,transcriber's ,note3 ,characters preceded by a caret 77 are in superscript1 and are enclosed in curly brackets1 i4 e4 th4 ,italicized text delimited by underscores4 ,this project uses utf-#h encoded characters4 ,if some characters are not readable1 check your settings of your browser to ensure you have a default font installed that can display utf-#h characters4 ,,the ,,works ,,of ,,richard ,,hurd1 ,d4 ,d4 ,,lord ,,bishop ,,of ,,worcester4 ,,vol ,,iii4 ,printed by ,j4 ,nichols and ,son1 ,red ,lion ,passage1 ,fleet ,street1 ,london4 ,,the ,,works ,,of ,,richard ,,hurd1 ,d4 ,d4 ,,lord ,,bishop ,,of ,,worcester4 ,,in ,,eight ,,volumes4 ,,vol4 ,,iii4 ,illustration ,,london3 ,,printed ,,for ,t4 ,,cadell ,,and ,w4 ,,davies1 ,,strand #ahaa4 ,,moral ,,and ,,political ,,dialogues4 ,,vol4 ,i4 ,,moral ,,and ,,political ,,dialogues1 ,,with ,,letters ,,on ,,chivalry ,,and ,,romance4 ,,sacred ,,to ,,the ,,memory ,,of ,,the ,,late ,,ralph ,,allen1 ,,esq4 ,,of ,,prior-,,park4 ,illustration ,,si ,,nobis ,,animvm ,,boni ,,viri ,,liceret ,,inspicere1 ,o ,,qvam ,,pvlchram ,,faciem1 ,,qvam ,,sanctam1 ,,qvam ,,ex ,,magnifico ,,placidoqve ,,fvlgentem ,,videremvs6 ,,nemo ,,illvm ,,amabilem1 ,,qvi ,,non ,,simvl ,,venerabilem1 ,,diceret4 ,,seneca4 ,,contents4 ,,vol4 ,,iii4 ,,preface1 ,on the ,manner of writing ,dialogue4 ,,dialogue ,i4 ,on ,sincerity in the ,commerce of the ,world4 ,,dr4 ,,more1 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,,dialogue ,,ii4 ,on ,retirement4 ,,mr4 ,,cowley1 ,,dr4 ,,sprat4 ,,dialogue ,,iii4 ,on the ,age of ,q4 ,,elizabeth4 ,,mr4 ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,mr4 ,,addison4 ,,dialogue ,,iv4 ,on the ,age of ,q4 ,,elizabeth4 ,,mr4 ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,mr4 ,,addison4 ,,dialogue ,v4 ,on the ,constitution of the ,english ,government4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard1 ,,mr4 ,,somers1 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,,vol4 ,,iv4 ,,dialogue ,,vi4 ,on the ,constitution of the ,english ,government4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard1 ,,mr4 ,,somers1 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,,dialogues ,,vii1 ,,viii4 ,on the ,uses of ,foreign ,travel4 ,,lord ,,shaftesbury1 ,,mr4 ,,locke4 ,,xii ,,letters ,on ,chivalry and ,romance4 ,,contents ,,of ,,the ,,third ,,volume4 ,page ,,preface1 ,on the ,manner of writing ,dialogue4 #ag ,,dialogue ,i4 ,on ,sincerity in the ,commerce of the ,world4 ,,dr4 ,,more1 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 #ea ,,dialogue ,,ii4 ,on ,retirement4 ,,mr4 ,,cowley1 ,,dr4 ,,sprat4 #ie ,,dialogue ,,iii1 ,,iv4 ,on the ,age of ,q4 ,,elizabeth4 ,,mr4 ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,mr4 ,,addison4 #afe ,,dialogue ,v4 ,on the ,constitution of the ,english ,government4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard1 ,,mr4 ,,somers1 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 #bha ,,preface1 ,,on ,,the ,,manner ,,of ,,writing ,,dialogue4 ,,preface1 ,,on ,,the ,,manner ,,of ,,writing ,,dialogue4 ,the former editions of these ,dialogues were given without a name1 and under the fictitious person of an ,editor3 not1 the reader may be sure1 for any purpose so silly as that of imposing on the ,public2 but for reasons of another kind1 which it is not difficult to apprehend4 ,however1 these reasons1 whatever they were1 subsisting no longer1 the writer is now to appear in his own person2 and the respect he owes to the public makes him think it fit to bespeak their acceptance of these volumes in another manner1 than he supposed would be readily permitted to him1 under his assumed character4 ,i4 ,in an age1 like this1 when most men seem ambitious of turning writers1 many persons may think it strange that the kind of composition1 which was chiefly in use among the masters of this numerous and stirring family1 hath been hitherto neglected4 ,when the ,,ancients had any thing-- 8,but what10 it will be said1 8always the ,ancients8 ,and are we never to take a pen in hand1 but the first question must still be1 what our masters1 the ancients1 have been pleased to dictate to us8 ,,one man understands1 that the ancient ,ode was distinguished into several parts1 called by ,i know not what strange names2 and then truly an ,english ,ode must be tricked out in the same fantastic manner4 ,,another has heard of a wise1 yet merry1 company called a ,chorus1 which was always singing or preaching in the ,greek ,tragedies2 and then1 besure1 nothing will serve but we must be sung and preached to in ours4 ,while a ,,third is smitten with a tedious long-winded thing1 which was once endured under the name of ,dialogue2 and strait we have ,dialogues of this formal cut1 and are told withal1 that no man may presume to write them1 on any other model40 ,thus the modern critic1 with much complacency and even gayety--,but ,i resume the sentence ,i set out with1 and observe1 8,,when ,,the ,,ancients had any thing to say to the world on the subject either of morals or government1 they generally chose the way of ,,dialogue1 for the conveyance of their instructions2 as supposing they might chance to gain a readier acceptance in this agreeable form1 than any other40 ,hc adeo penitus cur videre sagaci ,otia qui studiis lti tenuere decoris1 ,inque ,,academia umbrifer nitidoque ,,lyceo ,fuderunt claras fcundi pectoris artes4 ,such was the address1 or fancy at least1 of the wise ,,ancients4 ,the ,,moderns1 on the contrary1 have appeared to reverence themselves1 or their cause1 too much1 to think that either stood in need of this oblique management4 ,no writer has the least doubt of being favourably received in all companies1 let him come upon us in what shape he will3 and1 not to stand upon ceremony1 when he brings so welcome a present1 as what he calls ,truth1 with him1 he obtrudes it upon us in the direct way of ,dissertation4 ,nobody1 ,i suppose1 objects to this practice1 when important truths indeed are to be taught1 and when the abilities of the ,teacher are such as may command respect4 ,but the case is different1 when writers presume to try their hands upon us1 without these advantages4 ,nay1 and even with them1 it can do no hurt1 when the subject is proper for familiar discourse1 to throw it into this gracious and popular form4 ,i have said1 where the subject is proper for familiar discourse2 for all subjects1 ,i think1 cannot1 or should not be treated in this way4 ,it is true1 the inquisitive genius of the ,academic ,philosophy gave great scope to the freedom of debate4 ,hence the origin of the ,greek ,dialogue3 of which1 if ,,plato was not the ,inventor1 he was1 at least1 the ,model4 ,this sceptical humour was presently much increased2 and every thing was now disputed1 not for ,,plato',s reason 7which was1 also1 his master's7 for the sake of exposing ,falsehood and discovering ,truth2 but because it was pretended that nothing could be certainly affirmed to be either true or false4 ,and1 when afterwards ,,cicero1 our other great master of ,dialogue1 introduced this sort of writing into ,rome1 we know that1 besides his profession of the ,academic ,sect1 now extended and indeed outraged into absolute scepticism1 the very purpose he had in philosophizing1 and the rhetorical uses to which he put his ,philosophy1 would determine him very naturally to the same practice4 ,thus all subjects1 of what nature and importance soever1 were equally discussed in the ancient ,dialogue2 till matters were at length brought to that pass1 that the only end1 proposed by it1 was to shew the writer's dexterity in disputing for1 or against any opinion1 without referring his disputation to any certain use or conclusion at all4 ,such was the character of the ancient1 and especially of the ,ciceronian ,dialogue2 arising out of the genius and principles of those times4 ,but for us to follow our masters in this licence would be1 indeed1 to deserve the objected charge of servile ,imitators2 since the reasons1 that led them into it1 do not subsist in our case4 ,they disputed every thing1 because they believed nothing4 ,we should forbear to dispute some things1 because they are such as both for their sacredness1 and certainty1 no man in his senses affects to disbelieve4 ,at least1 the ,stoic ,,balbus may teach us a decent reserve in one instance1 ,since1 as he observes1 it is a wicked and impious custom to dispute against the ,being1 ,attributes1 and ,providence of ,god1 whether it be under an assumed character1 or in one's own#a4 ,thus much ,i have thought fit to say1 to prevent mistakes1 and to shew of what kind the subjects are which may be allowed to enter into modern ,dialogue4 ,they are only such1 as are either1 in the strict sense of the word1 not important1 and yet afford an ingenuous pleasure in the discussion of them2 or not so important as to exclude the sceptical inconclusive air1 which the decorum of polite dialogue necessarily demands4 ,and1 under these restrictions1 we may treat a number of curious and useful subjects1 in this form4 ,the benefit will be that which the ,ancients certainly found in this practice1 and which the great master of life finds in the general way of candour and politeness1 --parcentis viribus1 atque ,extenuantis eas consult-- ,for1 though ,truth be not formally delivered in ,dialogue1 it may be insinuated2 and a capable writer will find means to do this so effectually as1 in discussing both sides of a question1 to engage the reader insensibly on that side1 where the ,truth lies4 ,,ii4 ,but convenience is not the only consideration4 ,the ,,novelty of the thing1 itself1 may well recommend it to us4 ,for1 when every other species of composition has been tried1 and men are grown so fastidious as to receive with indifference the best modern productions1 on account of the too common form1 into which they are cast1 it may seem an attempt of some merit to revive the only one1 almost1 of the ancient models1 which hath not yet been made cheap by vulgar imitation4 ,i can imagine the reader will conceive some surprise1 and1 if he be not a candid one1 will perhaps express some disdain1 at this pretence to ,novelty1 in cultivating the ,dialogue-form4 ,for what1 he will say1 has been more frequently aimed at in our own1 and every modern language8 ,has not every art1 nay1 every science1 been taught in this way8 ,and1 if the vulgar use of any mode of writing be enough to discredit it1 can there be room even for wit and genius to retrieve the honour of this trite and hackneyed form8 ,this1 no doubt1 may be said2 but by those who know little of the ancient ,dialogue1 or who have not attended to the true manner in which the rules of good writing require it to be composed4 ,we have what are called ,dialogues in abundance2 and the authors1 for any thing ,i know1 might please themselves with imagining1 they had copied ,,plato or ,,cicero4 ,but in our language at least 7and1 if ,i extended the observation to the other modern ones of most estimation1 ,i should perhaps do them no wrong7 ,i know of nothing in the way of ,dialogue that deserves to be considered by us with such regard4 ,there are in ,english ,,three ,dialogues1 and but ,three1 that are fit to be mentioned on this occasion3 all of them excellently well composed in their way1 and1 it must be owned1 by the very best and politest of our writers4 ,and had that way been a true one1 ,i mean that which antiquity and good criticism recommend to us1 the ,public had never been troubled with this attempt from me1 to introduce another4 ,the ,dialogues ,i mean are1 ,the ,moralists of ,lord ,,shaftesbury2 ,mr4 ,,addison',s ,treatise on ,medals2 and the ,minute ,philosopher of ,bishop ,,berkeley3 and1 where is the modesty1 it will be said1 to attempt the ,dialogue-form1 if it has not succeeded in such hands8 ,the answer is short1 and1 ,i hope1 not arrogant4 ,these applauded persons suffered themselves to be misled by modern practice2 and with every ability to excel in this nice and difficult composition1 have written beneath themselves1 only because they did not keep up to the ancient standard4 ,an essential defect runs through them all4 ,they have taken for their speakers1 not real1 but fictitious characters2 contrary to the practice of the old writers2 and to the infinite disadvantage of this mode of writing in every respect4 ,the love of truth1 they say1 is so natural to the human mind1 that we expect to find the appearance of it1 even in our amusements4 ,in some indeed1 the slenderest shadow of it will suffice3 in others1 we require to have the substance presented to us4 ,in all cases1 the degree of probability is to be estimated from the nature of the work4 ,thus1 for instance1 when a writer undertakes to instruct or entertain us in the way of ,dialogue1 he obliges himself to keep up to the idea1 at least1 of what he professes4 ,the conversation may not have really been such as is represented2 but we expect it to have all the forms of reality4 ,we bring with us a disposition to be deceived 7for we know his purpose is not to recite historically1 but to feign probably72 but it looks like too great an insult on our understandings1 when the writer stands upon no ceremony with us1 and refuses to be at the expence of a little art or management to deceive us4 ,hence the probabilities1 or1 what is called the decorum1 of this composition4 ,we ask1 8,who the persons are1 that are going to converse before us80 8where and when the conversation passed80 and 8by what means the company came together80 ,if we are let into none of these particulars1 or1 rather if a way be not found to satisfy us in all of them1 we take no interest in what remains2 and give the speakers1 who in this case are but a sort of ,puppets1 no more credit1 than the opinion we chance to entertain of their ,prompter demands from us4 ,on the other hand1 when such persons are brought into the scene as are well known to us1 and are entitled to our respect1 and but so much address employed in shewing them as may give us a colourable pretence to suppose them really conversing together1 the writer himself disappears1 and is even among the first to fall into his own delusion4 ,for thus ,,cicero himself represents the matter3 8,this way of discourse10 says he1 8which turns on the authority of real persons1 and those the most eminent of former times1 is1 ,i know not how1 more interesting than any other3 in so much that in reading my own ,dialogue on old age1 ,i am sometimes ready to conclude1 in good earnest1 it is not ,i1 but ,,cato himself1 who is there speaking#b40 ,so complete a deception1 as this1 requires the hand of a master4 ,but such ,,cicero was2 and had it been his design to make the highest encomium of his own ,dialogues1 he could not1 perhaps1 have done it so well by any other circumstance4 ,but now this advantage is wholly lost by the introduction of fictitious persons4 ,these may do in ,comedy2 nay1 they do the best there1 where character only1 or chiefly1 is designed4 ,in ,dialogue1 we must have real persons1 and those only3 for character here is but a secondary consideration2 and there is no other way of giving weight and authority to the conversation of the piece4 ,and here1 again1 ,,cicero may instruct us2 who was so scrupulous on this head that he would not put his discourse on old age into the mouth of ,,tithonus1 although a ,greek writer of name had set him the example1 because1 as he observes1 a fabulous person would have had no great authority#c4 ,what then would he have said of merely fancied and ideal persons1 who have not so much as that shadowy existence1 which the plausibility of a current tale bestows8 ,when ,i say that character is but a secondary consideration in ,dialogue1 the reader sees ,i confine myself to that species only1 which was in use among the ancients1 properly so called2 and of which ,,plato and ,,cicero have left us the best models4 ,it is true1 in later times1 a great wit took upon him to extend the province of ,dialogue1 and1 like another ,prometheus#d1 7as1 by an equivocal sort of compliment1 it seems1 was observed of him7 created a new species2 the merit of which consists in associating two things1 not naturally allied together1 ,the severity of ,philosophic ,dialogue1 with the humour of the ,comic4 ,but as unnatural as the alliance may seem1 this sort of composition has had its admirers4 ,in particular1 ,,erasmus was so taken with ,,lucian',s ,dialogue1 that he has transfused its highest graces into his own2 and employed those fine arms to better purpose against the ,monks1 than the forger of them had done1 against the ,philosophers4 ,it must further be confessed1 that this innovation of the ,greek writer had some countenance from the genius of the old ,socratic ,dialogue2 such ,i mean as it was in the hands of ,,socrates himself#e2 who took his name of ,,ironist from the continued humour and ridicule which runs through his moral discourses4 ,but1 besides that the ,athenian's modest ,,irony was of another taste1 and better suited to this decorum of conversation1 than the ,syrian's frontless buffoonery1 there was this further difference in the two cases4 ,,socrates employed this method of ridicule1 as the only one by which he could hope to discredit those mortal foes of reason1 the ,,sophists3 ,,lucian1 in mere wantonness1 to insult its best friends1 the ,,philosophers1 and even the parent of ,philosophy1 himself4 ,the ,sage would have dropped his ,,irony1 in the company of the good and wise3 ,the ,rhetorician is never more pleased than in confounding both1 by his intemperate ,,satire4 ,however1 there was likeness enough in the features of each manner1 to favour ,,lucian',s attempt in compounding his new ,dialogue4 ,he was not displeased1 one may suppose1 to turn the comic art of ,,socrates against himself2 though he could not but know that the ablest masters of the ,socratic school employed it sparingly2 and that1 when the illustrious ,roman came to philosophize in the way of ,dialogue1 he disdained to make any use of it at all4 ,in a word1 as it was taken up1 to serve an occasion1 so it was very properly laid aside with it4 ,and even while the occasion lasted1 this humorous manner was far enough1 as ,i observed1 from being pushed to a ,scenic license2 the great artists in this way knowing very well1 that1 when ,,socrates brought ,philosophy from ,heaven to ,earth1 it was not his purpose to expose her on the stage1 but to introduce her into good company4 ,and here1 to note it by the way1 what has been observed of the ,ironic manner of the ,socratic ,dialogue1 is equally true of its subtle questioning dialectic genius4 ,this1 too1 had its rise from the circumstances of the time1 and the views of its author1 who employed it with much propriety and even elegance to entrap1 in their own cobweb nets1 the minute1 quibbling captious sophists4 ,how it chanced that this part of its character did not1 also1 cease with its use1 but was continued by the successors in that school1 and even carried so far as to provoke the ridicule of the wits1 till1 at length1 it brought on the just disgrace of the ,socratic ,dialogue itself1 all this is the proper subject of another inquiry4 ,our concern1 at present1 is with ,,lucian',s ,dialogue2 whether he were indeed the inventor of this species1 or1 after ,,socrates1 only the espouser of it4 ,the account1 given above1 that it unites and incorporates the several virtues of the ,comic and ,philosophic manner1 is in ,,lucian',s own words#f4 ,yet his ,dialogue does not1 as indeed it could not1 correspond exactly to this idea4 ,,cicero thought it no easy matter to unite ,philosophy with ,politeness and ,good-humour#g2 what then would he have said of incorporating ,philosophy1 with ,comic ,ridicule8 ,to do him justice1 ,,lucian himself appears sensible enough of the difficulty4 ,i have presumed1 says he1 to connect and put together two things1 not very obsequious to my design1 nor disposed by any natural sympathy to bear the society of each other#h4 ,and therefore we find him on all occasions more solicitous for the success of this hazardous enterprise1 than for the credit of his invention4 ,every body was ready to acknowledge the novelty of the thing2 but he had some reason to doubt with himself1 whether it were gazed at as a monster1 or admired as a just and reasonable form of composition4 ,so that not being able to resolve this scruple to his satisfaction1 he extricates himself1 as usual1 from the perplexity1 by the force of his comic humour1 and concludes at length1 that he had nothing left for it but to persevere in the choice he had once made2 that is1 to preserve the credit of his own consistency at least1 if he could not prevail to have his ,dialogue accepted by the judicious reader1 under the idea#i of a consistent composition4 ,the ingenious writer had1 surely1 no better way to take1 in his distress4 ,for the two excellencies he meant to incorporate in his ,dialogue cannot1 in a supreme degree of each1 subsist together4 ,the one must be sacrificed to the other4 ,either the philosophic part must give place to the dramatic2 or the dramatic must withdraw1 or restrain itself at least1 to give room for a just display of the philosophic4 ,and this1 in fact1 as ,i observed1 is the case in ,,lucian',s own ,dialogues4 ,they are highly dramatic1 in which part his force lay2 while his ,philosophy serves only to edge his wit1 or simply to introduce it4 ,they have1 usually1 for their subject1 not a ,,question ,,debated2 but1 a ,,tenet ,,ridiculed1 or a ,,character ,,exposed4 ,in this view1 they are doubtless inimitable3 ,i mean when he kept himself1 as too frequently he did not1 to such tenets or characters1 as deserve to be treated in this free manner4 ,but after all1 the other species1 the serious1 philosophic ,dialogue1 is the noblest and the best4 ,it is the noblest1 in all views2 for the dignity of its subject1 the gravity of its manner1 and the importance of its end4 ,it is the best1 too2 ,i mean1 it excels most in the very truth and art of composition2 as it governs itself entirely by the rules of decorum1 and gives a just and faithful image of what it would represent3 whereas the comic ,dialogue1 distorting1 or1 at least1 aggravating the features of its original1 pleases at some expence of probability2 and at length attains its end but in part1 for want of dramatic action1 the only medium through which humour can be perfectly conveyed4 ,thus the serious ,dialogue is absolute in itself2 and fully obtains its purpose3 the humorous or characteristic1 but partially2 and is1 at best1 the faint copy of a higher species1 the ,comic ,drama4 ,however1 the authority of ,,lucian is so great1 and the manner itself so taking1 that for these reasons1 but chiefly for the sake of variety1 the ,,first of the following ,dialogues 7and in part too1 the ,,second7 pretends to be of this class4 ,but to return to our proper subject1 ,,the ,,serious ,,or ,,philosophic ,,dialogue4 #a4 ,i observed 7and the reason now appears7 that character is a subordinate consideration1 in this ,dialogue4 ,the manners are to be given indeed1 but sparingly1 and1 as it were1 by accident4 ,and this grace 7which so much embellishes a well-composed work7 can only be had by employing ,,real1 ,,known1 and ,,respected speakers4 ,each of these circumstances1 in the choice of a speaker1 is important4 ,the first1 excites our curiosity3 the second1 affords an easy opportunity of painting the manners by those slight and careless strokes1 which alone can be employed for this purpose1 and which would not sufficiently mark the characters of unknown or fictitious persons3 and the last gives weight and dignity to the whole composition4 ,by this means1 the dialogue becomes1 in a high degree1 natural1 and1 on that account1 affecting3 a thousand fine and delicate allusions to the principles1 sentiments1 and history of the ,dialogists keep their characters perpetually in view3 we have a rule before us1 by which to estimate the pertinence and propriety of what is said3 and we are pleased to bear a part1 as it were1 in the conversation of such persons4 ,thus the old writers of ,dialogue charm us1 even when their subjects are unpleasing1 and could hardly merit our attention3 but when the topics are of general and intimate concern to the reader1 by being discussed in this form1 they create in him the keenest appetite2 and are1 perhaps1 read with a higher pleasure1 than we receive from most other compositions of literary men4 #b4 ,it being now apprehended what persons are most fit to be shewn in ,dialogue1 the next inquiry will be1 concerning their style or manner of expression4 ,and this1 in general1 must be suited to the condition and qualities of the persons themselves3 that is1 it must be grave1 polite1 and something raised above the ordinary pitch or tone of conversation2 for1 otherwise1 it would not agree to the ideas we form of the speakers1 or to the regard we owe to real1 known1 and respected persons1 seriously debating1 as the philosophic dialogue imports in the very terms1 on some useful or important subject4 ,thus far the case is plain enough4 ,the conclusion flows1 of itself1 from the very idea of a philosophic conversation between such men4 ,but as it appeared that the speaker's proper manners are to be given1 in this ,dialogue1 it may be thought 7and1 ,i suppose1 commonly is thought7 that the speaker's proper style or expression should be given1 too4 ,here the subject begins to be a little nice2 and we must distinguish between the general cast of expression1 and its smaller and more peculiar features4 ,as to the general cast or manner of speaking1 it may be well to preserve some resemblance of it2 for it results so immediately from the speaker's character1 and sometimes makes so essential a part of it1 that the manners themselves cannot1 otherwise1 be sufficiently expressed4 ,accordingly ,,cicero tells us1 that1 in his ,dialogues of the complete ,orator1 he had endeavoured to shadow out1 that is1 give the outline1 as it were1 of the kind of eloquence1 by which his chief speakers1 ,,crassus and ,,antonius1 were severally distinguished#aj4 ,this attention has certainly no ill effect when the manners of speaking1 as here1 are sufficiently distinct1 and generally known4 ,it was1 besides1 essentially necessary in this ,dialogue1 where the subject is1 of eloquence itself2 and where the principal persons appeared1 and were accordingly to be represented1 in the light and character of speakers2 that is1 where their different kinds or manners of speaking were1 of course1 to be expressed4 ,in ,dialogues on other subjects1 ,,cicero himself either neglects this rule1 or observes it with less care#aa2 and this difference of conduct is plainly justified1 from the reason of the thing4 ,but now when the question is1 of the smaller features and more peculiar qualities of style or expression1 it will be found that the writer of ,dialogue is under no obligation1 either from the reason of the thing1 or the best authorities1 to affect a resemblance of that kind4 ,authorities1 ,i think1 there are none1 or none at least that deserve to be much regarded2 though ,i remember what has been observed of an instance or two of this sort1 in some of ,,plato',s ,dialogues1 where his purpose is1 to expose a character1 not to debate a philosophic question3 and for the impropriety of the thing itself1 it may appear from the following considerations4 ,in general1 the reason1 why character is preserved in this ,dialogue1 is1 because such speakers1 as are introduced in it1 cannot be supposed to converse for any time on a subject of importance without discovering somethings of their own peculiar manners2 though the occasion may not be warming enough to throw them out with that distinctness and vivacity1 which we expect in the progress of a dramatic plot4 ,but as to the language of conversation1 it is so much the same between persons of education and politeness1 that1 whether the subject be interesting1 or otherwise1 all that you can expect is that the general cast of expression will be somewhat tinctured by the manners1 which shine through it2 but by no means that the smaller differences1 the nicer peculiarities of style1 will be shewn4 ,or1 we may take the matter thus3 ,the reason1 why the general cast or kind of expression is different in two speakers1 is1 because their characters are different1 too4 ,but character has no manner of influence1 in the ease and freedom of conversation1 on the idiomatic differences of expression2 which flow not from the manners1 but from some degree of study and affectation1 and only characterize their written and artificial works4 ,thus1 for instance1 if ,,sallust and ,,cicero had come together in conversation1 the former would certainly have dropped his new words and pointed sentences3 and the latter his numerous oratorial periods4 ,all that might be expected to appear1 is1 that ,,sallust',s expression would be shorter and more compact2 ,,cicero',s more gracious and flowing1 agreeably to the characters of the two men4 ,but there is a further reason why these characteristic peculiarities of style must not be exhibited1 or must be infinitely restrained at least1 in the sort of composition we are now considering4 ,it is1 that the studied imitation of such peculiarities would be what we call mimickry2 and would therefore border upon ridicule1 the thing of all others which the genius of this ,dialogue most abhors4 ,in ,comedy itself1 the most exact writers do not condescend to this minute imitation4 ,,terence',s characters all express themselves1 ,i think1 with equal elegance3 even his slaves are made to speak as good ,latin1 as their masters4 ,in the serious ,dialogue1 then1 which1 from its nature1 is1 in a much lower degree1 mimetic1 that minute attention can by no means be required4 ,it will be sufficient that the speakers express themselves in the same manner1 that is1 7provided the general cast of expression be suited to their respective characters7 in the writer's own4 ,if there be any exception from this rule1 it must be1 when the peculiarities of expression are so great1 and so notorious1 that the reader could hardly acknowledge the speaker in any other dress1 than that of his own style4 ,hence it is possible1 though ,,cicero has left us no example of this sort1 that if1 in the next age1 any one had thought fit to introduce ,m,,cenas into ,dialogue1 he might perhaps have been allowed to colour his language with some of those spruce turns and negligent affectations1 by which1 as a writer1 he was so well known4 ,it is1 at least1 on this principle that the ,author of the following ,dialogues must rest his apology for having taken such liberty1 in one or two instances1 only3 in which1 however1 he has confined his imitation to the single purpose of exhibiting some degree of likeness to their acknowledged manner of expression1 without attempting to expose it in any strong or invidious light4 ,and1 after all1 if even this liberty1 so cautiously taken1 be thought too much1 he will not complain of his critics2 since the fault1 if it be one1 was committed rather in compliance with what he supposed might be the public judgment1 than with his own4 ,the reader has now before him a sketch of what ,i conceive to be the character of the ancient philosophic ,dialogue2 which1 in one word1 may be said to be1 8,an imitated1 and mannered conversation between certain real1 known1 and respected persons1 on some useful or serious subject1 in an elegant1 and suitably adorned1 but not characteristic style40 ,at least1 ,i express1 as ,i can1 my notion of ,,cicero',s ,dialogue1 which unites these several characters2 and1 by such union1 has effected1 as it seems to me1 all that the nature of this composition requires or admits4 ,this1 ,i am sensible1 is saying but little1 on the subject4 ,but ,i pretend not to do justice to ,,cicero',s ,,dialogues2 which are occasionally set off by that lively1 yet chaste colouring of the manners1 and are1 besides1 all over sprinkled with that exquisite grace of1 what the ,latin writers call1 urbanity1 7by which1 they meant as well what was most polite in the air of conversation1 as in the language of it7 that there is nothing equal to them1 in ,antiquity itself3 and ,i have sometimes fancied1 that even ,,livy',s ,dialogues#ab1 if they had come down to us1 would perhaps have lost something1 on a comparison with these master-pieces of ,,cicero',s pen4 #c4 ,but to this apology for the ancient ,dialogue1 ,i suspect it will be replied1 8,that though1 in the hands of the ,greek and ,latin writers1 it might1 heretofore1 have all this grace and merit1 yet who shall pretend to revive it in our days8 or1 how shall we enter into the spirit of this composition1 for which there is no encouragement1 nor so much as the countenance of example in real life8 ,no man writes well1 but from his own experience and observation3 and by whom is the way of dialogue now practised8 or1 where do we find such precedents of grave and continued conversation in modern times80 ,a very competent judge1 and one too1 who was himself1 as ,i have observed1 an adventurer in this class of composition1 puts the objection home in the following words3 8,the truth is10 says he1 8it would be an abominable falsehood1 and belying of the age1 to put so much good sense together in any one conversation1 as might make it hold out steadily1 and with plain coherence1 for an hour's time1 till any one subject had been rationally examined#ac40 ,nor is this the only difficulty4 ,another occurs1 from the prevailing manners of modern times1 which are over-run with respect1 compliment1 and ceremony4 8,now put compliments10 says the same writer1 8put ceremony into a ,dialogue1 and see what will be the effect6 ,this is the plain dilemma against that ancient manner of writing--if we avoid ceremony1 we are unnatural3 if we use it1 and appear as we naturally are1 as we salute1 and meet1 and treat one another1 we hate the sight#ad40 ,these considerations are to the purpose2 and shew perhaps in a mortifying manner1 that the modern writers of ,dialogue1 the very best of them1 cannot aspire to the unrivalled elegance of the ancient2 as being wholly unfurnished of many advantages1 to this end1 which they enjoyed4 ,but still the form of writing itself is neither impracticable1 nor unnatural3 and there are certain means1 by which the disadvantages1 complained of1 may be lessened at least1 if not entirely removed4 ,to begin with the ,,last4 ,it is very true1 that the constraint of a formal and studied civility is foreign to the genius of this sort of composition2 and it is1 also1 as true1 that somewhat of this constrained civility is scarce separable from a just copy and faithful picture of conversation in our days4 ,the reason of which is to be gathered from the nature of our policies and governments4 ,for conversation1 ,i mean the serious and manly sort1 as well as eloquence1 is most cultivated and thrives best amidst the quality of conditions in republican and popular states4 ,and1 though this inconvenience be less perceived by us of this free country than by most others1 yet something of it will remain wherever monarchy1 with its consequent train of subordinate and dependent ranks of men1 subsists4 ,now the proper remedy in the case is1 to bring such men only together in ,dialogue as are of the same rank2 or at least to class our speakers with such care as that any great inequality in that respect may be compensated by some other2 such as the superiority of age1 wisdom1 talents1 or the like4 ,a ,chancellor of ,england and a ,country ,justice1 or even a ,lord and his ,chaplain1 could hardly be shewn in ,dialogue1 without incurring some ridicule4 ,but a ,judge and a ,bishop1 one would hope1 might be safely brought together2 and if a great ,philosopher should enter into debate with a lettered ,man of ,quality1 the indecorum would not be so violent as to be much resented4 ,but the influence of modern manners reaches even to names and the ordinary forms of address4 ,in the ,greek and ,roman ,dialogues1 it was permitted to accost the greatest persons by their obvious and familiar appellations4 ,,alcibiades had no more addition1 than ,,socrates3 and ,,brutus and ,c,,sar lost nothing of their dignity from being applied to in those direct terms4 ,the moderns1 on the contrary1 have their guards and fences about them2 and we hold it an incivility to approach them without some decent periphrasis1 or ceremonial title-- ----gaudent prnomine molles ,auricul4 ,it was principally1 ,i believe1 for this reason1 that modern writers of ,dialogue have had recourse to fictitious names and characters1 rather than venture on the use of real ones3 the former absolving them from this cumbersome ceremony1 which1 in the case of the latter1 could not so properly be laid aside4 ,,pal,,mon and ,,philander1 for instance1 are not only well-sounding words2 but slide as easily into a sentence1 and as gracefully too1 as ,,cicero and ,,atticus3 while the ,mr's and the ,sirs1 nay his ,grace1 his ,excellency1 or his ,honour#ae1 of modern ,dialogue1 have not only a formality that hurts the ease of conversation1 but a harshness too1 which is somewhat offensive to a well-tuned ,attic or ,roman ear4 ,all this will be allowed2 and yet1 to speak plainly and with that freedom which ancient manners indulge1 the barbarity of these forms is not worse than the pedantry of taking such disgust at them4 ,and there are ways1 too1 by which the most offensive circumstances in this account may be so far qualified as to be almost overlooked1 or at least endured4 ,what these are1 the capable and intelligent reader or writer is not to be told2 and none but such would easily apprehend4 ,to come then to the ,,other objection of ,lord ,,shaftesbury1 which is more considerable4 ,it would be a manifest falsehood1 he thinks1 and directly against the truth both of art and nature1 to engage the moderns in a grave discourse of any length4 ,and it is true1 the great men of our time do not1 like the ,senators of ancient ,rome1 spend whole days in learned debate and formal disputation3 yet their meetings1 especially in private parties1 with their friends1 are not so wholly frivolous1 but that they sometimes discourse seriously1 and even pursue a subject of learning or business1 not with coherence only1 but with some care4 ,and will not this be ground enough for a capable writer to go upon1 in reviving the way of ,dialogue between such men8 ,but1 to give the most probable air to his fiction1 he may find it necessary to recede from the strict imitation of his originals1 in one instance4 ,it may be advisable not to take for his speakers1 living persons2 ,i mean1 persons1 however respectable1 of his own age4 ,we may fancy of the dead1 what we cannot so readily believe of the living4 ,and thus1 by endeavouring a little to deceive ourselves1 we may come to think that natural1 which is not wholly incredible2 and may admit the writer's invention for a picture1 though a studied and flattering one1 it may be1 of real life4 ,in short1 it may be a good rule in modern ,dialogue1 as it was in ancient ,tragedy1 to take our subjects1 and choose our persons1 out of former times4 ,and1 under the prejudice of that opinion which is readily entertained of such subjects and characters1 an artist may contrive to pass that upon us for ,fact1 which was only ingenious ,fiction2 and so wind up his piece to the perfection of ancient ,dialogue1 without departing too widely from the decorum and truth of conversation in modern life4 ,such at least is the ,,idea1 which the ,author of these ,dialogues has formed to himself of the manner in which this exquisite sort of composition may be attempted by more successful writers4 ,for to conceive an excellence1 and to copy it1 he understands and laments1 are very different things4 ,,thurcaston4 ,,mdcclxiv4 ,,moral ,,and ,,political ,,dialogues4 ,,dialogue ,i4 ,,on ,,sincerity ,,in ,,the ,,commerce ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,,between ,,dr4 ,,henry ,,more1 ,,and ,,edmund ,,waller1 ,,esq4 ,,dialogue ,i4 ,,on ,,sincerity ,,in ,,the ,,commerce ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,,dr4 ,,henry ,,more1 ,,edmund ,,waller1 ,,esq4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,enough1 enough1 my friend1 on the good old chapter of ,sincerity and ,honour4 ,your rhetoric1 and not your reasoning1 is too much for me4 ,believe it1 your fine stoical lessons must all give way to a little common sense1 ,i mean1 to a prudent accommodation of ourselves to times and circumstances2 which1 whether you will dignify it with the name of philosophy1 or no1 is the only method of living with credit in the world1 and even with safety4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,accommodation is1 no doubt1 a good word to stand in the place of insincerity4 ,but1 pray1 in which of the great moral masters have you picked up this term1 and1 much more1 the virtuous practice1 it so well expresses8 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,i learnt it from the great master of life1 ,,experience3 ,a doctor1 little heard of in the schools1 but of more authority with men of sense1 than all the solemn talkers of the porch1 or cloister1 put together4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,after much reserve1 ,i confess1 you begin to express yourself very clearly4 ,but1 good ,sir1 not to take up your conclusion too hastily1 have the patience to hear-- ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,have ,i not1 then1 heard1 and sure with patience enough1 your studied harangues on this subject8 ,you have discoursed it1 ,i must own1 very plausibly4 ,but the impression1 which fine words make1 is one thing1 and the conviction of reason1 another4 ,and1 not to waste more time in fruitless altercation1 let ,,me1 if you please1 read you a lecture of morals3 not out of ancient books1 or the visions of an unpractised philosophy1 but from the schools of business and real life4 ,such a view of things will discredit these high nations1 and may serve1 for the future1 to amend and rectify all your systems4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,commend me to a man of the world1 for a rectifier of moral systems6--,yet1 if it were only for the pleasure of being let into the secrets of this new doctrine of ,accommodation1 ,i am content to become a patient hearer1 in my turn2 and the rather1 as the day1 which you see1 wears apace1 will hardly give leave for interruption1 or indeed afford you time enough for the full display of your wit on this extraordinary subject4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,we have day enough before us1 for the business in hand4 ',tis true1 this wood-land walk has not the charms1 which you lately bestowed on a certain philosophical garden#af4 ,but the heavens are as clear1 and the air1 that blows upon us1 as fresh1 as in that fine evening which drew your friends abroad1 and engaged them in a longer debate1 than that with which ,i am now likely to detain you4 ,for1 indeed1 ,i have only to lay before you the result of my own experience and observation4 ,all my arguments are plain facts1 which are soon told1 and about which there can be no dispute4 ,you shall judge for yourself1 how far they will authorize the conclusion ,i mean to draw from them4 ,the point1 ,i am bold enough to maintain against you philosophers1 is1 briefly1 this2 8,that sincerity1 or a scrupulous regard to truth in all our conversation and behaviour1 how specious soever it may be in theory1 is a thing impossible in practice2 that there is no living in the world on these terms2 and that a man of business must either quit the scene1 or learn to temper the strictness of your discipline with some reasonable accommodations4 ,it is exactly the dilemma of the poet1 ,vivere si recte nescis1 discede peritis2 of all which ,i presume1 as ,i said1 to offer my own experience1 as the shortest and most convincing demonstration40 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,the subject1 ,i confess1 is fairly delivered1 and nothing can be juster than this appeal to experience1 provided you do not attempt to delude yourself or me by throwing false colours upon it4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,it will be your business to remonstrate against these arts1 if you discover any such4 ,my intention is to proceed in the way of a direct and simple recital4 8,i was born1 as you know1 of a good family1 and to the inheritance of this paternal seat#ag1 with the easy fortune that belongs to it4 ,to this1 ,i succeeded but too soon by the untimely loss of an excellent father4 ,his death1 however1 did not deprive me of those advantages which are thought to arise from a strict and virtuous education4 ,this care devolved on my mother1 a woman of great prudence1 who provided for my instruction in letters and every other accomplishment4 ,i was1 of myself1 enough inclined to books1 and was supposed to have some parts which deserved cultivation4 ,i was accordingly trained in the study of those writings1 which are the admiration of men of elegant minds and refined morals4 ,i was a tolerable master of the languages1 in which they are composed2 and1 ,i may venture to say1 was at least imbued with their notions and principles1 if ,i was not able at that time to catch the spirit of their composition3 all which was confirmed in me1 by the constant attendance and admonitions of the best tutors1 and the strict discipline of your colleges4 ,i mention these things to shew you1 that ,i was not turned loose into the world1 as your complaint of men of business generally is1 unprincipled and uninstructed2 and that what austere men might afterwards take for some degree of libertinism in my conduct1 is not to be charged on the want of a sober or even learned education40 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,i understand you mean to take no advantage of that plea1 if what follows be not answerable to so high expectations4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,the season was now come1 when my rank and fortune1 together with the solicitations of my friends1 drew me forth1 though reluctantly1 from the college into the world4 ,i was then1 indeed1 under twenty2 but so practised in the best things1 and so enamoured of the moral lessons which had been taught me1 that ,i carried with me into the last parliament of king ,james1 not the showy accomplishments of learning only1 but the high enthusiasm of a warm and active virtue4 ,yet the vanity1 it may be1 of a young man1 distinguished by some advantages1 and conscious enough of them1 was1 for a time1 the leading principle with me4 ,in this disposition1 it may be supposed1 ,i could not be long without desiring an introduction to the court4 ,it was not a school of that virtue ,i had been used to1 yet had some persons in it of eminent worth and honour4 ,a vein of poetry1 which seemed to flow naturally from me1 was that by which ,i seemed most ambitious to recommend myself#ah4 ,and occasions quickly offered for that purpose4 ,but this was a play of ingenuity in which the heart had no share4 ,i made complimentary verses on the great lords and ladies of the court1 with as much simplicity and as little meaning as my bows in the drawing room1 and thought it a fine thing to be taken notice of1 as a wit1 in the fashionable circles4 ,in the mean time1 the corruptions of a loose disorderly court gave me great scandal4 ,and the abject flatteries1 ,i observed in some of the highest stations and gravest characters1 filled me with indignation4 ,as an instance of this1 ,i can never forget the resentment1 that fired my young breast at the conversation you have often heard me say ,i was present at1 betwixt the old king1 and two of his court prelates#ai4 ,and if the prudent and witty turn1 the venerable bishop of ,winchester gave to the discourse1 had not atoned1 in some measure1 for the rank offensive servility of the other1 it had been enough to determine me1 forthwith1 to an implacable hatred of kings and courts for ever4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,it must be owned the provocation was very gross1 and the offence taken at it no more than a symptom of a generous and manly virtue4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,it left a deep impression on my mind2 yet it did not hinder me from appearing at court in the first years of the following reign1 when the vanity of a thoughtless muse1 rather than any relaxation of my ancient manners1 drew from me1 again1 some occasional panegyrics on greatness2 which being presented in verse1 ,i thought would hardly be suspected of flattery4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,this indulgence of a thoughtless muse 7as you call it7 was not without its danger4 ,i am afraid this must pass for the first instance of your sacrificing to ,,insincerity4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,your fears are too hasty4 ,this was still a trial of my wit3 and after a few wanton circles1 as it were to breathe and exercise my muse1 ,i drew her in from these amusements to a stricter manage and more severe discipline4 ,the long interval of parliaments now followed2 and in this suspension of business ,i applied myself to every virtuous pursuit that could be likely to improve my mind1 or purify my morals4 ,believe me1 ,i cannot to this day1 without pleasure1 reflect on the golden hours1 ,i passed in the society of such accomplished men as ,,falkland1 ,,hyde1 and ,,chillingworth4 ,and1 for my more retired amusements at this place1 you will judge of the good account ,i might render of these1 when ,i add1 they were constantly shared with that great prelate1 who now1 with so much dignity1 fills the throne of ,winchester#bj4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,this enthusiasm of your's is catching1 and raises in me an incredible impatience to come at the triumphs of a virtue1 trained and perfected in her best school1 the conversations of heroes and sages4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,you shall hear4 ,the jealousies1 that had alarmed the nation for twelve years1 were now to have a vent given them1 by the call of the parliament in ,april #afdj4 ,as the occasion1 on which it met1 was in the highest degree interesting1 the assembly itself was the most august1 that perhaps had ever deliberated on public councils4 ,there was a glow of honour1 of liberty1 and of virtue in all hearts1 in all faces3 and yet this fire was tempered with so composed a wisdom1 and so sedate a courage1 that it seemed a synod of heroes2 and1 as some would then say of us1 could only be matched by a senate of old ,rome in its age of highest glory4 ,to this parliament ,i had the honour to be deputed1 whither ,i went with high-erected thoughts1 and a heart panting for glory and the true service of my country4 ,the dissolution1 which so unhappily followed1 served only to increase this ardour4 ,so that1 on our next meeting in ,november1 ,i went freely and warmly into the measures of those1 who were supposed to mean the best4 ,i voted1 ,i spoke1 ,i impeached#ba4 ,in a word1 ,i gave a free scope to those generous thoughts and purposes which had been collecting in me for so many years1 and was in the foremost rank of those1 whose pulse beat highest for liberty1 and who were most active for the interest of the public4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,this was indeed a triumph1 the very memory of which warms you to this moment4 ,so bright a flame was not easily extinguished4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,it continued for some time in all its vigour4 ,high as my notions were of public liberty1 they did not transport me1 with that zeal which prevailed on so many others1 to act against the just prerogative of the crown1 and the ancient constitution4 ,i owe it to the conversation and influence of the excellent society1 before-mentioned1 that neither the spirit1 the sense1 nor1 what is more1 the relationship and intimate acquaintance of ,mr4 ,,hampden#bb1 could ever bias me to his deeper designs1 or any irreverence to the unhappy king's person4 ,many things concurred to preserve me in this due mean4 ,the violent tendencies of many councils on the parliament's side2 many gracious and important compliances on the king's2 the great examples of some who had most authority with good men2 and1 lastly1 my own temper1 which1 in its highest fervours1 always inclined to moderation2 these and other circumstances kept me from the excesses1 on either hand1 which so few were able to avoid in that scene of public confusion4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,this moderation carries with it all the marks of a real and confirmed virtue4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,i rather expected you would have considered it as another sacrifice to ,insincerity4 ,such1 ,i remember1 was the language of many at that time4 ,the enthusiasts on both sides agreed to stigmatize this temper with the name of ,neutrality4 ,yet this treatment did not prevent me1 when the war broke out1 from taking a course1 which ,i easily foresaw1 would tend to increase such suspicions2 for now1 to open a fresh scene to you1 ,i had assumed1 if not new principles1 yet new notions of the manner in which good policy required me to exert my old ones4 ,the general virtue1 or what had the appearance of it at least1 had hitherto made plain-dealing an easy and convenient conduct4 ,but things were now changed4 ,the minds of all men were on fire3 deep designs were laid1 and no practice stuck at that might be proper to advance the execution of them4 ,in this situation of affairs1 what could simple honesty do1 but defeat the purpose and endanger the safety of its master8 ,i now1 first1 began to reflect that this was a virtue for other times3 at least1 that not to qualify it1 in some sort1 was1 at such a juncture1 not honesty1 but imprudence3 and when ,i had once fallen into this train of thinking1 it is wonderful how many things occurred to me to justify and recommend it4 ,the humour of acting always on one principle was1 ,i said to myself1 like that of sailing with one wind3 whereas the expert mariner wins his way by plying in all directions1 as occasions serve1 and making the best of all weathers4 ,then ,i considered with myself the bad policy1 in such a conjuncture1 of ,,cato and ,,brutus1 and easily approved in my own mind the more pliant and conciliating method of ,,cicero4 ,those stoics1 thought ,i1 ruined themselves and their cause by a too obstinate adherence to their system4 ,the liberal and more enlarged conduct of the academic1 who took advantage of all winds that blew in that time of civil dissension1 had a chance at least for doing his country better service4 ,observation1 as well as books1 furnish me with these reflections4 ,i perceived with what difficulty the ,lord ,,falkland',s rigid principles had suffered him to accept an office of the greatest consequence to the public safety#bc3 and ,i understood to what an extreme his scruples had carried him in the discharge of it#bd4 ,this1 concluded ,i1 can never be the office of virtue in such a world1 and in such a period4 ,and then that of the poet1 so skilled in the knowledge of life1 occurred to me1 --aut virtus nomen inane est1 ,aut decus et pretium recte petit ,,experiens vir2 that is1 as ,i explained it1 8,the man of a ready and dexterous turn in affairs2 one who knows how to take advantage of all circumstances1 and is not restrained1 by his bigotry1 from varying his conduct1 as occasions serve1 and making1 as it were1 experiments in business40 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,you poets1 ,i suppose1 have an exclusive right to explain one another2 or these words might seem to bear a more natural interpretation4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,you will understand from this account1 which ,i have opened so particularly to you1 on what reasons ,i was induced to alter my plan1 or rather to pursue it with those arts of prudence and address1 which the turn of the times had now rendered necessary4 ,the conclusion was1 ,i resolved to pursue steadily the king's1 which at the same time was manifestly the nation's interest1 and yet to keep fair with the parliament1 and the managers on that side2 for this appeared the likeliest way of doing him real service4 ,and yet some officious scruples1 which forced themselves upon me at first1 had like to have fixed me in other measures4 ,in the stream of those who chose to desert the houses rather than share in the violent counsels that prevailed in them1 the general disgust had also carried me to withdraw myself4 ,but this start of zeal was soon over4 ,i presently saw1 and found means to satisfy the king1 that it would be more for his service that ,i should return to the parliament4 ,i therefore resumed my seat1 and took leave 7to say the truth1 it was not denied me by the house1 who had their own ends to serve by this indulgence#be7 to reason and debate in all points with great freedom4 ,at the same time my affections to the common interest were not suspected2 for1 having no connexion with the court1 nobody thought of charging me with private views2 and not forgetting1 besides1 to cultivate a good understanding with the persons of chief credit in the house1 the plainness ,i used could only be taken for what it was1 an honest and parliamentary liberty4 ,this situation was1 for a time1 very favourable to me3 for the king's friends regarded me as the champion of their cause2 whilst the prudence of my carriage towards the leading members secured me1 in a good degree1 from their jealousy4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,your policy1 ,i observe1 had now taken a more refined turn4 ,the juncture of affairs might possibly justify this address3 but the ground you stood upon was slippery2 and ,i own myself alarmed at what may be the consequence of this solicitous pursuit of popularity4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,no exception1 ,i think1 can be fairly taken at the methods by which ,i pursued it4 ,however1 this popularity it was1 as you rightly divine1 which drew upon me all the mischiefs that followed4 ,for the application of all men1 disposed to the king's service1 was now made to me4 ,i had an opportunity1 by this means1 of knowing the characters and views of particular persons1 and of getting an insight into the true state of the king's affairs4 ,and these advantages1 in the end1 drove me on the project1 which1 on the discovery1 came to be called my ,plot3 an event1 which1 with all its particulars1 you understand too well to need any information from me about it4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,the story1 as it was noised abroad1 ,i am no stranger to3 but this being one of those occasions1 as they say1 in which both your policy and virtue were put to the sharpest trial1 it would be much to the purpose you have in view by this recital1 to favour me with your own account of it4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,to lead you through all particulars1 would not suit with the brevity you require of me4 ,but something ,i will say to obviate the misconceptions you may possibly have entertained of this business#bf4 ,for the plot itself1 the utmost of my design was only to form such a combination among the honest and well-affected of all sorts1 as might have weight enough to incline the houses to a peace1 and prevent the miseries that were too certainly to be apprehended from a civil war4 ,it was never in my thoughts to surprize the parliament or city by force1 or engage the army in the support and execution of my purpose4 ,but my design in this affair1 though the fury of my enemies1 and the fatal jealousy of the time1 would not suffer it to be rightly understood1 is not that which my friends resented1 and which most men were disposed to blame in me4 ,it was my behaviour afterwards1 and the obliquity of some means which ,i found expedient to my own safety1 that exposed me to so rude a storm of censure4 ,it continues1 ,i know1 to beat upon me even at this distance4 ,but the injustice hath arisen from the force of vulgar prejudices1 and from the want of entering into those enlarged principles1 on which it was necessary for me to proceed in that juncture4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,yet the ill success of this plot itself might have shewn you1 what the design of acting on these enlarged principles was likely to come to4 ,it was an unlucky experiment1 this1 you had made in the new arts of living2 and should have been a warning to you1 not to proceed in a path which1 at the very entrance of it1 had involved you in such difficulties4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,no1 it was not the new path1 you object to me1 but the good old road of ,sincerity1 which misled me into those brambles4 ,i1 in the simplicity of my heart1 thought it my duty to adhere to the injured king's cause1 and believed my continuance in parliament the fairest1 as well as the likeliest method1 that could be taken to support it4 ,had ,i temporized so far as either to desert my prince1 and strike in with the parliament1 or1 on the other hand1 had left the house and gone with the seceders to ,oxford1 either way ,i had been secure4 ,but resolving1 as ,i did1 to hold my principles1 and follow my judgment1 ,i fell into those unhappy circumstances1 from which all the dexterity ,i afterwards assumed was little enough to deliver me4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,but if your intentions were so pure1 and the methods1 by which you resolved to prosecute them1 so blameless1 how happened it that any plot could be worked up of so much danger to your life and person8 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,this was the very thing ,i was going to explain to you4 ,my intentions towards the parliament were fair and honourable3 as ,i retained my seat there1 ,i could not allow myself in the use of any but parliamentary methods to promote the cause ,i had undertaken4 ,and this1 as ,i said1 was the whole purpose of the combination1 which was made the pretence to ruin me3 for my unhappy project of a reconciliation was so inextricably confounded with another of more dangerous tendency1 the commission of array1 sent at that time from ,oxford1 that nothing1 ,i presently saw1 could possibly disentangle so perplexed a business1 or defeat the malice of my enemies1 if ,i attempted1 in the more direct way1 to stand on my defence4 ,presumptions1 if not proofs1 they had in abundance3 the consternation of all men was great2 their rage1 unrelenting2 and the general enthusiasm of the time1 outrageous4 ,consider all this1 and see what chance there was for escaping their injustice1 if ,i had restrained myself to the sole use of those means1 which you men of the cloister magnify so much1 under ,i know not what names of ,sincerity and ,honour4 ,and1 indeed1 this late experience1 of what was to be expected from the way of plain dealing1 had determined me1 henceforth1 to take a different route2 and1 since ,i had drawn these mischiefs on myself by ,sincerity1 to try what a little management could do towards bringing me out of them4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,it was not1 ,i perceive1 without cause1 that the subtlety you had begun to have recourse to1 filled me with apprehensions4 ,sincerity and ,honour1 ,mr4 ,,waller1 are plain things1 and hold no acquaintance with this ingenious casuistry4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,what1 not in such a situation8 ,it should seem then1 as if you moralists conceived a man owed nothing to himself3 that self-preservation was not what ,god and ,nature have made it1 the first and most binding of all laws3 that a man's family1 not to say his country1 have no interest in the life of an innocent and deserving citizen2 and1 in one word1 that prudence is but an empty name1 though you give it a place among your cardinal virtues4 ,all this must be concluded before you reject1 as unlawful1 the means ,i was forced upon1 at this season1 for my defence3 means1 ,i presume to say1 so sagely contrived1 and1 as my very enemies will own1 executed so happily1 that ,i cannot to this day reflect on my conduct in that affair without satisfaction4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,yet it had some consequences which a man of your generosity would a little startle at4-- ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,i understand you3 my friends--,but ,i shall answer that objection in its place4 ,let me at present go on with the particulars of my defence4 ,the occasion1 as you see1 was distressful to the last degree4 ,to deny or defend myself from the charge was a thing impossible4 ,what remained then but to confess it1 and in so frank and ample a manner1 as might bespeak the pity or engage the protection of my accusers8 ,i resolved to say nothing but the truth2 and1 if ever the whole truth may be spoken1 it is when so alarming an occasion calls for it4 ,besides1 what had others1 who might be affected by the discovery1 to complain of8 ,i disclaimed no part of the guilt myself3 nor could any confession be made1 that did not first and chiefly affect me4 ,and if ,i1 who was principal in the contrivance1 had the best chance for escaping by such confession1 what had they1 who were only accomplices1 to apprehend from it8 ,add to this1 that the number and credit of the persons1 who were charged with having a share in the design1 were1 of all others1 the likeliest considerations to prevail with the houses to drop the further prosecution of it4 ,well1 the discovery had great effects4 ,but there was no stopping here4 ,penitence1 as well as confession1 is expected from a sinner4 ,i had to do with hypocrites of the worst sort4 ,what fairer weapons1 then1 than hypocrisy and dissimulation8 ,i counterfeited the strongest remorse1 and with a life and spirit that disposed all men to believe1 and most to pity me4 ,my trial was put off in very compassion to my disorder2 which1 in appearance1 was so great1 that some suspected my understanding had been affected by it4 ,in this contrivance ,i had two views2 to gain time for my defence1 and to keep it off till the fury of my prosecutors was abated4 ,in this interval1 indeed1 some of my accomplices suffered4 ,but how was it possible for me to apprehend that1 when1 if any1 ,i myself might expect to have fallen the first victim of their resentment8 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,if this apology satisfy yourself1 ,i need not interrupt your story with any exceptions4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,it was1 in truth1 the only thing which afflicted me in the course of this whole business4 ,but time and reflection have reconciled me to what was1 in some sense1 occasioned1 but certainly not intended1 by me4 ,and it would be a strange morality that should charge a man with the undesigned consequences of his own actions4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,and were all the symptoms of a disturbed mind1 you made a shew of1 then entirely counterfeit8 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,as certainly as those of the ,roman ,,brutus1 who1 to tell you the truth1 was my example on that occasion4 ,it was the business of both of us to elude the malice of our enemies1 and reserve ourselves for the future service of our respective countries4 ,but all ,i have told you was only a prelude to a further1 and still more necessary1 act of dissimulation4 ,had the house been left to itself1 it might possibly have absolved me1 on the merits of so large a confession1 and so lively a repentance4 ,but ,i had to do with another class of men1 with holy inquisitors of sordid minds1 and sour spirits2 priestly reformers1 whose sense was noise1 and religion fanaticism1 and that too fermented with the leven of earthly avarice and ambition4 ,these had great influence both within doors and without1 and would regard what had hitherto passed as nothing1 if ,i went not much further4 ,to these1 having begun in so good a train1 ,i was now to address myself4 ,i had studied their humours1 and understood to a tittle the arts that were most proper to gain them4 ,the first step to the countenance and good liking of these restorers of primitive parity was1 ,i well knew1 the most implicit subjection both of will and understanding4 ,i magnified their gifts1 ,i revered their sanctity4 ,i debased myself with all imaginable humility3 ,i extolled them with the grossest flattery4 ,having thus succeeded to my wish in drawing the principal of these saints around me1 ,i advanced further3 ,i sought their instruction1 solicited their advice1 and importuned their ghostly consolation4 ,this brought me into high favour2 they regarded me as one1 who wished and deserved to be enlightened3 they strove which should impart most of their lights and revelations to me4 ,i besought them to expound1 and pray1 and preach before me3 nay1 ,i even preached1 and prayed1 and expounded before them4 ,i out-canted the best-gifted of them2 and out-railed the bitterest of all their decriers of an anti-christian prelacy4 ,in short1 it would have moved your laughter or your indignation to observe1 how submissively ,i demeaned myself to these spiritual fathers2 how ,i hung on their words1 echoed their coarse sayings1 and mimicked their beggarly tones and grimaces4 ,to complete the farce1 ,i intreated their acceptance of such returns for their godly instructions1 as fortune had enabled me to make them4 ,i prevailed with them to give leave that so unworthy a person might be the instrument of conveying earthly accommodations to these dispensers of heavenly treasures2 and it surpasses all belief1 with what an avidity they devoured them6 ,it is true1 this last was a serious consideration3 in all other respects1 the whole was a perfect comedy2 and of so ridiculous a cast1 that1 though my situation gave me power of face to carry it off gravely then1 ,i have never reflected on it since without laughter4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,truly1 as you describe it1 it was no serious scene4 ,but what ,i admire most1 is the dexterity of your genius1 and the prodigious progress you had now made in your favourite arts of accommodation4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,necessity is the best master4 ,besides1 can you blame me for taking more than common pains to outdo these miscreants in their own way2 ,i might say1 to excel in an art which surpasses1 or at least comprises in it the essence of all true wisdom8 ,the precept of your admired ,,antoninus1 as you reminded me to-day1 is ,,simplify ,,yourself#bg4 ,that1 ,i think1 was the quaint expression4 ,it had shewn his reach and mastery in the trade he professed1 much more1 if instead of it1 he had preached up1 ,,accommodate ,,yourself2 the grand secret1 as long experience has taught me1 bene beateque vivendi4 ,all matters thus prepared1 there was now no hazard in playing my last game4 ,i requested and obtained leave to make my defence before the parliament4 ,i had acquired a knack in speaking2 and had drawn on myself more credit1 than fine words deserve1 by a scenical and specious eloquence4 ,if ever ,i acquitted myself to my wish1 it was on this occasion4 ,i soothed1 ,i flattered1 ,i alarmed3 every topic of art which my youth had learned1 every subject of address which experience had suggested1 every trick and artifice of popular adulation1 was exhausted4 ,all men were prepared by the practices of my saintly emissaries to hear me with favour2 and1 which is the first and last advantage of a speaker1 to believe me seriously and conscientiously affected4 ,in the end ,i triumphed2 and for a moderate fine obtained leave to shelter myself from the following storm1 which almost desolated this unhappy country1 by retiring into an exile1 at that time more desirable than any employment of those ,i left behind me4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,you retired1 ,i think1 to ,france1 whither1 no doubt1 you carried with you all those generous thoughts and consolatory reflexions1 which refresh the spirit of a good man under a consciousness of suffering virtue4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,why not1 if prudence be a virtue8 for what1 but certain prudential regards 7which in common language and common sense are quite another thing from vicious compliances7 have hitherto1 as you have seen1 appeared in my conduct8 ,but be they what they will1 they had a very natural effect1 and one which will always attend on so reasonable a way of proceeding4 ,for1 since you press me so much1 ,i shall take leave to suggest an observation to you1 more obvious as well as more candid than any you seem inclined to make on the circumstances of this long relation4 ,it is1 8that the pretended penitence for my past life1 and the readiness ,i shewed to acquiesce in the false accounts which the parliament gave of my plot1 saved my life1 and procured my liberty2 whilst the real and true discoveries ,i made to gain credit to both1 hurt my reputation40 ,but such a reflexion might have shocked your system too much4 ,for it shews that all the benefit1 ,i drew to myself in this affair1 arose from those prudential maxims you condemn2 and that all the injury1 ,i suffered1 was owing to the sincerity ,i still mixed with them4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,seriously1 ,sir---- ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,i can guess what you would say3 but you promised to hear me out1 without interruption4 ,what remains ,i shall dispatch in few words1 having so fully vindicated the most obnoxious part of my life1 and opened the general principles1 ,i acted upon1 so clearly4 ,i went1 as you said1 to ,france2 where1 instead of the churlish humour of a malcontent1 or the unmanly dejection of a disgraced exile1 ,i appeared with an ease and gaiety of mind1 which made me welcome to the greatest men of that country4 ,the ruling principle of my philosophy was1 to make the best of every situation4 ,and1 as my fortune enabled me to do it1 ,i lived with hospitality1 and even splendour2 and indulged myself in all the delights of an enlarged and elegant conversation4 ,such were my amusements for some years2 during which time1 however1 ,i preserved the notions of loyalty1 which had occasioned my disgrace1 and waited some happier turn of affairs1 that might restore me with honour to my country4 ,but when all hopes of this sort were at an end1 and the government1 after the various revolutions which are well known1 seemed fixed and established in the person of one man1 it was not allegiance1 but obstinacy1 to hold out any longer4 ,i easily succeeded in my application to be recalled1 and was even admitted to a share in the confidence of the ,,protector4 ,this great man was not without a sensibility of true glory2 and1 for that reason1 was even ambitious of the honour1 which wit and genius are ever ready to confer on illustrious greatness4 ,every muse of that time distinguished1 and was distinguished by1 him4 ,mine had improved her voice and accent in a foreign country3 and what nobler occasion to try her happiest strain than this1 of immortalizing a ,hero8 8,illustrious acts high raptures do infuse1 ,and ev'ry conqueror creates a muse20 as ,i then said in a panegyric1 which my gratitude prompted me to present to him#bh4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,this panegyric1 presented in verse1 could hardly1 ,i suppose1 be suspected of flattery6 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,i expected this2 but the occasion1 as ,i said1 might have suggested a fairer interpretation4 ,and why impute as a fault to me1 what the reverend ,,sprat1 as well as ,,dryden1 did not disdain to countenance by their examples8 ,besides1 as an argument of the unsullied purity of intention1 you might remember1 methinks1 that ,i asked no recompence1 and accepted none1 for the willing honours my muse paid him4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,it must be a sordid muse indeed1 that submits to a venal prostitution4 ,and1 to do your profession justice1 it is not so much avarice1 or even ambition1 as a certain gentler passion1 the vanity1 shall ,i call it8 of being well with the great1 that is fatal to you poets4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,i can allow for the satire of this reproof1 in a man of ancient and bookish manners4 ,but1 to shew my disinterestedness still more1 you may recollect1 if you please1 that ,i embalmed his memory1 when neither his favour nor his smile were to be apprehended4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,in the short reign of his son4--,but what then8 you made amends for all1 by the congratulation on the happy return of his present majesty4 ,you know who it was that somebody complimented in these lines3 8,he best can turn1 enforce and soften things1 ,to praise great conquerors1 and flatter kings40 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,was it for me to stem the torrent of a nation's joys by a froward and unseasonable silence8 ,did not ,,horace1 who fought at ,philippi1 do as much for ,,augustus8 ,and should ,i1 who had suffered for his cause1 not embrace the goodness1 and salute the returning fortunes1 of so gracious1 so accomplished a master8 ,his majesty himself1 as ,i truly say of him1 in the poem you object to me1 8with wisdom fraught1 ,not such as books1 but such as practice1 taught10 did me the justice to understand my address after another manner4 ,he1 who had so often been forced by the necessities of his affairs to make compliances with the time1 never resented it from me1 a private man and a poet1 that ,i had made some sacrifices of a like nature4 ,all this might convince you of the great truth ,i meant to inculcate by this long recital1 that not a sullen and inflexible ,sincerity1 but a fair and seasonable accommodation of one's self1 to the various exigencies of the times1 is the golden virtue that ought to predominate in a man of life and business4 ,all the rest1 believe me1 is the very cant of philosophy and unexperienced wisdom4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,wisdom--and must the sanctity of that name-- ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,hear me1 ,sir--no exclamations against the evidence of plain fact4 ,i have a right to expect another conduct from him1 who is grown grey in the studies of moral science4 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,you learned another lesson in the school of ,,falkland1 ,,hyde1 and ,,chillingworth4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,yes1 one ,i was obliged to unlearn4 ,but1 since you remind me of that school1 what was the effect of adhering pertinaciously to its false maxims8 ,to what purpose were the lives of two of them prodigally thrown away2 and the honour1 the wisdom1 the talents of the other1 still left to languish in banishment#bi and obscurity8 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,o6 prophane not the glories of immortal1 though successless virtue1 with such reproaches4--,those adored names shall preach honour to future ages1 and enthrone the majesty of virtue in the hearts of men1 when wit and parts1 and eloquence and poetry1 have not a leaf of all their withered bays to recommend them4 ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,raptures and chimeras6----,rather judge of the sentiments of future ages1 from the present4 ,where is the man1 7,i speak it without boasting17 that enjoys a fairer fame2 who is better received in all places2 who is more listened to in all companies2 who reaps the fruits of a reasonable and practicable virtue in every return of honour1 more unquestionably1 than he whose life and principles your outrageous virtue leads you to undervalue so unworthily8 ,and take it from me as an oracle1 which long age and experience enable me to deliver with all assurance1 8,whoever1 in succeeding times1 shall form himself on the plan here given shall meet with the safety1 credit1 applause1 and1 if he chuses1 honour and fortune in the world1 which may be promised indeed1 but never will be obtained1 by any other method40 ,,dr4 ,,more4 ,you have spoken4 ,but hear me now1 ,i conjure you1 whilst a poor despised philosopher-- ,,mr4 ,,waller4 ,o6 ,i have marked the emotion this discourse of mine hath awakened in you4 ,i have seen your impatience3 ,i have watched your eyes when they sparkled defiance and contradiction to my argument4 ,but your warmth makes you forget yourself4 ,i gave a patient hearing to all your eloquence could suggest in this cause4 ,i even favoured your zeal1 and helped to blow up your enthusiasm4 ,the rest fell to my turn2 and besides1 the evening1 as you see1 shuts in upon us4 ,let us escape1 at least1 from its dews1 which1 in this decline of the year1 they say1 are not the most wholesome1 into a warm apartment within doors2 and then ,i shall not be averse1 especially when you have taken a few minutes to recollect yourself1 to debate with you what further remains upon this argument#cj4 ,,dialogue ,,ii4 ,,on ,,retirement4 ,,between ,,mr4 ,,abraham ,,cowley1 ,,and ,,the ,,rev4 ,,mr4 ,,thomas ,,sprat4 ,,dialogue ,,ii4 ,,on ,,retirement4 ,,mr4 ,,abraham ,,cowley--,,the ,,rev4 ,,mr4 ,,sprat4 ,,to ,,the ,,earl ,,of ,,st4 ,,albans#ca4 ,,my ,,lord1 ,the duty ,i owe your ,,lordship1 as well as my friendship for ,mr4 ,,cowley1 determined me to lose no time in executing the commission you was pleased to charge me with by ,mr4 ,d9999994 ,i went early the next morning to ,barn ,elms#cb2 intending to pass the whole day with him1 and to try if what ,i might be able to suggest on the occasion1 together with the weight of your lordship's advice1 could not divert him from his strange project of ,retirement4 ,your lordship1 no doubt1 as all his other friends1 had observed his bias that way to be very strong2 but who1 that knew his great sense1 could have thought of it its carrying him to so extravagant a resolution8 ,for my own part1 ,i suspected it so little1 that1 though he would often talk of retiring1 and especially since your lordship's favour to him#cc1 ,i considered it only as the usual language of poets1 which they take up one after another1 and love to indulge in1 as what they suppose becomes their family and profession4 ,it could never come into my thoughts1 that one1 who knew the world so well as ,mr4 ,,cowley1 and had lived so long in it1 who had so fair hopes and so noble a patron1 could seriously think of quitting the scene at his years1 and all for so fantastic a purpose as that of growing old in the corner of a country village4 ,these1 my lord1 were my sentiments1 when your friendly message alarmed me with the apprehension of there being more in the matter than ,i had suspected4 ,yet still ,i considered it only as a hasty thought1 which a fit of the spleen1 or of the muse it may be1 had raised2 and which the free remonstrance of a friend would easily disperse1 or prevent at least from coming to any fixed and settled resolution4 ,but how shall ,i express to your lordship the surprise ,i was in1 to find that this resolution was not only taken1 but rooted so deeply in him1 that no arguments1 nor even your lordship's authority1 could shake it8 ,i have ever admired ,mr4 ,,cowley1 as a man of the happiest temper and truest judgment2 but1 to say the least1 there was something so particular1 ,i had almost said perverse1 in what he had to allege for himself on this occasion1 that ,i cannot think ,i acquit myself to your lordship1 without laying before you the whole of this extraordinary conversation2 and1 as far as my recollection will serve1 in the very words in which it passed betwixt us4 ,i went1 as ,i told your lordship1 pretty early to ,barn ,elms2 but my friend had gotten the start of me by some hours4 ,he was busying himself with some improvements of his garden1 and the fields that lie about his house4 ,the whole circuit of his domain was not so large1 but that ,i presently came up with him4 8,my dear friend10 said he1 embracing me1 but with a look of some reserve and disgust1 8and is it you then ,i have the happiness to see1 at length1 in my new settlement8 ,though ,i fled hither from the rest of the world1 ,i had no design to get out of the reach of my friends4 ,and1 to be plain with you1 ,i took it a little amiss from one whose entire affection ,i had reckoned upon1 that he should leave me to myself for these two whole months1 without discovering an inclination1 either from friendship or curiosity1 to know how this retirement agreed with me4 ,what could induce my best friend to use me so unkindly80 ,surely1 said ,i1 you forget the suddenness of your flight1 and the secresy with which the resolution was taken4 ,we supposed you gone only for a few days1 to see to the management of your affairs2 and could not dream of your rusticating thus long1 at a time when the town and court are so busy2 when the occasions of your friends and your own interests seemed to require your speedy return to us4 ,however1 continued ,i1 it doth not displease me to find you so dissatisfied with this solitude4 ,it looks as if the short experience1 you have had of this recluse life1 did not recommend it to you in the manner you expected4 ,retirement is a fine thing in imagination1 and is apt to possess you poets with strange visions4 ,but the charm is rarely lasting2 and a short trial1 ,i find1 hath served to correct these fancies4 ,you feel yourself born for society and the world1 and1 by your kind complaints of your friend1 confess how unnatural it is to deny yourself the proper delights of a man1 the delights of conversation4 ,not so fast1 interrupted he1 if you please1 in your conclusions about the nature of retirement4 ,i never meant to give up my right in the affections of those few ,i call my friends4 ,but what has this to do with the general purpose of retreating from the anxieties of business1 the intrigues of policy1 or the impertinencies of conversation8 ,i have lived but too long in a ceaseless round of these follies4 ,the best part of my time hath been spent sub dio4 ,i have served in all weathers1 and in all climates1 but chiefly in the torrid zone of politics1 where the passions of all men are on fire1 and where such as have lived the longest1 and are thought the happiest1 are scarcely able to reconcile themselves to the sultry air of the place4 ,but this warfare is now happily at an end4 ,i have languished these many years for the shade4 ,thanks to my ,lord ,,st4 ,,albans1 and another noble lord you know of1 ,i have now gained it4 ,and it is not a small matter1 ,i assure you1 shall force me out of this shelter4 ,nothing is easier1 said ,i1 than for you men of wit to throw a ridicule upon any thing4 ,it is but applying a quaint figure1 or a well-turned sentence1 and the business is done4 ,but indeed1 my best friend1 it gives me pain to find you not so much diverting as deceiving yourself with this unseasonable ingenuity4 ,so long as these sallies of fancy were employed only to enliven conversation1 or furnish matter for an ode or an epigram1 all was very well4 ,but now that you seem disposed to act upon them1 you must excuse me if ,i take the matter a little more seriously4 ,to deal plainly with you1 ,i come to tell you my whole mind on this subject3 and1 to give what ,i have to say the greater consequence with you1 ,i must not conceal from you1 that ,i come commissioned by the excellent lord you honour so much1 and have just now mentioned1 to expostulate in the freest manner with you upon it4 ,we had continued walking all this time1 and were now ascending a sort of natural terras4 ,it led to a small thicket1 in the entrance of which was a seat that commanded a pleasant view of the country and the river4 ,taking me up to it1 8,well10 said he1 8my good friend1 since your purpose in coming hither is so kind1 and my ,lord ,,st4 ,,albans himself doth me the honour to think my private concerns deserving his particular notice1 it becomes me to receive your message with respect1 and to debate the matter1 since you press it so home upon me1 with all possible calmness4 ,but let us1 if you please1 sit down here4 ,you will find it the most agreeable spot ,i have to treat you with2 and the shade we have about us will not1 ,i suppose1 at this hour1 be unwelcome40 ,and now1 turning himself to me1 8,let me hear from you1 what there is in my retreat to this place1 which a wise man can have reason to censure1 or which may deserve the disallowance of a friend4 ,i know you come prepared with every argument which men of the world have at any time employed against retirement2 and ,i know your ability to give to each its full force4 ,but look upon this scene before you1 and tell me what inducements ,i can possibly have to quit it for any thing you can promise me in exchange8 ,is there in that vast labyrinth1 you call the world1 where so many thousands lose themselves in endless wanderings and perplexities1 any corner where the mind can recollect itself so perfectly1 where it can attend to its own business1 and pursue its proper interests so conveniently1 as in this quiet and sequestered spot8 ,here the passions subside2 or1 if they continue to agitate1 do not however transport the mind with those feverish and vexatious fervours1 which distract us in public life4 ,this is the seat of virtue and of reason2 here ,i can fashion my life by the precepts of duty and conscience2 and here ,i have leisure to make acquaintance1 that acquaintance which elsewhere is so rarely made1 with the ways and works of ,god4 ,think again1 my friend4 ,doth not the genius of the place seize you8 ,do you not perceive a certain serenity steal in upon you8 ,doth not the aspect of things around you1 the very stillness of this retreat1 infuse a content and satisfaction which the world knows nothing of8 ,tell me1 in a word1 is there not something like enchantment about us8 ,do you not find your desires more composed1 your purposes more pure1 your thoughts more elevated1 and more active1 since your entrance into this scene80 ,he was proceeding in this strain1 with an air of perfect enthusiasm1 when ,i broke in upon him with asking1 8,whether this was what he called debating the matter calmly with me4 ,surely10 said ,i1 8this is poetry1 or something still more extravagant4 ,you cannot think ,i come prepared to encounter you in this way4 ,i own myself no match for you at these weapons3 which indeed are too fine for my handling1 and very unsuitable to my purpose if they were not4 ,the point is not which of us can say the handsomest things1 but the truest1 on either side of the question4 ,it is1 as you said1 plain argument1 and not rhetorical flourishes1 much less poetical raptures1 that must decide the matter in debate4 ,not but a great deal might be said on my side1 and1 it may be1 with more colour of truth1 had ,i the command of an eloquence proper to set it off4 ,i might ask1 in my turn1 8,where is mighty charm that draws you to this inglorious solitude1 from the duties of business and conversation1 from the proper end and employment of man8 ,how comes it to pass1 that this stillness of a country landscape1 this uninstructing1 though agreeable enough1 scene of fields and waters1 should have greater beauty in your eye1 than flourishing peopled towns1 the scenes of industry and art1 of public wealth and happiness8 ,is not the sublime countenance of man1 so one of your acquaintance terms it1 a more delightful object than any of these humble beauties that lie before us8 ,and are not the human virtues1 with all their train of lovely and beneficial effects in society1 better worth contemplating1 than the products of inanimate nature in the field or wood8 ,where should we seek for ,,reason1 but in the minds of men tried and polished in the school of civil conversation8 ,and where hath ,,virtue so much as a being out of the offices of social life8 ,look well into yourself1 ,i might say3 hath not indeed the proper genius of solitude affected you6 ,doth not ,i know not what of chagrin and discontent hang about you8 ,is there not a gloom upon your mind1 which darkens your views of human nature1 and damps those chearful thoughts and sprightly purposes1 which friendship and society inspire80 ,you see1 ,sir1 were ,i but disposed1 and as able as you are1 to pursue this way of fancy and declamation1 ,i might conjure up as many frightful forms in these retired walks1 as you have delightful ones4 ,and the enchantment in good hands would1 ,i am persuaded1 have more the appearance of reality4 ,but this is not the way in which ,i take upon myself to contend with you4 ,i would hear1 if you please1 what reasons1 that deserve to be so called1 could determine you to so strange1 and1 forgive me if at present ,i am forced to think it1 so unreasonable a project1 as that of devoting your health and years to this monastic retirement4 ,i would lay before you the arguments1 which1 ,i presume1 should move you to quit a hasty1 perhaps an unweighted1 resolution3 so improper in itself1 so alarming to all your friends1 so injurious to your own interest1 and1 permit me to say1 to the public4 ,i would enforce all this with the mild persuasions of a friend2 and with the wisdom1 the authority of a great person1 to whose opinion you owe a deference1 and who deserves it too from the entire love and affection he bears you40 ,my dearest friend1 replied he1 with an earnestness that awed1 and a goodness that melted me1 ,i am not to learn the affection which either you or my noble friend bear me4 ,i have had too many proofs of it from both1 to suffer me to doubt it4 ,but why will you not allow me to judge of what is proper to constitute my own happiness8 ,and why must ,i be denied the privilege of choosing for myself1 in a matter where the different taste or humour of others makes them so unfit to prescribe to me8 ,yet ,i submit to these unequal terms2 and if ,i cannot justify the choice ,i have made1 even in the way of serious reason and argument1 ,i promise to yield myself to your advice and authority4 ,you have taken me perhaps a little unprepared and unfurnished for this conflict4 ,i have not marshalled my forces in form1 as you seem to have done2 and it may be difficult1 on the sudden1 to methodize my thoughts in the manner you may possibly expect from me4 ,but come1 said he1 ,i will do my best in this emergency4 ,you will excuse the rapture which hurried me at setting out1 beyond the bounds which your severer temper requires4 ,the subject always fires me2 and ,i find it difficult1 in entering on this argument1 to restrain those triumphant sallies1 which had better have been reserved for the close of it4 ,here he paused a little2 and recollecting himself1 8,but first10 resumed he1 8you will take notice1 that ,i am not at all concerned in the general question1 so much1 and1 ,i think1 so vainly agitated1 8whether a life of retirement be preferable to one of action80 ,i am not1 ,i assure you1 for unpeopling our cities1 and sending their industrious and useful inhabitants into woods and cloisters4 ,i acknowledge and admire the improvements of arts1 the conveniencies of society1 the policies of government#cd4 ,i have no thought so mad or so silly1 as that of wishing to see the tribes of mankind disbanded1 their interests and connexions dissolved1 and themselves turned loose into a single and solitary existence4 ,i would not even wish to see our courts deserted of their homagers1 though ,i cannot but be of opinion1 that an airing now and then at their country houses1 and that not with the view of diverting1 but recollecting themselves1 would prove as useful to their sense and virtue1 as to their estates4 ,but all this1 as ,i said1 is so far from coming into the scheme of my serious wishes1 that it does not so much as enter into my thoughts4 ,let wealth1 and power1 and pleasure1 be as eagerly sought after1 as they ever will be3 let thousands or millions assemble in vast towns1 for the sake of pursuing their several ends1 as it may chance1 of profit1 vanity1 or amusement3 ,all this is nothing to me1 who pretend not to determine for other men1 but to vindicate my own choice of this retirement4 ,as much as ,i have been involved in the engagements of business1 ,i have not lived thus long without looking frequently1 and sometimes attentively into myself4 ,i maintain1 then1 that to a person so moulded as ,i am2 of the temper and turn of mind1 which ,nature hath given me2 of the sort of talents1 with which education or genius hath furnished me2 and1 lastly1 of the circumstances1 in which fortune hath placed me2 ,i say1 to a person so charactered and so situated1 ,,retirement is not only his choice1 but his duty2 is not only what his inclination leads him to1 but his judgement4 ,and upon these grounds1 if you will1 ,i venture to undertake my own apology to you40 ,your proposal1 said ,i1 is fair1 and ,i can have no objection to close with you upon these terms2 only you must take care1 my friend1 that you do not mistake or misrepresent your own talents or character2 a miscarriage1 which1 allow me to say1 is not very rare from the partialities which an indulged humour1 too easily taken for nature1 is apt to create in us4 ,or what1 replied he1 if this humour1 as you call it1 be so rooted as to become a second nature8 ,can it1 in the instance before us1 be worth the pains of correcting8 ,i should think so1 returned ,i1 in your case4 ,but let me first hear the judgement you form of yourself1 before ,i trouble you with that which ,i and your other friends make of you4 ,i cannot but think1 resumed he1 that my situation at present must appear very ridiculous4 ,i am forced into an apology for my own conduct1 in a very nice affair1 which it might become another1 rather than myself1 to make for me4 ,in order to this1 ,i am constrained to reveal to you the very secrets1 that is1 the foibles and weaknesses1 of my own heart4 ,i am to lay myself open and naked before you4 ,this would be an unwelcome task to most men4 ,but your friendship1 and the confidence ,i have in your affection1 prevail over all scruples4 ,hitherto your friend hath used the common privilege of wearing a disguise1 of masking himself1 as the poet makes his hero1 in a cloud1 which is of use to keep off the too near and curious inspection both of friends and enemies4 ,but1 at your bidding1 it falls off1 and you are now to see him in his just proportion and true features4 ,my best friend1 proceeded he with an air of earnestness and recollection1 it is now above forty years that ,i have lived in this world3 and in all the rational part of that time there hath not1 ,i believe1 a single day passed without an ardent longing for such a retreat from it1 as you see me at length blessed with4 ,you have heard me repeat some verses1 which were made by me so early as the age of thirteen1 and in which that inclination is expressed as strongly1 as in any thing ,i have ever said or written on that subject#ce4 ,hence you may guess the proper turn and bias of my nature2 which began so soon1 and hath continued thus long1 to shew itself in the constant workings of that passion4 ,even in my earliest years at school1 you will hardly imagine how uneasy constraint of every kind was to me1 and with what delight ,i broke away from the customary sports and pastimes of that age1 to saunter the time away by myself1 or with a companion1 if ,i could meet with any such1 of my own humour4 ,the same inclination pursued me to college2 where a private walk1 with a book or friend1 was beyond any amusement1 which1 in that sprightly season of life1 ,i had any acquaintance with4 ,it is with a fond indulgence my memory even now returns to these past pleasures4 ,it was in those retired ramblings that a thousand charming perceptions and bright ideas would stream in upon me4 ,the ,muse was kindest in those hours3 and1 ,i know not how1 ,philosophy herself would oftner meet me amidst the willows of the ,,cam1 than in the formal schools of science1 within the walls of my college1 or in my tutor's chamber4 ,i understand1 said ,i1 the true secret of that matter4 ,you had now contracted an intimacy with the poets1 and others of the fanciful tribe4 ,you was even admitted of their company2 and it was but fit you should adopt their sentiments1 and speak their language4 ,hence those day-dreams of shade and silence1 and ,i know not what visions1 which transport the minds of young men1 on their entrance into these regions of ,parnassus4 ,it should seem then1 returned he1 by your way of expressing it1 as if you thought this passion for shade and silence was only pretended to on a principle of fashion2 or1 at most1 was catched by the lovers of poetry from each other1 in the way of sympathy1 without nature's having any hand at all in the production of it4 ,something like that1 ,i told him1 was my real sentiment3 and that these agreeable reveries of the old poets had done much hurt by being taken too seriously4 ,were ,,horace and ,,virgil1 think you1 as much in earnest as you appear to be1 when they were crying out perpetually on their favourite theme of otium and secessus1 8they1 who lived and died in a court80 ,i believe1 said he1 they were1 and that the short accounts we have of their lives shew it1 though a perfect dismission from the court was what they could not obtain1 or had not the resolution to insist upon4 ,but pray1 upon your principles1 that all this is but the enchantment of example or fashion1 how came it to pass1 that the first seducers of the family1 the old poets themselves1 had fallen into these notions8 ,they were surely no pretenders4 ,they could only write from the heart4 ,and methinks it were more candid1 as well as more reasonable1 to account for this passion1 which hath so constantly shewn itself in their successors1 from the same reason4 ,it is likely indeed1 and so much ,i can readily allow1 that the early reading of the poets might contribute something to confirm and strengthen my natural bias#cf4 ,but let the matter rest for the present4 ,i would now go on with the detail of my own life and experience1 so proper1 as ,i think1 to convince you that what ,i am pleading for is the result of nature4 ,i was saying how agreeably my youth passed in these reveries1 if you will have it so1 and especially inter sylvas academi3 ,dura sed emovere loco me tempora grato1 ,civilisque rudem belli tulit stus in arma4 ,you know the consequence4 ,this civil turmoil drove me from the shelter of retirement into the heat and bustle of life2 from those studies which1 as you say1 had enchanted my youth1 into business and action of all sorts4 ,i lived in the world3 ,i conversed familiarly with the great4 ,a change like this1 one would suppose1 were enough to undo the prejudices of education4 ,but the very reverse happened4 ,the further ,i engaged1 and the longer ,i continued in this scene1 the greater my impatience was of retiring from it4 ,but you will say1 my old vice was nourished in me by living in the neighbourhood of books and letters#cg4 ,i was yet in the fairy land of the ,muses2 and1 under these circumstances1 it was no wonder that neither arms nor business1 nor a court1 could prevent the mind from returning to its old bias4 ,all this may be true4 ,and yet1 ,i think1 if that court had contained many such persons as some ,i knew in it1 neither the distractions of business on the one hand1 nor the blandishments of the ,muse on the other1 could have disposed me to leave it4 ,but there were few ,,lord ,,falklands--and unhappily my admiration of that nobleman's worth and honour#ch created an invincible aversion to the rest1 who had little resemblance of his virtues4 ,i would not be thought1 said ,i1 to detract from so accomplished a character as that of the ,lord ,,falkland2 but surely there was something in his notions of honour-- ,not a word1 interrupted he eagerly1 that may but seem to throw a shade on a virtue the brightest and purest that hath done honour to these later ages4--,but ,i turn from a subject that interests me too much1 and would lead me too far4 ,whatever attractions there might be in such a place1 and in such friendships1 the iniquity of the times soon forced me from them4 ,yet ,i had the less reason to complain1 as my next removal was into the family of so beneficent a patron as the ,lord ,,jermyn1 and into the court of so accomplished a princess as the ,,queen ,,mother4 ,my residence1 you know1 was now for many years in ,france2 a country1 which piques itself on all the refinements of civility4 ,here the world was to appear to me in its fairest form1 and1 it was not doubted1 would put on all its charms to wean me from the love of a studious retired life4 ,i will not say ,i was disappointed in this expectation4 ,all that the elegance of polished manners could contribute to make society attractive1 was to be found in this new scene4 ,my situation1 besides1 was such1 that ,i came to have a sort of familiarity with greatness4 ,yet shall ,i confess my inmost sentiments of this splendid life to you8 ,i found it empty1 fallacious1 and even disgusting4 ,the outside indeed was fair4 ,but to me1 who had an opportunity of looking it through1 nothing could be more deformed and hateful4 ,all was ambition1 intrigue1 and falsehood4 ,every one intent on his own schemes1 frequently wicked1 always base and selfish4 ,great professions of honour1 of friendship1 and of duty2 but all ending in low views and sordid practices4 ,no truth1 no sincerity3 without which1 conversation is but words2 and the polish of manners1 the idlest foppery4 ,surely1 interposed ,i1 this picture must be overcharged4 ,frailties and imperfections1 no doubt1 there will be in all societies of men1 especially where there is room for competition in their pursuits of honour and interest4 ,but your idea of a court is that of a den of thieves1 only better dressed1 and more civilized4 ,that however1 said he1 is the idea under which truth obliges me to represent it4 ,believe me1 ,i have been long enough acquainted with that country1 to give you a pretty exact account of its inhabitants4 ,their sole business is to follow the humour of the prince1 or of his favourite1 to speak the current language1 to serve the present turn1 and to cozen one another4 ,in short1 their virtue is1 civility2 and their sense1 cunning4 ,you will guess now1 continued he1 how uneasy ,i must be in such company2 ,i1 who cannot lie1 though it were to make a friend1 or ruin an enemy2 who have been taught to bear no respect to any but true wisdom2 and1 whether it be nature or education1 could never endure 7pardon the foolish boast7 that hypocrisy should usurp the honours1 and triumph in the spoils of virtue4 ,nay further1 my good friend1 7for ,i must tell you all ,i know of myself1 though it expose me ever so much to the charge of folly or even vanity7 ,i was not born for courts and general conversation4 ,besides the unconquerable aversion ,i have to knaves and fools 7though these last1 but that they are commonly knaves too1 ,i could bring myself to tolerate72 besides this uncourtly humour1 ,i have another of so odd a kind1 that ,i almost want words to express myself intelligibly to you4 ,it is a sort of capricious delicacy1 which occasions a wide difference in my estimation of those characters1 in which the world makes no distinction4 ,it is not enough to make me converse with ease and pleasure with a man1 that ,i see no notorious vices1 or even observe some considerable virtues in him4 ,his good qualities must have a certain grace1 and even his sense must be of a certain turn1 to give me a relish of his conversation4 ,i see you smile at this talk1 and am aware how fantastic this squeamishness must appear to you4 ,but it is with men and manners1 as with the forms and aspects of natural things4 ,a thousand objects recal ideas1 and excite sensations in my mind1 which seem to be not perceived1 or not heeded1 by other men4 ,the look of a country1 the very shading of a landskip1 shall have a sensible effect on me1 which they1 who have as good eyes1 appear to make no account of4 ,it is just the same with the characters of men4 ,i conceive a disgust at some1 and a secret regard for others1 whom many1 ,i believe1 would estimate just alike4 ,and what is worse1 a long and general conversation hath not been able to cure me of this foible4 ,i question1 said he1 turning himself to me1 but1 if ,i was called upon to assign the reasons of that entire affection1 which knits me to my best friend1 they would be resolved at last into a something1 which they1 who love him perhaps as well1 would have no idea of4 ,he said this in a way that disarmed me1 or ,i had it in my mind to have rallied him on his doctrine of occult qualities and unintelligible forms4 ,i therefore contented myself with saying1 that ,i must not hear him go on at this strange rate2 and asked him if it was possible he could suffer himself to be biassed1 in an affair of this moment1 by such whimsies8 ,those whimsies1 resumed he1 had a real effect4 ,but consider further1 the endless impertinencies of conversation2 the dissipation1 and loss of time2 the diversion of the mind from all that is truly useful or instructive1 from what a reasonable man would or should delight in3 add to these1 the vexations of business2 the slavery of dependence1 the discourtesies of some1 the grosser injuries of others2 the danger1 or the scorn1 to which virtue is continually subject2 in short1 the knavery1 or folly1 or malevolence1 of all around you2 and tell me1 if any thing but the unhappy times1 and a sense of duty1 could have detained a man of my temper and principles so long in a station of life so very uneasy and disgusting to me4 ,nothing is easier1 said ,i1 than to exaggerate the inconveniencies of any situation4 ,the world and the court have doubtless theirs4 ,but you seem to forget one particular2 that the unhappy times you speak of1 and the state of the court1 were an excuse for part of the disagreeable circumstances you have mentioned4 ,the face of things is now altered4 ,the storm is over4 ,a calm has succeeded4 ,and why should not you take the benefit of these halcyon days1 in which so many others have found their ease1 and even enjoyment8 ,these halcyon days1 returned he1 are not1 alas6 what unexperienced men are ready to represent them4 ,the same vices1 the same follies1 prevail still1 and are even multiplied and enflamed by prosperity4 ,a suffering court1 if any1 might be expected to be the seedplot of virtues4 ,but1 to satisfy your scruples1 ,i have even made a trial of these happier times4 ,all ,i wished to myself from the happiest1 was but such a return for my past services1 as might enable me to retire with decency4 ,such a return ,i seem not to have merited4 ,and ,i care not at this time of day to waste more of my precious time in deserving a better treatment4 ,your day1 said ,i1 is not so far spent1 as to require this hasty determination4 ,besides1 if this be all1 the world may be apt to censure your retreat1 as the effect of chagrin and disappointment4 ,his colour rose1 as ,i said this4 ,the world1 resumed he1 will censure as it sees fit4 ,i must have leave at length to judge for myself in what so essentially concerns my own happiness4 ,though if ever chagrin may be pleaded as a reason for retirement1 perhaps nobody had ever a better right than ,i have to plead it4 ,you know what hath happened of late1 to give me a disgust to courts4 ,you know the view ,i had in my late comedy#ci and the grounds ,i had to expect that it would not be ill taken4 ,but you know too the issue of that attempt4 ,and should ,i1 after this experience of courtly gratitude1 go about to solicit their favours8 ,but1 to let you see that ,i am swayed by better motives than those of chagrin1 ,i shall not conceal from you what ,i am proud enough to think of my ,,talents1 as well as temper4 ,there are but two sorts of men1 pursued he1 that should think of living in a court1 however it be that we see animals of all sorts1 clean and unclean1 enter into it4 ,the one is of those strong and active spirits that are formed for business1 whose ambition reconciles them to the bustle of life1 and whose capacity fits them for the discharge of its functions4 ,these1 especially if of noble birth and good fortunes1 are destined to fill the first offices in a state2 and if1 peradventure1 they add virtue to their other parts and qualities1 are the blessings of the age they live in4 ,some few such there have been in former times2 and the present1 it may be1 is not wholly without them4 ,the ,,other sort1 are what one may properly enough call1 if the phrase were not somewhat uncourtly1 the ,,mob ,,of ,,courts2 they1 who have vanity or avarice without ambition1 or ambition without talents4 ,these1 by assiduity1 good luck1 and the help of their vices 7for they would scorn to earn advancement1 if it were to be had1 by any worthy practices71 may in time succeed to the lower posts in a government2 and together make up that showey1 servile1 selfish crowd1 we dignify with the name of ,,court4 ,now1 though ,i think too justly of myself to believe ,i am qualified to enter into the former of these lists1 you may conclude1 if you please1 that ,i am too proud to brigue for an admission into the latter4 ,i pretend not to great abilities of any kind2 but let me presume a little in supposing1 that ,i may have some too good to be thrown away on such company4 ,here1 my lord1 the unusual freedom1 and even indecency1 of ,mr4 ,,cowley',s invective against courts1 transported me so far1 that ,i could not forbear turning upon him with some warmth4 ,surely1 said ,i1 my friend is much changed from what ,i always conceived of him4 ,this heat of language1 from one of your candour1 surprises me equally with the injustice of it4 ,it is so far from calm reasoning1 that it wants but little1 methinks1 of downright railing4 ,i believe1 continued ,i1 that ,i think more highly1 that is1 more justly1 of ,mr4 ,,cowley in every respect1 than he allows himself to do4 ,yet ,i see not that either his time1 or his talents1 would be misemployed in the services he so much undervalues4 ,permit me to say1 your resentment hath carried you too far2 and that you do not enough consider the friends you left at court1 or the noble lord that wishes your return thither4 ,i do1 said he hastily1 consider both4 ,but1 with your leave1 since ,i am forced to defend myself against an ignominious charge1 ,i must do myself the right to assume what ,i think belongs to me4 ,i repeat it2 ,i have long thought my time lost in the poor amusements and vanities of the great world1 and have felt an impatience to get into a quiet scene1 where1 slender as my talents are1 ,i might employ them to better purpose4 ,and think not1 proceeded he1 that ,i am carried to this choice by any thing so frivolous as the idleness of a poetical fancy4 ,not but the ,muse1 which hath been the darling of my youth1 may deserve to be the companion of my riper age4 ,for ,i am far from renouncing an art1 which1 unprofitable as it hath ever been to me1 is always entertaining3 and when employed1 as ,i mean it shall be1 in other services than those by which a voluptuous court seems willing to disgrace it1 ,i see not what there is in this amusement of poetry1 for the severest censor of life and manners to take offence at4 ,yet still ,i intend it for an amusement4 ,my serious occupations will be very different2 such as you1 my friend1 cannot disapprove1 and should encourage4 ,but ,i have opened to you my intentions more than once1 and need not give you the trouble at this time to hear me explain them4 ,you mean1 interposed ,i1 to apply yourself to natural and religious inquiries4 ,your design is commendable2 and ,i would not dissuade you from it4 ,but what should hinder your pursuing this design as well in society as in this solitude8 ,what1 at ,,court1 returned he1 where the only object1 that all men are in quest of1 is ,,gain2 and the only deity they acknowledge1 ,,fortune8 ,or say that such idolatries did not prevail1 there1 how shall the mind be calm enough for so sublime inquiries8 or where1 but in this scene of genuine nature1 is there an opportunity to indulge in them8 ,here1 if any where1 is the observation of the poet verified1 ,,deus ,,est ,,quodcunque ,,vides4 ,look round1 my friend1 on this florid earth1 on the various classes of animals that inhabit1 and the countless vegetable tribes that adorn it4 ,here is the proper school of wisdom1 ,and this our life1 exempt from public haunt1 ,finds tongues in trees1 books in the running brooks1 ,sermons in stones1 and good in every thing#dj4 ,infinite are the uses1 continued he1 which would result from this method of applying experiment and observation to ,natural ,science4 ,i have taken occasion1 you know1 to offer a slight sketch of them to the ,public very lately#da4 ,but the principal ,i would draw from it to myself should be1 to inure the mind to just conceptions of the divine nature2 that so1 with the better advantage1 ,i might turn myself to the awful study of his ,word4 ,and here1 my friend1 ,i am sensible how much ,i may expect to be animated by your zeal1 and enlightened by your instruction4 ,in the mean time1 ,i pretend to possess some qualities1 which1 if rightly applied1 may not be unsuitable to so high an undertaking4 ,i feel myself impelled by an eager curiosity3 ,i have much patience1 and some skill in making experiments4 ,i may even be allowed to boast of a readiness in the learned languages2 and am not without a tincture of such other studies1 as the successful prosecution of ,,physics1 and still more of ,,divinity1 requires4 ,you may further impute to me1 if you please1 an ingenuous love of truth1 and an ordinary degree of judgment to discern it4 ,these1 concluded he1 are the ,,talents1 of which ,i spoke to you so proudly2 and with the help of these 7especially if you allow me one other1 the power of communicating what ,i may chance to learn of natural or divine things71 ,i might hope to render a better account of this solitude1 than of any employments ,i could reasonably aspire to1 in the world of men and of business4 ,he said this with an air of solemnity1 which left me a little at a loss what to reply to him1 when he relieved my perplexity by adding1 8but1 though there was nothing of all this in the case1 and my zeal for promoting knowledge in this private way were as lightly to be accounted of1 as that1 which led me to propose the more extensive scheme ,i before mentioned1 probably will be1 yet what should draw me from this leisure of a learned retirement8 ,for though ,i please myself with the prospect of doing some public service by my studies1 yet need ,i blush to own1 to my learned friend1 the fondness ,i should still have for them1 were they only to end in my own private enjoyment8 ,yes1 let me open my whole soul to you4 ,i have ever delighted in letters1 and have even found them1 what the world is well enough content they should be1 their own reward4 ,i doubt1 if this language would be understood in all companies4 ,and let others speak as they find4 ,but to me the year would drag heavily1 and life itself be no life1 if it were not quickened by these ingenuous pleasures40 ,indeed1 were it only for the very quiet and indolence of mind1 which retirement promises1 why should ,i be envied this calm in the decline of a troubled life8 ,but let the ,muse speak for me1 8,after long toils and voyages in vain1 ,this quiet port let my tost vessel gain2 ,of heav'nly rest this earnest to me lend1 ,let my life sleep1 and learn to love her end40 ,and what if they1 who have not the means of enjoying this rest1 submit to the drudgery of business8 ,is that a reason for me to continue in it1 who have made my fortune1 even to the extent of my wishes8 ,i see you smile at this boast4 ,but where would you have me stop in my desires2 or what is it you would have me understand by the mysterious language of making a fortune8 ,is it two hundred a year1 or four1 or a thousand8 ,say1 where shall we fix1 or what limits will you undertake to prescribe to the vague and shifting notion of a competency8 ,or1 shall we own the truth at once1 that every thing is a competency which a man is contented to live upon1 and that therefore it varies only1 as his desires are more or less contracted8 ,to talk at any other rate of a man's fortune1 is surely to expose one's self to the ridicule1 which the philosopher1 you know1 threw on the restless humour of king ,pyrrhus4 ',tis whim1 chimera1 madness1 or what you will1 except sober reason and common sense4 ,yet still the world cries1 8,what1 sit down with a pittance1 when the ways of honour and fortune are open to you8 take up with what may barely satisfy1 when you have so fair a chance for affluence1 and even superfluity80 ,alas6 and will that affluence1 then1 more than satisfy8 or can it be worth the while to labour1 for a superfluity8 ',tis true the violence of the times1 in which it was my fortune to bear a part1 had left me bare and unprovided even of those moderate accommodations1 which my education and breeding might demand1 and which a parent's piety had indeed bequeathed to me4 ,it was but fitting then ,i should strive to repair this loss2 and the rather1 as my honest services gave me leave to hope for a speedy reparation4 ,and thus far ,i was contented to try my fortune in the court1 though at the expence of much uneasy attendance and solicitation4 ,but1 seeing that this assiduity was without effect1 and that the bounty of two excellent persons#db hath now set me above the necessity of continuing it1 what madness were it to embark again 8,fluctibus in mediis et tempestatibus urbis60 ,so that if you will needs be urging me with the ceaseless exhortation of 8,i1 bone1 quo virtus tua te vocat3 ,i pede fausto1 ,grandia laturus meritorum prmia3--0 ,i must take leave to remind you of the sage reply that was made to it4 ,it was1 you know1 by an old soldier1 who found himself exactly in my situation4 ,the purse1 which he had lost by one accident1 he had recovered by another4 ,the conclusion was1 that he had no mind1 in this different state of affairs1 to turn adventurer again1 and expose himself to the same perilous encounters3 8,post hc ille catus1 quantumvis ,,rusticus1 ibit1 ,ibit eo1 quo vis ,,qui ,,zonam ,,perdidit1 inquit40 ,in one word1 my friend1 ,i am happy here1 as you see me1 in my little farm1 which yet is large enough to answer all my real necessities2 and ,i am not in the humour of him in the fable#dc1 to fill my head with visions1 and spend a wretched life in quest of the flying island4 ,and now1 added he1 you have before you in one view the principal reasons that have determined me to this retreat4 ,i might have enlarged on each more copiously2 but ,i know to whom ,i speak3 and perhaps to such a one ,i might even have spared a good deal of what ,i have now been offering1 from the several considerations of my ,,temper1 ,,talents1 and ,,situation4 ,here he stopped4 ,and now1 my lord1 it came to my turn to take the lead in this controversy4 ,there was indeed an ample field before me4 ,and1 if the other side of the question afforded most matter for wit and declamation1 mine had all the advantages of good sense and sound reason4 ,the superiority was so apparent1 and my victory over him1 in point of argument1 so sure1 that ,i thought it needless and ungenerous to press him on every article of his defence1 in which he had laid himself open to me4 ,your lordship hath1 no doubt1 observed1 with wonder and with pity1 the strange spirit that runs through every part of it3 the confined way of thinking1 which hath crept upon him2 the cynical severity1 he indulges against courts2 the importance he would sometimes assume to his own character2 the peevish turn of mind1 that leads him to take offence at the lighter follies and almost excusable vices of the great2 in short1 the resentment1 the pique1 the chagrin1 which one overlooks in the hopeless suitor1 or hungry poet1 but which are very unaccountable in one of ,mr4 ,,cowley',s condition and situation4 ,here then1 my lord1 was a fair occasion for a willing adversary4 ,but ,i spared the infirmities of my friend4 ,i judged it best1 too1 to keep him in temper1 and avoid that heat of altercation1 which must have arisen from touching these indiscretions1 as they deserved4 ,your lordship sees the reason ,i had for confining my reply to such parts of his apology1 as bore the fairest shew of argument1 and might be encountered without offence4 ,when he had ended1 therefore1 with so formal a recapitulation of his discourse1 ,i thought it not amiss to follow him in his own train2 and1 dissembling the just exceptions ,i had to his vindication in other respects1 8,you have proceeded1 said ,i1 in a very distinct method1 and have said as much1 ,i believe1 on the subject1 as so bad a cause would admit4 ,but if this indeed be all you have to allege1 for so uncommon a fancy1 you must not think it strange1 if ,i pronounce it1 without scruple1 very insufficient for your purpose4 ,for1 to give your several pleas a distinct examination1 what is that ,,temper1 let me ask1 on which you insist so much1 but a wayward humour1 which your true judgement should correct and controul by the higher and more important regards of duty8 ,every man is born with some prevailing propensity or other1 which1 if left to itself1 and indulged beyond certain bounds1 would grow to be very injurious to himself and society4 ,there is something1 no doubt1 amusing in the notion of retirement4 ,the very word implies ease and quiet1 and self-enjoyment4 ,and who doubts1 that in the throng and bustle of life1 most men are fond to image to themselves1 and even to wish for a scene of more composure and tranquillity8 ,it is just as natural as that the labourer should long for his repose at night2 or that the soldier1 amidst the dust and heat of a summer's march1 should wish for the conveniencies of shade and shelter4 ,but what wild work would it make if these so natural desires should be immediately gratified8 if the labourer should quit his plow1 and the soldier his arms1 to throw themselves into the first shade or thicket that offered refreshment8 ,all you have therefore said on this article can really stand for nothing in the eye of sober reason1 whatever figure it may make in the dress of your eloquence#dd4 ,the inconveniencies of every station are to be endured from the obligations of duty1 and on account of the services one is bound to render to himself and his country4 ,true1 replied he1 if it appeared to be one's duty1 or even interest1 to continue in that station4 ,but what principle of conscience binds me to a slavish dependence at court8 or what interest1 public or private1 can be an equivalent for wearing these chains1 when ,i have it in my power to throw them off1 and redeem myself into a state of liberty8 ,what ,interest1 do you ask8 returned ,i4 ,why that great and extensive one1 which society hath in an honest and capable man's continuing to bear a part in public affairs4 ,for as to inducements of another kind1 ,i may find occasion hereafter to press them upon you more seasonably4 ,consider well with yourself1 what would the consequence be1 if all men of honour and ability were to act upon your principles8 ,what a world would this be1 if knaves and fools only had the management in their hands1 and all the virtuous and wise1 as it were by common consent1 were to withdraw from it8 ,nay1 the issue would even be fatal to themselves2 and they would presently find it impossible to taste repose1 even in their own sanctuary of retirement4 ,small need1 replied he1 to terrify one's self with such apprehensions4 ,the virtuous1 at least they who pass for such1 will generally have ambition enough to keep them in the road of public employments4 ,so long as there are such things as riches and honours1 courts will never be unfurnished of suitors1 even from among the tribes of lettered and virtuous men4 ,the desperately bad1 at least1 will never have the field left entirely to themselves4 ,and1 after all1 the interest of men in office is1 in the main1 so providentially connected with some regard to the rules of honour and conscience1 that there is seldom any danger that matters should come to extremities under the worst administration4 ,and ,i doubt this is all we are to expect1 or at least to reckon upon with assurance1 under the very best4 ,but my answer is more direct4 ,it is not for your little friend to think of getting a seat in the cabinet-council1 or of conducting the great affairs of the state4 ,he knows himself to be as unfit for those high trusts1 as he is incapable of aspiring to them4 ,besides1 he does not allow himself to doubt of their being discharged with perfect ability1 by the great persons who now fill them4 ,,he1 at least1 who occupies the foremost place of authority1 is1 by the allowance of all1 to be paralleled with any that the wisest prince hath ever advanced to that station#de4 ,and when so consummate a pilot sits at the helm1 it seems a matter of little moment by what hands the vessel of the commonwealth is navigated4 ,i could not agree with him in this concluding remark1 and much less in the high-flown encomium which introduced it#df4 ,but1 waving these lesser matters1 ,i contented myself with observing1 8,that let him put what gloss he would on this humour of declining civil business1 it must needs be considered by all unbiassed persons1 as highly prejudicial to public order and government2 that1 if good men would not be employed1 the bad must2 and that1 to say the least1 the cause of learning and virtue must suffer exceedingly in the eyes of men1 when they see those very qualities1 which alone can render us useful to the world1 dispose us to fly from it40 ,for as to the plea1 continued ,i1 of employing them to better purpose in the way of private and solitary ,,contemplation1 ,i can hold it for little better than enthusiasm4 ,several persons1 ,i know1 would give it a worse name1 and say1 as ,,tacitus somewhere does1 that it serves only for a specious cover to that love of ease and self-indulgence1 which he will have to be at the bottom of such pretences#dg4 ,but even with the best construction the matter was capable of1 he could never1 ,i insisted1 justify that plea to the understandings of prudent and knowing men4 ,we allow the obscure pedant to talk high of the dignity of his office1 and magnify1 as much as he pleases1 the importance of his speculations4 ,such an indulgence serves to keep him in humour with himself1 and may be a means to convert a low and plodding genius to the only use of which it is capable4 ,but for a man of experience in affairs1 and who is qualified to shine in them1 to hold this language1 is very extraordinary4 ,i saw with what impatience he heard me1 and therefore took care to add1 8',tis true1 the studies to which you would devote yourself1 are the noblest in the world of science4 ,for ,divinity1 the very name speaks its elogium4 ,and the countenance which his majesty is pleased1 in his true wisdom1 to give to natural science1 must be thought to ennoble that branch of learning beyond all others1 that are merely of human consideration4 ,yet still1 my friend1 what need of taking these studies out of the hands of those1 to whom they are properly intrusted8 ,religion is very safe in the bosom of the national church4 ,and questions of natural science will doubtless be effectually cleared and ventilated in the ,new ,society#dh1 and in the schools of our ,universities4 ,it could never be his majesty's intention to thin his court1 for the sake of furnishing students in natural philosophy40 ,and can you then1 interposed he1 in your concern for what you very improperly call my interests1 allow yourself to speak so coolly of the great interests of natural and divine truth8 ,is religion a trade to be confined to the craftsmen8 ,or1 are fellows of colleges and of the ,royal ,society1 if such we are to have1 the only persons concerned to adore ,god in the wonders of his creation8 ,pardon me1 my friend3 ,i know you mean nothing less2 but the strange indifference of your phrase provokes me to this expostulation4 ,you warm yourself1 resumed ,i1 too hastily4 ,my design was only to suggest1 that as there are certain orders of men appointed for the sole purpose of studying divinity1 and advancing philosophy1 ,i did not see that a man of business was obliged to desert his proper station for the sake of either4 ,i suspect1 said he1 there may be some equivocation wrapped up in that word obliged4 ,all ,i know is1 that ,i shall spend my time more innocently1 at least2 and1 ,i presume to think1 more usefully in those studies1 than in that slippery station1 if it may deserve to be called one1 of court-favour and dependence4 ,and if ,i extended the observation to many others1 that are fond to take up their residence in these quarters1 ,i cannot believe ,i should do them any injustice4 ,i cannot tell1 returned ,i1 against whom this censure is pointed4 ,but ,i know there are many of the gravest characters1 and even lights and fathers of the church1 who do not consider it as inconsistent1 either with their duty1 or the usefulness of their profession1 to continue in that station4 ,o6 mistake me not1 replied he3 ,i intended no reflection on any of the clergy1 and much less on the great prelates of the church1 for their attendance in the courts of princes4 ,theirs is properly an exempt case4 ,they are the authorized guides and patterns of life4 ,their great abilities indeed qualify them1 above all others1 for serving the cause of science and religion1 by their private studies and meditations4 ,but they very properly consider too1 that part of their duty is to enlighten the ignorant of all ranks1 by their wise and pious discourse1 and to awe and reclaim the wandering of all denominations1 by their example4 ,hence it is1 that ,i cannot enough admire the zeal of so many pastors of the church2 who1 though the slavish manners and libertinism of a court must be more than ordinarily offensive to men of their characters1 continue to discharge their office so painfully1 and yet so punctually1 in that situation4 ,here1 my lord1 observing my friend for once to deliver himself reasonably1 ,i was encouraged to add1 that since he was so just to maintain the commerce of good and wise churchmen in the great world to be1 as it truly was1 a matter of duty1 he should also have the candour to own1 that his withdrawing from it was1 at least1 a work of ,supererogation4 ,it might be so1 he said2 but1 though our church gave no encouragement to think we merit by such works1 he did not know that it condemned and utterly forbad them4 ,o6 but1 returned ,i1 if that be all1 and you acknowledge at last that your retiring is no matter of duty1 it will be easy to advance another step1 and demonstrate to you1 that such a project is1 in your case1 altogether unreasonable#di4 ,for1 notwithstanding all you have said1 in the spirit and language of stoicism1 of the comforts of your present ,,situation1 will you seriously undertake to persuade me that they are in any degree comparable to what you might propose to yourself1 by returning to a life of business8 ,is the littleness1 the obscurity1 and pardon me if ,i even say1 the meanness of this retreat1 to be put in competition with the liberal and even splendid provision1 which your friends at court will easily be able to make for you8 ,is it nothing1 my friend1 7for let us talk common sense1 and not bewilder ourselves with the visions of philosophy7 is it nothing to live in a well-furnished house1 to keep a good table1 to command an equipage1 to have many friends and dependants1 to be courted by inferiors1 to be well received by the great1 and to be somebody even in the presence8 ,and what if1 in order to compass such things1 some little devoirs and assiduities are expected8 ,is it not the general practice8 ,and what every body submits to1 can it be ignominious8 ,is this any thing more than conforming one's self to the necessary subordination of society8 ,or1 what if some time passes in these services1 which a present humour suggests might be more agreeably spent in other amusements8 ,the recompence cannot be far off2 and1 in the mean time1 the lustre and very agitation of a life of business1 hath somewhat in it sprightly and amusing4 ,besides1 yours is not the case of one that is entering1 for the first time1 on a course of expectation4 ,your business is half done4 ,the prince is favourable2 and there are of his ministers that respect and honour you4 ,your services are well known2 your reputation is fair2 your connexions great2 and the season inviting4 ,what1 with all these advantages1 forego the court in a moping mood1 or1 as angry men use1 run to moralize in a cloister6 ,i was proceeding in the warmth of this remonstrance1 when1 with a reproachful smile1 he turned upon me1 and1 in a kind of rapture1 repeated the following lines of ,,spenser3 8,full little knowest thou1 that hast not tried1 ,what hell it is in suing long to bide3 ,to lose good days1 that might be better spent2 ,to waste long nights in pensive discontent3 ,to speed to-day1 to be put back to-morrow2 ,to feed on hope1 to pine with fear and sorrow2 ,to have thy prince's grace1 yet want his peeres#ej2 ,to have thy askings1 yet wait many yeers#ea2 ,to fret thy soul with crosses and with cares2 ,to eat thy heart through comfortless despaires2 ,to faun1 to crouche1 to wait1 to ride1 to ronne2 ,to spend1 to give1 to want1 to be undonne40 ,this1 said he1 is my answer once for all to your long string of interrogatories4 ,i learnt it of one that had much experience in courts3 and ,i thought it worth imprinting on my memory1 to have it in readiness on such an occasion4 ,or1 if you would rather have my answer in my own words1 the ,muse shall give it you in a little poem1 she dictated very lately#eb4 ,it may shew you perhaps1 that1 though my nature be somewhat melancholy1 ,i am not moping2 and that ,i can moralize1 and even complain1 as ,i have reason to do1 without being angry4 ,the look and tone of voice1 with which he said this1 a little disconcerted me4 ,but ,i recovered myself1 and was going on to object to his unreasonable warmth1 and the fascination of this wicked poetry1 when he stopped me with saying1 8,come1 no more of these remonstrances and upbraidings4 ,i have heard enough of your pleadings in a cause1 which no eloquence can carry against my firm and fixed resolutions4 ,i have seen1 besides1 the force you have done to yourself in this mock combat4 ,your extreme friendliness hath even tempted you to act a part which your true sense1 and the very decorum of your profession1 ,i have observed through all your disguises1 has rendered painful to you4 ,i will tell you my whole mind in one word4 ,no inducements of what the world calls ,,interest1 no views of ,,honour1 no1 nor what the poet aptly calls1 ,,sanctissima ,,divitiarum ,,majestas#ec1 shall make me recede from the purpose ,i am bent upon1 of consecrating the remainder of a comfortless distracted life1 to the sweets of this obscure retirement4 ,believe me1 ,i have weighed it well1 with all its inconveniencies4 ,and ,i find them such as are nothing to the agonies have long felt in that troubled scene1 to which you would recal me4 ,if it hath any ingredients1 which ,i cannot so well relish1 they are such as my friends1 and1 above all1 such as you1 my best friend1 may reconcile to me4 ,let me but have the pleasure to see the few1 ,i love and esteem1 in these shades1 and ,i shall not regret their solitude4 ,and as for my much honoured friend1 whose munificence hath placed me in them1 ,i shall hope to satisfy him in the most effectual manner4 ,nothing1 you will believe1 could give me a pain equal to that of being suspected of ingratitude towards my best benefactor4 ,it was indeed with the utmost difficulty1 that ,i constrained myself at last to think of leaving his service4 ,the truth is1 he expostulated with me upon it pretty roundly2 and though my resolution was taken1 ,i left him with the concern of not being able to give him entire satisfaction4 ,these repeated instances by you are a fresh proof of his goodness1 and do me an honour ,i had little reason to expect from him4 ,but his lordship's notions of life and mine are very different1 as is fitting in persons1 whom fortune hath placed in two such different situations4 ,it becomes me to bear the most grateful remembrance of his kind intentions2 and1 for the rest1 ,i can assure myself1 that his equity and nobleness of mind1 will permit an old servant to pursue1 at length1 his own inclinations4 ,however1 to repay his goodness as ,i can1 and to testify all imaginable respect to his judgment1 ,i have purposed to write my own ,,apology to his lordship2 and to represent to him1 in a better manner1 than ,i have done in this sudden and unpremeditated conversation1 the reasons that have determined me to this resolution4 ,i have even made some progress in the design1 and have digested into several essays the substance of such reflections as1 at different times1 have had most weight with me#ed4 ,hearing him speak in so determined a manner1 ,i was discouraged from pressing him further with such other considerations1 as ,i had1 prepared on this argument4 ,only ,i could not help enforcing1 in the warmest manner1 and in terms your lordship would not allow me to use in this recital1 what he himself had owned of your unexampled goodness to him2 and the obligation which1 ,i insisted1 that must needs create in a generous mind1 of paying an unreserved obedience to your lordship's pleasure4 ,he gave me the hearing very patiently2 but contented himself with repeating his design of justifying himself to your lordship in the apology he had before promised4 ,and now1 resumed he with an air of alacrity1 since you know my whole mind1 and that no remonstrances can move me1 confess the whole truth2 acknowledge at last that you have dissembled with me all this while1 and that1 in reality1 you approve my resolution4 ,i know you do1 my friend1 though you struggle hard to conceal it4 ,it cannot be otherwise4 ,nature1 which linked our hearts together1 had formed us in one mould4 ,we have the same sense of things2 the same love of letters and of virtue4 ,and though ,i would not solicit one of your years and your profession to follow me into the shade1 yet ,i know you so well#ee1 that you will preserve in the world that equal frame of mind1 that indifference to all earthly things1 which ,i pretend to have carried with me into this solitude4 ,go on1 my friend1 in this track2 and be an example to the churchmen of our days1 that the highest honours of the gown1 which ,i easily foresee are destined to your abilities1 are not incompatible with the strictest purity of life1 and the most heroic sentiments of integrity and honour4 ,go1 and adorn the dignities which are reserved for you2 and remember only in the heights of prosperity to be what you are1 to serve the world with vigour1 yet so as to indulge with me 8,,the ,,generous ,,scorn ,,of ,,things1 ,,for ,,which ,,we ,,were ,,not ,,born#ef40 ,i began to be a little uneasy at his long sermon1 when he broke it off with this couplet4 ,the day by this time was pretty far advanced2 and rising from his seat1 he proposed to me to walk into his hermitage 7so he called his house72 where1 he said1 ,i should see how a philosopher lived as well as talked4 ,i staid to dine1 and spent a good part of the afternoon with him4 ,we discoursed of various matters2 but not a word more of what had occasioned this visit4 ,only he shewed me the complaining poem he had mentioned1 and of which1 for the pleasure so fine a composition will give you1 ,i here send your lordship a copy4 ,his spirits1 he said1 were enlivened by the face of an old friend2 and indeed ,i never knew his conversation more easy and chearful#eg2 which yet ,i could not perfectly enjoy for the regret the ill success of my negociation had given me4 ,i returned to town in the evening1 ruminating on what had passed1 and resolving to send your lordship an exact account of our conversation4 ,i particularly made a point of suppressing nothing which ,mr4 ,,cowley had to say for himself in this debate1 however it may sometimes seem to make against me4 ,the whole hath grown under my pen into a greater length than ,i expected4 ,but your ,lordship wished to know the bottom of our friend's mind2 and ,i thought you would see it more distinctly and clearly in this way1 than in any other4 ,i am1 my lord1 with the most profound respect1 ,your ,lordship's most obedient and faithful servant1 ,t4 ,,sprat4 ,,the ,,complaint#eh4 ,in a deep vision's intellectual scene ,beneath a bower for sorrow made1 ,th' uncomfortable shade ,of the black yew's unlucky green1 ,mixt with the mourning willow's careful gray1 ,where reverend ,,cam cuts out his famous way1 ,the melancholy ,,cowley lay3 ,and lo6 a ,muse appear'd to's closed sight1 7,the ,muses oft in lands of visions play7 ,bodied1 array'd1 and seen by an internal light3 ,a golden harp with silver strings she bore1 ,a wonderous hieroglyphic robe she wore1 ,in which all colours1 and all figures were1 ,that nature1 or that fancy can create1 ,that art can never imitate2 ,and with loose pride it wanton'd in the air4 ,in such a dress1 in such a well-cloath'd dream1 ,she us'd of old1 near fair ,,ismenus' stream1 ,,pindar her ,,theban favourite to meet2 ,a crown was on her head1 and wings were on her feet4 ,,ii4 ,she touch'd him with her harp1 and rais'd him from the ground2 ,the shaken strings melodiously resound4 ,art thou return'd at last1 said she1 ,to this forsaken place and me8 ,thou prodigal1 who didst so loosely waste ,of all thy youthful years1 the good estate8 ,art thou return'd here to repent too late2 ,and gather husks of learning up at last1 ,now the rich harvest-time of life is past1 ,and ,winter marches on so fast8 ,but when ,i meant t'adopt thee for my son1 ,and did as learn'd a portion thee assign1 ,as ever any of the mighty ,nine ,had to her dearest children done2 ,when ,i resolv'd t'exalt thy anointed name1 ,among the spiritual lords of peaceful fame#ei2 ,thou changeling1 thou1 bewitch'd with noise and show1 ,would'st into courts and cities from me go2 ,would'st see the world abroad1 and have a share ,in all the follies1 and the tumults there4 ,thou would'st1 forsooth1 be something in a state1 ,and business thou would'st find1 and would'st create3 ,business6 the frivolous pretence ,of humane lusts to shake off innocence3 ,business6 the grave impertinence3 ,business6 the thing which ,i of all things hate3 ,business6 the contradiction of thy fate4 ,,iii4 ,go1 renegado1 cast up thy account1 ,and see to what amount ,thy foolish gains by quitting me3 ,the sale of knowledge1 fame1 and liberty1 ,the fruits of thy unlearn'd apostasy4 ,thou thought'st1 if once the public storm were past1 ,all thy remaining life should sun-shine be2 ,behold1 the public storm is spent at last1 ,the sovereign is tost at sea no more1 ,and thou1 with all the noble company1 ,art got at last to shore4 ,but whilst thy fellow voyagers1 ,i see1 ,all march'd up to possess the promis'd land1 ,thou still alone 7alas67 dost gaping stand ,upon the naked beach1 upon the barren sand4 ,,iv4 ,as a fair morning of the blessed spring1 ,after a tedious stormy night2 ,such was the glorious entry of our king3 ,enriching moisture dropp'd on every thing2 ,plenty he sow'd below1 and cast about him light4 ,but then 7alas67 to thee alone1 ,one of old ,,gideon',s miracles was shown2 ,for every tree1 and every herb around1 ,with pearly dew was crown'd1 ,and upon all the quicken'd ground ,the fruitful seed of heaven did brooding lye1 ,and nothing but the ,muse's fleece was dry4 ,it did all other threats surpass ,when ,god to his own people said1 7,the men1 whom thro' long wanderings he had led7 ,that he would give them ev'n a heaven of brass2 ,they look'd up to that heaven in vain1 ,that bounteous heaven1 which ,god did not restrain1 ,upon the most unjust to shine and rain4 ,v4 ,the ,,rachael1 for which twice seven years and more ,thou didst with faith and labour serve1 ,and didst 7if faith and labour can7 deserve1 ,though she contracted was to thee1 ,giv'n to another who had store ,of fairer1 and of richer wives before1 ,and not a ,leah left1 thy recompence to be4 ,go on1 twice seven years more thy fortune try1 ,twice seven years more1 ,god in his bounty may ,give thee1 to fling away ,into the court's deceitful lottery4 ,but think how likely 'tis that thou1 ,with the dull work of thy unwieldy plough1 ,should'st in a hard and barren season thrive1 ,should even able be to live2 ,thou1 to whose share so little bread did fall1 ,in the miraculous year1 when ,,manna rain'd on all4 ,,vi4 ,thus spake the ,muse1 and spake it with a smile1 ,that seem'd at once to pity and revile1 ,and to her thus1 raising his thoughtful head1 ,the melancholy ,,cowley said3 ,ah1 wanton foe1 dost thou upbraid ,the ills which thou thyself hast made8 ,when1 in the cradle1 innocent ,i lay1 ,thou1 wicked spirit1 stolest me away1 ,and my abused soul didst bear ,into thy new-found words ,i know not where1 ,thy golden ,indies in the air2 ,and ever since ,i strive in vain ,my ravish'd freedom to regain3 ,still ,i rebel1 still thou dost reign1 ,lo1 still in verse against thee ,i complain4 ,there is a sort of stubborn weeds1 ,which if the earth but once1 it ever breeds2 ,no wholesome herb can near them thrive1 ,no useful plant can keep alive2 ,the foolish sports ,i did on thee bestow1 ,make all my art and labour fruitless now2 ,where once such ,fairies dance no grass doth ever grow4 ,,vii4 ,when my new mind had no infusion known1 ,thou gav'st so deep a tincture of thine own1 ,that ever since ,i vainly try ,to wash away the inherent dye3 ,long work perhaps may spoil thy colours quite1 ,but never will reduce the native white2 ,to all the ports of honour and of gain1 ,i often steer my course in vain1 ,thy gale comes cross1 and drives me back again4 ,thou slack'nest all my nerves of industry1 ,by making them so oft to be ,the tinkling strings of thy loose minstrelsie4 ,whoever this world's happiness would see1 ,must as entirely cast off thee1 ,as they who only heaven desire1 ,do from the world retire4 ,this was my error1 this my gross mistake1 ,myself a demy-votary to make4 ,thus with ,,sapphira1 and her husband's fate1 7,a fault which ,i like them am taught too late7 ,for all that ,i gave up1 ,i nothing gain1 ,and perish for the part which ,i retain4 ,,viii4 ,teach me not then1 ,o thou fallacious ,muse1 ,the court1 and better king1 t' accuse2 ,the heaven under which ,i live is fair2 ,the fertile soil will a full harvest bear2 ,thine1 thine is all the barrenness2 if thou ,mak'st me sit still and sing1 when ,i should plough2 ,when ,i but think1 how many a tedious year ,our patient sov'reign did attend ,his long misfortunes fatal end2 ,how chearfully1 and how exempt from fear1 ,on the ,great ,sovereign's will he did depend1 ,i ought to be accurst1 if ,i refuse ,to wait on his1 ,o thou fallacious ,muse6 ,kings have long hands 7they say7 and though ,i be ,so distant1 they may reach at length to me4 ,however1 of all princes1 thou ,should'st not reproach rewards for being small or slow2 ,thou1 who rewardest but with popular breath1 ,and that too after death4 ,,dialogue ,,iii4 ,,on ,,the ,,golden ,,age ,,of ,,queen ,,elizabeth4 ,,between ,,the ,,hon4 ,,robert ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,and ,,mr4 ,,addison4 ,,dialogue ,,iii4 ,,on ,,the ,,age ,,of ,,queen ,,elizabeth4 ,,mr4 ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,mr4 ,,addison4 ,it happened1 in the summer of the year #agaf1 that ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot and ,mr4 ,,addison had occasion to take a journey together into ,warwickshire4 ,mr4 ,,digby1 who had received intelligence of their motions1 and was then at ,coleshill1 contrived to give them the meeting at ,warwick2 where they intended to pass a day or two1 in visiting the curiosities of that fine town1 and the more remarkable of these remains of antiquity that are to be seen in its neighbourhood4 ,these were matter of high entertainment to all of them2 to ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 for the pleasure of recollecting the ancient times2 to ,mr4 ,,addison1 on account of some political reflexions1 he was fond of indulging on such occasions2 and to ,mr4 ,,digby1 from an ingenuous curiosity1 and the love of seeing and observing whatever was most remarkable1 whether in the past ages1 or the present4 ,amongst other things that amused them1 they were much taken with the great church at ,warwick4 ,they entertained themselves with the several histories1 which it's many old monuments recalled to their memory#fj4 ,the famous inscription of ,sir ,,fulk ,,grevil occasioned some reflexions2 especially to ,mr4 ,,digby1 who had used to be much affected with the fame and fortunes of the accomplished ,sir ,,philip ,,sidney4 ,the glory of the house of ,,warwick was1 also1 an ample field of meditation4 ,but what chanced to take their attention most1 was the monument of the great earl of ,,leicester4 ,it recorded his titles at full length1 and was1 besides1 richly decorated with sculpture1 displaying the various ensigns and trophies of his greatness4 ,the pride of this minister had never appeared to them so conspicuous1 as in the legends and ornaments of his tomb-stone2 which had not only outlived his family1 but seemed to assure itself of immortality1 by taking refuge1 as it were1 at the foot of the altar4 ,these funeral honours engaged them in some common reflexions on the folly of such expedients to perpetuate human grandeur2 but at the same time1 as is the usual effect of these things1 struck their imaginations very strongly4 ,they readily apprehended what must have been the state of this mighty favourite in his lifetime1 from what they saw of it in this proud memorial1 which continued in a manner to insult posterity so many years after his death4 ,but understanding that the fragments at least of his supreme glory1 when it was flourishing at its height1 were still to be seen at ,,kenelworth1 which they knew could be at no great distance1 they resolved to visit them the next day1 and indulge to the utmost the several reflexions which such scenes are apt to inspire4 ,on enquiry1 they found it was not more than five or six miles to the castle2 so that1 by starting early in the morning1 they might easily return to dinner at ,warwick4 ,they kept to their appointment so well1 that they got to ,kenelworth in good time1 and had even two or three hours on their hands to spend1 in taking an exact view of the place4 ,it was luckily one of those fine days1 which our travellers would most have wished for1 and which indeed are most agreeable in this season4 ,it was clear enough to afford a distinct prospect of the country1 and to set the objects1 they wanted to take a view of1 in a good light2 and yet was so conveniently clouded as to check the heat of the sun1 and make the exercise of walking1 of which they were likely to have a good deal1 perfectly easy to them4 ,when they alighted from the coach1 the first object that presented itself was the principal ,,gate-,,way of the ,castle4 ,it had been converted into a farm-house1 and was indeed the only part of these vast ruins that was inhabited4 ,on their entrance into the inner-court1 they were struck with the sight of many mouldering towers1 which preserved a sort of magnificence even in their ruins4 ,they amused themselves with observing the vast compass of the whole1 with marking the uses1 and tracing the dimensions1 of the several parts4 ,all which it was easy for them to do1 by the very distinct traces that remained of them1 and especially by means of ,,dugdale',s plans and descriptions1 which they had taken care to consult4 ,after rambling about for some time1 they clambered up a heap of ruins1 which lay on the west side the court3 and thence came to a broken tower1 which1 when they had mounted some steps1 led them out into a path-way on the tops of the walls4 ,from this eminence they had a very distinct view of the several parts they had before contemplated2 of the gardens on the north-side2 of the winding meadow that encompassed the walls of the castle1 on the west and south2 and had1 besides1 the command of the country round about them for many miles4 ,the prospect of so many antique towers falling into rubbish1 contrasted to the various beauties of the landscape1 struck them with admiration1 and kept them silent for some time4 ,at length recovering himself1 ,i perceive1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 we are all of us not a little affected with the sight of these ruins4 ,they even create a melancholy in me2 and yet a melancholy of so delightful a kind1 that ,i would not exchange it1 methinks1 for any brisker sensation4 ,the experience of this effect hath often led me to enquire1 how it is that the mind1 even while it laments1 finds so great a pleasure in visiting these scenes of desolation4 ,is it1 continued he1 from the pure love of antiquity1 and the amusing train of reflexions into which such remains of ancient magnificence naturally lead us8 ,i know not1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 what pain it may give you to contemplate these triumphs of time and fortune4 ,for my part1 ,i am not sensible of the mixt sensation you speak of4 ,i feel a pleasure indeed2 but it is sincere1 and1 as ,i conceive1 may be easily accounted for4 ',tis nothing more1 ,i believe1 than a fiction of the imagination1 which makes me think ,i am taking a revenge on the once prosperous and overshadowing height1 ,,pr,,umbrans ,,fastigium1 as somebody expresses it1 of inordinate ,greatness4 ,it is certain1 continued he1 this theatre of a great statesman's pride1 the delight of many of our princes1 and which boasts of having given entertainment to one of them in a manner so splendid1 as to claim a remembrance1 even in the annals of our country1 would now1 in its present state1 administer ample matter for much insulting reflexion4 8,where1 one might ask1 are the tilts and tournaments1 the princely shows and sports1 which were once so proudly celebrated within these walls8 ,where are the pageants1 the studied devices and emblems of curious invention1 that set the court at a gaze1 and even transported the high soul of our ,,elizabeth8 ,where now1 pursued he1 7pointing to that which was formerly a canal1 but at present is only a meadow with a small rivulet running through it7 where is the floating island1 the blaze of torches that eclipsed the day1 the lady of the lake1 the silken nymphs her attendants1 with all the other fantastic exhibitions surpassing even the whimsies of the wildest romance8 ,what now is become of the revelry of feasting8 of the minstrelsy1 that took the ear so delightfully as it babbled along the valley1 or floated on the surface of this lake8 ,see there the smokeless kitchens1 stretching to a length that might give room for the sacrifice of a hecatomb2 the vaulted hall1 which mirth and jollity have set so often in an uproar2 the rooms of state1 and the presence-chamber3 what are they now but void and tenantless ruins1 clasped with ivy1 open to wind and weather1 and representing to the eye nothing but the ribs and carcase1 as it were1 of their former state8 ,and see1 said he1 that proud gate-way1 once the mansion of a surly porter#fa1 who1 partaking of the pride of his lord1 made the crowds wait1 and refused admittance1 perhaps1 to nobles whom fear or interest drew to these walls1 to pay their homage to their master3 see it now the residence of a poor tenant1 who turns the key but to let himself out to his daily labour1 to admit him to a short meal1 and secure his nightly slumbers4 ,yet1 in this humble state1 it hath had the fortune to outlive the glory of the rest1 and hath even drawn to itself the whole of that little note and credit which time hath continued to this once pompous building4 ,for1 while the castle itself is crumbled into shapeless ruins1 and is prophaned1 as we there see1 by the vilest uses1 this outwork of greatness is left entire1 sheltered and closed in from bird and beast1 and even affords some decent room in which the human face divine is not ashamed to shew itself40 ,while ,mr4 ,,addison went on in this vein1 his two friends stood looking on each other2 as not conceiving what might be the cause of his expressing himself with a vehemence1 so uncommon1 and not suited to his natural temper4 ,when the fit was over1 ,i confess1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 this is no bad topic for a moralist to declaim upon4 ,and1 though it be a trite one1 we know how capable it is of being adorned by him who1 on a late occasion1 could meditate so finely on the ,,tombs ,,at ,,westminster#fb4 ,but surely1 proceeded he1 you warm yourself in this contemplation1 beyond what the subject requires of you4 ,the vanity of human greatness is seen in so many instances1 that ,i wonder to hear you harangue on this with so peculiar an exultation4 ,there is no travelling ten miles together in any part of the kingdom without stumbling on some ruin1 which1 though perhaps not so considerable as this before us1 would furnish occasion1 however1 for the same reflexions4 ,there would be no end of moralizing over every broken tower1 or shattered fabric1 which calls to mind the short-lived glories of our ancestors4 ,true1 said ,mr4 ,,addison2 and1 if the short continuance of these glories were the only circumstance1 ,i might well have spared the exultation1 you speak of1 in this triumph over the shattered remnants of ,kenelworth4 ,but there is something else that fires me on the occasion4 ,it brings to mind the fraud1 the rapine1 the insolence1 of the potent minister1 who vainly thought to immortalize his ill-gotten glory by this proud monument4 ,nay1 further1 it awakens an indignation against the prosperous tyranny of those wretched times1 and creates a generous pleasure in reflecting on the happiness we enjoy under a juster and more equal government4 ,believe me1 ,i never see the remains of that greatness which arose in the past ages on the ruins of public freedom and private property1 but ,i congratulate with myself on living at a time1 when the meanest subject is as free and independent as those royal minions2 and when his property1 whatever it be1 is as secure from oppression1 as that of the first minister4 ,and ,i own this congratulation is not the less sincere for considering that the instance before us is taken from the reign of the virgin queen1 which it hath been the fashion to cry up above that of any other of our princes#fc4 ,i desire no other confutation of so strange unthankful a preference1 than the sight of this vast castle1 together with the recollection of those means by which its master arrived at his enormous greatness4 ,your indignation then1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 is not so much of the moral1 as political kind#fd4 ,but is not the conclusion a little too hasty1 when1 from the instance of one overgrown favourite1 you infer the general infelicity of the time1 in which he flourished8 ,i am not1 ,i assure you1 one of those unthankful men who forget the blessings they enjoy under a prince of more justice and moderation than queen ,,elizabeth1 and under a better constitution of government than prevailed in the days of our forefathers4 ,yet1 setting aside some particular dishonours of that reign 7of which1 let the tyranny of ,leicester1 if you will1 be one71 ,i see not but the acknowledged virtues of that princess1 and the wisdom of her government1 may be a proper foundation for all the honours that posterity have ever paid to her4 ,were ,i even disposed to agree with you1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 ,i should not have the less reason for triumphing1 as ,i do1 on the present state of our government4 ,for1 if such abuses could creep in1 and be suffered for so many years under so great a princess1 what was there not to fear 7as what1 indeed1 did not the subject actually feel7 under some of her successors8 ,but1 to speak my mind frankly1 ,i see no sufficient grounds for the excessive prejudice1 that hath somehow taken place1 in favour of the ,,golden ,,reign1 as it is called1 ,,of ,,elizabeth4 ,i find neither the wisdom1 nor the virtue in it1 that can entitle it to a preference before all other ages4 ,on the contrary1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,i never contemplate the monuments of that time1 without a silent admiration of the virtues that adorned it4 ,heroes and sages crowd in upon my memory4 ,nay1 the very people were of a character above what we are acquainted with in our days4 ,i could almost fancy1 the soil itself were another face1 and1 as you poets imagine on some occasions1 that our ancestors lived under a brighter sun and happier climate than we can boast of4 ,to be sure6 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 smiling3 or1 why not affirm1 in the proper language of romance1 that the women of those days were all chaste1 and the men valiant8 ,but cannot you suspect at least that there is some enchantment in the case1 and that your love of antiquity may possibly operate in more instances than those of your favourite ,greeks and ,romans8 ,tell me honestly1 pursued he1 hath not this distance of a century and a half a little imposed upon you8 ,do not these broken towers1 which moved you just now to so compassionate a lamentation over them1 dispose you to a greater fondness for the times in which they arose1 than can be fairly justified8 ,i will not deny1 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 but we are often very generous to the past times1 and unjust enough to the present4 ,but ,i think there is little of this illusion in the case before us4 ,and1 since you call my attention to these noble ruins1 let me own to you1 that they do indeed excite in me a veneration for the times of which they present so striking a memorial4 ,but surely not without reason4 ,for there is scarce an object in view1 that doth not revive the memory of some distinguishing character of that age1 which may justify such veneration4 ,alas6 interrupted ,mr4 ,,addison1 and what can these objects call to mind but the memory of barbarous manners and a despotic government8 ,for the government1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,i do not well conceive how any conclusion about that can be drawn from this fabric4 ,the ,,manners ,i was thinking of2 and ,i see them strongly expressed in many parts of it4 ,but whether barbarous or not1 ,i could almost take upon me to dispute with you4 ,and why1 indeed1 since you allowed yourself to declaim on the vices1 so apparent1 as you suppose1 in this monument of antiquity1 may not ,i have leave to consider it in another point of view1 and present to you the virtues which1 to my eye at least1 are full as discernible8 ,you cannot1 continued he1 turn your eyes on any part of these ruins1 without encountering some memorial of the virtue1 industry1 or ingenuity1 of our ancestors4 ,look there1 said he1 on that fine room 7pointing to the ,,hall1 that lay just beneath them72 and tell me if you can help respecting the ,,hospitality which so much distinguished the palaces of the great in those simpler ages4 ,you gave an invidious turn to this circumstance when you chose to consider it only in the light of wasteful expence and prodigality4 ,but no virtue is privileged from an ill name4 ,and1 on second thoughts1 ,i persuade myself1 it will appear you have injured this1 by so uncandid an appellation4 ,can it deserve this censure1 that the lord of this princely castle threw open his doors and spread his table for the reception of his friends1 his followers1 and even for the royal entertainment of his sovereign8 ,is any expence more proper than that which tends to conciliate#fe friendships1 spread the interests of society1 and knit mankind together by a generous communication in these advantages of wealth and fortune8 ,the arts of a refined sequestered luxury were then unknown4 ,the same bell1 that called the great man to his table1 invited the neighbourhood all around1 and proclaimed a holiday to the whole country#ff4 ,who does not feel the decorum1 and understand the benefits of this magnificence8 ,the pre-eminence of rank and fortune was nobly sustained3 the subordination of society preserved3 and yet the envy1 that is so apt to attend the great1 happily avoided4 ,hence this weight and influence of the old nobility1 who engaged the love1 as well as commanded the veneration1 of the people4 ,in the mean time1 rural industry flourished3 private luxury was discouraged3 and in both ways that frugal simplicity of life1 our country's grace and ornament in those days1 was preserved and promoted4 ,it would spoil your panegyric1 ,i doubt1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 to observe the factious use1 that was made of this magnificence1 and the tendency it had to support the pride and insolence of the old nobility4 ,the interest of the great1 ,i am afraid1 was but another name for the slavery of the people#fg4 ,i see it1 ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot said1 in a different light2 and so did our princes themselves1 who could not but be well acquainted with the proper effects of that interest4 ,they considered the weight of the nobility1 as a counterpoise to their own sovereignty4 ,it was on this account they had used all means to lessen their influence4 ,but the consequence was beside their expectation4 ,the authority of the crown fell with it3 and1 which was still less expected by political men1 the liberty of the people1 after it had wantoned for a time1 sunk under the general oppression4 ,it was then discovered1 but a little of the latest1 that public freedom throve best1 when it wound itself about the stock of the ancient nobility4 ,in truth1 it was the defect1 not the excess1 of patrician influence1 that made way for the miseries of the next century4 ,you see then it is not without cause that ,i lay a stress1 even in a political view1 on this popular hospitality of the great in the former ages#fh4 ,but1 lest you think ,i sit too long at the table1 let us go on to the ,,tiltyard1 which lies just before us2 that school of fortitude and honour to our generous forefathers4 ,a younger fancy1 than mine1 would be apt to kindle at the sight4 ,and our sprightlier friend here1 ,i dare say1 has already taken fire at the remembrance of the gallant exercises1 which were celebrated in that quarter4 ,mr4 ,,digby owned1 he had a secret veneration for the manly games of that time1 which he had seen so triumphantly set forth in the old poets and romancers4 ,right1 said ,mr4 ,,addison2 it is precisely in that circumstance that the enchantment consists4 ,some of our best wits have taken a deal of idle pains to ennoble a very barbarous entertainment1 and recommend it to us under the specious name of gallantry and honour4 ,but ,mr4 ,,digby sees through the cheat4 ,not that ,i doubt1 continued he1 but the ,doctor1 now he is in the vein of panegyric1 will lay a mighty stress on these barbarities2 and perhaps compare them with the exercises in the ,roman ,circus1 or the ,olympic ,barriers4 ,and why not8 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot4 ,the tendency of all three was the same2 to invigorate the faculties both of mind and body2 to give strength1 grace1 and dexterity1 to the limbs2 and fire the mind with a generous emulation of the manly and martial virtues4 ,why truly1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 ,i shall not deny that all three1 as you observe1 were much of the same merit4 ,and1 now your hand is in for this sort of encomium1 do not forget to celebrate the sublime taste of our forefathers for bear-baiting#fi1 as well as tilting2 and tell us too1 how gloriously the mob of those days1 as well as their betters1 used to belabour one another4 ,i confess1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 the softness of our manners makes it difficult to speak on this subject without incurring the ridicule1 you appear so willing to employ against me4 ,but you must not think to discredit these gymnastics by a little raillery1 which has its foundation only in modern prejudices4 ,for it is no secret that the gravest and politest men of antiquity were of my mind4 ,you will hardly suspect ,,plato of incivility1 either in his notions or manners4 ,and need ,i remind you how much he insists on the gymnastic discipline2 without which he could not have formed1 or at least have supported1 his ,republic8 ,it was upon this principle1 ,i suppose then1 said ,mr4 ,,digby1 or perhaps in imitation of his ,grcian master1 that our ,,milton laid so great a stress on this discipline in his ,,tractate ,,of ,,education4 ,and before him1 in the very time you speak of1 ,,ascham1 ,i observe1 took no small pains to much the same purpose in his ,,toxophilus4 ,it is very clear1 resumed ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 from these instances1 and many more that might be given1 that the ancients were not singular in their notions on this subject4 ,but1 since you have drawn me into a grave defence of these exercises1 let me further own to you that ,i think the ,gothic ,tilts and ,tournaments exceeded1 both in use and elegance1 even the ,grcian gymnastics#gj4 ,they were a more direct image of war1 than any of the games at ,olympia4 ,and if ,xenophon could be so lavish in his praises on the ,persian practice of hunting1 because it had some resemblance to the exercise of arms1 what would he not have said of an institution1 which has all the forms of a real combat8 ,but there was an elegance1 too1 in the conduct of the tournament1 that might reconcile it even to modern delicacy4 ,for1 besides the splendor of the shew2 the dexterity1 with which these exercises were performed2 and the fancy1 that appeared in their accoutrement1 dresses1 and devices2 the whole contest was ennobled with an air of gallantry1 that must have had a great effect in refining the manners of the combatants4 ,and yet this gallantry had no ill influence on morals2 for1 as you insulted me just now1 it was the odd humour of those days for the women to pride themselves in their chastity#ga1 as well as the men in their valour4 ,in short1 ,i consider the ,tournay1 as the best school of civility as well as heroism4 8,high-erected thoughts1 seated in a heart of courtesy10 as an old writer#gb well expresses it1 was the proper character of such as had been trained in this discipline4 ,no wonder then1 pursued he1 the poets and romance-writers took so much pains to immortalize these trials of manhood4 ,it was but what ,,pindar and ,,homer himself1 those ancient masters of romance1 had done before them4 ,and how could it be otherwise8 ,the shew itself1 as ,i said1 had something very taking in it2 whilst every graceful attitude of person1 with every generous movement of the mind1 afforded the finest materials for description4 ,and ,i am even ready to believe1 that what we hear censured in their writings1 as false1 incredible1 and fantastic1 was frequently but a just copy of life1 and that there was more of truth and reality#gc in their representations1 than we are apt to imagine4 ,their notions of honour and gallantry were carried to an elevation#gd1 which1 in these degenerate days1 hurts the credit of their story2 just as ,i have met with men that have doubted whether the virtues of the ,,reguli and the ,,scipios of ancient fame were not the offspring of pure fancy4 ,nay now1 ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 you grow quite extravagant4 ,what you1 who are used to be so quick at espying all abuses in science1 and defects in good taste1 turn advocate for these fopperies6 ,mr4 ,,digby and ,i shall begin to think you banter us1 in this apology for the ancient gymnastics1 and are only preparing a chapter for the facetious memoirs#ge1 you sometimes promise us4 ,never more in earnest1 assure you1 replied the ,doctor4 ,i know what you have to object to these pictures of life and manners4 ,but1 if they will not bear examining as copies1 they may deserve to be imitated as models4 ,and their use1 methinks1 might atone for some defects in the article of probability4 ,for my part1 ,i consider the legends of ancient chivalry in a very serious light1 ,as niches1 fill'd with statues to invite ,young valours forth--#gf as ,,ben ,,jonson1 a valorous hardy poet1 and who1 himself1 would have made a good knight-errant1 justly says of them4 ,for1 it is certain1 they had this effect4 ,the youth1 in general1 were fired with the love of martial exercises4 ,they were early formed to habits of fatigue and enterprise4 ,and1 together with this warlike spirit1 the profession of chivalry was favourable to every other virtue4 ,affability1 courtesy1 generosity1 veracity1 these were the qualifications most pretended to by the men of arms1 in the days of pure and uncorrupted chivalry4 ,we do not perhaps1 ourselves1 know1 at this distance of time1 how much we are indebted to the force of this singular institution4 ,but this ,i may presume to say1 that the men1 among whom it arose and flourished most1 had prodigious obligations to it4 ,no policy1 even of an ancient legislator1 could have contrived a better expedient to cultivate the manners and tame the spirits of a rude and ignorant people4 ,i could almost fancy it providentially introduced among the northern nations1 to break the fierceness of their natures1 and prevent that brutal savageness and ferocity of character1 which must otherwise have grown upon them in the darker ages4 ,nay1 the generous sentiments1 it inspired1 perhaps contributed very much to awaken an emulation of a different kind2 and to bring on those days of light and knowledge which have disposed us1 somewhat unthankfully1 to vilify and defame it4 ,this is certain1 that the first essays of wit and poetry1 those harbingers of returning day to every species of good letters1 were made in the bosom of chivalry1 and amidst the assemblies of noble dames1 and courteous knights4 ,and we may even observe1 that the best of our modern princes1 such as have been most admired for their personal virtues1 and have been most concerned in restoring all the arts of civility and politeness1 have been passionately addicted to the feats of ancient prowess4 ,in the number of these1 need ,i remind you of the courts of ,,francis ,i1 and ,,henry ,,iv1 to say nothing of our own ,,edwards and ,,henrys1 and that mirrour of all their virtues in one1 our renowned and almost romantic ,,elizabeth#gg8 ,but you think ,i push the argument too far4 ,and less than this may dispose you to conceive with reverence of the scene before us1 which must ever be regarded as a nursery of brave men1 a very seed-plot of warriors and heroes4 ,i consider the successes at the barriers as preludes to future conquests in the field4 ,and1 as whimsical a figure as a young tilter may make in your eye1 who will say that the virtue was not formed here1 that triumphed at ,,axell1 and bled at ,,zutphen8 ,we shall very readily1 replied ,mr4 ,,addison1 acknowledge the bravery and other virtues of the young hero1 whose fortunes you hint at4 ,he was1 in truth1 to speak the language of that time1 the very flower of knighthood1 and contributed more than any body else1 by his pen1 as well as sword1 to throw a lustre on the profession of chivalry4 ,but the thing itself1 however adorned by his wit and recommended by his manners1 was barbarous2 the offspring of ,gothic fierceness2 and shews the times1 which favoured it so much1 to have scarcely emerged from their original rudeness and brutality4 ,you may celebrate1 as loudly as you please1 the deeds of these wonder-working knights4 ,alas1 what affinity have such prodigies to our life1 and manners8 ,the old poet1 you quoted just now with approbation1 shall tell us the difference3 ,these were bold stories of our ,arthur's age3 ,but here are other acts1 another stage ,and scene appears2 it is not since as then2 ,no giants1 dwarfs1 or monsters here1 but ,,men#gh4 ,or1 if you want a higher authority1 we should not1 methinks1 on such an occasion1 forget the admirable ,,cervantes1 whose ridicule hath brought eternal dishonour on the profession of knight-errantry4 ,with your leave1 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,i have reason to except against both your authorities4 ,at best1 they do but condemn the abuses of chivalry1 and the madness of continuing the old romantic spirit in times when1 from a change of manners and policy1 it was no longer in season4 ,adventures1 we will say1 were of course to cease1 when giants and monsters disappeared4 ,and yet have they totally disappeared1 and have giants and monsters been no where heard of out of the castles and forests of our old romancers4 ',tis odds1 methinks1 but1 in the sense of ,,elizabeth',s good subjects1 ,,philip ,,ii4 might be a giant at least3 and1 without a little of this adventurous spirit1 it may be a question whether all her enchanters1 ,i mean her ,,burleighs and ,,walsinghams1 would have proved a match for him4 ,i mention this the rather to shew you1 how little obligation his countrymen have to your ,,cervantes for laughing away the remains of that prowess1 which was the best support of the ,spanish monarchy4 ,as if1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 the prowess of any people were only to be kept alive by their running mad4 ,but let the case of the ,spaniards be what it will1 surely we1 of this country1 have little obligation to the spirit of chivalry1 if it were only that it produced1 or encouraged at least1 and hath now entailed upon us1 the curse of duelling2 which even yet domineers in the fashionable world1 in spite of all that wit1 and reason1 and religion itself1 have done to subdue it4 ',tis true1 at present this law of arms is appealed to only in the case some high point of nice and mysterious honour4 ,but in the happier days you celebrate1 it was called in aid1 on common occasions4 ,even questions of right and property1 you know1 were determined at the barriers#gi3 and brute force was allowed the most equitable1 as well as shortest1 way of deciding all disputes both concerning a man's estate and honour4 ,you might observe too1 interposed ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 that this was the way in which those fiercer disputes concerning a mistress1 or a kingdom1 were frequently decided4 ,and1 if this sort of decision1 in such cases1 were still in use among ,christian princes1 you might call it perhaps a barbarous custom3 but would it be ever the worse1 do you think1 for their good subjects8 ,perhaps it would not1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 in some instances4 ,and yet will you affirm1 that those good subjects were in any enviable situation1 under their fighting masters8 ,after all1 allowing you to put the best construction you can on these usages of our forefathers1 8all we find ,is1 that they did their work and din'd40 ,and though such feats may argue a sound athletic constitution1 you must excuse me1 if ,i am not forward to entertain any high notions of their civility4 ,their civility1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 is another consideration4 ,the ,,hall and ,,tilt-,,yard are certainly good proofs of what they are alleged for1 the hospitality and bravery of our ancestors4 ,but it hath not been maintained1 that these were their only virtues4 ,on the contrary1 it seems to me1 that every flower of humanity1 every elegance of art and genius1 was cultivated amongst them4 ,for an instance1 need we look any further than the ,,lake1 which in the flourishing times of this castle was so famous1 and which we even now trace in the winding bed of that fine meadow8 ,i do not understand you1 replied ,mr4 ,,addison4 ,i can easily imagine what an embellishment that lake must have been to the castle2 but am at a loss to conceive what flowers of wit and ingenuity1 to use your own nigmatical language1 could be raised or so much as watered by it4 ,and1 have you then1 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 so soon forgotten the large description1 you gave us just now1 of the shows and pageants displayed on this lake8 ,and can any thing better declare the art1 invention1 and ingenuity1 of their conductors8 ,is not this canal as good a memorial of the ardour and success with which the finer exercises of the mind were pursued in that time1 as the tilt-yard1 we have now left1 is of the address and dexterity shewn in those of the body8 ,i remember1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 that many of the shows1 intended for the queen's entertainment at this place1 were exhibited on that canal4 ,but as to any art or beauty of contrivance-- 8,you see none1 ,i suppose40 ,why truly none1 resumed ,mr4 ,,addison4 ,to me they seemed but well enough suited to the other barbarities of the time4 8,the ,lady of the ,lake and her train of ,nereids10 was not that the principal8 ,and can it pass for any thing better than a jumble of ,gothic romance and pagan fable8 a barbarous modern conceit1 varnished over with a little classical pedantry8 ,and is that the best word you can afford1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 to these ingenious devices8 ,the business was1 to welcome the ,queen to this palace1 and at the same time to celebrate the honours of her government4 ,and what more decent way of complimenting a great ,prince1 than through the veil of fiction8 or what so elegant way of entertaining a learned ,prince1 as by working up that fiction out of the old poetical story8 ,and if something of the ,gothic romance adhered to these classical fictions1 it was not for any barbarous pleasure1 that was taken in this patchwork1 but that the artist found means to incorporate them with the highest grace and ingenuity4 ,for what1 in other words1 was the ,lady of the ,lake 7the particular that gives most offence to your delicacy71 but the presiding nymph of the stream1 on which these shews were presented8 ,and1 if the contrivance was to give us this nymph under a name that romance had made familiar1 what was this but taking advantage of a popular prejudice to introduce his fiction with more address and probability8 ,but see the propriety of the scene itself1 for the designer's purpose1 and the exact decorum with which these fanciful personages were brought in upon it4 ,it was not enough1 that the pagan deities were summoned to pay their homage to the queen4 ,they were the deities of the fount and ocean1 the watery nymphs and demi-gods3 and these were to play their part in their own element4 ,could any preparation be more artful for the panegyric designed on the naval glory of that reign8 ,or1 could any representation be more grateful to the queen of the ocean1 as ,,elizabeth was then called1 than such as expressed her sovereignty in those regions8 ,hence the sea-green ,nereids1 the ,tritons1 and ,neptune himself1 were the proper actors in the drama4 ,and the opportunity of this spacious lake gave the easiest introduction and most natural appearance to the whole scenery4 ,let me add too1 in further commendation of the taste which was shewn in these agreeable fancies1 that the attributes and dresses of the deities themselves were studied with care2 and the most learned poets of the time employed to make them speak and act in character4 ,so that an old ,greek or ,roman might have applauded the contrivance1 and have almost fancied himself assisting at a religious ceremony in his own country4 ,and1 to shew you that all this propriety was intended by the designer himself1 and not imagined at pleasure by his encomiast2 ,i remember1 that when1 some years after1 the earl of ,,hertford had the honour to receive the queen at his seat in ,hampshire1 because he had no such canal as this in readiness on the occasion1 he set on a vast number of hands to hollow a bason in his park for that purpose4 ,with so great diligence and so exact a decorum were these entertainments conducted6 ,did not ,i tell you1 interposed ,mr4 ,,addison1 addressing himself to ,mr4 ,,digby1 to what an extravagance the ,doctor's admiration of the ancient times would carry him8 ,could you have expected all this harangue on the art1 elegance1 and decorum of ,,the ,,princely ,,pleasures ,,of ,,kenelworth#hj8 ,and must not it divert you to see the unformed genius of that age tricked out in the graces of ,roman or even ,attic politeness8 ,mr4 ,,digby acknowledged1 it was very generous in the ,doctor to represent in so fair a light the amusements of the ruder ages4 ,but ,i was thinking1 said he1 to what cause it could possibly be owing1 that these pagan fancies had acquired so general a consideration in the days of ,,elizabeth4 ,the general passion for these fancies1 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 was a natural consequence of the revival of learning4 ,the first books1 that came into vogue1 were the poets4 ,and nothing could be more amusing to rude minds1 just opening to a taste of letters1 than the fabulous story of the pagan gods1 which is constantly interwoven in every piece of ancient poetry4 ,hence the imitative arts of sculpture1 painting1 and poetry1 were immediately employed in these pagan exhibitions4 ,but this was not all4 ,the first artists in every kind were of ,italy2 and it was but natural for them to act these fables over again on the very spot that had first produced them4 ,these too were the masters to the rest of ,europe4 ,so that fashion concurred with the other prejudices of the time1 to recommend this practice to the learned4 ,from the men of art and literature the enthusiasm spread itself to the great2 whose supreme delight it was to see the wonders of the old poetical story brought forth1 and realized1 as it were1 before them#ha4 ,and what1 in truth1 could they do better8 ,for1 if ,i were not a little afraid of your raillery1 ,i should desire to know what courtly amusements even of our time are comparable to the shows and masques1 which were the delight and improvement of the court of ,,elizabeth4 ,i say1 the improvement2 for1 besides that these shows were not in the number of the ,,inerudit ,,voluptates1 so justly characterized and condemned by a wise ancient1 they were even highly useful and instructive4 ,these devices1 composed out of the poetical history1 were not only the vehicles of compliment to the great on certain solemn occasions1 but of the soundest moral lessons1 which were artfully thrown in1 and recommended to them by the charm of poetry and numbers4 ,nay1 some of these masques were moral dramas in form1 where the virtues and vices were impersonated4 ,we know the cast of their composition by what we see of these fictions in the next reign2 and have reason to conceive of them with reverence when we find the names of ,,fletcher and ,,jonson#hb to some of them4 ,i say nothing of ,,jones and ,,lawes1 though all the elegance of their respective arts was called in to assist the poet in the contrivance and execution of these entertainments4 ,and1 now the poets have fallen in my way1 let me further observe1 that the manifest superiority of this class of writers in ,,elizabeth',s reign1 and that of her successor1 over all others who have succeeded to them1 is1 among other reasons1 to be ascribed to the taste which then prevailed for these moral representations4 ,this taught them to animate and impersonate every thing4 ,rude minds1 you will say1 naturally give into this practice4 ,without doubt4 ,but art and genius do not disdain to cultivate and improve it4 ,hence it is1 that we find in the phraseology and mode of thinking of that time1 and of that time only1 the essence of the truest and sublimest poetry4 ,without doubt1 ,mr4 ,,addison said1 the poetry of that time is of a better taste than could well have been expected from its barbarism in other instances4 ,but such prodigies as ,,shakespear and ,,spenser would do great things in any age1 and under every disadvantage4 ,most certainly they would1 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 but not the things that you admire so much in these immortal writers4 ,and1 if you will excuse the intermixture of a little philosophy in these ramblings1 ,i will attempt to account for it4 ,there is1 ,i think1 in the revolutions of taste and language1 a certain point1 which is more favourable to the purposes of poetry1 than any other4 ,it may be difficult to fix this point with exactness4 ,but we shall hardly mistake in supposing it lies somewhere between the rude essays of uncorrected fancy1 on the one hand1 and the refinements of reason and science1 on the other4 ,and such appears to have been the condition of our language in the age of ,,elizabeth4 ,it was pure1 strong1 and perspicuous1 without affectation4 ,at the same time1 the high figurative manner1 which fits a language so peculiarly for the uses of the poet1 had not yet been controlled by the prosaic genius of philosophy and logic4 ,indeed1 this character had been struck so deeply into the ,english tongue1 that it was not to be removed by any ordinary improvements in either3 the reason of which might be1 the delight which was taken by the ,english very early in their old ,,mysteries and ,,moralities2 and the continuance of the same spirit in succeeding times1 by means of their ,,masques and ,,triumphs4 ,and something like this1 ,i observe1 attended the progress of the ,greek and ,roman poetry2 which was the truest poetry1 on the clown's maxim in ,,shakespear1 because it was the most feigning#hc4 ,it had its rise1 you know1 like ours1 from religion3 and pagan religion1 of all others1 was the properest to introduce and encourage a spirit of allegory and moral fiction4 ,hence we easily account for the allegoric cast of their old dramas1 which have a great resemblance to our ancient moralities4 ,,necessity is brought in as a person of the drama1 in one of ,,schylus',s plays2 and ,,death in one of ,,euripides3 to say nothing of many shadowy persons in the comedies of ,,aristophanes4 ,the truth is1 the pagan religion deified every thing1 and delivered these deities into the hand of their painters1 sculptors1 and poets4 ,in like manner1 ,christian superstition1 or1 if you will1 modern barbarism1 impersonated every thing2 and these persons1 in proper form1 subsisted for some time on the stage1 and almost to our days1 in the masques4 ,hence the picturesque style of our old poetry2 which looks so fanciful in ,,spenser1 and which ,,shakespear',s genius hath carried to the utmost sublimity4 ,i will not deny1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 but there may be something in this deduction of the causes1 by which you account for the strength and grandeur of the ,english poetry1 unpolished as it still was in the hands of ,,elizabeth',s great poets4 ,but for the masques themselves-- ,you forget1 ,i believe1 one1 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 which does your favourite poet1 ,,milton1 almost as much honour1 as his ,paradise ,lost4--,but ,i have no mind to engage in a further vindication of these fancies4 ,i only conclude that the taste of the age1 the state of letters1 the genius of the ,english tongue1 was such as gave a manliness to their compositions of all sorts1 and even an elegance to those of the lighter forms1 which we might do well to emulate1 and not deride1 in this ra of politeness4 ,but ,i am aware1 as you say1 ,i have been transported too far4 ,my design was only to hint to you1 in opposition to your invective against the memory of the old times1 awakened in us by the sight of this castle1 that what you object to is capable of a much fairer interpretation4 ,you have a proof of it1 in two or three instances2 in their festivals1 their exercises1 and their poetical fictions3 or1 to express myself in the classical forms1 you have seen by this view of their ,,convivial1 ,,gymnastic1 and ,,musical character1 that the times of ,,elizabeth may pass for golden1 notwithstanding what a fondness for this age of baser metal may incline us to represent it4 ,in the mean time1 these smaller matters have drawn me aside from my main purpose4 ,what surprised me most1 pursued he1 was to hear you speak so slightly1 ,i would not call it by a worse name1 of the ,,government of ,,elizabeth4 ,of the manners and tastes of different ages1 different persons1 according to their views of things1 will judge very differently4 ,but plain facts speak so strongly in favour of the policy of that reign1 and the superior talents of the sovereign1 that ,i could not but take it for the wantonness of opposition in you to espouse the contrary opinion4 ,and1 now ,i am warmed by this slight skirmish1 ,i am even bold enough to dare you to a defence of it2 if1 indeed1 you were serious in advancing that strange paradox4 ,at least1 ,i could wish to hear upon what grounds you would justify so severe an attack on the reverend administration of that reign1 supported by the wisdom of such men as ,,cecil and ,,walsingham1 under the direction of so accomplished a princess as our ,,elizabeth4 ,your manner of defending even the wrong side of the question will1 at least1 be entertaining4 ,and1 ,i think1 ,i may answer for our young friend1 that his curiosity will lead him to join me in this request to you4 ,mr4 ,,addison said1 ,he did not expect to be called to so severe an account for what had escaped him on this subject4 ,but1 though ,i was ever so willing1 continued he1 to oblige you1 this is no time or place for entering on such a controversy4 ,we have not yet compleated the round of these buildings4 ,and ,i would fain1 methinks1 make the circuit of that pleasant meadow4 ,besides its having been once1 in another form1 the scene of those shows you described so largely to us1 it will deserve to be visited for the sake of the many fine views which1 as we wind along it1 we may promise to ourselves of these ruins4 ,you forget my bad legs1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot smiling2 otherwise1 ,i suppose1 we can neither of us have any dislike to your proposal4 ,but1 as you please3 let us descend from these heights4 ,we may resume the conversation1 as we walk along3 and especially1 as you propose1 when we get down into that valley4 ,,dialogue ,,iv4 ,,on ,,the ,,golden ,,age ,,of ,,queen ,,elizabeth4 ,,between ,,the ,,hon4 ,,robert ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,and ,,mr4 ,,addison4 ,,dialogue ,,iv4 ,,on ,,the ,,age ,,of ,,queen ,,elizabeth4 ,,mr4 ,,digby1 ,,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,,mr4 ,,addison4 ,but do you consider1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 as they descended into the valley1 what an invidious task you are going to impose upon me8 ,one cannot call in question a common opinion in any indifferent matter1 without the appearance of some degree of perverseness4 ,but to do it in a case of this importance1 where the greatest authorities stand in the way1 and the glory of one of our princes is concerned1 will1 ,i doubt1 be liable to the imputation of something worse than singularity4 ,for1 besides that you will be apt to upbraid me1 in the words of the poet1 ,nullum memorabile nomen ,fmine in pn est1 nec habet victoria laudem1 such a liberty of censure is usually taken for an argument1 not of discourtesy or presumption only1 but of ill-nature4 ,at best1 the attempt to arraign the virtues and government of ,,elizabeth will appear but like the idleness of the old sophists1 who1 you know1 were never so well pleased as when they were controverting some acknowledged fact1 or assaulting some established character4 ,that censure might be just enough1 ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot said1 of the old sophists1 who had nothing in view but the credit of their own skill in the arts of disputation4 ,but in this friendly debate1 which means nothing more than private amusement1 ,i see no colour for such apprehensions4 ,but what shall we say1 interposed ,mr4 ,,addison1 to another difficulty8 ,the subject is very large2 and it seems no easy matter to reduce it into any distinct order4 ,besides1 my business is not so much to advance any thing of my own1 as to object to what others have advanced concerning the fame and virtues of ,,elizabeth4 ,and to this end1 ,i must desire to know the particulars on which you are disposed to lay the greatest stress1 and indeed to have some plan of the subject delivered in to me1 which may serve1 as it were1 for the groundwork of the whole conversation4 ,i must not presume1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 to prescribe the order in which your attack on the great queen shall be conducted4 ,the subject1 indeed1 is large4 ,but this common route of history is well known to all of us4 ,to that1 then1 you may well enough refer1 without being at the trouble1 before you go to work1 of laying foundations4 ,or1 if you will needs have a basis to build upon1 what if ,i just run over the several circumstances which ,i conceive to make most for the credit of that reign8 ,a sketch of this sort1 ,i suppose1 will answer all the ends of the plan1 you seem to require of me4 ,mr4 ,,addison agreed to this proposal2 which he thought would be of use to shorten the debate1 or at least to render the progress of it more clear and intelligible4 ,in few words then1 resumed ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 the reasons1 that have principally determined me to an admiration of the government and character of queen ,,elizabeth1 are such as these3 8,that she came to the crown with all possible disadvantages2 which yet1 by the prudence and vigour of her counsels1 she entirely overcame3 that she triumphed over the greatest foreign and domestic dangers3 that she humbled the most formidable power in ,europe by her arms2 and composed1 or checked at least1 by the firmness of her administration1 ,,two1 the most implacable and fiery factions at home3 that she kept down the rebellious spirit of ,ireland1 and eluded the constant intrigues of her restless neighbours1 the ,scots3 that she fixed our religious establishment on solid grounds2 and countenanced1 or rather conducted1 the ,protestant cause abroad3 that she made her civil authority respected by her subjects2 and raised the military glory of the nation1 both by sea and land1 to the greatest height3 that she employed the ablest servants1 and enacted the wisest laws3 by all which means it came to pass that she lived in a constant good understanding with her parliaments1 was idolized by her people1 and admired and envied by all the rest of the world40 ,alas1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 ,i shall never be able to follow you through all the particulars of this encomium3 and1 to say the truth1 it would be to little purpose2 since the wisdom of her policy1 in all these instances of her government1 can only be estimated from a careful perusal of the histories of that time2 too numerous and contradictory to be compared and adjusted in this conversation4 ,all ,i can do1 continued he1 after taking a moment or two to recollect himself1 is to abate the force of this panegyric by some general observations of the ,,circumstances and ,,genius of that time2 and then to consider the personal ,,qualities of the queen1 which are thought to reflect so great a lustre on her government4 ,as you please1 ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot replied4 ,we shall hardly lose ourselves in this beaten field of history4 ,and1 besides1 as your undertaking is so adventurous1 it is but reasonable you should have the choice of your own method4 ,you are in the common opinion1 ,i perceive1 resumed ,mr4 ,,addison1 that ,,elizabeth',s government was attended with all possible disadvantages4 ,on the contrary1 it appears to me that the security and even splendour of her reign is chiefly to be accounted for from the fortunate ,,circumstances of her situation4 ,of these the ,,first1 that demands our notice1 is the great affair of religion4 ,the principles of ,,protestantism had now for many years been working among the people4 ,they had grown to that head in the short reign of ,,edward ,,vi4 that the bloody severities of his successor served only to exasperate the zeal1 with which these principles had been embraced and promoted4 ,,elizabeth1 coming to the crown at this juncture1 was determined1 as well by interest as inclination1 to take the side of the new religion4 ,i say by interest1 as well as inclination4 ,and1 ,i think1 ,i have reason for the assertion4 ,for though the persons in power1 and the clergy throughout the kingdom1 were generally professed papists2 yet they were most of them such as had conformed in king ,,edward',s days1 and were not therefore much to be feared for any tie1 their profession could really have on their consciences4 ,whereas1 on the other hand1 it was easy to see1 from many symptoms1 that the general bent of the nation was towards ,protestantism2 and that1 too1 followed with a spirit1 which must in the end prevail over all opposition4 ,under these circumstances1 then1 it was natural for the queen1 if she had not been otherwise led by her principles1 and the interest of her title1 to favour the ,reformation4 ,the truth is1 she came into it herself so heartily1 and provided so effectually for its establishment1 that we are not to wonder she became the idol of the ,reformed1 at the same time that the papal power through all ,europe was confederated against her4 ,the enthusiasm of her ,protestant subjects was prodigious4 ,it was raised by other considerations2 but confirmed in all orders of the state by the ease they felt in their deliverance from the tyranny of the church2 and in the great especially1 by the sweets they tasted in their enjoyment of the church-revenues4 ,it was1 in short1 one of those extraordinary conjunctures1 in which the public danger becomes the public security2 when religion and policy1 conscience and interest1 unite their powers to support the authority of the prince1 and to give fidelity1 vigour1 and activity to the obedience of the subject4 ,and thus it was1 continued he1 that so warm and unconquerable a zeal appeared in defence of the queen against all attempts of her enemies4 ,her people were so thoroughly ,protestant1 as to think no expence of her government too great1 provided they could but be secured from relapsing into ,popery4 ,and her parliaments were disposed to wave all disputes about the stretch of her prerogative1 from a sense of their own and the common danger4 ,in magnifying this advantage of the zeal and union of ,,elizabeth',s good subjects1 you forgot1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 that two restless and inveterate factions were contending1 all her lifetime1 within her own kingdom4 ,i am so far from forgetting that circumstance1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 that ,i esteem it ,,another of the great advantages of her situation4 ,the contrary tendencies of those factions in some respects defeated each other4 ,but the principal use of them was1 that1 by means of their practices1 some domestic plot1 or foreign alarm1 was always at hand1 to quicken the zeal and inflame the loyalty of her people4 ,but to be a little more particular about the factions of her reign4 ,the ,,papist was1 in truth1 the only one she had reason to be alarmed at4 ,the ,,puritan had but just begun to shew himself1 though indeed with that ferocity of air and feature1 which signified clearly enough what spirit he was of1 and what1 in good time1 he was likely to come to4 ,yet even he was kept in tolerable humour1 by a certain commodious policy of the queen2 which was1 so to divide her regards betwixt the ,church and the ,puritans1 as made it the interest of both to keep well with her4 ',tis true1 these last felt the weight of her resentment sometimes1 when they ventured too saucily to oppose themselves to the establishment4 ,but this was rarely1 and by halves3 and1 when checked with the most rigour1 they had the satisfaction to see their patrons continue in the highest places at court1 and1 what is more1 in the highest degree of personal favour4 ,and what doth all this shew1 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 but that she managed so well as to disarm a furious faction1 or rather make it serve against the bent of its nature1 to the wise ends of her government8 ,as to any wise ends of government1 ,i see none1 replied ,mr4 ,,addison1 deserving to be so called1 that were answered by her uncertain conduct towards the ,puritans4 ,for she neither restrained them with that severity1 which might perhaps have prevented their growth1 at first2 nor shewed them that entire indulgence1 which might have disabled their fury afterwards4 ,it is true1 this temporizing conduct was well enough adapted to prevent disturbances in her own time4 ,but large materials were laid in for that terrible combustion1 which was soon to break forth under one of her successors4 ,and so1 instead of imputing the disasters that followed1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 to the ill-government of the ,,stuarts1 you are willing to lay the whole guilt of them on this last and greatest of the ,,tudors4 ,this is a new way of defending that royal house2 and1 methinks1 they owe you no small acknowledgments for it4 ,i confess1 it never occurred to me to make that apology for them4 ,though ,i would not undertake1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 to make their apology from this1 or any other1 circumstance2 ,i do indeed believe that part of the difficulties the house of ,,stuart had to encounter1 were brought upon them by this wretched policy of their predecessor4 ,but1 waving this consideration1 ,i desire you will take notice of what ,i chiefly insist upon1 8,that the ease and security of ,,elizabeth',s administration was even favoured by the turbulent practices and clashing views of her domestic factions40 ,the ,,puritan was an instrument1 in her hands1 of controuling the church1 and of balancing the power of her ministers3 besides that this sort of people were1 of all others1 the most inveterate against the common enemy4 ,and for the ,,papists themselves 7not to insist that1 of course1 they would be strictly watched1 and that they were not1 perhaps1 so considerable as to create any immediate danger#hd71 the general abhorrence both of their principles and designs had the greatest effect in uniting more closely1 and cementing1 as it were1 the affections of the rest of her subjects4 ,so that1 whether within or without1 the common danger1 as ,i expressed it1 was the common safety4 ,still1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,i must think this a very extraordinary conclusion4 ,i have no idea of the security of the great queen1 surrounded1 as she was1 by her domestic and foreign enemies4 ,her foreign enemies1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 were less formidable than they appear at first view4 ,and ,i even make the condition of the neighbouring powers on the ,continent1 in her time1 a ,,third instance of the signal advantages of her situation4 ,it is true1 if a perfect union had subsisted between the ,catholic princes1 the papal thunders would have carried terror with them4 ,but1 as it was1 they were powerless and ineffectual4 ,the civil wars of ,france1 and its constant jealousy of ,spain1 left the queen but little to apprehend from that quarter4 ,the ,spanish empire1 indeed1 was vast1 and under the direction of a bigoted vindictive prince4 ,but the administration was odious and corrupt in every part4 ,so that wise men saw there was more of bulk than of force in that unwieldy monarchy4 ,and the successful struggles of a handful of its subjects1 inflamed by the love of liberty1 and made furious by oppression1 proclaimed its weakness to all the world4 ,it may be true1 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 that the queen had less to fear from the princes on the ,continent1 than is sometimes represented4 ,but you forget1 in this survey of the public dangers1 the distractions of ,,ireland1 and the restless intrigues of her near neighbours1 the ,,scots3 both of them assisted by ,spain2 and these last under the peculiar influence and direction of the ,,guises4 ,you shall have my opinion1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 in few words4 ,for the ,,irish distractions1 it was not the queen's intention1 or certainly it was not her fortune1 to compose them3 ,i mean1 during the greatest part of her reign2 for we are now speaking of the general tenor of her policy4 ,towards the close of it1 indeed1 she made some vigorous attempts to break the spirits of those savages4 ,and it was high time she should4 ,for1 through her faint proceedings against them1 they had grown to that insolence1 as to think of setting up for an independency on ,england4 ,nay1 the presumption of that arch-rebel ,,tyrone1 countenanced and abetted by ,spain1 seemed to threaten the queen with still further mischiefs4 ,the extreme dishonour and even peril of this situation roused her old age1 at length1 to the resolution of taking some effectual measures4 ,the preparation was great1 and suitable to the undertaking4 ,it must1 further1 be owned1 it succeeded3 but so late1 that she herself did not live to see the full effect of it4 ,however1 this success is reckoned among the glories of her reign4 ,in the mean time1 it is not considered that nothing but her ill policy1 in suffering the disorders of that country to gather to a head1 made way for this glory4 ,i call it her ill policy1 for unless it were rather owing to her excessive frugality#he one can hardly help thinking she designed to perpetuate the ,irish distractions4 ,at least1 it was agreeable to a favourite maxim of hers1 to check1 and not to suppress them4 ,and ,i think it clear1 from the manner of prosecuting the war1 that1 till this last alarm1 she never was in earnest about putting an end to it4 ,,scotland1 indeed1 demanded a more serious attention4 ,yet the weak distracted counsels of that court--a minor king--a captive queen--and the unsettled state of ,france itself1 which defeated in a good degree the malice of the ,,guises--were favourable circumstances4 ,but to be fair with you 7for ,i would appear in the light of a reasonable objector1 not a captious wrangler72 ,i allow her policy in this instance to have been considerable4 ,she kept a watchful eye on the side of ,scotland4 ,and1 though many circumstances concurred to favour her designs1 it must be owned they were not carried without much care and some wisdom4 ,i understand the value of this concession1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot4 ,it must have been no common degree of both1 that extorted it from you4 ,i decline entering further1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 into the public transactions of that reign2 if it were only that1 at this distance of time1 it may be no easy matter to determine any thing of the policy1 with which they were conducted4 ,only give me leave to add1 as a ,,fourth instance of the favourable circumstances of the time1 8,that the prerogative was then in its height1 and that a patient people allowed the queen to use it on all occasions40 ,hence the apparent vigour and firmness of her administration3 and hence the opportunity 7which is so rarely found in our country7 of directing the whole strength of the nation to any end of government1 which the glory of the prince or the public interest required4 ,what you impute to the high strain of prerogative1 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 might rather be accounted for from the ability of her government1 and the wise means she took to support it4 ,the principal of these was1 by employing the ,,greatest ,,men in the several departments of her administration4 ,every kind of merit was encouraged by her smile#hf1 or rewarded by her bounty4 ,virtue1 she knew1 would thrive best on its native stock1 a generous emulation4 ,this she promoted by all means2 by her royal countenance1 by a temperate and judicious praise1 by the wisest distribution of her preferments4 ,hence would naturally arise that confidence in the queen's counsels and undertakings1 which the servile awe of her prerogative could never have occasioned4 ,this is the true account of the loyalty1 obedience1 and fidelity1 by which her servants were distinguished4 ,and thus1 in fact1 it was that1 throughout her kingdom1 there was every where that reverence of authority#hg1 that sense of honour1 that conscience of duty1 in a word1 that gracious simplicity of manners1 which renders the age of ,,elizabeth truly ,,golden3 as presenting the fairest picture of humanity1 that is to be met with in the accounts of any people4 ,it is true1 as you say1 interposed ,mr4 ,,addison1 that this picture is a fair one4 ,but of what is it a copy8 ,of the ,,genius of the time1 or of the queen's virtues8 ,you shall judge for yourself1 after ,i have laid before you ,,two remarkable events of that age1 which could not but have the greatest effect on the public manners2 ,i mean1 ,,the ,,reformation ,,of ,,religion1 and what was introductory of it1 ,,the ,,restoration ,,of ,,letters4 ,from these1 as their proper sources1 ,i would derive the ability and fidelity of ,,elizabeth',s good subjects4 ,the passion for ,,letters was extreme4 ,the novelty of these studies1 the artifices that had been used to keep men from them1 their apparent uses1 and1 perhaps1 some confused notion of a certain diviner virtue than really belongs to them2 these causes concurred to excite a curiosity in all1 and determined those1 who had leisure1 as well as curiosity1 to make themselves acquainted with the ,greek and ,roman learning4 ,the ecclesiastics1 who1 for obvious reasons1 would be the first and most earnest in their application to letters1 were not the only persons transported with this zeal4 ,the gentry and nobility themselves were seized with it4 ,a competent knowledge of the old writers was looked upon as essential to a gentleman's education4 ,so that ,greek and ,latin became as fashionable at court in those days1 as ,french is in ours4 ,,elizabeth herself1 which ,i wonder you did not put me in mind of1 was well skilled in both#hh2 they say1 employed her leisure in making some fine translations out of either language4 ,it is easy to see what effect this general attention to letters must have on the minds of the liberal and well-educated4 ,and it was a happiness peculiar to that age1 that learning1 though cultivated with such zeal1 had not as yet degenerated into pedantry3 ,i mean1 that1 in those stirring and active times1 it was cultivated1 not so much for show1 as use2 and was not followed1 as it soon came to be1 to the exclusion of other generous and manly applications4 ,consider1 too1 the effects1 which the alterations in ,,religion had produced4 ,as they had been lately made1 as their importance was great1 and as the benefits of the change had been earned at the expence of much blood and labour3 all these considerations begot a zeal for religion1 which hardly ever appears under other circumstances4 ,this zeal had an immediate and very sensible effect on the morals of the ,reformed4 ,it improved them in every instance2 especially as it produced a cheerful submission to the government1 which had rescued them from their former slavery1 and was still their only support against the returning dangers of superstition4 ,thus religion1 acting with all its power1 and that1 too1 heightened by gratitude and even self-interest1 bound obedience on the minds of men with the strongest ties#hi4 ,and luckily for the queen1 this obedience was further secured to her by the high uncontroverted notions of royalty1 which1 at that time1 obtained amongst the people4 ,lay all this together2 and then tell me where is the wonder that a people1 now emerging out of ignorance2 uncorrupted by wealth1 and therefore undebauched by luxury2 trained to obedience1 and nurtured in simplicity2 but1 above all1 caught with the love of learning and religion1 while neither of them was worn for fashion-sake1 or1 what is worse1 perverted to the ends of vanity or ambition2 where1 say1 is the wonder that such a people should present so bright a picture of manner's to their admiring panegyrist8 ,to be fair with you2 it was one of those conjunctures1 in which the active virtues are called forth1 and rewarded4 ,the dangers of the time had roused the spirit1 and brought out all the force and genius1 of the nation4 ,a sort of enthusiasm had fired every man with the ambition of exerting the full strength of his faculties1 which way soever they pointed1 whether to the field1 the closet1 or the cabinet4 ,hence such a crop of soldiers1 scholars1 and statesmen had sprung up1 as have rarely been seen to flourish together in any country4 ,and as all owed their duty1 it was the fashion of the times for all to bring their pretensions1 to the court4 ,so that1 where the multitude of candidates was so great1 it had been strange indeed1 if an ordinary discretion had not furnished the queen with able servants of all sorts2 and the rather1 as her occasions loudly called upon her to employ the ablest4 ,i was waiting1 said ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 to see to what conclusion this career of your eloquence would at length drive you4 ,and it hath happened in this case1 as in most others where a favourite point is to be carried1 that a zeal for it is indulged1 though at the expence of some other of more importance4 ,rather than admit the personal virtues of the queen1 you fill her court1 nay1 her kingdom1 with heroes and sages3 and so have paid a higher compliment to her reign1 than ,i had intended4 ,to her reign1 if you will1 replied ,mr4 ,,addison1 so far as regards the qualities and dispositions of her subjects3 for ,i will not lessen the merit of this concession with you1 by insisting1 as ,i might1 that their manners1 respectable as they were1 were debased by the contrary1 yet very consistent1 vices of servility and insolence#ij2 and their virtues of every kind deformed by1 barbarism4 ,but1 for the queen's own merit in the choice of her servants1 ,i must take leave to declare my sentiments to you very plainly4 ,it may be true1 that she possessed a good degree of sagacity in discerning the natures and talents of men4 ,it was the virtue by which1 her admirers tell us1 she was principally distinguished4 ,yet1 that the high fame of this virtue hath been owing to the felicity of the times1 abounding in all sorts of merit1 rather than to her own judgment1 ,i think clear from this circumstance1 8,that some of the most deserving of those days1 in their several professions1 had not the fortune to attract the queen's grace1 in the proportion they might have expected40 ,i say nothing of poor ,,spenser4 ,who has any concern for a poet#ia8 ,but if merit alone had determined her majesty's choice1 it will hardly at this day admit a dispute1 that the immortal ,,hooker and ,,bacon#ib1 at least1 had ranked in another class than that1 in which this great discerner of spirits thought fit to leave them4 ,and her character2 continued he1 in every other respect is just as equivocal4 ,for having touched one part of it1 ,i now turn from these general considerations on the circumstances and genius of the time1 to our more immediate subject1 the ,,personal ,,qualities of ,,elizabeth4 ,hitherto we have stood aloof from the queen's person4 ,but there is no proceeding a step further in this debate1 unless you allow me a little more liberty4 ,may ,i then be permitted to draw the veil of ,,elizabeth',s court1 and1 by the lights which history holds out to us1 contemplate the mysteries1 that were celebrated in that awful sanctuary8 ,after so reverend a preface1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 ,i think you may be indulged in this liberty4 ,and the rather1 as ,i am not apprehensive that the honour of the illustrious queen is likely to suffer by it4 ,the secrets of her cabinet-council1 it may be1 are not to be scanned by the profane4 ,but it will be no presumption to step into the drawing-room4 ,yet ,i may be tempted1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 to use a freedom in this survey of her majesty1 that would not have been granted to her most favoured courtiers4 ,as far as ,i can judge of her character1 as displayed in that solemn scene of her court1 she had some apparent ,,virtues1 but more genuine ,,vices2 which yet1 in the public eye1 had equally the fortune to reflect a lustre on her government4 ,her gracious affability1 her love of her people1 her zeal for the national glory2 were not these her more obvious and specious qualities8 ,yet ,i doubt they were not so much the proper effects of her nature1 as her policy2 a set of spurious virtues1 begotten by the very necessity of her affairs4 ,for her ,,affability1 she saw there was no way of being secure amidst the dangers of all sorts1 with which she was surrounded2 but by ingratiating herself with the body of the people4 ,and1 though in her nature she was as little inclined to this condescension as any of her successors1 yet the expediency of this measure compelled her to save appearances4 ,and it must be owned1 she did it with grace1 and even acted her part with spirit4 ,possibly the consideration of her being a female actor1 was no disadvantage to her4 ,but1 when she had made this sacrifice to interest1 her proper temper shewed itself clearly enough in the treatment of her nobles1 and of all that came within the verge of the court4 ,her caprice1 and jealousy1 and haughtiness1 appeared in a thousand instances4 ,she took offence so easily1 and forgave so difficultly1 that even her principal ministers could hardly keep their ground1 and were often obliged to redeem her favour by the lowest submissions4 ,when nothing else would do1 they sickened1 and were even at death's door3 from which peril1 however1 she would sometimes relieve them2 but not till she had exacted from them1 in the way of penance1 a course of the most mortifying humiliations4 ,nay1 the very ladies of her court had no way to maintain their credit with her1 but by1 submitting patiently to the last indignities4 ,it is allowed1 from the instances you have in view1 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 that her nature was something high and imperious4 ,but these sallies of passion might well enough consist with her general character of affability4 ,hardly1 as ,i conceive1 answered ,mr4 ,,addison1 if you reflect that these sallies1 or rather habits of passion1 were the daily terror and vexation of all about her4 ,her very minions seemed raised for no other purpose1 than the exercise of her ill-humour4 ,they were encouraged1 by her smile1 to presume on the royal countenance1 and then beaten down again in punishment of that presumption4 ,but1 to say the truth1 the slavish temper of the time was favourable to such exertions of female caprice and tyranny4 ,her imperious father1 all whose virtues1 she inherited1 had taught her a sure way to quell the spirit of her nobles4 ,they had been long used to stand in awe of the royal frown4 ,and the people were pleased to find their betters ruled with so high a hand1 at a time when they themselves were addressed with every expression of respect1 and even flattery4 ,she even carried this mockery so far1 that1 as ,,harrington observes well1 8she converted her reign1 through the perpetual love-tricks that passed between her and her people1 into a kind of romance40 ,and though that political projector1 in prosecution of his favourite notion1 supposes the queen to have been determined to these intrigues by observing1 that the weight of property was fallen into the popular scale2 yet we need look no further for an account of this proceeding1 than the inherent haughtiness of her temper4 ,she gratified the insolence of her nature1 in neglecting1 or rather beating down1 her nobility1 whose greatness might seem to challenge respect3 while the court1 she paid to the people1 revolted her pride less1 as passing only upon herself1 as well as others1 for a voluntary act of affability4 ,just as we every day see very proud men carry it with much loftiness towards their equals1 or those who and raised to some nearness of degree to themselves2 at the same time that they affect a sort of courtesy to such1 as are confessedly beneath them4 ,you see1 then1 what her boasted affability comes to4 ,she gave good words to her people1 whom it concerned her to be well with1 and whom her pride itself allowed her to manage3 she insulted her nobles1 whom she had in her power1 and whose abasement flattered the idea1 she doted upon1 of her own superiority and importance#ic4 ,let the queen's manner of treating her subjects be what it would1 ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot said1 it appears to have given no offence in those days1 when the sincerity of her intentions was never questioned4 ,her whole life is a convincing argument2 that she bore the most entire affection to her people4 ,,her ,,love ,,of ,,her ,,people1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison hastily1 is with me a very questionable virtue4 ,for what account shall we give of the multitude of penal statutes1 passed in her reign8 ,or1 because you will say1 there was some colour for these2 what excuse shall we make for her frequent grants of monopolies1 so ruinous to the public wealth and happiness1 and so perpetually complained of by her parliaments8 ,you will say1 she recalled them4 ,she did so4 ,but not till the general indignation had1 in a manner1 forced her to recall them4 ,if by her people1 be meant those of the poorer and baser sort only1 it may be allowed1 she seemed on all occasions willing to spare them4 ,but for those of better rank and fortune1 she had no such consideration4 ,on the other hand1 she contrived in many ways to pillage and distress them4 ,it was the tameness of that time1 to submit to every imposition of the sovereign4 ,she had only to command her gentry on any service she thought fit1 and they durst not decline it4 ,how many of her wealthiest and best subjects did she impoverish by these means 7though under colour1 you may be sure1 of her high favour72 and sometimes by her very visits6 ,i will not be certain1 added he1 that her visit to this pompous castle of her own ,,leicester1 had any other intention4 ,but what1 above all1 are we to think of her vow of celibacy1 and her obstinate refusal to settle the succession1 though at the constant hazard of the public peace and safety8 ,you are hard put to it1 ,i perceive1 interrupted4 ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 to impeach the character of the queen in this instance1 when a few penal laws1 necessary to the support of her crown in that time of danger2 one wrong measure of her government1 and that corrected2 the ordinary use of her prerogative2 and even her virginity2 are made crimes of4 ,but ,i am curious to hear what you have to object to her ,,zeal ,,for ,,the ,,english ,,glory1 carried so high in her reign2 and the single point1 as it seems to me1 to which all her measures and all her counsels were directed4 ,the ,english glory1 ,mr4 ,,addison said1 may1 perhaps1 mean the state and independency of the crown4 ,and then1 indeed1 ,i have little to object4 ,but1 in any other sense of the word1 ,i have sometimes presumed to question with myself1 if it had not been better consulted1 by more effectual assistance of the ,reformed on the ,continent2 by a more vigorous prosecution of the war against ,spain#id2 as ,i hinted before1 by a more complete reduction of ,ireland4 ,but say1 we are no judges of those high matters4 ,what glory accrued to the ,english name1 by the insidious dealing with the queen of ,scots2 by the vindictive proceedings against the duke of ,norfolk2 by the merciless persecutions of the unhappy earl of ,essex8 ,the same spirit1 you see1 continued from the beginning of this reign to the end of it4 ,and the observation is the better worth attending to1 because some have excused the queen's treatment of ,,essex by saying1 8,that her nature1 in that decline of life1 was somewhat clouded by apprehensions2 as the horizon1 they observe1 in the evening of the brightest day1 is apt to be obscured by vapours#ie40 ,as if this fanciful simile1 which illustrates perhaps1 could excuse1 the perverseness of the queen's temper2 or1 as if that could deserve to pass for an incident of age1 which operated through life2 and so declares itself to have been the proper result of her nature4 ,you promised1 interposed ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 not to pry too closely into the secrets of the cabinet4 ,and such ,i must needs esteem the points to be1 which you have mentioned4 ,but enough of these beaten topics4 ,i would rather attend you in the survey you promised to take of her court1 and of the princely qualities that adorned it4 ,it is from what passes in the inside of his palace1 rather than from some questionable public acts1 that the real character of a prince is best determined4 ,and there1 methinks1 you have a scene opened to you1 that deserves your applause4 ,nothing appears but what is truly royal4 ,nobody knew better1 than ,,elizabeth1 how to support the decorum of her rank4 ,she presided in that high orb with the dignity of a great queen4 ,in all emergencies of danger1 she shewed a firmness1 and1 on all occasions of ceremony1 a magnificence1 that commanded respect and admiration4 ,her very diversions were tempered with a severity becoming her sex and place1 and which made her court1 even in its lightest and gayest humours1 a school of virtue4 ,these are the points1 concluded he1 ,i could wish you to speak to4 ,the rest may be left to the judgment of the historian1 or rather to the curiosity of the nice and critical politician4 ,you shall be obeyed1 ,mr4 ,,addison said4 ,i thought it not amiss to take off the glare of those applauded qualities1 which have dazzled the public at a distance1 by shewing that they were either feigned or over-rated4 ,but ,i come now to unmask the real character of this renowned princess4 ,i shall paint her freely indeed1 but truly as she appears to me4 ,and1 to speak my mind at once2 ,i think it is not so much to her virtues1 which at best were equivocal1 as to her very ,,vices1 that we are to impute the popular admiration of her character and government4 ,i before took notice of the high1 indecent ,,passion1 she discovered towards her courtiers4 ,this fierceness of temper in the softer sex was taken for heroism2 and1 falling in with the slavish principles of the age1 begot a degree of reverence in her subjects1 which a more equal1 that is a more becoming1 deportment would not have produced4 ,hence1 she was better served than most of our princes1 only because she was more feared2 in other words1 because she less deserved to be so4 ,but high as she would often carry herself in this unprincely1 ,i had almost said1 unwomanly1 treatment of her servants2 awing the men by her oaths1 and her women by blows2 it is still to be remembered1 that she had a great deal of natural ,,timidity in her constitution4 ,what6 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot hastily1 the magnanimous ,,elizabeth a coward8 ,i should as soon have expected that charge against ,c,,sar himself1 or your own ,,marlborough4 ,i distinguish1 ,mr4 ,,addison said1 betwixt a parade of courage1 put on to serve a turn1 and keep her people in spirits1 and that true greatness of mind1 which1 in one word1 we call magnanimity4 ,for this last1 ,i repeat it1 she either had it not1 or not in the degree in which it has been ascribed to her4 ,on the contrary1 ,i see a littleness1 a pusillanimity1 in her conduct on a thousand occasions4 ,hence it was1 that both to her people and such of the neighbouring states as she stood in awe of1 she used an excessive hypocrisy1 which1 in the language of the court1 you may be sure1 was called policy4 ,to the ,hollanders1 indeed1 she could talk big2 and it was not her humour to manage those over whom she had gained an ascendant4 ,this has procured her1 with many1 the commendation of a princely magnanimity4 ,but1 on the other hand1 when discontents were apprehended from her subjects1 or when ,france was to be diverted from any designs against her1 no art was forgotten that might cajole their spirits with all the professions of cordiality and affection4 ,then she was wedded1 that was the tender word1 to her people3 and then the interest of religion itself was sacrificed by this ,protestant queen to her newly-perverted brother on the ,continent4 ,her foible1 in this respect1 was no secret to her ministers4 ,but1 above all1 it was practised upon most successfully by the ,lord ,,burghley2 8for whom1 as ,i have seem it observed1 it was as necessary that there should be treasons1 as for the state that they should be prevented#if40 ,hence it was1 that he was perpetually raising her fears1 by the discovery of some plot1 or1 when that was wanting1 by the proposal of some law for her greater security4 ,in short1 he was for ever finding1 or making1 or suggesting1 dangers4 ,the queen1 though she would look big 7for indeed she was an excellent actress71 startled at the shadows of those dangers1 the slightest rumours4 ,and to this convenient timidity of his mistress1 so constantly alarmed1 and relieved in turn by this wily minister1 was owing1 in a good degree1 that long and unrivalled interest1 he held in her favour4 ,still1 further1 to this constitutional fear 7which might be forgiven to her sex1 if it had not been so strangely mixed with a more than masculine ferocity in other instances7 must be ascribed those favourite maxims of policy1 which ran through her whole government4 ,never was prince more attached to the ,machiavelian doctrine1 ,,divide ,,et ,,impera1 than our ,,elizabeth#ig4 ,it made the soul of her policies1 domestic and foreign4 ,she countenanced the two prevailing factions of the time4 ,the ,churchmen and ,puritans divided her favour so equally1 that her favourites were sure to be the chiefs of the contending parties4 ,nay1 her court was a constant scene of cabals and personal animosities4 ,she gave a secret1 and sometimes an open1 countenance to these jealousies4 ,the same principle directed all her foreign#ih negociations4 ,and are you not aware1 interrupted ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 that this objected policy is the very topic that ,i1 and every other admirer of the queen1 would employ in commendation of her great ability in the art of government8 ,it has been the fate of too many of our princes 7and perhaps some late examples might be given7 to be governed1 and even insulted1 by a prevailing party of their own subjects4 ,,elizabeth was superior to such attempts4 ,she had no bye-ends to pursue4 ,she frankly threw herself on her people4 ,and1 secure in their affection1 could defeat at pleasure1 or even divert herself with1 the intrigues of this or that aspiring faction4 ,we understand you1 ,mr4 ,,addison replied2 but when two parties are contending within a state1 and one of them only in its true interest1 the policy is a little extraordinary that should incline the sovereign to discourage this1 from the poor ambition of controuling that1 or1 as you put it still worse1 from the dangerous humour of playing with both parties4 ,i say nothing of later times4 ,i only ask2 if it was indifferent1 whether the counsels of the ,,cecils or of ,,leicester were predominant in that reign8 ,but ,i mentioned these things before1 and ,i touch them again now1 only to shew you1 that this conduct1 however it may be varnished over by the name of wisdom1 had too much the air of fearful womanish intrigue1 to consist with that heroical firmness and intrepidity so commonly ascribed to queen ,,elizabeth#ii4 ,and what if1 after all1 ,i should admit1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 that1 in the composition of a woman's courage1 at least1 there might be some scruples of discretion8 ,is there any advantage1 worth contending for1 you could draw from such a concession8 ,or1 because you would be thought serious1 ,i will put the matter more gravely4 ,the arts of prudence1 you arraign so severely1 could not be taken for pusillanimity4 ,they certainly were not1 in her own time2 for she was not the less esteemed or revered by all the nations of ,europe on account of them4 ,the most you can fairly conclude is1 that she knew how to unite address with bravery1 and that1 on occasion1 she could dissemble her high spirit4 ,the difficulties of her situation obliged her to this management4 ,rather say at once1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 that the constant dissimulation1 for which she was so famous1 was assumed to supply the want of a better thing1 which had rendered all those arts as unnecessary as they were ignoble4 ,but haughtiness and timidity1 pursued he1 were not the only vices that turned to good account in the queen's hands4 ,she was frugal beyond all bounds of decorum in a prince1 or rather ,,avaricious beyond all reasonable excuse from the public wants and the state of her revenue4 ,nothing is more certain than this fact1 from the allowance both of friends and enemies4 ,it seems as if1 in this respect1 her father's example had not been sufficient2 and that1 to complete her character1 she had incorporated with many of his1 the leading vice of her grandfather4 ,here ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot could not contain himself2 and the castle happening at that time1 from the point where they stood1 to present the most superb prospect1 8,look there1 said he1 on the striking1 though small1 remnants of that grandeur you just now magnified so much2 and tell me if1 in your conscience1 you can believe such grants are the signs1 or were the effects1 of avarice4 ,for you are not to learn1 that this palace before us is not the only one in the kingdom1 which bears the memory of the queen's bounty to her servants40 ,mr4 ,,addison seemed a little struck with the earnestness of this address3 8,it is true1 said he1 the queen's fondness for one or two of her favourites made her sometimes lavish of her grants2 especially of what cost her nothing1 and did not1 it seems1 offend the delicacy of her scruples2 ,i mean1 of the church-lands4 ,but at the same time her treasury was shut against her ambassadors and foreign ministers2 who complain of nothing more frequently than the slenderness of their appointments1 and the small and slow remittances that were made to them4 ,this frugality 7for ,i must not call it by a worse name7 distressed the public service on many occasions#ajj2 and would have done it on more1 if the zeal of her trusty servants had not been content to carry it on at the expence of their own fortunes4 ,how many instances might be given of this1 if ,,one were not more than sufficient1 and which all posterity will remember with indignation6 ,you speak of ,,walsingham1 interposed ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot4 ,but were it not more candid to impute the poverty of that minister to his own generous contempt of riches1 which he had doubtless many1 fair occasions of procuring to himself1 than to any designed neglect of him by his mistress8 ,the candour1 returned ,mr4 ,,addison1 must be very extraordinary1 that can find an excuse for the queen in a circumstance that doubles her disgrace4 ,but be it as you pretend4 ,the uncommon moderation of the man shall be a cover to the queen's parsimony4 ,it was not1 we will say1 for this wise princess to provoke an appetite for wealth in her servants3 it was enough that she gratified it1 on proper occasions1 where she found it already raised4 ,and in this proceeding1 no doubt1 she was governed by a tender regard1 for their honour1 as well as her own interest4 ,for how is her great secretary ennobled1 by filling a place in the short list of those worthies1 who1 having lived and died in the service of their countries1 have left not so much as a pittance behind them1 to carry them to their graves6 ,all this is very well4 ,but when she had indulged this humour in one or two of her favourites1 and suffered them1 for example's sake1 to ascend to these heights of honour1 it was going1 methinks1 a little too far1 to expect the same delicacy of virtue in all her courtiers4 ,yet it was not her fault1 if most of them did not reap this fame of illustrious poverty1 as well as ,,walsingham4 ,she dealt by them1 indeed1 as if she had ranked poverty1 as well as celibacy1 among the cardinal virtues4 ,in the mean time1 ,i would not deny that she had a princely fondness for shew and appearance4 ,she took a pride in the brilliancy of her court4 ,she delighted in the large trains of her nobility4 ,she required to be royally entertained by them4 ,and she thought her honour concerned in the figure they made in foreign courts1 and in the wars4 ,but1 if she loved this pomp1 she little cared to furnish the expence of it4 ,she considered in good earnest 7as some have observed1 who would have the observation pass for a compliment#aja7 the purses of her subjects as her own2 and seemed to reckon on their being always open to her on any occasion of service1 or even ceremony4 ,she carried this matter so far1 that the very expences of her wars were rather defrayed out of the private purses of her nobility1 than the public treasury4 ,as if she had taken it for a part of her prerogative to impoverish her nobles at pleasure2 or rather1 as if she had a mind to have it thought that one of their privileges was1 to be allowed to ruin themselves from a zeal to her service4 ,but the queen's avarice1 proceeded he1 did not only appear from her excessive parsimony in the management of the public treasure1 but from her rapacity in getting what she could from particulars into her privy purse4 ,hence it was that all offices1 and even personal favours1 were in a manner set to sale4 ,for it was a rule with her majesty1 to grant no suit but for a reasonable consideration4 ,so that whoever pretended to any place of profit or honour was sure to send a jewel1 or other rich present beforehand1 to prepare her mind for the entertainment of his petition4 ,and to what other purpose was it that she kept her offices so long vacant1 but to give more persons an opportunity of winning a preference in her favour2 which for the most part inclined to those who had appeared1 in this interval1 to deserve it best8 ,nay1 the slightest disgust1 which she frequently took on very frivolous occasions1 could not be got over but by the reconciling means of some valuable or well fancied present4 ,and1 what was most grievous1 she sometimes accepted the present1 without remitting the offence4 ,i remember a ridiculous instance of this sort4 ,when the ,lady ,,leicester wanted to obtain the pardon of her unfortunate son1 the ,lord ,,essex1 she presented the queen with an exceeding rich gown1 to the value of above an hundred pounds4 ,she was well pleased with the gift1 but thought no more of the pardon4 ,we need not1 after this1 wonder at what is said of her majesty's leaving a prodigious quantity of jewels and plate behind her1 and even a crowded wardrobe4 ,for so prevalent was this thrifty humour in the queen's highness1 that she could not persuade herself to part with so much1 as a cast-gown to any of her servants#ajb4 ,you allow yourself to be very gay1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 on this foible of the great queen4 ,but one thing you forget1 that it never biased her judgment so far as to prevent a fit choice of her servants on all occasions#ajc4 ,and1 as to her wary management of the public revenue1 which you take a pleasure to exaggerate1 this1 methinks1 is a venial fault in a prince1 who could not1 in her circumstances2 have provided for the expences of government1 but by the nicest and most attentive economy4 ,i understand1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 the full force of that consideration2 and believe it was that attention principally1 which occasioned the popularity of her reign1 and the high esteem1 in which the wisdom of her government is held to this day4 ,the bulk of her subjects were1 no doubt1 highly pleased to find themselves spared on all occasions of expence4 ,and it served at the same time1 to gratify their natural envy of the great1 to find1 that their fortunes were first and principally sacrificed to the public service4 ,nay1 ,i am not sure that the very rapacity of her nature1 in the sale of her offices1 was any objection with the people at large1 or even the lower gentry of the kingdom4 ,for these1 having no pretensions themselves to those offices1 would be well enough pleased to see them not bestowed on their betters1 but dearly purchased by them4 ,and then this traffic at court furnished the inferior gentry with a pretence for making the most of their magistracies4 ,this practice at least must have been very notorious amongst them1 when a facetious member of the lower house could define a justice of peace to be1 8,a living creature1 that for half a dozen of chickens1 will dispense with a whole dozen of penal statutes#ajd40 ,but1 however this be1 the queen's ends1 in every view1 were abundantly answered4 ,she enriched herself3 she gained the affections of the people1 and depressed and weakened the nobility4 ,and by all these ways she effectually provided for1 what she had ever most at heart1 her own supreme and uncontrolled authority4 ,and is that to be wondered at in a great prince8 returned ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot4 ,or1 to take the matter in the light you place it1 what if the queen had so much of her sex#aje and family in her disposition1 as to like well enough to have her own way1 is this such a crime as you would make of it8 ,if she loved power1 it was not to make a wanton or oppressive use of it4 ,and if all princes knew as well to bound their own wills1 as she did1 we should not much complain of their impatience to be under the control of their subjects4 ,i am sorry1 said ,mr4 ,,addison1 that the acts of her reign will not allow me to come into this opinion of her moderation4 ,on the other hand1 her government appears to me1 in many instances1 ,,oppressive1 and highly prejudicial to the ancient rights and privileges of her people4 ,for what other construction can we make of her frequent interposition to restrain the counsels of their representatives in parliament3 threatening some1 imprisoning others1 and silencing all with the thunder of her prerogative8 ,or1 when she had suffered their counsels to ripen into bills1 what shall we say of her high and mighty rejection of them1 and that not in single and extraordinary cases1 but in matters of ordinary course1 and by dozens8 ,i pass by other instances4 ,but was her moderation seen in dilapidating the revenues of the church2 of that church1 which she took under the wing of her supremacy1 and would be thought to have sheltered from all its enemies#ajf4 ,the honest archbishop ,,parker1 ,i have heard1 ventured to remonstrate against this abuse1 the cognizance of which came so directly within his province4 ,but to what effect1 may be gathered1 not only from the continuance of these depredations1 but her severe reprehension of another of her bishops1 whom she threatened with an oath to ,,unfrock--that was her majesty's own word--if he did not immediately give way to her princely extortions4 ,it may be hardly worth while to take notice of smaller matters4 ,but who does not resent her capricious tyranny1 in disgracing such of her servants as presumed to deviate1 on any pretence1 from her good pleasure2 nay1 such as gave an implicit obedience to her will1 if it stood with her interest to disgrace them8 ,something1 ,i know1 may be said to excuse the proceedings against the queen of ,scots4 ,but the fate of ,,davison will reflect eternal dishonour on the policy1 with which that measure was conducted4 ,i run over these things hastily1 continued ,mr4 ,,addison1 and in no great order3 but you will see what to conclude from these hints2 which taken together1 ,i believe1 may furnish a proper answer to the most considerable parts of your apology4 ,to sum it up in few words4 ,those two great events of her time1 ,,the ,,establishment ,,of ,,the ,,reformation1 and ,,the ,,triumph ,,over ,,the ,,power ,,of ,,spain1 cast an uncommon lustre on the reign of ,,elizabeth4 ,posterity1 dazzled with these obvious successes1 went into an excessive admiration of her personal virtues4 ,and what has served to brighten them the more1 is the place in which we chance to find her1 between the bigot queen on the one hand1 and the pedant king on the other4 ,no wonder then that1 on the first glance1 her government should appear able1 and even glorious4 ,yet1 in looking into particulars1 we find that much is to be attributed to fortune1 as well as skill2 and that her glory is even lessened by considerations1 which1 on a careless view1 may seem to augment it4 ,the difficulties1 she had to encounter1 were great4 ,yet these very difficulties1 of themselves1 created the proper means to surmount them4 ,they sharpened the wits1 inflamed the spirits1 and united the affections1 of a whole people4 ,the name of her great enemy on the continent1 at that time1 carried terror with it4 ,yet his power was1 in reality1 much less than it appeared4 ,the ,spanish empire was corrupt and weak1 and tottered under its own weight4 ,but this was a secret even to the ,spaniard himself4 ,in the mean time1 the confidence1 which the opinion of great strength inspires1 was a favourable circumstance4 ,it occasioned a remissness and neglect of counsel on one side1 in proportion as it raised the utmost vigilance and circumspection on the other4 ,but this was not all4 ,the religious feuds in the ,low ,countries--the civil wars in ,france--the distractions of ,scotland--all concurred to advance the fortunes of ,,elizabeth4 ,yet all had1 perhaps1 been too little in that grand crisis of her fate1 and1 as it fell out1 of her glory1 if the conspiring elements themselves had not fought for her4 ,such is the natural account of her foreign triumphs4 ,her domestic successes admit as easy a solution4 ,those external dangers themselves1 the genius of the time1 the state of religious parties1 nay1 the very factions of her court1 all of them directly1 or by the slightest application of her policy1 administered to her greatness4 ,such was the condition of the times1 that it forced her to assume the resemblance1 at least1 of some popular virtues3 and so singular her fortune1 that her very vices became as respectable1 perhaps more useful to her reputation1 than her virtues4 ,she was vigilant in her counsels2 careful in the choice of her servants2 courteous and condescending to her subjects4 ,she appeared to have an extreme tenderness for the interests1 and an extreme zeal for the honour1 of the nation4 ,this was the bright side of her character2 and it shone the brighter from the constant and imminent dangers1 to which she was exposed4 ,on the other hand1 she was choleric1 and imperious2 jealous1 timid1 and avaricious3 oppressive1 as far as she durst2 in many cases capricious1 in some tyrannical4 ,yet these vices1 some of them sharpened and refined her policy1 and the rest1 operating chiefly towards her courtiers and dependents1 strengthened her authority1 and rooted her more firmly in the hearts of the people4 ,the mingled splendour of these qualities1 good and bad 7for even her worst had the luck1 when seen but on one side1 or in well-disposed lights to look like good ones7 so far dazzled the eyes of all1 that they did not1 or would not1 see many outrageous acts of tyranny and oppression4 ,and thus it hath come to pass that1 with some ability1 more cunning1 and little real virtue1 the name of ,,elizabeth is1 by the concurrence of many accidental causes1 become the most revered of any in the long roll of our princes4 ,how little she merited this honour1 may appear from this slight sketch of her character and government4 ,yet1 when all proper abatement is made in both1 ,i will not deny her to have been a great1 that is1 a fortunate1 queen2 in this1 perhaps1 the most fortunate1 that she has attained to so unrivalled a glory with so few pretensions to deserve it4 ,and so1 replied ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 you have concluded your invective in full form1 and rounded it1 as the ancient orators used to do1 with all the advantage of a peroration4 ,but1 setting aside this trick of eloquence1 which is apt indeed to confound a plain man1 unused to such artifices1 ,i see not but you have left the argument much as you took it up2 and that ,i may still have leave to retain my former reverence for the good old times of queen ,,elizabeth4 ,it is true1 she had some foibles4 ,you have spared1 ,i believe1 none of them4 ,but1 to make amends for these defects1 let but the history of her reign speak for her1 ,i mean in its own artless language1 neither corrupted by flattery1 nor tortured by invidious glosses2 and we must ever conceive of her1 ,i will not say as the most faultless1 perhaps not the most virtuous1 but surely the most able1 and1 from the splendour of some leading qualities1 the most glorious of our ,english monarchs4 ,to give you my notion of her in few ,words4--,for the dispute1 ,i find1 must end1 as most others usually do1 in the simple representation of our own notions4--,she was discreet1 frugal1 provident1 and sagacious2 intent on the pursuit of her great ends1 the establishment of religion1 and the security and honour of her people3 prudent in the choice of the best means to effect them1 the employment of able servants1 and the management of the public revenue2 dexterous at improving all advantages which her own wisdom or the circumstances of the times gave her3 fearless and intrepid in the execution of great designs1 yet careful to unite the deepest foresight with her magnanimity4 ,if she seemed ,,avaricious1 let it be considered that the nicest frugality was but necessary in her situation3 if ,,imperious1 that a female government needed to be made respectable by a shew of authority3 and if at any time ,,oppressive1 that the ,english constitution1 as it then stood1 as well as her own nature1 had a good deal of that bias4 ,in a word1 let it be remembered1 that she had the honour of ruling#ajg1 perhaps of forming1 the wisest1 the bravest1 the most1 virtuous people1 that have adorned any age or country2 and that she advanced the glory of the ,english name and that of her own dignity to a height1 which has no parallel in the annals of our nation4 ,mr4 ,,digby1 who had been very attentive to the course of this debate1 was a little disappointed with the conclusion of it4 ,he thought to have settled his judgment of this reign by the information his two friends should afford him4 ,but he found himself rather perplexed by their altercations1 than convinced by them4 ,he owned1 however1 the pleasure they had given him2 and said1 he had profited so much at least by the occasion1 that1 for the future1 he should conceive with something less reverence of the great queen1 and should proceed with less prejudice to form his opinion of her character and administration4 ,mr4 ,,addison did not appear quite satisfied with this sceptical conclusion2 and was going to enforce some things1 which he thought had been touched too slightly1 when ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot took notice that their walk was now at an end2 the path1 they had taken1 having by this time brought them round again to the walls of the castle4 ,besides1 he said1 he found himself much wearied with this exercise2 though the warmth of debate1 and the opportunities he took of resting himself at times1 had kept him from complaining of it4 ,he proposed1 therefore1 getting into the coach as soon as possible2 where1 though the conversation was in some sort resumed1 there was nothing material enough advanced on either side to make it necessary for me to continue this recital any further4 ,,dialogue ,v4 ,,on ,,the ,,constitution ,,of ,,the ,,english ,,government4 ,,between ,,sir ,,john ,,maynard1 ,,mr4 ,,somers1 ,,and ,,bishop ,,burnet4 ,,dialogue ,v4 ,,on ,,the ,,constitution ,,of ,,the ,,english ,,government4 ,,sir ,,john ,,maynard1 ,,mr4 ,,somers1 ,,bishop ,,burnet#ajh4 ,,to ,,dr4 ,,tillotson4 ,though the principles of nature and common sense do fully authorise resistance to the civil magistrate in extreme cases1 and of course justify the late ,revolution to every candid and dispassionate man2 yet ,i am sensible1 my excellent friend1 there are many prejudices which hinder the glorious proceedings in that affair from being seen in their true light4 ,the principal of them1 indeed1 are founded on false systems of policy1 and those tied down on the consciences of men by wrong notions of religion4 ,and such as these1 no doubt1 through the experience of a better government1 and a juster turn of thinking1 which may be expected to prevail in our times1 will gradually fall away of themselves4 ,but there is another set of notions on this subject1 not so easy to be discredited1 and which are likely to keep their hold on the minds even of the more sober and considerate sort of men4 ,for whatever advantage the cause of liberty may receive from general reasonings on the origin and nature of civil government1 the greater part of our countrymen will consider1 and perhaps rightly1 the inquiry into the constitution of their own government1 as a question of ,,fact2 that must be tried by authorities and precedents only2 and decided at last by the evidence of historical testimony1 not by the conclusions of philosophy or political speculation4 ,now1 though we are agreed that this way of managing the controversy must1 when fully and fairly pursued1 be much in favour of the new settlement1 yet neither1 ,i think1 is it for every man's handling1 nor is the evidence resulting from it of a nature to compel our assent4 ,the argument is formed on a vast variety of particulars1 to be collected only from a large and intimate acquaintance with the antiquities1 laws1 and usages of the kingdom4 ,our printed histories are not only very short and imperfect2 but the original records1 which the curious have in their possession1 are either so obscure or so scanty1 that a willing adversary hath always in readiness some objection1 or some cavil at least1 to oppose to the evidence that may be drawn from them4 ,besides1 appearances1 even in the plainest and most unquestioned parts of our history1 are sometimes so contradictory2 arising either from the tyranny of the prince1 the neglect of the people1 or some other circumstance of the times2 and1 to crown all1 the question itself hath been so involved by the disputations of prejudiced and designing men2 that the more intelligent inquirer is almost at a loss to determine for himself1 on which side the force of evidence lies4 ,on this account ,i have frequently thought with myself1 that a right good ,,constitutional ,,history of ,england would be the noblest service that any man1 duly qualified for the execution of such a work1 could render to his country4 ,for though1 as ,i said1 the subject be obscure in itself1 and perplexed by the subtilties which contending parties have invented for the support of their several schemes2 yet1 from all ,i have been able to observe in the course of my own reading1 or conversation1 there is little doubt but that the form of the ,english government hath1 at all times1 been ,,free4 ,so that1 if such a history were drawn up with sufficient care out of our authentic papers and public monuments1 it would not only be matter of entertainment to the curious1 but the greatest security to every ,englishman of his religions and civil rights4 ,for what can be conceived1 more likely to preserve and perpetuate these rights1 than the standing evidence which such a work would afford1 of the genuine spirit and temper of the constitution8 ,of the principles of freedom#aji1 on which it was formed1 and on which it hath been continually and uniformly conducted8 ,our youth1 who at present amuse themselves with little more than the military part of our annals1 would then have an easy opportunity of seeing to the bottom of all our civil and domestic broils4 ,they would know on what pretences the ,,prerogative of our kings hath sometimes aspired to exalt itself above controul2 and would learn to revere the magnanimity of their forefathers1 who as constantly succeeded in their endeavours to reduce it within the ancient limits and boundaries of the ,,law4 ,in a word1 they would no longer rest on the surface and outside1 as it were1 of the ,english affairs1 but would penetrate the interior parts of our constitution2 and furnish themselves with a competent degree of civil and political wisdom2 the most solid fruit that can be gathered from the knowledge and experience of past times4 ,and ,i am ready to think that such a provision as this1 for the instruction of the ,english youth1 may be the more requisite1 on account of that limited indeed1 yet awful form of government1 under which we live4 ,for1 besides the name1 and other ensigns of majesty1 in common with those who wear the most despotic crown1 the whole execution of our laws1 and the active part of government1 is in the hands of the prince4 ,and this pre-eminence gives him so respectable a figure in the eyes of his subjects1 and presents him so constantly1 and with such lustre of authority1 to their minds1 that it is no wonder they are sometimes disposed to advance him1 from the rank of first magistrate of a free people1 into that of supreme and sole arbiter of the laws4 ,so that1 unless these prejudices are corrected by the knowledge of our constitutional history1 there is constant reason to apprehend1 not only that the royal authority may stretch itself beyond due bounds2 but may grow1 at length1 into that enormous tyranny1 from which this nation hath been at other times so happily1 and now of late so wonderfully1 redeemed4 ,but ,i suffer myself to be carried by these reflexions much further than ,i designed4 ,i would only say to you1 that1 having sometimes reflected very seriously on this subject1 it was with the highest pleasure ,i heard it discoursed of the other day by two of the most accomplished lawyers of our age3 the venerable ,sir ,,john ,,maynard1 who1 for a long course of years1 hath maintained the full credit and dignity of his profession2 and ,mr4 ,,somers1 who1 though a young man1 is rising apace1 and with proportionable merits1 into all the honours of it4 ,i was very attentive1 as you may suppose1 to the progress of this remarkable conversation2 and1 as ,i had the honour to bear a full share in it myself1 ,i may the rather undertake to give you a particular account of it4 ,i know the pleasure it will give you to see a subject1 you have much at heart1 and which we have frequently talked over in the late times1 thoroughly1 canvassed1 and cleared up2 as ,i think it must be1 to your entire satisfaction4 ,it was within a day or two after that great event1 so pleasing to all true ,englishmen1 ,,the ,,coronation ,,of ,,their ,,majesties#aaj1 that ,mr4 ,,somers and ,i went2 as we sometimes used1 to pass an evening with our excellent friend1 my ,lord ,commissioner#aaa4 ,i shall not need to attempt his character to you1 who know him so well4 ,it is enough to say1 that his faculties and spirits are1 even in this maturity of age1 in great vigour4 ,and it seems as if this joyful ,revolution1 so agreeable to his hopes and principles1 had given a fresh spring and elasticity to both4 ,the conversation of course turned on the late august ceremony2 the mention of which awakened a sort of rapture in the good old man1 which made him overflow in his meditations upon it4 ,seeing us in admiration of the zeal which transported him1 8,bear with me1 said he1 my young friends4 ,age1 you know1 hath its privilege4 ,and it may be1 ,i use it somewhat unreasonably4 ,but ,i1 who have seen the prize of liberty contending for through half a century1 to find it obtained at last by a method so sure1 and yet so unexpected1 do you think it possible that ,i should contain myself on such an occasion8 ,oh1 if ye had lived with me in those days1 when such mighty struggles were made for public freedom1 when so many wise counsels miscarried1 and so many generous enterprises concluded but in the confirmation of lawless tyranny2 if1 ,i say1 ye had lived in those days1 and now at length were able to contrast with me1 to the tragedies that were then acted1 this safe1 this bloodless1 this complete deliverance3 ,i am mistaken1 if the youngest of you could reprove me for this joy1 which makes me think ,i can never say enough on so delightful a subject4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,reprove you1 my lord8 ,alas6 we are neither of us so unexperienced in what hath passed of late in these kingdoms1 as not to rejoice with you to the utmost for this astonishing deliverance4 ,you know ,i might boast of being among the first that wished for1 ,i will not say projected1 the measures by which it hath been accomplished4 ,and for ,mr4 ,,somers1 the church of ,england will tell---- ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i confess1 my warmest wishes have ever gone along with those who conducted this noble enterprise4 ,and ,i pretend to as sincere a pleasure as any man1 in the completion of it4 ,yet1 if we were not unreasonable at such a time1 ,i might be tempted to mention one circumstance1 which1 ,i know not how1 a little abates the joy of these triumphant gratulations4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,is not the settlement then to your mind8 ,or hath any precaution been neglected1 which you think necessary for the more effectual security of our liberties8 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,not that4 ,i think the provision for the people's right as ample as needs be desired4 ,or1 if any further restrictions on the crown be thought proper1 it will now be easy for the people1 in a regular parliamentary way1 to effect it4 ,what ,i mean is a consideration of much more importance4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,the pretended prince of ,,wales1 you think1 will be raising some disturbance1 or alarm at least1 to the new government4 ,i believe1 ,i may take upon me to give you perfect satisfaction upon that subject#aab4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,still your conjectures fall short or wide of my meaning4 ,our new ,,magna ,,charta1 as ,i love to call the ,declaration of ,rights1 seems a sufficient barrier against any future encroachments of the ,,crown4 ,and ,i think1 the pretended prince of ,,wales1 whatever be determined of his birth1 a mere phantom1 that may amuse1 and perhaps disquiet1 the weaker sort for a while2 but1 if left to itself#aac1 will soon vanish out of the minds of the ,,people4 ,not but ,i allow that even so thin a pretence as this may1 some time or other1 be conjured up to disturb the government4 ,but it must be1 when a certain set of principles are called in aid to support it4 ,and1 to save you the further trouble of guessing1 ,i shall freely tell you1 what those principles are4--,you will see1 in them1 the ground of my present fears and apprehensions4 ,it might be imagined that so necessary a ,revolution1 as that which hath taken place1 would sufficiently approve itself to all reasonable men4 ,and it appears1 in fact1 to have done so1 now that the public injuries are fresh1 and the general resentment of them strong and lively4 ,but it too often happens1 that when the evil is once removed1 it is presently forgotten3 and in matters of government especially1 where the people rarely think till they are made to feel1 when the grievance is taken away1 the false system easily returns1 and sometimes with redoubled force1 which had given birth to it4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,one can readily admit the principles4 ,but the conclusion1 you propose to draw from them-- ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,this very important one1 8,that1 if the late change of government was brought about1 and can be defended only1 on the principles of liberty2 the settlement1 introduced by it1 can be thought secure no longer than while those principles are rightly understood1 and generally admitted40 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,but what reason is there to apprehend that these principles1 so commonly professed and publickly avowed1 will not continue to be kept up in full vigour8 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,because1 ,i doubt1 they are so commonly and publickly avowed1 only to serve a present turn2 and not because they come from the heart1 or are entertained on any just ground of conviction4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,very likely3 and considering the pains that have been taken to possess the minds of men with other notions of government1 the wonder is1 how they came to be entertained at all4 ,yet surely the experience of better times may be expected to do much4 ,men will of course think more justly on these subjects in proportion as they find themselves more happy4 ,and thus the principles1 which1 as you say1 were first pretended to out of necessity1 will be followed out of choice1 and bound upon them by the conclusions of their own reason4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i wish your lordship be not too sanguine in these expectations4 ,it is not to be conceived how insensible the people are to the blessings they enjoy1 and how easily they forget their past miseries4 ,so that1 if their principles have not taken deep root1 ,i would not answer for their continuing much longer than it served their purpose to make a shew of them4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,i must confess1 that all my experience of mankind inclines me to this opinion4 ,i could relate to you some strange instances of the sort ,mr4 ,,somers hints at4 ,but after all1 ,sir1 you do not indulge these apprehensions1 on account of the general fickleness of human nature4 ,you have some more particular reasons for concluding that the system of liberty1 which hath worked such wonders of late1 is not likely to maintain its ground amongst us4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i have3 and ,i was going to explain those reasons1 if my lord of ,,salisbury had not a little diverted me from the pursuit of them4 ,it is very notorious from the common discourse of men even on this great occasion 7and ,i wish it had not appeared too evidently in the debates of the houses71 that very many of us have but crude notions of the form of government under which we live1 and which hath been transmitted to us from our forefathers4 ,i have met with persons of no mean rank1 and supposed to be well seen in the history of the kingdom1 who speak a very strange language4 ,they allow1 indeed1 that something was to be done in the perilous circumstances into which we had fallen4 ,but1 when they come to explain themselves1 it is in a way that leaves us no right to do any thing2 at least1 not what it was found expedient for the nation to do at this juncture4 ,for they contend in so many words1 8that the crown of ,england is absolute2 that the form of government is an entire and simple monarchy2 and that so it hath continued to be in every period of it down to the ,abdication3 that the ,,conquest1 at least1 to ascend no higher1 invested the ,,first ,,william in absolute dominion2 that from him it devolved of course upon his successors2 and that all the pretended rights of the people1 the ,,great ,,charters of ancient and modern date1 were mere usurpations on the prince1 extorted from him by the necessity of his affairs1 and revocable at his pleasure3 nay1 they insinuate that parliaments themselves were the creatures of his will2 that their privileges were all derived from the sovereign's grant2 and that they made no part in the original frame and texture of the ,english government4 ,in support of this extraordinary system1 they refer us to the constant tenor of our history4 ,they speak of the ,conqueror1 as proprietary of the whole kingdom3 which accordingly1 they say1 he parcelled out1 as he saw fit1 in grants to his ,norman and ,english subjects3 that1 through his partial consideration of the church1 and an excessive liberality to his favoured servants1 this distribution was so ill made1 as to give occasion to all the broils and contentions that followed3 that the churchmen began their unnatural claim of independency on the crown2 in which attempt they were soon followed by the encroaching and too powerful barons3 that1 in these struggles1 many flowers of the crown were rudely torn from it1 till a sort of truce was made1 and the rebellious humour somewhat composed1 by the extorted articles of ,,running-,,mede3 that these confusions1 however1 were afterwards renewed1 and even increased1 by the contests of the two houses of ,,york and ,,lancaster3 but that1 upon the union of the roses in the person of ,,henry ,,vii1 these commotions were finally appeased1 and the crown restored to its ancient dignity and lustre3 that1 indeed1 the usage of parliaments1 with some other forms of popular administration1 which had been permitted in the former irregular reigns1 was continued2 but of the mere grace of the prince1 and without any consequence to his prerogative3 that succeeding kings1 and even ,,henry himself1 considered themselves as possessed of an imperial crown2 and that1 though they might sometimes condescend to take the advice1 they were absolutely above the control1 of the people3 in short1 that the law itself was but the will of the prince1 declared in parliament2 or rather solemnly received and attested there1 for the better information and more entire obedience of the subject4 ,this they deliver as a just and fair account of the ,english government2 the genius of which1 they say1 is absolute and despotic in the highest degree2 as much so1 at least1 as that of any other monarchy in ,europe4 ,they ask1 with an air of insult1 what restraint our ,,henry ,,viii1 and our admired ,,elizabeth1 would ever suffer to be put on their prerogative2 and they mention with derision the fancy of dating the high pretensions of the crown from the accession of the ,,stuart family4 ,they affirm1 that ,,james ,i1 and his son1 aimed only to continue the government on the footing on which they had received it2 that their notions of it were authorized by constant fact2 by the evidence of our histories2 by the language of parliaments2 by the concurrent sense of every order of men amongst us3 and that what followed in the middle of this century was the mere effect of ,,popular1 as many former disorders had been of ,,patrician1 violence4 ,in a word1 they conclude with saying1 that the old government revived again at the ,,restoration1 just as1 in like circumstances1 it had done before at the ,,union of the two houses3 that1 in truth1 the voluntary desertion of the late king have given a colour to the innovation of the present year2 but that1 till this new settlement was made1 the ,english constitution1 as implying something different from pure monarchy1 was an unintelligible notion1 or rather a mere whimsy1 that had not the least foundation in truth or history40 ,this is a summary of the doctrines1 which1 ,i doubt1 are too current amongst us4 ,i do not speak of the bigoted adherents to the late king2 but of many cooler and more disinterested men1 whose religious principles1 as ,i suppose 7for it appears it could not be their political71 had engaged them to concur in the new settlement4 ,you will judge1 then1 if there be not reason to apprehend much mischief from the prevalence and propagation of such a system3 a system1 which1 as being1 in the language of the patrons of it1 founded upon fact1 is the more likely to impose upon the people2 and1 as referring to the practice of ancient times1 is not for every man's confutation4 ,i repeat it1 therefore2 if this notion of the despotic form of our government become general1 ,i tremble to think what effect it may hereafter produce on the minds of men2 especially when joined to that false tenderness1 which the people of ,england are so apt to entertain for their princes1 even the worst of them1 under misfortune4 ,i might further observe1 that this prerogative system hath a direct tendency to produce1 as well as heighten1 this compassion to the sovereign4 ,and ,i make no scruple to lay it before you with all its circumstances1 because ,i know to whom ,i speak1 and that ,i could not have wished for a better opportunity of hearing it confuted4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,i must own1 though ,i was somewhat unwilling to give way to such melancholy apprehensions at this time1 ,i think with ,mr4 ,,somers1 there is but too much reason to entertain them4 ,for my own part1 ,i am apt to look no further for the right of the legislature to settle the government in their own way1 than their own free votes and resolutions4 ,for1 being used to consider all political power as coming originally from the people1 it seems to me but fitting that they should dispose of that power for their own use1 in what hands1 and under what conditions1 they please4 ,yet1 as much regard is due to established forms and ancient prescription1 ,i think the matter of fact of great consequence2 and1 if the people in general should once conceive of it according to this representation1 ,i should be very anxious for the issue of so dangerous an opinion4 ,i must needs1 therefore1 join very entirely with ,mr4 ,,somers1 in wishing to hear the whole subject canvassed1 or rather finally determined1 as it must be1 if ,sir ,,john ,,maynard will do us the pleasure to acquaint us what his sentiments are upon it4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,truly1 my good friends1 you have opened a very notable cause1 and in good form4 ,only1 methinks1 a little less solemnity1 if you had so pleased1 might have better suited the occasion4 ,why1 ,i could almost laugh1 to hear you talk of feats and dangers from a phantom of your own raising4 ,i certainly believe the common proverb belies us2 and that old age is not that dastardly thing it hath been represented4 ,for1 instead of being terrified by this conceit of a prescriptive right in our sovereigns to tyrannize over the subject1 ,i am ready to think the contrary so evident from the constant course of our history1 that the simplest of the people are in no hazard of falling into the delusion4 ,i should rather have apprehended mischief from other quarters2 from the influence of certain speculative points1 which have been to successfully propagated of late2 and chiefly from those pernicious glosses1 which too many of my order have made on the letter or the law1 and too many of yours1 my lord of ,,salisbury1 on that of the gospel4 ,trust me1 if the matter once came to a question of ,,fact1 and the inquiry be only concerning ancient form and precedent1 the decision will be in our favour4 ,and for yourselves1 ,i assure myself1 this decision is already made4 ,but since you are willing to put me upon the task1 and we have leisure enough for such an amusement1 ,i shall very readily undertake it4 ,and the rather1 as ,i have more than once in my life had occasion to go to the bottom of this inquiry2 and now very lately have taken a pleasure to reflect on the general evidence which history affords of our free constitution1 and to review the scattered hints and passages ,i had formerly set down for my private satisfaction4 8,i understand the question to be1 not under what form the government hath appeared at some particular conjunctures1 but what we may conclude it to have been from the general current and tenor of our histories4 ,more particularly1 ,i conceive1 you would ask1 not whether the administration hath not at some seasons been ,,despotic1 but whether the genius of the government hath not at all times been ,,free4 ,or1 if you do not think the terms1 in which ,i propose the question1 strict enough1 you will do well to state it in your own way1 that hereafter we may have no dispute about it4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,i suppose1 the question1 as here put1 is determinate enough for our purpose4--,or1 have you1 ,mr4 ,,somers1 any exceptions to make to it8 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i believe we understand each other perfectly well2 the question being only this1 8,whether there be any ground in history1 to conclude that the prince hath a constitutional claim to absolute uncontrolable dominion2 or1 whether the liberty of the subject be not essential to every different form1 under which the ,english government hath appeared80 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,you expect of me then to shew1 in opposition to the scheme just now delivered by you1 that neither from the original constitution of the government1 nor from the various forms 7for they have1 indeed1 been various7 under which it hath been administered1 is there any reason to infer1 that the ,english monarchy is1 or of right ought to be1 despotic and unlimited4 ,now this ,i take to be the easiest of all undertakings2 so very easy1 that ,i could trust a plain man to determine the matter for himself by the light that offers itself to him from the slightest of our histories4 ',tis true1 the deeper his researches go1 his conviction will be the clearer2 as any one may see by dipping into my friend ,,nat4 ,,bacon',s discourses2 where our free constitution is set forth with that evidence1 as must for ever have silenced the patrons of the other side1 if he had not allowed himself to strain some things beyond what the truth1 or indeed his cause1 required4 ,but1 saving to myself the benefit of his elaborate work1 ,i think it sufficient to take notice1 that the system of liberty is supported even by that short sketch of our history1 which ,mr4 ,,somers hath laid before us2 and in spite of the disguises1 with which1 as he tells us1 the enemies of liberty have endeavoured to cloak it4 ,you do not1 ,i am sure1 expect from me1 that ,i should go back to the elder and more remote parts of our history2 that ,i should take upon me to investigate the scheme of government1 which hath prevailed in this kingdom from the time that the ,roman power departed from us2 or that ,i should even lay myself out in delineating1 as many have done1 the plan of the ,saxon constitution3 though such an attempt might not be unpleasing1 nor altogether without its use1 as the principles of the ,saxon policy1 and in some respects the form of it1 have been constantly kept up in every succeeding period of the ,english monarchy4 ,i content myself with observing1 that the spirit of liberty was predominant in those times3 and1 for proof of it1 appeal at present only to one single circumstance1 which you will think remarkable4 ,our ,saxon ancestors conceived so little of government1 by the will of the magistrate1 without fixed laws1 that ,,laga1 or ,,leaga1 which in their language first and properly signified the same as ,,law with us1 was transferred#aad very naturally 7for language always conforms itself to the genius1 temper1 and manners of a nation7 to signify a country1 district1 or province2 these good people having no notion of any inhabited country not governed by laws4 ,thus ,d,,na-,,laga2 ,,merkena-,,laga2 and ,,westsexena-,,laga1 were not only used in their laws and history to signify the laws of the ,danes1 ,mercians1 and ,west-,saxons1 but the countries likewise4 ,of which usage ,i could produce to you many instances1 if ,i did not presume that1 for so small a matter as this1 my mere word might be taken4 ,you see then how fully the spirit of liberty possessed the very language of our ,saxon forefathers4 ,and it might well do so2 for it was of the essence of the ,german constitutions2 a just notion of which 7so uniform was the genius of the brave people that planned them7 may be gathered1 you know1 from what the ,roman historians1 and1 above all1 from what ,,tacitus hath recorded of them4 ,but ,i forbear so common a topic3 and1 besides1 ,i think myself acquitted of this task1 by the prudent method1 which the defenders of the regal power have themselves taken in conducting this controversy4 ,for1 as conscious of the testimony which the ,saxon times are ready to bear against them1 they are wise enough to lay the foundation of their system in the ,,conquest4 ,they look1 no higher than that event for the origin of the constitution1 and think they have a notable advantage over us in deducing their notion of the ,english government from the form it took in the hands of the ,norman invader4 ,but is it not pleasant to hear these men calumniate the improvements that have been made from time to time in the plan of our civil constitution with the name of usurpations1 when they are not ashamed to erect the constitution itself on what they must esteem1 at least1 a great and manifest usurpation8 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,,conquest1 ,i suppose1 in their opinion1 gives right4 ,and since an inquiry into the origin of a constitution requires that we fix somewhere1 considering the vast alterations introduced by the ,conquest1 and that we have never pretended to reject1 but only to improve and complete1 the duke of ,,normandy',s establishment2 ,i believe it may be as proper to set out from that ra as from any other4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,your lordship does not imagine that ,i am about to excuse myself from closing with them1 even on their own terms4 ,i intended that question only as a reproach to the persons we have to deal with2 who1 when a successful event makes1 or but seems to make1 for their idol of an absolute monarchy1 call it a regular establishment3 whereas a revolution brought about by the justest means1 if the cause of liberty receive an advantage by it1 shall be reviled by the name of usurpation4 ,but let them employ what names they please1 provided their facts be well grounded4 ,we will allow them to dignify the ,norman settlement with the title of ,,constitution4 ,what follows8 ,that despotism was of the essence of that constitution8 ,so they tell us indeed2 but without one word of proof1 for the assertion4 ,for what6 do they think the name of conquest1 or even the thing1 implies an absolute unlimited dominion8 ,have they forgotten that ,,william',s claim to the crown was1 not conquest 7though it enabled him to support his claim71 but testamentary succession3 a title very much in the taste of that time#aae1 and extremely reverenced by our ,saxon ancestors8 ,that1 even waving this specious claim1 he condescended to accept the crown1 as a free gift2 and by his coronation-oath submitted himself to the same terms of administration1 as his predecessors8 ,and that1 in one word1 he confirmed the ,saxon laws1 at least before he had been many years in possession of his new dignity#aaf4 ,is there any thing in all this that favours the notion of his erecting himself1 by the sole virtue of his victory at ,hastings1 into an absolute lord of the conquered country8 ,is it not certain that he bound himself1 as far as oaths and declarations could bind him1 to govern according to law2 that he could neither touch the honours nor estates of his subjects but by legal trial2 and that even the many forfeitures in his reign are an evidence of his proceeding in that method8 ,still we are told 8of his parcelling out the whole land1 upon his own terms1 to his followers20 and are insulted 8with his famous institution of feudal tenures40 ,but what if the former of these assertions be foreign to the purpose at least1 if not false2 and the latter subversive of the very system it is brought to establish8 ,i think1 ,i have reason for putting both these questions4 ,for1 what if he parcelled out most1 or all1 of the lands of ,england to his followers8 ,the fact has been much disputed4 ,but be it1 as they pretend1 that the property of all the soil in the kingdom had changed hands3 ,what is that to us1 who claim under our ,norman1 as well as ,saxon1 ancestors8 ,for the question1 you see1 is about the form of government settled in this nation at the time of the ,conquest4 ,and they argue with us1 from a supposed act of tyranny in the ,conqueror1 in order to come at that settlement4 ,the ,saxons1 methinks1 might be injured1 oppressed1 enslaved2 and yet the constitution1 transmitted to us through his own ,normans1 be perfectly free4 ,but their other allegation is still more unfortunate4 8,he instituted1 they say1 the feudal law40 ,true4 ,but the feudal law1 and absolute dominion1 are two things2 and1 what is more1 perfectly incompatible4 ,i take upon me to say1 that ,i shall make out this point in the clearest manner4 ,in the mean time1 it may help us to understand the nature of the feudal establishment1 to consider the practice of succeeding times4 ,what that was1 our adversaries themselves1 if you please1 shall inform us4 ,mr4 ,,somers hath told their story very fairly2 which yet amounts only to this1 8,that1 throughout the ,norman and ,plantagenet lines1 there was one perpetual contest between the prince and his feudatories for law and liberty30 an evident proof of the light in which our forefathers regarded the ,norman constitution4 ,in the competition of the two ,,roses1 and perhaps before1 they lost sight indeed of this prize4 ,but no sooner was the public tranquillity restored1 and the contending claims united in ,,henry ,,vii4 than the old spirit revived4 ,a legal constitution became the constant object of the people2 and1 though not always avowed1 was1 in effect1 as constantly submitted to by the sovereign4 ,it may be true1 perhaps1 that the ability of one prince#aag1 the imperious carriage of another#aah1 and the generous intrigues of a third#aai2 but1 above all1 the condition of the times1 and a sense of former miseries1 kept down the spirit of liberty for some reigns1 or diminished1 at least1 the force and vigour of its operations4 ,but a passive subjection was never acknowledged1 certainly never demanded as a matter of right1 till ,,elizabeth now and then1 and ,king ,,james1 by talking continually in this strain1 awakened the national jealousy2 which proved so uneasy to himself1 and1 in the end1 so fatal to his family4 ,i cannot allow myself to mention these things more in detail to you1 who have so perfect a knowledge of them4 ,one thing only ,i insist upon1 that1 without connecting the system of liberty with that of prerogative in our notion of the ,english government1 the tenor of our history is perfectly unintelligible2 and that no consistent account can be given of it1 but on the supposition of a ,,legal ,,limited ,,constitution4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,yet that constitution1 it will be thought1 was at least ill defined1 which could give occasion to so many fierce disputes1 and those carried on through so long a tract of time1 between the crown and the subject4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,the fault1 if there was one1 lay in the original plan of the constitution itself2 as you will clearly see when ,i have opened the nature of it1 that is1 when ,i have explained the genius1 views1 and consequences of the ,,feudal ,,policy4 ,it must1 however1 be affirmed1 that this policy was founded in the principles of freedom1 and was1 in truth1 excellently adapted to an active1 fierce1 and military people2 such as were all those to whom these western parts of ,europe have been indebted for their civil constitutions4 ,but betwixt the burdensome services imposed on the subject by this tenure1 or which it gave at least the pretence of exacting from him1 and the too great restraint which an unequal and disproportioned allotment of feuds to the greater barons laid on the sovereign2 but above all1 by narrowing the plan of liberty too much2 and1 while it seemed to provide for the dependency of the prince on one part of his subjects1 by leaving both him and them in a condition to exercise an arbitrary dominion over all others3 hence it came to pass that the feudal policy naturally produced the struggles and convulsions1 you spoke of1 till it was seen in the end to be altogether unsuited to the circumstances of a rich1 civilized1 and commercial people4 ,the event was1 that the inconveniences1 perceived in this form of government1 gradually made way for the introduction of a better2 which was not1 however1 so properly a new form1 as the old one amended and set right2 cleared of its mischiefs and inconsistencies1 but conducted on the same principles as the former1 and pursuing the same end1 though by different methods4 ,it is commonly said1 8,that the feudal tenures were introduced at the ,conquest40 ,but how are we to understand this assertion8 ,certainly1 not as if the whole system of military services had been created by the ,conqueror2 for they were essential to all the ,gothic or ,german constitutions4 ,we may suppose then1 that they were only new-modelled by this great prince4 ,and who can doubt that the form1 which was now given to them1 would be copied from that which the ,norman had seen established in his own country8 ,it would be copied then from the proper ,,feudal ,,form2 the essence of which consisted in the perpetuity of the feud#abj2 whereas these military tenures had been elsewhere temporary only1 or revocable at the will of the lord4 ,but to enter fully into the idea of the feudal constitution2 to see at what time1 and in what manner1 it was introduced3 above all1 to comprehend the reasons that occasioned this great change2 it will be convenient to look back to the estate of ,france1 and especially of ,normandy1 where this constitution had1 for some years1 taken place before it was transferred to us at the ,conquest4 ,under the first princes of the ,carlovingian line1 the lands of ,france were of two kinds1 ,,allodial1 and ,,beneficiary4 ,the allodial1 were estates of inheritance2 the persons possessing them1 were called ,,hommes ,,libres4 ,the beneficiary1 were held by grants from the crown4 ,the persons holding immediately under the emperor1 were called ,,leudes2 the sub-tenants1 ,,vassals4 ,further1 the allodial lands were alienable1 as well as hereditary4 ,the beneficiary were properly neither4 ,they were held for life1 or a term of years1 at the will of the lord1 and reverted to him on the expiration of the term for which they were granted4 ,i do not stay to explain these institutions minutely4 ,it is of more importance to see the alterations that were afterwards made in them4 ,and the ,,first will be thought a strange one4 ,the possessors of allodial lands1 in ,france1 were desirous to have them changed into tenures4 ,they who held of the crown in capite were entitled to some distinctions and privileges1 which the allodial lords wished to obtain2 and therefore many of them surrendered their lands to the emperor1 and received them again of him1 in the way of tenure4 ,this practice had taken place occasionally from the earliest times3 but under ,,charles the ,bald1 it became almost general2 and free-men not only chose to hold of the emperor1 but of other lords4 ,this last was first allowed1 in consequence of a treaty between the three brothers1 after the battle of ,fontenay in #hdg4 ,but these free-men were not so ill-advised as to make their estates precarious1 or to accept a life estate instead of an inheritance4 ,it was requisite they should hold for a perpetuity4 ,and this ,i take to have been the true origin of hereditary feuds4 ,most probably1 in those dangerous times1 little people could not be safe without a lord to protect them3 and the price of this protection was the change of propriety into tenure4 ,the ,,second change was by a law made under the same emperor in the year #hgg1 the last of his reign4 ,it was then enacted1 that beneficiary estates held under the crown should descend to the sons of the present possessors3 yet not1 as ,i conceive1 to the eldest son2 but to him whom the emperor should chuse2 nor did this law affect the estates only1 but offices1 which had hitherto been also beneficiary2 and so the sons of counts1 marquises1 c4 7which were all names of offices1 not titles of honour7 were to succeed to the authority of their fathers1 and to the benefice annexed to it4 ,the new feuds1 created in allodial lands1 had1 ,i suppose1 made the emperor's tenants desirous of holding on the same terms2 and the weakness of the reigning prince enabled them to succeed in this first step1 which prepared the way for a revolution of still more importance4 ,for1 ,the ,,third change1 by which the inheritance of beneficiary lands and offices was extended to perpetuity1 and the possession rendered almost independent of the crown1 was not1 we may be sure1 effected at once1 but by degrees4 ,the family of ,,charlemagne lost the empire3 they resisted with great difficulty the incursions of the ,normans2 and1 in the year #iaa1 ,normandy was granted to them as an hereditary fee4 ,the great lords made their advantage of the public calamities2 they defended the king on what terms they pleased2 if not complied with in their demands1 they refused their assistance in the most critical conjunctures3 and before the accession of ,,hugh ,,capet1 had entirely shaken off their dependence on the crown4 ,for it is1 ,i think1 a vulgar mistake to say1 that this great revolution was the effect of ,,hugh',s policy4 ,on the contrary1 the independence of the nobles1 already acquired1 was1 as it seems to me1 the cause of his success4 ,the prince had no authority left1 but over his own demesnes2 which were less considerable than the possessions of some of his nobles4 ,,hugh had one of the largest fiefs3 and for this reason1 his usurpation added to the power of the crown1 instead of lessening it1 as is commonly imagined4 ,but to bring back the feuds of the other nobles to their former precarious condition was a thing impossible3 his authority was partly supported by superior wisdom1 and partly by superior strength1 his vassals being more numerous than those of any other lord4 ,i cannot tell if these foreigners1 when they adopted the feudal plan1 were immediately aware of all the consequences of it4 ,an hereditary tenure was1 doubtless1 a prodigious acquisition2 yet the advantage was something counter-balanced by the great number of impositions which the nature of the change brought with it4 ,these impositions are what1 in respect of the lord1 are called his ,,fruits of tenure2 such as ,,wardship1 ,,marriage1 ,,relief1 and other services3 and were the necessary consequence of the king's parting with his arbitrary disposal of these tenures4 ,for now that the right of inheritance was in the tenant1 it seemed but reasonable1 and1 without this provision1 the feudal policy could not have obtained its end1 that the prince1 in these several ways1 should secure to himself the honour1 safety1 and defence1 which the very nature of the constitution implied and intended4 ,hence hereditary feuds were very reasonably clogged with the obligations4 ,i have mentioned2 which1 though trifling in comparison with the disadvantages of a precarious tenure1 were yet at least some check on the independency acquired4 ,however1 these services1 which were due to the king under the new model1 were also due to the tenant in chief from those who held of him by the like tenure4 ,and so the barons1 or great proprietaries of land1 considering more perhaps the subjection of their own vassals1 than that by which themselves were bound to their sovereign1 reckoned these burdens as nothing1 with respect to what they had gained by an hereditary succession4 ,the example of these ,french feudataries1 we may suppose1 would be catching4 ,we accordingly find it followed1 in due time1 in ,germany2 where ,,conrad ,,ii4#aba granted the like privilege of successive tenures1 and at the pressing instance of his tenants4 ,i thought it material to remind you of these things2 because they prove the feudal institution on the continent to have been favourable to the cause of liberty2 and because it will abate our wonder to find it so readily accepted and submitted to here in ,england4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,the account you have given1 and1 ,i dare say1 very truly1 of the origin of feuds in ,france and ,germany1 is such as shews them to have been an extension of the people's liberty4 ,there is no question that hereditary alienable estates have vastly the preference to beneficiary4 ,but the case1 ,i suspect1 was different with us in ,england4 ,the great offices of state1 indeed1 in this country1 as well as in ,france1 were beneficiary4 ,but1 if ,i do not mistake1 the lands of the ,english1 except only the church-lands1 were all allodial4 ,and ,i cannot think it could be for the benefit of the ,english to change their old ,saxon possessions1 subject only to the famous triple obligation1 for these new and burdensome tenures4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,strange as it may appear1 we have yet seen that the ,french did not scruple to make that exchange even of their allodial estates4 ,but to be fair1 there was a great difference1 as you well observe1 in the circumstances of the two people4 ,all the lands in ,england were1 ,i believe1 allodial1 in the ,saxon times3 while a very considerable proportion of those in ,france were beneficiary4 ,another difference1 also1 in the state of the two countries1 is worth observing4 ,in ,france1 the allodial lands 7though considerable in quantity7 were divided into small portions4 ,in ,england1 they seem to have been in few hands2 the greater part possessed by the ,king and his ,thanes2 some smaller parcels by the lesser ,thanes2 and a very little by the ,ceorles4 ,the consequence was1 that1 though the allodial proprietors in ,france were glad to renounce their property for tenure1 in order to secure the protection they much wanted2 yet with us1 as you say1 there could not be any such inducement for the innovation4 ,for1 the lands being possessed in large portions by the nobility and gentry1 the allodial lords in ,england were too great to stand in need of protection4 ,yet from this very circumstance1 fairly attended to1 we shall see that the introduction of the feudal tenures was neither difficult nor unpopular4 ,the great proprietors of land were1 indeed1 too free and powerful1 to be bettered by this change4 ,but their tenants1 that is1 the bulk of the people1 would be gainers by it4 ,for these tenants were1 ,i believe1 to a man beneficiaries4 ,the large estates of the ,thanes were granted out in small portions to others1 either for certain quantities of corn or rent1 reserved to the lord1 or on condition of stipulated services4 ,and these grants1 of whichever sort they were1 were either at pleasure1 or at most for a limited term4 ,so that1 though the proprietors of land in ,england were so much superior to those in ,france2 yet the tenants of each were much in the same state2 that is1 they possessed beneficiary lands on stipulated conditions4 ,when1 therefore1 by right of forfeiture1 the greater part of the lands in ,england fell1 as they of course would do1 into the power of the king 7for they were in few hands1 and those few had either fought at ,hastings1 or afterwards rebelled against him71 it is easy to see that the people would not be displeased to find themselves1 instead of beneficiary tenants#abb1 feudatary proprietors4 ,i say this on supposition that these great forfeited estates and signiories1 so bountifully bestowed by the ,conqueror on his favourite ,normans1 were afterwards1 many of them at least1 granted out in smaller parcels to ,english sub-tenants4 ,but if these sub-tenants were also ,normans 7though the case of the ,english or old ,saxon freeholders was then very hard71 the change of allodial into feudatary estates is the more easily accounted for4 ,the main difficulty would be with the churchmen2 who 7though the greatest1 and most of them were1 perhaps1 ,normans too7 were well acquainted with the ,saxon laws1 and for special reasons were much devoted to them4 ,they were sensible that their possessions had been held1 in the ,saxon times1 in ,,franc-,,almoign3 a sort of tenure1 they were not forward to give up for this of feuds4 ',tis true1 the burdens of these tenures would1 many of them1 not affect them4 ,but then neither could they reap the principal fruit of them1 the fruit of inheritance4 ,they1 besides1 considered every restraint on their privileges as impious2 and took the subjection of the ecclesiastic to the secular power1 which the feudal establishment was to introduce1 for the vilest of all servitudes4 ,hence the churchmen were1 of all others1 the most averse from this law#abc4 ,and their opposition might have given the ,conqueror still more trouble1 if the suppression of the great ,northern rebellion had not furnished him with the power1 and 7as many of them had been deeply engaged in it7 with the pretence1 to force it upon them4 ,and thus1 in the end1 it prevailed universally1 and without exception4 ,i would not go further into the history of these tenures4 ,it may appear from the little ,i have said of them1 that the feudal system was rather improved and corrected by the duke of ,,normandy1 than originally planted by him in this kingdom3 that the alteration made in it was favourable to the public interest2 and that our ,saxon liberties were not so properly restrained1 as extended by it4 ,it is of little moment to inquire whether the nation was won1 or forced1 to a compliance with this system4 ,it is enough to say1 that1 as it was accepted by the nation1 so it was in itself no servile establishment1 but essentially founded in the principles of liberty4 ,the duties of lord and feudatary were reciprocal and acknowledged3 services on the one part1 and protection on the other4 ,the institution was plainly calculated for the joint-interest#abd of both parties1 and the benefit of the community2 the proper notion of the feudal system being that 8of a confederacy between a number of military persons1 agreeing on a certain limited subordination and dependence on their chief1 for the more effectual defence of his and their lives1 territories1 and possessions40 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i have nothing to object to your account of the feudal constitution4 ,and ,i think you do perfectly right1 to lay the main stress on the general nature and genius of it2 as by this means you cut off those fruitless altercations1 which have been raised1 concerning the personal character of the ,norman ,conqueror4 ,our concern is not with him1 but with the government he established4 ,and if that be free1 no matter whether the founder of it were a tyrant4 ,but1 though ,i approve your method1 ,i doubt there is some defect in your argument4 ,freedom is a term of much latitude4 ,the ,norman constitution may be free in one sense1 as it excludes the sole arbitrary dominion of one man2 and yet servile enough in another1 as it leaves the government in few hands4 ,for it follows1 from what ,i understand of the feudal plan1 that though its genius be indeed averse from absolute monarchy1 yet it is indulgent enough to absolute aristocracy4 ,and the notion of each is equally remote from what we conceive of true ,english liberty4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,it is true1 the proper feudal form1 especially as established in this kingdom1 was in a high degree oligarchical4 ,it would not otherwise1 perhaps1 have suited to the condition of those military ages4 ,yet the principles it went upon1 were those of public liberty1 and generous enough to give room for the extension of the system itself1 when a change of circumstances should require it4--,but your objection will best be answered by looking a little more distinctly into the nature of these tenures4 ,i took notice that the feudal system subjected the ,,church more immediately to the civil power3 and laid the foundation of many services and fruits of tenure to which the ,,lay-,,feudataries in the ,saxon times had been altogether strangers4 ,it is probable that all the consequences of this alteration were not foreseen4 ,yet the churchmen were pretty quick-sighted4 ,and the dislike1 they had conceived of the new establishment1 was the occasion of those struggles1 which continued so long between the mitre and crown1 and which are so famous more especially in the early parts of our history4 ,the cause of these ecclesiastics was a bad one4 ,for their aim was1 as is rightly observed by the advocates for the prerogative1 to assert an independency on the state2 and for that purpose the pope was made a party in the dispute2 by whose intrigues it was kept up in one shape or other till the total renunciation of the papal power4 ,thus far1 however1 the feudal constitution cannot be blamed4 ,on the contrary1 it was highly serviceable to the cause of liberty1 as tending only to hold the ecclesiastic1 in a due subordination to the civil1 authority4 ,the same thing cannot be said of the other instance1 ,i mean the fruits of tenure1 to which the lay-fees were subjected by this system4 ,for however reasonable1 or rather necessary1 those fruits might be1 in a feudal sense1 and for the end to which the feudal establishment was directed1 yet1 as the measure of these fruits1 as well as the manner of exacting them1 was in a good degree arbitrary1 and too much left to the discretion of the sovereign1 the practice1 in this respect1 was soon found by the tenants in chief to be an intolerable grievance4 ,hence that other contest1 so memorable in our history1 betwixt the king and his barons3 in which the former1 under the colour of maintaining his feudal rights1 laboured to usurp an absolute dominion over the persons and properties of his vassals2 and the latter1 impatient of the feudal burdens1 or rather of the king's arbitrary exactions under pretence of them1 endeavoured to redeem themselves from so manifest an oppression4 ,it is not to be denied1 that1 in the heat of this contest1 the barons sometimes carried their pretensions still further1 and laboured in their turn to usurp on the crown1 in revenge for the oppressions they had felt from it4 ,however1 their first contentions were only for a mitigation of the feudal system4 ,it was not the character of the ,norman princes to come easily into any project that was likely to give the least check to their pretensions4 ,yet the grievances1 complained of1 were in part removed1 in part moderated1 by ,,henry the ,first's and many other successive charters3 though the last blow was not given to these feudal servitudes till after the ,restoration1 when such of them as remained1 and were found prejudicial to the liberty of the subject1 were finally abolished4 ,thus we see that ,,one essential defect in the feudal policy1 considered not as a military1 but civil institution1 was1 the too great power it gave the sovereign in the arbitrary impositions1 implied in this tenure4 ,,another was accidental4 ,it arose from the disproportionate allotment of those feuds1 which gave the greater barons an ascendant over the prince1 and was equally unfavourable to the cause of liberty4 ,for the bounty of the duke of ,,normandy1 in his distribution of the forfeited estates and signiories to his principal officers1 had been so immense#abe1 that their share of influence in the state was excessive1 and intrenched too much on the independency of the crown and the freedom of the people4 ,and this undue poize in the constitution1 as well as the tyranny of our kings1 occasioned the long continuance of those civil wars1 which for many ages harrassed and distressed the nation4 ,the evil1 however1 in the end1 brought on its own remedy4 ,for these princely houses being much weakened in the course of the quarrel1 ,,henry ,,vii4 succeeded1 at length1 to the peaceable possession of the crown4 ,and by the policy of this prince1 and that of his successor1 the barons were brought so low as to be quite disabled from giving any disturbance to the crown for the future4 ,it appears then that ,,two great defects in the feudal plan of government1 as settled amongst us1 were1 at length1 taken away4 ,but a ,,third1 and the greatest defect of all1 was the narrowness of the plan itself1 ,i mean when considered as a system of ,,civil polity2 for1 in its primary martial intention1 it was perfectly unexceptionable4 ,to explain this matter1 which is of the highest importance1 and will furnish a direct answer to ,mr4 ,,somers' objection1 we are to remember that in the old feudal policy the king's barons1 that is1 such as held in capite of the crown by barony or knight's service1 were the king's1 or rather the kingdom's1 great council4 ,no public concerns could be regularly transacted1 without their consent#abf2 though the lesser barons1 or tenants by knight's service1 did not indeed so constantly appear in the king's court1 as the greater barons2 and though the public business was sometimes even left to the ordinary attendants on the king1 most of them churchmen4 ,it appears that1 towards the end of the ,conqueror's reign1 the number of these tenants in chief was about #gjj2 who1 as the whole property of the kingdom was1 in effect1 in their power1 may be thought a no unfit representative 7though this be no proper feudal idea7 of the whole nation4 ,it was so1 perhaps1 in those rude and warlike times1 when the strength of the nation lay entirely in the soldiery2 that is1 in those who held by military services1 either immediately of the crown1 or of the mesne lords4 ,for the remainder of the people1 whom they called tenants in socage1 were of small account2 being considered only in the light of servants1 and contributing no otherwise to the national support than by their cultivation of the soil1 which left their masters at leisure to attend with less distraction on their military services4 ,at least1 it was perfectly in the genius of the feudal1 that is1 military constitutions1 to have little regard for any but the men of arms2 and1 as every other occupation would of course be accounted base and ignoble1 it is not to be wondered that such a difference was made between the condition of prdial and military tenures4 ,however1 a policy1 that excluded such numbers from the rank and privileges of citizens1 was so far a defective one4 ,and this defect would become more sensible every day1 in proportion to the growth of arts1 the augmentation of commerce1 and the security the nation found itself in from foreign dangers4 ,the ancient military establishment would now be thought unjust1 when the exclusive privileges of the swordsmen were no longer supported by the necessities of the public1 and when the wealth of the nation made so great a part of the force of it4 ,hence arose an important change in the legislature of the kingdom1 which was much enlarged beyond its former limits4 ,but this was done gradually2 and was more properly an extension than violation of the ancient system4 ,first1 the number of tenants in chief1 or the king's freeholders1 was much increased by various causes1 but chiefly by the alienation which the greater barons made of their fees4 ,such alienation1 though under some restraint1 seems to have been generally permitted in the ,norman feuds2 ,i mean1 till ,,magna ,,charta and some subsequent statutes laid it under particular limitations4 ,but1 whether the practice were regular or not1 it certainly prevailed from the earliest times2 especially on some more extraordinary occasions4 ,thus1 when the fashionable madness of the ,,croisades had involved the greater barons in immense debts1 in order to discharge the expences of these expeditions1 they alienated their fees1 and even dismembered them2 that is1 they parted with their right in them1 and made them over in small parcels to others1 to hold of the superior lord4 ,and what these barons did from necessity1 the crown itself did1 out of policy3 for the ,norman princes1 growing sensible of the inconvenience of making their vassals too great1 disposed of such estates of their barons as fell in to them by forfeiture1 and were not a few1 in the same manner4 ,the consequence of all this was1 that1 in process of time1 the lesser military tenants in capite multiplied exceedingly4 ,and1 as many of them were poor1 and unequal to a personal attendance in the court of their lord1 or in the common council of the kingdom 7where of right and duty they were to pay their attendance71 they were willing1 and it was found convenient to give them leave1 to appear in the way of representation4 ,and this was the origin of what we now call ,,the ,,knights ,,of ,,the ,,shires2 who1 in those times1 were appointed to represent1 not all the free-holders of counties1 but the lesser tenants of the crown only4 ,for these not attending in person1 would otherwise have had no place in the king's council4 ,the rise of ,,citizens ,,and ,,burgesses1 that is1 representatives of the cities and trading towns1 must be accounted for somewhat differently4 ,these had originally been in the jurisdiction1 and made part of the demesnes1 of the king and his great lords4 ,the reason of which appears from what ,i observed of the genius of the feudal policy4 ,for1 little account being had of any but martial men1 and trade being not only dishonourable1 but almost unknown in those ages2 the lower people1 who lived together in towns1 most of them small and inconsiderable1 were left in a state of subjection to the crown1 or some other of the barons1 and exposed to their arbitrary impositions and talliages4 ,but this condition of burghers1 as it sprang from the military genius of the nation1 could only be supported by it4 ,when that declined therefore1 and1 instead of a people of soldiers1 the commercial spirit prevailed1 and filled our towns with rich traders and merchants1 it was no longer reasonable1 nor was it the interest of the crown1 that these communities and bodies of men should be so little regarded4 ,on the contrary1 a large share of the public burdens being laid upon them1 and the frequent necessities of the crown1 especially in foreign wars1 or in the king's contentions with his barons1 requiring him to have recourse to their purses1 it was naturally brought about that those1 as well as the tenants in capite1 should1 in time1 be admitted to have a share in the public councils4 ,i do not stay to trace the steps of this change4 ,it is enough to say1 that arose insensibly and naturally out of the growing wealth and consequence of the trading towns2 the convenience the king found in drawing considerable sums from them1 with greater ease to himself1 and less offence to the people2 and1 perhaps1 from the view of lessening by their means the exorbitant power and influence of the barons4 ,from these1 or the like reasons1 the great towns and cities1 that before were royal demesnes1 part of the king's private patrimony1 and talliable by him at pleasure1 were allowed to appear in his council by their deputies1 to treat with him of the proportion of taxes to be raised on them1 and1 in a word1 to be considered it the same light as the other members of that great assembly4 ,i do not inquire when this great alteration was first made4 ,i find it subsisting at least under ,,edward ,,iii4 ,and from that time1 there is no dispute but that the legislature1 which was originally composed of the sovereign and his feudal tenants1 included also the representatives of the counties1 and of the royal towns and cities4 ,to speak in our modern style1 the ,,house ,,of ,,commons was1 now1 formed4 ,and by this addition1 the glorious edifice of ,english liberty was completed4 ,i am sensible1 ,i must have wearied you with this deduction1 which can be no secret to either of you4 ,but it was of importance to shew1 that the constitution of ,england1 as laid in the feudal tenures1 was essentially free2 and that the very changes it hath undergone1 were the natural and almost unavoidable effects of those tenures4 ,so that what the adversaries of liberty object to us1 as usurpations on the regal prerogative1 are now seen to be either the proper result of the feudal establishment1 or the most just and necessary amendments of it4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,i have waited with much pleasure for this conclusion1 which entirely discredits the notion of an absolute1 despotic government4 ,i will not take upon me to answer for ,mr4 ,somers1 whose great knowledge in the laws and history of the kingdom enables him to see further into the subject than ,i do2 but to me nothing appears more natural or probable than this account of the rise and progress of the ,english monarchy4 ,one difficulty1 in particular1 which seemed to embarrass this inquiry1 you have entirely removed1 by shewing how1 from the aristocratical form which prevailed in the earlier times1 the more free and popular one of our days hath gradually taken place1 and that without any violence to the antient constitution#abg4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,at least1 my lord1 with so little1 that we may1 perhaps1 apply to the ,english government what the naturalists observe of the ,,human ,,body#abh2 that1 when it arrives at its full growth1 it does not perhaps retain a single particle of the matter it originally set out with2 yet the alteration hath been made so gradually and imperceptibly1 that the system is accounted the same under all changes4 ,just so1 ,i think1 we seem to have shaken off the constituent parts of the ,,feudal ,,constitution2 but1 liberty having been always the informing principle1 time and experience have rather completed the old system1 than created a new one3 and we may account the present and ,norman establishment all one1 by the same rule as we say that ,,hercules1 when he became the deliverer of oppressed nations1 was still the same with him who had strangled serpents in his cradle4 ,,sir4 ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,i know not what fanciful similes your younger wit may delight in4 ,i content myself with observing1 that the two great points1 which they1 who deny the liberty of the subject1 love to inculcate1 and on which the plausibility of all their reasonings depends1 are1 ,,the ,,slavish ,,nature ,,of ,,the ,,feudal ,,constitution1 and ,,the ,,late ,,rise ,,of ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,commons4 ,and ,i have taken up your time to small purpose1 if it doth not now appear1 that the former of these notions is false1 and the latter impertinent4 ,if the learned inquirers into this subject had considered that the question is concerning the freedom itself of our constitution1 and not the most convenient form under which it may be administered1 they must have seen that1 the feudal law1 though it narrowed the system of liberty1 was founded in it2 that the spirit of freedom is as vital in this form1 and the principles it goes upon as solid1 as in the best-formed republic2 and that villanage concludes no more against the feudal1 than slavery against the ,greek or ,roman1 constitutions4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,that is1 ,sir ,,john1 you make liberty to have been the essence of all ,,three2 though1 to the perfection of an equal commonwealth1 you suppose it should have been further spread out and dilated3 as they say of frankincense 7if you can forgive another allusion71 which1 when lying in the lump1 is of no great use or pleasure2 but1 when properly diffused1 is the sweetest of all odours4 ,but you was going on with the application of your principles4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,i was going to say that1 as many have been misled by wrong notions of the feudal tenures1 others had erred as widely in their reasonings on the late origin of the lower house of parliament4 ,how have we heard some men triumph1 in dating it no higher than the reign of ,,edward ,,iii8 ,let the fact be admitted4 ,what follows8 ,that this house is an usurpation on the prerogative8 ,nothing less4 ,it was gradually brought forth by time1 and grew up under the favour and good liking of our princes#abi4 ,the constitution itself supposed the men of greatest consequence in the commonwealth to have a seat in the national councils4 ,trade and agriculture had advanced vast numbers into consequence1 that before were of small account in the kingdom4 ,the public consideration was increased by their wealth1 and the public necessities relieved by it4 ,were these to remain for ever excluded from the king's councils8 or was not that council1 which had liberty for its object1 to widen and expand itself in order to receive them8 ,it did1 in fact1 receive them with open arms2 and1 in so doing1 conducted itself on the very principles of the old feudal policy4 ,in short1 the feudal constitution1 different from all others that human policy is acquainted with1 was of such a make1 that it readily gave way1 and fitted itself to the varying situations of society3 narrow and contracted1 when the public interest required a close connexion between the governor and the governed2 large and capacious1 when the same interest required that connexion to be loosened4 ,just as the skin 7if you will needs have a comparison71 the natural cincture of the body1 confines the young limbs with sufficient tightness1 and yet widens in proportion to their growth1 so as to let the different parts of the body play with ease1 and obtain their full size and dimensions4 ,whereas the other policies1 that have obtained in the world1 may be compared to those artificial coverings1 which1 being calculated only for one age and size2 grow troublesome and insupportable in any other2 and yet cannot1 like these1 be thrown off and supplied by such as are more suitable and convenient2 but are worn for life1 though with constant1 or rather increasing1 uneasiness4 ,this then being the peculiar prerogative of the feudal policy1 ,i think we may say with great truth1 not that the ,house of ,commons violated the constitution1 but1 on the contrary1 that the constitution itself demanded1 or rather generated1 the ,house of ,commons4 ,so that ,i cannot by any means commend the zeal which some have shewn in seeking the origin of this house in the ,british or even ,saxon annals4 ,their aim was1 to serve the cause of liberty2 but1 it must be owned1 at the expence of truth1 and1 as we now perceive1 without the least necessity4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,it hath happened then in this1 as in so many other instances1 that an excellent cause hath suffered by the ill judgment of its defenders4 ,but1 when truth itself had been disgraced by one sort of men in being employed by them to the worst purposes1 is it to be wondered that others should not acknowledge her in such hands1 but be willing to look out for her in better company8 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,let us say1 my lord1 they should have acknowledged her in whatever company she was found2 and the rather1 as ill-applied truths are seen to be full as serviceable to a bad cause1 as downright falsehoods4 ,besides1 this conduct had not only been fairer1 but more politic4 ,for when so manifest a truth was rejected1 it was but natural to suspect foul play in the rest1 and that none but a bad cause could want to be supported by so disingenuous a management4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i think so1 ,sir ,,john2 and there is this further use of such candor1 that it cuts off at once the necessity of long and laboured researches into the dark parts of our history2 and so not only shortens the debate1 but renders it much more intelligible to the people4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,i was aware of that advantage1 and am therefore not displeased that truth allowed me to make use of it4--,but to resume the main argument2 for ,i have not yet done with my evidence for the freedom of our excellent constitution3--,it seemed of moment to shew1 from the nature and consequences of the ,norman settlement1 that the ,english government was essentially free4 ,but1 because the freest form of government may be tamely given up and surrendered into the hands of a master1 ,i hold it of consequence to prove1 that the ,english spirit hath always been answerable to the constitution1 and that even the most insidious attempts on their liberties have never failed to awaken the resentment of our generous forefathers4 ,in a word1 ,i would shew that the jealously1 with which the ,english have ever guarded the national freedom1 is at once a convincing testimony of their right1 and of their constant possession of it4 ,and though ,i might illustrate this argument by many other instances1 ,i chuse to insist only on ,,one1 ,,their ,,perpetual ,,opposition ,,to ,,the ,,civil ,,and ,,canon ,,laws2 which1 at various times and for their several ends1 the crown and church have been solicitous to obtrude on the people4 ,to open the way to this illustration1 let it be observed that1 from the time of ,,honorius1 that is1 when the ,roman authority ceased amongst us1 the ,saxon institutions1 incorporated with the old ,british customs1 were the only standing laws of the kingdom4 ,these had been collected and formed into a sort of digest by ,,edward the ,confessor2 and so great was the nation's attachment to them1 that ,,william himself was obliged to ratify them1 at the same time that the feudal law itself was enacted4 ,and afterwards1 on any attempt to innovate on those laws1 we hear of a general outcry and dissatisfaction among the people3 which jealousy of theirs was not without good grounds2 as we may see from an affair that happened in the ,conqueror's own reign1 and serves to illustrate the policy of this monarch4 ,it had been an old custom1 continued through the ,saxon times1 for the bishops and sheriffs to sit together in judicature in the county courts4 ,this had been found a very convenient practice2 for the presence of the churchmen gave a sanction to the determinations of the temporal courts1 and drew an extraordinary reverence towards them from the people4 ,yet we find it abolished by the ,conqueror2 who1 in a rescript to the bishop of ,lincoln1 ordained that1 for the future1 the bishops and aldermen of the shires should have separate courts and separate jurisdictions4 ,the pretence for this alteration was the distinct nature of the two judicatures1 and the desire of maintaining a strict conformity to the canons of the church4 ,the real design was much deeper4 ,there is no question but ,,william',s inclinations1 at least1 were for arbitrary government2 in which project his ,norman lawyers1 it was hoped1 might be of good use to him4 ,but there was a great obstacle in his way4 ,the churchmen of those times had incomparably the best knowledge of the ,saxon laws4 ,it matters not1 whether those churchmen were ,normans1 or not4 ,they were equally devoted1 as ,i observed before1 to the ,saxon laws1 with the ,english2 as favouring that independency1 they affected1 on the civil power4 ,besides1 in the ,confessor's time1 many and perhaps the greatest of the churchmen had been ,normans2 so that the study of the ,saxon laws1 from the interest they promised themselves in them1 was grown familiar to the rising ecclesiastics of that country4 ,hence1 as ,i said1 the churchmen1 though ,normans1 were well instructed in the spirit and genius of the ,saxon laws2 and it was not easy for the king's glossers to interpret them to their own mind1 whilst the bishops were at hand to refute and rectify their comments4 ,besides1 the truth is 7and my lord of ,,salisbury will not be displeased with me for telling it71 the ecclesiastics of that time were much indevoted to the court4 ,they considered the king as the wickedest of all tyrants4 ,he had brought them into subjection by their baronies1 and had even set the pope himself at defiance4 ,in this state of things1 there was no hope of engaging the clergy in his plot4 ,but when a separation of the two tribunals was made1 and the civil courts were solely administered by his own creatures1 the laws1 it was thought1 would speak what language he pleased to require of them4 ,such appears to have been the design of this prince in his famous distinction of the ecclesiastic and temporal courts4 ,it was so artfully laid1 and so well coloured1 that the laity seem to have taken no umbrage at it4 ,but the clergy saw his drift2 and their zeal for the ancient laws1 as well as their resentments1 put them upon contriving methods to counteract it4 ,they hit upon a very natural and effectual one4 ,in a word1 they all turned common lawyers2 and so found means of introducing themselves into the civil courts4 ,this expedient succeeded so well1 and was so generally relished1 that the clergy to a man almost in the next reign were become professors of the common law2 ,,nullus ,,clericus ,,nisi ,,causidicus1 as ,,william of ,malmesbury takes care to inform us#acj4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,whatever their motive might be1 the churchmen1 ,i perceive1 interposed very seasonably in the support of our civil liberties4 ,it was a generous kind of revenge1 methinks1 to repay the king's tyranny over the church by vindicating the authority of the ,english laws4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,it was so2 and for this good service1 ,i let them pass without any harsher reflection4 ,though the true secret is1 perhaps1 no more than this3 ,their main object was the church1 of whose interests1 as is fitting1 we will allow them to be the most competent judges4 ,and1 as these inclined them1 they have been1 at different junctures1 the defenders or oppressors of civil liberty4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,at some junctures1 it may be1 they have4 ,but1 if you insist on so general a censure1 ,i must intreat ,mr4 ,,somers1 once more1 to take upon him the defence of our order4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,all ,i intended by this instance1 was1 to shew the spirit of the ,saxon laws1 which could excite the jealousy of the prince1 and deserve1 at such a season1 the patronage of the clergy4 ,it seems1 however1 for once1 as if they had a little misconceived their true interests4 ,for the distinction of the two judicatures1 which occasioned their resentment1 was1 in the end1 a great means of the hierarchical greatness and independency4 ,matters continued on this footing during the three first of the ,norman reigns4 ,the prince did his utmost to elude the authority of the ,english laws2 and the nation1 on the other hand1 laboured hard to confirm it4 ,but a new scene was opened under ,king ,,stephen1 by means of the ,justinian laws2 which had lately been recovered in ,italy1 and became at once the fashionable study over all ,europe4 ,it is certain1 that the ,pandects were first brought amongst us in that reign2 and that the reading of them was much favoured by ,archbishop ,,theobald#aca1 under whose encouragement they were publicly read in ,england by ,,vacarius1 within a short time after the famous ,,irnerius had opened his school at ,bologna4 ,there is something singular in the readiness with which this new system of law was embraced in these ,western parts of ,europe4 ,but my friend ,mr4 ,,selden used to give a plausible account of it4 ,it was1 he said#acb1 in opposition to ,,innocent ,,ii1 who was for obtruding on the ,christian states the decretals1 as laws2 manifestly calculated for the destruction of the civil magistrate's power4 ,and what seems to authorize the opinion of my learned friend1 is1 that the popes very early took the alarm1 and1 by their decrees1 forbad churchmen to teach the civil law3 as appears from the constitution of ,,alexander ,,iii1 so early as the year #aafc1 in the council of ,,tours2 and afterwards from the famous decretal of ,,super-,,specula by ,,honorius ,,iii1 in #abai1 in which the clergy of all denominations1 seculars as well as regulars1 were prohibited the study of it4 ,and it was1 doubtless1 to defeat the mischief which the popes apprehended to themselves1 from the credit of the imperial laws1 that ,,gratian was encouraged1 about the same time1 to compose and publish his ,,decree2 which1 it is even said#acc1 had the express approbation of ,pope ,,eugenius4 ,let us see1 now1 what reception this newly-recovered law1 so severely dealt with by the pope1 and so well entertained by the greatest part of ,europe1 had in ,england4 ,,vacarius had continued to teach it for some time1 in the archbishop's palace at ,lambeth1 to great numbers1 whom first1 the novelty of the study1 and then1 the fashion of the age1 had drawn about him4 ,the fame of the teacher was high1 and the new science had made a great progress1 when on a sudden it received a severe check1 and from a quarter whence one should not naturally expect it4 ,in short1 the king himself interdicted the study of it4 ,some have imagined1 that this inhibition was owing to the spite he bore to archbishop ,,theobald4 ,but the truer reason seems to be1 that the canon law was first read by ,,vacarius at the same time1 and under colour of the imperial4 ,i think we may collect thus much very clearly from ,,john ,,of ,,salisbury1 who acquaints us with this edict4 ,for he considers it as an offence against the church1 and expressly calls the prohibition1 an ,,impiety#acd4 ,it is true1 the decretals of ,,gratian were not yet published4 ,but ,ivo had made a collection of them in the reign of ,,henry ,i2 and we may be sure that some code of this sort would privately go about amongst the clergy1 from what was before observed of the pains taken by ,,innocent ,,ii1 to propagate the decretals4 ,we may further observe1 that ,,theobald had been in high favour with ,,innocent2 and that his school1 at ,lambeth1 was opened immediately on his return from ,rome1 whither he had been to receive his pall from this pope1 on his appointment to the see of ,canterbury#ace4 ,all which makes it probable1 that ,,stephen',s displeasure was not so much at the civil1 as canon law1 which he might well conclude had no friendly aspect on his sovereignty4 ,and we have the greater reason to believe that this was the fact1 from observing what afterwards happened in the reign of ,,henry ,,iii1 when a prohibition of the same nature was again issued out against the teachers of the ,roman laws in ,london#acf4 ,the true cause of the royal mandate is well known4 ,,gregory ,,ix had just then published a new code of the decretals2 which1 like all former collections of this sort1 was calculated to serve the papal interest1 and depress the rights of princes4 ,however1 these edicts1 if we suppose them levelled against the civil law1 had no effect1 any more than those of the popes ,,alexander and ,,honorius1 before mentioned4 ,for the imperial law1 being generally well received by the princes of ,europe1 presently became a kind of ,jus gentium4 ,and the clergy1 who aspired to power and dignities1 either abroad or at home1 studied it with an inconceivable rage2 insomuch1 that ,,roger ,,bacon tells us1 that1 in his time for forty years together1 the seculars1 who were the ecclesiastics employed in business1 never published a single treatise in divinity#acg4 ,the truth is1 whatever shew the popes or our own princes might make1 at times1 of discountenancing the civil law1 it was not the design of either absolutely and universally to suppress it4 ,it was properly1 not the civil1 but the canon law1 which was discountenanced by our kings4 ,and the case of the popes was1 that1 when they found the imperial law opposed to the common1 they were ready to favour it2 when it was opposed to the canon1 and brought that into neglect1 they forbad ecclesiastics the study of it4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,in the mean time the poor people1 methinks1 were in a fine condition1 between two laws1 the one founded on civil1 and the other on ecclesiastical1 tyranny4 ,if either had prevailed1 there had been an end of their liberties4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,certainly their situation was very critical4 ,yet in the end it was precisely this situation that saved them4 ,for betwixt these contentions of the crown and mitre1 each endeavouring to extend its dominion over the other1 the people1 who were of course to be gained by either side in its distress1 found means to preserve themselves from both4 ,to see how this happened1 we must remember1 what appears indeed from the two edicts of ,,stephen and ,,henry1 that the king himself was a bulwark betwixt them and the papal power4 ,and when the king in his turn wanted to exalt his prerogative over all1 the church very naturally took the alarm1 as we saw in the case of ,,william',s separation of the two tribunals4 ,and thus it happened1 as ,,nat4 ,,bacon observes#ach1 8,that many times the pope and the clergy became protectors of the people's liberties1 and kept them safe from the rage of kings40 ,the greatest danger was1 when the two powers chanced to unite in one common design against them2 as they did in their general inclination for the establishment of the civil law4 ,but here the people had the courage always to defend themselves2 and with that wisdom too1 as demonstrates their attention to the cause of civil liberty1 and the vigilance with which they guarded even its remotest outworks4 ,of their steady and watchful conduct1 in this respect1 ,i shall mention some of the many memorable examples1 that occur in our history4 ,i have said that from the time of ,,stephen1 notwithstanding his famous edict1 the imperial laws were the chief and favourite study of the clergy4 ,they had good reason for applying themselves so closely to this science1 and still further views than their own immediate advancement4 ,they wanted to bring those laws into the civil courts1 and to make them the standing rule of public administration2 not merely from their good-will to the papal authority1 which would naturally gain an advantage by this change1 but for the sake of controlling the too princely barons1 and in hopes1 no doubt1 that the imperial would in due time draw the canon laws into vogue along with them4 ,such1 ,i think1 were at least the secret designs of the ruling clergy2 and they did not wait long before they endeavoured to put their project in execution4 ,the plot was admirably laid1 and with that deep policy as hath kept it1 ,i believe1 from being generally understood to this day4 ,the great men of that time were1 we may be sure1 too like the great men of every other1 to be very scrupulous about the commission of those vices to which they were most inclined4 ,the truth is1 their profligacy was in proportion to their greatness and their ignorance4 ,they indulged themselves in the most licentious amours1 and even prided themselves in this licence4 ,the good churchmen1 no doubt1 lamented this corruption of manners2 but1 as they could not reform1 they resolved at least to draw some emolument to themselves from it4 ,the castles of the barons1 they saw1 were full of bastards4 ,nay1 the courtesy of that time had so far dignified their vices1 that the very same was had in honour4 ,,ego ,,gulielmus ,,bastardus1 is even the preamble to one of ,,william the ,first's charters4 ,yet1 as respectable as it was become1 there was one unlucky check on this favourite indulgence3 and this1 with the barons leave1 the considerate bishops would presently take off4 ,subsequent marriage1 by the imperial as well as canon laws1 legitimated bastards1 as to succession2 whereas the common law kept them eternally in their state of bastardy4 ,it is not to be doubted1 but the barons would be sensible enough of this restraint4 ,they earnestly wished to get rid of it4 ,and could any thing bid so fair to recommend the imperial law to their good liking1 as the tender of it for so desirable a purpose8 ,at a parliament1 therefore1 under ,,henry ,,iii#aci1 ,rogaverunt omnes episcopi1 ut consentirent quod nati ante matrimonium essent legitimi4 ,what think ye now of this general supplication of the hierarchy8 ,what could the barons do but comply with it1 especially as it was so kindly intended for their relief1 and the proposal was even made with a delicacy that might enable them to come into it with a good grace1 and without the shame of seeming to desire it8 ,all this is very true4 ,yet the answer of the virtuous barons is as follows3 ,omnes comites et barons un voce responderunt1 ,,quod ,,nolumus ,,leges ,,angli ,,mutari4 ,we see then what stuck with them4 ,these barons1 as licentious as they were1 preferred their liberty to their pleasure4 ,the bishops1 they knew1 as partisans of the pope1 were for subjecting the nation to the imperial and papal laws4 ,they offered1 indeed1 to begin with a circumstance very much to their taste4 ,but if they accepted the benefit of them in one instance1 with what decency could they object to them in others8 ,they determined therefore to be consistent4 ,they rejected a proposition1 most agreeable in itself1 lest their acceptance of it should make way for the introduction of foreign laws2 whose very genius and essence1 they well knew1 was arbitrary1 despotic power4 ,their answer speaks their sense of this matter1 ,,nolumus ,,leges ,,angli ,,mutari4 ,they had nothing to object to the proposal itself4 ,but they were afraid for the constitution4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i doubt1 ,sir ,,john1 my lord of ,,salisbury will bring a fresh complaint against you1 for this liberty with the bishops4 ,but ,i1 who shall not be thought wanting in a due honour for that bench1 must needs confess myself much pleased1 as well with the novelty1 as justice of this comment4 ,i have frequently considered this famous reply of the old barons4 ,but ,i did not see to the bottom of the contrivance4 ,their aversion to the imperial laws1 as you say1 must have been very great1 to have put them on their guard against so inviting a proposal4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,one thing1 however1 is forgotten or dissembled in this account1 that the law of ,,justinian1 which allows the privilege of legitimation to subsequent marriage1 is grounded on some reasons that might1 perhaps1 recommend it to the judgment1 as well as interest of the old prelates4 ,besides1 they doubtless found themselves much distressed by the contrariety of the two laws in this instance4 ,for the ground of their motion1 as ,i remember1 was1 ,quod esset secundum communem formam ecclesi4 ,but1 to deal ingenuously with you1 ,sir ,,john1 you have dressed up your hypothesis very plausibly4 ,and ,i1 who am no advocate for the civil or ecclesiastical laws1 in this or any instance where they clash with those of my country1 can allow your raillery on ,,henry',s good bishops1 if it were only that ,i see it makes so much for your general argument4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,your lordship may the rather excuse this liberty with the church1 as ,i propose1 in due time1 to deal as freely with ,,westminster-,,hall2 a similar plot1 which ,i shall have occasion to mention presently1 having been formed against the ancient constitution by the men of our profession4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,in the mean time1 ,sir ,,john1 you must give me leave1 in quality of advocate for the church1 to observe one thing1 that does the churchmen honour4 ,it is1 that1 in these attempts on the constitution1 the judges and great officers of the realm1 who in those times were of the clergy1 constantly took the side of the ,english laws2 as my ,lord ,,coke himself1 ,i remember1 takes notice in his commentary on this statute of ,,merton4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,i believe the observation is very just4 ,but ,i should incline to impute this integrity1 not to the influence of church principles1 but those of the common law1 and so turn your compliment to the honour of our profession instead of theirs1 if it were not too clear in fact that every profession1 in its turn1 hath been liable to this charge of corruption4 ,but ,i was going on with my proofs of the national aversion to the imperial law4 ,the next shall be taken from that famous dispute concerning the succession to the crown of ,scotland in the reign of ,,edward ,i4 ,for a question arising about the kind of law by which the controversy should be decided1 and it being especially debated1 whether the ,csarean law1 as a sort of jus gentium1 ought not in such a cause to have the preference to the law of ,england2 it was then unanimously determined by the great council of ,,norham1 that the authority of the ,csarean law should by no means be admitted2 ,,ne ,,inde ,,majestatis ,,anglican ,,juri ,,fieret ,,detrimentum#adj4 ,this determination was public1 and given on a very solemn occasion4 ,and in general we may observe1 that at the junctures when the state hath been most jealous of its liberty and honour1 it hath declared the loudest against the imperial laws3 as in the ,,wonder-,,working parliament under ,,richard ,,ii1 when the duke of ,gloucester accused the archbishop of ,york1 the duke of ,ireland1 and other creatures of the king1 of high treason4 ,the charge was so fully proved1 that the court had no other way of diverting the storm1 than by pretending an irregularity in the forms of procedure4 ,to this end the lawyers were consulted with1 or more properly directed4 ,i will disguise nothing4 ,they descended so much from the dignity of their profession1 as to act in perfect subserviency to the views of the court2 and therefore gave it as their opinion1 that the proceedings against the lords were of no validity1 as being contrary to the forms prescribed by the civil law4 ,the barons took themselves to be insulted by these shifts of the lawyers4 ,they insisted that the proceedings were agreeable to their own customs1 and declared roundly that they would never suffer ,england to be governed by the ,roman civil law#ada4 ,what think ye now of these examples8 ,are they not a proof that the spirit of liberty ran high in those times1 when neither the intrigues of churchmen nor the chicane of lawyers could put a stop to it8 ,it seems as if no direct attempts on the constitution could have been made with the least appearance of success2 and that therefore the abettors of arbitrary power were obliged to work their way obliquely1 by contriving methods for the introduction of a foreign law4 ,in this project they had many advantages1 which nothing but an unwearied zeal in the cause of liberty could have possibly counteracted4 ,from the reign of ,,stephen to that of ,,edward ,,iii1 that is1 for the space of near #bjj years1 the ,roman law had been in great credit#adb4 ,all the learning of the times was in the clergy1 and that learning was little more than the imperial and canon laws4 ,the fact is so certain1 that some of the clergy themselves1 when in an ill temper1 or off their guard1 complain of it in the strongest terms4 ,and to see the height to which this humour was carried1 not the seculars only who intended to rise by them1 but the very monks in their cells studied nothing but these laws#adc4 ,to complete the danger1 the magistracies and great offices of the kingdom were filled with churchmen#add4 ,who would expect1 now1 with those advantages1 but that the ,roman law would have forced its way into our civil courts8 ,it did indeed insinuate itself there as it were by stealth1 but could never appear with any face of authority4 ,the only service1 that would be accepted from it1 was that of illustration only in the course of their pleadings1 whilst the lawyers quoted occasionally from the ,,institutes1 just as they might have done from any other ancient author#ade4 ,yet1 so long as the churchmen presided in the courts of justice1 this intruder was to be respected2 and it is pleasant to observe the wire-drawing of some of our ablest lawyers1 in their endeavours to make the policy of ,england speak the language of ,rome4 ,,mr4 ,,selden',s dissertation on ,,fleta#adf1 which lies open before me1 affords a curious instance4 ,the civil law says1 8,populus ei ,csari et in eum omne suum imperium et potestatem conferat20 meaning by people1 the ,roman people1 and so establishing the despotic rule of the prince4 ,but ,,bracton took advantage of the ambiguity1 to establish that maxim of a free government1 8,that all dominion arises from the people40 ,this1 you will say1 was good management4 ,but what follows is still better4 8,nihil aliud1 says he1 potest rex in terris1 cum sit ,dei minister et vicarius1 nisi quod ,,jure potest4 ,,nec ,,obstat quod dicitur1 ,,quod ,,principi ,,placet ,,legis ,,habet ,,vigorem2 quia sequitur in fine legis1 ,,cum ,,lege ,,regia ,,qu ,,de ,,imperio ,,ejus ,,lata ,,est2 id est1 non quicquid de voluntate regis temer prsumptum est1 sed quod consilio magistratuum suorum1 rege auctoritatem prstante1 et habit super hoc deliberatione et tractatu1 rect fuerit definitum40 ,thus far old ,,bracton2 who is religiously followed in the same gloss by ,,thornton1 and the author of ,,fleta4 ,but what6 you will say1 this is an exact description of the present constitution4 ,it is so1 and therefore certainly not to be found in the civil law4 ,to confess the truth1 these venerable sages are playing tricks with us4 ,the whole is a premeditated falsification1 or1 to say it softer1 a licentious commentary1 for the sake of ,english liberty4 ,the words in the ,,pandects and ,,institutions are these2 8,,quod ,,principi ,,placuit1 ,,legis ,,habet ,,vigorem1 ,,utpote ,,cum ,,lege ,,regia1 ,,qu ,,de ,,imperio ,,ejus ,,lata ,,est1 ,,populus ,,ei ,,et ,,in ,,eum ,,omne ,,suum ,,imperium ,,et ,,potestatem ,,conferat40 ,my honest friend1 in mentioning this extraordinary circumstance1 says1 one cannot consider it sine stupore4 ,he observes1 that these lawyers did not quote the ,pandects by hearsay1 but had copies of them2 and therefore adds 7for ,i will read on7 8,unde magis mirandum qunam ratione evenerit1 ut non solm ipse1 ade judiciis forensibus clarus1 et 7si ,biographis scriptorum nostratium fides7 professor juris utriusque ,oxoniensis1 verm etiam ,,thorntonius juris alis peritissimus1 et ,,flet author1 ade diversam lectionem sensumque diversum atque interpretibus aliis universis ade alienum in illustrissimo juris ,csarei loco explicando tam fidentr admiserint40 ,the difficulty1 you see1 increases upon him4 ,but we shall easily remove it by observing1 that the ,csarean laws1 though they had no proper authority with us1 yet were much complimented in those times1 and were to be treated on all occasions with ceremony4 ,and therefore those lawyers that lived under and wanted to support a free constitution1 saw there was no way of serving their cause so effectually1 as by pretending to find it in the ,roman institutes4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,this management of ,,bracton and his followers makes some amends for the ill conduct of ,,richard the ,second's lawyers4 ,and as to their chicanery1 the ingenuity of the gloss1 we will suppose1 was no more than necessary to correct the malignity of the text4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,they had1 no doubt1 consulted their honour much more1 by insisting roundly1 as they might have done1 that the text had no concern at all in the dispute4 ,but ,i mention these things only to shew the extreme reverence1 that was then paid to the civil law1 by the shifts the common lawyers were put to in order to evade its influence4 ,from which we learn how rooted the love of liberty must have been in this nation1 and how unshaken the firmness of the national councils in supporting it1 when1 notwithstanding the general repute it was of in those days1 the imperial law could never gain authority enough to prescribe to us in any matters that concerned the rights of the crown1 or the property of the subject4 ,and this circumstance will be thought the more extraordinary1 if it be considered1 that1 to the general esteem in which the ,roman law was held by the clergy1 our kings have usually added the whole weight of their influence2 except indeed at some particular junctures1 when their jealousy of the canon law prevailed over their natural bias to the civil4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i should be unwilling to weaken any argument you take to be of use in maintaining the noble cause you have undertaken4 ,but1 methinks1 this charge on our princes would require to be made out by other evidence#adg than hath been commonly produced for it4 ,there is no doubt but many of them have aimed at setting themselves above the laws of their country2 but is it true 7,i mean1 though ,,fortescue himself#adh has suggested the same thing7 that for this purpose they have usually expressed a partiality to the ,roman laws8 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,i believe it certain that they have1 and on better reasons than the bare word of any lawyer whatsoever4 ,what think you of ,,richard the ,second's policy in the instance before mentioned2 that ,,richard1 who used to declare1 8,that the laws were only in his mouth and breast1 and that he himself could make and unmake them at his pleasure80 ,we may know for what reason a prince of this despotic turn had recourse to the ,roman law4 ,but even his great predecessor is known to have been very indulgent towards it4 ,and still earlier1 ,,edward ,i4 took much pains to establish the credit of this law2 and to that end engaged the younger ,,accursius1 the most renowned doctor of the age1 to come over into ,england1 and set up a school of it at ,oxford4 ,or1 to wave these instances1 let me refer you to a certain and very remarkable fact1 which speaks the sense1 not of this or that king1 but of the whole succession of our princes4 ,the imperial law1 to this day1 obtains altogether in the courts of admiralty1 in courts marescall1 and in the universities#adi4 ,on the contrary1 in what we call the courts of law and equity1 it never hath1 nor ever could prevail4 ,what shall we say to this remarkable difference8 or to what cause will you ascribe it1 that this law1 which was constantly excluded with such care from the one sort of courts1 should have free currency and be of sole authority in the other8 ,i believe it will be difficult to assign any other than this3 that the subjects of decision in the first species of courts are matters in the resort of the king's prerogative1 such as peace and war1 and the distribution of honours2 whilst the subjects of decision in the courts of common law are out of his prerogative1 such as those of liberty and property4 ,the king had his choice by what law the first sort of subjects should be regulated2 and therefore he adopted the imperial law4 ,he had not his choice in the latter instance2 and the people were never satisfied with any other than the law of the land4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,yet ,mr4 ,,selden1 you know1 gives another reason of this preference3 it was1 he thinks1 because foreigners are often concerned with the natives in those tribunals where the civil law is in use4 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,true2 but my learned friend1 as ,i conceive1 did not attend to this matter with his usual exactness4 ,for foreigners are as frequently concerned in the courts of law and equity1 as in the other tribunals4 ,the case in point of reason is very clear4 ,in all contests that are carried on between a native and a foreigner1 as the subject of another state1 the decision ought to be by the law of nations4 ,but when a foreigner puts himself with a native under the protection of our state1 the determination is1 of course1 by our law4 ,the practice hath uniformly corresponded to the right in the courts of law and equity4 ,in the other tribunals the right hath given way to the will of the prince1 who had his reasons for preferring the authority of the imperial law4 ,upon the whole1 if we consider the veneration1 which the clergy usually entertained1 and endeavoured to inculcate into the people1 for the civil law2 the indulgence shewn it by the prince2 its prevalence in those courts which were immediately under the prerogative2 and even the countenance shewn it at times in the course of pleading at common law2 we cannot avoid coming to this short conclusion1 8,that the genius of the imperial laws was repugnant to our constitution2 and that nothing but the extreme jealousy of the barons1 lest they might prove1 in pleas of the crown1 injurious to civil liberty1 hath kept them from being received in ,england on the same footing that we every where find they are in the other countries of ,europe1 and as they are in ,scotland to this day40 ,but1 if you think ,i draw this conclusion too hastily1 and without grounding it on sufficient premises1 you may further consider with me1 if you please1 ,,the ,,fate ,,and ,,fortunes ,,of ,,the ,,civil ,,law ,,in ,,this ,,kingdom ,,down ,,to ,,the ,,present ,,time4 ,in the reigns of ,,henry ,,vii#aej and ,,viii1 and the two first kings of the house of ,,stuart1 that is1 the most despotic of our princes1 the study of the civil law hath been more especially favoured2 as we might conclude from the general spirit of those kings themselves1 but as we certainly know from the countenance they shewed to its professors2 from their chusing to employ them in their business1 and from the salaries and places they provided for their encouragement4 ,yet see the issue of all this indulgence to a foreign law1 and the treatment it met with from our parliaments and people6 ,the oppressions of ,,empson and ,,dudley had been founded in a stretch of power1 usurped and justified on the principles of the civil law2 by which these miscreants had been enabled to violate a fundamental part of our constitution1 the way of trial by ,,juries4 ,the effect on the people was dreadful4 ,accordingly1 in the entrance of the next reign1 though the authority1 by which they had acted1 had even been parliamentary1 these creatures of tyranny were indicted of high treason1 were condemned and executed for having been instrumental in subverting ,,legem ,,terr2 and the extorted statute1 under which they had hoped to shelter themselves1 was with a just indignation repealed4 ,yet all this was considered only as a necessary sacrifice to the clamours of an incensed people4 ,the younger ,,henry1 we may be sure1 had so much of his father in him1 or rather so far outdid him in the worst parts of his tyranny1 that he could not but look with an eye of favour on the very law he had been constrained to abolish4 ,his great ecclesiastical minister was1 no doubt1 in the secret of his master's inclinations1 and conducted himself accordingly4 ,yet the vengeance of the nation pursued and overtook him in good time4 ,they resented his disloyal contempt of the original constitution2 and made it one of the articles against this ,roman cardinal1 8,that he endeavoured to subvert antiquissimas leges hujus regni1 universumque hoc regnum ,,legibus ,,imperialibus subjicere40 ,from this time1 the study of the civil law was thought to languish in ,england1 till it revived with much spirit in the reigns of those unhappy princes who succeeded to the house of ,,tudor4 ,then indeed1 by inclination and by pedantry1 ,,james ,i4 was led to patronize and encourage it4 ,and the same project was resumed1 and carried still further1 by his unfortunate son4 ,i speak now from my own experience and observation4 ,the civil lawyers were most welcome at court4 ,they were brought into the ,chancery and court of ,requests4 ,the minister1 another sort of man than ,,wolsey1 yet a thorough ecclesiastic1 and bigoted1 if not to the religion2 yet to the policy of ,rome1 gave a countenance to this profession above that of the common law4 ,he had found the spirit1 and even the forms of it1 most convenient for his purpose in the ,,star-,,chamber and ,,high-,,commission court1 those tribunals of imperial justice1 exalted so far above the controul of the common law2 and by his good will1 therefore1 would have brought the same regimen into the other branches of the administration4 ,great civilians were employed to write elaborate defences of their science2 to the manifest exaltation of the prerogative2 to the prejudice of the national rights and privileges2 and to the disparagement of the common law4 ,the consequence of these proceedings is well known4 ,the most immediate was1 that they provoked the jealousy of the common lawyers2 and1 when the rupture afterwards happened1 occasioned many of the most eminent of them to throw themselves into the popular scale#aea4 ,yet1 to see the uniformity of the views of tyranny1 and the direct opposition which it never fails to encounter from the ,english law1 no sooner had a set of violent men usurped the liberties of their country1 and with the sword in their hands determined to rule despotically and in defiance of the constitution1 than the same jealousy of the common law1 and the same contempt of it1 revived4 ,nay1 to such an extreme was the new tyranny carried1 that the very game of ,,empson and ,,dudley was played over again4 ,the trial of an ,englishman by his peers was disgraced and rejected2 and 7,i speak from what ,i felt7 the person imprisoned and persecuted1 who dared appeal1 though in his own case#aeb1 to the ancient essential forms of the constitution4 ,under such a state of things1 it is not to be wondered that much pains was taken to depreciate a law which these mighty men were determined not to regard4 ,invectives against the professors of the ,english laws were the usual and favoured topics of parliamentary eloquence4 ,these were sometimes so indecent1 and pushed to that provoking length1 that ,,whitlocke himself1 who paced it with them through all changes1 was forced in the end to hazard his reputation with his masters1 by standing on the necessary defence of himself and his profession#aec4 ,i need not1 ,i suppose1 descend lower4 ,ye have both seen with your own eyes the occurrences of the late reign4 ,ye have heard the common language of the time4 ,the practice was but conformable to such doctrines as were current at court1 where it was generally maintained1 that the king's power of dispensing with law1 was ,,law2 by which if these doctors did not intend the imperial or civil law1 the insult was almost too gross to deserve a confutation1 ,it must be owned1 and to the eternal shame of those who were capable of such baseness1 there were not wanting some even of the common lawyers that joined in this insult4 ,i but touch these things slightly2 for ,i consider to whom ,i speak4 ,but if1 to these examples of the nation's fondness for their laws1 you add1 what appears in the tenor of our histories1 the constant language of the coronation-oaths1 of the oaths of our judges1 and1 above all1 of the several great charters2 in all which express mention is made of the ,,lex ,,terr1 in opposition to every foreign1 but especially the ,csarean1 law2 you will conclude with me1 8,that1 as certainly as the ,c,,sarean ,,law is founded in the principles of slavery1 our ,,english ,,law1 and the constitution to which it refers1 hath its foundation in freedom1 and1 as such1 deserved the care with which it hath been transmitted down to us from the earliest ages40 ,what think ye now1 my good friends8 ,is it any longer a doubt1 that the constitution of the ,english government1 such ,i mean as it appears to have been from the most unquestioned annals of our country1 is a free constitution8 ,is there any thing more in the way of this conclusion8 or does it not force itself upon us1 and lie open to the mind of every plain man that but turns his attention upon this subject8 ,you began1 ,mr4 ,,somers1 with great fears and apprehensions2 or you thought fit to counterfeit them1 at least4 ,you suspected the matter was too mysterious for common understandings to penetrate1 and too much involved in the darkness of ancient times to be brought into open day-light4 ,let me hear your free thoughts on the evidence ,i have here produced to you4 ,and yet it is a small part only of that which might be produced1 of that ,i am sure which yourself could easily have produced1 and perhaps expected from me4 ,but ,i content myself with these obvious truths1 8,that the liberty of the subject appears1 and of itself naturally arose1 from the very nature of the ,,feudal1 which is properly 7at least if we look no further back than the ,conquest7 the ,english constitution2 that the current of liberty has been gradually widening1 as well as purifying1 in proportion as it descended from its source2 that charters and laws have removed every scruple that might arise about the reciprocal rights and privileges of prince and people2 that the sense of that liberty which the nation enjoyed under their admirable constitution was so quick1 that every the least attempt to deprive them of it gave an alarm2 and their attachment to it so strong and constant1 that no artifice1 no intrigue1 no perversion of law and gospel1 could induce them to part with it3 that1 in particular1 they have guarded this precious deposite of legal and constitutional liberty with such care1 that1 while the heedless reception of a foreign law1 concurring with other circumstances1 hath riveted the yoke of slavery on the other nations of ,europe1 this of ,england could never be cajoled nor driven into any terms of accommodation with it2 but1 as ,,nat4 ,,bacon#aed said truly1 ,that the triple crown could never well solder with the ,english1 so neither could the imperial2 and that1 in a word1 the ,,english ,,law hath always been preserved inviolate from the impure mixtures of the canon and ,csarean laws1 as the sole defence and bulwark of our civil liberties40 ,these are the plain truths1 which ,i have here delivered to you1 and on which ,i could be content to rest this great cause2 ,i mean1 if it had not already received its formal1 and1 ,i would hope1 final determination1 in another way4 ,for no pretences will surely prevail hereafter with a happy people to renounce that liberty1 which so rightfully belonged to them at all times1 and hath now so solemnly been confirmed to them by the great transactions of these days4 ,i willingly omit therefore1 as superfluous1 what in a worse cause might have been thought of no small weight1 the express testimony of our ablest lawyers to the freedom of our constitution4 ,i do not mean only the ,,cokes and ,,seldens of our time 7though in point of authority what names can be greater than theirs872 but those of older and therefore more reverend estimation1 such as ,,glanvil1 ,,bracton1 the author of ,,fleta1 ,,thornton1 and ,,fortescue#aee3 men the most esteemed and learned in their several ages2 who constantly and uniformly speak of the ,english1 as a mixed and limited form of government1 and even go so far as to seek its origin1 where indeed the origin of all governments must be sought1 in the free will and consent of the people4 ,all this ,i might have displayed at large2 and to others perhaps1 especially if the cause had required such management1 all this ,i should have displayed4 ,but1 independently of the judgments of particular men1 which prejudice might take occasion to object to1 ,i hold it sufficient to have proved from surer grounds1 from the very form and make of our political fabric1 and the most unquestioned1 because the most public1 monuments of former times1 8,,that ,,the ,,english ,,constitution ,,is ,,assuredly ,,and ,,indisputably ,,free#aef40 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,you will read1 ,sir ,,john1 in our attention to this discourse1 the effect it has had upon us4 ,the zeal1 with which you have pleaded the cause of liberty1 makes me almost imagine ,i see you again in the warmth and spirit of your younger years1 when you first made head against the encroachments of civil tyranny4 ,the same cause has not only recalled to your memory the old topics of defence1 but restores your former vigour in the management of them4 ,so that1 for myself1 ,i must freely own1 your vindication of our common liberties is1 at least1 the most plausible and consistent that ,i have ever met with4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,and yet1 if one was critically disposed1 there are still1 perhaps1 some things that might deserve a further explanation4--,but enough has been said by you1 ,sir ,,john1 to shew us where the truth lies3 and1 indeed1 from such plain and convincing topics1 that1 whatever fears my love of liberty might suggest1 they are much abated at least1 if not entirely removed1 by your arguments4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,mr4 ,,somers1 ,i perceive1 is not easily cured of his scruples and apprehensions4 ,but for my own part1 ,sir ,,john1 ,i can think but of one objection of weight that can be opposed to your conclusion4 ,it is1 8,that1 notwithstanding the clear evidence you have produced1 both for the free nature of the ,english constitution1 and the general sense of the ,english nation concerning it1 yet1 in fact1 the government was very despotic under the ,,tudor1 and still more perhaps under the first princes of the ,,stuart1 line4 ,how could this happen1 may it be asked1 on your plan1 which supposes the popular interest to have been kept up in constant vigour1 or rather to have been always gaining1 insensibly indeed1 but necessarily1 on the power of the crown8 ,will not the argument then from historical evidence be turned against you1 whilst it may be said that your theory1 however plausible1 is contradicted by so recent and so well-attested a part of our history8 ,and1 in particular1 will not the partisans#aeg of the late king and his family have to allege in their behalf1 that their notions of the prerogative were but such as they succeeded to with the crown2 and1 whatever may be pretended from researches into remoter times1 that they endeavoured only to maintain the monarchy on the footing on which it had stood for many successions1 and on which it then stood when the administration fell into their hands8 ,if this point were effectually cleared1 ,i see nothing that could be further desired to a full and complete vindication of ,english liberty40 ,,sir ,j4 ,,maynard4 ,your lordship1 ,i must own1 has touched a very curious and interesting part of our subject4 ,but you must not believe it was so much overlooked by me1 as purposely left for your lordship's better consideration4 ,you1 who have looked so minutely and carefully into the story of those times1 will1 better than any other1 be able to unfold to us the mysteries of that affair4 ,the fact is certain1 as you say1 that the ,english government wore a more despotic appearance from the time of the ,,tudor family's accession to the throne1 than in the reigns preceding that period4 ,but ,i am mistaken1 if your lordship will not open the reason of it so clearly as to convince us1 that that increase of prerogative was no proof of a change in the constitution1 and was even no symptom of declining liberty4 ,i do not allow myself to speak my sentiments more plainly at present4 ,but ,i am sure1 if they are just1 they will receive a confirmation from what your lordship will find occasion to observe to us in discoursing op this subject4 ,,mr4 ,,somers4 ,i will not disown that this was one of the matters ,i had in view1 when ,i hinted some remaining doubts about your general conclusion4 ,but ,i knew it would not escape my lord of ,,salisbury1 who1 of all others1 is certainly the most capable of removing it4 ,,bp4 ,,burnet4 ,so that ,i have very unwarily1 it seems1 been providing a fine task for myself4 ,and yet1 as difficult as ,i foresee it will be for me to satisfy two such ,inquirers1 ,i should not decline that task1 if ,i was indeed prepared for it1 or if ,i could boast of such a memory as ,sir ,j4 ,,maynard has shewn in the course of this conversation4 ,but the truth is1 though ,i have not wanted opportunities of laying in materials for such a design1 and though ,i have not neglected to take some slight notes of them1 yet ,i cannot pretend to have them at once in that readiness1 as to venture on such a discourse as ,i know you expect from me4 ,but if1 against our next meeting1 ,i shall be able to digest such thoughts as have sometimes occurred to me when ,i was engaged in the ,history of the ,reformation1 ,i shall take a pleasure to contribute all ,i can to the further and more entire elucidation of this subject4 ,,the ,,end ,,of ,,the ,,third ,,volume4 ,printed by ,j4 ,nichols and ,son1 ,red ,lion ,passage1 ,fleet ,street1 ,london4 ,,footnotes3 #a ,mala et impia consuetudo est contra ,deos disputandi1 sive ex animo id fit1 sive simulat4 ,de ,nat4 ,d4 l4 ii4 c4 #fg4 #b ,genus hoc sermonum1 positum in hominum veterum auctoritate1 et eorum illustrium1 plus nescio quo pacto videtur habere gravitatis4 ,itaque ipse mea legens1 sic afficior interdum1 ut ,catonem1 non me loqui existmem4 ,,cic4 ,de ,amic4 c4 #a4 #c ,omnem sermonem tribuimus non ,tithono1 ut ,aristo ,chius2 parum enim esset auctoritatis in fabul4 ,de ,senect4 c4 #a4 #d ,see the ,dialogue intituled1 1 4 #e ,xen4 ,mem4 l4 i4 c4 #c4 #f 4 4 c4 #g4 #g ,difficillimam illam societatem ,gravitatis cum ,humanitate4 ,leg4 l4 iii4 c4 #a4 #h 1 1 4 4 c4 #g4 #i 4 c4 #g4 to the end4 4 c4 #cc4 and 4 #aj ----quo in genere orationis utrumque ,oratorem cognoveramus1 id ipsum sumus in eorum sermone adumbrare conati4 ,de ,orat4 iii4 #d4 #aa ,a curious passage1 or two1 in his ,letters to ,atticus1 will serve to illustrate this observation4 ,the academic questions were drawn up1 and finished1 when a doubt occurred to him1 whether he should not change one of the speakers in that ,dialogue1 and1 instead of ,varro1 introduce ,brutus2 who would suit his purpose1 he said1 just as well1 because his philosophic principles were the same with those of ,varro--si addubitas1 says he to ,atticus1 ad ,brutum transeamus4 ,est enim is quoque ,antiochius4 l4 xiii4 #be4 ,was this a change to be easily made1 if it were necessary1 in this kind of writing1 to suit the style and manner of expression to the character of the speakers8 ,yet1 hear how negligently he treats this matter--,opinor igitur consideremus1 etsi nomina jam facta sunt4 ,sed ,,vel ,,induci1 ,,vel ,,mutari ,,possunt4 l4 xiii4 #ad4--;,in other words1 provided the cast of the several parts was the same1 the language of the ,dialogue would require no alteration4 ,it was indifferent1 in this respect1 who were the speakers4 #ab ,scripsit enim et ,,dialogos quos non magis philosophi annumerare possis1 quam ,,histori4 ,,seneca1 ,,ep4 ,c4 #ac ,lord ,,shaftesbury',s ,moralists1 ,p4 #a4 ,s4 ,i4 #ad ,adv4 to an ,author1 ,p4 #a4 ,s4 ,,iii4 #ae ,adv4 to an ,author1 ,p4 #a4 towards the end4 #af ,the scene of ,dr4 ,,more',s ,,divine ,,dialogues1 printed in #affh4 #ag ,at ,,beaconsfield in ,bucks1 the supposed scene of the ,dialogue4 #ah ,see his works1 where are some pieces of a very early date2 though ,lord ,,clarendon tells us1 he was near thirty years of age1 before he was much taken notice of as a ,poet4 ,contin4 of his ,life1 ,p4 ,i4 p4 #be4 #ai ,dr4 ,,andrews1 bishop of ,winchester1 and ,dr4 ,,neal1 bishop of ,durham4 ,the story is well known4 #bj ,dr4 ,,george ,,morley4 #ba ,this alludes to the impeachment of ,mr4 ,justice ,,crawley1 ,july #f1 #afda1 for his extra-judicial opinion in the affair of ,ship-money4 ,mr4 ,,waller',s speech on this occasion is extant amongst his works4 #bb ,the famous ,mr4 ,,hampden was his uncle4 #bc ,that of ,secretary of ,state4 ,the ,lord ,,clarendon tells us it was with the utmost difficulty he persuaded him to accept it4 8,there were two considerations 7says the historian7 that made most impression on him2 the one1 lest the world should believe that his own ambition had procured this promotion1 and that he had therefore appeared signally in the house to oppose those proceedings1 that he might thereby render himself gracious to the court3 ,the other1 lest the king should expect such a submission and resignation of himself and his own reason and judgment to his commands as he should never give or pretend to give2 for he was so severe an adorer of truth1 that he would as easily have given himself leave to steal as to dissemble10 c4 ,b4 iv4 #bd ,the noble historian1 before cited1 gives us two instances of ,lord ,,falkland',s scrupulosity4 ,the one was1 8,that he could never bring himself to employ spies1 or give any countenance or entertainment to them30 ,the other1 8,that he could never allow himself the liberty of opening letters1 upon a suspicion that they might contain matter of dangerous consequence40 ,b4 viii4 #be ,to this purpose my ,lord ,,clarendon4 8,he ,mr4 ,w4 spoke1 upon all occasions1 with great sharpness and freedom3 which 7now there were so few that used it1 and there was no danger of being over-voted7 was not restrained2 and therefore used as an argument against those1 who were gone upon pretence1 that they were not suffered to declare their opinion freely in the house2 which could not be believed1 when all men knew what liberty ,mr4 ,,waller took1 and spoke every day with impunity1 against the sense and proceedings of the house40 ,b4 vii4 #bf ,see ,lord ,,clarendon',s ,history4 #bg 1 lib4 iv4 #bf1 which ,dr4 ,,more1 in l4 ii4 c4 #c4 of his ,,enchiridion ,,ethicum1 translates1 simplifica teipsum4 #bh ,in the year #afed4 #bi ,lord ,,clarendon died in #afgd4 #cj ,the character of ,mr4 ,,waller is given at large in the ,life of ,lord ,clarendon1 ,p4 ,i4 p4 #be4--;,as for ,dr4 ,,more1 ,bishop ,,burnet tells us1 in one word1 8,that he was an open-hearted and sincere ,christian philosopher40 ,hist4 of his own ,time1 vol4 p4 #bgc4 #abmo1 ,edinb4 #agec4 #ca ,this ,dialogue is founded on a short passage in ,mr4 ,,sprat',s ,life of ,mr4 ,,cowley1 in which he observes1 8,that in his long dependence on my ,lord ,st4 ,,albans1 there never happened any manner of difference between them2 except a little at ,,last1 because he would leave his service40 #cb ,a small village on the ,thames1 which was ,mr4 ,,cowley',s first retreat1 before he removed to ,chertsea4 #cc ,meaning an estate he had obtained by means of this lord4 ,this particular is several times referred to in the course of the ,dialogue4 #cd ,the writer of the ,dialogue has thought fit to soften the misanthropy of ,mr4 ,,cowley in this instance4 ,in one of his ,essays he talks strangely4 8,it is the great boast10 says he1 8of eloquence and philosophy1 that they first congregated men dispersed1 united them into cities1 and built up the houses and the walls of cities4 ,i wish they could unravel all they had woven1 that we might have our woods and our innocence again1 instead of our castles and our policies40 #ce ,these verses are inserted in one of his ,essays1 and in some editions of his works4 #cf 8,perhaps1 says he 7speaking of the poets71 it was the immature and immoderate love of them1 which stampt first1 or rather engraved1 the characters in me3 they were like letters cut in the bark of a young tree1 which with the tree1 still grow proportionably40 ,essay on himself4 #cg 8,when the civil war broke out1 his ,mr4 ,,cowley',s affection to the king's cause drew him to ,oxford1 as soon as it began to be the chief seat of the royal party40 ,dr4 ,,sprat',s life of him4 #ch ,dr4 ,,sprat tells us in his ,life1 8,that1 during his residence at ,oxford1 he had the entire friendship of my ,lord ,,falkland1 one of the principal secretaries of state4 ,that affection was contracted by the agreement of their learning and manners4 ,for you may remember1 ,sir1 addressing himself to ,mr4 ,m4 ,,clifford we have often heard ,mr4 ,,cowley admire him1 not only for the profoundness of his knowledge1 which was applauded by all the world1 but more especially for those qualities which he himself more regarded1 for his generosity of mind1 and his neglect of the vain pomp of human greatness40 #ci ,the ,cutter of ,coleman-street2 the occasion and purpose of which was this3 ,at the ,restoration1 there was not a set of men more troublesome to the ministry than the cavalier officers2 amongst whom had crept in all the profligate of broken fortunes1 to share in the merits and rewards of that name4 ,,cowley writ this comedy to unmask these wretches1 and might reasonably pretend to some thanks for it4 ,but1 contrary to expectation1 this very attempt raised a storm against him even at court1 which beat violently upon him4 ,see his preface to that play in the later editions in #hvo4 #dj ,,shakespear4 ,as you like it4 ,act ,,ii4 ,s4 #a4--,there is a quaintness in these lines of the great poet1 which however are not unlike some of ,mr4 ,,cowley',s addressed to ,j4 ,,evelyne1 ,esq4 ,where does the wisdom and the pow'r divine1 ,in a more bright and sweet reflexion shine2 ,where do we finer strokes and colours see ,of the ,creator's real poetry2 ,than when we with attention look ,upon the third day's volume of the book8 ,if we could open and intend our eye1 ,we all1 like ,moses1 should espy1 ,ev'n in a ,bush1 the radiant ,deity4 #da ,in the ,,preface to his ,proposition for the advancement of experimental philosophy1 first printed in #affa4 ,see the edition in #bdto1 ,lond4 for ,h4 ,herringham4 #db ,dr4 ,,sprat tells us1 8,that he had obtained a plentiful estate by the favour of my ,lord ,,st4 ,,albans1 and the bounty of my lord duke of ,,buckingham40 ,see his ,life4 #dc ,meaning ,the true history of ,don ,quixote2 in which poor ,sancho ,panca is drawn into all adventures1 by the promise of his knight1 to reward him in due time with the government of an island4 #dd ,,lord ,,bacon gives another account of this matter4--8,as for the privateness of life of contemplative men1 it is a theme so common to extol a private life1 not taxed with sensuality and sloth1 in comparison1 and to the disadvantage of a civil life1 for safety1 liberty1 pleasure1 and dignity1 as no man handleth it1 but handleth it well3 such a consonancy it hath to men's conceits in the expressing1 and to men's consents in the allowing40 ,adv4 of ,learning1 ,book #a4 #de ,the justness of this encomium on ,lord ,,clarendon will hardly be disputed by any man1 whose opinion is worth regarding4--,what pity1 that ,mr4 ,,cowley',s connexions with some persons1 indevoted to the excellent ,chancellor1 kept him at a distance from a man1 so congenial to himself1 and for whom he could not but entertain the highest esteem6 ,the ,chancellor1 though he could not be expected to take him out of the hands of his old patrons1 seems1 yet1 to have been generous enough to ,mr4 ,,cowley1 not to resent those connexions3 as may be gathered from the handsome testimony paid to his merit1 in the ,continuation of the ,history of his own ,life4 ,speaking of ,b4 ,,jonson1 he says--8,he ,,ben ,,jonson was the best judge of1 and fittest to prescribe rules to1 poetry and poets1 of any man who had lived with1 or before him1 or since2 ,if ,mr4 ,,cowley had not made a flight beyond all men2 with that modesty yet1 to ascribe much of this1 to the example and learning of ,,ben ,,jonson40--,among the other infelicities of men of genius1 ,,one is1 and not the least1 that it rarely happens to them to have the choosing of the persons1 to whom they would most wish to be obliged4 ,the sensibility of their gratitude being equal to their other parts and virtues1 the man1 whose favour they chance first to experience1 is sure of their constant services and attachment through life1 how strongly soever their interest1 and even their judgment1 may draw another way4 #df ,the reader is not to forget1 that ,mr4 ,,sprat is writing to the ,lord ,,st4 ,,albans1 and was1 at this time1 chaplain to the ,duke of ,,buckingham4 #dg 8,ingenium illustre altioribus studiis juvenis admodum dedit3 non1 ut ,,plerique1 ,,ut ,,nomine ,,magnifico ,,segne ,,otium ,,velaret1 sed quo firmior adversus fortuita rempublicam capesseret40 ,hist4 ,,iv4 #e4--,part of the fine character given us of ,,helvidius ,,priscus4 #dh ,,the ,,royal ,,society2 not yet instituted1 but much talked of at this time4 #di ,we have in this remonstrance that follows1 the usual language of those we call our friends2 which may sometimes be the cause1 but is oftner the pretence1 of ambition4 ,hear how gravely ,sir ,,dudley ,,carlton1 who loved business1 and drudged on in it all his life1 is pleased1 in an evil hour1 to express himself3 8,the best is1 ,i was never better1 and were it not more for a necessity that is imposed by the ,,expectation ,,of ,,friends1 not to stand at a stay and ,,senescere1 whilst a man is young1 than for ambition1 ,i would not complain myself of my misfortune40 ,sir ,,ralph ,,winwood',s ,memorials1 vol4 ,,ii4 p4 #de4 #ej ,that ,mr4 ,,cowley had his prince's grace appears from what the king said of him1 on the news of his death3 8,that he had not left a ,,better man behind him in ,england40 ,and this with grace enough1 in reason1 from ,,such a prince4--,how it came to pass that he wanted the grace of his peers 7if1 indeed1 he did want it71 hath been explained in a note1 p4 #adj4 #ea ,the application of this line is the affair of the ,mastership of the ,savoy2 8which though granted1 says ,mr4 ,wood1 to his highest merit by both the ,,charleses ,i4 and ,,ii4 yet by certain persons1 enemies to the ,muses1 he lost that place40 ,but this was not the worst4 ,for1 such is the hard lot of unsuccessful men1 the ,savoy-missing ,,cowley became the object of ridicule1 instead of pity1 even to the wits themselves2 as may be seen in 8,the session of the poets1 amongst the miscellaneous poems published by ,mr4 ,,dryden40 ,quid ,,domini facient1 audent si talia ,,fures8 #eb ,printed among his works1 under the name of ,,the ,,complaint4 ,the relation it has to the subject debated1 made me think it not amiss to print it at the end of this ,dialogue--,it must raise one's indignation to find that so just1 so delicate1 and so manly a complaint should be scoffed at1 as it was by the wits before mentioned1 under the name of ,,the ,,pitiful ,,melancholy4 #ec ,juvenal1 ,sat4 i4 ver4 #aab4 #ed ,whether it were owing to his other occupations1 or that he had no great confidence in the success of this attempt1 these ,essays1 which were to give entire satisfaction to his court-friend in the affair of his retirement1 went on very slowly4 ,they were even left imperfect at his death1 8a little before which 7says ,dr4 ,,sprat7 he communicated to me his resolution1 to have dedicated them all to my ,lord ,,st4 ,,albans1 as a testimony of his entire respects to him2 and a kind of apology for having left human affairs in the strength of his age1 while he might have been serviceable to his country40----,however1 if this apology had not the intended effect1 it had a much better4 ,lords and wits may decide of the qualities of ,mr4 ,,cowley',s head as they please2 but1 so long as these ,essays remain1 they will oblige all honest men to love the language of his heart4 #ee ,alas6 he was mistaken4 #ef ,a citation from one of his own poems4 #eg ,mr4 ,,sprat himself tells us1 speaking of ,mr4 ,,cowley',s retreat1 that 8some few friends and books1 a chearful heart1 and innocent conscience1 were his constant companions40 ,life4 #eh ,this is one of the prettiest of ,mr4 ,,cowley',s smaller ,poems4 ,the plan of it is highly poetical3 and1 though the numbers be not the most pleasing1 the expression is almost every where natural and beautiful4 ,but its principal charm is that air of melancholy1 thrown over the whole1 so expressive of the poet's character4 ,the address of the writer is seen in conveying his just reproaches on the ,court1 under a pretended vindication of it against the ,muse4 #ei ,an execrable line4 #fj ,for the account of these ,monuments1 and of ,kenelworth-,castle1 see the plans and descriptions of ,,dugdale4 #fa ,the speaker's idea of ,lord ,,leicester',s porter agrees with the character he sustained on the queen's reception at ,kenelworth2 as we find it described in a paper of good authority written at that time4 8,here a ,,porter1 tall of person1 big of limbs1 stark of countenance--with club and keys of quantity according2 in a rough speech1 full of passion in metre1 while the queen came within his ward1 burst out in a great pang of impatience to see such uncouth trudging to and fro1 such riding in and out1 with such din and noise of talk1 within his charge2 whereof he never saw the like1 nor had any warning once1 ne yet could make to himself any cause of the matter4 ,at last1 upon better view and advertisement1 he proclaims open gates and free passage to all2 yields over his club1 his keys1 his office and all1 and on his knees humbly prays pardon of his ignorance and impatience4 ,which her highness graciously granting1 c40-- ,a letter from an attendant in court to his friend a citizen and merchant of ,london4 ,from the court at ,worcester1 #bj ,august #aege4 #fb ,in the first volume of the ,,spectator4 #fc ,the factious use1 that was afterwards made of this humour of magnifying the character of ,,elizabeth1 may be seen in the ,craftsman and ,remarks on the ,history of ,england4 #fd ,what the political character of ,mr4 ,,addison was1 may be seen from his ,whig-examiner4 ,this amiable man was keen and even caustic on subjects1 where his party1 that is1 civil liberty1 was concerned4 ,nor let it be any objection to the character ,i make him sustain in this ,dialogue1 that he treats ,,elizabeth',s government with respect in the ,freeholder4 ,he had then the people to cajole1 who were taught to reverence her memory4 ,he is1 here1 addressing himself1 in private1 to his friends4 #fe ,lucian expresses this use of the ,table prettily-- 1 1 c4 #bg4 #ff ,besides this sort of hospitality1 there was another still more noble and disinterested1 which distinguished the early times1 especially the purer ages of chivalry4 ,it was customary1 it seems1 for the great lords to fix up ,,helmets on the roofs and battlements of their castles as a signal of hospitality to all adventurers and noble passengers4 8,adoncques etoit une coustume en la ,grant ,bretagne 7says the author of the old romance1 called ,,perceforest7 et fut tant que charit regna illecque1 tous gentils hommes et nobles dames faisoient mettre au plus hault de leur hostel ung heaulme1 en ,,signe que tous gentils hommes et gentilles femmes trespassans les chemins1 entrassent hardyement en leur hostel comme en leur propre2 car leurs biens estoient davantage tous nobles hommes et femmes trespassans le royaulme40 ,vol4 iii4 fol4 #ajc4 #fg ,this is not said without authority3 8,give me leave1 says one1 to hold this paradox1 that the ,english were never more idle1 never more ignorant in manual arts1 never more factious in following the parties of princes or their landlords1 never more base 7as ,i may say7 trencher slaves1 than in that age1 wherein great men kept open houses for all comers and goers3 and that in our age1 wherein we have better learned each man to live of his own1 and great men keep not such troops of idle servants1 not only the ,english are become very industrious and skilful in manual arts1 but also the tyranny of lords and gentlemen is abated1 whereby they nourished private dissensions and civil wars1 with the destruction of the common people40 ,,fynes ,,moryson',s ,itinerary1 ,part ,,iii4 ,ch4 v4 #fh ,dr4 ,,arbuthnot1 too1 has his authority4 ,a famous politician of the last century expresseth himself to much the same purpose1 after his manner3 8,henceforth1 says he1 that is1 after the statutes against retainers in ,,hen4 ,,vii',s reign the country lives1 and great tables of the nobility1 which no longer nourished veins that would bleed for them1 were fruitless and loathsome till they changed the air1 and of princes became courtiers2 where their revenues1 never to have been exhausted by beef and mutton1 were found narrow2 whence followed racking of rents1 and1 at length1 sale of lands40 ,,sir ,,james ,,harrington',s ,,oceana1 p4 #dj4 ,lond4 #afef4 #fi ,true it is1 that this divertisement of bear-baiting was not altogether unknown in the age of ,,elizabeth1 and1 as it seemeth1 not much misliked of master ,,stow himself1 who hath very graphically described it4 ,he is speaking of the ,danish embassador's reception and entertainment at ,greenwich in #aehf4 8,as the better sort1 saith he1 had their convenient disports1 so were not the ordinary people excluded from competent pleasure4 ,for1 upon a green1 very spacious and large1 where thousands might stand and behold with good contentment1 their ,,bear-,,baiting and bull-baiting 7tempered with other merry disports7 were exhibited2 whereat it cannot be spoken of what pleasure the people took4 ,for it was a sport alone1 of these beasts1 continueth the historian1 to see the bear with his pink-eyes leering after his enemies2 the nimbleness and wait of the dog to take his advantage2 and the force and experience of the bear again to avoid the assaults2 if he were bitten in one place1 how he would pinch in another to get free2 and if he were once taken1 then what shift with biting1 clawing1 roaring1 tugging1 grasping1 tumbling1 and tossing1 he would work to wind himself away2 and1 when he was loose1 to shake his ears with the blood and slaver about his phisnomy1 was a pittance of good relief4 ,the like pastime also of the bull4--,and now the day being far spent1 and the sun in his declination1 the embassador withdrew to his lodging by barge to ,,crosby',s place2 where1 no doubt1 ,,this ,,day',s ,,solemnity ,,was ,,thought ,,upon ,,and ,,talked ,,of40--p4 #aefb4 #gj ,see the ,anarcharsis of ,,lucian4 #ga ,if the reader be complaisant enough to admit the fact1 it may be accounted for1 on the ideas of chivalry1 in the following manner4 ,the knight forfeited all pretensions to the favour of the ladies1 if he failed1 in any degree1 in the point of valour4 ,and1 reciprocally1 the claim which the ladies had to protection and courtesy from the order of knights1 was founded singly in the reputation of chastity1 which was the female point of honour4 8,ce droit que les dames avoient sur la chevalerie 7says ,m4 ,,de ,,la ,,curne ,,de ,,ste ,,palaye7 devoit tre conditionel2 il supposoit que leur conduite et leur reputation ne les rendoient point indignes de l'espece d'association qui les unissoit cet ordre uniquement fond sur l'honneur4 ,par celle voye 7says an old ,french writer1 the chevalier ,,de ,,la ,,tour1 about the year #acga7 les bonnes se craignoient et se tenoient plus fermes de faire chose dont elles peussent perdre leur honneur et leur etat4 ,si vouldroye que celi temps fust revenu1 car je pense qu'il n'en seroit pas tant de blasmes comme il est present40 #gb ,sir ,,philip ,,sydney4 #gc ,what is hinted1 here1 of the reality of these representations1 hath been lately shewn at large in a learned memoir on this subject1 which the reader will find in the ,,xxth ,tom4 of ,,hist4 ,,de ,l',,acad4 ,,des ,,inscriptions ,,et ,,belles ,,lettres4 #gd ,this representation of things in the ages of chivalry agrees with what we are told by the author of the memoir just quoted3 8,les premires leons10 7says he1 speaking of the manner in which the youth were educated in the houses of the ,great1 which were properly the schools of those times7 8qu'on leur donnoit1 regardoient principalement l'amour de ,dieu1 et des dames1 c'est--dire1 la religion1 et la galanterie4 ,mais autant la dvotion qu'on leur inspiroit toit accompagne de puerilits et de superstitions1 autant l'amour des dames1 qu'on leur recommandoit1 toit il rempli de ,,raffinement et de ,,fanatisme4 ,il semble qu'on ne pouvoit1 dans ces sicles ignorans et grossiers1 prsenter aux hommes la religion sous une forme assez materielle pour la mettre leur porte2 ni leur donner1 en mme tems1 une ide de l'amour assez pure1 assez metaphysique1 pour prevenir les desordres et les excs1 dont etoit capable une nation qui conservoit par-tout le caractere impetueux qu'elle montroit la guerre40 ,tom4 xx4 p4 #fjj4 ,one sees then the origin of that furious gallantry which runs through the old romances4 ,and so long as the refinement and fanaticism1 which the writer speaks of1 were kept in full vigour by the force of institution and the fashion of the times1 the morals of these enamoured knights might1 for any thing ,i know1 be as pure as their apologist represents them4 ,at the same time it must be confessed that this discipline was of a nature very likely to relax itself under another state of things1 and certainly to be misconstrued by those who should come to look upon these pictures of a refined and spiritual passion1 as incredible and fantastic4 ,and hence1 no doubt1 we are to account for that censure which a famous writer1 and one of the ornaments of ,,elizabeth',s own age1 passeth on the old books of chivalry4 ,his expression is downright1 and somewhat coarse4 8,in our fathers time nothing was read but books of chivalry1 wherein a man by reading should be led to none other end1 but only to manslaughter and baudrye4 ,if any man suppose they were good enough to pass the time withall1 he is deceived4 ,for surely vain words do work no small thing in vain1 ignorant1 and young minds1 especially if they be given any thing thereunto of their own nature40 ,he adds1 like a good ,protestant1 8,these books1 as ,i have heard say1 were made the most part in abbayes and monasteries2 a very likely and fit fruit of such an idle and blind kind of living40 ,prf4 to ,,ascham',s ,,toxophilus1 #aega4 ,i thought it but just to set down this censure of ,mr4 ,,ascham over-against the candid representation of the ,french memorialist4--,however1 what is said of the influence1 which this ancient institution had on the character of his countrymen1 is not to be disputed4 8,les preceptes d'amour repandoient dans le commerce des dames ces considerations et ces egards respectueux1 qui1 n'ayant jamais t effacs de l'esprit des ,franois1 ont toujours fait un des caractres distinctifs de ntre nation40 #ge ,of ,,scriblerus4 ,see the ,,vith chapter of that learned work1 ,on the ancient ,gymnastics4 #gf ,,masques1 p4 #aha4 ,,whaley',s edition4 #gg ,this romantic spirit of the ,queen may be seen as well in her amours1 as military achievements4 8,ambiri1 coli ob formam1 et ,,amoribus1 etiam inclinat jam tate1 videri voluit2 de ,,fabulosis ,,insulis per illam relaxationem renovat quasi memori in quibus ,,equites ,,ac ,,strenui ,,homines ,,errabant1 et ,,amores1 fditate omni prohibit1 generos per ,,virtutem exercebant40 ,,thuani ,hist4 tom4 vi4 p4 #agb4 ,the observation of the great historian is confirmed by ,,francis ,,osborne1 ,esq41 who1 speaking of a contrivance of the ,cecilian party to ruin the earl of ,,essex1 by giving him a rival in the good graces of the queen1 observes--8,but the whole result concluding in a duel1 did rather inflame than abate the former account she made of him3 the opinion of a ,,champion being more splendid 7in the weak and romantic sense of women1 that admit of nothing fit to be made the object of a quarrel but themselves7 and far above that of a captain or general4 ,so as ,sir ,,edmund ,,cary1 brother to the ,lord ,,hunsdon1 then chamberlain and near kinsman to the ,queen1 told me1 that though she chid them both1 nothing pleased her better than a conceit she had1 that her beauty was the subject of this quarrel1 when1 ,god knows1 it grew from the stock of honour1 of which then they were very tender40--,,mem4 ,,of ,q4 ,,elizabeth1 p4 #def4 ,but nothing shews the romantic disposition of the ,queen1 and indeed of her times1 more evidently than the ,,triumph1 as it was called2 devised and performed with great solemnity1 in honour of the ,french commissioners in #aeha4 ,the contrivance was for four of her principal courtiers1 under the quaint appellation of 8four foster-children of ,,desire10 to besiege and carry1 by dint of arms1 8,,the ,,fortress ,,of ,,beauty20 intending1 by this courtly nigma1 nothing less than the queen's majesty's own person4--,the actors in this famous triumph were1 the ,earl of ,,arundel1 the ,lord ,,windsor1 ,master ,,philip ,,sidney1 and ,master ,,fulk ,,grevil4 ,and the whole was conducted so entirely in the spirit and language of knight errantry1 that nothing in the ,arcadia itself is more romantic4 ,see the account at large in ,,stow',s continuation of ,,holinshed',s ,chronicles1 p4 #acaf-acba4 ,to see the drift and propriety of this triumph1 it is to be observed that the business which brought the ,french commissioners into ,england was1 the great affair of the queen's marriage with the duke of ,,alan,,on4 #gh ,speeches at ,prince ,,henry',s barriers4 #gi ,there was an instance of this kind1 and perhaps the latest upon record in our history1 in the #acth year of the queen1 when 8a combat was appointed to have been fought for a certain manor1 and demain lands belonging thereto1 in ,kent40 ,the matter was compromised in the end4 ,but not till after the usual forms had been observed1 by the two parties3 of which we have a curious and circumstantial detail in ,holinshed's ,chronicles1 p4 #abbe4 #hj ,alluding to a tract1 so called1 by ,,gascoigne1 an attendant on the court1 and poet of that time1 who hath given us a narrative of the entertainments that passed on this occasion at ,kenelworth4 #ha ,hence then it is that a celebrated dramatic writer of those days represents the entertainment of ,,masks and ,,shows1 as the highest indulgence that could be provided for a luxurious and happy monarch4 ,his words are these2 8,music and poetry are his delight4 ,therefore ,i'll have ,italian masques by night1 ,sweet speeches1 comedies1 and pleasing shows2 ,and in the day1 when he shall walk abroad1 ,like ,,sylvan ,,nymphs1 my pages shall be clad3 ,my men1 like ,,satyrs1 grazing on the lawns1 ,shall1 with their goat-feet dance the antic hay3 ,sometimes a lovely boy in ,,dian',s shape1 ,with hair1 that gilds the water as it glides1 ,crownets of pearls about his naked arms1 ,and in his sportful hands an olive-tree1 ,shall bathe him in a spring1 and there hard-by ,one like ,,act,,on1 peeping through the grove1 ,shall by the angry ,goddess be transform'd-- ,such things as these best please his ,majesty40 ,,marlow',s ,edward ,,ii4 ,and how exactly this dramatist painted the humour of the times1 we may see from the entertainment provided1 not many years after1 for the reception of ,king ,,james at ,althorp in ,northamptonshire2 where this very design of ,sylvan ,nymphs1 ,satyrs1 and ,,act,,on1 was executed in a masque by ,b4 ,,jonson4 #hb ,whom his friend ,mr4 ,,selden characterizeth in this manner1 8,omnia carmina doctus ,et calles myth plasmata et historiam40 ,,tit4 ,,of ,,hon4 p4 #dff4 #hc ,sacrifices1 says ,,plutarch1 without chorusses and without music1 we have known3 but for poetry1 without fable and without fiction1 we know of no such thing4 4 ,de aud4 pot4 vol4 i4 p4 #af4 #hd ,this will be admitted1 if a calculation said to have been made by themselves of their number at that time may be relied on--8,they make reasoning 7saith ,sir ,,edwin ,,sandys in his ,speculum ,europ1 written in #afii7 forty hundred sure catholics in ,england1 with four hundred ,english ,roman priests to maintain that militia10 p4 #aeg4 #he ,mr4 ,,camden owns that the ,irish rebellion1 which in the end became so dangerous1 had been 8encouraged by a slighting of it1 and a gripple-handedness of ,england40 ,hist4 of ,,eliz4 ,b4 iv4--,to the same purpose another eminent writer of that time--8,before the transmitting of the last great army1 the forces sent over by ,q4 ,,elizabeth were ,,not of sufficient power to break and subdue all the ,irishry40 ,at last1 however1 8,the extreme peril of losing the kingdom2 the dishonour and danger that might thereby grow to the crown of ,england2 together with a just disdain conceived by that great-minded queen1 that so wicked and ungrateful a rebel should prevail against her1 who had ever been victorious against all her enemies2 did move and almost ,,enforce her to send over that mighty army40 ,sir4 ,j4 ,,davies1 ,discovery of the ,state of ,ireland1 p4 #ig4 ,lond4 #afac4 #hf ,sir ,,robert ,,naunton tells us1 8,the queen was never profuse in delivering out of her treasure2 but paid her servants part in money1 and the rest with ,,grace2 which1 as the case stood1 was then taken for good payment40 ,,fragm4 ,,reg4 p4 #hi4 ,and ,,nat4 ,,bacon to the same purpose4 8,a wise man1 that was an eye-witness of ,,her actions1 and those that succeeded to her1 many times hath said1 ,that a courtier might make a better meal of one good ,,look from her1 than of a gift from some other40 ,,disc4 ,p4 ii4 p4 #bff4 ,lond4 #afea4 #hg ,this reverence of authority1 one of the characteristics of that time1 and which ,mr4 ,,addison presently accounts for1 a great writer celebrates in these words--8,it was an ingenuous uninquisitive time1 when all the passions and affections of the people were lapped up in such an innocent and humble obedience1 that there was never the least contestation nor capitulation with the queen1 nor 7though she very frequently consulted with her subjects7 any further reasons urged of her actions than ,,her ,,own ,,will40 ,see a tract intitled ,,the ,,disparity1 in ,sir ,h4 ,,wotton',s ,remains1 p4 #df1 supposed to have been written by the earl of ,,clarendon4 #hh ,,paulus ,,hentznerus1 a learned ,german1 who was in ,england in #aeih1 goes still further in his encomium on the queen's skill in languages4 ,he tells us1 that1 8prterquam qud ,grc et ,latin eleganter est docta1 tenet1 ultra jam memorata idiomata1 etiam ,hispanicum1 ,scoticum1 et ,belgicum40 ,see his ,,itinerarium4 ,but this was the general character of the great in that reign3 at least1 if we may credit ,master ,,william ,,harrison1 who discourseth on the subject before us in the following manner3 8,this further is not to be omitted1 to the singular commendation of both sorts and sexes of our courtiers here in ,england1 that there are very few of them1 which have not the use and skill of sundry speeches1 beside an excellent vein of writing1 before time not regarded4 ,truly it is a rare thing with us now1 to hear of a courtier which hath but his own language4 ,and to say how many gentlewomen and ladies there are1 that1 beside sound knowledge of the ,greek and ,latin tongues1 are thereto no less skilful in the ,spanish1 ,italian1 and ,french1 or in some one of them1 it resteth not in me2 sith ,i am persuaded1 that as the noblemen and gentlemen do surmount in this behalf1 so these come very little or nothing behind them for their parts2 which industry ,god continue1 and accomplish that which otherwise is wanting40 ,,descript4 of ,,england1 p4 #aif4 #hi ,one of these ties was the prejudice of education2 and some uncommon methods used to bind it fast on the minds of the people4--,a book1 called 1 sive ,,elizabeth1 was written in ,latin verse by one ,,ockland1 containing the highest panegyrics on the queen's character and government1 and setting forth the transcendant virtues of her ministers4 ,this book was enjoined by authority to be taught1 as a classic author1 in ,grammar-schools1 and was of course to be gotten by heart by the young scholars throughout the kingdom4 ,this was a matchless contrivance to imprint a sense of loyalty on the minds of the people4 ,and1 though it flowed1 as we are to suppose1 from a tender regard1 in the advisers of it1 for the interests of ,protestantism in that reign2 yet its uses are so apparent in any reign1 and under any administration1 that nothing but the moderation of her successors1 and the reasonable assurance of their ministers that their own acknowledged virtues were a sufficient support to them1 could have hindered the expedient from being followed4 ,but1 though the stamp of public authority was wanting1 private men have attempted1 in several ways1 to supply this defect4 ,to instance only in one4 ,the ,protestant queen was to pass for a mirror of good government3 hence the 4 ,her successor would needs be thought a mirror of eloquence3 and hence the noble enterprise ,i am about to celebrate4 8,mr4 ,,george ,,herbert 7,i give it in the grave historian's own words7 being prelector in the rhetorique school in ,cambridge1 in #afah1 passed by those fluent orators1 that domineered in the pulpits of ,athens and ,rome1 and insisted to read upon an oration of ,k4 ,,james1 which he analysed2 shewed the concinnity of the parts2 the propriety of the phrase2 the height and power of it to move the affections2 the style1 ,,utterly ,,unknown ,,to ,,the ,,ancients1 who could not conceive what kingly eloquence was1 in respect of which those noted demigogi were but hirelings and tribolary rhetoricians40 ,bishop ,,hacket',s ,life of ,archbishop ,,williams1 p4 #age4 #ij ,a learned foreigner gives this character of the ,english at that time3 8,angli1 ut ,,addicte ,,serviunt1 it evecti ad dignitates priorem humilitatem ,,insolentia rependunt40 ,h4 ,,grotii ,,ann4 ,l4 v4 p4 #ie4 ,amst4 #afeg4 ,hence the propriety of those complaints1 in our great poet1 of1 8,the whips and scorns of th' time1 ,th' oppressor's wrong1 the proud man's contumely1 ,,the ,,insolence ,,of ,,office20-- complaints so frequent1 and so forcibly expressed by him1 that we may believe he painted from his own observation1 and perhaps experience1 of this insolent misuse of authority4 ,,measure ,,for ,,measure1 ,a4 ,,ii4 ,s4 vii4 #ia ,yet it may seem probable1 from this poet's conduct in ,ireland1 and his ,view of the state of that country1 that his talents for business 7such as ,,cecil himself must have approved7 were no less considerable than for poetry4 ,but he had served a disgraced man2 and had drawn upon himself the admiration of the generous earl of ,essex4 ,so that1 as the historian expresseth it1 8by a fate which still follows poets1 he always wrestled with poverty1 though he had been secretary to the lord ,,gray1 lord deputy of ,ireland40 ,all that remained for him was1 8to be interred at ,westminster1 near to ,,chaucer1 at the charge of the earl of ,essex2 his hearse being attended by poets1 and mournful elegies and poems1 with the pens that wrote them1 thrown into his grave40 ,,camden1 lib4 iv4 #ib ,as to ,sir ,,francis ,,bacon1 the queen herself gave a very plausible reason1 and doubtless much approved by the grave lawyers and other judicious persons of that time1 for her neglect of this gentleman4 8,she did acknowledge 7says the earl of ,essex in a letter to ,mr4 ,,francis ,,bacon7 you had a great wit1 and an excellent gift of speech1 and much other good learning4 ,but in ,,law1 she rather thought you could make shew1 to the utmost of your knowledge1 than1 that you were deep40 ,,mem4 ,,of ,q4 ,,elizabeth by ,dr4 ,,birch2 to whom the public is exceedingly indebted for abundance of curious information concerning the history of those times4 ,if it be asked1 how the queen came to form this conclusion1 the answer is plain4 ,it was from ,mr4 ,,bacon',s having a ,,great ,,wit1 an excellent ,,gift ,,of ,,speech1 and much other ,,good ,,learning4 ,it is true1 ,sir ,,francis ,,bacon himself gives another account of this matter4 ,in a letter of advice to ,sir4 ,,george ,,villiers1 he says1 8,in this dedication of yourself to the public1 ,i recommend unto you principally that which ,i think was never done since ,i was born--that you countenance and encourage and advance ,,able ,,men1 in all kinds1 degrees1 and professions4 ,for in the time of the ,,cecils1 father and son1 ,,able ,,men ,,were ,,by ,,design ,,and ,,of ,,purpose ,,suppressed40 ,,cabala1 p4 #eg1 ed4 #afia4--;,but either way1 indeed1 the queen's character is equally saved4 #ic ,the lord ,,mountjoy then ,sir ,,charles ,,blount1 being of a military turn1 had stolen over into ,france1 without the queen's knowledge1 in order to serve in ,bretagne1 under one of her generals4 ,upon his return1 which was hastened too by her express command1 8,serve me so again1 said the queen1 once more1 and ,i will lay you fast enough for running4 ,you will never leave1 till you are knocked o' the head1 as that inconsiderate fellow ,,sidney was4 ,you shall go when ,i send you4 ,in the mean time see that you lodge in the ,court1 where you may ,,follow ,,your ,,books1 ,,head1 ,,and ,,discourse ,,of ,,the ,,wars40 ,sir ,,robert ,,naunton',s ,,fr4 ,,reg4 in ,l4 ,,burleigh4 #id ,so good a judge of military matters1 as ,sir ,,walter ,,raleigh1 was of this opinion with regard to the conduct of the ,spanish war4 8,if the late queen would have believed her men of war1 as she did her scribes1 we had1 in her time1 beaten that great empire in pieces1 and made their kings1 kings of figs and oranges1 as in old times4 ,but her majesty did all by halves1 and1 by petty invasions1 taught the ,spaniard how to defend himself1 and to see his own weakness2 which1 till our attempts taught him1 was hardly known to himself40 ,see his ,works1 vol4 i4 #bgc4--,,raleigh1 it may be said1 was of the ,,cecil faction4 ,but the men of war1 of the ,,essex faction1 talked exactly in the same strain2 which shews that this might probably be the truth4 #ie ,see ,sir ,,henry ,,wotton',s ,parallel of the earl of ,essex and duke of ,buckingham4 ,the words are these3 8,he the earl of ,essex was to wrestle with a queen's declining1 or rather with her very setting age1 as we may term it2 which1 besides other respects1 is commonly even of itself the more umbratious and apprehensive2 as for the most part all horizons are charged with certain vapours towards their evening40 ,,remains1 p4 #aa4 #if ,,the ,,disparity1 p4 #dc #ig ,this account of her policy is confirmed by what we read in the ,,disparity1 before cited4 8,that trick of countenancing and protecting factions 7as that queen1 almost her whole reign1 did with singular and equal demonstration of grace look upon several persons of most distant wishes one towards another7 was not the least ground of much of her quiet and success4 ,and she never doubted but that men1 that were never so opposite in their good-will each to other1 or never so dishonest in their projectments for each other's confusion1 might yet be reconciled in their allegiance towards her4 ,insomuch that1 during her whole reign1 she never endeavoured to reconcile any personal differences in the court1 though the unlawful emulations of persons of nearest trust about her1 were ever like to overthrow some of her chiefest designs3 ,a policy1 seldom entertained by princes1 especially if they have issues to survive them10 p4 #df4 ,her own historian1 it is true1 seems a little shy of acknowledging this conduct of the queen1 with regard to her nobility and ministers4 ,but he owns1 8,she now and then took a pleasure 7and not unprofitably7 in the emulation and privy grudges of her women40 ,,camden',s ,,elizabeth1 p4 #gi4 fol4 ,lond4 #afhh4 #ih ,we find an intimation to this purpose1 in a writer of credit1 at least with respect to the ,dutch and ,ireland--8,jam et divulsam ,hiberniam1 et in ,batavis ,angli militis seditiones1 velut ,,jussas1 erant qui exprobrarent40 ,,grotii ,,annal4 l4 xii4 p4 #dcb4 #ii ,something like this was observed of her disposition by ,sir ,,james ,,melvil4 ,after having related to his mistress1 the queen of ,scots1 the strong professions of friendship which the queen of ,england had made to him1 8,she the queen of ,scots inquired1 says he1 whether ,i thought that queen meant truly towards her inwardly in her heart1 as she appeared to do outwardly in her speech4 ,i answered freely1 that1 in my judgment1 there was neither plain dealing1 nor upright meaning2 but great dissimulation1 emulation1 and ,,fear1 lest her princely qualities should over-soon chace her from her kingdom10 c4 ,,memoirs1 p4 #ec4 #ajj ,secretary ,,walsingham1 in a letter to the queen1 ,sept4 #b1 #aeha1 amongst other things to the same purpose1 has the following words--8,remember1 ,i humbly beseech your majesty1 the respect of charges hath lost ,scotland3 and ,i would to ,god ,i had no cause to think1 that it might put your highness in peril of the loss of ,england40--8,and even the ,lord ,treasurer himself 7we are told7 in a letter still extant in the paper-office1 written in the critical year #aehh1 while the ,spanish armada was expected against ,england1 excuses himself to sir ,,edward ,,stafford1 then embassador in ,france1 for not writing to him oftener1 on account of her majesty's unwillingness to be at the expence of messengers40 ,sir ,t4 ,,edmondes' ,state-papers1 by ,dr4 ,,birch1 p4 #ba4 #aja ,one of these complaisant observers was the writer of the ,description of ,england1 who1 speaking of the variety of the queen's houses1 checks himself with saying1 8,but what shall ,i need to take upon me to repeat all1 and tell what houses the queen's majesty hath8 ,sith ,,all ,,is ,,hirs2 and when it pleaseth hir in the summer season to recreate hirself abroad1 and view the state of the countrie1 and hear the complaints of hir unjust officers or substitutes1 every nobleman's house is hir palace1 where she continueth during pleasure1 and till she returne again to some of hir owne2 in which she remaineth as long as pleaseth hir40 p4 #aif4 #ajb ,perhaps they had no need of such favours3 ,it seems as if they had provided for themselves another way4 ,one of her ladies1 the ,lady ,,edmondes1 had been applied to for her interest with the queen in a certain affair of no great moment1 then depending in the ,court of ,chancery4 ,the person1 commissioned to transact this matter with her ladyship1 had offered her #ajjl4 which she treated as too small a sum4 ,the relater of this fact adds--8,this ruffianry of causes ,i am daily more and more acquainted with1 and see the manner of dealing1 which cometh of the queen's straitness to give these women1 whereby they presume thus to grange and truck causes40 ,see a letter in ,,mem4 of ,q4 ,,elizabeth1 by ,dr4 ,,birch1 vol4 i4 p4 #ced4 ,but this #ajjl4 as the virtuous ,lady ,,edmondes says1 was a small sum4 ,it appears1 that bishop ,,fletcher1 on his translation to ,london1 8bestowed in allowances and gratifications to divers attendants indeed we are not expressly told1 they were female about her majesty1 the sum of #cajjl4 which money was given by him1 for the most part of it1 by her majesty's direction and special appointment40 ,mem4 vol4 ii4 p4 #aac4 ,and the curiosity is1 to find this minute of episcopal gratifications in a petition presented to the queen herself1 8,to move her majesty in commiseration towards the orphans of this bishop40--,however1 to do the ladies justice1 the contagion of bribery was so general in that reign1 that the greatest men in the court were infected by it4 ,the lord-keeper ,,puckering1 it seems1 had a finger in the affair of the #ajjl42 nay1 himself speaks to the lady to get him commanded by the queen to favour the suit4 ,and we are told1 that ,sir ,w4 ,,raleigh had no less than #aj1jjjl4 for his interest with the queen on a certain occasion1 after having been invited to this service by the finest letter that ever was written4--,indeed it is not said how much of this secret service money went in allowances and gratifications to the attendants about the queen's majesty1 vol4 ii4 p4 #dig4 #ajc ,lord ,,bacon made the same excuse for his bribery2 as he had learnt1 perhaps1 the trade itself from his royal mistress4 ,it was a rule with this great chancellor1 8,not to sell injustice1 but never to let justice go scot-free40 #ajd ,see ,hist4 ,collections1 by ,h4 ,,townshend1 ,esq42 p4 #bfh4 ,lond4 #afhj4--,the lord-keeper too1 in a speech in the star-chamber1 confirms this charge on the country justices4 8,the thirst1 says he1 after this authority1 proceedeth from nothing but an ambitious humour of gaining of reputation amongst their neighbours2 that still1 when they come home1 they may be presented with presents40 ,ibid4 p4 #cee4 #aje ,when the queen declared to ,sir ,,james ,,melvil her resolution of virginity1 8,i know the truth of that1 madam1 7said he72 you need not tell it me4 ,your majesty thinks1 if you were married1 you would be but queen of ,england2 and now you are both king and queen4 ,i know your spirit cannot endure a commander40 ,,mem4 p4 #di4 ,this was frank4 ,but ,sir ,,james ,,melvil was too well seen in courts to have used this language1 if he had not understood it would be welcome4 ,accordingly1 the queen's highness did not seem displeased with the imputation4 #ajf ,this was a common topick of complaint against the queen2 or at least her ministers1 and gave occasion to that reproof of the poet ,,spenser1 which the persons concerned could hardly look upon as very decent1 8,scarce can a bishoprick forepass them bye ,but that it must be gelt in privity40 ,mother ,,hubbard',s ,tale4 ,but a bishop of that time carries the charge still further4 ,in one of his sermons at court before the queen1 8,parsonages and vicarages1 says he1 seldom pass now-a-days from the patron1 but either for the lease1 or the present money4 ,such merchants are broken into the church of ,god1 a great deal more intolerable than were they whom ,,christ whipped out of the temple40--,this language is very harsh1 and surely not deserved by the ,protestant patrons of those days1 who were only1 as we may suppose1 for reducing the church of ,,christ to its pure and primitive state of indigence and suffering4 ,how edifying is it to hear ,st4 ,,paul speak of his being--,in hunger and thirst1 in fastings often1 in cold and nakedness6 ,and how perfectly reformed would our church be1 if its ministers were but once more in this blessed apostolical condition6 #ajg ,it was this circumstance that seemed to weigh most with the ,lord ,chancellor ,,bacon2 who1 in his short tract1 ,in felicem memoriam ,,elizabeth1 saith1 8,illud cogitandum censeo1 in quali populo imperium tenuerit3 si enim in ,palmyrenis1 aut ,asi imbelli et molli regnum sortita esset1 mins mirandum fuisset--verm in ,,anglia1 natione ferocissim et bellicosissim1 omnia ex nutu fmin moveri et cohiberi potuisse1 ,,summam ,,merito ,,admirationem ,,habet40 #ajh ,the subject of these ,dialogues1 on the ,english ,constitution1 is the most important in ,english politics4--,to cite all the passages from our best antiquaries and historians1 out of which this work was formed1 and which lay before the writer in composing it1 would swell this volume to an immoderate size4 ,it is enough to say1 that nothing material is advanced in the course of the argument1 but on the best authority4 #aji ,that is1 of the feudal law3 which was one of the subjects explained by the bishop to his royal pupil the duke of ,gloucester4 8,i acquainted him1 says he1 with all the great revolutions that had been in the world1 and gave him a copious account of the ,greek and ,roman histories1 and of ,,plutarch',s ,lives3 the last thing ,i explained to him was the ,gothic constitution1 and the ,,beneficiary ,,and ,,feudal ,,laws40 ,,hist4 of his own ,times1 vol4 iv4 p4 #ceg4 ,edinb4 #agec4 #aaj ,on ,april #aa1 #afhi4 #aaa ,of the great seal--,the other lawyers in commission were ,,keck and ,,rawlinson4 #aab ,this was a favourite subject with our good bishop2 and how qualified he was to discuss it1 even in its minutest particularities1 may be learnt from his history at large4 #aac ,it was not thus left to itself1 but was nursed and fostered with great care by the preachers of divine indefeasible hereditary right1 in this and the following reign4 #aad ,this casual remark seems to determine a famous dispute among the ,antiquaries on the subject before us4 ,bishop ,,nicolson attended so little to this tralatitious use of words1 in which all languages abound1 that finding ,,laga in several places signified a country1 he would needs have it that ,,camden1 ,,lambarde1 ,,spelman1 ,,cowell1 ,,selden1 and all our best ,antiquaries1 were mistaken1 when they supposed ,laga ever signified1 in the compositions here mentioned1 a law4 ,however1 his adversaries among the ,antiquaries were even with him2 and finding that ,laga1 in these compositions1 did signify a law in several places of our ancient laws1 historians1 and lawyers1 deny that it ever signifies a country4 ,each indeed had a considerable object in view2 the one was bent on overthrowing a system2 the other on supporting it2 namely1 that famous threefold body of laws1 the ,danish1 ,mercian1 and ,west-,saxon4 ,it must be owned1 the bishop could not overthrow the common system1 without running into his extreme3 it seems1 his opponents might have supported it without running into theirs4 #aae ,see ,historical ,law-,tracts1 vol4 i4 p4 #bid4 #aaf ,,milton did not forget to observe1 in his ,tenure of kings and magistrates1 ,that ,,william the ,norman1 though a ,conqueror1 and not unsworn at his ,coronation1 was compelled a second time to take oath at ,st4 ,albans1 ere the people would be brought to yield obedience4 ,vol4 i4 of his ,prose works1 #dto1 #agec4 p4 #cde4 #aag ,,henry ,,vii4 #aah ,,henry ,,viii4 #aai ,,elizabeth4 #abj ,,propria ,,feudi ,,natura ,,est ,,ut ,,sit ,,perpetua4 ,,cujacius1 ,,littleton4 #aba ,,craig',s ,jus feudale1 lib4 i4 p4 #ba4 ,lond4 #afee4 #abb ,this account of the ,saxon benefices is much confirmed by the famous charter of ,bishop ,,oswald1 and the comment of ,sir ,h4 ,,spelman upon it4 ,see his discourse on ,,feuds and ,,tenures4 #abc ,,matthew ,,paris gives us the following account of this matter--8,episcopatus et ,abbatias omnes1 qu baronias tenebant1 et eatenus ab omni servitute sculari libertatem habuerant1 sub servitute statuit militari1 inrotulans singulos episcopatus et abbatias pro voluntate su1 quot milites sibi et successoribus suis1 hostilitatis tempore1 voluit singulis exhiberi4 ,et ,,rotulos ,,hujus ,,ecclesiastic ,,servitutis ponens in thesauris1 multos viros ecclesiasticos ,,huic ,,constitutioni ,,pessim reluctantes1 regno fugavit40 ,,hist4 ,,ang4 ,,willielmus ,,conq,,stor4 #abd ,the learned ,,craig1 who has written so largely and accurately on the feudal law1 was so far from seeing any thing servile in it1 that he says1 8,the foundations of this discipline are laid in the most generous of all considerations1 those of ,,gratitude4 ,hujus feudalis disciplin fundamenta gratitudine et ingratitudine descendunt40 ,,epist4 ,,nuncup4 to ,k4 ,,james4 #abe ,this bounty in so wise a prince as ,,william will be thought strange4 ,i believe it may be1 in part1 accounted for1 from what is observed above of the ,saxon allodial lords4 ,these had possessed immense estates4 ,and1 as they fell in upon forfeiture1 the great ,norman adventurers would of course expect to come into the entire succession4--,perhaps too1 in that confusion of affairs1 the prince might not always1 himself1 be apprized of the extent and value of these possessions4 #abf ,the law of ,,edward the ,confessor is express to this purpose1 and it was ratified by the ,conqueror--8,debet rex omnia rit facere in regno et per judicium procerum regni40 ,sir ,h4 ,,spelman of ,parliaments1 p4 #eh4 #abg ,m4 ,,de ,,montesquieu observes of the ,gothic government--8,il fut d'abord mel de l'aristocratie1 et de la monarchie4 ,il avoit cet inconvenient1 que le bas-peuple y toit esclave3 ,c'toit un bon gouvernment1 qui avoit en soi la capacit de devenir meilleur40 l4 xi4 c4 #h4--the very idea1 which is here inculcated4 #abh ,see old ,,fortescue1 in his book ,de laudibus legum ,angli1 where this sort of analogy is pursued at length through a great part of the ,,xiiith chapter4 #abi ,agreeably to what ,sir ,h4 ,,spelman asserts1 in his ,glossary1 of its parent1 the feudal law itself2 8,,de ,,lege ,,feudali--pronunciandum censeo1 ,,temporis eam esse filiam1 sensimque succrescentem1 ,,edictis ,,principum auctam indies excultam40 ,in voce ,,feodum4 #acj ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #ajia4 and ,,william ,,of ,,malmesbury1 lib4 iv4 #a4 #fi4 ,lond4 #aeif4 #aca ,,selden',s ,works1 vol4 ii4 p4 #ajhb4 #acb ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #ajgh4 #acc ,dr4 ,,duck1 ,de usu et authoritate juris civilis1 p4 #ajc4 ,lugd4 ,batav4 #afed4 #acd ,,policratic4 lib4 viii4 c4 #bb4 p4 #fgb4 ,lugd4 ,bat4 #afci4 #ace ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #ajhb4 #acf ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #ajig4 #acg ,dr4 ,,duck1 p4 #cfd4 #ach ,,disc4 ,part ,i4 p4 #gh4 ,lond4 #agci4 #aci ,at ,,merton1 in the year #abcf4 #adj ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #aajh4 #ada ,see ,,fortescue1 ,de laudibus leg4 ,angl4 p4 #gd4 ,lond4 #agda2 and ,,selden',s ,,janus ,,anglorum1 #afaj1 vol4 ii4 tom4 ii4 #adb ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #aajd4 #adc ,dr4 ,,duck1 p4 #cfe4 #add ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #ajaj4 #ade ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #aajf4 #adf ,p4 #ajdf4 #adg ,mr4 ,,selden',s ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #aajj4 #adh ,de laud4 leg4 ,ang4 c4 #cc1 #cd4 #adi ,,diss4 ,,ad ,,flet4 #aajb4 #aej ,the speaker might have begun this account of the fate and fortunes of the civil law still higher4 ,,nat4 ,,bacon1 speaking of ,,henry the ,fifth's reign1 observes1 8,the times were now come about1 wherein light began to spring forth1 conscience to bestir itself1 and men to study the scriptures4 ,this was imputed to the idleness and carelessness of the clergy1 who suffered the minds of young scholars to luxuriate into errors of divinity1 for want of putting them on to other learning2 and gave no encouragement to studies of human literature1 by preferring those that were deserving4 ,the convocation taking this into consideration1 do decree1 that no person should exercise any jurisdiction in any office1 as vicar-general1 commissary1 or official1 or otherwise1 unless he shall first in the university have taken degrees in the ,,civil ,,or ,,canon ,,laws4 ,a shrewd trick this was1 to stop the growth of the study of divinity1 and ,,wickliff',s way2 and to embellish men's minds with a kind of learning that may gain them preferment1 or at least an opinion of abilities beyond the common strain1 and dangerous to be meddled with4 ,like some gallants1 that wear swords as badges of honour1 and to bid men beware1 because they possibly may strike1 though in their own persons they may be very cowards4 ,and no less mischievously intended was this against the rugged ,,common ,,law1 a rule so nigh allied to the gospel-way1 as it favoureth liberty2 and so far estranged from the way of the civil and canon law1 as there is no hope of accommodation till ,christ and ,antichrist have sought the field40 ,,disc4 ,part ,,ii4 p4 #ij4 ,lond4 #agci4 #aea ,it should however be observed1 in honour of their patriotism1 that 8they afterwards took themselves out of it10 when they saw the extremities to which the popular party were driving4 #aeb ,this alludes to the proceedings against the eleven members upon the charge of the ,army4 ,sir ,,john ,,maynard was one of them4 ,and when articles of high treason were preferred against him1 and the trial was to come on before the lords1 he excepted to the jurisdiction of the court1 and1 by a written paper presented to them1 required to be tried by his peers according to ,magna ,charta1 and the law of the land4 ,see ,,whitlocke',s ,memorials2 and a short pamphlet written on that occasion1 called ,,the ,,royal ,,quarrel1 dated #ith of ,feb4 #afdg4--,sir ,,john was1 at this time1 a close prisoner in the ,tower4 #aec ,see his speech1 inserted in his ,memorials of ,english ,affairs1 ,nov4 #afdi4 #aed ,,disc4 ,part ,i4 p4 #gh4 #aee ,the reader may not be displeased to see the words of old ,,fortescue on this subject of the origin of the ,english government1 which are very remarkable4 ,in his famous book ,de laudibus legum ,angli1 he distinguishes between the ,,regal and ,,political forms of government4 ,in explaining the latter1 which he gives us as the proper form of the ,english government1 he expresseth himself in these words--8,habes instituti omnis ,,politici ,,regni formam1 ex qu metiri poteris potestatem1 quam rex ejus in leges ipsius aut subditos valeat exercere3 ad tutelam namque legis subditorum1 ac eorum corporum et bonorum rex hujusmodi erectus est1 et hanc potestatem ,a ,,populo ,,effluxam ipse habet1 quo ei non licet potestate ali suo populo dominari40 ,,cap4 xiii4 #aef ,it may be of little moment to us1 at this day1 to inquire1 how far the princes of the house of ,,stuart were blameable for their endeavours to usurp on the constitution4 ,but it must ever be of the highest moment to maintain1 that we had a constitution to assert against them4 ,party-writers perpetually confound these two things4 ,it is the author's purpose1 in these two ,dialogues1 to contend for the latter4 #aeg ,see the late ,history of ,england by ,,david ,,hume1 esq42 who forms the apology of the house of ,,stuart on these principles4 ,transcriber's ,note3 ,inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original4 ,inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original4