called) to make a people despair of ever seeing a good one. But as it is possible that envy, prejudice, or party, may sometimes have a share in what is generally thrown upon them, it is not easy for a private man to know who is absolutely in the right, from what is said against them, or from what their friends or dependants may say in their favour though I can hardly forbear thinking, that they who have been longest railed at must, from that circumstance, show in some sort a proof of capacity.-But to my history.

It were almost incredible to tell you, at the latter end of king James's time (though the rod of arbitrary power was always shaking over us) with what freedom and contempt the common people, in the open streets, talked of his wild measures to make a whole Protestant nation Papists; and yet, in the height of our secure and wanton defiance of him we of the vulgar had no farther notion of any remedy for this evil, than a satisfied presumption that our numbers were too great to be mastered by his mere will and pleasure; that though he might be too hard for our laws, he would never be able to get the better of our nature; and, that to drive all England into popery and slavery, he would find, would be teaching an old lion to dance.

But happy was it for the nation that it had then wiser heads in it, who knew how to lead a people so disposed into measures for the public preservation.

Here I cannot help reflecting on the very different deliverances England met with at this time, and in the very same year of the century before. Then (in 1588) under a glorious princess, who had at heart the good and happiness of her people, we scattered and destroyed the most formidable navy of invaders that ever covered the seas and now (in 1688) under a prince who had alienated the hearts of his people by his absolute measures to oppress them, a foreign power is received with open arms, in defence of our laws, liberties, and religion, which our native prince had invaded! How widely

different were these two monarchs in their sentiments of glory! But tantum religio potuit suadere malorum.

When we consider in what height of the nation's prosperity the successor of queen Elizabeth came to this throne, it seems amazing that such a pile of English fame and glory, which her skilful administration had erected, should in every following reign, down to the revolution, so unhappily moulder away in one continual gradation of political errors; all which must have been avoided, if the plain rule which that wise princess left behind her had been observed, viz. " that the love of her people was the surest support of her throne.". This was the principle by which she so happily governed herself and those she had the care of. In this she found strength to combat and struggle through more difficulties and dangerous conspiracies than ever English monarch had to cope with. At the same time that she professed to desire the people's love, she took care that her actions should deserve it, without the least abatement of her prerogative; the terror of which she so artfully covered, that she sometimes seemed to flatter those she was determined should obey. If the four following princes had exercised their regal authority with so visible a regard to the public welfare, it were hard to know whether the people of England might have ever complained of them, or even felt the want of that liberty they now so happily enjoy. It is true, that before her time our ancestors had many successful contests with their sovereigns for their ancient right and claim to it; yet what did those successes amount to? Little more than a declaration that there was such a right in being; but who ever saw it enjoyed? Did not the actions of almost every succeeding reign show there were still so many doors of oppression left open to the prerogative, that whatever value our most eloquent legislators may have set upon those ancient liberties, I doubt it will be difficult to fix the period of their having a real being before the revolution: or if there ever was an elder period of our unmolested enjoying them, I own my poor judgment is at a loss where to place it. I will boldly say then, it is to the revolution only we owe the full possession of what till then we never had more

than a perpetually contested right to. And, from thence, from the revolution it is that the Protestant successors of king William have found their paternal care and maintenance of that right has been the surest basis of their glory.

These, sir, are a few of my political notions, which I have ventured to expose, that you may see what sort of an English subject I am; how wise or weak they may have shown me, is not my concern; let the weight of these matters have drawn me never so far out of my depth, I still flatter myself that I have kept a simple honest head above water. And it is a solid comfort to me, to consider that, how insignificant soever my life was at the revolution, it had still the good fortune to make one among the many who brought it about; and that I now, with my coevals, as well as with the millions since born, enjoy the happy effects of it.

But I must now let you see how my particular fortune went forward with this change in the government; of which I shall not pretend to give you any farther account than what my simple eyes saw of it.

We had not been many days at Nottingham, before we heard that the prince of Denmark, with some other great persons, were gone off from the king to the prince of Orange; and that the princess Anne, fearing the king her father's resentment might fall upon her for her consort's revolt, had withdrawn herself in the night from London, and was then within half a day's journey of Nottingham; on which very morning we were suddenly alarmed with the news, that two thousand of the king's dragoons were in close pursuit to bring her back prisoner to London. But this alarm it seems was all stratagem, and was but a part of that general terror which was thrown into many other places about the kingdom at the same time, with design to animate and unite the people in their common defence; it being then given out, that the Irish were every where at our heels, to cut off all the Protestants within the reach of their fury. In this alarm our troops scrambled to arms in as much order as their consternation would admit of; when,

having advanced some few miles on the London road, they met the princess in a coach, attended only by the lady Churchill, (now duchess dowager of Marlborough,) and the lady Fitzharding, whom they conducted into Nottingham through the acclamations of the people. The same night all the noblemen, and the other persons of distinction then in arms, had the honour to sup at her royal highness's table, which was then furnished (as all her necessary accommodations were) by the care and at the charge of the lord Devonshire. At this entertainment, of which I was a spectator, something very particular surprised me: the noble guests at the table happening to be more in number than attendants out of liveries could be found for, I, being well known in the lord Devonshire's family, was desired by his lordship's maître d'hôtel to assist at it. The post assigned me was to observe what the lady Churchill might call for. Being so near the table, you may naturally ask me what I might have heard to have passed in conversation at it; which I should certainly tell you, had I attended to above two words that were uttered there; and those were, "Some wine and water." These I remember came distinguished and observed to my ear, because they came from the fair guest whom I took such pleasure to wait on. Except at that single sound, all my senses were collected into my eyes, which during the whole entertainment wanted no better amusement than stealing now and then the delight of gazing on the fair object so near me. If so clear an emanation of beauty, such a commanding grace of aspect, struck me into a regard that had something softer than the most profound respect in it, I cannot see why I may not without offence remember it; since beauty, like the sun, must sometimes lose its power to choose, and shine into equal warmth the peasant and the courtier. Now to give you, sir, a farther proof of how good a taste my first hopeful entrance into manhood set out with, I remember above twenty years after, when the same lady had given the world four of the loveliest daughters that ever were gazed on, even after they were all nobly mar

ried, and were become the reigning toasts of every party of pleasure, their still lovely mother had at the same time her votaries, and her health very often took the lead in those involuntary triumphs of beauty. However presumptuous or impertinent these thoughts might have appeared at my first entertaining them, why may I not hope that my having kept them decently secret for full fifty years, may be now a good round plea for their pardon? Were I now qualified to say more of this celebrated lady, I should conclude it thus: that she has lived (to all appearance) a peculiar favourite of Providence ; that few examples can parallel the profusion of blessings which have attended so long a life of felicity. A person so attractive! a husband so memorably great! an offspring so beautiful! a fortune so immense! and a title which (when royal favour had no higher to bestow) she only could receive from the Author of Nature-a great grandmother without grey hairs! These are such consummate indulgencies, that we might think heaven has centered them all in one person, to let us see how far, with a lively understanding, the full possession of them could contribute to human happiness. I now return to our military affairs.

From Nottingham our troops marched to Oxford; through every town we passed, the people came out, in some sort of order, with such rural and rusty weapons as they had, to meet us in acclamations of welcome and good wishes. This I thought promised a favourable end of our civil war, when the nation seemed so willing to be all of a side. At Oxford the prince and princess of Denmark met, for the first time after their late separation, and had all possible honours paid them by the university. Here we rested in quiet quarters for several weeks, till the flight of king James into France; when, the nation being left to take care of itself, the only security that could be found for it, was to advance the prince and princess of Orange to the vacant throne. The public tranquillity being now settled, our forces were remanded back to Nottingham. Here all our officers, who had commanded them from their first