchant of that name. But they lost their cause; owing, as it has been suggested, to the perjury of one of Carr’s principal witnesses. The suit is said to have been brought on to oblige the corporation to open and scour the Fleet from Salter’s Sluice to Littleport-bridge, which was necessary for the accommodation of the plaintiff, who had granaries contiguous to that fleet. The corporation, on their part, pleaded that the flood-door of the bridge had been put down a hundred years before, and therefore that the requisition could not be binding upon them. But the said witness, who was only 56 years old, swore that he had in his youth, for the sake of robbing an orchard, swam over, near Salter’s clough, when the water there was ten feet deep. This satisfied the jury, and determined them to give their verdict against the corporation. They were consequently obliged to clear and open the said fleet; and it has been kept so ever since; which seems very proper and necessary. But supposing it really true, that the work had been neglected, and the fleet suffered to silt and fill up for a whole century; still, even that very neglect must have been the fault of the corporation, who are bound to keep the fleets open; so that they could not be justified in resisting Mr. Carr’s requisition. To have removed the nuisance, at once, instead of going to law, had been far more creditable.
About the year 1770, a very unusual and marvellous phenomenon appeared here; which was no other than a violent patriotic spirit, or what in more recent times, or modern cant, would have been denominated Jacobinism. Our Gentlemen seemed then, all of a sudden, to have become mighty admirers of liberty, and of John Wilkes. That redoubted champion of freedom was soon invited to this town, and actually honoured it with his patriotic presence in February 1771, to the no small joy of our body corporate, who received him with open arms, entertained him most sumptuously, and conferred upon him the freedom of this ancient borough. All this was very well. We do not mean to blame them for it. But it was very different from the treatment, or reception, which another patriot, of no less virtue and respectability, met with here at a subsequent period. We mean Thelwall, who visited us some years ago, for the purpose of promulgating the principles of political liberty and genuine patriotism. But those principles, by that time, were become so very unfashionable and disreputable here, that the patriotic lecturer could get no hearing; and he was glad to escape with a whole skin and unbroken bones. The politicks of William Pitt had now completely superseded those of John Wilkes. So the world goes: what is sound doctrine, at one time, is heresy and sedition, and even blasphemy and treason, at another.
At the time of which we have been last speaking, our dispute with the American patriots had made considerable progress: and it might be supposed that as this town appeared so decidedly and warmly in favour of Wilkes, it would have appeared no less so in favour of the Americans. But it happened far otherwise. We eagerly caressed Wilkes, and openly espoused his cause, but towards the oppressed and much injured Americans we appeared very differently affected. During that long and unhappy dispute, and the unjust and bloody war that ensued, no measure was here adopted expressive of abhorrence, or even of disapprobation of the course taken by our government; or yet of concern and commiseration for the unmerited sufferings of our transatlantic brethren. How much more honourable and dignified had it been to have acted differently, and boldly borne our testimony against the injustice and folly of our own government, and in behalf of the reasonable and well-founded claims of the colonists? How respectable, in that case, would Lynn have now appeared among its sister boroughs, when the whole reasonable and enlightened world, with one voice, is reprobating that dispute, and that war, as the undoubted offspring of the most tyrannic disposition, or the most perfect insanity? [955] Nor is it at all improbable that impartial posterity will consider our subsequent wars, and not a few of our public transactions, as having actually sprung from the same parentage.
Soon after the commencement of the American War the great maritime powers discovered a strong disposition to favour the resistance of the colonists, which gave us no small offence; so that by degrees things came to an open rupture between this country and those powers. France, Spain, and Holland, accordingly, became parties in the contest; and the northern armed neutrality, with the general aspect of all other nations, pretty plainly shewed that there was scarcely a single state throughout Christendom, but what decidedly and heartily reprobated the part we were acting. It was therefore no wonder that the American war did prove unsuccessful, and eventually terminate in the discomfiture and disgrace of this country; and even stamp upon our counsels indelible and eternal infamy.
The effect of the war with America, and with the European powers before mentioned, was severely felt at Lynn. Our trade was much cramped, many of our ships were captured, our sailors were reduced mostly to old men and lads, by those guardians of the constitution, and demonstrators of the unalienableness of our rights, and reality of our freedom, the press gangs. These myrmidons, when any of our young and best sailors fell in their way, if they did not tamely submit to be taken, would pursue them like wild beasts, and, when they came up with them, would knock them on the head, like dogs, with their bludgeons, and then drag them with the utmost indignity to the house of rendezvous, or on board the tender. There the poor fellows were left to cool, and compose themselves: and the very next day, perhaps, would be heard singing, in the house of their captivity, “Rule Britannia;” and “Britons never will be slaves.” It may be well for the nation, or, at least, for its rulers, that the ideas of our sea-faring people, respecting liberty and thraldom, are considerably different from those of some other people.—Being now come to the end of the first twenty years of this reign, we shall here close the present section.
Section IX.
Lynn armed Association—termination of the American War—independence of the United States acknowledged and confirmed—peace restored and established among all the belligerent powers—King’s illness and recovery—View of the state of this town from that period to the present time.
The situation of this country, engaged in a foolish, fruitless, ruinous, and infamous war with its own colonies, at the distance of more than a thousand leagues, and involved afterwards in a desperate struggle with its great maritime neighbours, became very critical, and excited considerable alarm throughout the kingdom. Great fears were entertained of an invasion, and means of defence against such an attempt were resorted to. The Irish, deprived of the military force that used to be stationed in their country, armed themselves for their own protection, at their own expense. The like was done in many parts of England; and Lynn adopted the same measure. The Lynn Volunteers, or armed association, amounted to about 120, [957] and were commanded in chief by Captain Thomas Day, whose name we have had occasion to mention more than once in some of the preceding pages.
This gentleman’s military knowledge and talents were generally allowed to be superior to those of any other of our townsmen, and his unassuming demeanor, and conciliating manners eminently fitted him for the chief command of this corps. The officers and men, accordingly, became greatly attached to him, and the utmost harmony subsisted among them, to the very last. During the whole time they were imbodied, the behaviour of the men, in the town, was very proper and commendable, and quite to the satisfaction of the inhabitants; which redounded much to the credit of the officers, and particularly the commandant, whose orders and example would not fail to contribute largely to the regularity or correctness of their deportment. This respectable and memorable little band was formed and organized in 1779, and continued till sometime after the expiration of the war; for it was not disbanded till 1785, when its constituents, relinquishing the military character, mixed once more with the great mass of unarmed citizens; conscious, it may be presumed, of having so acquitted themselves as to merit the approbation and applause of their contemporaries, and of posterity.—Of these patriot-soldiers some further notice may be taken when we shall have to notice our more recent and more numerous volunteer armaments.