...e knew not what to propose. The Declaratory Act was the law of the land, and yet was as a barren fruit-tree, which, though fair to the eye, only cumbers the earth, and spreads a noxious shade. Shelburne was aware also, that if the Americans should be tempted to resist in the last instance, France and Spain would no longer defer breaking the peace of which they began to number the days. Spain was ...