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THE COMPLETE WORKS

OF

GEORGE SAVILE

MARQUESS OF HALIFAX

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THE

COMPLETE WORKS
OF gEORQE S A VILE

FIRST MARQUESS OF

'JIALIFAX

Edited with an Introduction
By WALTER RALEIGH

OXFORD
AT THE CLARENDON PRESS

I 9 I 2

HENRY FROWDE

PUBLISHER TO THE XINIVERSITY OP OXFORD

LONDON, EDINBURGH, NEW YORK

TORONTO AND MELBOURNE

CONTENTS.

PAGE

INTRODUCTION vii

MISCELLANIES, 1700:

Advice to a Daughter , .... 1

The Chahacteb of a Trimmer ... 47

The Anatomy of an Equivalent . . . 104

A Letter to a Dissenter .... 128

Cautions for Choice of Parliament Men . 143

A Rough Draught of a New Model at Sea 168

Maxims of State ...... 180

A Letter to Charles Cotton, Esq. . 185

A CHARACTER OF KING CHARLES THE
SECOND : AND POLITICAL, MORAL
AND MISCELLANEOUS THOUGHTS
AND REFLECTIONS, 1750:

A Character of King Charles II . . 187

Political Thoughts and Reflections . . 209

Moral Thoughts and Reflections . . 230

Miscellaneous Thoughts and Reflections . 244

vu

INTRODUCTION.

It would have given no displeasure to Sir George Savile,
First Marquess of Halifax, to think that by later generations
of his countrymen he should be almost forgotten. States-
men are easily forgotten. A prosperous lie made Titus
Gates immortal ; but the man who was the practical
genius of the English Revolution, and the acutest critical
genius among English politicians, is now little more than
a name. What is most commonly remembered about him
is that he was called the ' Trimmer '. The nickname
was put upon him angrily by his contemporaries, and was
worn proudly by himself. The imputation it conveyed
was, no doubt, that he trimmed his sails to the varying
breezes of opinion ; but in his famous pamphlet, the noise
of which still echoes distantly in the public ear, he changed
the metaphor. A boat, he said, goes ill, and is in danger
of capsizing, if the people in it weigh it down all on one
side, or all on the other. But there is a kind of men ' who
conceive that it woiild do as well if the boat went even,
without endangering the passengers '. And it is hard to
imagine, he adds, how it should come to be a fault, or
a heresy, to attempt to trim the boat.

He calls it a boat (he never uses magnificent or extrava-
gant language), but what he means is the ship of State,
that ship on whose seaworthiness the lives even of the
mutineers depend. Halifax was a pilot for the greater
part of his responsible life, and his chief care was always
the State. His reputation has none of that glamour which
shines upon heroic folly. The leader of a forlorn hope
excites a ready enthusiasm ; the martyr for an idea, the
rebel who wUl have his own way or nothing, the stickler
for principle, who cares little to stay in a world where his

darling

Vlll

INTRODUCTION.

darling creed is not to prevail — all these are easily made
into heroes, and worshipped for their courage. But the
pilot, to whom danger and difficulty are not heroic crises,
but the very material of his craft, or the engine-driver,
who has had the care of a thousand lives in his sole charge,
goes home unnoticed, and takes his modest wage. On
his constancy and judgement the safety of humanity
depends ; his faith and skill have made it possible for the
thoughtless passengers to dream in peace and to warm
their imagination with the admirable deeds of fiction.
Life would be a poorer thing than it is if work of this
kind were rewarded by monuments and testimonials and
public fame. The old Roman way is better : expect the
best from your political servants, and try them for treason
if they give you less.

Not many men have written books on the practical
business of their lives. Statesmen have commonly been
content to make laws, or treaties, leaving it to philosophers
to expound the principles of politics. It is the fascination
of the writings of Halifax that they were suggested by his
experience of life, and are crammed with the lessons drawn
directly from that experience. Here are no flights of the
imagination, no ingenious ornaments of style, no beautiful
vanities of authorship. He quotes none of those fallacious
historical precedents which are dear to the mind of the
academic scholar ; his writings are bare of classical
allusion. What he has to tell is what he has found out for
himself in the course of his traffic with the world ; but
he tells it with so much wit and irony, with such acute-
ness of observation and pungency of phrasing, that he
runs some risk of losing the esteem of those who think
that wise men must needs be dull. Moreover, books have
failed, from time immemorial, to convey the lessons of
experience ; and the wisdom of life can be bought only by
the expenditure of life itself. Old men would be very glad

to

INTRODUCTION. ix

to tell what they know, but they cannot hope to be under-
stood. If they are wise, they say little ; if they are foolish,
they babble pleasantly enough, but have nothing to tell.
Halifax has much to tell, but a beginner is not likely to
learn it. On the other hand, a man who has served on
a jury, or has stood an election, or has been responsible
for the management of any business, will feel a thrill of
pleasure when his own experience is brought home to him
again in that brilliant epigrammatic dress. English litera-
ture is very rich ; only a very rich literature could have
afforded to neglect so distinguished a writer. But it is
not rich in practical wisdom ; and the neglect of Halifax
is a thing to be regretted and amended.

His writings are strangely modern, and, withal, are
wholly English. The politics of this country have altered
very little, one would say, since the days of the Exclusion
Bill. Indeed it is one of the chief attractions of Seven-
teenth-Century history that there is hardly a live question
to-day which was unknown to the men of that time. It is
something to feel that we are not more fantastic or absurd
than our ancestors. Any one who reads the pamphlets
which contain Halifax's reflections on the controversies of
his own time will find himself, almost against his will,
applying these reflections to the matter of to-day. No
violence is required to make the application ; page after
page of the pamphlets might have been written yester-
day for all the evidence that they show of bygone modes^
It is a fashion nowadays to decry the Party system
in politics. Once upon a time (so the argument runs)
Party names stood for something real ; they marked
fundamental and irreconcilable differences of opinion on
essential questions. But now they have become empty of
meaning, the pretexts of competitors for power and
reward. Such an account of the Party system is not
good history. Swift, who lived when the succession to

the

INTRODUCTION.

the Crown was a Party question, made light of Whig and
Tory, and here, at the very birth of the system, is Halifax,
its most destructive critic. The names of Whig and Tory
do not occur in his works. He disliked devotion in a con-
venticle, and loyalty in a drunken Club. He was troubled
to see men of all sides sick of a calenture. He knew that
men, though they forget much, never forget themselves ; and
that the World is nothing but Vanity cut out into several
shapes. His remarks Of Parties in his Political Thoughts and
Reflections are the severest things ever said about Party :

' It turneth all Thought into talking instead of doing.
Men get a habit of being unuseful to the Publick by turn-
ing in a Circle of Wrangling and Railing, which they
cannot get out of.'

' Ignorance maketh most Men go into a Party, and
Shame keepeth them from getting out of it.'

The fact is that the rigours of Party, which are easily
maintained, with all their consequences, by logicians,
journalists, and theorists, will not suffer the practical test.
Men exalt themselves on their principles, and glory in the
partition which separates the sheep from the goats, who
prove, after all, to be only the other sheep. But the
English have a genius for government, and when govern-
ment is the business in hand, this separatist method has
no value. Men who differ rabidly on principles will find
that the lessons they learn from experience have a tendency
to be the same. Then, if they change their course, or
modify the policy which has been so bravely announced,
they are accused of being false. The charge is true ; they
have been false ; but it was their thinking and talking
that was false, not their corrected action. The melodrama
of their boastful creed would not bear translation into the
life of this world. They have been the dupes of literature ;
all that is heroic in literature is simple and straightfor-
ward, but then, the hero is prepared to die. Society is not

prepared

INTRODUCTION. xi

prepared to die for a creed, and politics is a vast complex
network of means to an end, the end being the continued
life and comfort of mankind. It is the irony of the states-
man's position that while his work is very like the work
of a good housekeeper, the literary deceits and fictions
incident to the process of persuasion invite us to regard
him as a hero of romance, a lone figure on a mountain
peak, silhouetted against the moon. ' I think it 's the
novels ', said the old lady quoted by Mr. Bagehot, ' that
make my girls so heady.'

The old political families of England, who have borne
a hand for generations in the government of the country,
are often exempt from these errors. They are not easily
intoxicated by public duties, which have been their matter-
of-fact business for centuries. You may call them Whig
or Tory, it makes little difference ; some third name, more
fundamental in its implications, is needed to describe
them. They look at things instinctively from the point
of view of the administration. The fervours of the pulpit
and the platform do not much delight them. It was the
great advantage of George Savile that he was born into
such a family, and was connected by kinship, or by the
accidents of life, with many of the most influential persons
of that age. Sir Henry Savile, wit and scholar. Warden of
Merton College, Oxford, and Provost of Eton, perhaps the
most learned Greek scholar of Elizabethan England, was
his distant kinsman. The Lord Keeper Coventry was his
grandfather. The great Earl of Strafford was his father's
uncle. Anthony Ashley Cooper, first Earl of Shaftesbury,
who vies with one other claimant for the credit of being
the first Whig, was his uncle by marriage, his colleague,
and, in the end, his rival. Lady Dorothy Sidney, Waller's
' Sacharissa ', was his wife's mother. More notable still,
the famous Earl of Chesterfield was his grandson. In
short, he was intimately connected with most of those

whose

xii INTRODUCTION.

whose names fill the pages of English History during the
latter half of the Seventeenth Century, and was a witness
of the events of that history from a position of extra-
ordinary vantage. His family, moreover, though staunchly
Royalist, managed to keep possession of its estates, and
in 1643, when his father, Sir William Savile, after loyal
service rendered to the King, died at the age of thirty-one,
the young George Savile had the ball at his feet. Con-
cerning his youth and education we know next to nothing.
He was born in 1633, and was brought up under the
control of his widowed mother, who was a woman of
strong character. When she died, in 1662, her son was
already married, settled on his estate of Rufford, in
Nottinghamshire, and prominent in public life.^ He was
described, later, by Evelyn the diarist, as ' a very rich
man, very witty, and in his younger days somewhat
positive '. His wit and his riches he kept throughout life ;
his opinions became less positive. His wit was perhaps
his chief fault ; he could not keep it under, or refuse
himself a pointed jest. ' One great argument ', says a con-
temporary account, ' of the prodigious depth and quickness
of his sense is, that many of his observations and wise
sayings were on the sudden, when talking to a friend or
going from him.' The spontaneity and freedom of his
talk was ill taken by Clarendon and other cautious and
explanatory persons, and Savile was reputed to be void of
all sense of religion — which he certainly was not. Later,
among his Moral Thoughts and Reflections, he says, ' There
is so much Danger in Talking, that a Man strictly wise
can hardly be called a sociable Creature.' This was a

lesson

^ All who concern themselves with Halifax must acknowledge their
great debt to the careful and exhaustive work of Miss Foxcroft, The Life
and Letters of Sir George Savile, Bart., First Marquis of Halifax, &c., with
a new edition of his works now for the first time collected and revised by
H. C. Foxcroft. Two volumes, Longmans, 1898.

INTRODUCTION. xiii

lesson that he learned but slowly, if indeed he ever learned
it. His conduct of business was discreet almost to a fatdt ;
his letters are so prudent and reserved that they are
amazingly dull to read ; but he indemnified himself for
these restraints by the freedom of his intimate conversa-
tion. The writings in which he has allowed himself most
of this freedom were either non-political, like his Advice
to a Daughter, or were posthumously published, like his
Character of King Charles the Second : and Political,
Moral and Miscellaneous Thoughts and Reflections. These
are the best of his works. That prudence and discretion
which keeps a man safe and sequestered in life conceals
him also from the notice of later generations ; the same
caution which delivers him from malicious gossip, puts
him beyond the reach of posthumous sympathy. Halifax,
the author, appeals to our interest because he says many
things which politicians know and do not say. To avoid
even paltry enmities may be the clear duty of a states-
man. ' It is a Misfortune ', Halifax remarks, ' for a Man
not to have a Friend in the World, but for that reason he
shall have no Enemy.'

The events of his public life, as parliamentary leader,
as Minister under Charles II, as President of the Councijl
under James II, and as Lord Privy Seal under William III,
are written broad on the history of England, and cannc^
be recorded here. He bore a hand in all the chief events
of the time, from the Restoration onwards, to his deaths
in 1695. His importance may be well measured by this^
that it never depended on the office that he held. He was
respected, consulted, and feared in opposition no less than
when he was chief Minister of the Crown. The greatest of
his achievements, it will probably be agreed, was the rejec-
tion of the Exclusion Bill in 1680 by the House of Lords.
No record remains of the speeches made ; but the severity
and brilliancy of his duel with Shaftesbury is attested by

n.any

xiv INTRODUCTION.

many contemporaries. He stood up to Shaftesbury, and
answered him every time he spoke. He carried the House,
in the end, triumphantly with him. It was a triumph not
so much of argument as of intelligence and insight. He
understood the temper of the people of England as Shaftes-
bury never did, and he knew that the ebullitions of popular
enthusiasm are no safe index to that temper. Monmouth
was adored by the people ; the Duke of York was neither
liked nor loved. Shaftesbury thought to earn the nation's
gratitude by offering them Monmouth in place of York.
He miscalculated cruelly ; the people did not fear a new
King ; but they did fear a Kingmaker. The whole edifice
of constitutional monarchy was designed not for the pro-
tection of bad kings, but for the humiliation of arrogant
ministers. This Halifax understood ; so he became the
guardian of the Constitution, and later, when James II
had set himself to break the Constitution, the guiding
spirit of the Revolution. His politics are our politics ;
his political creed remains in the Twentieth Century what
it was in the Seventeenth Century, the creed of John Bull.
But the rare delight is to find John Bull a wit ! Wit is
commonly employed in extremes, where it works most
easily. To satirize novelty, and ridicule all that is unfami-
liar ; or, reversing the process, to ridicule all that is
familiar, to deny the truth of proverbs and to flout the
sayings that embody general opinion — these devices fur-
nish wit with a simple and effective mechanism. But
Halifax employs the subtlest resources of wit in defence
of the practical expedient, the middle course, the reason-
able compromise.

Dryden pays tribute, in Absalom and Achitophel, not
only to the wit of Halifax, but to his courage and
eloquence :

Jotham of piercing Wit and pregnant Thought,
Endew'd by nature and by learning taught

To

INTRODUCTION. xv

To move Assemblies, who but onely tri'd
The worse a while, then chose the better side ;
Nor chose alone, but turned the Balance too ;
So much the weight of one brave man can do.

Indeed, for all that he is called the Trimmer, Halifax has
been very generally recognized for an upright and honour-
able man. He was promoted, by steady gradation, to high
honours and high offices, yet no one has been found foolish
enough to pretend that he was a self-seeker. Macaulay,
who expresses some distrust of him in the Essays, and
introduces him, in the History, as one who was not suffi-
ciently indifferent to titles of honour, makes amends, in
a later passage, by a full and generous eulogy :

' What distinguishes him from all other English states-
men is this, that, through a long public life, and through
frequent and violent revolutions of public feeling, he almost
invariably took that view of the great questions of his
time which history has finally adopted. He was called
inconstant, because the relative position in which he stood
to the contending factions was perpetually varying. As
well might the pole-star be called inconstant because it is
sometimes to the east and sometimes to the west of the
pointers. To have defended the ancient and legal con-
stitution of the realm against a seditious populace at one
conjunction, and against a tyrannical government at
another ; to have been the foremost champion of order in
the turbulent Parliament of 1680, and the foremost
champion of liberty in the servile Parliament of 1685 ;
to have been just and merciful to Roman Catholics in the
days of the Popish plot, and to Exclusionists in the days
of the Rye House plot ; to have done all in his power to
save both the head of Stafford and the head of Russell ;
this was a course which contemporaries, heated by passion,
might not unnaturally call fickle, but which deserves a very
different name from the later justice of posterity.'

One stain, and one only, Macaulay finds on his memory,
that in the reign of William III he stooped to hold com-
munication with the exiled Court of St. Germain. The
fact is not disputed, but a wise judgement on the fact asks

for

xvi INTRODUCTION.

for a more active and careful imagination than is usually
brought to it. The black-and-white school of moralists
are not valuable critics of the politics of the Seventeenth
Century. They would be better employed in writing
laudatory biographies of the authors of Histriomastix
and EiKbiv /3ao-tAurj. For many years it was not
certain who was King of England. It was not certain
whether England was to be a monarchy or a common-
wealth. Many patriotic Englishmen had been driven
abroad, and hardly a man of note had not relatives in
France. In these civil conflicts, which divide families, the
law of treason must needs be humanely interpreted ; and
the offence proved against Halifax amounts only to mis-
prision of treason ; that is to say, he did not cut off all
confidential relations with his friends and acquaintance on
the other side.

This, at any rate, is certain, he never for one moment
sought any other end than the security and greatness of
England. He very early recognized that one portentous
question was beginning to obscure the whole political
horizon. ' The Greatness of France,' wrote the English
Envoy at Lisbon, ' as I have heard your Lordship observe,
hath made all old politics useless.' So, in 1668, he wel-
comed the Triple Alliance between England, Holland, and
Sweden, to hold Louis XIV in check. So far, his politics
were the politics of William of Orange. But William of
Orange was a European statesman and general ; Halifax
was purely an Englishman. He was glad to have the help
of alliances, but he did not like to have to trust to them.
Real friendships between nations are things of very slow
and difficult growth; while friendships between govern-
ments are subject to the dangers and disadvantages of
friendships between two bodies of trustees representing
different interests. If such friendships are immutable,
they are dishonest, Halifax was not deceived by them.

In

INTRODUCTION. xvii

In a letter to Sir William Temple, written shortly before the
Triple Alliance was concluded, he discusses the possibility
of a French invasion, and concludes : ' We must rely upon
the Oak and Courage of England to do our Business, there
being small Appearance of anything to help us from abroad.*
Many fine things have been said of England by English-
men ; none of them more sincere and moving than the
things said by Halifax. He is a quiet writer, critical and
sceptical, keenly aware of the absurdity of enthusiasm.
He keeps his feelings so well in hand that he has the reputa-
tion of a cynic. But this is how he writes of England :

' Our Trimmer is far from Idolatry in other things, in
one thing only he cometh near it, his Country is in some
degree his Idol ; he doth not Worship the Sun, because 'tis
not peculiar to us, it rambles about the World, and is less
kind to us than others ; but for the Earth of England,
tho perhaps inferior to that of many places abroad, to him
there is Divinity in it, and he would rather dye, than see
a spire of English Grass trampled down by a Foreign Tres-
passer : He thinketh there are a great many of his mind,
for all plants are apt to taste of the Soyl in which they
grow, and we that grow here, have a Root that produceth
in us a Stalk of English Juice, which is not to be changed
by grafting or foreign infusion ; and I do not know whether
any thing less will prevail, than the Modern Experiment,
by which the Blood of one Creature is transmitted into
another ; according to which, before the French blood can
be let into our Bodies, every drop of our own must be
drawn out of them.'

When these words were written England stood in greater
danger of invasion than she has known at any later time,
unless it were in the time of Napoleon. Halifax had seen
the Navy driven off the sea by the Dutch, and the shipping
in the Thames burnt, yet the people were slow to awake
to their danger. In the pamphlet entitled A Rough Draught
of a New Model at Sea, which was published in 1694, but
was probably written earlier, he tries to awaken them.
He knew the difficulty of the attempt.

'A

XVlll

INTRODUCTION.

' A Nation is a great while ', he observes, ' before they
can see, and generally they must feel first before their
Sight is quite cleared. This maketh it so long before they
can see their Interest, that for the most part it is too late
for them to pursue it : If Men must be supposed always
to follow their true Interest, it must be meant of a New
Manufactory of Mankind by God Almighty ; there must
be some new Clay, the old Stuff never yet made any such
infallible Creature.'

Yet the means to safety was clear, and he puts it in the
forefront of his argument :

' I will make no other Introduction to the following Dis-
course, than that as the Importance of our being strong
at Sea, was ever very great, so in our present Circumstances
it is grown to be much greater ; because, as formerly our
Force of Shipping contributed greatly to our Trade and
Safety ; so now it is become indispensibly necessary to
our very Being.

' It may be said now to England, Martha, Martha, thou
art busy about many things, but one thing is necessary. To
the Question, What shall we do to be saved in this World ?
there is no other Answer but this. Look to your Moate.

' The first Article of an English-man's Political Creed
must be, That he believeth in the Sea, &c. without that
there needeth no General Council to pronounce him in-
capable of Salvation here.'

This is all very modern, and so also are his recommenda-
tions in the matter of commissions in the Navy. It is
perhaps no bad vindication of his opinions that they are
in complete agreement with the best practice of the Navy
from that time to this. There were those who held that
all naval officers should be gentlemen born, as there were
others who held that they should all be tarpaulins — that
is, men who had been bred from boyhood to the rough
work of practical seamen. He discusses the merits and
faults of both sorts of officer, and rejects both proposals
as evil extremes. There must be a mixture, he holds, of
the two classes, in a proportion to be determined by
experiment and circumstance ; and the dangers that may

attend

INTRODUCTION. xix

attend the mixture are to be avoided by one main pre-
caution :

' The Gentlemen shall not be capable of bearing Office
at Sea, except they be Tarpaulins too ; that is to say,
except they are so trained up by a continued habit of living
at Sea, that they may have a Right to be admitted free
Denizens of Wapping.'

There must be an end of sending idle young noblemen

to sea in positions of authority.

' When a Gentleman is preferr'd at Sea, the Tarpaulin is
very apt to impute it to Friend or Favour : But if that
Gentleman hath before his Preferment passed through all
the Steps which lead to it, so that he smelleth as much of
Pitch and Tar, as those that were Swadled in Sail-Cloaih ;
his having an Escutcheon will be so far from doing him
harm, that it will set him upon the advantage Ground : It
will draw a real Respect to his Quality when so supported,
and give him an Influence and Authority infinitely superior
to that which the meer Sea man can ever pretend to.'

A sailor can never be fit to command till he has learned

to obey ; nor can he be trusted to inflict punishments to

which he has never been liable.

' When the undistinguish'd Discipline of a Ship hath
tamed the young Mastership, which is apt to arise from
a Gentleman's Birth and Education, he then groweth
Proud in the right place, and valueth himself first upon
knowing his Duty, and then upon doing it.'

The experience of the two wars with Holland had plenti-
fully illustrated the evils of which Halifax speaks ; it was
his own knowledge of human nature which directed him so
clearly to the remedy.

The works of Halifax all belong to the last ten years or
so of his life. The earliest of them. The Character of a
Trimmer, is a complete handbook to the politics of the.
closing years of Charles the Second's reign. The Letter to
a Dissenter and The Anatomy of an Equivalent, which
followed it within a few months, are directed against!
James the Second's famous attempt to buy oft thej

hostility
b2

XX INTRODUCTION.

hostility of the Dissenters by including them in his project
of toleration. None of these tracts, when first printed,
bore the author's name. The naval tract mentioned above,
and the tract entitled Some Cautions Offered to the Con-
sideration of Those who are to Chuse Members to Serve for
the Ensuing Parliament, are also anonymous, and are his
latest writings. When the ensuing Parliament came to be
elected he had been six months dead. All his worldly
wisdom shines in this last tract, which, again, applies
almost without change to the circumstances of to-day.
The last satirical injunction has a strangely familiar ring :

' In the mean time, after having told my Opinion, Who
ought not to be Chosen :

' If I should be ask'd. Who ought to be, my Answer
must be, Chuse Englishmen ; and when I have said that,
to deal honestly, I will not undertake that they are easy
to be found.'

In some ways his Advice to a Daughter, which, alone
among the writings published during his lifetime, seems
to have been carefully prepared by his own hand for the
press, is the most attractive of his works. It was written
for his daughter Elizabeth, who became the wife of the
third Earl of Chesterfield, and the mother of a famous son.
The habit of giving advice to the younger generation would
appear to have been hereditary in the family. But Halifax's
social maxims are more profound than Chesterfield's, as
his political maxims are more profound than Boling-
broke's. The book was immensely popular ; it ran through
some twenty-five editions, and held the field for almost
a century, to be superseded at last by Dr. Gregory's
Father's Legacy and Mrs. Chapone's Letters on the Improve-
ment of the Mind. The Advice is somewhat melancholy in
tone. The author sets before his daughter no ideas of self-
advancement, and indulges her with scant hopes of happi-
ness. There is too little room in his scheme for the holiday
virtues, and the free play of impulse. ' Whilst you are

playing

INTRODUCTION. xxi

playing full of Innocence, the spitefuU World will bite,
except yo^, are guarded by your Caution.' His words are
a prop hylactic against the inevitable ills of life. His
section on a Husband is devoted mainly to considerations
which may palliate a husband's faults and vices. His com-
mandments are commandments without promise. There
is to be no relaxation ; life is one long fencing-bout. ' You
are to have as strict a Guard upon yourself amongst your
Children, as if you were amongst your Enemies.' This is
a wise remark, but it does not make home seem a place
of warmth and ease. The same cold good sense and
discernment govern his thinking on such topics as Religion
and Friendship. He is judicious, sane, and balanced, but
he does not think of the world as a cheerful place.

Yet, with all this, there is something very moving in
his solicitude. His high principles of conduct and his deep
affection for his daughter peep out unwittingly here and
there. It is small wonder that the book was cherished by
her, and lay always upon her table. The calm of the
perfectly well-bred style forbids all direct expression of the
emotions, but the impression it makes is all the greater.
' When my Fears prevail, I shrink as if I was struck, at the
Prospect of Danger, to which a young Woman must be
expos'd.' His concluding advice on the article of marriage
has a pathos of its own :

' That you would, as much as Nature will give you
leave, endeavour to forget the great Indulgence you have
found at home. After such a gentle Discipline as you have
been under, every thing you dislike will seem the harsher
to you. The tenderness we have had for you, My Dear,
is of another nature, peculiar to kind Parents, and differ-
ing from that which you will meet with first in any Family
into which you shall be transplanted ; and yet they may
be very kind too, and afford no justifiable reason to you
to complain. You must not be frighted with the first
Appearances of a differing Scene ; for when you are used
to it, you may like the House you go to, better than that

you

xxii INTRODUCTION.

you left ; and your Husband's Kindness will have so much
advantage of ours, that we shall yield up all Competition,
and as well as we love you, be very well contented to
Surrender to such a Rival.'

Something of the same fragrance makes itself felt in the
worldly wisdom of his advice concerning Censure :

' The Triumph of Wit is to make your good Nature
subdue your Censure ; to be quick in seeing Faults, and
slow in exposing them. You are to consider, that the
invisible thing called a Good Name, is made up of the
Breath of Numbers that speak well of you ; so that if by
a disobliging Word you silence the meanest, the Gale will
be less strong which is to bear up your Esteem. And
though nothing is so vain as the eager pursuit of empty
Applause, yet to be well thought of, and to be kindly used
by the World, is like a Glory about a Womans Head ; 'tis
a Perfume she carrieth about with her, and leaveth where-
ever she goeth ; 'tis a Charm against Ill-will. Malice may
empty her Quiver, but cannot wound ; the Dirt will not
stick, the Jests will not take ; Without the consent of the
World a Scandal doth not go deep ; it is only a slight
stroak upon the injured Party and returneth with the
greater force upon those that gave it.'

The Character of King Charles II is a masterpiece.
Perhaps no such intimate portrait of an English King,
drawn by a contemporary, is to be found in the whole
course of our history. » It makes us regret that Halifax
has left us so few descriptions of the persons whom he
knew. The tendency to aphorism and epigram is strong,
and the Character is full of brilliant sentences. ' Men
given to dissembling are like Rooks at play, they will
cheat for shillings, they are so used to it.' ' Mistresses are
in all Respects craving Creatures.' But the dispassionate
analysis of the King's character and motives ; the account
given of the effect of his early misfortune on his disposi-
tion ; and the incidental pictures, for those who read
between the lines, of the daily life of the Court ; — all these
are as convincing as a scientific demonstration. The King's

ruling

INTRODUCTION. xxiii

ruling passion, the love of ease, was never so vividly drawn.
Nothing to him was worth purchasing at the price of
a difficulty. We see him surrounded by a crowd of impor-
tunate beggars of both sexes ; he would walk fast to avoid
being engaged by them. ' He would slide from an asking
Face, and could guess very well.' When he was brought
to bay, he would buy off his tormentors by large con-
cessions for the sake of present ease. In this way ' the
King was made the Instrument to defraud the Crown,
which is somewhat extraordinary.' It is plain to see, for
all the delicacy with which the Royal foibles are described,
that Lord Halifax was not perfectly happy in the familiar
company that the King kept about him. ' His Mistresses
were such as did not care that Wit of the best kind should
have the Precedence in their Apartments.' The King
delighted in broad allusions, and made fun of those who
would not join in. He had a good memory, but told
stories too often, and at too great length. He appreciated
wit, but (and here is a cry from the soul) ' of all Men that
ever liked those who had Wit, he could the best endure
those who had none '. Yet the natural amiability and
sweetness of Charles's temper shines through all the
description. There is a certain attractiveness in his im-
patience of the formalities of his position ; his tendency
to relapse into Charles Stuart and so regain the freedom
of a private estate. The closing eulogy on this unfortunate
and gentle Prince is a sincere and true testimony from
a competent witness :

' A Prince neither sharpened by his Misfortunes whilst
Abroad, nor by his Power when restored, is such a shining
Character, that it is a Reproach not to be so dazzled with
it, as not to be able to see a Fault in its full Light. . . .
He is under the Protection of common Frailty, that must
engage Men for their own sakes not to be too severe, where
they themselves have so much to answer.'

The Political, Moral and Miscellaneous Thoughts and

Reflections

xxiv INTRODUCTION.

Reflections is the most notable English collection of Maxims,
the nearest parallel and rival to the work of La Roche-
foucauld and La Bruyere. Popular proverbs, it has often
been remarked, are not very generous in their treatment
of humanity ; and a writer of aphorisms, which are pro-
verbs coined in a private mint, is open to the same charge.
An aphorism is an act of judgement, and so can pretend
to no higher merit than justice, which is not the greatest
of human virtues. The beauties of human character are
vague and living things ; the deformities lend themselves
more readily to be outlined by a decisive pencil. Yet the
aphorisms of Halifax never sacrifice sense to wit, and always
provoke thought. His political reflections, especially, could
only have been written by a statesman of experience.
He is often severe, but he is no cynic. ' Men must be
saved in this World ', he says, ' by their Want of Faith ' ;
but he was not so foolish as to deny the existence of un-
selfishness. ' It is a Mistake to say a Friend can be bought.'
In his Character of King Charles II, commenting on the
insatiability of the King's followers, he falls into the same
vein of argument :

' I am of an Opinion, in which I am every Day more
confirmed by Observation, that Gratitude is one of those
things that cannot be bought. It must be born with Men,
or else all the Obligations in the World will not create it.
An outward Shew may be made to satisfy Decency, and to
prevent Reproach ; but a real Sense of a kind thing is
a Gift of Nature, and never was, nor can be acquired.'

Yet even sincere Friendship has its weaknesses. ' Those
Friends who are above Interest are seldom above Jealousy.'

The aphorisms of Halifax are a better guide to the world
as it is than all the brilliancies of his epigrammatic French
contemporaries. His satire bears no trace of disappointed
ambition or poisoned egotism. Some of his sayings are
condensed treatises in their weight of thought. Why is it

that

INTRODUCTION. xxv

that popularity is so often suspect ? He puts his finger
at once on the answer. ' Popularity is a Crime from the
Moment it is sought ; it is only a Virtue where Men have
it whether they will or no.' Who has ever defined a Fool
better than in these few words : ' A Fool hath no Dialogue
within himself, the first Thought carrieth him without the
Reply of a second ' ? How could the verdict of mankind
on plaintive persons be more truly expressed than in
the sentences on Complaint ? —

' Complaining is a Contempt upon ones self :

' It is an ill Sign both of a Man's Head and of his Heart.

' A Man throweth himself down whilst he complaineth ;

and when a Man throweth himself down, no body careth

to take him up again.'

There is very little mention made of Halifax in the
writings of his contemporaries. Though he held a con-
spicuous station, he seems to have passed through life
observing rather than observed. A fascinating sketch of
him is given in Burnet's History of His Own Time, as he
appeared to that prelate of unbounded energy and coarse
perceptions. Virtue may win over vice ; but intelligence
cannot make a convert of stupidity. Burnet, whose
power in the State came late in Halifax's career, is a good
example of the bluff, hot-headed partisan, to whom it is
impossible to doubt that right is all on one side. Halifax,
we are told by a contemporary, ' was never better pleased
than when he was turning Bishop Burnet and his politics
into ridicule.' Burnet's verdict on Halifax will not mislead
those who have heard the Trimmer speak for himself :

' He was a man of a great and ready wit ; full of life,
and very pleasant ; much turned to satire. He let his
wit run much on matters of religion, so that he passed for
a bold and determined atheist ; though he often protested
to me he was not one ; and said, he believed there was not
one in the world : he was a Christian in submission : he
believed as much as he could and he hoped that God would

not

xxvi INTRODUCTION.

not lay it to his charge, if he could not digest iron, as an
ostrich did, nor take into his belief things that must burst
him : if he had any scruples, they were not sought for,
nor cherished by him ; for he never read an atheistical
book. In a fit of sickness I knew him very much touched
with a sense of religion. I was then often with him. He
seemed full of good purposes, but they went off with his
sickness. He was always talking of morality and friend-
ship. He was punctual in all payments, and just in all
his private dealings. But, with relation to the public, he
went backwards and forwards, and changed sides so often,
that in conclusion no side trusted him. He seemed full of
commonwealth notions, yet he went into the worst part
of King Charles's reign.'

He is the last of the long line of statesmen who found
it possible to govern England without paying allegiance
to party. Their day is past ; and the party system is
stronger now than it was in the time of the Jacobites and
Hanoverians. No better method has ever been devised
for the peaceful settlement of differences of opinion on
domestic questions. The nation is not prepared to revive
the custom of impeaching unpopular ministers. English-
men sometimes rail at party, as they rail at cricket and
football, but they know that there is no escape from it.
It deceives vainglorious partisans, no doubt, and it offends
righteous philosophers ; but it suits the national temper.
Yet there is no need to be duped by it ; and any one
who tries to think clearly on politics must be a very wise
man, or a very foolish one, if he gets no help from the
writings of the Marquess of Halifax.

It remains to say a few words on the text of Halifax.
The present edition is based on the two volumes which
together contain the works of Halifax, namely, the volume
of Miscellanies, first published in 1700, and the volume
entitled A Character of King Charles the Second : and
Political, Moral and Miscellaneous Thoughts and Reflections,

published

INTRODUCTION. xxvii

published in 1750. For these last two pieces the 1750
volume is the sole authority. It was printed from
material supplied by Lady Burlington, Halifax's grand-
daughter, and seems to be virtually free from mistakes.
The Advice to a Daughter, which is included in the Mis-
cellanies, is likewise a good and careful text. Some few
variations occur among the many editions of this piece,
but they are of very little importance.

Of the political tracts there are of course many separate
editions earlier than the Miscellanies. These tracts were
most of them first circulated in manuscript, and I cannot
convince myself that any one of them, when it came to
be printed, was overseen by the author. It may be, as
Miss Foxcroft suggests, that he corrected the proofs of
The Anatomy of an Equivalent, but against this it must be
said that men of quality rarely corrected proofs, and that
The Character of a Trimmer, a much more important and
personal document, appeared in print again and again,
during his lifetime, full of nonsensical mistakes, which
varied from edition to edition, but did not diminish in
number. There is no authoritative edition of any of the
controversial writings. But the variations in the earlier
editions of the shorter tracts are unimportant, and the
obvious blunders are comparatively few.

The only serious textual difficulties are presented by
The Character of a Trimmer. This piece seems, from the
first, to have been the plaything of copyists and printers.
Miss Foxcroft, in her admirable edition, has collated the
various printed texts, and has compared them in detail
with four manuscript copies. But the manuscripts are not
more trustworthy, or less corrupt, than the printed editions,
so that the result is disappointing. Some of the best
emendations in her text are suggested by herself ; some
are borrowed from the manuscripts. I desire to express
my obligation for the readings which I owe to her edition,

notably

xxviii INTRODUCTION.

notably ' discountenance ' for ' distinct name ' {infra,
p. 52, 1. 21), and (best of all) ' spire of English Grass '
for ' piece of English Glass ' (p. 97, 1. 18). This last
emendation has restored its highest touch of imagination
to the finest passage in the tract. I have resisted the
temptation to suggest important emendations. Once only
I have yielded to it ; and have read ' landlord ' for
' language ' on p. 84, 1. 20. The reading ' language '
would leave to the sentence a possible meaning, but would
make nonsense of the argument. It is a significant fact
that this reading, which I take to be an obvious blunder,
is found in all the editions, and in all the manuscripts.

Miss Foxcroft has taken a hint from the manuscripts,
and has restored the inflection -eth, or -th, in the third
person singular of the present tense. In this I have
followed her example. There is no doubt that the termina-
tion in -es, or -s, was substituted by the printers for the
old-fashioned usage, which was preferred by Halifax in
his authoritative works, and which is necessary for the
cadence of his sentences.

I have followed my printed originals in the matter of
capitals and italics. I have also preserved the old punctua-
tion, correcting it only in those few instances where it
seemed to be wrong judged by its own principles. The
modern usage in all these matters sacrifices everything to
naked logic ; and substitutes bare outline for the delicate
emotional shading of the older fashion.

WALTER RALEIGH.

OXFOED, 1912.

THE WORKS OF
HALIFAX

Mifcellanies

B Y

The Right Noble LORD,

The Late Lord Marquefs

HALIFAX

VI z.

I. Jdvice i^oflDAUGHTER.

II. The Charaaer of a TRIMMER.
Ul.The Anatomy of an EQUIVALENT.

IV. A Letter to a DISSENTER.

V. Cautions for Choice of PARLIA-
MENT MEN.

VI. A J{ough Draught of a NEW MO-
DEL at SEA.

VII. Maxims o/' STATE, Sc.

LONDON:

Printed for Matt. Gilly flower zt t)\e.Spread-
Kagle in Wefiminfler-Hall. 1700.

A

CHARACTER

O F

KING C H A RL ES

THE SECOND:

AND

PoLTTiCALj Moral and Miscellaneous
Thoughts and Reflections.

By GEORGE S A T^ I L E,

Mar qjj is of Halifax.

L O N D O N :

Printed for J. and R. Ton son and S. Draper
in the Strand, m dcc l.

(O
THE

Lady's New-Year's-Gift :

OR,

ADVICE

TO A

DAUGHTER

Dear Daughter,

IFind^ that even our most pleasing Thoughts will be un- -
quiet; they will be in motion ; and the Mind can have no
rest vrhilst it is possessed by a dariing Passion. You are •
at present the chief Object of my Care, as well as of my Kind-
ness, vchich sometimes throweth me into Visions of your being
happy in the World, that are better suited to my partial Wishes,
than to my reasonable Hopes for you. At other times, when "
my Fears prevail, I shrink as if I was struck, at the Prospect of
Danger, to which a young Woman must be exposed. But how
much the more Lively, so much the more Liable you are to be
hurt ; as the finest Plants are the soonest nipped by the Frost.
Whilst you are playing full of Innocence, the spitefull World ~1
will bite, except you are guarded by your Caution. Want of *-j
Care therefore, my dear Child, is never to be excus'd ; since,
as to this World, it hath the same effect as want of Vertue. '
Such an early sprouting Wit requireth so much the more to
be sheltred by some Rules, like something strew'd on tender
Flowers to preserve them from being blasted. You must take
it well to be prun'd by so kind a Hand as that of a Father.
HALIFAX B i. nei e

3.,

Advice to a Daughter.

There may be some bitterness in meer Obedience : The natural
Love of Liberty may help to make the Commands of a Parent
harder to go down : Some inward resistance there will be,
where Power and not Choice maketh us move. But when a
Father layeth aside his Authority, and persuadeth only by his
Kindness, you will never answer it to Good Nature, if it hath
not weight with you.

A great part of what is said in the following Discourse may
be above the present growth of your Understanding ; but that
becoming every day taller, will in a little time reach up to it,
so as to make it easie to you. I am willing to begin with you
before your Mind is quite formed, that being the time in which
it is most capable of receiving a Colour that will last when it is
mix'd with it. Few things are well learnt, but by early Pre-
cepts : Those well infus'd, make them Natural; and we are
never sure of retaining what is valuable, till by a continued
Habit we have made it a Piece of us.

Whether my skill can draw the Picture of a fine Woman,
may be a question : but it can be none. That I have drawn
that of a kind Father : If you will take an exact Copy, I will
so far presume upon my workmanship, as to undertake you
shall not make an ill Figure. Give me so much Credit as to
try, and I am sure that neither your Wishes nor mine shall be
disappointed by it.

RELIGION.

THe first thing to be considered, is Religion, It must be
the chief Object of your Thoughts, since it would be
a vain thing to direct your Behaviour in the World, and forget
that which you are to have towards him who made it.

In a strict sense, it is the only thing necessary: you must
take it into your Mind, and from thence throw it into your
Heart, where you are to embrace it so close as never to lose the

Possession

RELIGION.

Possession of it. But then it is necessary to distinguish between
the Reality and the Pretence.

Religion doth not consist in believing the Legend of the
Nursery, where Children with their Milk are fed with the Tales
of Witches^ Hobgoblings, Prophecies^ and Miracles. We suck
in so greedily these early Mistakes, that our riper Understanding
hath much ado to cleanse our Minds from this kind of Trash :
The Stories are so entertaining^, that we do not only believe
them, but relate them; which makes the discovery of the
Truth somewhat grievous^ when it makes us lose such a Field
of Impertinence^ where we might have diverted our selves,
besides the throwing some shame upon us for having ever
received them. This is making the World a Jest, and imputing
to God Almighty, That the Province he assigneth to the Devil,
is to play at Blindmans-buff, and shew Tricks with Mankind ;
and is so far from being Religion, that it is not Sense, and hath
right only to be calVd that kind of Devotion, of which Ignorance
is the undoubted Mother, without competition or dispute.
These Mistakes are therefore to be left off with your Hanging
sleeves ; and you ought to be as much out of countenance to be
found with them about you, as to be seen playing with Babies
at an Age when other things are expected from you.

The next thing to be observed to you, is. That Religion doth
as little consist in loud Answers and devout Convulsions at
Church, or Praying in an extraordinary manner. Some Ladies
are so extream stirring at Church, that one would swear the
Worm in their Conscience made them so imquiet. Others will
^ave such a Divided Face between a Devout Goggle and an
Inviting Glance, that the unnatural Mixture maketh even the
best Looks to be at that time ridiculous. These affected
Appearances are ever suspected, like very strong Perfumes,
which are generally thought no very good Symptoms in those
that make use of them. Let your earnestness therefore be
reserv'd for your Closet, where you may have God Almighty to
your self : In Publick be still and calm, neither undecently
Careless, nor Affected in the other Extream.

It is not true Devotion, to put on an angry Zeal against those

B 2 who

Advice to a Daughter.

who may be of a differing Persuasion. Partiality to our selves
makes us often mistake it for a Duty, to fall hard upon others
in that ease; and being push'd on by Self-conceit, we strike
without mercy, believing that the Wounds we give are Meritorious,
and that we are fighting God Almighty's Quarrel ; when the
truth is, we are only setting out our selves. Our Devotion too
often breaketh out into that Shape which most agreeth with
our particular Temper. The Cholerick grow into a hardned
Severity against all who dissent from them ; snatch at all the
Texts of Scripture that suit with their Complexion ; and because
God's Wrath was some time kindled, they conclude. That Anger
is a Divine Vertue ; and are so far from imagining their ill
natur'd Zeal requireth an Apology, that they value themselves
upon it, and triumph in it. Others, whose Nature is more
Credulous than ordinary, admit no Bounds or Measure to it ;
they grow as proud of extending their Faith, as Pi-inces ai-e of
enlarging their Dominions ; not considering that our Faith, like
our Stomach, is capable of being over-charg'd ; and that as the
last is destroy 'd by taking in more than it can digest, so our
Reason may be extinguish'd by oppressing it with the weight of
too many strange things ; especially if we are forbidden to chew
what we are commanded to swallow. The Melancholy and the
Sullen are apt to place a great part of their Religion in dejected
or ill-humour 'd Looks, putting on an unsociable Face, and
declaiming against the Innocent Entertainments of Life, with as
much sharpness as they could bestow upon the greatest Crimes.
This generally is only a Vizard, there is seldom any thing
real in it. No other thing is the better for being Sowre ; and
it would be hard that Religion should be so, which is the best
of things. In the mean time it may be said with truth. That
this surly kind of Devotion hath perhaps done little less imrt
in the World, by frighting, than the most scandalous Examples
have done by infecting it.

Having told you, in these few Instances, to which many more
might be added, what is not true Religion ; it is time to describe
to you, what is so. The ordinary Definitions of it are no more
like it, than the common Sign-posts are like the Princes they

would

RELIGION.

would represent. The unskilful Dawbers in all Ages have •
generally laid on such ill Colours, and drawn such harsh Lines,
that the Beauty of it is not easily to be discerned : They have
put in all the forbidding Features that can be thought of ; and
in the first place, have made it an irreconcilable Enemy to
Nature ; when, in reality, they are not only Friends, but Twins,
born together at the same time ; and it is doing violence to ^
them both, to go about to have them separated. Nothing is j
so kind and so inviting as true and unsophisticated Religion :
Instead of imposing unnecessary Burdens upon our Nature, it
easeth us of the greater weight of our Passions and Mistakes i
Instead of subduing us with Rigour, it redeemeth us from the
Slavery we are in to our selves, who are the most severe
Masters, whilst we are under the Usurpation of our Appetites
let loose and not restrain 'd.

Religion is a chearful thing, so far from being always at
Cuffs with Good Humour, that it is inseparably united to it.
Nothing unpleasant belongs to it, though the Spiritual Cooks
have done their unskilful part to give an ill Relish to it. A wise
Epicure would be Religious for the sake of Pleasure; Good
Sense is the Foundation of both; and he is a Bungler who
aimeth at true Luxury, but where they are join'd.

Religion is exalted Reason, refin'd and sifted from the grosser
parts of it : It dwelleth in the upper Region of the Mind, where
there are fewest Clouds or Mists to darken or offend it : It is
both the Foundation and the Crown of all Vertues : It is
Morality improv'd and rais'd to its height, by being carried
nearer Heaven, the only place where Perfection resideth. It
cleanseth the Understanding, and brusheth off the Earth that
hangeth about our Souls. It doth not want the Hopes and the
Terrors which are made use of to support it ; neither ought it
to descend to the borrowing any Argument out of it self, since
there we may find every thing that should invite us. If we
were to be hired to Religion, it is able to out-bid the corrupted
World, with all it can offer to us, being so much the Richer of
the two, in every thing where Reason is admitted to be a Judge

of the Value.

Since

Advice to a Daughter.

Since this is so, it is worth your pains to make Religion your
choice, and not make use of it only as a Refuge. There are
Ladies, who finding by the too visible decay of their good
Looks, that they can shine no more by that Light, put^njthe
Varnish of an affected Devotion, to keep up some kind of
TTgure in the World. They take Sanctuary in the Church,
when they are pursued by growing Contempt, which will not
be stopt, but followeth them to the Altar. Such late penitence
is only a disguise for the tormenting grief of being no more
handsome. That is the killing thought which draweth the sighs
and tears, that appear outwardly to be applied to a better end.

There are many who have an Aguish Devotion, Hot and
Cold Fits, long Intermissions, and violent Raptures. This
unevenness is by all means to be avoided. Let your method
be a steady course of good Life, that may run like a smooth
Stream, and be a perpetual Spring to furnish to the continued
Exercise of Vertue. Your Devotion may be earnest, but it
must be unconstrained ; and like other Duties, you must make
it your Pleasure too, or else it will have very little efficacy. By
this Rule you may best judge of your own Heart. Whilst
those Duties are Joys, it is an Evidence of their being sincere ;
but when they are a Penance, it is a sign that your Nature
maketh some resistance ; and whilst that lasteth, you can never
be entirely secure of your self.

If you are often unquiet, and too nearly touch 'd by the cross
Accidents of Life, your Devotion is not of the right Standard ;
there is too much Allay in it. That which is right and unmixt,
taketh away the Sting of every thing that would trouble you :
It is like a healing Balm, that extinguisheth the sharpness of
the Bloud ; so this softeneth and dissolveth the Anguish of the
Mind. A devout Mind hath the Privilege of being free from
Passions, as some Climates are from all venomous kind of
Creatures. It will raise you above the little Vexations to which
others for want of it, will be expos 'd, and bring you to a Temper,
not of stupid Indifference, but of such a wise Resignation, that
you may live in the World, so as it may hang about you like
a loose Garment, and not tied too close to you.

Take

HUSBAND.

Take heed of running into that common Error, of applying
God's Judgments upon particular Occasions. Our Weights
and Measures are not competent to make the Distribution
either of his Mercy or his Justice : He hath thrown a Veil over
these things, which makes it not only an Impertinence, but a
kind of Sacrilege, for us to give Sentence in them without his
Commission.

As to your particular Faith, keep to the Religion that is
grown up with you, both as it is the best in it self, and that
the reason of staying in it upon that Ground is somewhat
stronger for your Sex, than it will perhaps be allow 'd to be
for ours ; in respect that the Voluminous enquiries into the
Truth, by Reading, are less expected from you. The Best of
Books will be direction enough to you not to change ; and
whilst you are fix'd and sufficiently confirm'd in your own
Mind, you will do best to keep vain Doubts and Scruples at
such a distance that they may give you no disquiet.

Let me recommend to you a Method of being rightly in-
form 'd, which can never fail : It is in short this. Get Under-
standing, and practise Vertue. And if you are so Blessed as to
have those for your Share, it is not surer that there is a God, than
it is, that by him all Necessary Truths will be revealed to you.

HUSB A ND.

THAT which challengeth the next place in your Thoughts,
is how to live with a Husband. And though that is so large
a Word, that few Rules can be fix'd to it which are unchange-
able, the Methods being as various as the several Tempers of
Men to which they must be suited ; yet I cannot omit some
General Observations, which, with the help of your own may
the better direct you in the.^art_Qf_youiL Life upon which your

Happiness most dependeth. ._ — ^_ ^

It is one of the Disadvantages belonging to your Sex, that |

j'oung Women are seldom permitted to make their own Choice y^

their

8 Advice to a Daughter.

their Friends Care and Experience are thought safer Guides to
them, than their own Fancies ; and their Modesty often for-
biddeth them to refuse when their Parents recommend, though
their inivard Consent may not entirely go along with it. In
this case there remaineth nothing for them to do, but to
endeavour to make that easie which falleth to their Lot, and
by a wise use of every thing they may dislike in a Husband,
turn that by degrees to be very supportable, which, if neglected,
might in time beget an Aversion.

You must first lay it down for a Foundation in general,
That there is Inequality in the Sexes, and that for the better
Oeconomy of the World, the Men, who were to be the Law-
givers, had the larger share of Reason bestow'd upon them ;
by which means your Sex is the better prepar'd for the Com-
pliance that is necessary for the better performance of those
Duties which seem to be most properly assigned to it. This
looks a little uncourtly at the first appearance ; but upon
Examination it will be found, that Nature is so far from being
unjust to you, that she is partial on your side. She hath made
you such large Amends by other Advantages, for the seeming
Injustice of the first Distribution, that the Right of Complain-
ing is come over to our Sex. You have it in your power not only
to free your selves, but to subdue your Masters, and without
violence throw both their Natural and Legal Authority at your
Feet. We are made of differing Tempers, that our Defects
may the better be mutually supplied : Your Sex wanteth our
Reason for your Conduct, and our Strength for your Protection :
. Ours wanteth your Gentleness to, soften, and to entertain us.
The first part of our Life is a good deal subjected to you in the
Nursery, where you Reign without Competition, and by that
means have the advantage of giving the first Impressions.
Afterwards you have stronger Influences, which, well manag'd,
have more force in your behalf, than all our Privileges and
Jurisdictions can pretend to have against you. You have more
strength in your Looks, than we have in our Laws^ AndL more
power by your Tears, than we have by our Arguments.

It is true, that the Laws of Marriage, run in a harsher stile

towards

H USB A NJD.

towards your Sex. Obey is an ungenteel word, and less easie to
be digested, by making such an unkind distinction in the Words
of the Contract, and so very unsuitable to the excess of Good
Manners, which generally goes before it. Besides, the uni-
versality of the Rule seemeth to be a Grievance, and it
appeareth reasonable, that there might be an Exemption for
extraordinary Women, from ordinary Rules, to take away the
just Exception that lieth against the false measure of general
Equality.

It may be alledged by the Counsel retained by your Sex, that
as there is in all other Laws, an Appeal from the Letter to the
Equity, in Cases that require it, it is as reasonable, that some
Court of a larger Jurisdiction might be erected, where some
Wives might resort and plead specially. And in such instances
where Nature is so kind, as to raise them above the level of
their own Sex, they might have Relief, and obtain a Mitigation
in their own particular, of a Sentence which was given generally
against Woman kind. The causes of Separation are now so
very coarse, that few are confident enough to buy their Liberty
at the pricle of having their Modesty so exposed. And for dis-
parity of Minds, which above all other things requireth a
Remedy, \ik\& Laws have made no provision ; so little refin'd are
numbers of Men, by whom they are compil'd. This and a great
deal more might be said to give a colour to the Complaint.

But the Answer to it, in short is. That the Institution of
J^arriage is too, sacred to admit a Liberty of objecting to it;
That the supposition of yours being the weaker Sex, having
. without all doubt a good Foundation, maketh it reasonable to
subject it to the Masculine Dominion ;j That no Rule can be so
perfect, as not to admit some Exceptions ; But the Law
presumeth there would be so few found in this Case, who
would have a sufficient Right to such a Privilege, that it is safer
s6me Injustice should be conniv'd at in a very few Instances,
than to break into-an Establishment, upon which the Order of
Humane Society doth so much depend.

// You are therefore to make your best of what is settled by
Law and Custom, and not vainly imagine, that it will be changed

I for

lo Advice to a Daughter.

for your sakei But that you may not be discouraged, as if you
lay under the weight of an incurable Grievance, you are to
know, that by a wise and dexterous Conduct, it will be in your
power to relieve your self from way thing that looketh like a
disadvantage in it. For your better direction, I will give a hint
of the most ordinary Causes of Dissatisfaction between Man
and Wife, that you may be able by such a Warning to live so
upon your Guard, that when you shall be married, you may
know how to cure your Husband's Mistakes, and to prevent
your own.

First then, you are to consider, you live in a time which hath
rendred some kind of Frailties so habitual, that they lay claim
to large Grains of Allowance. The World in this is somewhat
unequal, and our Sex seemeth to play the Tyrant in distinguish-

jng partially for our selves, by making that in the utmost
degree Criminal in the Woman, whi£jjJii_a_MfflM passeth under

- a much gentler Censure. The Root and the Excuse of this In-
jusFice is the Freservation of Families from any Mixture which
may bring a Blemish to them : And whilst the Point of Honour
continues to be so plac'd, it seems unavoidable' to give your
Sex, the greater share of the Penalty. But if in this it lieth
under any Disadvantage, you are more than recompensed, by
having the Honour of Families in your keeping. The Con-
sideration so great a Trust must give you, maketh fuU amends ;
and this Power the World hath lodged in you, can hardly fail
to restrain the Severity of an ill Husband, and to improve the
Kindness and Esteem of a good one. This being so, remember.
That next to the danger of committing the Fault your self, the
greatest is that of seeing it in your Husband. Do not seem to
look or hear that way : If he is a Man of Sense, he will reclaim
himself ; the Folly of it, is of it self suificient to cure him : if
he is not so, he will be provok'd, but not reform'd. To expos-
tulate in these Cases, looketh like declaring War, and preparing
Reprisals ; which to a thinking Husband would be a dangerous
Reflexion. Besides, it is so coarse a Reason which will be
assignM for a Lady's too great Warmth upon such an occasion,
that Modesty no less than Prudence ought to restrain her ; since

such

HUSBAND. 11

such an undecent Complaint makes a Wife much more ridiculous,
than the Injury that provoketh her to it. But it is yet worse,
and more unskilful, to blaze it in the World, expecting it should
rise up in Arms to take her part : Whereas she will find, it can
have no other Effect, than that she will be served up in all
Companies, as the reigning Jest at that time ; and will continue
to be the common Entertainment, till she is rescu'd by some
newer Folly that cometh upon the Stage, and driveth her away
from it. The Impertinence of such Methods is so plain, that
it doth not deserve the pains of being laid open. Be assur'd,
that in these Cases youxiDiscretion and Silence yyj^ be the most
prevailing Hejyroof. An affected Ignorance, which is seldom
a Vertue, is a great one here ^ And when your Husband seeth
how unwilling you are to be uneasie, there is no stronger
Argument to perswade him not to be unjust to you. Besides,
it will naturally make him more yielding in other things : And
whether it be to cover or redeem his Offence, you may have the
good Effects of it whilst it lasteth, and all that while have the
most reasonable Ground that can be, of presuming, such a
Behaviour wUl at last entirely convert him. There is nothing
so glorious to a Wife, as a Victory so gain'd : A Man so re-
claim'd, is for ever after subjected to her Vertue; and her
bearing for a time, is more than rewarded by a Triumph that
will continue as long as her Life.

The next thing I will suppose, is. That your Husband may
love Wine more than is convenient. It will be granted. That
though there are Vices of a deeper dye, there are none that
have greater Deformity than this, when it is not restrained :
But with all this, the same Custom which is the more to be
lamented for its being so general, should make it less uneasie to
every one in particular who is to suffer by the Effects of it : So
that in the first place, it will be no new thing if you should have
a Drunkard for your Husband; and there is by too frequent
Examples evidence enough, that such a thing may happen, and
yet a Wife may live too without being miserable. Self-love
dictateth aggravating words to every thing we feel ; Rmrie and
Misery are the Terms we apply to whatever we do not like,

forgetting

12 Advice to a Daughter.

forgetting the Mixture allotted to us by the Condition of Human
Life, by which it is not intended we should be quite exempt
from trouble. It is fair, if we can escape such a degree of it
as would oppress us, and enjoy so much of the pleasant part as
may lessen the ill taste of such things as are unwelcome to us.
Every thing hath two Sides, and for our own ease we ought to
direct our Thoughts to that which may be least liable to excep-
tion. To fall upon the worst side of a Drunkard, giveth so
unpleasant a prospect, that it is not possible to dwell upon it.
Let us pass then to the more favourable part, as far as a Wife
is concern 'd in it.

I am tempted to say (if the Irregularity of the Expression
could in strictness be justified) That a Wije is to thank God
her Husband hath Faults. Mark the seeming Paradox my
Dear, for your own Instruction, it being intended no further.
A Husband without Faults is a dangerous Observer; he hath
an Eye so piercing, and seeth every thing so plain, that it is
expos 'd to his full Censure. And though I will not doubt but
that your Vertue will disappoint the sharpest Enquiries ; j'et
few Women can bear the having all they say or do represented
in the clear Glass of an Understanding without FawZ^s. Nothing
softneth the Arrogance of our Nature, like a Mixture^ of some .
Frailties. It is by them we are best told, that we must not
strike too hard upon others, because we our selves do so often
deserve Blows : They pull our Rage by the Sleeve, and whisper
Gentleness to us in our Censures, even when they are rightly
"applied. 'Jhe_ Faults and Passions of Husbands bring them
down to you, and make them content to live upon less unequal
Terms, than Faultless Men would be willing to stoop tol; so
haughty is Mankind till humbled by common Weaknesses and
Defects, which in our corrupted State contribute more towards
the reconciling us to one another, than all the Precepts of the
Philosophers and Divines. So that where the Errors of our
Nature make amends for the Disadvantages of yours it is more
your part to make use of the Benefit, than to quarrel at the
Fault.

Thus in case a Drunken Husband should fall to your share,

if

HUSBAND. 13

if you will be wise and patient, his Wine shall be of your side ;
it will throw a Veil over your Mistakes, and will set out and
improve eveiy thing you do, that he is pleased with. Others
will like him less, and by that means he may perhaps like you
the more. When after having dined too well, he is received at
home without a Storm, or so much as a reproaching Look, the
Wine will naturally work out all in Kindness, which a Wife
must encourage, let it be wrapped up in never so much Im-
pertinence. On the other side it would boil up into Rage, if the
mistaken Wife should treat him roughly, like a certain thing
called a kind Shrew, than which the World, with all its Plenty,
cannot shew a more Senseless, ill-bred, forbidding Creature.
Consider, that where the Man will give such frequent Inter-
missions of the use of his Reason, the Wife insensibly getteth
a Right of Governing in the Vacancy, and that raiseth her
Character and Credit in the Family, to a higher pitch than
perhaps could be done under a sober Husband, who never put-
teth himself into an Incapacity of holdings the Reins. If these
are not intire Consolations, at least they are Remedies to some
Degree. They cannot make Drunkenness a Vertue, nor a
Husband given to it a Felicity ; but you will do your self
no ill office in the endeavouring, by these means, to make the
best of such a Lot, in case it should happen to be yours, and by
the help of a wise Obsei-vation, to make that very supportable,
which would otherwise be a Load that would oppress you.

The next Case I will put is that your Husband may be
Cholerick or Ill-humour'd. To this it may be said. That
passionate Men generally make amends at the Foot of the
Account. Such a Man, if he is angry one day without any
Sense, will the next day be as kind without any Reason. So
that by marking how the Wheels of such a Man^s Head are
used to move, you may easily bring over all his Passion to your
Party. Instead of being struck down by his Thunder, you
shall direct it where and upon whom you shall think it best
applied. Thus are the strongest Poisons turnM to the best
Remedies; but then there must be Art in it, and a skilful
Hand, else the least bungling maketh it mortal. There is a great

deal

14 Advice to a Daughter.

deal of nice Care requisite to deal with a Man of this Com-
plexion. Choler proceedeth from Pride, and maketh a Man so
partial to himself that he swelleth against Contradiction ; and
thinketh he is lessened if he is opposed. You must in this Case
take heed of increasing the Storm by an unwary Word, or
kindling the Fire whilst the Wind is in a Corner which may
blow it in your Face : You are dextrously to yield every thing
till he beginneth to cool, and then by slow degrees you may
rise and gain upon him : Your Gentleness well timed, will, like
a Charm, dispel his Anger ill placed ; a kind Smile will reclaim,
when a shrill pettish Answer would provoke him ; rather than
fail upon such occasions, when other Remedies are too weak,
a little Flattery may be admitted, which by being necessary,
will cease to be Criminal.

If Ill-Humour and Sullenness, and not open and sudden Heat
is his Disease, there is a way of treating that too, so as to make
it a Grievance to be endured. In order to it, you are first to
know, that naturally ^oo</ Sense hath a mixture of surly in it :
and there being so much Folly in the World, and for the most
part so triumphant, it giveth frequent Temptations to raise the
Spleen of Men who think right. Therefore that which may
generally be call'd Ill-Humour, is not always a Fault; it be-
cometh one when either it is wrong applied, or that it is con-
tinued too long, when it is not so : For this Reason you must
not too hastily fix an ill name upon that which may perhaps
not deserve it; and though the Case should be, that your
Husband might too sowerly resent any thing he disliketh, it
may so happen, that more Blame shall belong to your Mistake,
than to his Ill-Humour. If a Husband behaveth himself some-
times with an Indifference that a TVife may think offensive, she
is in the wrong to put the worst sence upon it, if by any Means
it will admit a better. Some Wives will call it Ill-humour if
their Husbands change their Style from that which they used
whilst they made their first Addresses to them : Others will
allow no Intermission or Abatement in the Expressions of
Kindness to them, not enough distinguishing Times, and forget-
ting that it is impossible for Men to keep themselves up all

their

HUSBAND. 15

their Lives to the height of some extravagant Moments. A Man
may at some times be less careful in little things, without any
cold or disobliging Reason for it; as a Wife may be too ex-
pecting in smaller matters, without drawing upon her-self the
inference of being unkind. And if your Husband should be
really sullen, and have such frequent Fits, as might take away
the excuse of it, it concerneth you to have an Eye prepared to
discern the first Appearances of Cloudy Weather, and to watch
when the Fit goeth off, which seldom lasteth long if it is let
alone. But whilst the Mind is sore, every thing galleth it, and
that maketh it necessary to let the Black Humour begin to
spend it self, before you come in and venture to undertake it.

If in the Lottery of the World you should draw a Covetous
Husband, I confess it will not make you proud of your good
Luck ; yet even such a one may be endured too, though there
are few Passions more untractable than that of Avarice. You
must first take care that your Definition of Avarice may not be
a Mistake. You are to examine every Circumstance of your
Husband's Fortune, and weigh the Reason of every thing you
expect from him before you have right to pronounce that sen-
tence. The Complaint is now so general against all Husbands,
that it giveth great suspicion of its being often ill-grounded ; it
is impossible they should all deserve that Censure, and therefore
it is certain, that it is many times misapplied. He that_S2are£A_
in every thing is ari_im,excusable Niggard ■, he that spareth in
nothing is as inexcusable a Madman. The mean is, to spare in
what is least necessary, to lay out more liberally in what is most
required in our several circumstances. Yet this will not always
satisfie. There are Wives who are impatient of the Rules of
Oeconomy, and are apt to call their Husband's Kindness in
question, if any other measure is put to their expence than that
of their own Fancy. Be sure to avoid this dangerous Error,
such a partiality to your Self, which is so offensive to an under-
standing Man, that he will very ill bear a Wife's giving her self
such an injurious preference to all the Family, and whatever
belong eth to it.

But to admit the worst, and that your Husband is really a

Close-

1 6 Advice to a Daughter.

Close-h anded Wretch, you must in this^ as in other Cases, en-
deavour to make it less afflicting to you ; and first you must
observe seasonable hours of speaking. When you offer any
thing in opposition to this reigning Humour, a third hand and
a wise Friend, may often prevail more than you vs'ill be allowed
to do in your own Cau se. | Sometimes you are dexterously
to go along with him in things, where you see that the
niggardly part of his Mind is most predominant, by which you
will have the better opportunity of perswading him in things
where he may be more indifferent. Ouv P^assions are very
unequal, and are apt to be raised or lessened, according as they
work upon different Objects ; they are not to be stopped or re-
strained in those things where our Mind is more particularly
engaged. In other matters they are more tractable, and will
sometimes give Reason a hearing, and admit a fair Dispute.
More than that, there are few Men, even in this instance of
Avarice, so intirely abandoned to it, that at some hours, and
upon some occasions, will not forget their natures, and for that
time turn Prodigal. The same Man who will grudge himself
what is necessary, let his Pride be raised and he shall he profuse ;
at another time his Anger shall have the same effect ; a fit of
Vanity, Ambition, and somejimes of Kindness, shall open and
inlarge his narrow Mind; fa Dose of Wine will work upon this
tough humor, and for the time dissolve it. Your business
must be, if this Case happeneth, to watch these critical moments,
and not let one of them slip without making your advantage of
it; and a Wife may be said to want skill, if by these means,
she is not able to secure her self in a good measure against the
Inconveniences this scurvy quality in a Husband might bring
upon het, except he should be such an incurable Monster, as I
hope will never fall to your shar^J

The last supposition I will make, is. That your Husband
should be weak and incompetent to make use of the Privileges
that belong to him. It will be yielded, that such a one leaveth
room for a great many Objections. But God Almighty seldom
sendeth a Grievance without a Remedy, or at least such a
Mitigation as taketh away a great part of the sting, and the

smart

HUSBAND. 17

smart of it. To make such a Misfortune less heavy, you are
first to bring to your Observation, That a Wife very often
maketh the better Figure, for her Husband'^ making no great
one : And there seemeth to be little reason, vi^hy the same Lady
that chuseth a Waiting-Woman with worse Looks, may not be
content with a Husband with less Wit; the Argument being
equal from the advantage of the Comparison. If you will be
more ashamed in some Cases, of such a Husband, you will be
less afraid than you would perhaps be of a wise one. His Un-
seasonable Weakness may no doubt sometimes grieve you, but
then set against this, that it giveth you the Dominion, if you
will make the right use of it. It is next to his being dead, in
which Case the Wife hath right to Administer; therefore,^ be
sure, if you_have such anjdiot, th^tjjone, except your self, may
have the benefit of the forfeiturejfSuch a Fool is a dangerous
Beast, if others have the keeping of him ; and you musFBF very
undexterous if when your Husband shall resolve to be an Ass,
you do not take care he may be ydiir Ags^\^vt^ jon rcmst go
skilfully about it, and above all things, take^eed of distinguish-
ing in publick, what kind of Husband he is : Your inward
thoughts must not hinder the outward payment of the considera-
tion that is due to him :[ Your slighting him in Company, besides
that it would, to a discerning By stander, give too great en-
couragement for the making nearer applications to you, is in
it self such an undecent way of assuming, that it may provoke
the tame Creature to break loose, and to shew his Dominion for
his Credit, which he was content to forget for his Ease. __In
short, the surest and the most approved method will be to do
like a v/\bq Minister to an easie Prince ; first give him the Orders
you afterwards receive from him.

With all this, that which you are to pray for, is a Wise
Husband, one that by knowing how to be a Master, for that
very reason will not let you feel the weight of it ; one whose
Authority is so soften 'd by his Kindness, that it giveth you ease
without abridging your Liberty ; one that will return so much
tenderness for your Just Esteem of him, that you will never
want power, though you will seldom care to use it. Such a

HALIFAX c Husband

Advice to a Daughter.

Husband is as much above all the other Kinds of them, as
a rational subjection to a Prince, great in himself, is to J)e
preferr'd before the disquiet and uneasiness of Unlimited
Liberty.

Before I leave this Head, I must add a little concerning your
Behaviour to your Husband's Friends, which requireth the most
refined part of your Understanding to acquit your self well of
it. You are to study how to live with them with more care than
you are to apply to any other part of j'our Life ; especially at first,
that you may not stumble at the first setting out. The Family
into which you are grafted will generally be apt to expect, that
/like a Stranger in a Foreign Country, you should conform to
their Methods, and not bring in a new ModeTTiy^bur own
Authority. The Friends in such a Case are tempted to rise up
in Arms as against an unlawful Invasion, so that you are with
the utmost Caution to avoid the least appearances of any thing
of this Kind. And that you may with less difficulty afterwards
give your Directions, be sure at first to receive them from your
Husband's Friends. Gain them to you by early applying to
them, and they will be so satisfied, that as nothing is more
thankful than Pride, when it is complied with, they will strive
which of them shall most recommend you ; and when they have
helped you to take Root in your Husband's good Opinion, you
will have less dependence upon theirs, though you niust not
neglect any reasonable means of preserving it. You are to
consider, that a Man govern 'd by his Friends, is very easily in-
flamed by them ; and that one who is not so, will yet for his
own sake expect to have them consider'd. It is easily improved
to a point of Honour in a Husband, not to have his Relations
neglected ; and nothing is more dangerous, than to raise an
Objection, which is grounded upon Pride : It is the most_ stub^
born and lasting Passion we are subject to, and where it is the
first cause of the War, it is very hard to make a secm-e Peace.^
Your Caution in this is of the last importance to you.

And that you may the better succeed in it, carry a strict
Eye upon the Impertinence of your Servants ; take heed that
their Hl-humour may not engage you to take Exceptions, or

their

HUSBAND. 19

their too much assuming in small matters, raise Consequences
which may bring you under great Disadvantage. Remember
that in the case of a Royal Bride, those about her are generally
so far suspected to bring in a Foreign Interest, that in most
Countries they are insensibly reduced to a very small number,
and those of so low a Figure, that it doth not admit the being
Jealous of them. In little and in the Proportion, this may be
the Case of every New married Woman, and therefore it may
be more adviseable for you, to gain the Servants you find
in a Family, than to tie your self too fast to those you carry
into it.

You are not to overlook fehese small Reflections, because they
may appear low and inconsiderable ; for it must be said, that as
the Greatest streams are made up of the small drops at the head
of the Springs from whence they are derived, so the greater
circumstances of your Life, will be in some degree directed by
these seeming trifles, which having the advantage of being the
first acts of it, have a greater effect than singly in their own
nature they could pretend to.

I wiii conclude this Article with my Advice, That you would,
as much as Nature will give you leave, endeavour to forget the
great Indulgence you have found at home. After such a gentle
Discipline as you have been under, every thing you dislike will
seem the harsher to you. The tenderness we have had for you.
My Dear, is of another nature, peculiar to kind Parents, and
differing from that which you will meet with first in any Family
into which you shall be transplanted; and yet they may be very
kind too, and afford no justifiable reason to you to complain.
You must not be frighted with the first Appearances of a
differing Scene ; for when you are used to it, you may like the
House you go to, better than that you left ; and your Husband's.
Kindness will have so much advantage of ours, that we shall
yield up all Competition, and as well as we love you, be very
well contented to Surrender to such a Rival.

HOUSE,

20 Advice to a Daughter.

HOUSE, FAMILY, and CHILDREN.

YOU must lay before you, My Dear, there are degrees of
Care to recommend your self to the World in the several
parts of your Life. In many things, though the doing them well
may raise your Credit and Esteem, yet the omission of them
would draw no immediate reproach upon you : In others, where
your duty is more particularly applyed, the neglect of them is
amongst those Faults which are not forgiven, and will bring
you under a Censure, which will be a much heavier thing than
the trouble you would avoid. Of this kind is the Government
of your House, Family, and Children, which since it is the
Province allotted to your Sex, and that the discharging it well,
will for that reason be expected from you, if you either desert
it out of Laziness, or manage it iU for want of skill, instead of
a Help you will be an Incumbrance to the Family where you
are placed.

I must tell you, that no respect is lasting, but that which is
produced by our being in some degree useful to those that pay
it. Where that faileth, the Homage and the Reverence go
along with it, and fly to others where something may be ex-
pected in exchange for them. And upon this principle the
respects even of the Children and the Servants will not stay
with one that doth not think them worth their Care, and the
old House-keeper shall make a better Figure in the Family, than
the Lady with all her fine Cloaths, if she wilfully relinquishes
her Title to the Government. Therefore take heed of carrying
your good Breeding to such a height, as to be good for nothing,
and to be proud of it. Some think it hath a great Air to be
above troubling their thoughts with such ordinary things as
their House and Family ; others dare not admit Cares for fear
they should hasten Wrinkles ? mistaken Pride maketh some
think they must keep themselves up, and not descend to these
Duties, which do not seem enough refined for great Ladies to
be imploy^d in ; forgetting all this while, that it is more than

the

HUSBAND. 21

the greatest Princes can do, at once to preserve respect, and to
neglect their Business. 'i^oAge_^/^v erected Altars to insignifi-
cant Gods ; they had all some quality applied to tliem to draw
worship from_Ma«^^;^,; this mal<eth" it the mofeuirreasonable
for '&^Lady_Xa_, expect to be consider'd, and at the same time
resolve not to deserve it. Good looks alone will not do; they
are not such a lasting Tenure, as to be relied upon ; and if they
should stay longer than they usually do, it will by no means be
safe to depend upon them : For when time hath abated the
violence of the first liking, and that the Napp is a little worn
off, though still a good degree of kindness may remain, Men
recover their sight which before might be dazell'dj and allow
themselves to object as well as to admire.

i4a.§iich a Case, when a Husband seeth an empty airy thing
sail up and down the House to no kind of purpose, and look as
if she came thither only to make a Visit|\jwhen he findeth that
after her Emptiness hath been extremeousie about some very
senseless thing, she eats her Breakfast half an hour before
Dinner, to be at greater liberty to afflict the Company with her
Discourse; then calleth for her Coach, that she may trouble
her Acquaintance, who are already cloy'd witli her: And having
some proper Dialogues ready to display her Foolish Eloquence
at the top of the Stairs, she setteth out like a Ship out of the
Harbour, laderh with trifles and cometh back with them : at
her return she repeateth to her faithful waiting-Woman, the
Triumphs of that day's Impertinence; then^j^TapM^up Jxl„

'•^ Flattery and^cleanJLinen, goeth to Bed so satisfied, that it
throwetlTlier into pleasant Dreams of her own Felicity. Such
a one is seldom serious but with her Taylor ; her Children and
Family raay~now'"and~Then" have a random thought, but she

• never taketh aim but at something very Impertinent. I saj^,
when a Husband, whose Province is without Doors, and to
whom the Oeconomy of the House would be in some degree
Indecent, findeth no Order nor Quiet in his Family, meeteth
with Complaints of all kinds springing from this Root; The
Mistaken Lady, who thinketh to make amends for all this, by
having a well-chosen Petty- Coat, will at last be convinced of

her

2 2 Advice to a Daughter.

her Error, and with grief be forced to undergo the Penalties
that belong to those who are wiWixAXy Insignificant. When this
scurvy hour cometh upon her^ she first groweth Angry ; then
when the time of it is past^ would perhaps grow wiser, not
remembring that we can no more have Wisdom than Grace,
whenever we think fit to call for it. There are Times and
Periods fix^d for both ; and when they are too long neglected,
the Punishment is, that they are Irrecoverable, and nothing
remain eth but an useless Grief for the Folly of having thrown
them out of our power. You are to think what a mean Figure
a Woman maketh^ when she is so degraded by her own Fault ;
whereas there is nothing in those Duties which are expected
from you, that can be a lessening to you, except your want of
Conduct makes it so. You may love your Children without
living in the Nuersery, and you may have a competent and
discreet care bl th&m, without letthig it break out upon the
Company, or exposing your self by turning your Discourse that
way, which is a kind of Laying Children to the Parish, and it
can hardly be done any where, that those who hear it will be so
forgiving, as not to think they are overcharged with them.
A Woman's tenderness to her Children is one of the least
deceitful Evidences of her Vertue; but yet the way of express-
; ing it, must be subject to the Rules of good Breeding:^ And
though a Woman of Quality ought not to be less kind to them,
than Mothers of the Meanest Rank are to theirs, yet she may
distinguish her self in the manner, and avoid the coarse Methods,
which in Women of a lower size might be more excusable. _Yau
must begin early to make them love you, that they may obey
you. This Mixture is no where more necessary than in Chil-"
dren. And I must tell you, that you are not to expect Returns
of Kindness from yours, if ever you have any, without Grains
of Allowance ; and yet it is not so much a defect in their good
Nature, as a shortness of Thought in them. Their first In-
sufficiency maketh them lean so entirely upon their Parents
for what is necessary, that the habit of it maketh them continue
the same Expectations for what is unreasonable; and as often
as they are denied, so often they think they are injured : and

whilst

HUSBAND. 23

whilst their Desires are strong, and their Reasons yet in the
Cradle, their Anger looketh no farther than the thing they long
for and cannot have ; And to be displeased for their own good,
is a Maxim they are very slovi' to understand : So that you may
conclude, the first Thoughts of your Children will have no small
Mixture of Mutiny ; which being so natural, you must not be
angry, except you would increase it. You must deny them as
seldom as you can, and when there is no avoiding it, you must
do it gently ; you must flatter away their ill Humourj and take
the next Opportunity of pleasing them in some other thing,
before they either ask or look for it : This^wiU strengthen your
Authority, by making it soft to them ; and confirm their
Obedience, by making it their Interest. You are to have as
strict a Guard upon your self amongst your Children, as if you
were"~ainongst your Enewies. They are apt to make wrong
Inferences, to take Encouragement from half Words, and mis-
apply what you may say or do, so as either to lessen their
Duty, or to extend their Liberty farther than is convenient.
Let them be more in awe of your Kindness than of your Power.
And above all, take heed of supporting a Favourite Child in its
Impertinence, which will give Right to the rest of claiming the
same Privilege. If you have a divided Number, leave the Boys
to the Father's more peculiar Cai"e, that you may with the
greater Justice pretend to a more immediate Jurisdiction over
those of your own Sex. You are to live so with them, that
they may never chuse to avoid you, except when they have
offended; and then let them tremble, that they may distinguish :
But their Penance must not continue so long as to grow too
sowre upon their Stomachs, that it may not harden in stead of
correcting them: The kind and severe Part must Jiave their
several turns seasonably applied j but your Indulgence is to have
the Broader mixture^ that Love, ra.ther than Fear, may be the
Root of their Obedience.

Your Servants are in the next place to be considered ; and
j'ou must remember not to fall into the mistake of thinking,
that because they receive Wages, and are so much Inferiour to
you, therefore they are below your Care to know how to manage

them.

24 Advice to a Daughter.

them. It would be as good Reason for a Master Workman to
despise the Wheels of his Engines, because they are made of
Wood. These are the Wheels of your Family ; and let your
Directions be never so faultless, yet if these Engines stop or
move wrong, the whole Order of your House is either at a stand,
or discomposed. Besides, the Inequality which is between you,
must not make you fofgetT^ttafTValMTe maketh no such dis-
tinction, but tEat Servants may be looked upon as humble
Friends, and that Returns of Kindness and good Usage are as
much due to such of them as deserve it, as their Service is due
to us when we require it. A foolish haughtiness in the Style
of speaking, or in the manner of commanding them, is in it self
veiy undecent ; besides that it begetteth an Aversion in them, of
which the least ill Effect to be expected, is, that they will be
slow and careless in all that is injoyned them : And you will
find it true by your Experience, that you will be so much the
more obeyed as you are less Imperious. Be not too hasty in
giving your Orders, nor too angry when they are not altogether
observed; much less are you to be loud, and too much dis-
turbed : An evenness in distinguishing when they do well or ill,
is that which will make your Family move by a Rule, and with-
out Noise, and will the better set out your Skill in conducting
it with Ease and Silence, that it may be like a well disciplin'd
Army, which knoweth how to anticipate the Orders that are
fit to be given them. You are never to neglect the Duty of the
present Hour, to do another thing, which though it may be
better in it self, is not to be unseasonably preferred. Allot well
chosen Hours for the Inspection of your Family, which may
be so distinguished from the rest of your Time, that the
necessary Cares may come in their proper Place, without any
Influence upon your good Humour, or Interruption to other
■things. By these Methods you will put your self in possession
of being valued by your Servants, and then their Obedience will
naturally follow.

I must not forget one of the greatest Articles belonging to
a Family, which is the Expence. It must not be such, as by
failing either in the Time or measure of it, may rather draw

Censure

HUSBAND. 25

Censure than gain Applause. If it was well examined, there
is more Money given to be laughed at, than for any one thing
in the World, though the Purchasers do not think so. A well-
stated Rule is like the Line, when that is once pass'd we are
under another Pole ; so the first straying from a Rule, is a step
towards making that which was before a Vertue, to change its
Nature, and to grow either into a Vice, or at least an Imper-
tinence. The Art of laying out Money wisely, is not attained
to without a great deal of thought ; and it is yet more difficult
in the Case of a Wife, who is accountable to her Husband for
her mistakes in it. It is not only his Monet/, his Credit too is
at Stake, if what lyeth undeF tKe~TF?/e's Care is managed, either
with undecent Thrift, or too loose Profusion. You are there-
fore to keep the Mean between these two Extremes, and it
being hardly possible to hold the Balance exactly even, let it
rather incline towards the Liberal side as more suitable to your
Quality, and less subject to Reproach. Of the_twoa_ little
Money mispent is sooner recovered, than the Credit which is
lost by Baving iFuhliandsomery "saip^erfx and a Wise Husband
will less forgive a shameful piece of Parcimony, than a little
Extravagance, if it be not too often repeated. His Mind in
this must be your chief Direction ; and his Temper, when once
known, will in great measure justifie your part in the manage-
ment, if he is pleased with it.

In your Clothes avoid too much Gaudy; do not value your
self upon an Imbroidered Gown ; and remember, that a reason-
able Word, or an obliging Look, will gain you more respect,
than all your fine Trappings. This is not said to restrain you
from a decent Compliance with the World, provided you take
the wiser, and not the foolisher part of your Sex for your
Pattern. Some distinctions are to be allowed, whilst they are
well suited to your Quality and Fortune, and in the distribution
of the Expence, it seemeth to me that a full Attendance, and
well chosen Ornaments for your House, will make you a better
Figure, than too much glittering in what you wear, which may
with more ease be imitated by those that are below you. Yet
this must not tempt you to starve every thing but your own

Appartment ;

26 Advice to a Daughter.

Appartment; or in order to more abundance there, give just
cause to the least Servant you have, to complain of the Want
of what is necessary. Above all, fix it in your thoughts, as an
unchangeable Maxim, That noihmg-^trMhL^ne but what is^^,
and that just so much as is proper for your Circumstances of
their several kinds, is much finer than all you can add to it.
When you once break through these bounds, you launch into
a wide Sea of Extravagance. Every thing will become necessary,
because you have a mind to it ; and you have a mind to it, not
because it \?,fit for you, but because some body else hath it. This
Lady's Logick setteth Reason upon its Head, by carrying the Rule
from things to Persons, and appealing from what is right to every
Fool that is in the wrong. The word necessary is miserably
applyed, it disordereth Families, and overturneth GowerwiwfM/* by
being so abused. Remember that Children and Fools want every
thing because they want W^it to distinguish : and therefore there
is no stronger Evidence of a Crazy Understanding, than the
making too large a Catalogue of things necessary, when in truth
there are so very few things that have a right to be placed in it.
Try every thing first in your Judgment, before you allow it
a place in your Desire ; else your Husband may think it as
necessary for him to deny, as it is for you to have whatever is
unreasonable ; and if you shall too often give him that advan-
tage, the habit of refusing may perhaps reach to things that are
not unfit for you.

There are unthinking Ladies, who do not enough consider,
how little their own Figure agreeth with the fine things they are
so proud of. Others when they have them will hardly allow
them to be visible ; they cannot be seen without Light, and
that is many times so sawcy and so prying, that like a too
forward Gallant it is to be forbid the Chamber. Some, when
you are ushered into their Dark Ruelle, it is with such solemnity,
that a Man would swear there was something in it, till the
Unskilful Lady breaketh sUence, and beginneth a Chat, which
discovereth it is a Puppet-play with Magnificent Scenes. Many
esteem things rather as they are hard to be gotten, than that
they are worth getting : This looketh as if they had an Interest

to

B E HA no UR, ^c. 27

to pursue that Maxim, because a great part of their own value
dependeth upon it. Truth in these Cases would be often un-
mannerly, and might derogate from the Prerogative, great
Ladies would assume to them selves, of being distinct Creatures
from those of their Sex which are inferiour and of less difficult
access.

In other things too, your Condition must give the rule to
you, and therefore it is not a Wife's part to aim at more than
a bounded Liberality ; the farther extent of that Quality (other-
wise to be commended) belongeth to the Husband, who hath
better means for it. Generosity wrong placed becometh a Vice.
It is no more a Vertue when it groweth into an Inconvenience,
Vertues miist be inlarged or restrained according to differing
Circumstances. A Princely Mind wiU undo a private Family :
Therefore things must be suited, or else they will not deserve
to be Commended, let them in themselves be never so valuable :
And the Expectations of the World are best answered when we
acquit our selves in that manner which seemeth to be prescribed
to our several Conditions, without usurping upon those Duties,
which do not so particularly belong to us.

I will close the consideration of this Article of Expence, with
this short word. Do not fetter your self with such a Restraint
in it as may make you Remarkable ; but remember that_Ke*;/t<e
is the greatest OrnamentjjmA goad Sence the best Equipage.

BEHAVIOUR and CONFERS ATION.

IT is time now to lead you out of your House into the World.
A Dangerous step ; where your Vertue alone will not secure.^
you, except it is attended with a great deal of Prudence./ You
must have both for your Guard, and not stir without them.
The Enemy is abroad, and you are sure to be taken, if you are
found stragling. Your Behaviour is therefore to inchne strongly
towards the Reserved part; your Character is to be im-

— moveably

28 Advice to a Daughter.

moveably fixed upon that Bottom, not excluding a mixture of
greater freedom, as far as it may be innocent and well timed.
The Extravagancies of the Age have made Caution more
necessary ; and by the same reason that the too great Licence
of ill Men hath by Consequence in many things restrained the
Lawful Liberty of those who did not abuse it, the unjustifiable
Freedoms of some of your Sex have involved the rest in the
Penalty of being reduced. And though this cannot so alter the
Nature of things, as to make that Criminal, which in it self is
Indifferent ; yet if it maketh it dangerous, that alone is sufficient
to justifie the Restraint. A close behaviour is the fittest to
receive Vertue for its constant Guest, because there, and there
only, it can be secure. Proper Reserves are the Outworks, and
must never be deserted by those who intend to keep the Place ;
they keep off the possibilities not only of being taken, but of
being attempted; and if a Woman seeth Danger, tho at never
so remote a Distance, she is for that time to shorten her Line of
Liberty. She who will allow her self to go to the utmost Extent
of every thing that is Lawful, is so very near going farther, that
those who lie at watch, will begin to count upon her.

Mankind, from the double temptation of Vanity and Desire,
is apt to turn everything a Woman doth to the hopeful side;
and there are few who dare make an impudent Application,
till they discern sometlling which they are willing to take for an
Encouragement. It is safer therefore to prevent such For-
wardness, than to go about to cure it. It gathereth Strength
by the first allowances, and claimeth a Right from having been
at any time suffered with Impunity. Therefore nothing is with
more care to be avoided, than such a kind of Civility as may be
mistaken for Invitation ; and it will not be enough for you to
keep your self free from any criminal Engagements ; for if you
do that which either raiseth Hopes or createth Discourse, there
is a Spot thrown upon your Good Name ; and those kind of
Stains are the harder to be taken out, being dropped upon you
by the Man's Vanity, as well as by the Woman's Malice.

Most Men are in one sence Platonick Lovers, though they
are not willing to own that Character. They are so far

Philosophers,

B E H A F I O U R, ^c. 29

Philosophers, as to allow, that the greatest part of Pleasure lieth
in the Mind; and in pursuance of that Maxim, there are few
who do not place the Felicity more in the Opinion of the World,
of their being prosperous Lovers, than in the Blessing it self,
how much soever they appear to value it. This being so, you
must be veiy cautious not to gratifie these Cameleons at the
price of bringing a Cloud upon your Reputation, which may be
deeply wounded, tho your Conscience is unconcerned.

Your own Sex too will not fail to help the least Appearance
that giveth a Handle to be ill-turned. The best of them will
not be displeased to improve their own Value, by laying others
under a Disadvaniage, when there' is a fair Occasion given for
it. It distinguisheth them still the more : their own Credit is
more exalted, and, like a Picture set ofE with Shades, shineth
more when a Lady, either less Innocent, or less Discreet, is set
near, to make them appear so much the brighter. If these lend
their Breath to blast such as are so unwary as to give them this
Advantage, you may be sure there will be a stronger Gale from
those, who, besides Malice or Emulation, have an Interest too,
to strike hard upon a Vertuous Woman. It seemeth to them,
that their Load of Infamy is lessened, by throwing part of it
upon others : So that they will not only improve it when it
lieth in their way, but take pains to find out the least mistake
an Innocent Woman comniitteth, in Revenge of the Injury she
doth in leading a Life which is a Reproach to them. With
these you must be extreme loary, and neither provoke them to
be angry, nor invite them to be Intimate.
pfo the Men you are to have a Behaviour which may secure
you, wTthouf^offending them. No ill-bred affected Shyness,
nor a Roughness, unsuitable to your Sex, and unnecessary to
your Vertue; but a way of Living that may prevent all coarse
Railleries or unmannerly Freedoms^ Looks that forbid without
Rudeness, and oblige without IriMmion, or leaving room for the
sawcy Inferences Men's Vanity suggesteth to them upon the
least Encouragements. This is so very nice, that it must
engage you to have a perpetual Watch upon your Eyes, and to
remember, that one careless Glance giveth more advantage than

30 Advice to a Daughter.

a hundred Words not enough considered ; the Language of the
Eyes beuig very much the most significant, and the most observed.

Your Civility, which is always to be preserved, must not be„
carried to a Compliance, which may betray you into irrecoverable
Mistakes. This French ambiguous word Complaisance hath led
your Sex into more blame, than all other things put together.
It carrieth them by degrees into a certain thing called a good
kind of Woman, an easie Idle Creature, that doth neither Good
nor III but by chance, hath no Choice, but leaveth that to the
Company she keepeth. Time, which by degrees addeth to the
signification of Words, hath made her, according to the Modern
Stile, little better than one who thinketh it a Rudeness to deny
when civilly required, either her Service in Person, or her
friendly Assistance, to those who would have a meeting, or
want a Confident. She is a certain thing always at hand, an
easie Companion, who hath ever great Compassion for distressed
Lovers : She censureth nothing but Rigor, and is never without
a Plaister for a wounded Reputation, in which chiefly lieth her
Skill in Chirurgery ; She seldom hath the Propriety of any
particular Gallant, but liveth upon Brokage, and waiteth for the
Scraps her Friends are content to leave her.

There is another Character not quite so Criminal, yet not less
Ridiculous ; which is that of a good-humour' d Woman, one who
thinketh she must always be in a Laugh, or a broad Smile,
because Good humour is an obliging Quality; thinketh it less
ill-manners to talk Impertinently, than to be silent in Company.
When such a prating Engine rideth Admiral, and carrieth the
Lantern, in a Circle of Fools, a cheerful Coxcomb coming in for
a Recruit, the Chattering of Monkeys is a better noise than such
a Concert of senceless Merriment. ^ If she is applauded in it, she
is so encouraged, that, like a Ballad singer, who if commended,
breaketh his Lungs, she letteth her self loose, and overfloweth
upon the Company. She conceiveth that Mirth is to have no
intermission, and therefore she veill carry it about with her,
though it be to a Funeral; and if a Man should put a familiar
Question, she doth not know very well how to be angry, for
then she would be no more that pretty thing called a Good

humour'd

BEHA no UB, ^c. 31

humour'd Woman. This necessity of appearing at all times to
be so infinitely pleased is a grievous mistake; since in a handsom
Woman that Invitation is unnecessary ; and in one who is not
so, ridiculous. It is not intended by this, that you should
forewear Laughing ; but remember, that Fools being always
painted in that posture, it may fright those who are wise from
doing it too frequently, and going too near a Copy which is so
little inviting, and much more from doing it loudj which is an
unnatural Sound and loqketh so much like another Sex, that
few things are more offensive. That boisterous kind of Jollity
is as contrary to Wit and Good Manners, as it is to Modesty
and Vertue. Besides, it is a coarse kind of quality, that
throweth a Woman into a lower Form, and degradeth her from
the Rank of those who are more refined. Some La dies s peak_
loud and make a noise to be the more minded, which looketh as
if they beat their iDrums for Volunteers, and if by misfortune
none come in to them, they may, not without reason, be a good
deal out of Countenance.

There is one thing, yet more to be avoided, which is the
Example of those who intend nothing farther than the Vanity
of Conquest, and think themselves secure of not having their
Honour tainted by it. Some are apt to believe their Vertue is
too Obscure, and not enough known, except it is exposed to a
broader Light, and set out to its best advantage, by some
publick Trials. These are dangerous experiments, and generally
fail, being built upon so weak a foundation, as that of a too
great Confidence in our selves. It^k ag^,,^a^jto pla,y jE.itil. J'ir^,
as to dalljjjffiitb»£W&i«fo-yi„. io«feis,a,Pat§^^
in thg,Gaia;i*e«5and for that reason must by a Woman be kept
at such a distance, that she may not be within the danger of
doing the most usual thing in the World, which is conspiring
against her Self : Else the humble Gallant, who is only admitted
as a Trophy, very often hecometh the Conquerour ; he putteth
on the style of victory, and from an Admirer groweth into a
Master; for so he may be called from the moment he is in
Possession. The first Resolutions of stopping at good Opinion
and Esteem, grow weaker by degrees against the Charms of

Courtship

32 Advice to a Daughter.

Courtship skilfully applied. A Lady is apt to think a Man
speaketh so much reason whilst he is Commending her, that she
hath much ado to helieve him in the wrong when he is making
Love to her : And when besides the natural Inducements your
Sex hath to be merciful, she is bribed by well-chosen Flattery,
the poor Creature is in danger of being caught like a Bird
listening to the Whilstle of one that hath a Snare for it.
Conquest is so tempting a thing, that it often maketh Women
mistake Men's Submissions ; which with all their fair Appear-
ance, have generally less Respect than Art in them. You are
to remember, that Men who say extreme fine things, many-
times say them most for their own sakes ; and that the vain
Gallant is often as well pleased with his own Compliments, as
he could be with the kindest answer. Where there is not that
Ostentation you are to suspect there is Design. And as strong
perfumes are seldom used but where they are necessary to
smother an unwelcome scent; so Excessive good Words leave
room to believe they are strewed to cover something, which is to
gain admittance under a Disguise. You must therefore be upon
your Guard, and consider, that of the two. Respect is more
dangei'ous than Anger. It puts even the best Understandings
out of their place for the time, till their second thoughts restore
them ; it stealeth upon us insensibl)', throweth down our
Defences, and maketh it too late to resist, after we have given it
that advantage. Whereas railing goeth away in sound ; it hath
so much noise in it, that by giving warning it bespeaketh
Caution. Respect is a slow and a sure Poison, and like Poison
swelleth us within our selves. Where it prevaileth too much, it
groweth to be a kind of Apoplexie in the Mind, turneth it quite
round, and after it hath once seized the understanding, becometh
mortal to it. For these reasons, the safest way is to treat it like
a sly Enemy, and to be perpetually upon the watch against it.

I will add one Advice to conclude this head, which is that
you will let every seven years make some alteration in you
towards the Graver side, and not be like the Girls of Fifty, who
resolve to be always Young, whatever Time with his Iron Teeth
hath determined to the contrary. Unnatural things carry a

Deformity

FRIENDSHIPS. 2>Z

Deformity in them never to be Disguised; the Liveliness of
Youth in a riper Age, looketh like a new patch upon an old
Gown; so that a Gay Matron, a cheerful old Fool may be
reasonably put into the List of the Tamer kind of Monsters.
There is a certain Creature call'd a Grave Hobby-Horse, a kind
of a she Numps, that pretendeth to be pulled to a Play, and
must needs go to Bartholomew Fair, to look after the young
Folks, whom she only seemeth to make her care, in reality she
taketh them for her excuse. Such an old Butterfly is of all
Creatures the most ridiculous, and the soonest found out. It is
good to be early in your Caution, to avoid any thing that cometh
within distance of such despicable Patterns, and not like some
Ladies, who defer their Conversion, till they have been so long
in possession of being laughed at, that the World doth not know
how to change their style, even when they are reclaimed from
that which gave the first occasion for it.

The advanta^s ofJ)ging xS§&WSf^ ^^e too many to set down,
I will only say, that it is a Guard to a good Woman, and
a Disguise to an ill one. It is jjf so much use to both, that those
ought to use it as an Artifice, whyo refuse to practise it as
a Vertue.

I

FRIENDSHIPS.

Must in a particular manner recommend to you a strict
Care in the Choice of your Friendships. Perhaps the best are
not without their Objections, but however, be sure that yours
may not stray from the Rules which the wiser part of the
World hath set to them. The Leagues Offensive and Defensive,
seldom hold in Politicks, and much less in Friendships. The
violent Intimacies, when once broken, of which they scarce ever
fail, make such a Noise ; the Bag of Secrets untied, they fly
about like Birds let loose from a Cage, and become the Enter-
tainment of the Town. Besides, these great Dearnesses by
degrees grow Injurious to the rest of your Acquaintance, and
.,.,,„.^ D throw

34 Advice to a Daughter.

throw them off from you. There is such an Offensive Distinction
when the Dear Friend cometh into the Room, that it is flinging
Stones at the Company, who are not apt to forgive it.

Do not lay out your Friendship too lavishly at first, since it
will, like other things, be so much the sooner spent ; neither let"~
it be of too sudden & growth; for as the Plants which shoot up
too fast are not of that continuance, as those which take more
time for it ; so too swift a Progress in pouring out your
Kindness, is a certain Sign that by the Course of Nature it will
not be long lived. You will be responsible to the World, if you
pitch upon such Friends as at the Itiihe are under the weight
of any Criminal Objection. In that case you will bring your
self under the disadvantages of their Character, and must bear
your part of it. Chusing implieth ^^^roj^ire^ ; and if you fix
upon a Lady for your Friend against whom the World shall
have given Judgment, -'tis not so well natur'd as to believe you
are altogether averse to her way of living, %\xic^ it doth not
discourage you from Admitting her into your Kindness. And
Resemblance of Inclinations being thought none of the least
Inducements to Friendship, you wiU be looked upon at least as a
Well-wisher if not a Partner with her in her Faults. If you can
forgive them in another, it may be presumed you will not be
less gentle to your self ; and therefore you must not take it ill,
if you are reckoned a Croupier e, and condemned to pay an
equal Share with such a Friend of the Reputation she hath lost.

If it happeneth that your Friend should fall from the State
of Innocence after your Kindness was engaged to her, you may
be slow in your belief in the beginning of the Discovery :,^ut
as soon as you are convinced by a Rational Evidence, you
must, without breaking too roughly, make a far and a quick
Retreat from such a Mistaken Acquaintance : Else by moving
too slowly from one that is so tainted, the Contagion may
reach you so far as to give you part of the Scandal, though not
of the Guilt. This Matter is so nice, that as you must not be
too hasty to joyn in the Censure upon your Friend when she is
accused, so you are not on the other side to defend her with
too much warmth ; for if she should happen to deserve the

Report

FRIENDSHIPS. 35

Report of Common Fame, besides the Vexation that belongeth
to such a mistake, you will draw an ill appearance upon your
self, and it will be thought you pleaded for her not without
some Consideration of your self. The Anger which must be
put on to vindicate the Reputation of an injured Friend, may
incline the Company to suspect you would not be so zealous, if
there was not a possibility that the Case might be your own.
For this reason you are not to carry your dearness so far, as
absolutely to lose your Sight where your Friend is concerned.
fSecaMSS Malice is too quick sighted, it doth not Jfgllqw, t{jat_
Friendship must be ,feSafif,: There is to be a Mean between
tlSese two Extremes, else your Excess of Good Nature may
betray you into a very ridiculous Figure, and by degrees who
may be preferr'd to such Offices as you will npt be proud of .^
Your Ignorance may lessen the Guilt, but will iniprove the Jest
upon you, who shall be kindly sollicitous to procure a Meeting,
and innocently contribute to the ills you would avoid ; Whilest
the Contriving Lovers, when they are alone, shall make you the
Subject of their Mirth, and perhaps (with respect to the
Goddess of Love be it spoken) it is not the worst part of their
Entertainment, at least it is the most lasting, to laugh at the
believing Friend, who was so easily deluded.

Let the good Sence of jour Friends be a chief Ingredient in
your CAoice of Jtb.em ; else let your Reputation be never so clear,
it may be clouded by their Impertinence. It is like our Houses
being in the Power of a Drunken or a Careless Neighbour;
only so much worse, as that there will be no Insurance here to
make you amends, as there is in the Case of Fire.

To conclude this Paragraph ; If Formality is to be allowed
in any Instance, it is to be put on to resist the Invasion of such
forward Women as shall press themselves into your Friendship,
where if admitted, they will either be a Snare or an
Incumbrance.

d2 censube.

36 Advice to a Daughter.

CENSURE.

I will come next to the Consideration, how you are to
manage your Censure ; in which both Care and skill will be
a good deal required. To distinguish is not only natural but
necessary ; and the Effect of it is, That we cannot avoid giving
Judgment in our Minds, either to absolve or to condemn as the
Case requireth. The Difficulty is, to know when and where it
is fit to proclaim the Sentence. An Aversion to what is
Criminal, a Contempt of what is ridiculous, are the inseparable
Companions of Understanding and Vertue ; but the letting them
go farther than our own Thoughts, hath so much danger in it,
that though it is neither possible nor fit to suppress them
intirely, yet k_is necessary they should be kept under very great
Restraints. lAn unlimited Liberty of this kind is little less than
sending a Herald and proclaiming War to the World, which is
an angry Beast when so provoked. The Contest will be
unequal, though you are never so much in the right ; and if you
begin against such an Adversary, it will tear you in pieces,
with this Justification, That it is done in its own defence.
You must therefore take heed of Laughing, except in Company
that is very sure. It is throwing Snow-balls against Bullets ;
and it is the disadvantage of a Woman, that the Malice of the
World will help the Brutality of those who will throw a
slovenly Untruth upon her, j You are for this Reason to
suppress your ImpatienceimFooh, ; who besides that they are
too strong a Party to be unnecessarily provoked, are of all
others, the most dangerous in this Case. A Blockhead in his
Rage will return a dull Jest that will lie heavy, though there is
not a Grain of Wit in it. Others will do it with more Art, and
you must not think your self secui'e because your Reputation
may perhaps be out of the reach of Ill-will; for if it findeth
that part guarded, it will seek one which is more exposed. It
flieth, like a corrupt Humour in the Body, to the weakest Part.
If you have a tender Side, the World will be sure to find it, and to
put the worst Colour upon all you say or do, give an Aggravation

to

CENSURE. 37

to every thing that may lessen you, and a spiteful turn to every
thing that might recommend you. Anger laieth open those
Defects which Friendship vcould not see, and Civility might be
willing to forget. Malice needeth no such Invitation to en-
courage it, neither are any Pains more superfluous than those
we take to be ill spoken of. If Envy, which never dyeth, and
seldom sleepeth, is content sometimes to be in a Slumber, it is
very unskilful to make a noise to awake it.

Besides, your Wit will be misapplied if it is wholly directed
to discern the Faults of others, when it is so necessary to be
often used to mend and prevent your oivn. The sending our
Thoughts too much abroad, hath the same Effect, as when
a Family never stayeth at home ; Neglect and Disorder naturally
followeth ; as it must do within our selves, if we do not fre-
quently turn our Eyes inwards, to see what is amiss with us,
where it is a sign we have an unwelcome Prospect, when we
do not care to look upon it, but rather seek our Consolations in
the Faults of those we converse with.

Avoid being the first in fixing a hard Censure, let it be con-
firmed by the general Voice, before you give into it; Neither
are you then to give Sentence like a Magistrate, or as if you had
a special Authority to bestow a good or ill Name at your dis-
cretion. Do not dwell too long upon a weak Side, touch and
go away; take pleasure to stay longer where you can commend,
like Bees that fix only upon those Herbs out of which they may
extract the Juice of which their Honey is composed. A Vertue
stuck with Bristles is too rough for this Age; it must be
adorned with some Flowers, or else it will be unwillingly
entertained ; so that even where it may be fit to strike, do it
like a Lady, gently ; and assure your self, that where you care
to do it, you will wound others more, and hurt your self less, by
soft Strokes, than by being harsh or violent.

The Triumph of Wit is to make your good Nature subdue
your Censure; to be quick in seeing Faults, and slow in exposing
them You are to consider, that the invisible thing called a
Good 'Name, is made up of the Breath of Numbers that speak
well of you ; so that if by a disobliging Word you silence the

meanest,

38 Advice to a Daughter.

meanest, the Gale will be less strong which is to bear up your
Esteem. And though nothing is so vain as the eager pursuit of
empty Applause, yet to be well thought of, and to be kindly
used by the World, is like a Glory about a Womans Hea^
'tis a Perfume she carrieth about with her, and leaveth where-
ever she goeth ; 'tis a' Charm against Ill-will. Malice may
empty her Quiver, but cannot wound ; the Dirt will not stick,
the Jests will not take ; Without the consent of the World
a Scandal doth not go deep; it is only a slight stroak upon the
injured Party and returneth with the greater force upon those
that gave itv

VANITY and AFFECTA TION.

IMust with more than ordinary earnestness give you Caution
against Vanit y, it being the Fault to which your Sex seemeth
to be the most inclined ; and since^;^#£c£a^iow_ for thejmost
part attendeth it, I do not know how to divide them. /l will not
call them Twins, because more properly Vanity is the Mother,
and Affectation is the Darling, Daughter ; Vanity is_ jt he^^rr,
and Affectation is the Punishment ; the first may be called the
Root of Self-Love, the other the Fruit. Vanity is never at its
full growth till it spreadeth into Affectation, and then it is
compleat.

Not to dwell any longer upon the definition of them, I will
pass to the means and motives to avoid them. In order to it,
you are to consider, that the World challengeth the right of
distributing Esteem and Applause ; so that where any assume
by their single Authority to be their own Carvers, it groweth
angry, and never faileth to seek Revenge. And if we may
measure a Fault by the greatness of the Penalty, there are few
of a higher size than Vanity, as there is scarce a Punishment
which can be heavier than that of being laughed at.
yVanity maketh a Woman tainted with it, so top full of her
self, that she spilleth it upon the Company, And because her

own

VA NI lY, &^c. 39

own thoughts are intirely imployed in Self-Contemplation ; she
endeavoureth, by a cruel Mistake^ to confine her Acquaintance
to the same narrow Circle of that which only concerneth her
Ladiship, forgetting that she is not of half that Importance to
the World, that she is to her self, so mistaken she is in her
Value, by being her own Appraiser. She wUl fetch such a
Compass in Discourse to bring in her beloved Self, and rather
than fail, her fine Petty-Coat, that there can hardly be a better
Scene than such a Tryal of ridiculous Ingenuity. It is a
Pleasure to see her Angle for Commendations, and rise so
dissatisfied with the Ill-bred Company, if they will not bite.
To observe her throwing her Eyes about to fetch in Prisoners,
and go about Cruizing like a Privateer, aijd so out of Counten-
ance, if she return without jBoo^y, is no ill j)iece of Comedy.
She is so eager to draw respect, that she always misseth it, yet
thinketh it so much her due, that when she faileth she groweth
waspish, not considering, that it is impossible to commit a Rape
upon the will ; that it must be fairly gained, and will not be
taken by Storm; and that in this Case, the Tax ever riseth
highest by a Benevolence. If the World instead of admiring
her Imaginary Excellencies, taketh the Liberty to laugh at
them, she appealeth from it to her self, for whom she giveth
Sentence, and proclaimeth it in all Companies. On the other
side, if incouraged by a Civil Word, she is so obliging, that she
will give thanks for being laughed at in good Language. She
taketh a Compliment for a Demonstration, and setteth it up as
an Evidence, even against her Looking-Glass. But the good
Lady being all this while in a most profound Ignorance of her
self, forgetteth that Men would not let her talk upon them, and
throw so many senseless words at their head, if they did not
intend to put her Person to Fine and Ransom, for her Imper-
tinence. Good words of any other Lady, are so many Stones
thrown at her, she can by no means bear them, they make her
so uneasie, that she cannot keep her Seat, but up she riseth and
goeth home half burst with Anger and Strait-Lacing. If by
great chance she saith any thing that hath sence in it, she
expecteth such an Excessive rate of Commendations, that to her

thinking

40 Advice to a Daughter

thinking the Company ever riseth in her Debt- She looketh
upon Rules as things made for the common People, and not for
Persons of her Rank ; and this Opinion sometimes tempteth her
to Extend her Prerogative to the dispencing with the command-
ments. If by great Fortune she happeneth, in spite of her
Vanity, to be honest, she is so troublesome with it, that as far
as in her lieth, she maketh a scurvy thing of it. Hq;- hngg'"g
of her Vertue, looketh as if it cost her so much pains. to get the
better of her Self, that_the Inferences are very ridiculous. Her
good Humour is generally applied to the laughing at good Sense.
It would do one good to see how heartily she despiseth any thing
that is fit for her to do. The greatest part of her Fancy is laid
out in chusing her Gown, as her Discretion is chiefly imploy'd
in not paying for it. F She is faithful to the Fashion, to which
not only her Opinion, but her Senses are wholly resigned.: so
obsequious she is to it, that she would be ready to be reconciled
even to Vertue with all its Faults, if she had her Dancing
Master's Word that it was practised at Court.

To a Woman so composed when Affectation cometh in to
improve her Character, it is then raised to the highest Per-
fection. She first setteth up for a Fine thing, and for that
Reason will distinguish her self, right or wrong, in every thing
she doth. She would have it thought that she is made of so
much the finer Clay, and so much more sifted than ordinary,
that she hath no common Earth about her. To this end she
must neither move nor speak like other Women, because it
would be vulgar ; and therefore must have a Language of her
own, since ordinary English is too coarse for her. The Looking-
glass in the Morning dictateth to her all the Motions of the
Day, which by how much the more studied, are so much the
more mistaken. fShe cometh into a Room as if her Limbs were
set on with ill-made Screws, which maketh the Company fear
the pretty thing should leave some of its artificial Person upon
the Floor. She doth not like her self as God Almighty made
her, but will have some of her own Workmanship ; which is so
far from making her a better thing than a Woman, that it
turneth her into a worse Creature than a Monkey. She falleth

out

VANITY, ^c. 41

out with Nature, against which she njaketh War without
admitting a Truce, those Moments excepted in which her
Gallant may reconcile her to it. When she hath a mind to
be soft and languishing, there is somthing so unnatural in that
affected Easiness^ that her Frowns could not be by many degrees
so forbidden. I When she would appear unreasonably humble,
one may see she is so excessively proud, that there is no endur-
ing it. There is such an impertinent Smile, such a satisfi ed
Simmer, when she faintly disowneth some fulsom Commendation
a Man hapneth to bestow upon her against his Conscience,
that her Thanks for it are more visible under such a thin Dis-
guise, than they could be if she should print thexai If a
handsomer Woman taketh any liberty of Dressing out of the
ordinary Rules the mistaken Lady foUoweth, without distin-
guishing the unequal Pattern, and maketh her self uglier by an
example misplaced ; either forgetting the Privilege of good
Looks in another, or presuming, without sufficient reason, upon
her own. Her Discourse is a senseless Chime of empty Words,
a heap of Compliments so equally applied to differing Per«OM«,
that they are neither valu'd nor believ'd. Her Eyes keep pace
with her Tongue, and are therefore always in motion. One may
discern that they generally incline to the compassionate side,
and that, notwithstanding her pretence to Vertue, she is gentle
to distressed Lovers, and Ladies that are merciful. She will
repeat the tender part of a Play so feelingly, that the Company
may guess, without Injustice, she was not altogether a dis-
interessed Spectator, She thinketh that Paint and Sin are
concealed by railing at them. Upon the latter she is less hard, .
and being divided between the two opposite Prides of her Beauty '
and her Vertue, she is often tempted to give broad Hints that/
some body is dying for her ; and of the two she is less un
willing to let the World think she may be sometimes pro/an d,
than that she is never worshipped.

Very grea,t Beauty iiiay perhaps so dazle for a time, that
Men may not so clearly see the Deformity of these Affectations ;
But when the Brightness goeth off, and that the Lover's Eyes
are by that means set at liberty to see things as they are, he

will

42 Advice to a Daughter.

will naturally return to his Senses, and recover the Mistake
into which the Lady's good Looks had at first engaged him,
and being once undeceived, ceaseth to worship that as a
Goddess, which he seeth is only an artificial Shrine moved by
Wheels and Springs, to delude him. Such Women please only
like the first Opening of a Scene, that hath nothing to recom-
mend it but the being new. They may be compared to Flies,
that have pretty shining Wings for two or three hot Months,
but the first cold Weather maketh an end of them ; so the
latter Season of these fluttering Creatures is dismal : From
their nearest Friends they receive a very faint Respect ; from
the rest of the World, the utmost degree of contempt.

Let this Picture supply the place of any other Rules which
might be given to prevent your resemblance to it. The Deformity
of it, well considered, is Instruction enough ; from the same
reason, that the sight of a Drunkard is a better Sermon against
that Vice, than the best that was ever preach'd upon that
Subject.

PRIDE.

AFter having said this against Vanity, I do not intend to
X\- apply the same Censure to Pride, well placed, and rightly
defined. It is an ambiguous Word ; one kind of it is as much
a Vertue, as the other is a Vice : But we are naturally so apt
to chuse the worst, that it is become dangerous to commend the
best side of it.

A Woman is not to be proud of her fine Gown ; nor when
she hath less Wit than her Neighbours, to comfort her self that
she hath more Lace. Some Ladies put so much weight upon
Ornaments, that if one could see into their Hearts, it would be
found, that even the Thought of Death is made less heavy to
them by the contemplation of their being laid out in State, and
honourably attended to the Grave. One may come a good deal
short of such an Extream, and yet still be suflSciently Imperti-
nent, by setting a wrong Value upon things, which ought to be
used with more indifference. A Lady must not appear soUicitous
to ingross Respect to her selfj- but be content with a reasonable

Distribution,

PRIDE. 43

Distribution, and allow it to others, that she may have it
returned to her. She is not to be troublesomly nice, nor
distinguish her self by being too delicate, as if ordinary things
were too coarse for her ; this is an unmannerly and an offensive
Pride, and where it is practised, deserveth to be mortified, of
which it seldom faileth. She is not to lean too much upon her
Quality, much less to despise those who are below it. Some
make Quality an Idol, and then their Reason must fall down
and Worship it. They would have the World think, that no
amends can ever be made for the want of a ffreat Title, or an
ancient Coat of Arms : They imagine, that with these advan-
tages they stand upon the higher Ground, which maketh them
look down upon Merit and Vertue, as things inferiour to them.
This mistake is not only senseless, but criminal too, in putting
a greater Price upon that which is a piece of good luck, than
upon things which are valuable in themselves. Laughing is
not enough for such a Folly ; it must be severely whipped, as
it justly deserves. It will be confessed, there are frequent
Temptations given by pert Upstarts to be angry, and by that to
have our Judgments corrupted in these Cases : But they are to
be resisted ; and the utmost that is to be allowed, is, when those
of a new Edition will forget themselves, so as either to brag of
their weak side, or to endeavour to hide their Meanness by their
Insolence, to cure them by a little seasonable Raillery, a little
Sharpness well placed, without dwelling too long upon it.

These and many other kinds of Pride are to be avoided.

That which is to be recommended to you^ is an Emulation
to raise your self to a Character, by which you may be dis-
tinguished ; an Eagerness for precedence in Vertue, and all
such other things as may gain you a greater share of the good
opinion of the World. Esteem to Vertue is like a cherishing
Air to Plants and Flowers, which maketh them blow and
prosper ; and for that reason it may be allowed to be in some
degree the Cause as well as the Reward of it. That Pride
which leadeth to a good End, cannot be a Vice, since it is the
beginning of a Vertue ; and to be pleased with just Applause,
is so far from a Fault, that it would be an ill Symptom in a

Woman,

44 Advice to a Daughter,

Woman, who should not place the greatest part of her Satis-
faction in it. Humility is no doubt a great Vertue ; but it
ceaseth to be so, when it is afraid to' scorn an ill thing. AgSinst
Vice and Folly it is becoming your Sex to be haughty ; but
you must not carry the Contempt of things to Arrogance towards
Persons, and it must be done with fitting Distinctions, else it
may be Inconvenient by being unseasonable. A Pride that
raiseth a little Anger to be out-done in any thing that is good,
will have so good an Effect, that it is very hard to allow it to be
a Fault.

It is no easie matter to carry even between these differing
kinds so described ; but remember that it is safer for a Woman
to be thought too proud, than too familiar.

DIVERSIONS.

THE last thing I shall recommend to you, is a wise and a safe
method of using Diversions. To be too eager in the pursuit
of Pleasure whilst you are Young, is dangerous ; to catch at it
in riper Years, is grasping a shadow ; it will not be held.
Besides that by being less natural it groweth to be indecent.
Diversions are the most properly applied to ease and relieve
those who are Oppressed by being Jpp much imployed. Those^
that are Idle have no need of them, and yet they, above all
others, give themselves up to them. To unbend our Thoughts,
when they are too much stretched by our Cares, is not more
natural than it is necessary, but to turn our whole Life into
a Holy day, is not only ridiculous, but destroyeth Pleasure
instead of promoting it. The Mind like the Body i& tired,i)y
being always in one Posture, too serious breaketh, and top
diverting looseneth it : It \s Variety that giveth the Relish ;
so that Diversions too frequently repeated, grow first to be
indifferent, and at last tedious. Whilst they are well chosen
and well timed, they are never to be blamed ; but when they are
used to an Excess, though very Innocent at first, they often
grow to be Criminal, and never fail to be Impertinent.

Some Ladies are bespoken for Merry Meetings, as Bessus

was

D I F ER S I ON S. 45

was for Duels. They are ingaged in a Circle of Idleness, where
they turn round for the whole Year, without the Interruption
of a serious Hour. They know all the Players Names, and are
Intimately acquainted with all the Booths in Bartholomew-Fair.
No Soldier is more Obedient to the sound of his Captain's
Trumpet, than they are to that which summoneth them to a
Puppet-Play or a Monster. The Spring that bringeth out Flies,
and Fools, maketh them Inhabitants in Hide-Park ; in the
Winter they are an Incumbrance to the Play House, and the
Ballast of the Drawing-Room, The Streets all this while are
so weary of these daily Faces, that Men's Eyes are over-laid
with them. The Sight is glutted with fine things, as the
Stomach with sweet ones ; and when a fair Lady will give too
much of her self to the World, she groweth luscious, and
oppresseth instead of pleasing. These Jolly Ladies do so
continually seek Diversion, that in a little time they grow into
a Jest, yet are unwilling to remember, that if they were seldomer
seen they would not be so often laughed at. Besides they make
themselves Cheap, than which there cannot be an unkinder word
bestowed upon your Sex.

To play sometimes, to entertain Company, or to divert your
self, is not to be disallowed, but to do it so often as to be called
a Gamester, is to be avoided, next to the things that are most
Criminal. It hath Consequences of several kinds not to be en-
dured ; it will ingage you into a habit of Idleness and ill hours,
draw you into ill mixed Company, make you neglect your
Civilities abroad, and your Business at home, and impose into
your Acquaintance such as will do you no Credit.

To deep Play there will be yet greater Objections. It will
give Occasion to the World to ask spiteful Questions. How
you dare venture to lose, and what means you have to pay such
great summs ? If you pay exactly, it wiU be enquired from
whence the Money cometh ? If you owe, and especially to
a Man, you must be so very Civil to him for his forbearance,
that it layeth a ground of having it farther improved,„Jl, the
Gentleman is so disposed ; who will be thought no unfair
Creditor, if where the Estate faileth he seizeth upon the Person.

Besides

46 Advice to a Daughter.

Besides if a Lady could see her own Face upon an ill Game, at
a deep , Stake, she would certainly forswear any thing that
could put her looks under such a Disadvantage.

To Dance sometimes will not be imputed to you as a fault ;
vbut remember that the end of your Learning it, was, that you
might the better know how to move gracefully . It is only an
advantage so far. When it goeth beyond it, one may call it
excelling in a Mistake, which is no very great Commendation.
It is better for a Woman never to Dance, because she hath no
skill in it, than to do it too often, because she doth it well. The
easiest as well as the safest Method of doing it, is in private
Companies, amongst particular Friends, and then carelesly, like
a Diversion, rather than with Solemnity, as if it was a business,
or had any thing in it to deserve a Month's preparation by
serious Conference vrith a Dancing-Master.

Much more might be said to all these Heads, and many more
might be added to them. But I must restrain my Thoughts,
which are full of my Dear Child, and would overflow into a
Volume, which would not be fit for a New-Years-Gift. I will
conclude with my warmest Wishes for all that is good to you.
That you may live so as to be an Ornament to your Family, and
a Pattern to your Sex. That you may be blessed with a
Husband that may value, and with Children that may inherit
your Vertue ; That you may shine in the World by a true Light,
and silence Envy by deserving to be esteemed ; That _Wit and
Vertue may both conspire to make you a great Figure. When
they are separated, the first is so enipty, and the other^ so faint,
that they scarce have right to be commended. May they there-
fore meet and never part ; let tliem be your Guardian Angels,
and be sure never to stray out of the distance of their joint
protection. May you so raise your Character, that you may
help to make the next Age a better thing, and leave Posterity^
in your Debt for the advantage it shall receive by your
Example.

Let me conjure you, My Dearest, to comply with this kind
Ambition of a Father, whose Thoughts are so ingaged in your
behalf, that he reckoneth your Happiness to be the greatest part
of his own.

THE

THE

CHARACTER

OF A

TRIMMER.

THE

PREFACE.

IT must be more than an ordinary provocation that can temp t
a Man to write in an Age over-run with Scribblers, as Egypt
was with Flies and Locusts : That worst Vermin of small
Authors hath given the World such a Surfeit, that instead of
desiring to Write, a Man would be more inclin'd to wish, for
his own ease, that he could not Read ; but there are some things
which do so raise our passions, that our Reason can make no
Resistance ; andwhen Madmen, iiktwo ^xtreams, shall agree to^
make common sense Treason, and joy n toj^x^jm ill Character
upon the only Men_ in the Nation who deserve a good one ; I am
no longer Master of my better Resolution to let the World alone,
and must break loose from my more reasonable Thoughts, to
expose these false Coyners, who would make their Copper Wares
pass upon us for good Payment.

Amongst all the Engines of Dissention, there hath been none
more powerful in all Times, than the fixing Names upon one
another of,Coniumely and Reproach, and the reason is plain,
in respect of the People, who iho' generally they are uncapable
of making a Syllogism or forming an Argument, yet they can
pronounce a word; and that serveth their turn to throw it with

their

48 The Preface.

their dull malice at the Head of those they do not like ; such
things ever begin in Jest, and end in Blood, and the same word
which at first maketh the Company merry, groweth in time to a
Military Signal to cut one anothers Throats.

These Mistakes are to be lamented, tho' not easily cured,
being suitable enough to the corrupted Nature of Mankind; but
'tis hard, that Men will not only invent illNaims^ but they will
wrest and misinterpret good ones ; so afraid some are even of
a reconciling sound, that they raise another noise to keep it from
being heard, lest it should set up and encourage a dangerous sort
of Men, v)ho prefer Peace and Agreement, before Violence and
Confusion.

Were it not for this, why, after we have played the Fool with
throwing Whig and Tory at one another, as Boys do Snow-
Balls, do we grow angry at a new Name, which by its true
signification might do as much to put us into our Wits, as the
other hath done to put us out of them ?

This innocent word Tjimra£ji_signifietli-.ntLjm}ze^ihjin..Jhis,
That if Men are together in a Boat, and one pstriMftM^Qompany
would weigh it down on one side, another would make it lean as
much to the contrary; it happeneth there is a third Opinion. of
those, who conceive it would do as well, if the Boat went even,
without endangering the Passen^[ers; now 'tis hard to imtigin by
what Figure in Language, or by what Rule in Sense this cometh
to be a faulty and it is much more a wonder it should be thought
a Heresy.

But so it happeneth, that the poor Trimmer hath now all the
Powder spent upon him alone, while the Whig is a forgotten, or
afteast a neglected Enemy ; there is no danger now to the State (if
some Men may be believed) but from the Beast called a Trimmer.
take heed of him, he is the InsixuraentJJiaLMmst de&troyJJlmnih^
and State'; a strange kind of Monster, whose deformity is so
expos'' d, that, were it a true Picture that is made of him, it
would he enough to fright Children, and make Women miscarry
at the sight of it.

But it may be worth the examining, whether he is such a Beast
as he is Painted. I am not of that Opinion, and am so far

from

The Preface. 49

from thinking him an Infidel _either_inj^hurch or State, that I
anfneither affmSTto expose the Articles of his Faith in Relatiork
to GoWrnment, nor to say that I prefer them before any other
Political Creed, that either our angry Divines, or our refined
States-men would impose upon us.

I have therefore in the following Discourse endeavour'd to
explain the Trimmei-'s Principles and Opinions, and then leave
it to all discerning and impartial Judges, whether he can with
Justice be so Arraign' d, and whether those who deliberately per-
vert a good Name, do not very justly deserve the worst that
can be put upon themselves.

THE

50
THE

Trimmer's Opinion

OF THE

LAWS

AND

GOVERNMENT.

OUr Trimmer, as he hath a great Veneration for Laws in
general, so he hath a more particular for our own, he looketh
upon them as the Chains that tye up our unruly Passions, which
else, like wild Beasts let loose, would reduce the world into its
first State of Barbarism and^ Hostility ; tlie good things we
in joy, we owe to them ; and all the ill things we are freed from
is by their Protection.

God himself thought it not enough to be a Creator, without
being a Lawgiver, and his goodness had been defective towards
mankind in making them, if he had not prescribed Rules to
make them happy too.

All Laws flow from that of Nature, and where that is not the
Foundation, they may be legally impos'd, but they will bejamely
obeyed: By this Nature is not meant that which Fools and
Madmen misquote to justify their Excesses; it is innocent and
uncorrupted Nature, that which disposeth Men to chuse Vertue,
without its being prescribed, and which is so far from in spirjns:
ill thoughts i nto us , that we take pains to suppress the good
ones it infuseth.

The Civilized World hath ever paid a willing subjection to
Laws, even Conquerors have done homage to them ; as the

Romans,

The Character of a Trimmer. 5 1

Romans , who took Patterns of good Laws, even from those they

had subdued ; and at the same time that they Triumph'd over

an enslaved People, the very Laws of that place did not only

remain safe, but became Victorious ; their new Masters, instead

of suppressing them, paid them more respect than they had

from those who first made th«n : and by this wise method they

arrived to such an admirable Constitution of J^aws, that to this

day they Reign by them ; this Excellency of them Triumpheth

still, and the World payeth now an acknowledgment of their

obedience to that Mighty Empire, though so many Ages after

it is dissolved ; and by a later instance, the Kijigs of France^

who in practice use their Laws pretty familiarly, yet think their

Picture is drawn with most advantage upon their Seals, when

they are placed inthe Seat_of.jJustice: and tho' the Hierogly-

pfaick is not there of so much use to the People as they would

wish, yet it sheweth that no Prince is so^Great, as not to think

fit^for his own Credit at least, to give an outward, when he re-

fuseth a real_worship to the Laws. '

They are to mankind that which the Sun is to Plants, whilst
it cherisheth and preserveth them. Where they have theirjorce
and are not_clouded or supprest, every thing smileth and
flourisheth ; but where they are darkened, and not suffered to
shine out, it maketh every thing to wither and decay.

They secure Men not only against one another, but against
themselves too ; they are a Sanctuary to which the Crown hath
occasion to resort as often as the People, so that it is an Interest
as well as a Duty to preserve them.

There would be no end of making a Panegyrick of Laws ; let
it be enough to add, that without Laws the World would be-
come a Wilderness, and Men little less than Beasts ; but with
all this, the best things may come to be the worst, if they are
not in good hands ; | and if it be true that the wisest Men
generally make the Laws, it is as true, that the strongest do
often Interpret themjjand as Rivers belong as much to the
Channel where they run, as to the Spring from whence they
first rise, so the Laws depend as much upon the Pipes thro'
which they are to pass, as upon the Fountain from whence

they flow. „

' Ea The

\ \ \

52 Th^ Character

The Authority of a King who is Head of^the Law, as well as
the Dignity of Publick Justice, is debased, when the clear stream
of the Law is puddled and disturbed by Bunglers, or conveyed
by unclean Instruments to the People.

Ouxj-Trimm er would hav e^them appear in their full lustre,
and would be grieved to see the day, when, instead of speaking
with Authority from the Seats of Justice, they should speak out
of a Grate, with a lamenting voice like Prisoners that desire to
be rescued.

He wisheth that the Bench may have a Natural as well as a
Legal Superiority to the Bar ; he thinketh Mens abilities very
much misplac'd, when the Reason of him that pleadeth is visibly
too strong for those who Judge and give Sentence.

When those from the Bar seem to dictate to their Superiours
upon the Bench, their Furrs will look scurvily about them, and
the respect of the World will leave the bare Character of a
Judge, to follow the Essential knowledge of a Lavryer, who may
be greater in himself, than the other can be with all his Trap-
pings.

An uncontested Superiority in any Calling, will have the
better of any discountenance that Authority can put upon it,
and therefore if ever such an unnatural Method should be intro-
duc'd, it is then that Westminster Hall might be said to stand
upon its Head, and though Justice it self can never be so, yet
the Administration of it would be rendred Ridiculous.

A Judge hath such power lodg'd in him, that the King will
never be thought to have chosen well, where the voice of Man-
kind hath not before-hand recommended the Man to his Station ;
when Men are made Judges of what they do not understand,
the World censureth such a Choice, not out of ill will to the
Men, but fear to themselves.

If the King had the sole power of chusing Physicians, Men
would tremble to see Bunglers preferred, yet the necessity of
taking Physick from a Doctor, is generally not so great as that
of receiving Justice from a Judge ; and yet the Inferences will
be very severe in such cases, for either it will be thought that
such Men bought what they were not able to deserve, or which

; ■ is ,

of a Trimmer.

is as bad^ that Obedience shall be look'd upon as a better
Qualification in a Judge, than Skill or Integrity, when such sacred
things as the Laws are not only touch 'd, but guided by prophane
hands ; Men will fear that out of the Tree of the Law, from
whence we expect Shade and Shelter, such Workmen will make
Cudgels to beat us with, or rather that they will turn the Canon
upon our Properties, that were intrusted with them for their
Defence.

To see the Laws Mangled, Disguised, Speak quite another
Language than their own, to see them thrown from the Dignity
of protecting Mankind, to the disgraceful Office of destroying
them ; and notwithstanding their Innocence in themselves, to
be made the worst Instruments that the most refined Villany
can make use of, will raise Mens Anger above the power of
laying it down again^ and tempt them to follow the Evil
Examples given them of Judging without Hearing, when so
provoked by their desire of Revenge. Our Trimmer therefore,
as he thinketh the Laws ^re_Jewels, so he believeth they are
nowhere better set, than in the constitution of our English
Government, if rightly understood, and carefully preserved.

It would be too great Partiality to say they are perfect or
liable to no Objection; such things are not of JJiia eWorld; but
if they have more Excellencies and fewer Faults than any other
we know, it is enough to recommend them to our Esteem.

The Dispute, which is a greater Beauty, a Monarchy or a
Common-wealth, hath lasted long between their contending
Lovers, and they have behavM themselves so like Lovers, (who
in good Manners must be out of their Wits,) who used such
Figures to exalt their own Idols on either side, and such angry
Aggravations, to reproach one another in the Contest, that
moderate men have in all times smil'd upon this eagerness,
and thought it difEer'd very little from a downright Frenzy:
we in England, by a happy use of the Controversie, conclude
them both in the wrong, and reject them from being our
Pattern, not taking the words in the utmost extent, which is
Monarchy, a thing that leaveth men no Liberty, and a Common-
wealth^suchji_one as alloweth them no Quiet.

54 The Character

Wfe— tWuk—JJiat a wise M ean , between these barbarous
ExtreamSj is that which self-Preservation ought to dictate to
our Wishes ; and we may say we have attained to this Mean
in a greater measure, than any Nation now in being, or perhaps
any we have read of, tho never so much Celebrated for the
Wisdom or Felicity of their Constitutions : We take from one
the too great power of doing hurt, and yet leave enough to
govern and protect us ; we take from the other, the Confusion,
the Parity, the Animosities, and the Li cense, and yet reserve
a due care of such a Liberty^ as may consist with Mens ,
AUegijince ; but it being hard, if not impossible, to be exactly
even, our Government hath much the stronger Biass towards
Monarchy, which by the general Consent and Practise of
Mankind, seemeth to have the Advantage in dispute against a
Common-wealth ; The Rules of a Common-wealth are too hard
for the Bulk of Mankind to come up to ; that Form of Govern-
ment requireth such a spirit to carry it on, as doth not dwell in
great Numbers, but is restrained to so veiy few, especially in
this Age, that let the Methods appear never so reasonable in
Paper, they must fail in Practice, which will ever be suited
more to Mens Nature as it is, than as it should be.

Monarchy is lik'd by the People, for the Bells and the Tinsel,
the outward Pomp and Gilding, and there must be milk for
Babes, since the greatest part of Mankind are, and ever will be
included in that List ; and it is approved by wise and thinking
Men, (all Circumstances and Objections impartially consider'd)
that it hath so great an adv antage above all other E gcms, when
the Administration of that Power falleth in good hands, that
all other Governments look out of Countenance, when they are
set in Competition with it. Lycurgus might have sav'd himself
the trouble of making Laws, if either he had been Immortal,
or that he could have secur'd to Posterity, a succeeding Race of
Princes like himself ; his own Example was a better Law, than
he could with all his skill tell how to make ; such a Prince is a
Living Law, that dictateth to his Subjects, whose thoughts in
that case never rise above their Obedience, the Confidence they
have in the Vertue and Knowledge of the master, preventing

the

of a Trimmer. 55

the Scruples and Apprehensions to which Men are naturally
inclined, in relation to those that govern them ; such a
Magistrate is the Life and Soul of Justice, whereas the Law
is but a Body and a dead one too, without his Lifluence to give
it warmth and vigour, and by the irresistible Power of his
Vertue, he doth so reconcile Dominion and Allegiance, that all
disputes between them are silenced and subdued, and indeed
no Monarchy can be Perfect and Absolute without exception,
but where the Prince is Superior by his Vertue, as well as by his
Character and his Power; so that to screw out Precedents of
unlimited Power, is a plain diminution to a Prince that Nature
hath made Great, and who had better make himself a glorious
Example to Posterity, than borrow an Authority from Dark
Records, raised out of the Grave, which besides their Non-usage,
have always in them matter of Controversie and Debate, and
it may be affirmed, that the instances are very rare of Princes
having the worst in the dispute with their People, if they were
Eminent for Justice in time of Peace, or Conduct in time of
War, such advantage the Crown giveth to those who adorn it
by their own Personal Vertues.

But since for the greater Honour of Good and wise Princes,
and the better to set off their Character by the Comparison,
Heaven hath decreed there must be a riiixture, and that such
as are perverse or insufficient, or perhaps both, are at least to
have their equal turns in the Government of the World, and
besides, that the Will of Man is so various, and so unbounded
a thing, and so fatal too when joined with Power misapply'd ;
it is no wonder if those who are to be governed, are unwilling
to have so dangerous as well as so imcertain a Standard of
their Obedience.

There must be therefore Rules and Laws : for want of which,
or at least the Observation of them, it was as Capital for a
Man to say that Nero did not play well upon the Lute, as to
commit Treason, or Blaspheme the Gods. And even Vespasian
himself had like to have lost his Life, for sleeping whilst he
should have attended and admir'd that Emperours Impertinence
upon the Stage. There is a wantonness in great Power that

Men

56 The Character

Men are generally too apt to be corrupted with, and for that
Reason, a wise Prince , to prevent the temptation arising from
common frailty, would choose to Govern by Rules for his own
Sake, as well as for his Peoples, since it only secureth hiin jjom
Errors, and doth not lessen the real Authority, that a good
Magistrate would care to be possess'd of ; for if the Will of a
Prince is contrary either to Reason it self, or to the universal
Opinion of his Subjects, the Law by a kind restraint rescueth
him from a disease that would undo him ; ii_his will on the
other side is reasonable or well directed, that Will immediately
becometh a Law, and he is arbitrary by an easie and natural
Consequence, without taking pains, or overturning the World
for it.

If Princes consider Laws as things impos'd on them, they
have the appearance of Fetters of Iron, but to such as would
make them their choice as well as their practice, they are
Chains of Gold ; and in that respect are Ornaments, as in
others they are a defence to them ; and by a Comparison, not
improper for God's Vicegerents upon Earth, as our Maker
never Commandeth our obedience to any thing, that as reason-
able Creatures we ought not to make our own Election, so a
good and wise Governour, tho' all Laws were abolish' d, would
by the voluntary direction of his own Reason, do without
restraint the very same things that they would have enjoyned.

Our Trimmer thinketb that the King and Kingdom ought to
be one Creature, not to be separated in their Political Capacity ;
and when either of them undertake to act a part, it is like the
crawling of Worms after they are cut in pieces, which cannot be
a lasting motion, the whole Creature not stirring at a time.
If the Body have a dead Palsie, the Head cannot make it move ;
and God hath not yet delegated such a healing power to Princes,
as that they can in a moment say to a Languishing People
oppress'd and in despair, Take up your Beds and walk.

The Figure of a King, is so comprehensive and exalted a
thing, that it is a kind of degrading him to lodge that power
separately in his own Natural Person, which can never be safely
or naturally great, but where the People are so united to him

of a Trimmer. 57

as to be Flesh of his Flesh, and Bone of his Bone ; for when he
is reduc'd to the single^efinition of a man, he sinketh into
so low a Character, that it is a temptation u£qn Mens
AUegiance, and an impairing that veneration which is necessary
to preserve their Duty to him ; whereas a Prince who is so
joined to his people that they seem to be his Limbs, rather than
his Subjects, Cloathed with Mercy and Justice rightly apply'd
in their several places, his Throne supported by Love as well as
by Power, and the warm wishes of his devoted Subjects, like
never-failing Incense, still ascending towards him, looketh so
like the best Image we can frame to our selves of God
Almighty, that men would have much ado not to fall down and
worship him, and would be much more tempted to the Sin of
Idolatry, than to that of Disobedience.

Our Trimmer is of Opinion, that there must be so much
Dignity inseparably annexed to the Royal Function, as may be
sufficient to secure it from insolence and contempt ; and there
must be CondeSGensiQns.fi-Qm Ihje. Throne, Uke kind showers
from Heaven, that the Prince may look so mucliJhs jnore like
God Almighty's Deputy upon Earth ; for power withaut love
hath a terrifying aspect, and the Worship which is paid to
it is like that which the Indians give out of fear to Wild Beasts
and Devils : he that feareth God only because there is an Hell,
must wish there were no God ; and he who feareth the King,;
only because he can punish, must wish there were no King ; so
that without a principle of Love^ there can be no true Allegiance,
and there must remain perpetual Seeds pf Resistance against
a power that is built upon such an unnatural Foundation, as
that of fear and terrour. AH force is a kind^of foul-Plaj,^d
whosoever, aimeth at it himself, doth by implication allow it to
those he playeth with ; so that there will be ever Matter
prepared in the minds of People when they are provoked, and
the Prince, to secure himself must live in the midst of his own
Subjects, as if he were in a Conquer'd Country, raise Arms as
if he were immediately to meet or resist an Invasion, and all
this while sleep as unquietly from the fear of the Remedies, as
he did before from that of the Disease ; it being hard for him

to

58 The Character

to forget, that more Princes have been destroyed by their Guards
than by their People ; and that even at the time when the Rule
was Quod Principi placuit Lex esto, the Armies and Pratorian
Bands which were the Instruments of that unruly Power, were
fi-equently the means made use of to destroy them who had it.
There will ever be this difference between God and his Vice-
gerents, that God is still above the Instruments he useth, and
out of the danger of receiving hurt from them; but Princes
can never lodge Power in any hands, which may not at some
time turn it back upon them ; for' tho' it is possible enough for
a King to have power to satisfy his Ambition ; yet no Kingdom
hath Money enough to satisfie the avarice of under- Work-
men, who learn from that Prince who will exact more than
belongeth to him, to expect from him much more than they
deserve, and growing angry upon the first disappointment,
they are the Devils which grow terrible to the Conjurers
themselves who brought them up, and can't send them down
again. And besides that there can be no lasting Radical
Security, but where the Governed are satisfied with the
Governours, it must be a Dominion very unpleasant to a Prince
of an elevated Mind, to impose ah abject and sordid servility,
instead of receiving the willing Sacrifice of Duty and Obedience,
The bravest Princes in all times, who were uncapable of any
other kind of fear, have fear'd to grieve their own People ; such
a fear is a glory, and in this sense -'tis an infamy not to be
a Coward : So that the mistaken Heroes who are void of this
generous kind of fear, need no other aggravation to compleat
their ill Characters.

When a Despotick Prince hath bruised all his Subjects with a
slavish Obedience, all the force he can use cannot subdue his
own fears ; Enemies of his own Creation, to which he can never
be reconciled, it being impossible to do injustice and not to fear
Revenge : there is no cure for this fear, but the not deserving to
be hurt, and therefore a Prince who doth not allow his thoughts
to stray beyond the Rules of Justice, hath always the blessing
of an inward quiet and assurance, as a natural effect of his
good Meaning to his People, and tho he will not neglect due

precautions

of a Trimmer. 59

precautions to secure himself in all Events, yet he is uncapable
of entertaining vain and remote suspicions of those, of whom he
resolveth never to deserve ill.

It is very hard for a Prince to fear Rebellion, vpho neither
doth, nor intendeth to do any thing to provoke it ; therefore too
great a diligence in the Governours, to raise and improve
dangers and fears from the People, is no very good Symptom,
and naturally begetteth an inference that they have thoughts of
putting their Subjects Allegiance to a Tryal; and therefore not
without some Reason fear beforehand, that the Irregularities
they intend, may raise Men to a Resistance.

Qur Trimmer thia ltetlyit no advantage to a Gov^ernment^to^
endeavour the suppressing aU kind of Ri^ht which jnay^_remain
in the Body of the People, or to employ small Authors in it,
whose OfBciousness or want of Money may encourage them to
write, tho^ it is not very easie to have Abilities equal to such a
Subject ; they forget that in their too high strained Arguments
for the Rights of Princes, they very often plead against humane
Nature, which will always give a Biass to those Reasons which
seem of her side; it is the People that Readeth those Books,
and it is the People that must judge of them ; and therefore no
Maxims should be laid down for the Right of Government, to
which there can be any Reasonable Objectio n ; for the World
hath an Interest, and for that Reason is more than ordinary
discerning to find out the weak sides of such Arguments as are
intended to do them hurt; and it is a diminution to a Government,
to Promote or Countenance such well affected mistakes which
are turned upon it with disadvantage whenever they are
detected and expos'd ; and Naturally the too earnest Endeavours
to take from Men the Right they have, tempt them, by the
Example, to Claim that which they have not.

In Power, as in most other things, the way for Princes to
k eep it, is not to grasp more than their Arms_caji_well_hr^
the nice and unnecessary enquiring into these things, or the
Licensing some Books, and suppressing some others without
sufficient Reason to Justifie the doing either, is so far from
being an Advantage to a Government, that it exposeth it to the

Censure

6o The Character

Censure of being Partial, and to the suspicion of having some
hidden designs to be carried on by these unusual methods.

When all is said, there is a Natural Reason of Stat e, an
undefinable thing, grounded upon the Common Good of
Mankind, which is immortal, and in all Changes and Revo-
lutions, still preserveth its Original Right of saving a Nation,
when the Letter of the Law" perhaps would destroy it; and by
whatsoever means it moveth, carrieth a Power with it, that
admitteth of no opposition, being supported by Nature, which
inspireth an immediate consent at some Critical times into
every individual Meniber, to that which visibly tendeth to
preservation of the whole ; and this being so, a Wise Prince
instead of Controverting the right of this Reason of State, will
by all means endeavour it may be of his side, and then he will
be secure.

Our Trimmer cannot conceive that the Power of any Prince
can be lasting, but where 'tis built upon the foundation of his
own unborrowed vertue, he must not only be the first Mover
and the Fountain, from whence the great Acts of State
originally flow, but he must be thought so to his People that
they may preserve their veneration for him ; he must be jealous
of his Power, and not impart so much of it to any about him,
as that he may suffer an Eclipse by it.

He cannot take too much care to keep himself up, for when
a Prince is thought to be led by those, with whom he should
onely advise, and that the Commands he giveth are transmitted
through him, and are not of his own growth ; the World will
look upon him as a Bird adorned with Feathers that are not his
own, or consider him rather as an Engine than a living
Creature ; besides, 'twould be a Contradiction for a Prince to
fear a Common-wealth, and at the same time create one himself,
by delegating such a Power to any Number of Men near him,
as is inconsistent with the Figure of a Monarch : it is the worst
kind of Co-ordination the Crown can submit to ; for it is the
exercise of Power that draweth the respect along with it, and
when that is parted with, the bare Charactetjol^aJKing is not
sufficient to keep it up ; but tho' it is a diminution to a Prince,

to

of a Trimmer. 6 r

to parcel out so liberally his Power amongst his Favourites, it is
worse to divide with any other Man, and to bring himself in
Competition with a single Rival ; a Partner in Government is
so unnatural a thing, that it is a squint-ey'd Allegiance that
must be paid to such a double bottoniM Monarchy. The two *
Czars of Muscovy are an Example that the more civihzM part
of the World will not be prone to follow. Whatsoever Gloss
may be put upon this method, by those to whom it may be of
some use, the Prince will do well to remember, and reflect upon
the Story of certain Men who had set up a Statue in Honour of
the Sun, yet in a very little time they turned their backs to the
Sun, and their Faces to the Statue.

These Mystical Unions are better plac'd in the other World,
than they are in this, and we shall have much ado to find, that
in a Monarchy Gods Vicegerency is delegated to more Heads
than that which is anointed.

Princes may lend some of their Light to make another shine,
but they must still preserve the superiority of being the brighter
Planet, and when it happeneth that the Reversion is in Mens
Eyes, there is more care necessary to keep up the Dignity of
Possessions, that Men may not forget who is King, either out of
their hopes or fears who shall be. If the Sun shou'd part with all
his Light to any of the Stars, the Indians would not know where
to find their God, after he had so deposed himself, and would
make the Light (where-ever it went) the Object of their Worship.

All Usurpation is alike upon Soveraignty, it is no matter from
what hand it cometh, and Crowned Heads are to be the more
Circumspect, in respect Mens thoughts are naturally apt to
ramble beyond what is present ; they love to work at a distance,
and in their greedy Expectations which their minds may be
fiU'd with of a new Master, the old one may be left to look
a little out of Countenance. ^!

/ Our Trimmer owneth a Passion forjiberfy, yet so r es train edj,-'
Lj;hat it doth not in the least impair or taint his Allegiancej^e
thinketh it hard for a Soul that doth not love Liberty ever to
raise it self to another World ; he taketh it to be the foundation
of all vertue, and the only seasoning that giveth a relish to life,

and

62 The Character

and tho' the laziness of a slavish subjection, hath its Charms for
the more gross and earthly part of Mankind, yet to men made
of a better sort of Clay, all that the World can give without
Liberty hath no taste ; it is true, nothing is sold so cheap by
unthinking men, but that doth no more lessen the real value of
it, than a Country Fellows Ignorance doth that of a Diamond,
in selling it for a Pot of Ale. Liberty is the Mistress of
Mankind, she hath powerful Charms .which do, so dazzle us, that
we find Beauties in her which perhaps are not there, as we do in
other Mistresses ; yet if she was not a Beauty, the World would
not run mad for her; therefore since the reasonable desire of jt__
ought not to be restrain' d, and that even the unreasonable
desire of it cannot be entirely suppress'd, those who would take
it away from a People possessed of it, are likely to fail in the
attempting, or be very unquiet in the keeping of it.

Our Trimmer admireth our blessed Constitution, in which
Dominion and Liberty are so well reconciled ; it giveth to the
Prince tne glorious Power of commanding Freemen, and to
the Subject, the satisfaction of seeing the Power so lodged, as
that their Liberties are secure; it doth not allow the Crown
such a Ruining Power, as that no grass can grow where e'er it
treadeth, but a Cherishing and^ Protecting PojEgr i such a one
as hath a grim Aspect oniy-tathe-oSeHding-Soihjects, but is the
joy and the Pride of all the good ones ; their own interest being
so bound up in it, as to engage them to defend^,and support it ;
and tho in some instances the King is restrain'd, yet nothing in
the Government can move withoutJiim : our Laws make a
distinction between Vassalage and Obedience; between a de-
vouring Prerogative, and a licentious ungovernable Freedom :
and as of all the Orders of Building, the Composite is the,j3£§t,_
so ours by a happy mixture and a wise choice of what is best in
others, is brought into a Form that is our Felicity who live
under it, and the envy of our Neighbour that cannot imitate it.

The Crown hath power sufiicient to protect our Liberties.
The People have so much Liberty as is necessary to make them
useful to the Crown.

Our Government is in a just proportion, no Tympany, no un-
natural

of a Trimmer. 63

natural swelling either of Power or Liberty ; and whereas in all
overgrown Monarchies, Reason, Learning, and Enquiry are
hangM in Effigy for Mutineers ; here they are encouraged and
cherished as the surest Friends to a Government establish'd upon
the Foundation of Law and Justice. When all is done, those
who look for Perfection in this World, may look as the Jews
have for their Messias, and therefore our Trimmer is not so un-
reasonably Partial as to free our Government from all objections ;
no doubt there have been fatal Instances of its Sickness, and
more than that, of its Mortality, for sometime, tho' by a
Miracle, it hath been reviv'd again: but._,tilL we have another
race of Mankind, in all Constitution^^Jhat are bounded there
will ever be some matter of Strife and Contention, and rather
than want pretensions. Mens Passions and Interests will raise
them from the most inconsiderable Causes.

Our Government is like our Climate, there are Winds which are
sometimes loud and unquiet, and yet with all the Trouble they
give us, we owe great part of our Health unto them, they clear
the Air, which else would be like a standing Pool and in stead
of Refreshment would be a Disease unto us.

There may be fresh Gales .of asserting Liberty, without turn-
ing into such storms of Hurricane, as that the State should run
any hazard of being Cast away by them ; these struglings
which are natural to all mixed Governments, while they are kept
from growing into Convulsions, do by a mutual agitation from
the several parts, rather support and strengthen, than weaken
or maim the Constitution; and the whole frame, instead of
being torn or disjointed, cometh to be the better and closer knit
by being thus exercised ; but what ever faults our Government
may have, or a discerning Critick may find in it, when he
looketh upon it alone, let any other be set against it, and then
it sheweth its Comparative Beauty ; let us look upon the most
glittering outside of unbounded Authority, and upon a nearer
enquiry, we shall find nothing but poor and miserable deformity
within ; let us imagine a Prince living in his Kingdom, as if in
a great Gaily, his Subjects tugging at the Oar, laden with
Chains, and reduced to real Rags, that they may gain him

imaginary

64 The Character

w

imaginary Lawrels ; let us Represent him gazing among his
Flatterers, and receiving their false Worship, like a Child never
Contradicted, and therefore always Cozen'd : or like a Lady
complemented only to be abused, condemned never to hear Truth,
and Consequently never to do Justice, wallowing in the soft Bed
of wanton and unbridled Greatness, not less odious to the
Instruments themselves, than to the Objects of his Tyranny;
blown up into an Ambitious Dropsy, never to be satisfied by the
Conquest of other People, or by the Oppression of his own ;
by aiming to be more than a Man, he falleth lower than the
meanest of 'em, a mistaken Creature, swelled with Panegyricks,
and flattered out of his Senses, and not only an Incumbrance,
but a Nuisance to Mankind, a hardened and unrelenting Soul,
and like some Creatures that grow fat with Poisons, he groweth
great by other Mens Miseries ; an Ambitious Ape of the Divine
Greatness, an unruly Gyant that would storm even Heaven it
self, but that his scaling Ladders are not long enough ; in short,
a Wild and devouring Creature in rich Trappings, and with all
his Pride, no more than a Whip in God Almighty's hand, to be
thrown into the Fire when the World hath been sufficiently
scourged with it : This Picture laid in right Colours would not
incite Men to wish for such a Government, but rather to acknow-
ledge the happiness of our own, under which we enjoy all the
Privilege Reasonable Men can desire, and avoid all the Miseries
many others are subject to ; so that our Trimmer would keep
it with all its faults, and doth as little forgive those who give the
occasion of breaking it, as he doth those that take it.

Our Trimmer is a Friend to Parliaments, notwithstanding all
their faults, and excesses, which of late have given such matter
of Objection to them ; he thinketh that tho' they may at some
times be troublesome to Authority, yet they add the greatest
strength to it under a -vvise Administration ; he believeth no
Government is perfect except a kind of Omnipotence residejn
it, to exercise upon great Occasions : Now this cannot be
obtained by force alone upon People, let it be never so great, there
must be their consent too, or else a Nation moveth only by
being driven, a sluggish and constrained Motion, void of that

Life

of a Trimmer. 65

Life and Vigour which is necessary to produce great things,
whereas the virtual Consent of the whole being included in their
Representatives, and the King giving the sanction to the united
sense of the People, every Act done by such an Authority,
seemeth to be an effect of their choice as well as a part of their
Duty ; and they do, with an eagerness of which Men are un-
capable whilst under a force, execute whatsoever is so enjoyned
as their own Wills, better explained by Parliament, rather than
from the terrour of incurring the Penalty of the Law for omit-
ing it, and by means of this Political Omnipotence, what ever
Sap or Juice there is in a Nation, may be to the last drop
produc'd, whilst it riseth naturally from the Root ; whereas all
power exercis'd without consent, is like the giving Wounds and
Gashes, and tapping a Tree at unseasonable Times, for the
present occasion, which in a very little time must needs de-
stroy it.

Our Trimmer believeth, that by the advantage of our Situa-
tion, there can hardly any such sudden Disease come upon us,
but that the King may have time enough leftJa^cojiaultJ.vith
his Physicians in Parl jameJit ; pretences indeed may be made,
but a real necessity so pressing, that no delay is to be admitted,
is hardly to be imagin'd, and it will be neither easie to give an
instance of any such thing for the time past, or reasonable to
Presume it will ever happen for the time to come : but if that ,
strange thing should fall out, our Trimmer is not so streight- f
lac^d, as to let a Nation die, or to be stifled, rather than it J
should be help'd by any but the proper Officers. The Cases
themselves will bring the Remedies along with them ; and he
is not afraid to allow that in order to its preservation, there is
a hidden Power in Government, which would be lost if it was
defined, a certain Mystery, by virtue of which a Nation may at
some Critical times be secur'd from Ruine ; but then it must be
kept as a Mystery ; it is rendred useless when touch 'd by un-
skilfuU hands, and no Government ever had, or deserv'd to
have that Power, which was so unwary as to anticipate their
claim to /it: Our Trimmer cannot help thinking it had been
better, if the Triennial Act had been observ'd ; because 'tis the^
HALIFAX F Law,

66 The Character

Law, and he would not have the Crown, by such an .Example,
I teach the Nation to break it ; all irregularity is catching, it
\ hath a Contagion in it, especially in an Age so much more

enclin^d to follow ill Patterns than good ones.
, He would have had a Parliament, because 'tis an Essential part
; of the Constitution, even without the Law, it being the only
Provision in extraordinary Cases, in which there would be other-
wise no Remedy, and there can be no greater Solecism in
Government, than a failure of Justice.

He would have had one, because nothing else can unite and
healjus, all other Means are meer Shifts and Projects, Houses
of Cards, to be blown down with the least Breath, and cannot
resist the Difficulties which are ever presum 'd in things of this
kind ; and he would have had one, because it might have
done the King good, and could not possibly have done him hurt,
without his consent, which in that Case is not to be supposed,
and therefore for him to fear it, is so strange and so little to be
comprehended, that the Reasons can never be presum'd to grow
in our Soyl, or to thrive in it when Transplanted from any
other Country ; and no doubt there are such irresistible Argu-
ments for calling a Parliament, that tho it might be deny'd to
the unmannerly mutinous Petitions of men, that are malicious
and disaffected, it will be granted to the soft and obsequious
Murmurs of his Majesty's best Subjects, and there will be such
Rhetorick in their silent Grief, that it will at last prevail against
the Artifices of those, who either out of Guilt or Interest, are
afraid to throw themselves upon their Country, knowing how
seurvily they have used it ; that day of Judgment will come,
tho we know neither the day nor the hour. And our Trimmer
would live so as to be prepared for it, with full assurance in the
mean time, that the lamenting Voice of a Nation cannot long
be resisted, and that a Prince who could so easily forgive his
People when they had been in the wrong, cannot fail to hear
jthem when they are in the right.

The

of a Trimmer. 67

The Trimmer's Opinion concerning the Protestant
Religion.

REligion hath such a Superiority above other things, and that ;
indispensable Influence upon all Mankind, that it is as neces- :
sary to our Living Happy in this World, as it is to our being
Sav'd in the next, without it man is an abandon 'd Creature, one '
of the worst Beasts Nature hath produc'd, and fit only for the :
Society of Wolves and Bears ; thu^^eia,^ AgesithaJtfaJbeen
the Foundation of Government : and tho' false Gods have been >
impos^d~uponTEe'nredulous part of the World, yet they were
Gods still in their Opinion, and the Awe and Reverence Men
had to them and their Oracles, kept them-within boundsL to-
wards one anpther, which the Laws with .all their Authority
could never have - effected without the help of Religion ; the
Laws would jiot. be able tq^subdue the perverseness of Mens
Wills", ^T iich are, Wilii-Bea^Sy-^adjec]uire^^ double Chain _
tp_ Jkeep—them^downi for this Reason ^tis said. That it is
not a sufficient ground to make War upon a^Neighbouring
StateTbecauselhey are'oF another Religion^ let it be_ never so
differing • yet if they Worship^noj- Ackngvdgdgs^no Deity at «.lly~.
they ma,y be Invaded as Publick Enerriies of Mankind, because
they reject the only thing that can bind tHem toUve.welLsEiHi^
one another; the consideration of Religion is so tvidsted with
thaTHTSovernment, that it is neverTqhe separated, "and tho the
FounditiorS" oT it ought to be Eternal and" UncKah"geabli','yer~
the Terms and" Circumstances of Disciphne, are to be suited to
the several Climates and Constitutions, so that they may keep
men in a willing Acquiescence unto them, without discomposing
theWorld by mce "disputes, wHicFcan never be of equal moment
with the publick Peace, ,,

Our Religittn here m England seemeth to be distinguished by
a peculiar Effect of God Almighty's goodness, in permiting it
to be introduc'd, or rather restored, by a more regular Method',
than the Circumstances of most other Reformed Churches would
allow them to do, in relation to the Government; and the

F a Dignity

68 The Character

Dignity with which it hath supported it self since, and the great
Men our Church hath produced, ought to recommend it to the
esteem of all Protestants at least : Our Trimmer is very partial
to it, for these Reasons, and many more, and desireth that it
may preserve its due Jurisdiction and Authority ; so far he is
from wishing it oppressed by the unreasonable and malicious
Cavils of those who take pains to raise Objections against it.

The Questions will then be, how and by what Methods this
Church shall best support it self (the present Circumstances
consider 'd) in relation to Dissenters of all sorts : I will first lay
this for a ground. That jLS_thgre^ can be no true Religion with-

out Charity, so there can be no true humane prudence without

bearing and condescension : This Principle doth not extend to~
oblige the Church always to yield to those who are disposed to
Contest with her, the expediency_ofjloin^it is to b£ considered
and detprmi ned accQ rdJrg to the _Qccg,sinri, and this leads me to^
lay'open the thoughts of our Trimmer, in reference first, to the
Protestants, and then to the Popish Recusants.

What hath lately hapned among us, maketh an Apology
necessary for saying any thing that looketh like favour to-
wards a sort of Men who have brought themselves under such
a disadvantage.

The late Conspiracy hath such broad Symptoms of the dis-
affection of the whole Party, that upon the first reflections,
while our thoughts are warm, it would almost perswade us to
put them out of the protection of our good Nature, and to
think that the Christian Indulgence which our compassion for
other Mens Sufferings cannot easily deny, seemeth not only to
be forfeited by the ill appearances that are against them, but
even becometh a Crime when it is so misapplied ; yet for all
this, upon second and cooler thoughts, moderate Men will not
be so ready to involve a whole Party in the guilt of a few, and
to admit inferences and Presumptions to be Evidence in a Case, ^
where the Sentence must be so heavy, as it ought to be_against
alL those who have a fixed resolution against the Government _
established: besides. Men" who act by a Principle grounded I
upon Moral Vertue, can never let it be _cLearly extinguisbed^-by |

the j

of a Trimmer. 69

the^most^j^peated Provocations ; if a right thing agreeable to/-
Nature and good Sense taketh root in the heart of a Man thatjj
is impartial and unbyass'd, no outward Circumstances can everi
destroy it ; it is true, the degrees of a Mans Zeal for the Prosecu-?
tion of it may be differing ; the faults of other Men, the con-
sideration of the publick, and the seasonable Prudence by which
Wise Men will ever be directed^ may give great Allays ; they
may lessen and for a time perhaps suppress the exercise of that,
which in general Proposition may be reasonable, but still what-
ever is so will inevitably grow and spring up again, having
a Foundation in Nature, which is never to be destroyed.

Out Trimmer therefore endeavoureth to separate the detesta-
tion of those who had either a hand or a thought in thejaie-
Plot, from the Principle of Prudential as well as Christian
Chanty towards Mankind, and for that reason would fain use
the means of reclaiming such of the Dissenters as are not in-
curable, and even of bearing to a degree those that are, as far as
may consist vidth the Publick Interest and Security; he. is far
from justifying an affectedT separation from the Communian o:^
the Church, and even in those that mean well and are mistaken,
he looketh upon it as a Disease, that hath, seized upon. tkeir
Minds, very troublesonie as .j«ell as dangerous, by the Conse-
quence it may produce: he doth not go about to excuse. their
making^ it an indispensable duty, to meet in numbers^tosay
their Prayers; such meetings may prove mischievous to the
.-Stejgj-at least the Laws, which are the best Judges, have
determined that there is danger iathem: he hath good nature
enough to lament that the perversness of a Part should, have,
drawn Rigorous Laws upon the whole Body of the Dissenters,
but wBeiTthey are once niade no private QginiOT ^musJ,,jJiaa£LilL,
OpposiFion to them ; if they arein Jthemselves reasonaWg^Jiifi^
are in that respeclTp'be regarded, even without being enjoyned i
if by the Change of Time and^ Circumstances they should be-
comeless reasonableTHan when they were first made, even then
thefare to be obey'd too, because they are Laws, till they are^
mended^or repealed by the same Authority that Enacted them.
He hath too much deference to the Oonstitutfenn'Tjf -our

Government,

70 The Character

Government, to wish for more Prerogative Declarations in
favour of scrupulous Men, or to dispence vpith Penal Lavrs in
such manner, or to such an end, that suspecting Men might
with some reason pretend, that so hated a thing as Persecution
could never make way for it self with any hopes of Success,
otherwise than hy preparing the deluded World by a false
prospect of Liberty and Indulgence. The inward Springs and
Wheels whereby the Engine moved, are now so fully laid open
and expos'd that it is not supposable that such a baffled Ex-
periment should ever be tryed again ; the effect it had at the
time, and the Spirit it raised, will not easily be forgotten, and
it may be presumed the remembi-ance of it may secure us from
any more attempts of that Nature for the future; we_Slust-uo ^
more break a Lraw to give Men ease, than we are. loulmflg^rEtr ...
House with a devout intention of giving the plunder to the~
Poor ; in this case, our Compassion would be as ill directed, as~
our Charity in the other.

In short, the veneration due to the^ Laws is never to„be thrown
offj let the pretences be never so specious ; yet with all this he
cannot bring himself to think, that an extraordinary diligence to
take the uttermost penalty of Laws, upon the poor offending
Neighbour, is of it self such an all sufficient vertue, that without"
any thing else to recommend Men, it should Entitle them to
all kind of Preferments and Rewards; he would not detract
from the merits of those who execute the Laws, yet he cannot
think such a piece of service as this, can entirely ^hange the
Mauj and either make him a better Divine, or a jnore knowing
Magistrate than he was before,,x&pecially if it be done vidth a
partial and unequal hand in Reverence to greater and rnpre
dangerous Offenders.

Our Trimmer would have those mistaken Men.xeady to tbrOF
themselves into the arms of the Church, and he would have
those arms as ready to receive them that shall come to us ; he
would have no supercilious look to fright those strayed Sheep
from coming into the Fold again ; no ill-natui-'d maxims of an
Eternal suspicion, or a belief that those who have once been in
the vn-ong can never be in the right again ; but a visible prepara-
tion

CCi^-

of a Trimmer. 7 1

tion of mind to receive with joy all the Proselytes that come
amongst us, and much -ffreateo:^ earnestness to reclaim than
punish thenij^ It is to be confessed, there Ti~a~great Ileal fb
forgive, a hard task enough for the Charity of a Church so pro-
voked ; but that must not cut off all hopes of being reconciled,
yet if there must be some anger left still, let it break out into
a Christian RevengeT^aiTd by being kinder to the Children of
Disobedience than they deserve, let the injurM Church Triumph,
by throwing shame and confusion of face upon them ; there
should not always be Storms and Thunder, a clear Sky would
sometime make the Church look more like Heaven^and woidd
„dp more towards the i-eclaiming those wanderers, than a per-
petual terrour, which seeinetb to have no intermission ; for there
is in many, and particularly in English Men, a mistaken
pleasure, in resisting the dictates of Rigorous Authority ; a;
Stomach that riseth against a hard imposition, nay, in some,
even a lust in suffering from a wrong point of Honour,
which doth not want the applause, from the greater part of
Mankind, who have not learnt to distinguish ; co nstancy w ill 1/
be thought a virtue even where it is a mistake ; and the ill ]>
Judging World will be apt to think that Opinion most^ I'ight,
which produceth the greatest nuuiberpLthpse who are drilling J
to suffer for it ; all this is prevented, and falleth to the ground,
by using well-timed Indulgence; and the stubborn Adversary
who valueth himself upon his Resistance whilst he is oppress' d,
yieldeth insensibly to kind Methods, when they are apply'd to
him, and the same Man naturally melteth into Conformity, who
perhaps would never have been beaten into it. We may be
taught by the Compassion that attendeth the most Criminal
Men when they are Condemned, that Faults are much more
natural things than Punishments, and that even the most
necessary acts of severity do some kind of violence to our
Nature, whose Indulgence will not be confined within the
strait bounds of inexorable Justice; so that this should be an
Argu ment for gentleness, besi^fi&Jthat^, it isJiieJiJi£li£st.way to ^ '
makejthese Men asharaM of their.Separation, whilst the pressing -■'
them too hard, tendeth rather to make them proud of it.

Our

72 The Character

Our TVimmer woiild have- the-Glergy-«ipperted-in_ their
Lawful Rights, and in all the Power and Dignity that belongeth
to them, and yet he thinketh that possibly there may be in
some of thein a too great eagerness^ to extend the Ecclesiastical
Jurisdiction ; which tho it may be well intended, yet the strain-
ing of it too high hath an appearance of Ambition that raiseth
mens Objections to it, and is so far unlike the Apostolick
Zeal, which was quite otherwise employ'd, that the World
draweth inferences from it, which do the Church no service.

He is troubled to see Men of all sides sick of a Calenture
of a mistaken Devotion, and it seemeth to him that the devout
Fire of mistaken Charity with which the Primitive Christians
were inflam'd, is long since extinguish'd, and instead of it a
devouring Fire of Anger and Persecution breaketh out in the
World ; we wrangle now one with another about Religion till
the Blood cometh, whilst the Ten Commandments have no
more authority with us, than if they were so many obsolete
Laws or Proclamations out of date; he thinketh that a Nation
will hardly be mended by Principles of Religion, where
Morality, is madft.. a Heresy; and therefore as he believeth
Devotion misplaced when it gets into a Conventicle, he con-
cludeth that Loyalty is so too, when lodg'd in a Drunken Club ;
thoseJVertues deserve a better Seat of Empire, and they are
degraded, when such Men undertake their defence, as have too
great need of an Apology themselves.

Our Trimmer vdsheth that some knowledge may go along
with the Zeal on the right side, and that those who are in
possession of the Pulpit, would quote at leasts so often the
Authority of the Scriptures as they do that of the State ; there are
many who borrow too often Arguments from the Government,
to use against their Adversaries, and neglect those that are
more proper, and would be more powerful ; a Divine groweth
less, and putteth a diminution on his own CharacJ;er, when he
quoteth any Law but that of Gfod Almighty, to get the better
of those who contest with him ; and as it is a sign of a decay'd
Constitution, when Nature with good diet cannot expel noxious
Humours without calling Foreign Drugs to her Assistance ;

So

of a Trimmer. 73

So itJookethJike.\rantoLJl£a]^^ when instead of

depending upon -the power of that TrutiTwhTchit holdeth, and
the goodJExamples of them that teach it^ to support it self, and
to suppress Errors, it should have a perpetual recourse to the
secular Authority, and even upon the slightest occasions.

Our Trimmer hath his Objections to the too busy diligence,
and to the overdoing of some of the dissenting Clergy, and he
doth as little approve of those of our Church, who wear God
Almighty's Liveries, as some old Warders in the Tower do the
King's, who do nothing in their place but receive their Wages
for it ; he thinketh that the Liberty of the late times gave men
so much Light, and diffused~lr"StrTiTitvCTsetHy---ttmongst the-
people, that they are not now to be dealt with, as they might
have been in Ages of less enquiry ; and therefore tho in some
well chosen and dearly beloved Auditories, good resolute Non-
sense back'd with Authority may prevail, yet generally Men
are hecomg so good Judges of what they hear, that the Clergy
ought to be very wary how they go about to impose upon their
Understandings, which are growrTTeis TmrnBTe T;han they were
in former times, when the Men in black had" made Learning such
a sin in the Laity, that for fear of offending, they made a Con-
science of being able to read; but nowJ;h.e. World- is grown
sawcy, and expecteth Reasons, and good ones too, before they
give up their own Opinions to athei" Mens Dictates, tho never
so Magisterially deliver'd to thenu

Our Trimmer is far from approving the H ypocrisie. which
seemeth to be the reigning Vice amongst, some xjltheJQissenting
Clergy, he thinketh it the most provoking sin Men can be
guilty of, in Relation to Heaven, and yet (which may seem
strange) that very sin _whichshall^jdestroy the. Soul of the Man
who preacheth, may help to save those of the Company that
hear him, and even those who are cheated by the f alse,Ostentar-
tion of his strictness of life, may by that Pattern b_e_en.CPuraged_.
to the real Practice of those Christian Vertues which he doth_
so deceitfully j)rofess; so that the detestation of this fault may
possibly be carry'd on too far by our own Orthodox Divines, if
they think it cannot be enough express'd without bending the

Stick

74 The Character

Stick another way ; a dangerous Method^ and a worse Extream
for Men of that Character, who by going to the outmost line
of Christian Liberty, will certainly encourage others to go
beyond it; No Man doth less approve the ill-bred Metliods
of some of the Dissenters, in rebuking Authority, who behave _
themselves as if they thought ill manners necessary to Salvation ;
yet he cannot but-di&ting.uish and desire a^Iean between thfi--^
sawcyness of some of the Scotch. Apostles, and the undecent
Courtship of some of the Silken Divines,..who, one would think,
do practice to bow at the Altar, only to learn to make, tbe better
Legs at Court.

Our Trimmer approveth the Principles of our Church, that
I Dominion is not founded in Grace, and that our Obedience _is_
jito be given to a Popish King in other things, at the same time
ijthat our Compliance with him in his Religion is to be deny'd;
yet he cannot but think it a very extraordinary thing if a
Protestant Church should by a voluntary Election, chuse a
Papist for their Guardian, and receive Directions for support-
ing their Religion, from one who must believe it a, Mortal Sin
not to endeavour to destroy it ; such a refined piece of Breeding
would not seem to be very well plac'd in the Clergy, who will
hardly find Precedents to justify such an extravagant piece of
Courtship, and which is so unlike the Primitive Methods,
which ought to be our Pattern ; he hath no such unreasonable
tenderness for any sorts of Men, as to expect their faults should
not be impartially laid open as often as they give occasion for
it ; and yet he cannot but smile to see that the same Man, who
setteth up all the Sails of his Rhetorick, to fall upon the Dis-
senters, when Popery is to be handled, he doth it so gingerly,
that he looketh like an Ass mumbling of Thistles, so afraid he
is of letting himself loose where he may be in danger of letting
his Duty get the better of his Discretion.

Our Trimmer is far from relishing the impertinent wandrings
of those who pour out long Prayers upon the Congregation,
and all from their own Stock, which God knoweth,,for the most
part is a barren Soil, which produceth weeds instead of Flowers,
and by this means they expose Religion it self, rather than

promote

of a Trimmer. 75

promote Mens Devotions : On the other side^ there may be
too great Restraint put upon Men, whom God and Nature
hath distinguished from their Fellow Labourers, by blessing!
them with a happier Talent, and, by giving them not only good
Sense^ but a powerful Utterance too, hath enabled them to gush
out upon the attentive Auditory, with a mighty stream of
Devout and unaffected Eloquence ; when a Man so qualified,
endued with Learning too, and above all, adorn'd with a good
Life, breaketh out into a warm and well delivei-'d Prayer before
his Sermon, it hath the appearance of a Divine Rapture ; he
raiseth and leadeth the Hearts of the Assembly in another
manner, than the most Compos'd or best Studied Form of set
Words can ever do ; and the Pray-wees, who serve up all their
Sermons with the same Garnishing, would look like so many
Statues, or Men of Straw in the Pulpit, compar'd with those
who speak with such a powerful Zeal^ that men are tempted
at the moment to believe Heaven it self hath dictated their
words to 'em.

Our Trimmer is not so unreasonably indulgent to the Dis-
senters7as to excuse the TlregulanHes^rtherr X^mptamfsTand"^
to ajj^prove theii- thi-eatning Stiles, which are so ill-suited to their
Circumstances as "well as to their Duty; he would have them
to shew their Grief, and not their Anger to the Government,
and by such a Submission to Authority, as becometh them,
if they cann_Qt_acquiesceJuLjdiaL is imposed, letjthein dgseiva.
a Legislaltive"Remedy to their Sufferings, there being no other
way to give them perfect redress f and either to seek it, or
pretend"torgive it by any other Method, w ould not only be
vainj^but Criminal too in those that go about it; yet with all
this, there may in the mean tinle be a prudential Latitude left,
as to the manner of prosecuting the Laws now in force against
them: The Government is in some degree answerable for
such an Administration of them, as may be free from the
Censure of Impartial Judges ; and in order to that, it would
be necessary that one of these methods be pursued, either to
let loose the Laws to their utmost extent, without any Modera-
tion or Restraint, in which at least the Equality of the Govern-
ment

76 The Character

nient would be without Objection, the Penalties being exacted
without Remission from the Dissenters of all kinds ; or if that
will not be done (and indeed there is no Reason it should) there
is a necessity of some Connivance to the Protestant Dissenters
to excuse that which in Humanity must be allowed to the
Papists, even without any leaning towards them, which must
not be supposed in those who are or shall be in the administra-
tion of publick Business ; and it will follow that, according to
our Circumstances, the distribution of such connivance must
be made in such a manner, that the greatest part of it may fall
on the Protestant side, or else the Objections will be so strong,
and the Inferences so clear, that the Friends, as well as the
Enemies of the Crown, will be sure to take hold of them.

It will not be sufficient to say that the Papists may be
conniv'd at, because they are good Subjects and that the
Protestant Dissenters must suffer because they are iU ones ;
these general Maxims will not convince discerning Men, neither
will any late Instances make tEem forget what passed at other
times in the World ; both sides have had their Turns in being
good and ill Subjects. And therefore 'tis easie to imagine what
suspicions would arise in the present conjuncture, if such a
partial Argument as this should be impos'd upon us ; the truth
is, this Matter speaks so much of it self, that it is not only
unnecessary, but it may be unmannerly to say any more
of it.

Our Trimmer therefore could wish, that since notwithstanding
the Laws which deny Churches to say Mass in,, not only the
Exercise, but also the Ostentation of Popery is as well or bettfX:;
performed in the Chappels of so many Foreign Ministers, where
the English openly resort in spight of Proclamations and Orders
of Council, which are grown to be as harmless things to them,
as the Popes Bulls and Excommunications are to Hereticks
who are out of his reach ; I say he could wish that by a
seasonable as well as an equal piece of Justice, there might
be so much consideration had of the Protestant Dissenters, as
that there might be at some times, and at some places, a Veil
thrown over an Innocent and retired Conventicle; and that

such

of a Trimmer. 77

such an Indulgence might he.practis'd with less prejudice to
the^ehurcK^ or diminutiaiLla-tlie-iiawsj-it might be done so as
to loOtr rather like a kind Omission to enquire more strictly^
than an allow'd Toleration of that which is against the Rule
established. .__

Such a skilful hand as this is very Necessary in our Circum-
stances, and the-fioxemment by making no sort of Men entirely
desperate^, doth not only secure it self from Villainous attempts,
but lay such^Foundatipn for healiug..aBd-umting. Laws, when
ever a Parlkment shaJX^ meet, .thajt^the Seeds JiL D ifferences and
Animosities between the several contending aideajaay- (Heaven
consenting) be for ever destroyed.

The Trimmer's Opinion concerning the Papists.

TO speak of Popery leadeth me into such a Sea of Matter, that
it is not easie to forbear launching into it, being invited by
such a fruitful Theme, and by a variety never to be exhausted ;
but to confine it to the present Subject, I will only say a short
word of the Religion it self ; of its influences hei'e at this time ;
and of our Trimmer^ & Opinion in Rela tion to our^ manner of
living vpith them.

if a Man^buld speak Maliciously of this Religion, one may ,
say it is like those Diseases, where as long as one dropT)f-ther
infection remaineth, there is still danger of having the whole .
Mass of Blood corrupted by it. In Swedeland there was an (
absolute cure, and nothing of Popery heard of, till Queen
Christina, (whether mov'd by Arguments of this or the other
World may not be good Manners to enquire) thought fit to
change her Religion and Country, and to live at Rome, where
she might find better judges of her Virtues, and less ungentle
Censures of those Princely Liberties to which she was some-
times disposed, than she left at Stockholme, where the good
breeding is as much inferior to that of Rome in general, as the
Civility of the Religion^ the Cardinals having rescued the Church

from

78 The Character

from those Clownish Methods the Fishermen had first intro-
duc'd, and mended that Pattern so effectually, that a Man of
that Age, if he should now come into the World, would not
possibly know it.

In Denmark the Reformation was entire ; in some States of
Germany, as well as Geneva, the Cure was universal; but in
the rest of the World where the Protestant Religion took place,
the Popish humour was too tough to be totally expell'd, and so
it was~m~Enffland, tEo'^He Change was made with all the
advantage imaginable to the Reformation, it being CoutttenangM^
and introduced by Legal Authority, and by that means, might
have been perhaps as perfect as in any other Place, if the short
Reign of Edward the 6th, and the succession of a Popish Queen
had not given such advantage to that Religion, that it hath
subsisted ever since under all the hardships that have been put
upon it; it hath been a strong Compact Body, and made the
more so by these Sufferings; it was no t stroBg.jeiiojjLglLto pre--:,
vail, but it was able, witli,the help of foreign support, to carry
on an Interest which gave the Crown trouble, and to make
a considerable (not to say dangerous) Figure in the Nation ;
so much as this could not have been done without some hopes,
nor these hopes kept up without some reasonable grounds : In
iQueen Elizabeth's time, the Spanish Zeal for their Religion,
a.nd the Revenge for 88, gave warmth to the Papists here, and
above all the Right of the Queen of Scots to succeed, was while
she lived sufficient to give them a better prospect of their
Affairs : In King James's time their hopes were supported by
the Treaty of the Spanish Match, and his gentleness towards
them, which they were ready to interpret more in their own
Favour, than was either reasonable or became them, so little
tenderness they have, even where it is most due, if the Interest
of their Religion cometh in competition with it.

As for the late King, tho he gave the most glorious Evidence
that ever Man did of his being a Protestant, yet, by the more
than ordinary Influence the Queen was thought to have over
him, and it so happening that the greatest part of his Anger
was directed against the Puritans, there was such an advantage

to

of a Trimmer. 79

to Men dispos'd to suspect, that they were ready to interpret
it a leaning towards Popery, without which handle it was
Morally impossible, that the ill-affected part of the Nation
could ever have seduc'd the rest into a Rebellion.

That vvhich help'd to confirm many well meaning Men in
their Misapprehensions of the King, was the long and unusual
interniission of Parliaments j so that every year that parsed
withouf one, made up a new Argument to increase their
Suspicion, and mcTdB them pi^sume that the Papists had a_
principal hand in keeping them off; This raised such Heats
in Mens Minds, to think that Men who were obnoxious to the
Laws, instead of being punished, should have Credit enough
to secure themselves, even at the price of destroying the
Fundamental Constitution, that it broke out into a Flame,
which before it could be quenched, had almost reduc'd the
Nation to Ashes.

'Amon gst the miserable E ffects of that unnatural War, none
hath been more fatal to uSj than the forcing our Princes to"
breathe in another Air, and to receive the early impressions of
a Foreign Education; the Barbarity of the English, towards
the King and the Royal Family, might very well tempt him
to think the better of every thing he found abroad, and might
naturally produce more gentleness, at least, towards a Religion
by which he was hospitably received, at the same time that he
was thrown off and Persecuted by the Protestants, (tho' his
own Subjects, to aggravate the Offence). The Queen Mother,
(as generally Ladies do with Age) grew most devout and earnest
in her Religion ; and besides the temporal Rewards of getting
larger Subsidies from the French Clergy, she had Motives of
another kind, to perswade her to shew her Zeal ; and since by
the Roman Dispensatory, a Soul converted to the Church is
a Soveraign Remedy, and layeth up a mighty stock of merit,
she was solicitous to secure her self in all Events, and there-
fore first set upon the Duke of Glocester, who depended so
much upon her good will, that she might for that reason have
been induc'd to believe, the Conquest would not be difficult;
but it so fell out, that he either from his own Constancy, or

that

8o The Character

that he had those near him by whom he was otherways advis'd,
chose rather to run away from her importunity, than by staying
to bear the continual weight of it : It is believ'd she had better
success with another of her Sons, who, if he was not quite
brought off from our Religion, at least such beginnings were
made, as made them very easie to be finish'd; his being of
a generous and aspiring Nature, and in that respect, less patient
in the drudgery of Arguing, might probably help to recommend
a Church to him that exempts the Laity from the vexation
of enquiring; perhaps he might (tho by mistake) look upon
that Religion as more favourable to the enlarged Power of
Kings, a consideration which might have its weight with a
young Prince in his warm blood, and that was brought up
in Arms.

I cannot hinder my self from a small digression, to consider
with admiration, that the old Lady of Rome, with all her
wrinkles, should yet have Charms, able to subdue great Princes;
so far from handsome, and yet so imperious ; so painted, and
yet so pretending ; after having abus'd, depos'd, and murther'd
so many of her Lovers, she still findeth others glad and proud
of their new Chains ; a thing so strange to indifferent Judges,
that those who will allow no other Miracles in the Church of
Rome, must needs grant that this is one not to be contested ;
she sitteth in her Shop, and selleth at dear Rates her Rattles
and her Hobby-Horses, whilst the deluded World still con-
tinueth to furnish her with Customers.

But whither am I carried with this Contemplation ? it is
high time to return to my Text, and to consider the wonderful
manner of the Kings coming home again, led by the hand of
Heaven, and called by the Voice of his own People, who
received him, if possible, with Joys equal to the Blessing of
Peace and Union which his Restauration brought along with
it ; by this there was an end put to the hopes some might have
abroad, of making use of his less happy Circumstances, to
throw him into Foreign Interests and Opinions, which had
been wholly inconsistent with our Religion^ our Laws, and all
other things that are dear to us ; yet for all this some of those

Tinctures

of a Trimmer. 8i

Tinctures and impressions might so far remain as, tho' they
were very innocent in him, yet they might have ill effects here,
by softning the Animosity which seemeth necessary to the
Defender of the Protestant Faith, in opposition to such a
powerful and irreconcilable an Enemy.

You may be sure, that among all the sorts of Men. who
apply'd themselves to the King at his first coming home, for
his Protection, the Papists were not the last, nor as they fain
would have flatter'd themselves, the least welconie, having
their past Sufferings, as well as their present Professions to
recommend them ; and there was something that looked like
a particular Consideration of them, since it so happened, that
the Indulgence promised to Dissenters at Breda, was carried on
in such a manner, that the Papists were to divide with them ;
and tho' the Parliament, notwithstanding its Resignation to
the Crown in all things, rejected with scorn and anger a
Declaration framed for this purpose, yet the Birth and steps
of it gave such an alarm, that Mens suspicions once raised,
were not easily laid asleep again.

To omit other things, the breach of the Tripple League, and
the Dutch War with its appurtenances, carried Jealousies to
the highest pitch imaginable, and fed the hopes of one Party
and the fears of the Other to such a degree, that some Critical
Revolutions were generally expected, when the ill success of
that War, and the Sacrifice France. thought ^t to make of the
Papists here to their own interest abroad, gave them another
Qheck; and the Act of ffi]6ynihg"tKe Test to all in .Offices,
was thought to be no ill Bargain to the, Nation, tho' bought
at the Price of 1200000 pound, and the Money apply'd to
continue the War against the Dutch, than whicTi nothing could
be more unpopular or less approved. Notwithstanding these
discouragements. Popery is _ a Plant that may be^.jn^^gi„
do^iji.but the Root will still remain, and in spite of the. Laws,
it-will .sprout up and grow again ; especially if it should
happen that there should bejklen in Power, who in weeding
it out of our Garden, will take care to Cherish and keep it
alive J and tho' the Law fqr^ excluding them from Places of

HAI.IFAI G Trust

82 The Character

Trust was tolerably kept as to their outward Form, yet there
were many Circumstances, which being improved by the quick-
sighted Malice of ill affected Men, did help to keep up the
, World in their suspicions, and to blow up Jealousies to such
a height both in and out of Parliament, that the remembrance
of them is very unpleasant, and the Example so extravagant,
that it is to be hop'd nothing in our Age like it will be re-
attempted ; but to come closer to the Case in question : in this
Condition we stand with the Papists, what shall now be done,
according to our Trimmer's Opinion, in order to the better
Bearing this grievance, since as I have said before, there is no
hopes of being entirely free from it ; Papists we must have
among us, and if their Religion keep them fi'om bringing
honey to the Hive, let the Government try at least by gentle
means to take away the Sting from them. The first Founda-
tion to be laid is, that a distinct Consideration is to be had
of the Popish Clergy, who have such an sternal Interest against_
all accommodation, that it is a hopeless thing to propose any
thing to them less than all ; their Stomachs have been set for
it ever since the Reformation, they have pinned themselves to
a Principal that admits no mean : they believe Protestants
will be damn'd, and therefore by an extraordinary Effect of
Christian Charity, they would destroy one half of England that
the other might be saved ; then for this World, they must be
in possession for Gfod Almighty, to receive his Rents for him,
not to accompt till the Day of Judgment, which is a good
kind of Tenure, and ye cannot well blame the good Men, that
will stir up the Laity to run any hazard in order to the getting
them restor'd. What is it to the Priest, if the deluded Zealot
undoeth himself in the Attempt ? he singeth Masses as jollily,
and with as good a Voice at Rome or St. Omers as ever he
did ; is a single Man, and can have no wants but such as
may be easily supply' d, yet that he may not seem altogether
insensible, or ungrateful to those that are his Martyrs, he is
ready to assure their Executors, and if they please, will procure
a Grant sub Annulo Piscatoris, that the good Man by being
hanged, hath got a good Bargain, and sav'd the singeing of

some

of a Trimmer. 83

some hundred of years, whLch he would else have had in
Purgatory. There's no Cure for this Order of Men, no Ex-
pedient to be propos'd, so that tho the utmost severity of
the Laws against them may in some sort be mitigated, yet no
Treaty can Jje made with Men who in this Case havaleft them-
selves BO. free.3Ell^but"are so muffled' by Zeal, tyed by Vows,
and kept up by such unchangeable Maxims of the Priesthood,
that they are to be left as desperate Patients, and look'd upon
as Men that will continue in^aa-Etemal State oi. Hostility, till
the Nation., is .entirely subdued to them, Itis then only the
Lay Papists that are capable of being treated with, and we are
to examine of what temper they are, and what Arguments are
the most likely to prevail upon them, and how far 'tjs advise-
able for the Government to be Indulgent to them ; the Lay
Pagistagenei-ally keep their Religion, rather because they will
not break Company with those of their Party, than out of any
settled Zeal that hath Root in them ; most of them do by the
Mediation of the Priests Marry amongst one another, to keep
up an Ignorant Position by hearing only one side ; others by
a mistake look upon it as they do upon Escutcheons, the more
Antient Religion of the two ; and as some Men of a good
Pedigree will despise meaner Men, tho' never so much superior
to them by Nature, so t hese u ndervaiue-RefQiination as an
Upstart, and think there is more Honour in supporting an _old
Errour, than in embracing what seemeth to them to be a new
Truth ; the Laws have made them Men of Pleasure, by ex-
cluding them from Publick Business, and it happeneth well
they are so, since they will the more easily be perswaded by
Arguments of Ease and Conveniency to them ; they have not
put off the Man in general, nor the Englishman in particular,
those who in the late storm against them went into other
Countries, tho they had all the Advantage that might recom-
mend them to a good Reception, yet in a little time they chose
to steal over again, and live here with hazard, rather than
abroad with security. There is a Smell in our Native Earth,
better than all the Perfumes in the East ; there is something
in a Mother, tho never so Angry, that the Children will more

G 2 naturally

84 The Character

naturally trust Her, than the Studied Civilities of Strangers,
let them be never so Hospitable ; therefore 'tis not adviseable
nor agreeing with the Rules of Governing Prudence, to provoke
Men by hardships to forget that Nature, vi'hich else is sure to
be of our side.

When these Men by fair Usage are put again into their right
Senses, they will have quite differing Reflections from those
which Rigour and Persecution had raised in them : A Lay
Papist will first consider his Abby-Lands, which notwithstand-
ing whatever hath or can be alledged, must sink considerably in
the Value, the moment that Popery prevails ; and it being a
disputable Matter, whether Zeal might not in a little time get
the better of the Law in that case, a considering Man will
admit that as an Argument to perswade him to be content with
things as they are, rather than run this or any other hazard by
Change, in which perhaps he may have no other Advantage,
than that his now humble Confessor may be raised to a
Bishoprick, and from thence look down superciliously upon
his Patron, or which is worse, run to take Possession for God
Almighty of his Abby, in such a manner as the usurping Land-
lord (as he will then be called) shall hardly be admitted to be
so much as a Tenant to his own Lands, lest his Title should
prejudge that of the Church, which will then be the Landlord ;
he will think what disadvantage 'tis to be looked upon as a
separate Creature, depending upon a Foreign Interest and
Authority, and for that reason, expos'd to the Jealousie and
Suspicion of his Country-men ; he ■^l reflect what an Incum-
brance it is to have his House a Pasture for hungry Priests to
graze in, which have such a never-failing Influence upon the
Foolish, which is the greatest part of every Man's Family, that
a Man's Dominion, even over his own Children, is mangled,
and divided, if not totally undermin'd by them; then to Jbe
subject^tojvhat^ Arbitrary Taxes the Popish Convocation shall
impose upon him for the carrying" on_the Commo n In teregtTif~
that Religion, under Penalty of being mark'd out for half an
Heretick by the rest of the Party ; to have no share in B^iisipess,,
no opportunity of shewing his own Value 4:0- the~W«rW-; to live-

at

of a Trimmer. 85

at the best an useless, and hy others to he thought a dangexous
Me niher of the N ation where he is born, is a Furthen to a
generous Mind that cannot be taken 'oirBy"all the Pleasure of a
lazy unmanly life, or by the nauseous enjoyment of a dull Plenty,
that produceth no food for the Mind, which will be considered j
in the first place by a Man that hath a Soul ; when he shall J ,
think, that if _hia„BfiligiaQ^ititeiuhi& wading through a. Sea- af /
Blood, come at last to prevail, it would infinitely- lessen, if
not SriBfe]y~d^stroy--the Glory, Riches, Strength and Liberty
of his" bwii Country, and what a Sacrifice is this to make to
Rome, where they are wise enough to wonder there should be
such Fools in the World, as to venture, struggle, and contend,
nay even die Martyrs for that which, should it succeed, would
prove a Judgment instead of a Blessing to them ; he will con-
clude that the advantages of throwing some of their Children
back again to God Almighty when they have too many of them,
are not equal to the Inconveniencies they may either feel or fear,
by continuing their separation from the Religion established.

TempjaEalJiuiig&. will have Jheir weight in thp, W orld, and
tho Zeal may prevail for a time, and get the better in a Skir-
mish, yet the War endeth generally on the side of Flesh and
Blood, and will do so till Mankind is another thing than it is at
present : And therefore a wise Papist in cold Blood, considering
these and many other Circumstances, which 'twill be worth his
pains to see if he can unmuffle himself from the Mask of

InfalUbility, will think it reasonable to set his Impris on'd Sense s,

at Libei-tyjand that he hath a right to see with his. own. Eye%
hear with his own Ears, and judge by his own Reason ; the
consequence of which might probably be, that weighing things
in a right Scale, and seeing them in their true Colours, he

would distinguish J)etweeu^_ the merit. .of _ suffering ,^ a._gQod ,„„

Cause, and the foolish ostentation of dra wing in conv eniences -
n ppn JhiiTigp l f ; and therefore wIllTJoTbe uh wiliing to_b£j[;nnvinc',d-j — —
that our Protestant _Creed_may- make him happy jua. the other j__^
World, and the easier in this. A few q f juch wise Proselytes
would by their fe»!»ple»draw^-«0-«iany-aftfiX. them, that the
Party would insensibly melt away^ and in a little time, without
any

86 The Character

any angry word, we should come to an Union that aJl Goad
Men would have Reason to rejoyce at^^buTlre are not to pre-
sume upon these Conversions, without preparing Men for them
by kind and reconciling Arguments ; nothing is so against our
Nature, as to believe those can be in the right who are too hard
upon us ; there is a deformity in every thing that doth us hurt,
it will look scurvily in our Eye while the smart continueth, and
a Man must have an extraordinary Measure of Grace, to think
well of a Religion that reduceth him and his Family to Misery ;
in this respect our Trimmer would consent to, the mitigation
of such Laws as were made (as it is said King Henry VIII. got
Queen Elizabeth) in a heat against Rome : It may be said that
even States as well as private Men are subject to Passion ; a just
indignation of a villainous Attempt produceth at the same time
, such Remedies, as perhaps are not without some mixture of
' Revenge, and therefore the time cannot Repeal a Law, it may -
' by a Natural Effect soften the Execution of it ; there is less
danger to Rouse a Lyon when at Rest, than to awake Laws that
were intended to have their times of Sleeping, nay more than
that, in some Cases their Natural periods of Life, dying of them-
selves without the Solemnity of being revok'd any otherwise
than by the common consent of Mankind, who do cease to
Execute when the Reasons in great Measure fail that first
/Created and JustifyM the Rigour of such unusual Penalties.
^ Our Trimmer is not eager to pick out some places in His-
tory against this or any other Party ; quite contrary, is very
sollicitous to find out any thing that may be healing, and tend ,
to an_Agre£ment ; but tO- prescribe the means of this Gentleness
so as to make it effectual, mus^come fromjhe only place that-
can furnish Reniedies for this Cure, viz. a Parligojieut ; in_the_
mean time, it is to be wished there may be such a mut ual calm-_
ness of Mind, as that the Protestants might not be so jealous^
as still to smell the Match that was to blove up the JKing^and-
both Houses in the Gunpowder Treason, or to start at every
appearance of Popery, as if it were just taking Possession. On
the other side, let not the Papists suffer themselves to be led
by any hopes, tho never so flattering/ to a Confidence or Osten-
tation

of a Trimmer. 87

tation which must provoke Men to be less kind to them ; let
them use Modesty on their sides^ and the Protestants Indul-
gence on theirs J and by this means there would be an over-
looking of all Venial FaultSj atacit-£onnivence at alllhings that
do not carry Scandalwith them, ani would amount to a kind
of Natural Dispensation with the severe Laws, since therewould
be no more Accusers to be foun37when the occasions of Anger
and Animosity are once remov'd ; let the Papists in the mean
time remember, that there is a respect due from jalL lesser
nuiibers to greater, a defei'ence to be paid by an Opinion that,
is ExplodeJ, to one that is Established; such j.JEhotigfat' well
drgested will have an influence upon their Behaviour, and pro-
duce such a Temper as must win the most eager Adversaries out
of their ill Humour to them, and give them a Title to all the
Favour that may be consistent with the Publick Peace ajid
Security. "■ ^"^

The Trimmer's Opinion in Relation to things

abroad.

THE World is so compos' d, that it is hard, if not impossible,
for a Nation not to be a great deal involved in the fate of
their Neighbours, and tho by the felicity of our Situation, we
are more Independant than any other People, yet we have in all
Ages been concern'd for our own sakes in the Revolutions
abroad. There was a time when England was the over
balancing Power of Christendom, and that either by Inheritance
or Conquest, the better part of France receiv'd.Laws from us ;
after that we being reduc'd into our own Limits, France and
Spain became the Rivals for the Universal Monarchy, and our
third Power, tho in it self less than either of the other, hapned
to be Superiour to any of them, by that choice we had of throw-
ing the Scales on that side to which we gave our Friendship. I
do not know whether this Figure did not make us as great as
our former Conquest ; to be a perpetual Umpire of two great

contending

88 The Character

contending Powers, who gave us all their Courtship, and ofEer'd
all their Incense at our Altar, whilst the Fate of either Prince
seemed to depend upon the Oracles we delivered ; for the King
of England to sit on his Throne, as in the Supream Court of
Justice, to which the two great Monarchs appeal, pleading their
Cause, and expecting their Sentence declaring which side was
in the right, or at least if we pleas'd which side should have the
better of it, was a piece of Greatness which was peculiar to us,
and no wonder if we endeavoured to preserve it, as we did for
a considerable time, it being our Saf etj^ as well as Glory, to
maintain it ; but by a Fatality upon our Councils, or by the re-
fin'd Policy of this latter Age, we have thought fit to use
industry to destroy this mighty Power, which we have so long
enjoyed ; and that equality between the Two Monarchs, which
we might for ever have preserved, hath been chiefly. bmkeaJjy-
us,_whose Interest it was above all others to maintain it ; when
one of them, like the overflowing of the Sea, had gained more
upon the other than our convenience, or indeed our safety,
would allow, instead of mending the Banks, or making new
ones, we our selves with our own hands helpt to cut them, to
invite and make way for a farther Inundation. France and
Spain have had their several turns in making use of ourMjstakes,
and we have been formerly as deaf to the Instances of the then
weaker part of the World to help them against the House of
Austria, as we can now be to the Earnestness of Spain, that we
would assist them against the Power of France. Gondamar was
as sawcy, and as powerful too in King James his Court, as any
French Ambassadour can have been at any time since ; Men
talked as wrong then on the Spanish side, and made their Court
by it as Avell as any can have done since by talking as much for
the French ; so that from that time, instead of weighing in
a wise Balance the power of either Crown, it looketh as if we
had learnt only to weigh the Pensions, and take the heaviest.

It \vould be tedious, as well as unwelcome, to recapitulate all
our wrong steps, so that I will go no farther than the King's
Restauration, at which time the Balance was on the side of
France, and that by the means of Cromwell, who for^ separate

Interest

of a Trimmer. 89

Interest of his own had sacrificed that of the Nation, by joining *
with the stronger side^ to suppress the Power of Spain, which
he ought to have supported. Such a Method was natural
enough to an Usurper, and shew'd he was not the Lawful Father
of the People, by his having so little c are of them ; and the
Example coming from that hand, one would think should, for
that Reason, be less likely to be foUow'd. But to go on, home
cometh the King, followed with Courtships from all Nations
abroad, of which some did it not only to make them forget how
familiarly they had us'd him when he was in other Circumstances,
but to bespeak the Friendship of a Prince, who b esides hisj)ther
Greatness,^was yet more considerable by^ being re-established by
the love of his people. France had an J[nterest^ either to dispose
us to so much good will, or at least to put us into such a Con-
dition, that we might give no Opposition to their Designs ; and
Flanders being a perpetual Object in their Eye, a lasting Beauty ,
for which they have an incurable passion, and not being kind {
enough to consent to them, they meditated to commit a Rape
upon her, which they thought would not be easie to do, while
England and Holland were agreed to rescue her, when-ever they
should hear her cry out for help to them ; to this end they put
in practice Seasonable and Artificial Whispers, to widen things
between us and the States. Amboyna and the Fishery must be
talkM of here ; the freedom of the Seas, and the preservation of
Trade must be insinuated there ; and there being combustible
matter on both sides, in a little time it took Fire, which gave
those that kindled it, sufficient cause to smile and hug them-
selves, to see us both fall into the Net they had laid for us. And
it is observable and of good example to us, if we will take it.
That their Design being to set us together at Cuffs to weaken
us, they kept themselves Lookers-on till our Victories began to
break the Balance ; then the King of France, like a wise Prince,
waaj£SQlKedJo_sup^.Qrt.JiLe.-^beateDL side, and would, no more let
the Power of the Sea, than we ought to suffer the Monarchy of
Europe, to fall into one hand : In pursuance to this, he took
part with the Dutch, and in a little time made himself Umpire
of the Peace between us ; some time after, upon pretence of his

Queen's

90 The Character

Queen's Title to part of Flanders, by Right of Devolution, he
falleth into it with a mighty Force, for which the Spaniard was
so little prepared, that he made a very swift Progress, and
had such a Torrent of undisputed Victory, that England and
Holland, tho the Wounds they had given one another were yet
green, being struck with the apprehension of so near a danger
to them, thought it necessary, for their own defence, to make
up a sudden League, into which Sweden was taken to interpose
for a Peace between the two Crowns.

This had so good an effect, that France vfas stopt in its Career,
and the Peace of Aix le Chapelle was a little after concluded.
'Twas a forc'd put; and tho France wisely dissembled their
inward dissatisfaction, yet from that very moment they resolv'd
to unty the Triple knot, whatever it cost them ; for his
Christian Majesty, after his Conquering Meals, ever riseth
with a stomach, and he likM the Pattern so well, that it gave
him a longing desire to have the whole Piece. Amongst the
other means used for the attaining this end, the sending over
the Dutchess of Orleans, was not the least powerful ; she was
a very welcome Guest here, and her own Charms and Dexterity
joined with other Advantages that might help her perswasions,
gave her such an Ascendant, that she should hardly fail of
success. One of the Preliminaries of her Treaty, tho a trivial
thing in it self, yet was considerable in the Consequence, as
very small circumstances often are in relation to the Government
i of the World. About this time a general Humour, in opposition
to France, had made us throw off their Fashion, and put on
Vests, that we might look more like a distinct People, and not
be under the servility of imitation, which ever payeth a greater
deference to the Original, than is consistent with the Equality
all Independent Nations should pretend to ; France did not
like this small beginning of ill Humours, at least of Emulation,
and wisely considering that it is a natural Introduction first to
make the World their Apes, that they may be afterwards their
Slaves, it was thought that one of the Instructions Madam
brought along with her, was to laugh us out of these Vests ;
which she performed so effectually, that in a moment, like so

many

of a Trimmer. 91

many Footmen who had quitted their Masters Livery, we all
took it again, and returned to our old Service ; so that the very
time of doing it gave a very critical Advantage to France, since
it lookt like an Evidence j)f our returning^ to their I nterest , as
well as to their Fashion, and would give such a distrust of us
to our new Allies, that it might facilitate the dissolution of the
knot, which tied them so within their bounds, that they were
very impatient till they were freed from the restraint.

But the Lady had a more extended Commission than this and
without doubt laid the Foundation of a new strjct-AlKa-nce,
quite contrary to the other in which we had been so lately
engaged. And of this there were such early appearances, that
the World began to look upon us as falling intoApostacy from
the common Interes t. Notwithstanding all this, France did
not neglect at the same time to give good words to the Dutch,
and even to feed them with hopes of supporting them against
us, when on a sudden, that never to be forgotten Declaration of
War against them cometh out, only to vindicate his own Glory,
and to revenge the Injuries done to his Brother in England, by
which he became our Second in this Duel ; so humble can this
Prince be, when at the same time he doth us more Honour than
we deserve, he layeth a greater share of the blame upon our
Shoulders, than did naturally belong to us ; the particulars of
that War, our part in it while we staid in it, and when we were
out of breath, our leaving the French to make an end of it, are
things too well known to make it necessary, and too unwelcome
in themselves to incite me to repeat them ; only the wisdom of
France is in this to be observed. That when we had made
a separate Peace, which left them single to oppose the united
Force of the Confederates, they were so far from being angry,
that they would not shew so much as the least coldness, hoping
to get as much by our Mediation for a Peace, as they would
have expected from our Assistance in the War, our Circum-
stances at that time considered ; This seasonable piece of
Indulgence in not reproaching us, but rather allowing those
Necessities of State which we gave for our Excuse, was such
an engaging Method, that it went a great way to keep us still

in

92 The Character

in their Chains, when, to the Eye of the World, we had abso-
lutely broke loose from them : And by what pass'd afterwards
at Nimeguen, tho the King's Neutrality gave him the outward
Figure of a Mediator, it appear'd that his Interposition was
extremely suspected of Partiality by the Confederates, who upon
that Ground did both at and before the Conclusion of that
Treaty, treat his Ministers there with a great deal of neglect.
In this Peace as well as in that of the Pyreneans and Aix le
Chapelle, the King of France, at the Moment of making it, had
the thought of breaking it; for a very little time after he
broach'd his Pretensions upon Alost; which were things that
if they had been offer'd by a less formidable hand, would have
been smiled at; but ill Arguments being seconded by good
Armies, carry such a power with them, that naked sense Js
a very unequal Adversary. It was thought that these airy
Claims were chiefly rais'd with the prospect of getting Luxen-
burg for the Equivalent ; and this Opinion was confirm'd by the
blocking it up afterwards, pretending to the Country of Chimay,
that it might be entirely surrounded by the French Dominions,
and it was so pressed that it might have fallen in a little time,
if the King of France had not sent Orders to his Troops to
retire, and his Christian Generosity which was assign 'd for the
reason of it, made the World smile, since it is seen how differently
his devout Zeal worketh in Hungary : that specious Reason
was in many respects ill-tim'd, and France it self gave it so
faintly, that at the veiy time it look'd out of Countenance ;
the true ground of his Retiring is worth our observation ; for
at the instance of the Confederates, Offices were done, and
Memorials given, but all ineffectual till the word Parliament
was put into them ; that powerful word had such an effect, that
even at that distance it rais'd the Seige, which may convince us of
what efficacy the King of England's words are, when he wiU give
them their full weight, and threaten with his Parliament ; it is
then that he appeareth that great Figure we ought to represent
him in our Minds, t£e Nation his Body, he the Head, and joined
with-that; Harmony, that, every word he pronounceth^sthe^
Word of a Kingdom : Such words, as appeareth by this

Example,

of a Trimmer. ; 93

Example, are as effectual^ as JFleets_and Armies, because they
J-!*" P"^^**^ them, and without this his words sound abroad like
a faint Whisper, Jbhat_is either not heard, or (wh ich is worse)
npijainded. But tho France had made this step of forced
Compliance, it did not mean to leave off the pursuit of their
pretensions ; and therefore immediately proposed the Arbitration
to the King ; but it appear'd, that notwithstanding his Merit
towards the Confederates, in saving Luxenburg, the remem-
brances of what had passed before, had left such an ill taste in
their Mouths, that they could not Relish our being put into
a Condition to dispose of their Interests, and therefore declined
it by insisting upon a general Treaty, to which France hath
ever since continued to be averse ; our great earnestness also to
perswade the Confederates to consent to it, was so unusual, and
so suspicious a method, that it might naturally make them
believe, that France spake to them by our Mouth, and for that
Reason, if there had been no other, might hinder the accepting
it; and so little care hath been taken to cure this or other
Jealousies the Confederates may have entertain'd, that quite
contrary, their Ministers here every day take fresh Alarms,
from what they observe in small, as well as in greater Circum-
stances ; and they being apt both to take and improve appre-
hensions of this kind, draw such Inferences from them, as make
them entirely despair of us.

Thus we now stand, far from being Innocent Spectators of
our Neighbours Ruine, and by s-fetM mistake forgetting what_
a Certain JF|ore-runner it is to our own ; and now it is time our
Trimmer should tell something of his Opinion, upon this present
State of things abroad ; he first professeth to have no Biass,
either for or against France, and that his thoughts are wholly
directed byjhjlnteres^t ofjjis^o he alloweth, and

hath read that Spain used the same Methods, when it was in
its heighth, as France doth now, and therefore it is not Partiality
that moveth him, but the just fear which all reasonable Men
must be possess'd with, of an over-grovdng Power; Ambition
is a devouring Beast, when it hath swallowed one Province,
instead of being cloyed, it hath so much the greater Stomach

to

94 The Character

to another, and being fed, becometh still the more hungry ; so
that for the Confederates to expect a security from any thing
but their own united strength^ is a most miserable fallacy ; and
if they cannot resist the Incroachments of France by their Arms,
it is in vain for them to dream of any other means of preserva-
tion ; it would have the better grace, besides the saving so much
Blood and Ruin, to give up all at once ; make a Present of
themselves, to appease this haughty Monarch, rather than be
whisper'd, flatter' d, or cozened out of their liberty. Nothing is
so soft as the first applications of a greater Prince, to engage
a weaker, but that smiling Countenance is but a Vizard, it is
not the true Face; for as soon as their turn is serv'd, the Court-
ship flies to some other Prince or State, where the same part
is to be acted over again ; leaveth the old mistaken Friend to
Neglect and Contempt, and like an insolent Lover to a Cast off
Mistress, Reproaches her with that Infamy, of which he him-
self was the Author. Sweden, Bavaria, Palatine, 4"C. may by
their Fresh Examples, teach other Princes what they are
reasonably to expect, and what Snakes are hid under the
Flowers the Court of France so liberally throweth upon them
whilst they can be useful. The various Methods and deep
Intrigues, with the differing Notes in several Countries, do not
only give suspicion, but assurance that every thing is put in
Practice, by which universal Monarchy may be obtain'd. Who
can reconcile the withdrawing of his Troops from Luxenburg, in
consideration of the War in/Zaw^f art/, which wasnotthen declared,
and presently after encouraging the Turk to take Vienna, and
consequently to destroy the Empire ? Or who can think that
the Persecution of the Poor Protestants of France, will be
accepted of God, as an Atonement for hazarding the loss of
the whole Christian Faith ? Can he be thought in earnest, when
he seem'd to be afraid of the Spaniards, and for that reason
must have Luxenburg, and that he cannot be safe from Germany,
unless he is in possession of Strasburg} All Injustice and
Violence must in it self be grievous, but the aggravations of
supporting 'em by false Arguments, and insulting Reasons, has
something in it yet more provoking than the Injuries them-
selves ;

of a Trimmer. 95

selves ; and the World hath ground enough to apprehend, from
such a Method of arguing, that even their Senses are to be
subdu'd as well as their Liberties. Then the variety of Argu-
ments used by France in several Countries is very observable :
In England and Denmark, nothing insisted on but the Greatness
and Authority of the Crown ; on the other side, the Great Men
in Poland are commended, who differ in Opinion with the King,
and they argue like Friends to the Privilege of the Dyet, against
the separate Power of the Crown : In Sweden they are troubled
that the King should have chang'd something there of late, by
his single Authority, from the antient and settled Authority and
Constitutions : At Ratisbone, the most Christian Majesty taketh
the Liberties of all the Electors and fi-ee States into his
Protection, and telleth them the Emperour is a dangerous Man,
an aspiring Hero, that would infallibly devour them, if he was
not at hand to resist him on their behalf; but above all in
Holland, he hath the most obliging tenderness for the Common-
wealthy and is in such disquiets, lest it should be invaded by the
Prince of Orange, that they can do no less in gratitude, than
undo themselves when he bids them, to show how sensible they
are of his excessive good Nature ; yet in spight of all these
Contradictions, there are in the World such refin'd States-men,
as will upon their Credit affirm the following Paradoxes to be
real truth ; first that France alone is sincere and keepeth its
Faith, and consequently that it is the only Friend we can rely
upon ; that the King of France, of all Men living, hath the
least mind to be a Conqueror; that he is a sleepy, tame
Creature, void of all Ambition, a poor kind of a Man, that hath
no farther thoughts than to be quiet ; that he is charm'd by his
Friendship to us ; that it is impossible he should ever do us hurt,
and therefore tho Flanders was lost, it would not in the least
concern us ; that he would fain help the Crown of England to
be aBSStute, which would be to take pains to put it into a con-
dition to oppose him, as it is, and must be our Interest, as
long as he continueth in such an overballancing Power and
Greatness.

Such a Creed as this, if once receiv'd, might prepare our

belief

96 The Character

belief for greater things, and as he that taught Men to eat
a Dagger, began first with a Pen knife ; so if we can be prevail'd
with to digest the smaller Mistakes, we may at last make our
stomachs strong enough for that of Transubstantiation. Our
Trimmer cannot easily be converted out of his senses by these
State Sophisters, and yet he hath no such peevish Obstinacy as
to reject all Correspondence with France because we ought to
be apprehensive of the too great power of it ; he would not have
the kings Friendship to the Confederates extended to the in-
volving him in any unreasonable or dangerous Enga,gements,
neither would he have him lay aside the consideration of his
better establishment at home, out of his excessive Zeal to secure
his Allies abroad ; but sure there might be a Mean between
these two opposite Extreamg, and it may be wished .that our
Friendship with Prance should at least be so bounded, that it
may consist with the humour as well as the Interest of England.
There is no Woman but hath her fears of contracting too near
an intimacy with a much greater Beauty, because it exposeth
her too often to a Comparison that is not advantageous to her ;
and sure it may become a Prince to be as jealous of his Dignity,
as a Lady can be of her good looks, and to be as much out of
Countenance, to be thought an humble Companion to so much
a greater Power. Ta be always seen in an ill-Lighit,-lo be so
darkned by the brightness of a greater Star, is somewhat morti-
fying ; and when England might ride Admiral at the head of
the Confederates, to look like the Kitching- Yacht to the Grand
Louis, is but a scurvy Figure for us to make in the Map of
Christendom; it would rise upon our Trimmer' & stomach, if
ever (which God forbid) the power of calling and intermitting
Parliaments here should be transferred to the Crown of France,
and that all the opportunities of our own settlements at home
should give way to their Projects abroad, and that our Interests
should be so far sacrificed to our Compliance, that all the Omni-
potence of Ffance_c3XLJi&v3v_mpke}i^ iar it. In
the mean time, he shrinketh at the dismal prospect he can by
no means drive away from his thoughts, that when France hath
gathered all the fruit arising from our Mistakes, and that we

can

of a Trimmer. 97

can bear no more with them, they will cut down the Tree and
throw it into the fire. All this while, some Superfine States-
Men, to comfort us, would fain perswade the World that this
or that accident may save us,^and for all that is or ought to be
dear to us, would have us to rely wholly upon Chance, not con-
sidering that Fortune is ^Wisdoms Creature, and that God
Almighty loves to be on the Wisest as well as the Strongest side ;
therefore this is such a miserable shift, such a shameful Evasion,
that they would be laught to death for it, if the ruining Con-
sequence of this Mistake did not more dispose Men to rage, and
a detestation of it.

Our Trimmer is far from Idolatry in other things, in one
thing only he cometh near it, his Country is in some degree his
Idol ; he doth not Worship the Sun, because 'tis not peculiar to
us, it rambles about the World, and is less kind to us than
others ; but for the Earth of England, tho perhaps inferior to
that of many places abroad, to him there is Divinity in it, and
he would rather dye, than see a spire of English Grass trampled
down by a Foreign Trespasser : He thinketh there are a great^
many of his mind, for all plants are apt to taste of the Soyl in which
they grow, and we that grow here, have a Root that produceth
in us a Stalk of English Juice, which is not to be changed by
grafting or foreign infusion ; and I do not know whether any
thihg'lFss'^iirpirevaii, than the Modern Experiment, by which
the Blood of one Creature is transmitted into another ; accord-
ing to which, before the French blood can be let into our
Bodies, every drop of our own must be drawn out of them.

Our Trimmer cannot but lament, that by a Sacrifice too great
for one Nation to make to another, we should be like a rich
Mine, made useless only for want of being wrought, and Jthat^
the Life and Vigour which should move us against om- Enemies
is miserably apply'd to tear our own Bpwels; that being made
by our happy situation, not only safCTiJtnit_if_we_pleasexreater
too, than other Countries which far exceed us in extent; that
having Courage by Nature, Learning by Industry, and Riches
by Trade, we should corrupt all these Advantages, so as to make
them insignificant, and by a fatality which seemeth peculiar to

98 The Character

us, misplace our active rage one against another, whilst we are
turn 'd into Statues on that side where lieth our greatest danger ;
to be unconcern'd not only at our Neighbours ruine but our
own, and let our Island lie like a great Hulk in the Sea, without
Rudder or Sail, all the Men cast away in her, or as if we were all
Children in a great Cradle, and rockt asleep to a foreign Tune.

I say when our Trimmer representeth to his Mind, our
Roses blasted and discolour' d, whilst the Lilies Triumph and
grow Insolent upon the Comparison ; when he considereth our
own once flourishing Lawrel, now withered and dying, and
nothing left us but a remembrance of a better part in History
than we shall make in the next Age, which will be no more to
us than an Escutcheon hung upon our Door when we are dead ;
when he fftrjeseeth from hence growing Infamy from abroad,
cqnf usum at home , and all this without the possibility of a Cure,
in respect of the voluntary fetters good Men put upon
themselves by their Allegiance ; without a good measure of
preventing Grace, he would be tempted to go out of the World
like a Roman Philosopher, rather than endure the burthen of
Life under such a discouraging Prospect. But Mistakes, as all
other things, have their Periods, and many times the nearest way
to Cure, is not to oppose them, but stay till they are crusht with
their own weight : for Nature will not allow any thing to
continue long that is violent; violence is a wound, and as a
wound must be curable in a little time, or else 'tis Mortal, but
a Nation comes near to be Immortal, therefore the wound will
one time or another be cured, tho perhaps by such rough
Methods, if too long forborn, as may even make the best
Remedies we can prepare, to be at the same time a Melancholy
Contemplation to us ; there is but one thing (God Almighties
Providence excepted) to support a Man from sinking under
these aCaicting thoughts, and that is the hopes we draw singly
from the King himself, without the mixture of any other
consideration.

Tho the Nation was lavish of their Kindness to him at his first
coming, yet there remaineth still a stock of Warmth in Mens
Hearts for him. Besides, the good Influences of his happy

Planet

of a Trimmer, 99

Planet are not yet all spent, and tho the Stars of Men past their
youth are generally declining, and have less Force, hke the Eyes
of decaying Beauties, yet by a Blessing peculiar to himself, we
may yet hope to be sav'd by his Autumnal Fortune ; He hath
something about him that will draw down a heahng Miracle for
his and our Deliverance ; a Prince which seemeth fitted for such
an offending Age, in which Mens Crimes have been so general,
that the not forgiving his People had been the destroying of
them; whose Gentleness giveth him a natural Dominion that
hath no bounds, with such a noble mixture of Greatness and
Condescention, an engaging Look, that disarmeth Men of their ill
Humours, and their Resentments ; something in him that
wanteth a Name, and can be no more defined than it can be
resisted ; a Gift of Heaven, of its last finishing, where it will be
pecuUarly kind; the only Prince in the World that dares be
familiar, or that hath right to triumph over those forms which
were first invented to give awe to those who could not judge,
and to hide Defects from those that could ; a Prince that hath
exhausted himself by his Liberality, and endanger'd himself by
his Mercy ; who out-shineth by his own Light and natural
Virtues all the varnish of studied Acquisitions ; his Faults are
like Shades to a good Picture, or like Allay to Gold, to make
it the more useful ; he may have some, but for any Man to see
them through so many reconcihng Virtues, is a Sacrilegious
piece of ill nature, of which no generous Mind can be guilty ;
a Prince that deserveth to be lov'd for his own sake, even
without the help of a Comparison ; our Love, our Duty, and
our Danger all join to cement our Obedience to him ; in short,
whatever he can do, it is no more possible for us to be angry
with him, than with the Bank that secureth us from the raging
Sea, the kind Shade that hideth us from the scorching Sun,
the welcome Hand that reacheth us a Reprieve, or with the
Guardian Angel, that rescueth our Souls from the devouring
Jaws of wretched Eternity,

H 2 CON-

loo The Character

CONCLUSION.

TO Conclude, our Trimmer is so fully satisfy'd of the Truth
of those Principles by which he is directed in reference to
the Publick, that he will neither be Bawled, Threatned, Laught,
nor Drunk out of them ; and instead of being converted by the
Arguments of his Adversaries to their Opinions, he is very
much confirmed in his own by them ; he professeth solemnly
that were it in his Power to chuse^ he would rathej have his
Ambition bounded by the Commands of a Great and Wise
Master, than let it range with a Popular Licence, tho^ crown'd
with success ; yet he cannot commit such a Sinagainst_the
glorious thing call'd Liberty, noi^let his Soul stoop so much
below it self, as to be content without repining to have his
Reason wholly subdu'd, or theJPrivilege of Acting like a sensible
Creature torn from him by the imperious Dictates oFunlimited"
Authority, in what hand soever it happens Jo_be placM. What
is there in this that is so Criminal, as to deserve the Penalty of
that most singular Apophthegm, A Trimmer is worse than a
Rebel ? What do angry men ail to rail so against Moderation ;
<loth it not look as if they were going to some very scurvy
Extreme, that is too strong to be digested by the more
considering part of Mankind? These Arbitrary Methods,
besides the injustice ^fjhem, are (God be thanked) very
unskilful too, for they fright the Birds, by talking so loud,
from coming into the Nets that are laid for them ; and when
Men agree to rifle a House, they seldom give warning, or blow
a Trumpet ; but there are some small States-Men, who are so
full charg'd with their own Expectations, that they cannot
contain. And kind Heaven by sending such a seasonable Curse
upon their undertakings, hath made their ignorance an Antidote
against their Malice ; some of these cannot treat peaceably ;
yielding will not satisfy them, they vidll have men by storm ;
there are others, that must have Plots, to make their Service
more necessary, and have an Interest to keep them alive, since

they

of a Trimmer. loi

they are to live upon them ; and perswade the King to retrench

his own Greatness, so as .to. jhrink into _the_ head Qf_a

^Tty, which is the betraying him into such an Unprincely
mistake, and to such a wilful diminution of himself, that they
are the last Enemies he ought to allow himself to forgive ; such
Men, if they could, would prevail with the Sun to shine only
upon them and their Friends, and to leave all the rest of the
World in the dark ; this is a very unusual Monopoly, and may
come within the Equity of the Law^ which maketh it Treason
to Imprison the King, when such unfitting bounds are put to his
Favour, and he confin'd to the narrow limits of a particular set
of Men, that would inclose him ; these Honest and only Loyal
Gentlemen, if they may be allow'd to bear Witness for
themselves, make a King their Engine, and degrade_him into_a
property at the veiy time that their Flattery wpuld make him
believe they paid piyineJWoKship^ to him j besides these there is
a flying Squadron on both sides, that are afraid the World
should agree, small dabblers in Conjuring, that raise angry
Apparitions to keep Men from being reconciPd,, like Wasps that
fly up and down, buz and sting to keep Men unquiet ; but
these Insects are commonly short-liv^d Creatures, and no doubt
in a little time Mankind will be rid of them ; they were Gyants
at least who fought once against Heaven, but for such Pigmies
as these to contend against it, is such a provoking Folly, that
the insolent Bunglers ought to be laught and hist out of the
World for it ; they should consider tliere is a Soul in that great
body of the People, which may for a time be drowzy and
unactive, but when the Leviathan is rouz'd, it moveth like an
angry Creature^ and will neither be convinc'd nor resisted : the
People can never agree to shew their united Powers, till they
are extremely tempted and provoked to it, so that to apply
Cupping-Glasses to a great Beast naturally dispos'd to sleep,
and to force the Tame thing whether it will or no to be Valiant,
must be learnt out of some other Book thwa. _M.a chiavil, w ho
would never have prescrib'd such a preposterous Method. It is i
to be remembred, that if Princes have Law and Authority on !
their sides, the People on theirs may have Nature, which is a |
. - formidable

I02 The Character

formidable ..Adxeraaqr ; Dutjj^ Justice^ JReligion^ nay, even
Humane Prudence too, biddeth the People suffer any thing
'father than resist; but uncorrected Nature, where eire it feels
the smart will run to the nearest Remedy. Mens Passions in
this Case are to be consider'd as well as their Duty, let it be
never so strongly enforc'd, for if their Passions are provok'd,
they being as much a part of us as our Limbs, they lead Men
Unto a short way of Arguing, that admitteth no distinction,
land from the foundation of Self-Defence they will draw
.'Inferences that will have miserable effects upon the quiet of a
/ Government.

Our Trimmer therefore dreads a general discontent, because
; he thinketh it differeth from a Rebellion, only as a Spotted
Fever doth from the Plague, the same Species under a lower
degree of Malignity ; it worketh several ways ; sometimes like
a slow Poyson that hath its Effects at a great distance from the
time it was given, sometimes like dry Flax prepared to catch at
the first Fire, or like Seed in the ground ready to sprout upon
the first Shower ; in every sha£e_^is_fatal, and our Trimmer
thinketh no pains or precaution can be so great as to_prevent_it.

In short he thinketh himself in the right, grounding his
Opinion upon that Truth, which equally hateth to be under the
Oppressions of wrangling Sophistry of the one hand, or the
short dictates of mistaken Authority on the other.

Our Trimmer adoreth the Goddess Truth, tho' in all Ages she
hath been scurvily used, as well as those that Worshipped her ;
'tis of late become such a ruining Virtue, that Mankind seemeth
to be agreed to commend and avoid it ; yet the want of Practice
which Repealeth the other Laws, hath no influence upon the
Law of Truth, because it hath root in Heavep, and an Intrinsick
value in it self, that can never be impaired; she sheweth her
Greatness in this, that her Enemies even when they are
successful are asham'd to own it ; nothing but powerful Truth
hath the prerogative of Triumphing, not only after Victories,
but in spite of them, and to put Conquest her self out of
Countenance; she may be kept under and supprest, but her
Dignity still remaineth with her, even when she is in Chains ;

Falshood

of a Trimmer. 103

Falshood with all her Impudence hath not enough to speak ill
of her before her Face, such Majesty she carrieth about
her, that her most prosperous Enemies are fain to whisper their
Treason ; all the Power upon Earth can never extinguish her ;
she hath liv^d in all Ages ; and let the Mistaken Zeal of
prevailing Authority christen any opposition to it with what
Name they please, she maketh it not only an ugly and
unmannerly, but a dangerous thing to persist; she hath lived
very retired indeed, nay sometime so buried, that only some few
of the discerning part of Mankind could have a Glimpse of her ;
with all that she hath Eternity in her, she knoweth not how to
die, and from the darkest Clouds that shade and cover her, she
breaketh from time to time with Triumph for her Friends, and '■
Terrour to her Enemies.

Our Trimmer therefore inspired by this Divine Virtue,
thinketh fit to conclude with these Assertions, That our
Climate is a Trimmer, between that part of the World where
men are Roasted, and the other where they are Frozen ; That
our Church is a Trimme rJgsXsiJi Sia th e-£bf6Bzy-qf~PlatS5ieR"
Visions^ and the Lethargick Ignorance of Popish Dreams^; That
our Laws are Trimmers, between the Excess of unbounded
Power, and the Extravagance of Liberty not enough restramed ; -
That true Virtue h^ath ever been thought j^^T^^^^ and to

have its dwelhng in the middle between the two Extreams ; That
even God Almighty himself is divided between his two great
Attributes, his Mercy and his Justice.

In such Company, our Trimmer is not asham'd of his Name,
and willingly leaveth to the bold Champions of either Extream,
the Honour of contending with no less Adversaries, than
Nature, Religion, Liberty, Prudence, Humanity a nd Common
Sense.

THE

I04
THE

ANATOMY

OF AN

EQUIVALENT.

I. nr^HE World hath of late years never been without some
A extraordinary Word to furnish the Coffee-Houses
and fill the Pamphlets. Sometimes it is a new one invented,
and sometimes an old one revived. They are usually fitted to
some present purpose^ with intentions as differing as the
various designs several parties may have, either to delude the
People, or to expose their Adversaries : They are not of long
continuance, but after they have passed a little while, and that
they are grown nauseous by being so often repeated, they give
place to something that is newer. Thus after Whiff, Tory, and
Trimmer have had their time, now they are dead and forgotten,
being supplanted by the word dSqut'tjalcnt, which reigneth in
their stead.

The Birth of it is in short this ; After many repeated Essayes
to dispose Men to the Repeal of Oaths and Tests, made for the
security of the Protestant Religion, the general aversion to
comply in it was~found to be so great, that it was thought
adviseable to tiy another manner of attempting it, and to see
whether by putting the same thing into another Mould, and
softning an harsh Proposition by a plausible Term, they might
not have better success.

To this end, instead of an absolute quitting of these_ Laws,
without any Condition ; which was the first Proposal ; now it
is put into gentler Language, and runneth thus; If you will
take away the Oaths and Tests, you shall have as good a thine/
for them. This put into the lasfiionable Word, is now called

an (Equitialent.

n. So

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 105

II. So much to the Word it self. I will now endeavour in
short to examine and explain, in order to the having it fuUy
understood.

First, What is the nature of a true Equivalent'; and
In the next place. What things are not to be admitted under
that denomination.

I shall treat these as general Propositions, and though I
cannot undertake how far they may be convincing, I may safely^
do it that they are impartial ; of which there can be no greater
evidence than thatr I make neither Inference nor Application,
but leave that part entirely to the Reader, according as his own
Thoughts shall direct and dispose him.

III. I will first take notice, that this Word, by the application
which hath been made of it in some modern instances lieth
under some Disadvantage, not to say some Scandal. It is
transmitted hither from France ; and if as in most other things
that we take from them, we carry them beyond the Pattern, it
should prove so in this, we should get into a more partial stile
than the principles of English Justice will I hope ever allow us
to be guilty of.

The French King's Equivalents in Flanders are very extra-
ordinary Bargains ; his manner of proposing and obtaining
them is very differing from the usual methods of e^mt dealings
In a later instance, Denmark, by the encouragement as well as
by the example of France, hath propos'd things to the Duke of
Holstein, which are called Equivalents, but that they are so, the
World is not yet sufficiently convinc'd, and probably the Parties
concem'd do not think them to be so, and consequently do not
appear to be at all disposed to accept them. Princes enjoyn
and prescribe such things when they have Strength and Power
to supply the want of Arguments ; and according to practice in
these Cases, the weaker are never thought to have an ill Bargain,
if they have anything left them. So that the first Qualification
of an Equivalent, must be, that the Appraisers be indifferent,
else it is only a Sound, there can be nothing real in it : For,
where the same party that proposeth a Bargain, claimeth a
Right to set the Value ; or which is worse, hath power too to

make

io6 The Anatomy of an Equivalent,

make it good, the other may be forced to submit to the
Conditions, but he can by no means ever be perswaded to treat
upon them.

IV. The next thing to be consider'd is, that to make an
Equivalent m reality an equal thing in the Proposer, it must be
a better thing than that which is required by him ; just as good
is subject to the hazard of not being quite so good : It is not
easie to have such an even hand as to make the Value exactly
equal ; besides, according to the Maxim in Law, Melior conditio
possidentis, the Offer is not fair, except the thing offered is
better in value than the thing demanded. There must be
allowance for removing what is fixed, and there must be
something that may be a justification for changing. The value
of things very often dependeth more upon other circumstances,
than upon what is meerly intrinsick to them ; therefore the
calculation must be made upon that foot, perhaps in most cases ;
and particularly the want which one of the parties may have of
the thing he requireth, maketh it more valuable to him than it is
in it self. If the party proposing doth not want the thing he
would have in Exchange, his requiring it is Impertinent : If he
doth, his want of it must go into the appraisement, and by
consequence every Proposer of an Equivalent must offer a
better thing, or else he must not take it unkindly to be refused,
except the other party hath an equal want of the same thing,
which is very improbable, since naturally he that wanteth most
will speak first.

V. Another thing necessary to the making a fair Bargain is,
that let the parties who treat be never so unequal in themselves,
yet as to the particular thing proposed, there must be an exact
equality, as far as it relateth to the full Liberty of taking or
refusing, concurring or objecting, without any consequence of
Revenge, or so much as Dissatisfaction ; for it is impossible to
treat where it is an Affront to differ ; in that case there is no
mean between the two extreams, either an open Quarrel or an
intire Submission ; the way of Bargaining must be equal, else
the Bargain it self cannot be so : For example, the Proposer is
not only to use equal terras as to the matter, but fair ones in

the

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 107

the manner too. There must be no intimations of Anger in
case of refusal, much less any open Threatning, Such a Stile
is so ill suited to the usual way of Treating, that it looketh more
like a Breach of the Peace, than the making a Bargain. It
would be yet more improper and less agreeing with the nature
of an Equivalent, if whilst two Men are chaffering about the
Price, one of them should actually take the thing in question
at his own rate, and afterwards desire to have his possession
confirmed by a formal Agreement ; such a proceeding would
not only destroy that particular contract, but make it impossible
to have any other with the party that could be guilty of such
a practice.

VI. Violence preceding destroyeth all Contract, and even
tho the party that ofBereth it should have a right to the thing he
so taketh, yet it is to be obtained by legal means, else it may be
forfeited by his irregularity in the pursuit of it : The Law is
such an Enemy to Violence, and so little to be reconciled to it,
that in the Case of a Rape, the Punishment is not taken off
though the party injured afterwards consenteth. The Justice
of the Law hath its eye upon the first act, and the Maxim of
Volenti non fit injuria, doth not in this case help the Offender,
it being a plea subsequent to the Crime, which maketh it to
be rejected as a thing wrong dated and out of time.

In taking away Goods or Money it is the same thing. The
party robbed, by giving them afterwards to the taker, doth not
exempt him from the Punishment of the Violence : Quite
contrary, the Man from whom they were taken is punishable,
if he doth not prosecute. If the case should be, that a Man
thus taking away a thing without price, claimeth a right to take
it, then whether it is well or ill founded is not the Question ;
but sure, the party from whom it is so taken, whilst he is
treating to Sell or Exchange it, can never make a Bargain with
so arbitrary a Chapman, there being no room left after that to
talk of the Value.

VII. To make an equal Bargain there must be a liberty ■
of differing, not only in every thing that is really essential, but
in every thing that is thought so by either party, and most

especially

io8 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

especially by him who is in possession of the thing demanded :
His Opinion must be a Rule to him, and even his Mistake in
the Value, though it may not convince the Man he hath to deal
with, yet he will be justified for not accepting what is offered,
till that Mistake is fairly rectified and over-ruled.

When a Security is desired to be changed, that side which
desireth it must not pretend to impose upon the other, so as to
dictate to them, and tell them without debate, that they are safe
in what is proposed, since of that the Counsel on the other side
must certainly be the most competent Judges. The hand it
cometh from is a great Circumstance, either to invite or dis-
courage in all matters of Contract ; the Qualifications of the
Party offering must sute with the Proposition it self, else let it
be never so fair, there is ground for Suspicion.

VIII. When Men are of a temper, that they think they have
wrong done them, if they have not alwaj'S the better side of
a Bargain : If they happen to be such as by experience have
been found to have an ill Memory for their Word: If the
Character they bear, doth not recommend their Justice, where-
ever their Interest is concem'd : In these cases, thinking Men
will avoid dealing, not only to prevent surprize, but to cut off
the occasions of difficulty or dispute.

It is yet more discouraging, when there are, either a precedent
Practice, or standing Maxims of gross Partiality, in assuming
a privilege of exemption from the usual methods of equal dealing.

To illustrate this by an Instance. Suppose that in any case,
the Church of Rome should have an Interest to promote a Bar-
gain ; let her way of dealing be a little examin'd, which will
direct those with whom she treateth, how far they are to rely
upon what she proposeth to them. We may begin with the
Quality in the World the least consisting with equal dealing,
viz. An incurable Partiality to herself; which, that it may
arrive to its full perfection, is crowned with Infallibility. At
the first setting out, she maketh her self uncapable of dealing
upon terms of Equality, by the Power she claimeth of binding
and loosing, which hath been so often applyed to Treaties, as
well as to Sins.

If

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 109

If the definition of Justice is to deal equally, she cannot be
guilty of it without betraying her Prerogative, and according to
her Principles, she giveth up the Superiority derived to her by
Apostolical Succession, if she degradeth her self so as to be judged
by the Rules of common Right, especially if the Bargain should
be with Hereticks, who in her Opinion have forfeited the claim
they might otherwise have had to it.

IX. Besides, her Taste hath been so spoiled by unreasonable
Bargains, that she can never bring down her Palate to any
thing that is fair or equal. She hath not only judg'd it an
Equivalent, but a great Bargain for the other side, to give them
Absolutions and Indulgence for the real Payment of great Sums,
for which she hath drawn Bills to have them repayed with
Interest in Purgatory .

This Spiritual Bank hath carried on such a Trade upon these
advantageous Terms, that it can never submit to the small
Profits an ordinary Bargain would produce.

The several Popes have in exchange for the Peter-Pence, and
all their other Rents and Fines out of England, sent sancti-
fied Roses, Reliques, and other such Wonder-working Trifles.
And by virtue of their Character of Holy Fathers, have used
Princes like Children, by sending them such Rattles to
play with, which they made them buy at extravagant
Rates ; besides which, they were to be thankful too, in to the
bargain.

A Chip of the Cross, a piece of St. Laurence's Grid-iron,
a Hair of St. Peter, have been thought Equivalents, for much
more substantial things. The Popes being Masters of the Jewel-
House, have set the Rates upon them, and they have passed ;
though the whole Shop would not take up the value of a Bodkin
in Lombard street upon the credit of them.

They are unconscionable Purchasers, for they get all the
Money from the living by praying for them when they are dead.
And it is observable, that the Northern part of Christendom,
which best understandeth Trade, were the first that refused to
make any more Bargains with them ; so that it looketh as if the
chief quarrel to the Hereticks was not as they were ill Christians,

but

no The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

but jis-Jthey were unkind Merchants, in so discourteously reject-
ing the Commodities^f^the. growth-of Rome.

To conclude this Head, There is no bartering with Infallibility,
it being so much above Equality, that it cannot bear the Indig-
nity of a true Equivalent.

X. In all Bargains there is a necessity of looking back, and
reflecting how far a present proposal is reconcilable with
a former practice ; For Example, if at any time a thing is
offered, quite differing from the Arguments used by the Pro-
poser, and inconsistent with the Maxims held out by him at
other times. Or in a Publick case, if the same men who promote
and press a thing with the utmost violence, do in a little time
after with as much violence press the contrary, and profess
a detestation of the very thing, for which they had before
imployed all their Interest and Authority. Or if in the case of
a Law already made, there should be a privilege claimed to
exempt those from the obligation of observing it, who yet should
afterwards desire and press to have a new Law made in exchange
for the old one, by which they would not be bound ; and that
they should propose a security by a thing of the very same
nature as that which they did not allow to be any before. These
Incoherences must naturally have the effect of raising suspicion,
or rather they are a certain proof, that in such circumstances it
is irrational for men to expect an effectual Equivalent.

XI. If whatsoever is more than ordinary is suspicious, every
thing that is unnatural is more so ; It is not only unnecessary
but unnatural too to perswade with violence what it is folly to
refuse ; to push men with eagerness into a good bargain for
themselves, is a stile veiy much unsuitable to the nature of the
thing. But it goeth further and is yet more absurd, to grow
angry with men for not receiving a proposal that is for their
advantage ; Men ought to be content with the Generosity of
ofering good bargains, and should give their compassion to
those who do not understand them : but by carrying their good
nature so far as to be Cholerick in such a case, they would
follow the example of the Church of Rome, where the definition
of Charity is very extraordinary. In her Language, the Writ

de

The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

I II

de Hceretico Comburendo \& 9. Love letter, and burning men for
diffefuig with them in Opinion, howsoever miscalled Cruelty, is
as tliey- understand it, ihe perfection oi flaming Charity.

When Anger in these cases lasteth long, it is most probable
that it is for our own sakes ; Good nature for others is one of
those Diseases that is cured by time, and especially where it is
offered and rejected; but for our selves it never faileth, and
cannot be extinguished but with our life. It is fair if men can
believe that their friends love them next to themselves, to love
them better is too much ; the Expression is so unnatural that it
is cloying, and men must have no sense, who in this case have
no suspicion.

XII. Another Circumstance necessary to z. fair bargain is.
That there must be openness and freedom allowed, as the effect
of that Equality which is the foundation of Contracting. There
must be full liberty of objecting, and making doubts and scruples :
If they are such as can be answered, the party convinced is so
much the more confirmed and incouraged to deal, instead of
being hindred by them ; but if instead of an answer to satisfy,
there is nothing but anger for a reply, it is impossible not to
conclude that there is never a good one to give ; so that the
objection remaining without being fully confuted, there is an
absolute bar put to any further Treaty.

There can be no dealing where one side assumeth a privilege to
impose, so as to make an offer and not bear the examination of
it, this is giving judgment not making a bargain. Where it is
called unmannerly to object, or criminal to refuse, the surest
way is for men to stay where they are, rather than treat upon
such disadvantage.

If it should happen to be in any Country where the governing
power should allow men Liberty of Conscience in the choice of
their Religion, it would be strange to deny them liberty of speech
in making a bargain. Such a contradiction would be so dis-
couraging, that they must be unreasonably sanguine, who in i
that case can entertain the hopes of a /air Equivalent.

XIII. An equal Bargain must not be a Mystery nor a Secret,
The purchaser or proposer is to tell directly and plainly, what

it

112 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

it is he intendeth to give in Exchange for that which he requireth.
It must be viewed and considered by the other party, that he
may judge of the value ; for without knowing what it is, he
cannot determine whether he shall take or leave it. An asser-
tion in general, that it shall be as good or a better thing, is not
in this a sufficient excuse for the mistake of dealing upon such
uncertain terms. In all things that are dark and not enough
explained, suspicion naturally followeth : A secret generally im-
plieth a defect or a deceit ; and if a false light is an objection,
no light at all is yet a greater. To pretend to give a better thing,
and to refuse to shew it, is very near saying it is not so good
a one ; at least so it will be taken in common construction.
A Mystery is yet a more discouraging- thing to a, PrntestaaLi-.
especially if the Proposition should come from a Papist ; it
bein^ one of his great Objections to that Church, that there are
so many of them Invisible and Impossible^hich are so violently
thrust upon their understandings, that they are overlaid with
them^ TheyThinJOIiai rflHo«ar^crea^a»'e« are to be convinced
only by reason, and that reason must be visible 3nd freely
■eosposedr-^ else 'they will think themselves used with contempt
instead of equality, and will never allow such a suspected secrecy
to be a fit preface to a real Equivalent.

XIV. In matters of Contract not only the present value, but
the contingences and consequences, as far as they can be fairly
supposed, are to be considered. For Example, if there should
be a, possibility , that one of the Parties may be ruinedhy accept-
ing, and the other only disappointed by his refusing ; the conse-
quences are so extreamly unequal, that it is not imaginable,
a man should take that for an Equivalent, which hath such
a, fatal possibility at the heels of it.

If it should happen in a publick case, that such a proposal
should come from the minor part of an Assembly or Nation, to
the greater ; It is very just, that the hazard of such a possi-
bility should more or less likely fall upon the lesser part, rather
than upon the greater; for whose sake and advantage things
are and must be calculated in all publick Constitutions. Sup-
pose in any mixed Government, the chief Magistrate should

propose

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 1 1 3

propose upon a condition, in the Senate, Diet, or other Supreme
Assembly, either to Enact or Abrogate one or more Laws,
by which ti possibility might be let in of destroying their Religion
and Property, which in other language signifieth no less than
Soul and Body ; where could be the Equivalent in the case, not
only for the real loss, but even for the. fear of losing them ? Men
can fall no lower than to lose all, and if losing all destroyeth
them, the venturing all mnst fright them.

In an instance when Men are secure, that how far soever they
inay be over-run by Violence, yet they can never be undone by
Law, except they give their assistance to make it possible,
though it should neither be likely nor intended, still the conse-
quence which may happen is too big for any present thing to
make amends for it. AVhilst the word Po00lbl0 remaineth, it
miist forbid the bargain. Where-ever it falleth out therefore,
that in an Example of a publick nature, the Changing, Enacting,
or Repealing a Law, may naturally tend to the misplacing the
Legislative power in the hands of those who have a separate
interest from the body of a People, there can be no treating, till
it is demonstrably made out, that such a consequence shall be
absolutely impossible ; for if that shall be denied by those who
make the proposal, if it is because they cannot do it, the motion
at first was vei-y unfair. If they can and will not, it would be
yet less reasonable to expect that such partial dealers would
ever give an Equivalent fit to be accepted.

XV. It is necessary in all dealing to be assured in the first
place, that the party proposing is in a condition to make good
his Offer; that he is neither under any former Obligations
or pretended Claims, which may render him uncapable of per-
forming it ; else he is so far in the condition of a Minor, that
whatever he disposeth by sale or exchange may be afterwards
resumed, and the Contract becometh void, being originally
defective, for want of a sufficient legal power in him that
made it.

In the case of a strict Settlement, where the party is only
Tenant for life, there is no possibility of treating with one
under such fetters ; no purchase or exchange of Latids or any

HALIFAX I thing

114 '^^^ Anatomy of an Equivalent.

thing else can be good, where there is such an incapacity of
making out a Title ; the interest vested in him being so limited,
that he can do little more than pronounce the words of a Con-
tract, he can by no means perform the effect of it.

In more publick instances, the impossibility is yet more
express ; as suppose in any Kingdom, where the people have so
much liberty left them, as that they may make Contracts with
the Crown, there should be some peculiar rights claimed to be
so fixed to the Royal Function, that no King for the time being
could have power to part with them, being so fundamentally
tied to the Office, that they can never be separated. Such
Rights can upon no occasion be received in exchange for any
thing the Crown may desire from the People : That can never
be taken in payment, which cannot lawfully be given, so that
if they should part with that which is required upon those terms,
it must be a gift, it cannot be a bargain.

There is not in the whole Dictionary a more untractable word
than Inherent, and less to be reconciled to the word Equivalent.

The party that will Contract in spight of such a Claim, is
content to take what is impossible to grant, and if he complaineth
of his Disappointment, he neither can have Remedy, nor de-
serveth it.

If a Right so claimed hapneth to be of so comprehensive a
nature, as that by a clear inference it may extend to every thing
else, as well as to the particular matter in question, as often as
the Supream Magistrate shall be so disposed, there can in that
case be no treating with a Prerogative that swalloweth all the
Right the People can pretend to ; and if they have no right to
any thing of which they are possessed, it is a Jest and not
a Bargain, to observe any Formality in parting with it.

A Claim may be so stated, that by the power and advantage
of interpreting, it shall have such a murthering eye, that if it
looketh upon a Law, like a Basilisk, it shall strike it dead :
Where is the possibility of Treating, where such a Right is
assumed ? Nay, let it be supposed, that such a Claim is not well
founded in Law, and that upon a free disquisition it could not
be made out ; yet even in this case, none that are well advised

will

The Anatoviy of an Equivalent. 115

will conclude a Bargain, till it is fully stated and cleared, or
indeed, so much as engage in a treaty, till by way of preliminary
all possibility shall be remov'd of any trouble or dispute.

XVI. There is a collateral circumstance in making a Con-
tract, which j'et deserveth to be considered, as much as any
thing that belongeth to it ; and that is the character a,nA figure
of the parties contracting ; if they treat only by themselves, and
if by others, the Qualifications of the Instruments they employ.

The Proposer especially, must not be so low as to want credit,
nor so raised as to carry him above the reach of ordinary deal-
ing. In the first. There is scandal, in the other danger. There
is no Rule without some Exception, but generally speaking the
means should be suited to the end, and since all Men who treat,
pretend an equal bargain, it is desirable that there may be
equality in the persons as well as in the thing.

The manner of doing things hath such an influence upon the
matter, that Men may guess at the end by the instruments that
are used to obtain it, who are a very good direction how far to
rely upon or suspect the sincerity of that which is proposed.
An Absurdity in the way of carrying on a Treaty, in any one
Circumstance, if it is very gross, is enough to perswade a
thinking Man to break off, and take warning from such an ill
appearance. Some things are so glaring that it is impossible
not to see, and consequently not to suspect them ; as suppose in
a private case, there should be a Treaty of Marriage between
two Honourable Families, and the proposing side should think
fit to send a Woman that had been Carted, to perswade the
young Lady to an approbation and consent ; the unfitness of the
Messenger must naturally dispose the other party to distrust the
Message, and to resist the temptation of the best Match that
could be offered, when conveyed by that hand, and ushered in
by such a discouraging preliminary .

In a publick instance the suspicion arising from unfit
Mediators, still groweth more reasonable in proportion, as the
consequence is much greater of being deceived. If a Jew should
be employed to soUicite all sorts of Christians to unite and
agree ; the contrariety of his profession, would not allow Men

I 2 to

ii6 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

to stay till they heard his Arguments, they would conclude from
his Religion, that either the Man himself was mad, or that he
thought those to be so, whom he had the Impudence to endeavour
to perswade.

Or suppose an Adamite should be very sollieitous and active,
in all places, and with all sorts of Persons, to settle the Church
of England in particular, and a fair Liberty of Conscience for
all Dissenters ; though nothing in the World has more to be
said for it than Naked Truth, yet if such a Man should run up
and down without Cloaths, let his Arguments be never so good,
or his Commission never so Authentick, his Figure would be
such a contradiction to his business, that how serious soever that
might be in it self, his interposition would make a Jest of it. _

Though it should not go so far as this, yet if Men have
contrarieties in their ivay of living not to be reconciled ; as if
they should pretend infinite zeal for liberty, and at that time be
in great favour and imployed by those who will not endure it.

If they are affectedly singular, and conform to the generality
of the World in no one thing, but in playing the knave.

If demonstration is a familiar word with them, most
especially where the thing is impossible.

If they quote Authority to supply their want of sense, and
justifie the value of their Arguments, not by reason, but by
their being paid for them, (in which, by the way, those who
pay them have probably a very melancholy Equivalent.) If
they brandish a Princes Word like a Sword in a Crowd, to
make way for their own impertinence ; and in dispute, as
Criminals formerly fled to the Statue of the Prince for
Sanctuary ; if they should now, when baffled, creep under the
protection of a Kings Name, where out of respect they are no
farther to be pursued.

In these cases. Though the propositions should be really
good, they will be corrupted by passing through such Conduits,
and it would be a sufficient Mistake to enter into a Treaty ;
but it would be little less than Madness from such hands to
expect an Equivalent.

XVII. Having touched upon these particulars as necessary in

order

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 117

order to the stating the nature of an equal Bargain, and the
Circumstances belonging to it, let it now be examined in two
or three instances, what things are not to be admitted by way
of Contract, to pass under the Name of an Equivalent.

First, Though it will be allowed, that in the general corruption
of mankind, which will not admit Justice alone to be a sufficient
tie to make good a Contract, that a Punishment added for the
breach of it, is a fitting or rather a necessary Circumstance ;
yet it does not follow, that in all cases, a great Penalty upon
the party offending is an absolute and an entire Security. It
must be considered in every particular case, how far the
Circumstances may rationally lead a Man to rely more or less
upon it.

In a private instance, the Penalty inflicted upon the breach
of Contract must be first, such a one as the party injured can
enforce, and Secondly, such a one as he will enforce, when it is
in his power.

If the Offending party is in a capacity of hindring the other
from bringing the Vengeance of the Law upon him ; if he hath
strength or privilege sufficient to over rule the Letter of the
Contract ; in that case, a Penalty is but a Word, there is no
consequence belonging to it. Secondly, The forfeiture or
punishment must be such as the Man aggrieved will take ; for
Example, if upon a Bargain, one of the Parties shall stipulate
to subject himself, in case of his failure, to have his Ears cut,
or his Nose slit by the other, with security given, that he shall
not be prosecuted for executing this part of the Agreement;
the Penalty is no doubt heavy enough to discourage a Man
from breaking his Contract ; but on the other side it is of such
a kind, that the other how much soever he may be provoked,
will not in cold Blood care to inflict it. Such an extravagant
Clause would seem to be made only for shew and sound, and no
Man would think himself safer by a thing which one way or
other is sure to prove ineffectual.

In a publick Case, Suppose in a Government so constituted
that a Law may be made in the nature of a Bargain, it is in
it self no more than a dead letter, the life is given to it by the

execution

ii8 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

execution of what it containeth; so that let it in it self be
never so perfect, it dependeth upon those who are intrusted
with seeing it observed.

If it is in any Country, where the chief Magistrate chuseth
the Judges, and the Judges interpret the Laws ; a Penalty in
any one particular Law can have no effect but what is pre-
carious. It may have a loud voice to threaten, but it has not
an hand to give a blow ; for as long as the Governing Power
is in possession of this Prerogative, let who will chuse the
Meat, if they chuse the Cooks, it is they that will give the tast
to it. So that it is clear that the rigour of a Penalty will not in
all cases fix a Bargain, neither is it Universally a true Position,
that the increase of punishment for the breach of a new Law,
is an Equivalent for the consent to part with an old one.

XVIII. In most Bargains there is a reference to the time to
come, which is therefore to be considered as well as that which
Cometh within the compass of the. present valuation.

Where Xhe party Contracting, hath not & full power to dispose
what belongeth to him or them in Reversion, who shall succeed
after him in his Right ; he cannot make any part of what is so
limited to be the condition of the Contract. Further, he cannot
enjoyn the Heir or Successor to forbear the exercise of any
Right that is inherent to him, as he is a Man : neither can he
restrain him without his own consent, from doing any act
which in it self is lawful, and liable to no objection. For
Example, A Father cannot stipulate with any other Man, that
in Consideration of such a thing done, or to be done, his Son
shall never Marry ; because Marriage is an Institution
Established by the Laws of God, and Man, and therefore no
body can be so restrained by any power from doing such an act,
when he thinketh fit, being warranted by an Authority that is
not to be controuled.

XIX. Now as there are Rights inherent in Mens persons in
their single capacities, there are Rights as much fixed to the
Body Politick, which is a Creature that never dieth. For
instance, There can be no Government without a Supreme
Power ; that Power is not always in the same hands, it is in

different

The Anatoviy of an Equivalent. 119

different shapes and dresses, but still where-ever it is lodged, it
must be unlimited : It hath a jurisdiction over every thing else,
but it cannot have it above it self. Supreme Power can no
more be limited than Infinity can be measured; because it
ceaseth to be the thing ; its very being is dissolved, when any
bounds can be put to it.

Where this Supreme Power is mixed, or divided, the shape
only differeth, the Argument is still the same.

The present State of Venice cannot restrain those who
succeed them in the same power, from having an entire and
unlimited Sovereignty ; they may indeed make present Laws
which shall retrench their present Power, if they are so disposed,
and those Laws if not repealed by the same authority that
enacted them, are to be observed by the succeeding Senate till
they think fit to Abrogate them, and no longer ; for if the
Supreme Power shall still reside in the Senate, perhaps com-
posed of other Men, or of other minds (which will be sufficient)
the necessary consequence is, that one Senate must have as
much right to alter such a Law, as another could have to
make it.

XX. Suppose the Supreme Power in any State should make
a Law, to enjoyn all subsequent Law-makers to take an Oath
never to alter it, it would produce these following Absurdities.

First, All Supreme Power being instituted to promote the
safety and benefit, and to prevent the prejudice and danger\
which may fall upon those who live under the protection of it j^
the consequence of sucli an Oath would be, that all Men who
are so trusted, shall take God to witness, that such a Law once
made, being judged at the time to be advantageous for the
publick, though afterwards by the vicissitude of times, or the
variety of accidents or interests, it should plainly appear to them
to be destructive, they will suffer it to have its course, and will
never repeal it.

Secondly, If there could in any Nation be found a set of Men,
who having a part in the Supreme legislative Power, should as
much as in them heth, betray their Country by such a criminal
engagement, so directly opposite to the nature of their Power,

and

120 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

and to the Trust reposed in them ; If these Men have their
power only for life, when they are dead such an Oath can
operate no farther; and tho that M-ould be too long a Lease
for the life of such a Monster as an Oath so composed, yet it
must then, certainly give up the Ghost. It could bind none
but the first makers of it, another generation would never be
tied up by it.

Thirdly, In those Countries where the Supreme Assemblies
are not constant standing Courts, but called together upon
occasions, and Composed of such as the People chuse for that
time only, with a Trust and Character that remaineth no longer
with them than till that Assembly is regularly dissolved ; such
an Oath taken by the Members of a Senate, Diet, or other
Assembly so chosen, can have very little effect, because at the
next meeting there may be quite another set of Men who will be
under no Obligation of that kind. The eternity intended to
that Law by those that made it, will be cut off by neiv Men
who shall succeed them in their power, if they have a differing
Taste, or another Interest.

XXI. To put it yet fai'ther, Suppose a Clause in such a
Law, that it shall be criminal in the last degree for any Man
chosen in a subsequent Assembly, to propose the repealing of
it ; and since nothing can be Enacted which is not first
proposed, by this means it seemeth as if a Law might be
Created which should never die. But let this be Examined.

First, such a clause would be so destructive to the being of
such a Constitution, as that it would be as reasonable to say,
that a King had right to give or sell his Kingdom to a foreign
Prince, as that any number of Men who are entrusted with the
Supreme Power, or any part of it, should have a right to impose
such Shackles upon the Liberty of those who are to succeed
them in the same Trust. The ground of that Trust is, that
every Man who is chosen into such an Assembly, is to do all
that in him lieth for the good of those who chose him : The
English of such a Clause would be, that he is not to do his
best for those that chose him, because though he should be
convinc'd that it might be very fatal to continue that Law,

and

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 121

and therefore very necessary to repeal it^ yet he must not
repeal it, because it is made a Crime, and attended with a
Penalty.

But secondly, to shew the emptiness as well as injustice of
such a Clause, it is clear, that although such an Invasion of
Right should be imposed, it will never be obeyed : There will
only be Deformity in the Monster, it will neither sting nor bite.
Such Law-givers would only have the honour of attempting
a contradiction which can never have any success ; for as such a
Law in it self would be a Madness, so the Penalty would be
a Jest ; which may be thus made out.

XXII. A Law that carrieth in it self Reason enough to
support it, is so far from wanting the protection of such a
Clause, or from needing to take such an extraordinary receipt
for long Life, that the admitting it must certainly be the likeliest
and the shortest way to destroy it; such a Clause in a Law
must imply an opinion that the greatest part of mankind is
against it, since it is impossible such an exorbitance shoidd be
done for its own sake ; the end of it must be to force Men by a
Penalty, to that which they could not be perswaded to, whilst
their Reason is left at liberty. This Position being granted,
which I think can hardly be denied, put the case that a Law
should be made with this imaginary Clause of Immortality,
after which another Assembly is chosen, and if the majority of
the Electors shall be against this Law, the greater part of the
Elected must be so too, if the choice is fair and regular ; which
must be presumed, since the supposition of the contrary is not
to come within this Argument. When these Men shall meet,
the Majority will be visible beforehand of those who are against
such a Law, so that there will be no hazard to any single Man
in proposing the Repefil of it, when he cannot be punished but
by the Majority, and he hath such a kind of assurance as cometh
near a Demonstration, that the greater Number will be of his
mind, and consequently, that for their own sakes they will
secure him from any danger.

For these Reasons, where-ever in order to the making a
Bargain, a Proposition is advanc'd to make a new Law, which is

122 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

to tye lip those who neither can nor will be bound by it, it may
be a good Jest, but it will never be a good Equivalent.

XXIII. In the last place, let it be examined how far a
Promise ought to be taken for a Security in a Bargain.

There is great Variety of Methods for the Security of those
that dealj according to their Dispositions and Interests; some
are binding, others inducing circumstances, and are to be so
distinguished.

First, Ready Payment is without exception, so of that there
can be no dispute ; in default of that, the good Opinion Men
may have of one another is a great ingredient to supply the want
of immediate Performances. Where the Trust is grounded
upon Inclination only, the Generosity is not always returned ;
but where it springeth from a long Experience it is a better
foundation, and yet that is not always secure. In ordinary
dealing, one Promise may be an Equivalent to another, but it is
not so for a thing actually granted or conveyed ; especially if
the thing required in exchange for it, is of great value, either
in it self or in its consequences. A bare Promise as a single
Security in such a case is not an equal proposal ; if it is offered
by way of addition, it generally giveth cause to doubt the
Title is crazy, where so slender a thing is brought in to be
a supplement.

XXIV. The Earnest of making good a Promise, must be
such a behaviour preceding, as may encourage the party to whom
it is made to depend upon it : Where instead of that, there hath
been want of Kindness, and which is worse an Invasion of Right,
a Promise hath no perswading force ; and till the Objection to
such a Proceeding is forgotten, (which can only be the work of
time) and the Skin is a little grown over the tender part, the
Wound must not be touch'd. There must be some Intermission
at least to abate the smart of unkind usage, or else a Promise in
the Eye of the party injur'd is so far from strengthening a
Security, that it raiseth more doubts, and giveth more justifiable
cause to suspect it.

A Word is not like a Bone, that being broken and well set
again, is said to be sometimes stronger in that very part : It is

far

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 123

far from being so in a Word given and not made good. Every
single Act either weakeneth or improveth our Credit with other
Men ; and as an habit of being just to our Word will confirm,
so an habit of too freely dispensing with it must necessarily
destroy it. A Promise hath its effect to perswade a Man to
lay some weight upon it, where the Promiser hath not only the
power, but may reasonably be supposed to have the will of
performing it; and further, that there be no visible interest
of the party promising to excuse himself from it, or to evade it.
All Obligations are comparative, and where they seem to be
opposite, or between the greater and the lesser, which of them
ought to have precedence in all respects erery man is apt to be
his own Judge.

XXV. If it should fall out that the Promiser with full intent
at the time to perform, might by the interposition of newj
Arguments, or differing Advice think himself oblig'd to turn
the matter of Conscience on the other side, and should look
upon it to be much a greater fault to keep his word than to
break it ; such a Belief will untye the strictest Promise that can
be made, and though the Party thus absolving himself should
do it without the mixture or temptation of private interest,
being moved to it meerly by his Conscience, as then informed ;
yet how far soever that might diminish the Fault in him, it
would in no degree lessen the inconveniences to the party who is
disappointed, by the breach of an engagement upon which he
relyed.

XXVI. A Promise is to be understood in the plain and
natural sense of the words, and to be sure not in his who made
it, if it was given as part of a Bargain. That would be like
givdng a Man power to raise the value of his Money in the
payment of his Debt, by which, tho he paid but half or less, he
might pretend according to the letter to have made good the
Contract.

The power of interpreting a Promise intirely taketh away
the virtue of it. A Merchant who should once assume that
privilege, would save himself the trouble of making any more
Bargains.

1 24 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

It is still worse if l^his Jurisdiction over a Man's Promise,
should be lodg'd in hands that have Power to support such an
extraordinary Claim ; and if in other Cases, forbearing to deal
upon those terms is advisable, in this it becometh absolutely
necessary.

XXVII. There must in all respects be a full liberty to claim
a Promise, to make it reasonable to take it in any part of
payment ; else it would be like agreeing for a Rent, and at the
same time making it criminal to demand it.

A superiority of Dignity or Power in the party promising
maketh it a more tender thing for the other party to treat upon
that security. The first maketh it a nice thing to claim, the
latter maketh it a difficult thing to obtain.

In some cases, a Promise is in the nature of a Covenant, and
then between equal parties the breach of it will bear a Suit;
but where the greatness of the Promiser is very much raised
above the level of equality, there is no Forfeiture to be taken.
It is so far from the party grieved his being able to sue or
recover Damages, that he will not be allowed to explain or
expostulate, and instead of his being relieved against the breach
of Promise, he will run the hazard of being punished for
breach of Good Manners. Such a difficulty is putting all or
part of the Payment in the Fire, where Men must burn their
Fingers before they can come at it.

That cannot properly be called good payment, which the party
to whom it is due may not receive with ease and safety. It
was a Kings Brother of England who refused to lend the Pope
money, for this reason. That he would never take the Bond of
one, upon whom he could not distrain.

The Argument is still stronger against the Validity of a
Promise, when the Contract is made between a Prince and
a Subject. The very offering a Kings Word in Mortgage is
rather a threatning in case of refusal, than an inducing Argu-
ment to accept it; it is unfair at first, and by that giveth
greater cause to be cautious, especially if a thing of that value
and dignity as a Kings Word ought to be, should be put into
the hands of State-Brokers to strike up a Bargain with it.

XXVIII.

The Anatoviy of an Equivalent. 125

XXVIII. When God Almighty maketh Covenants with
Mankind, His Promise is a sufficient Security, notwithstanding
his Superiority and his Power; because first, he can neither
err nor do injustice. It is the only Exception to his Omni-
potence, that by the Perfection of his being he is incapacitated
to do wrong. Secondly, at the instant of his Promise, by the
extent of his Foresight, which cannot fail, there is no room left
for the possibility of any thing to intervene, which might change
his mind. Lastly, he is above the receiving either Benefit or
Inconvenience, and therefore can have no Interest or Temptation
to vary from his Word, when once he hath granted it.

Now though Princes are God's Vicegerents, yet their Com-
mission not being so large, as that these Qualifications are
devolved to them, it is quite another case, and since the offering'
a Security implyeth it to be examined by the party to whom it;
is proposed, it must not be taken ill that Objections are made
to it, even though the Prince himself should be the immediate .
Proposer. y^

Let a familiar Case be put ; Suppose a Prince, tempted by
a Passion too strong for him to resist, should descend so as to
promise Marriage to one of his Subjects, and as Men are
naturally in great haste upon such occasions, should press to
take possession before the necessary Forms could be complyed
with ; would the poor Ladies Scruples be called criminal for
not taking the Security of the Royal Word ? Or would her
Allegiance be tainted by her resisting the sacred Person of her
Sovereign, because he was impatient of delay ? Courtesie in this
case might perswade her to accept it, if she was so disposed,
but sure the just exercise of Power can never claim it.

XXIX. There is one Case where it is more particularly
a Duty to use very great caution in accepting the security of
a Promise, and that is, when Men are authorized and trusted
by others to act for them. This putteth them under much
greater restraints, than those who are at liberty to treat for
themselves. It is lawful, though it is not prudent for any man
to make an ill Bargain for himself, but it is neither the one
nor the other, where the party contracting treateth on behalf of

another.

126 The Anatomy of an Equivalent.

another, by whom he is intrusted. Men who will unwarily
accept an ill security, if it is for themselves, forfeit their own
discretion^ and undergo the Penalty, but they are not responsible
to any body else. They lie under the Mortification and the loss
of committing the error, by which though they may expose
their Judgment to some censure, yet their Morality suffers no
reproach by it.

But those who are deputed by others to treat for them, upon
terms of best advantage, though the Confidence placed in them
should prevent the putting any limits to their Power in their
Commission, yet the Condition implied if not expressed, is that
the Persons so Trusted shall neither make an ill Bargain, nor
accept a slight Security.

The Obligation is yet more binding when the Trust is of
a Publick Nature. The aggravation of disappointing a Body
of Men that rely upon them, carrieth the Fault as high as it
can go, and perhaps no Crime of any kind can outdo such
a deliberate breach of Trust, or would more justly make Men
forfeit the protection of humane Society.

XXX. I will add one thing more upon this Head, which is,
that it is not always a true Proposition, that 'tis safe to rely
upon a Promise if, at the time of making it, it is the Interest
of the Promiser to make it good. This, though many times it
is a good Inducement, yet it hath these Exceptions to it. First,
if the Proposer hath at other times gone plainly against his
visible Interest, the Argument will turn the other way, and his
former Mistakes are so many Warnings to others, not to come
within the danger of any more : let the Inducements to those
Mistakes be never so great and generous, that does not alter the
Nature, they are Mistakes still.

Interest is an uncertain thing, It goeth and cometh, and
varieth according to times and circumstances ; as good build
upon a Quicksand, as upon a presumption that Interest shall
not alter. Where are the Men so distinguished from the rest
of Mankind, that it is impossible for them to mistake their
Interest ? Who are they that have such an exemption from
humane Frailty, as that it can never happen to them not to see

their

The Anatomy of an Equivalent. 127

their Interest for want of Understanding, or not to leap over it
by excess of Zeal.

Above all. Princes are the most liable to Mistake ; not out of
any defect in their Nature, which might put them under such
an unfortunate distinction ; quite contrary, the blood they derive
from wise and great Ancestors, doth rather distinguish them on
the better side ; besides that their great Character and Office of
Governing giveth a noble Exercise to their Reason, which can very
hardly fail to raise and improve it. But there is one Circum-
stance annexed to their Glorious Calling, which in this respect
is sufficient to outweigh all those Advantages ; it is that Man-
kind, divided in most things else, agree in this, to conspire in
their endeavors to deceive and mislead them ; which maketh it
above the power of humane understanding, to be so exactly
guarded as never to admit a surprise, and the highest applause
that could ever yet be given to the greatest Men that ever wore
a Crown, is that tliey were no oftner deceived.

Thus I have ventur'd to lay down my thoughts of the Nature |
of a Bargain, and the due Circumstances belonging to an Equi- \
valent, and will now conclude with this short word. " Where,
" Distrusting may be the cause of provoking ang:ec,and Trusting
" may be the cause of bringing Euflt, the Choice is too easie to
" need the being Explained."

A

128

A

LETTER

TO A

DISSENTER,

Upon Occasion of His Majesties
late Gracious Declaration of In-
dulgence.

SIR,

SINCE Addresses are in fashion, give uie leave to make
one to you. This is neither the Effect of Fear, Interest,
or Resentment ; therefore you may be sure it is sincere :
and for that reason it may expect to be Icindly received. Whether
it will have power enough to Convince, dependeth upon the
Reasons, of which you are to judge ; and upon your Preparation
of Mind, to be perswaded by Truth, whenever it appeareth to
you. It ought not to be the less welcome, for coming from a
friendly Hand, one whose kindness to you is not lessened by
differenceof Opirnon, and who will not let his Thoughts for the
Publick be so tied or confined to this or that Sub-division of
Protestants, as to stifle the Charity, which, besides all other
Arguments, is j,t this time become necessary to preserve us.

I am neither surprized nor provoked, to see that in the
Condition you were put into by the Laws, and the ill Circum-
stances you lay under by having the Exclusion and Rebellion
laid to your Charge, you were desirous to make your selves less
uneasy and obnoxious to Authority. Men who are sore, run
to the nearest Remedy with too much hast to consider all the

consequences :

A Letter to a Dissenter. 129

conse quences : Grains of allowance are to be given, where
Nature giveth such "^strong Influences. .When to Men under
Sufferings it offereth Ease, the present Pain will hardly allow
time to examine the Remedies ; and the strongest Reason can
hardly gain a fair Audience from our Mind, whilst so possessed,
till the Smart is a little allayed.

I do not know whether the Warmth that naturally belongeth
to new Friendships, may not make it a harder Task for me to ^
perswade you. It is like telling Lovers, in the beginning ofjj
their Joys, that they will in a little time have an end. Such an''
unwelcome Stile doth not easily find Credit : but I will suppose
you are not so far gone in your new Passion, but that you will
Hear still ; and therefore I am under the less Discouragement,
when I offer to your Consideration two things. The First is.
The Causejfou have to^uspect your new Fr iends. The Second,
The Duty incumbent upon you, in Christianity and Prudence,
not to hazard the Publick Safety, neither by desire of Ease, nor
of Reveng e.

To the First'. Consider that notwithstanding the smooth ]
Language which is now put on to engage you, these new Friends !
did not make you their Choice, but their Refuge : They have ever '
made their first Courtships to the Church of England, and when
they^jwere rejected there, they made their Application to you in
the second place. The Instances of this might be given in all
times. I do not repeat them, because whatsoever is unnecessary,
must be tedious, the truth of this Assertion being so plain, as
not to admit a Dispute. You cannot therefore reasonably
flatter your selves, that there is any Inclination to you. They ^
never pretended_to allow you any Quarter, but to usher in
Liberty for themselves under that shelter. I refer you to
Mr. Coleman's Letters, and to the Journals of Parliament, where
you may be convinced, if you can be so mistaken as to doubt ;
nay, at this very hour, they can hardly forbear, in the height of
their Courtship, to let fall hard Words of you. So little is
Nature to be restrained ; it will start out sometimes, disdaining
to submit to the Usurpation of Art and Interest.

This Alliance, between Liberty and Infallibility, An bringing

HALIFAX K together

I30 A Letter to a Dissenter.

together the Two most contrary things that are in the World.
The Church of Rome doth not only dislike Jhe ?J;]2^j[^gLiberty,
but by its Principles it cannot do it. Wine is not iiiiore ex-
pressly forbid to the Mahonietans^Wa,n giving Hereticks Liberty—
to the Papists: They are no more able to make good their
Vows to you, than Men married before, and their Wife alive,
can confirm their Contract with another. The continuance
of their kindness, would be a habit of Sin, of which they are to
repent, and their Absolution is to be had upon no other terms,
than their promise to destroy you. You are therefore to be
hugged now, only that you may be the better squeezed at another ~
time. There must be something extraordinary, when the
Church of Rome setteth up Bills, and offereth Plaisters, for
tender Consciences : By all that hath hitherto appeared, her
skill in Chirurgery lieth chiefly in a quick Hand to cut off
Limbs ; but she is the worst at healing, of any that ever pre-
tended to it.

To come so quick from another Extream, is such an un-
natural Motion, that you ought to be upon your Guard ; the
other day you were Sons of Belial : Now, you are Angels of
Light. This is a violent change, and it will be fit for you to
pause upon it, before you believe it : If your Features are not
altered, neither is their Opinion of you, what ever may be pre-
tended. Do you believe less than you did, that there is Idolatry
in the Church of Rome ? Sure you do not. See then, how they
treat both in Words and Writing, those who entertain that
Opinion. Conclude from hence, how inconsistent their Favour
is with this single Article, except they give you a Dispensation
for this too, and by a Non Obstante, secure you that they, will
not think Jhe_worse_of you.

Think a little how dangerous it is to build upo n a Foundatio n
of Paradoxes. Popery now is the only Friend to Liberiy :; and
the known Enemy^ to Persecutw^ The Men of Taunton and
Tiverton, are above all other Eminent for Loyalty. The
Quakers from being declared by the Papists not to be Christians,
are now made Favourites, and taken into their particular Pro-
tection; they are on a sudden grown the most accomplished

Men

A Letter to a Dissenter. 131

Men of the Kingdom in good Breeding, and give Thanks with
the best Grace, in double refined Language. So that I should not
wonder, though a Man of that Perswasion, in spite of his Hat,
should be Master of the Ceremonies. Not to say harsher words,
these are such very new things, that it is impossible not to
suspend our Belief, till by a little more Experience we may
be inform'd whether they are Realities or Apparitions : We
have been under shameful mistakes if these Opinions are true ;
but for the present, we are apt to be incredulous, except we
could be convinced, that the Priests words in this case too, are
able to make such a sudden and effectual change, and that
their Power is not limited to the Sacrament, but that it ex-
tendeth to alter the nature of all other things, as often as they
are so disposed.

Let me now speak of the Instruments of your Friendship,
and then leave you to judge, whether they do not afford matter
of Suspition. No sharpness is to be mingled where Healing only
is intended ; so nothing will be said to expose particular men,
how strong soever the Temptation may be, or how clear the
Proofs to make it out. A word or two in general, for your
better caution, shall suf&ce : Suppose then, for Argument's
sake, that the Mediators of this new Alliance, should be such
as have been formerly imployed in Treaties of the same kind,
and there detected to have Acted by Order, and to have been
Impower'd to give Encouragements and Rewards. Would not
this be an Argument to suspect them ?

If they should plainly be under Engagements to one side,
their Arguments to the other ought to be received accordingly ;
their fair Pretences are to be looked upon as part of their
Commission, which may not improbably give them a Dispen-
sation in the case of Truth, when it may bring a prejudice upon
the Service of those by whom they are imployed.

If there should be men who having formerly had Means and
Authority to perswade by Secular Arguments, have in pursuance
of that Power, sprinkled Money amongst the Dissenting Mini-
sters ; and if those very men should now have the same Authority,
practice the same Methods, and Disburse, where they cannot

K 2 otherwise

132 A Letter to a Dissenter.

otherwise perswade : It seemeth to me to be rather an Evidence
than a Presumption of the Deceit.

If there should be Ministers amongst you, who by having
fallen under Temptations of this kind, are in some sort engaged
to continue their Frailty, by the awe they are in lest it should be
exposed ; the Perswasions of these unfortunate Men must sure
have the less force, and their Arguments, though never so
specious, are to be suspected, when they come from Men who
have mortgaged themselves to severe Creditors, that expect
a rigorous Observation of the Contract, let it be never so
unwarrantable.

If these, or any others, should at this time Preach up Anger
and Vengeance against the Church oiEnglanA^va&y it joaL...
without Injustice be suspected, that a thing so plainly out_of^_
Season, springeth rather from Corruption than Mistake; and
that those who act this Cholerick part, do not believe themselves,
but only pursue higher Directions, and endeavour to make good
that part of their Contract which obligeth them, upon a For-
feiture, to make use of their inflaming Eloquence ? They might
apprehend their Wages would be retrenched if they should be
Moderate : And therefore whilst Violence is their Interest, those
who have not the same Arguments, have no reason to foUow
such a partial Example.

If there should be Men, who by the load of thei r Crimes
against the Government, have been bowed down to comply with
it against their Conscience; who by incurring the want of
a Pardon, have drawn upon themselves a necessity of an entire
Resignation ; such, men are to be lamented, but not_to be
believed. Nay, they themselves, when they have discharged
their Unwelcome Task, will be inwardly glad that their forced
Endeavours do not succeed, and are pleased when men resist their
Insinuations ; which are far from being Voluntary or Sincere,
but are squeezed out of them by the weight of their being so
Obnoxious.

If in the heighth of this great dearness by comparing things,
it should happen, that at this instant, there is much a surer
Friendship with those who are so far from allowing Liberty,

that

A Letter to a Dissenter. 133

that they allow no Living to a Protestant under them, letjhe
Scene lie in what part oJE the World it will, the Argument will
come home, and sure it will afford sufficient ground to suspect.
Apparent Contradictions must strike us; neither Nature nor
Reason can digest them : Self-Flattery, and the desire to
Deceive our selves to gratifie present Appetite, with all their
Power, which is Great, cannot get the better of such broad Con-
viction as some things carry along with them. Will you call
these vain and empty Suspitions ? have you been at all times
so void of Fears and Jealousies as to justifie your being so un-
reasonably Valiant in having none upon this occasion ? Such an
extraordinary Courage at this unseasonable time, to say no
more, is too dangerous a Virtue to be commended.

If then for these and a thousand other Reasons, there is cause
to suspect, sure your new Friends are not to dictate to you, or
advise you ; for instance. The Addresses that fly abroad every
Week, and Murther us with Another to the same ; the first
Draughts are made by those who are not very proper to be
Secretaries to the Protestant Religion : and it is your part only
to Write them out fairer again. Strange! that you who have
been formerly so much against Set Forms, should now be con-
tent the Priests should Indite for you. The nature of Thanks
is an unavoidable consequence of being pleased or obliged ; they
grow in the Heart, and from thence shew themselves either in
Looks, Speech, Writing, or Action : No man was ever Thankful
because he was bid to be so, but because he had, or thought he
had some Reason for it. If then there is cause in this Case to pay
such extravagant Acknowledgments, they will flow naturally,
without taking such pains to procure them ; and it is unkindly
done to Tire all the Post-Horses with carrying Circular ^tters
to solicite that which would be done without any^ trouble
or constraint : If it is really in it self such a Favour, what
needeth so much pressing men to be thankful, and with such
eager circumstances, that where Perswasions cannot delude,
Threatnings are employed to fright them into a Compliance.
Thanks must be voluntary, not only unconstrained, but un-
solicited, else they are either Trifles or Snares; they either

signifie

134 ^ Letter to a Dissenter.

signifie nothing, or a great deal more than is intended by those
that give them. If an Inference should be made, Th^ijidiosoever
thanketh the King for his Declaration, is by that ingaged to
Justifie it in point of Law ; it is a greater Stride than, I presume,
all those care to make who are perswaded to Address : If it
shall be supposed, that all the Thankers will be Repealers of^the
TEST, whenever a Parliament shall meet, such an Expectation
is better prevented before, than disappointed afterwards; and
the surest way to avoid the lying under such a Scandal, is not
to do any thing that may give a colour to the Mistake : These
bespoken Thanks are little less improper than Love Letters that
were solicited by the Lady to whom they are to be directed : so,
that besides the little ground there is to give them, the manner
of getting them doth extreamly lessen their Value. Itmight b^_
wished that you would have suppresse^d,yoitt.,iinpati£n£^irn3"
have been content for the sake of Religion, to enjoy it within ^
your selves without the Liberty of a publick Exercise, till a
Parliament had allowed it; but since that could n ot be , and
that the ATtifices ^^ome jmongst you have made use of the
Well-meant Zeal of the generality to draw them into this Mis-
take, I am so far from blaming you with that sharpness which,
perhaps, the Matter in strictness would bear, that I am rea dy
to err on the side of the moreg entle const ruction.

There-is -a -great' difference between enjoying quietly the
Advantages of an Act irregularly done by others, and the going
about to support it against the Laws in being : t he Law is so
Sacred, that no Trespass against it is to be defend ed; yet
Frailties may in some measure be excused, when they cannot be
justified. The Desire of enjoying a Liberty from which Men
have been so long restrained, may be a Temptation that their
Reason is not at all times able to resist. If in such a case,
some Objections are leapt over, indifferent Men will be more
inclined to lament the Occasion, than to fall too hard upon
the Fault, whilst it is covered with the Apology of a good
Intention ; but where, to rescue your selves fromthe^Sexerity
of one Law, you give a Blow tojtjl_the_Law s, by which yo ur
Relig^ion^T Libert y are to, be. protect^d^ ^i in s te a d C & aiknt ly.

receiving

A Letter to a Dissenter. 135

receiving the Benefit of this IndulgencSj you set up for Advo-
cates to support it, you become voluntary Ag gressors, and look
liKe~"Counsel retained™ by the Prerogative against _your old
Frien A_S^gna'V^ClX.ia^^ho hath done npthing to deserve her
falling thus unj.e£your_Dis^easure.

IfTEie Case then should be, that the Price expected fro m you
for this Liberty, is^givjng^uj) your Right in the Laws, surejou
will think twice, before you go any further in such_a, losing
Bargain. After giving Thanks for the Breach of one Law, you
lose the Right of Complaining of the Breach of all the rest ; you
will not very well know how to defend your selves when youj
are pressed ; and having given up the Question when it wasj
for your Advantage, you cannot re-call it when it shall be to
your Prejudice. If you will set up at one time a Power to help
you, which at another time, by parity of Reason, shall be made
use of to destroy you, you will neither be pitied, nor relieved!
against a Mischief you draw upon your selves, by being so un- '
reasonably thankful. It is like calling in Auxiliaries to help,
who are strong enough to subdue you : In such a case your
Complaints will come too late to be heard, and your Sufferings
will raise Mirth instead of Compassion.

If you think, for your Excuse, to expound your Thanks so
as to restrain them to this particular Case, others, for their
Ends, will extend them further: And in these differing
Interpretations, that which is back'd by Authority will be the
most likely to prevail ; especially when by the Advantage you
have given them, they have in truth the better of the Argument,
and that the Inferences from your own Concessions are very
strong and express against you. This is so far from being a
groundless Supposition, that there was a late Instance of it, the
last Session of Parliament, in the House of Lords, where the
first Thanks, though things of course, were interpreted to be the
Approbation of the Kings whole Speech, and a Restraint from
the further Examination of any part of it, though never so
much disliked ; and it was with difficulty obtained, not to be
excluded from the liberty of objecting to this mighty Prerogative
of Dispensing, meerly by this innocent and usual piece of

good

136 A Letter to a Dissenter.

good Manners, by which no such thing could possibly be
intended.

This sheweth, that some Bounds are to be put to your good
Breeding, and that-tfae-Genstitution of England is too valuable
a thinsr to be ventured upon a Compliment. Now that you
have for some time enjoyed the Benefit of the End, it is time
for you to look into the Danger_ j)f^_the Means : The same
Reason that made you desirous to g.eJLLib_erty, must nHCEeyou
sollicitous to preserve it ; so that the next Thought will
naturally be, not to engage your self^beyond_Retreat, and to
agree so far with the Principles of all ReUgieBy-as-not^to rely
upon a Death-Bed Repentance.

There are certain Periods of Time, which being once past,
make aU Cautions ineffectual, and all Remedies desperate.
Our Understandings are apt to be hurried on by the first Heats,
whichy-if— norfrTEStfained In "time, "do^nxrt -give ur leave to look .
back, till it is too late. Consider this in the Case of your
Anger agamsf'ffie Church of England, and take warning by~
their MistaTtp in the same ki nd, when after the l ate Kin g's
Restauratio n, they prjserved-BaJxing^theJbitter Taste of_ _yjauj-
rough Usage to th em in_otb.er. times, thaLlt made ^hem forget
their Interest, and sacdficeJbt, to. their,,R.ey.£iige._.

Either you will blame this Proceeding in them, and for that
reason not follow it, or if you allow it, you have no reason to
be offended with them; so that you must either dismiss your
Anger, or lose your Excuse ; except j'ou should argue more
partially than will be supposed of Men of your Morality and
Understanding.

If you had now to do with those rigid Prelates, who made
it a matter of Conscience to give you the least Indulgence, but
kept you at an uncharitable Distance, and even to your most
reasonable Scruples continued stiff and inexorable, the Ar-
gument might be fairer on your side ; but since- the common
Danger hath so laid open that Mistake, that all the former
Haughtiness towards you is for ever extinguished, and that it hath
turned the Spirit of Persecution into a Spirit of Peace, Chaxity,
and Condescension ; shall this happy Change~«nly affect the

Church

A Letter to a Dissenter. 137

Church of England ? And ^re^u so in love with Separation,
as noi to be movM'by this Example iroughtto-berfoliowedj
were t&ere iio' other Reason than that it is Vertue ; but when
besides that, it is become necessary to your Preservation, it is
impossible to fail the having its Effect upon you.

If it should be said, that the Church of England is never
humble but when she is out of power, and therefore loseth the
Right of being believed when she pretendeth to it : The Answer
is, First, it would be an uncharitable Objection, and very much
mistimed ; an unseasonable Triumph, not only ungenerous, but
unsafe : So that in these respects it cannot be urged, without
Scandal, even though it could be said with Truth. Secondly,
This is not so in Fact, and the Argument must fall, being
built upon a false Foundation; for whatever may be told you
at this very Hour, and in the Heat and Glare of your present
Sunshine, the Church of England can in a Moment bring Clouds
again, and turn the Royal Thunder upon your Heads, blow you
off the Stage with a Breath, if she would give but a Smile or
a kind Word; the least Glimpse of her Compliance would
throw you back into the State of Suffering,nahd draw upon you
all the Arrears of^ Severity, which have accrued during the
time of this Kindness to you, and yet the Church of England,
with all her Faults, will not allow her self to be rescued by such
unjustifiable means, but chuseth to bear the Weight of Power,
rather than lie under the Burthen of being criminal.

It cannot be said, that she is i urptoyx)ked-;-Books and Letters
come out every Day, to call for Answers, yet she will not be
stirred. From the supposed Authors, and the Stile, one would
swear they were Undertakers, and had made a Contract to fall
out with the Church of England. There are Lashes in every
Address, Challenges to draw the Pen in every Pamphlet : In
short, the fairest Occasions in the World given to quarrel ; but
she wisely distinguisheth between the Body of Dissenters, whom
she will suppose to act as they do with no ill Intent; and
these small Skirmishers, pickt and sent out to picqueer, and to
begin a Fray amongst the Protestants, for the Entertainment
as well as the Advantage of the Church of Rome.

This

138 A Letter to a Dissenter.

This Conduct is so good, that it will be scandalous not to
applaud it. It is not equal Dealing to blame our Adversaries
for doing ill, and not commend them when they do well.

To hate them because they persecuted, and not to be

i reconciled to them when they ai'e ready to suffer, rather than

i receive all the Advantages that can be gained by a Criminal

; Complyance, is a Principle no sort of Christians can own, since

it would give an Objection to them never to be answered.

/ Think a little who they were that promoted your former

Persecutions, and then consider how it will look to be angry

with the Instruments, and at the same time to make a League

with the Authors of your Sufferings.

Have you enough considered what will be expected from you ?
Are you ready to stand in every Borough by Vertue of a Conge
d'eslire, and instead of Election, be satisfied if you are
Returned ?

Will you in Parliament justifie the Dispensing Power, with
all its Consequences, and Repeal ik\e T ests by which you jffij]^
make way_for _the^Repeal of all the Laws, that were made
to preserve your ,ReligionJ^_^nd to Enact_,£thers^ that shall
destroy it? — — ~~~_-

Are jpu disposedJto__change the Liberty of Debate int^ th e
Merit of DTjeHience; Md J^.^^ JM^di^lBStl^^

or enactl Laws, vvhen the Roman Consistory axeTiords of the
Articles ? — — — ~~

Are you so linked with your new Friends, as to reject any
[Indulgence a Parliament shall offer you, if it shall not be so
.comprehensive as to include the Papists in it?

Consider, that the implyed Conditions of your new Treaty are
no less, than that you are to do every thing you are desired,
without examining, and that foj:_this_^retended Liberty of
Consrdence, YourjgaLFr eedom is to be sa crificed : Your former
Faults hang like Chains still about you, you are let loose only
upon Bayl; the first Act of Non-compliance, sendeth you to
Jayl again.

You may see that the Papists themselves do not relie upon
the Legality of this Power, which you are to justifie, since j^

being

A Letter to a Dissenter. 139

being so very earnest to get it established by a Law, and the
doing such very hard things in order, as they think, to obtain it,
is a clear Evidence, that they do not think that the single Power
of the Crown is in this Case a good Foundation ; especially
when this is done under a Prince, so very tender of all the
Rights of Sovereignty, that he would think it a Diminution to
his Prerogative, where he conceiveth it strong enough to go
alone, to call in the Legislative help to strengthen and s upport i t.

You have formerly blamed the Church'of England, and not
without reason, for going so far as they did in their Compliance ;
and yet as soon as they stopped, you see they are not only
deserted, but prosecuted: Conclude then from this Exaniple,
that you nmst_ either break off''your Friendship, or resolve to _
have no BoundsJn.it. If th^y dn nnf. siipcegd in their Design.
they_will leave ymi .firs.t.; i£_JJa£y_do^_yo]^ must either leave
them, when it will be too kte fo r your Safety , or else after the
queazimesaloL starting at^ SurpUce, you must be forcecTto
swallow Transubstantiation.

Remember that the other day those of the Church of England
were Trimmers for enduring you, and now by a sudden Turn,
you are become the Favourites ; do not deceive your selves, it is
not the nature of lasting Plants thus to shoot up in a Night ;
you may look gay and green for a little time, but you want a
RooFto give you a Continuance; — It, is not so long since , as
to be-fergolLen, that the Maxim was. It is impossible for a
Dissenter not to be a REBEL. Consider at this time in France,
even the new Converts are so far from being imployed, that
they are disarmed ; their sudden Change maketh them still to
be distrusted, notwithstanding that they are reconciled ; What
are you to expect then from your dear Friends, to whom,
when ever they shall think fit to throw you off again, you have
in other times given such Arguments for their excuse ?

Besides all this, y ou Act very unskilfully against your visibla.^ — 1/
Interest, if you throw away the Advantages, of which you caji, '' ' . '^
hardly fail ' in the next probable Revoiution._ Things tend
naturally t o, what you would' have, if you" would let them alone,
and not by an unseasonable Activity lose the Influences of

your

140 A Letter to a Dissenter.

your good Star, which promiseth you every thing that is
prosperous,

^ The Church of England convinced of its Error in being severe
to you ; the Parliament, when-ever it meeteth, sure to be gentle
to you ; the next Heir bred in the Country which you have so
often q^uoted for a Pattern of Indulgence ; a general Agreement
of all thinking Men, that we mu«t-no_jnore__cut-ettr-setves off
from the Protestants abroad, but rather inlarge the Foundations
upon which we are to build our Defences against the ComnxDii^
Enemy; so that in truth, all things seem to conspire to give
you Ease and Satisfaction, if by too much haste to anticipate
your good Fortune, you do not destroy it.

The Protestants have but one Article of Humane Strength, to
oppose the Power which is now against them, and that is, not
to lose the advantage of their Numbers, by being so unwary as
to let themselves be divided.

We ^_2g£je in our JDuty to our Prince ; our Objections to
his JB elief ^ojiot, h.in^fir_ us from seeing his Ve rt ues ; a nd our ,
not complying with his fieli gio n. hath no effect oipon , our
Allegiane£4-_we- are not to_-be-laugh£d._imiL jaf„jJiu:~Paasive.-, ,.
Obedience,^and the. Doctrine of Non-Resistance; though even
those who perhaps owe the best part of their Security to that
Principle, are apt to make a Jest of it.

So tha t if we _give no advantage by the fatal M istake o f
misapplying_our_Aiiggr]^y th e natural rnnrsp nl things., this
Danger wilLpass_awjiy4ike-9r-sfemver-of~Hail-j fair weather will
succeed, as lowering as the Sky now looketh, and all this by plain
and easie Receipt ; Let us be^still, quiet, and undivided, firm at
the same time to our Religion^ our Loyalty, and our Laws ; and
so long as we continue this method, it is next to impossible, that
the odds of 200 to one should lose the Belt ; except the Church
of Rome, which hath been so long barren of Miracles, should
now in her declining Age, be brought to Bed of One that would
out-do the best she can brag of in her Legend.

To conclude, the short Question will be. Whether you will
join with those who must in the end run the same Fate with
you ? If Protestants of all sorts, in their Behaviour to one

another^

A Letter to a Dissenter. 141

another, have been to blame, they are upon the more equal
terms, and for that~very reason" it is fitter for them now to be
reconciledr Our Dis-union is not only a Reproach, but _a
Dan^ert'o'us ; those who believe in modern Miracles, have
more Right, or at least more Excuse, to neglect all Secular
Cautions; but for us, it is as jus tifiable to have 55_5.eligionj^as
wilfully to throw away the Humane Means oi preserving it.
I am,

Bear Sir,

Your most Affectionate humble Servant,

T. W.

Some

142

Some Cautions offered to the Conside-
ration of those "who are to chuse
Members to serve for the Ensuing
Parliament.

I Will make no other Introduction, than that it is hoped
the Counties and Boroughs will remember in general.
That besides other Consequences, they will have the
Credit of a good Choice, or the Scandal that belongeth to an
ill one.

The Creators will be thought like their Creatures; and
therefore an ill Choice will either be a disparagement of their
Understanding, or their Morals.

There cannot be a fuller Approbation of a thing, than the
Chusing of it; so that the fault of the Members chosen, if
known before-hand, will be judged to be of the growth of that
County or Borough, after such a solemn Approbation of them.

In short, those who send up their Representatives to West-
minster, should take care they may be such as will do them
Right, and their Countrey Honour.

Now to the particulars.

I. A very extraordinary earnestness to be chosen, is no very
good Symptom : A desire to serve the Nation in Parliament, is
an English Man's Ambition, always to be Encouraged, and
never to be disapproved.

A Man may not only be willing to stand, but he may declare
that willingness to his Friends, that they may assist him, and by
all the means becoming a modest and prudent Man, he may
endeavour to succeed, and prevent the being disappointed in it.

But there is a wide difference between this and the raising a
'kind of petty War in the County or Corporation ; entring the
Lists rather for a Combat than an Election ; throwing Fire-balls

to

Cautions for Choice of Members in Parliament. 143

to put Men into heat,and omitting to spread no Reports, whether
true or false, which may give an advantage hy laying a Blemish
upon a Competitor.

These Methods wiU ever be suspicious ; it will never be
thought a Natural thing for Men to take such extravagant pains
for the meer sake of doing good to others.

To be content to suffer something for a good end, is that
which many would do without any great repugnance: but,
where a Man can honestly propose nothing to himself, except
Troubles, Charge, and Loss, by absence from his own Affairs,
to be so violent in the pursuit of so ill a Bargain, is not at all
suited to the languishing Virtue of Mankind so corrupted.

Such a self-denying Zeal in such a self-seeking Age, is so
little to be imagin'd, that it may without injury be suspected.

Therefore when these blustring Pretenders come upon the
Stage, their natural Temper and other Circumstances ought
to be very well consider' d, before Men trust them with the
disposal of their Money, or their Liberty.

And I am apt to believe, there could hardly be found one
single Man whose other Qualifications would over-balance the
Objections that lie against such importunate Suitors,

II. Recommending Letters ought to have no effect upon
Elections,

In this I must distinguish ; for tho in strictness perhaps there
should be no Exception ; yet in compliance with long practice,
and out of an Indulgence that is necessary in a time when
Mankind is too much loosened from severe Rules to be kept
close up to them. Letters sent only from Equal Men, doing
Good Men right by giving Evidence in_their_ behalf, offering
them as fitly qualified, when they really are so, and freeing them
from unjust Aspersions, may be still allowed.

The Letters I mean, are from Men of Power, where it may
be beneficial to comply, and inconvenient to oppose.

Choice must not only be free from Force, but from Influence,
which is a degree of Force: There must be no difficulty, no
apprehension that a Refusal will be ill taken, or resented.

The Freeholders must be Freemen too ; they are to have no

Shackles

144 Cautions for Choice of

Shackles upon their Votes in an Election : and the Men who
stand, should carry their own Letters of Recommendation about
them, which are their good Character and Behaviour in the
World, without borrowing Evidence, especially when it cometh
from suspected hands.

Those who make use of these Epistles, ought to have no
more advantage from them, than the Muscovites have from the
Letters put into their hands, when they are buried, to recommend
them to St. Nicholas.

The first should as little get admittance for Men into the Par-
liament, as these Letters can introduce the Bearers into Heaven.

The Scandal of such Letters lieth first in the arrogant
imposing of those that write them, and next in the wretched
Meanness of those that need them.

Men must be fallen very low in their Credit, who upon such
an occasion have a recourse to Power to support it : Their
Enemies could not give stronger Evidence of their not being fit
for that which they pretend to. And if the Electors judge
otherwise, they will be pretty sure in a little time to see their
Mistake, and to repent it.

III. Non-Attendance in former Parliaments ought to be a
Bar against the Choice of Men who have been guilty of it.

It is one of the worst kinds of Non-Residence, and the least to
be excused : It is very hard that Men should despise a Duty,
which perhaps is the only ground of the respect that is paid to
them.

It is such a piece of Sawciness for any one to press for the
Honour of serving in Parliament, and then to be careless in
Attending it, that in a House where there were so many
Ofiicers, the Penalty had not been improper to have Cashier'd
them for not appearing at the General Muster.

If men forbear to come out of Laziness, let them be gratified
by taking their ease at Home without Interruption ; If out of
small Cunning to avoid Difl&culties, and to escape from the
Inconvenience of Voting in Critical Cases, let them enjoy that
despicable pitch of Wisdom, and never pretend to make a Figure
where the Publick is to be^ served.

If

Mevibers in Parliament. r45

If it would not be thought advisable to trust a Man
immediately after he hath been drawn out of a Gaol, it may be
as reasonable to look upon one who for his Non-attendance in
the House hath been sent for in Custody, as a kind of Bankrupt,
which putteth him upon unequal terms with those who have
been assiduous in the discharge of their Duty.

They who thought fit in one Session to neglect the Publick
Business, may be justly suspected, by their standing, in the
next to intend their own.

Besides these more deliberate Offenders, there are some who
do not Attend even when they are in the House ; absent in their
Thoughts for want of Comprehending the Business that is doing,
and therefore diverted from it by any thing that is Trivial.

Such Men are Nusances to a serious Assembly ; and when
they are Numerous, it amounteth almost to a Dissolution; it
being scarce possible for good sence to be heard, whilst a noise
is made by the buzzing of these Horse flies.

The Roman Censors who degraded a Senator for yawning
whilst there was a Debate, would have much more abundant
matter here upon which they might exercise their Jurisdiction.

To conclude this Head, There are so few that ever mended
in these Cases, that after the first Experiment it is not at all
reasonable to take them upon a new Tryal.

IV. Men who are unquiet and busy in their Natures, are to
give more than ordinary proofs of their Integrity, before the
Electing them into a^ Publick Trust can be Justifijid. As a hot
Summer breedeth greater swarms of Flies, so an active time
breedeth a greater number of these shining Gentlemen.

It is pretty sure. That men who cannot allow themselves to
be at rest, will let no body else be at quiet. Such a perpetual
Activity is apt by degrees to be applied to the pursuit of their
private interest. And their thoughts being in a continual
motion, they have not time to dwell long enough upon any thing
to entertain a scruple.

So that they are generally at full liberty to do what is most
convenient for them, without being fettered by any Restraints.

Nay further ; Whenever it hapneth that there is an Impunity

T, for

146 Cautions for Choice of

for Cheating, these nimble Gentlemen are apt to think it a
disparagement to their Understandings not to go into it.

I doubt it is not a wrong to the present Age, to say, that a
Knave is a less unpopular Calling than it hath been in former
times. And to say truth, it would be ingratitude in some Men
to turn Honest, when they owe all they have to their Knavery,

The People are in this respect unhappy ; they are too many
to do their own business ; their numbers, which make their
strength, are at the same time the cause of their weakness ; they
are too unweildy to move ; and for this Reason nothing can ever
redeem them from this incurable Impotency : So that they must
have Solicitors to pursue and look after their Interests ; who are
too often disposed to dispense with the Fidelity they owe to those
that trust them; especially if the Government wUl pay their
BUls without Abatement.

It is better these Gentlemen's dexterity should be employed
any where than in Parliament, where the ill consequence of
their being Members is too much diffused, and not restrained to
the County or Borough who shall be so unwary as to Chuse
them.

i V. Great Drinkers are less fit to Serve in Parliament than is
apprehended.

- Men's Virtue, as well as their Understanding, is apt to be
tainted by it.

The appearance of it is Sociable and well-natur'd, but it is by
no means to be rely'd upon.

Nothing is more frail than a Man too far engaged in wet
Popularity.

The habit of it maketh Men careless of their business, and
that naturally leadeth them into Circumstances that make them
liable to Temptation.

It is seldom seen. That any Principles have such a root, as that
they can be proof against the continual droppings of a Bottle.

As to the Faculties of the Mind, there is not less Objection ;
the vapours of Wine may sometimes throw out sparks of Wit,
but they are like scattered pieces of Ore, there is no Vein to
work upon.

Such

Members in Parliament. 147

Such Wit, even the best of it, is like paying great Fines ; in
which case there must of necessity be an abatement of the
constant Rent.

Nothing sure is a greater Enemy to the Brain, than too much
moisture ; it can the least of any thing bear the being con-
tinually steeped : And it may be said, that Thought may be
resembled to some Creatures which can live only in a dry
Country.

Yet so arrogant are some men, as to think they are so much
Masters of Business, as that they can play with it; they
imagine they can drown their Reason once a day, and that it
shall not be the worse for it ; forgetting, that by too often
diving the Understanding at last groweth too weak to rise up
again.

I will suppose this fault was less frequent when Solon made
it one of his Laws, That it was Lawful to Kill a Magistrate if
he was found Drunk. Such a Liberty taken in this Age, either
in the Parliament or out of it, would do terrible Execution.

I cannot but mention a Petition in the year 1647, from the
County of Devon, to the House of Commons, against the undue
Election of Burgesses who are strong in Wine and weak in
Wisdom.

The cause of such Petitions is to be prevented by Chusing
such as shall not give handle for them.

VL Wanting-Men give such cause of suspicion where ever
they deal, that surely the Chusers will be upon their guard,
as often as such dangerous pretenders make their application

to them.

Let the behaviour of such Men be never so plausible and
untainted, yet they who are to pitch upon those they are to
trust with all they have, may be excused, if they do not only
consider what they are but what they may be.

As we Pray our selves we may not be led into Temptation,
we ought not by any means to thrust others into it; even
though our own Interest was not concerned ; And sure when it is,
the Argument hath not less force.

If a Man hath a small Estate, and a numerous Family;

L a where

148 Cautions for Choice of

where it happeneth that a Man hath as many Children as he
hath Tenants, It is not a Recommending Circumstance for his
Election.

When it cometh to be the Question with such a Man,
Whether he shall be Just to the Publick, or Cruel to his
Family ? It is very possible the decision may be on the side
of Corrupted Nature.

It is a Compliment to this Age, which it doth not deserve,
to suppose Men are so ty'd up to Morality, as that they cannot
be pinched out of it : especially now when it is called Starving
not to be Embroidered, or served in Plate.

The Men Chosen to serve their Country, should not be
loaden with Suits that may tempt them to assume Privileges ;
much less under such Necessities as may more immediately
prepare them for Corruption.

Men who need a Parliament for their own particular Interest,
have more reason to offer their Service than others have to
accept of it. And though I do not doubt, but there may be
some whose Virtue would triumph over their Wants, let them
be never so pressing ; yet to expose the Publick to the hazard
of being deceived, is that which can never be justifi'd by those
that Chuse. And tho it must be allow 'd possible for a wan ting-
Man to be honest, yet it is impossible for a Man to be wise
that will depend upon it.

VII. There is a sort of Men that have a Tinsel-wit, which
make them shine among those who cannot judge.

Club and Coffee-house Gentlemen, Petty Merchants of small
Conceits, who have an Empty habit of prating without meaning ;
They always aim at Wit and generally make false Fire.

Their business is less to learn, than to set themselves out ;
which makes them chuse to be with such as can only be
Witnesses of their small Ingenuity, rather than with such as
might improve it.

There is a subordinate Wit, as much inferior to a Wit of busi-
ness, as a Fidler at a Wake is to the lofty Sound of an Organ.

Men of this Size are in no degree suited to the business of
redressing Grievances, and making Laws.

There

Members in Parliament. 149

There is a Parliament Wit to be distinguish'd from all other
kinds ; those who have it, do not stuff their heads only with
Cavils and Objections.

They have a deliberate and an observing Wit, a Head turned
to Publick things ; Men who place a greater pleasure in mending
a Fault than in finding it out.

Their Understanding directeth them to object in the right
place, and not like those who go by no other Rule, than to
conclude. That must be the best Counsel which was not taken.

These Whole-sale Judges shew such a gross and peevish
Ignorance that it appeareth so openly in all they say or do.
That they give loud warning to all considering Men, not to
chuse them.

VIII. The dislike of slight Airy Men must not go so far, as
to recommend heaviness in opposition to it, especially where
men are convicted of it by Experience in former Sessions.

As a lively Coxcomb will seldom fail to lay in his claim for
Wit ; so a Blockhead is apt to pretend. That his heaviness is
a proof of his Judgment.

Some have an universal Lethargy spread upon their Under-
standing without exception ; others have an Insufficiency quoad
hoc, as in some Cases men have quoad hanc; These last can
never so turn their thoughts to publick Business, as to give the
attention that is necessary to Comprehend it.

There are those who have such a thick Shell upon their
Brains, that their Ignorance is impenetrable, and maketh such
a stout resistance against Common Sense, that it will never be
subdued by it : True Heart of Oak Ignorance that will never
yield, let Reason beat never so hard upon it ; and though their
kind Neighbours have at several Elections sent them up to
School again, they have still return'd the same incurable Dunces.

There is a false Gravity that is a very iU symptom ; and it
may be said. That as Rivers, which run very slowly, have always
the most Mud at the bottom ; so a solid stiffness in the constant
course of a man^s Life, is a sign of a thick bed of Mud at the
bottom of his Brain,

A dull man is so near a dead Man, that he is hardly to be

ranked

150 Cautions for Choice of

ranked in the List of the Living ; and as he is not to he buri'd
whilst he is half alive, so he is as little to be imploy'd whilst he
is half dead.

Parliaments are now grown to be quite other things than they
were formerly.

In Ancient Times they were little more than Great Assizes ;
A Roll of Grievances ; Magna Charta confirmed ; Privileges
of Holy Church preserved ; so many Sacks of Wool given ; and
away.

Now there are Traps and Gins laid for the well-meaning
Country-Gentleman ; he is to grapple with the Cunning of Men
in Town, which is not a little improv'd by being rewarded and
encourag'd.

So that men whose good Intentions are not seconded and
supported by some degree of Ability, are as much the more
dangerous, as they are less criminal than Cunning Knaves.
Their honest Mistakes, for want of distinguishing, either give
a Countenance to, or at least lessen the Scandal of the injurious
things that are done to the Publick : and with leave ask'd for so
odd an expression. Their Innocent Guilt is as mischievous to
the Laws and Liberties, as the most deliberate MaUce of those
that would destroy them.

IX. There is an Abuse which daily increaseth, of sending
such to Parliament, as are scarce old enough to be sent to the
University.

I would not in this restrain the Definition of these Boys to
the Age of Twenty One : If my Opinion might take place,
I should wish that none might be chosen into the House of
Commons under Thirty ; and to make some Equality, I should
from the same Motives think it convenient. That no Lord should
have a Vote in Judicature under that Age.

But to leave this Digression ; I cannot see why the Chusers
should not at least make it a Rule among themselves. Not to
send any Man to Represent them under the Age of Twenty five,
which is the time of Majority in most other places of the world.

Surely it is not that we are Earlier plants than our Neighbours.

Such supposition could neither be Justifi'd by our Climate,

nor

Members in Parliament. 151

nor by the degree of Latitude in which we are placed ; I must
therefore attribute it to the haste our Ancestors had (and not
without reason) to free themselves from the Severity of Ward-
ships.

But whether this, or any thing else, was the cause of our
earlier stepping into Man's Estate ; so it is now, that according
to our Laws, Twenty one is the Age of Discretion ; and the
Young Man is then vested with a Legal, how defective soever
he may be in his Natural Understanding.

With all this, there ought to be a difference made between
coming out of Pupilage, and leaping into Legislatorship.

It is perhaps inconvenient enough that a man should be so
soon let loose to destroy his own Estate ; but it is yet worse,
that he should then have a Power of giving away other men's.

The Law must make General Rules, to which there always
will be some Objections.

If there were Tryers appointed to judge when Leading-Strings
should be left off, many would wear them a very great while,
and some perhaps with their Gray Hairs ; there being no small
number of Old Boys in all times and especially in this.

It is necessary thei-efore to make Exceptions to this General
Rule, where the Case so much requireth it, as it doth in the
matter in question.

The ground of sending these Minors to Parliament ought not
to recommend the Continuance of it to those who are Lovers of
Liberty ; since it was by the Authority and Influence of Great
Men, that their Stripling Sons were first receiv'd by the humble
depending Boroughs, or the complying Counties.

They called it, as many do still, the best School for Young
Men. Now Experience hath shew'd us, that it is like a School
only in this respect. That these Youngsters when they are
admitted, deserve to be whipp'd in it.

If the House of Commons is a School, it must be for Men of
riper Age ; these are too young to learn there, and being elevated
by a mistaken smattering in small Politicks, they grow too
supercilious to learn any where else ; so that instead of improving
young promising Plants, they are destroy'd by being misplac'd.

152 Cautiojis for Choice of

If then they do themselves hurt hy it, it is surer yet that they
do the House no good by coming into it.

They were not Green Geese that are said to have sav'd the
Capitol ; they were certainly of full Age, or else their Cackling
could not have been heard, so as to give warning.

Indeed it look'd of late, when the Fashion was to have long
continu'd Parliaments, as if we might plant a Boy in the House
with a Prospect that he might continue there till he had Gray
Hairs : And that the same Sapling might have such a Root, as
that he might grow up to be Timber without being remov'd.

If these Young Men had skill enough to pitch upon somebody
in the House, to whom they might resign their Opinion, and
upon whose Judgment they might lean without Reserve, there
might be less Objection.

But to speak Truth, they know as little how to chuse, as
those did who Elected them ; so that there is no other Expedient
left, than the letting them alone.

One may say, generally speaking. That a young Man being
too soon qualifi'd for the serious Business of Parliaments, would
really be no good Symptom.

It is a sign of too much Phlegm, and too little Fire in the
beginning of Age, if Men have not a little more heat than is
convenient ; for as they grow older they will run a hazard of not
having so much as is necessary.

The Truth is. The vigour of Youth is soften'd and misapply'd,
when it is not spent either in War or close Studies ; all other
Courses have an idle Mixture that cometh to nothing, and
maketh them like Trees, which for want of Pruning run up
to Wood, and seldom or never bear any Fruit.

To conclude this Head, it must be own'd. That there is no
Age of our Life which doth not carry Arguments along with it
to humble us : and therefore it would be well for the Business
of the World, if young Men would stay longer before they
went into it, and old Men not so long before they went out
of it.

X. Next to these may be rank'd a sort of superfine Gentle-
men, Carpet-Knights, Men whose Heads may be said to be

only

Members in Parliament, 153

only Appurtenances to their Perukes^ which intirely ingress all
their Care and Application.

Their Understanding is so strictly appropriated to their Dress,
that no part of it is upon pain of their utmost Displeasure to be
diverted to any other use.

It is not by this intended to recommend an affected Clown,
or to make it a necessary Qualification for a Member of Parlia-
ment, that he must renounce clean Linen or good Manners;
but surely a too earnest Application to make every thing sit
Right about them, striketh too deep into their small stock of
Thoughts to allow it Furniture for any thing else.

To do Right to these fine-spun Gentlemen, Business is too
coarse a thing for them, which maketh it an unreasonable
Hardship upon them to oppress them with it ; so that in
tenderness to them, no less than out of care to the Publick,
it is best to leave them to their Taylors with whom they will
live in much better Correspondence, when the Danger is
prevented of their falling out about Privileges.

XI. Men of Injustice and Violence, in their private Dealings,
are not to be trusted by the People with a Commission to treat
for them in Parliament.

In the 4/A of Edw. 3, the King Commandeth in his Writs
not to chuse any Knights who had been Guilty of Crime, or
Maintenance.

These warm Men seldom fail to run into Maintenance, taken
in a larger Extent.

It is an unnatural Sound to come from a Man that is arbitrary
in his Neighbourhood, to talk of Laws and Liberties at West-
minster; he is not a proper Vehicle for such Words, which
ought never to be prophaned.

An habitual Breaker of the Laws, to be made one of the
Law-makers, is as if the Benches in Westminster-hall should be
filled with Men out of Newgate.

Those who are of this Temper cannot change their Nature
out of respect to their Countrey.

Quite contrary, they will less scruple to do Wrong to a
Nation where no Body taketh it to himself, than to par-
ticular

154 Cautions for Choice of

ticular Men to whose Resentments they are more immediately
exposed.

In short they lie under such strong Objections, that the over-
balance of better Men cannot altogether purify an Assembly
where these unclean Beasts are admitted.

XII. Excessive Spenders and unreasonable Savers are to be
Excluded, being both greedy from differing Causes.

They are both of them Diseases of Infection, and for that
Reason are not to be admitted into Publick Assemblies.

A prodigal Man must be greedy, because he thinketh he can
never spend enough.

The Wretch must be so, because he will never think he can
hoard enough.

The World first admireth Men's Wisdom for getting Money,
and then raileth at them if they do not throw it away ; so that
the Prodigal Man is only the less unpopular Extreme ; he is every
jot as well prepared as the Miser to fall out with his Morals,
when once a good Temptation is offered him to lay them aside.

On the other side, some Rich Men are as eager to overtake
those that are Richer, as a Running horse is to get to the Race-
post before the other that contendeth with him.

Men often desire to heap, rather because others have more,
than that they know what to do with that which they covet with
so much Impatience.

So that it is plain, the Fancy hath as great a share in this
imaginary Pleasure of Gathering as it hath in Love, Ambition,
or any other Passion.

It is pretty sure, that as no Man was ever the Richer for
having a good Estate, if he did not look after it ; so neither will
he be the Honester if he hath never so much.

Want of care will always create want of Money ; so that
whether a Man is a begger because he never had any Money, or
because he can never keep any, it is all one to those who are to
trust him.

Upon this head of Prodigality, it may be no unreasonable
Caution to be afraid of those who in former Service have been
extravagantly Liberal of the Publick Money.

Trusting

Members in Parliament. 155

Trusting is so hazardous a thing, that it should never be done
but where it is necessary ; so that when Trustees are found
upon Tryal to be very Lavish, even without examining into the
Causes of it, (which are generally very suspicious) it is a
reasonable part of preventing Wit to change Hands, or else the
Chusers will pay the Penalty that belongeth to good Nature so
misplaced, and the Consequences will be attended with the
Aggravation of their not being made Wiser by such a severe
and costly warning.

XIII. It would be of very great use to take a general
Resolution throughout the Kingdom, That none should be
chosen for a County but such as have either in Possession, or
Reversion, a considerable Estate in it ; nor for a Burrougb,
except he be Resiant, or that he hath some Estate in the County,
in present or Expectancy.

There have been Eminent Men of Law who were of opinion.
That in the Case of a Burgess of a Town not Resiant, the
Court is to give Judgment according to the Statute, notwith-
standing Custom to the contrary.

But not to insist now upon that, the prudential part is
Argument enough to set up a Rule to abrogate an ill Custom.

There is not, perhaps, a greater Cause of the Corruption of
Pariiaments, than by adopting Members, who may be said to
have no title by their Births. .^ /

The Juries are by the Law to be E» vicineto; And shall
there be less care that the Representatives of the People be so
too?

' Sure the Interest of the County is best placed in the hands
of such as have some share in it.

The Outliers are not so easily kept within the pale of the
Laws.

They are often chosen without being known, which is more
like chusing Valentines, than Members of Parliament. The
Motive of their standing is more Justly to be supposed, that
they may redress their own Grievances which they know, than
those of the Countrey, to which they are strangers.

They are chosen at London to serve in Cornwall, &c. and

are

156 Cautions for Choice of

are often Parties^ before they come to be Representatives : One
would think the Reproach it is for a County not to have Men
within their own Circle to serve them in Parliament, should be
Argument enough to reject these Trespassers, without urging
the ill Consequences in other Respects of their being admitted.

XIV. As in some Cases it is advisable to give a total
exclusion to Men not fitly qualified ; so in others it is more
proper to lay down a general Rule of Caution, with allowance
of some Exceptions, where Men have given such proofs of
themselves, as create a Right for them to be distinguished.

Of this nature is that which I shall say concerning Lawyers,
who, by the same Reason that they may be useful, may be also
very dangerous.

The Negligence, and want of Application in Gentlemen, hath
made them to be thought more necessary than naturally they
are in Parliament.

They have not only ingrossed the Chair of the Speaker, but
that of a Committee is hardly thought to be well filled, except it
be by a Man of the Robe.

This maketh it worthy of the more serious reflection of all
Gentlemen, that it may be an Argument to them to qualify them-
selves in Parliamentary Learning, in such a manner, as that
they may rely upon their own Abilities, in order to the serving
their Countrey.

But to come to the point in question ; It is not without
Precedent, that Practising-Lawyers have been excluded from
serving in Parliament ; and, without following those Patterns
strictly, I cannot but think it reasonable, that whilst a
Pai-liament sitteth, no Member of Parliament should plead at
any Bar.

The Reason of it is in many respects strong in it self, and is
grown much stronger by the long sitting of Parliaments of late ;
but I will not dwell upon this : The matter now in question
being concerning Lawyers being Elected, which I conceive
should be done with so much circumspection, that probably it
would not often happen.

If Lawyers have great Practice, that ought to take them up ;

if

Members in Parliament. 157

if not, it is no great sign of their Ability ; and at the same
time giveth a suspicion, that they may be more liable to be
tempted.

If it should be so in Fact, That no King ever wanted Judges
to soften the stiffness of the Laws that were made, so as to
make them suit better with the Reason of State, and the
Convenience of the Government ; it is no Injury now to suppose
it possible for Lavryers in the House of Commons, so to behave
themselves in the making of New Laws, as the better to make
way for the having their Robes lined with Fur.

They are Men used to argue on both sides of a Question ;
And if ordinary Fees can inspire them with very good Reasons
in a very ill Cause, that Faculty exercised in Parliaments, where
it may be better encouraged, may prove very inconvenient to
those that chuse them.

And therefore, without arraigning a Profession, that it would
be scandalous for a man not to honour ; one may, by a Sus-
picion which is the more excusable when it is in the behalf
of the People, imagine that tlie habit of taking Money for their
Opinion, may create in some such a forgetfulness to distinguish,
that they may take it for their Vote.

They are generally Men who by a laborious study hope to be
advanced : They have it in their Eye as a Reward for the Toil
they undergo.

This maketh them generally very slow, and ill disposed (let
the Occasion never so much require it) to wrestle with that Soil
where Preferment groweth.

Now if the Supposition be in its self not unreasonable, and
that it should happen to be strengthen'd and confirm'd by
Experience, it will be very unnecessary to say any more upon
this Article, but leave it to the Electors to consider of it.

XV. I cannot forbear to put in a Caveat against Men ty'd to

a Party.

There must in every body be a Leaning to that sort of Men
who profess some Principles, more than to others who go upon
a different Foundation ; but when a man is drowned in a Party,
plunged in it beyond his depth, he runneth a great hazard of

being

158 Cautions for Choice of

being upon ill terms with good Sense, or Morality, if not with
both of them.

Such a man can hardly be called a Free-Agent, and for that
reason is very unfit to be trusted with the PeoplesJLiherty, after
he hath given up his own^.

It is said. That in some part of the Indies they do so affect
little Feet, that they keep them squeezed while they are
Children, so that they stay at that small size after they are
grown Men.

One may say something like this of Men lock'd up in a Party ;
They put their Thoughts into such a Narrow Mould, that
they can never be enlarged nor released from their first
Confinements.

Men in a Party have Liberty only for their Motto ; in
reality they are greater Slaves than any body else would care to
make them.

A Party, even in times of Peace, (tho against the Original
Contract, and the Bill of Rights) sets up and continues the
exercise of Martial Law : Once inrolled, the Man that quitteth,
if they had their will, would be hanged for a Deserter.

They communicate Anger to one another by Contagion : And
it may be said, that if too much Light dazzleth the Eyesight,
too much Heat doth not less weaken the Judgment.

Heat reigneth in the Fancy ; and Reason, which is a colder
Faculty of the Brain, taketh more time to be heard, than the
other will allow.

The Heat of a Party is like the Burning of a Fever ; and not
a Natural Warmth, evenly distributed to give Life and Vigor.

There was a time indeed when Anger shew'd a good sign of
Honesty ; but that Evidence is very much weakned by Instances
we have seen since the Days of Yore : And the Publick spirited
Choler hath been thrownnffi. within _time of Mfiniflxy,^ „and_ lost
almost all its Credit with some People, since they found what
Governments thought fit to make their so doing a step to their
preferment.

A strong blustring Wind seldom continues long in one
Corner.

Some

Members in Parliament. 159

Some men knock loud only to be let in ; the Bustle they make
is animated by their private Interest. The outward Blaze only
is for Religion and Liberty : The true lasting Fire, like that of
the Vestals which never went out, is an eagerness to get some-
what for themselves.

A House of Commons composed of such Men, would be more
properly so many Merchants incorporated in a Regular Com-
pany, to make their particular Adventures, than Men sent from
the People to serve and represent them.

There are some Splenetick Gentlemen who confine their
favourable Opinion within so narrow a compass, that they will
not allow it to any man that was not hanged in the late Reigns.
Now by that rule one might expect they should rescue
themselves from the disadvantage of being now alive ; and by
abdicating a World so little worthy of them, get a great Name
to themselves, with the general satisfaction of all those they
would leave behind them.

Amongst the many other ill consequences of a stated Party,
it is none of the least, that it tempteth low and insignificant
men to come upon the Stage, to expose themselves, and to spoil
Business.

It turneth a Cypher into a Figure, such an one as it is : A
man in a Party is able to make a noise, let it be never so empty

a sound.

A weak man is easily blown out of his small senses, by being
muster'd into a Party ; he is flattered till he liketh himself so
weU, that he taketh it extremely Ul if he hath not an
Employment.

Nothing is more in fashion, than for men to desire good
Places, and I doubt nothing is less so than to deserve them.

From Nobody to somebody is such a violent stride, that
Nature, which hath the Negative Voice, wiU not give its Royal
Assent to it : So that when insufficient Men aim at being in
business, the worst of their Enemies might out of malice to
them pray for their Preferment. -

There could be no end, if one did not stop till this Theme
had no more matter to furnish. I wUl only say. Nothing is

more

i6o Cautions for Choice of

more evident, than that t he Go od of the Nation hath been
sacrificed to the Animosities of the several C ontending P arties ;
and witTiout entring into the dispute which of them are more or
less in the right, it is pretty sure, that whilst these Opposite
Sets of Angry Men are playing at Foot-ball, they will break all
the Windows, and do more hurt than their pretended Zeal for
the Nation will ever make amends for.

In short, a man so engaged is retained before the people take
him for their Council ; he hath such a Reserve for his Party,
that it is not adviseable for those who would chuse him, to depend
upon his Professions ; all Parties assuming such a Dispensing
Power, that by their Sovereign Authority they cancel and dissolve
any Act or Promise that they do not afterwards approve.

These things considered, those who will chuse such men
deserve whatever foUoweth.

XVI. Pretenders to Exorbitant Merit in the late Revolution,
are not without Objections against them, when they stand to
serve in Parliament. It would not only be a low, but a Criminal
kind of Envy, to deny a distinguishing Justice to Men who
have been instrumental and active, when the Service of their
Countrey requir'd it. But there ought to be Moderation in
men's Claims, or else it is out of the Power of our poor Island
to satisfy them. It is true, Service of all kinds is grown much
dearer, like Labourer's Wages, which formerly occasioned
several Statutes to regulate them.

But now the men who only carried Mortar to the Building,
when it is finished, think they are ill dealt with if they are not
made Master- Workmen.

They presently cry out. The Original Contract is broken, if
their Merit is not rewarded, at their own Rate too.

Some will think there never ought to be an end of their
Rewards ; when indifferent Judges would perhaps be puzzled to
find out the beginning of their Merit.

They bring in such large Bills, that they must be ex-
amin'd : Some bounds must be put to men's Pretensions ;
else the Nation, which is to pay the Reckoning, will every way
think it a scurvy thing to be undone, whether it be by being

over-run

Members in Parliament. i6i

over-run by our Enemies, or by the being exhausted by our
Friends.

There ought therefore to be deductions where they are
reasonable, the better to justifie the paying what remaineth.

For example, if any of these passionate Lovers of the
Protestant Religion should not think fit, in their manner of
Living, to give the least evidence of their Morality, their claims
upon that Head might sure be struck off without any Injustice
to them.

If there are any who set down great Sums as a Reward due
to their Zeal for rescuing Property from the Jaws of Arbitrary
Power ; their pretensions may fairly be rejected, if now they |
are so far from shewing a care and tenderness of the Laws, that
they look rather like Counsel retained on the other side.

It is no less strange, than I doubt it is true, that some Men
should be so in Love with their dear Mistress, Old England,
•with, all her Wrinkles, as out of an Heroick Passion to Swim
over to rescue her from being Ravish'd ; and when they have
done the Feat, the first thing after Enjoyment is, that they
go about to Strangle her.

For the sake of true Love, it is not fit that such ungenteel
Gallants should be too much encourag'd ; and their Arrogance
for having done well at first, will have no right to be excused.
if their so doing ill at last doth not make them a little more

modest.

True Merit, like a River, the deeper it is the less noise it

maketh.

These loud proclaimers of their own Deserts, are not only to
be suspected for their truth, but the Electors are to consider
that such meritorious Men lay an assessment upon those that

Chuse them.

The Publick Taxes are already heavy enough without the
addition of these private Reckonings. It is therefore the safer
way not to employ Men, who will expect more for their Wages,
than the mistaken Borough that sendeth them up to Parliament

could be sold for.

XVII. With all due regard to the noblest of Callmgs,

M Military

HALIFAX

1 62 Cautions for Choice of

Military Officers are out of their true Element when they are
misplaced in a House of Commons.

Things in this World ought to be well suited. There are
some Appearances so unnatural, that men are convinc'd by
them without any other Argument.

The very Habit in some Cases, recommendeth or giveth
Offence.

If the Judges upon the Bench should, instead of their Furrs,
which signifie Gravity, and bespeak Respect, be Cloathed like
the Jockeys at New-Market, or wear Jack-Boots and Steenkirks ;
they would not in reality have less Law, but Mankind would
be so struck with this unusual Object, that it would be a great
while before they could think it possible to receive Justice
from Men so Accouter'd.

It is to some degree the same thing in this Case ; such
Martial Habits, Blue-Coats, Red -Stockings, <SfC. make them
look very unlike Grave Senators. One would almost swear
they were Creatures apart, and of a differing Species from the
rest of the Body.

In former times, when only the Resiant Shopkeeper was to
Represent his Corporation (which by the way is the Law still
at this day) the Military Looks of one of these Sons of Mars,
would have stared the Quaking Member down again to his
Burrough.

Now the number of them is so encreased, that the Peaceable
part of the House may lawfully swear they are in fear of their
Lives, from such an Awful Appearance of Men of War.

It maketh the Room look like a Guard-house by such an
ill-suited mixture. But this is only the out-side, the bark of the
Argument; the root goeth yet deeper against Chusing such
Men, whose Talents ought to be otherwise applied.

Their Two Capacities are so inconsistent, that Mens under-
taking to serve both the Cures, will be the cause in a little time,
that we shall neither have Men of War, nor Men of Business,
good in their several kinds.

An OflBcer is to give up his Liberty to obey Orders ; and it is
necessarily incident to his Calling that he should do so,

A

3Iembers in Parliament. 163

A Member of Parliament is originally to be tender of his own
Liberty^ that other Men may the better trust him with theirs.

An Officer is to enable himself by his Courage, improved by
Skill and Experience^ to support the Laws (if Invaded) when
they are made ; but he is not supposed to be at leisure enough
to understand how they should be made.

A Member of Parliament is to fill his thoughts with what
may best conduce to the Civil Administration ; which is enough
to take up the whole Man, let him be never so much raised
above the ordinary Level.

These two opposite Qualifications, being placed in one Man,
make him such an ambiguous divided Creature, that he doth
not know how to move.

It is best to keep Men within their proper Sphere ; few Men
have Understanding enough exactly to fill even one narrow Circle,
fewer are able to fiU two ; especially when they are both of so
great compass, and that they are so contrary in their own
Natures.

The Wages he hath as a Member, and those he receiveth as
an Officer, are paid for Services that are very differing ; and
in the doubt which of them should be preferrably performed^
it is likely the greater Salary may direct him, without the
further inducements of complying most, where he may expect
most advantage by it.

In short, if his dependance is not very great, it will make
him a scurvy Officer; if it is great, it will make him a scurvier
Member.

XVIII. Men under the scandal of being thought private
Pensioners, are too fair a mark to escape being consider'd, in
reference to the point in Question.

In case of plain Evidence, it is not to be suppos'd possible,
that Men convicted of such a Crime should ever again be

Elected.

The difficulty is in determining what is to be done in case

of suspicion.

There are suspicions so well grounded, that they may pretend
to have the force of proofs, provided the penalty goeth only

m3 to

164 Cautions for Choice of

to the forbearing to Trust, but not extending it so far as to
Punish.

There must be some things plain and express to justify the
latter, but Circumstances may be sufficient for the former : As
where Men have had such sudden Cures of their ill Humours,
and opposition to the Court, that it is out of the way of
ordinary methods of recovery from such Distempers, which have
a much slower progress ; it must naturally be imputed to some
Specifick that maketh such a quick alteration of the whole Mass
of Blood.

Where Men have raised their way of Living, without any
visible means to support them in it, a suspicion is justified,
even by the Example of the Law, which in cases of this kind,
though of an inferior nature, doth upon this foundation not
only raise Inferences, but inflict Punishments.

Where Men are immoral, and scandalous in their Lives, and
dispense familiarly with the Rules by which the World is
Govern' d, for the better preserving the bonds of human Society ;
it must be a confidence very ill placed, to conclude it impossible
for such Men to yield to a Temptation well offer'd and pursuM ;
when, the truth is, the habit of such Bons vivants, which is the
fashionable word, maketh a suspicion so likely, that it is very
hard not to believe it to be true.

If there should be nothing but the general Report, even that
is not to be neglected.

Common Fame is the only Lyar that deserveth to have some
Respect still reserv'd to it ; tho she telleth many an Untruth,
she often hitteth right, and most especially when she speaketh
ill of men.

Her Credit hath sometimes been carried too far, when it hath
gone to the divesting men of any thing of which they were
possess'd, without more express evidence to justify such a
proceeding.

If there was a doubt whether there ever was any Corruption
of this kind it would alter the Question ; but sure that will not
bear the being controverted.

We are told. That Charles the Fifth sent over into England

1200000

Members in Parliament. 165

1200000 Crowns to be distributed amongst the Leading Men,
to encourage them to carry on Elections.

Here was the Protestant Religion to be bought out for a
valuable Consideration according to Law, though not according
to Gospel, which exalteth it above any Price that can be set
upon it.

Now, except we had reason to believe that the Vertue of
the World is improved since that time, we can as little doubt
that such Temptations may be offered, as that they may be
receiv'd.

It will be owned, that there is to be a great tenderness in
Suspecting ; but it must be allowed at the same time, that there
ought not to be less in Trusting, where the People are so much
concern'd; especially, when the Penalty upon the Party sus-
pected goeth no further than a Suspension of that Confidence,
which it is necessary to have in those who are to represent the
Nation in Parliament.

XIX. I cannot omit the giving a Caution against admitting
Men to be chosen, who have Places of any value.

There needeth the less to be said upon this Article, the truth
of the Proposition being supported by such plain Arguments.

Sure no Man hath such a plentiful spring of Thought, as that
all that floweth from it is too much to be applied to the Business
of Parliament.

It is not less sure, that a Member of Parliament, of all others,
ought not to be exempted from the Rule, That no Man should
serve two Masters.

It doth so split a Man's Thoughts, that no Man can know
how to make a fitting Distribution of them to two such differing
Capacities.

It exposeth Men to be suspected, and tempted, more than is
convenient for the Publick Service, or for the mutual good
Opinion of one another which there ought to be in such an
Assembly.

It either giveth a real dependance upon the Government,
which is inconsistent with the necessity there is, that a Member
of Parliament should be disengaged ; or at least it hath the

appearance

1 66 Cautions for Choice of

appearance of it, which maketh them not look like Freemen,
though they should have virtue enough to be so.

More Reasons would lessen the Weight of this last, which is,
That a Bill to this effect, commonly called the Self Denying Bill,
pass'd even this last House of Commons.

A greater Demonstration of the irresistible strength of Truth
cannot possibly be given ; so that a Copy of that Bill in every
County or Burrough, would hardly fail of discouraging such
Pretenders from Standing, or at least it would prevent their
Success if their own Modesty should not restrain them from
attempting it.

XX. If Distinctions may be made upon particular Men, or
Remarks fix'd upon their Votes in Parliament, they must be
allow'd in relation to those Gentlemen, who for Reasons best
known to themselves thought fit to be against the Triennial Bill.

The Liberty of Opinion is the thing in the World that ought
least to be controU'd, and especially in Parliament.

But as that is an undoubted Assertion, it is not less so. That
when Men Sin against their own Light, give a Vote against
their own Thought, they must not plead Privilege of Parliament
against the being arraigned for it by others, after they are Con-
victed of it by themselves.

There cannot be a Man, who in his Definition of a House of
Commons, will state it to be an Assembly, that for the better
redressing of Grievances the People feel, and for the better
furnishing such Supplies as they can bear, is to continue, if the
King so pleaseth, for his whole Reign.

This could be as little intended, as to throw all into one
Hand, and to renounce the Claim to any Liberty, but so much
as the Sovereign Authority would allow.

It destroyeth the end of Parliaments, it maketh use of the
Letter of the Law to extinguish the Life of it.

It is, in truth, some kind of Disparagement to so plain a thing,
that so much has been said and written upon it ; and one may
say, It is such an Affront to these Gentlemens Understandings
to censure this Vote only as a Mistake, that, as the Age goeth,
it is less Discredit to them to call it by its right Name ; and if

that

3Iembers in Parliament. 167

that is rightly understood hy those who are to chuse them,
I suppose they will let them exercise their Liberty of Conscience
at home, and not make Men their Trustees, who in this Solemn
Instance have such an unwillingness to surrender.

It must be own'd. That this Bill hath met with very hard
Fortune^^^and yet that doth not in the least diminish the value
of it.

It had in it such a Root of Life, that it might be said. It was
not Dead but Sleeped ; and we see that the last Session, it was
revived and animated by the Royal A.ssent, when once fully
inform'd of the Consequence, as well as of the Justice of it.

In the mean time, after having told my Opinion, Who ought
not to be Chosen :

If I should be ask'd. Who ought to be, my Answer must be,
Chuse Englishmen ; and when I have said that, to deal honestly,
I will not undertake that they are ea,sy to be found.

i68

Rough Draught

OF A

NEW MODEL

AT

SEA^ 1694.

I Will make no other Introduction to the following Discourse,
than that as the Importance of our being strong at Sea,
was ever very great, so in our present Circumstances it is
grown to be much greater ; because, as formerly our Force of
Shipping contributed greatly to our Trade and Safety, so now
it is become indispensibly necessary to our very Being.

It may be said now to England, Martha, Martha, thou art
busy about many things, but one thing is necessary. To the
Question, What shall we do to be saved in this WorldJ there
is no other Answer but this. Look to your Moate.

The first Article of an English-mans Political Creed must be,
That he believeth in the Sea, 4"C. without that there needeth no
General Council to pronounce him incapable of Salvation here.

We are in an Island, confined to it by God Almighty, not as
a Penalty but a Grace, and one of the greatest that can be given
to Mankind. Happy Confinement, that hath made us Free,
Rich, and Quiet ; a fair Portion in this World, and very well
worth the preservings a Figure that ever hath been envied, and
could never be imitated by our Neighbours. Our Situation hath

/ made

A Rough Draught of a New Model at Sea, 1 694. 1 69

made Greatness abroad by Land Cont[uests unnatural things to
us. It is true, we have made Excursions, and glorious ones too,
which make our Names great in History, but they did not last.

Admit the English to be Giants in Courage, yet they must
not hope to succeed in making War against Heaven, which
seemeth to have enjoyned them to acquiesce in being happy
within their own Circle. It is no Paradox to say, that England^
hath its Root in the Sea, and a deep^one too^ from whence i t
sRiidpth^its Tti-ancKps-intoJiQt h the Indies. We may say further
in our present Case, That xiAlkjiiqnce is due to Protection, ours
to the Sea is due from that RulCj^since by that, and by that
alone, we are to be protected ; and if we have of late suffered
Usurpation of other Methods, contrary to the Homage we owe
to that which must preserve us, it is time now to restore
the Sea to its right ; and as there is no Repentance effectual
without Amendment, so there is not a moment to be lost in
the going about it.

It is not pretended to launch into such a Voluminous Treatise,
as to set down every thing to which so comprehensive a Subject
might lead me ; for as the Sea hath little less variety in it than
the Land ; so the Naval Force of England extendeth it self into
a great many Branches, each of which are important enough to
require a Discourse apart, and peculiarly applied to it: But
there must be preference to some Considerations above others,
when the weight of them is so visibly Superior that it cannot
be contested. It is there, first, that the Foundations are to be
laid of our Naval Oeconomy ; amongst these, there is one
Article which in its ovm Nature must be allowed to be the
Corner-stone of the Building: the Choice oi Officers, with the
Discipline and Encouragement belonging to them. Upon this
Head only, I shall then take the liberty to venture my Opinion
into the World, with a real^ubmission to those, who may offer
any thing better fortheadvantage of the PubUcJc^,

The first Question then will be. Out of what sort of Men the
Officers of the Fleet are to be chosen; and this immediately
leadeth us to the present Controversy between the Gentlemen

and the Tarpaulins.

The

170 A Rough Draught

The usual Objections on both sides are too general to be relied
upon. Partiality and Common Prejudices direct most Mens
Opinions, without entring into the particular Reasons which
ought to be the ground of it. There is so much ease in ac-
quiescing in Generals, that the Ignorance of those who cannot
distinguish, and the Largeness of those who will not, maketh
Men very apt to decline the trouble of stricter Enquiries, which
they think too great a price for being in the right, let it be never
so valuable.

This maketh them judge in the Lump, and either let their
Opinions swim along with the Stream of the World, or give
them up wholly to be directed by Success. The effect of this
is, that they change their Minds upon every present uneasiness,
wanting a steady Foundation upon which their Judgment should
be formed. This is a pearching upon the Twigs of things, and
not going to the Root. But sure the Matter in question de-
serveth to be examined in another manner, since so much
dependeth upon it.

To state the thing impartially, it must be owned that it
seemeth to lye fairest for the Tarpaulin : It giveth an Impression
that must have so much weight as to make a Man's Opinion
lean very much on that side, it carrieth so much Authority with
it, it seemeth to be so unquestionable, that those are fittest to
Command at Sea, who have not only made it their Calling, but
their Element ; that there must naturally be a prejudice to any
thing then can be said against it. There must therefore be
some Reason extraordinary to support the Argument on the
other side, or else the Gentlemen could never enter the Lists
against such a violent Objection, which seemeth not to be resisted,
I will introduce my Argument with an Assertion, which as I
take to be true almost in all Cases, so it is necessaiy to be
explained and inforced in this. The Assertion is, that there is
hardly a single Proposition to be made, which is not deceitful,
and the tying our Reason too close to it, may in many Cases be
destructive. Circumstances must come in, and are to be made
a part of the Matter of which we are to judge ; positxy£jDecisions
are always dangerous, more especially in Politick^. A Man,

/ who

of a New Model at Sea, 1 694. 1 7 1

who will be Master of an Argument^ must do like a skilful
General, who sendeth Scouts on all sides, to see whether there
may not be an Enemy. So he must look round to see what
Objections can be made, and not go on in a streight Line,
which is the ready way to lead him into a mistake.

Before then, that we conclude what sort of Men are fittest to
Command at Sea, a Principle is to be laid down, that there is
a differing Consideration to be had of such a Subject-matter, as
is in it self distinct and independent, and of such an one as being
a Limb of a Body, or a Wheel of a Frame, there is a necessity
of suiting it to the rest, and preserving the Harmony of the
whole. A Man must not in that Case restrain himself to the
separate Consideration of that single Part, but must take care
it may fall in and agree with the Shape of the whole Creature,
of which it is a Member. According to this Proposition, which
I take to be indisputable, it will not I hope appear an Affecta-
tion, or an extravagant Fit of unseasonable Politicks, if, before
I enter into the particular State of the present Question, I say
something of the Government of England, and make that the
Ground-work of what sort of Men are most proper to be made
use of to Command at Sea.

The Forms of Government to which England must be sub-
jected, are either Absolute Monarchy, a Commonwealth, or
a Mixt Monarchy, as it is now ; with those natural Alterations
that the Exigency of Affairs may from time to time suggest.
As to Absolute Monarchy, I will not allow my self to be trans-
ported into such Invectives, as are generally made against it;
neither am I ready to enter into the aggravating Stile of calling
every thing Slavery, that restraineth Men in any part of their
Freedom: One may discern in this, _asjn__ most other_things,
the good and bad of-it. We see by too near an Instance, what
France doth by it ; it doth not only struggle with the rest of
Christendom, but is in a fair way of giving Law to it. —

This is owing in great Measure to a Despotick and Undivided
Power ; the uncontroulable Authority of the Directive j:^Duncils
maketh every thing move without Disorder or Opposition, which
mu st give an advantage, that is plain enough of it self, without

being

172 A Rough Draught

being proved by the melancholly Experience we have of it at
this time.

I see and admire this ; yet I consider at the same time, that
all things of this kind are comparative : That as on one_sidej
without Government Men cannot finjoy what.bdongetL,tCLlheiii
in particular, nor can a Nation be secure, or preserve it self in
general: So on the other side, the end oi Government being,
that Mankind should live in some competent State of Freedom,
it is very unnatural to have the j^wc? destroyed by the Means that
were originally made use ofto attain it. In this respect some-
thing is to be ventured, rather than submit to such a precarious
State of Life, as would make it a Burthen to a reasonable
Creature ; and therefore, after I have owned the Advantages in
some kind of an unlimited Government; yet, while they are
attended with so many other discouraging Circumstances, I _
cannot think but that they may be bought too dear ; and if it
should be so, t hat it is not^possiblejor_a_ /Stofe to be Great and_
Glorious, unless the Subjects are wretchedly Miserable^ I am not
ashamed to own my low-spirited frailty, in preferring such
a Model of Government, a s may agree with the reasonable
lEnjoyment of a Free People, before such_a_one__by_which
Empire is to be extended at such an unnatural Price. Besides
whatever Mens Opinions may be one way or another in the
general Question, there is an Argument in our Case that
shutteth the Door to any Answer to it : viz. We cannot sub-
sist under a Despotick Power, our very Being would be destroyed
by it; for we are to consider, we are a very little Spot in the
Map of the World, and make a great Figure only by Trade,
jwhich-is,,the C reature of Liberty ; o ne destro yed^_the_other
falleth to the Ground by a natural Consequence^ that_will_not
admit a dispute. If we would be measured by our Acres, we
are poor inconsiderable People ; we are exalted above our
natural Bounds, by our good Laws, and our excellent Constitu-
tion. By this we are not only happy at Home, but considerable
Abroad. Our Situation, our Humour, our Trade, do all concur
to strengthen this Argument. So that all other Reasons must

give

of a New Model at Sea, 1694. 173

give place to such a one as niaketh it out, that there is no Mean
between a Free Nation and No Nation .

We are no more a People, nor England can no longer keep,
its Name, from the moment that our Liberties are extinguish'd ; ^^im t"
the Vital Strength that should support us being withdrawn, we i
should then be no more than the Carcass of a Nation, with no
other Security than that of Contempt ; and to subsist upon no
other Tenure, than that we should be below the giving Tempta-
tion to our stronger Neighbours to devour us. In my Judgment,
therefore, there is such a short Decision to be made upon this
Subject, that in Relation to England, an Absolute Monarchy is
as unreasonable a thing to be wished, as I hope it will be im-
possible to be obtained.

It must be considered in the next place, whether England
is likely to be turn'd into a Commonwealth. It is hard at any
time to determine what will be the Shape of the next Revolution, >^
much more at this time would it be inexcusably Arrogant to '
undertake it. Who can foresee whether it will be from without,
or from within, or from both ? Whether with or without the
Concurrence of the People? Whether regularly produced, or
violently imposed ? I shall not therefore Magisterially declare
it impossible that a Commonwealth should be settled here ; but
I may give my humble Opinion, that according to all appearances,
it is very improbable.

I will first lay it down for a Principle, That it is not a sound
way of arguing, to say. That if it can be made out, that the
Form of a Commonwealth will best suit with the Interest of the
Nation, it must for that reason of necessity prevail.

I will not deny but thai Interest will not lie,_\s a right Maxim,
where ever it is sure to be understood ; else one had as good
afifirm, That no Man in particular, nor Mankind in general, can
ever be mistaken. A Nation is a great while bejpj-e theyj;an
see, and generally they must feel first before their Sight is quite
cleared. This maketh it so long before they can see their
Interest, that for the most part it is too late for them to pursue
it: If Men- xoust-be-^ supposed, always to follow their true
Interest, it must be meant of a New Manufactory of Mankind

by

1 74 -^ Rough Draught

by God Almighty; there must be some new C/a^j the_pld S^m^
never yet made any such infallible Creature.

This being premis'd^ it is to be inquired. Whether instead of
inclination, or a leaning towards a Commonwealth, there is not
in England a general dislike to it ; if this be so, as I take it to be,
by a very great disparity in Numbers, it will be in vain to
dispute the Reason, whilst Humour is against i t ; allowing the
weight that is due to the Argument which may be alledged for
it, yet, if the Herd is against it, the going about to convince
them would have no other effect than to shew that nothing can
be more impertinent than good Reasons, when they are misplaced
or ill-timed.

I must observe. That there must be some previous^Dispositions
in all great Changes to faciUtate and to make way for them :
I think it not at all absurd to affirm. That such Resolutions are
seldom made at all, except by the general Preparations of Mens
Minds they are half made before it is plainly visible that Men
go about them.

Though it seemeth to me that this Argument alone maketh

all others unnecessary, yet I must take notice that besides what

hath been said upon this Subject, there are certain Preliminaries

I to the first building a Commonwealth, some Materials absolutely

j necessary for the carrying on such a Fabrick, which at present

I are wanting amongst us, I mean Virtue, Morality, Diligence,

or a.t least Hiij)gcrisii.__ Now this Age is so plain dealing^_as_

not to dissemble so far as to an outward Pretence of Qualities

which seem at present so Unfashionable, and under so much

Discountenance.

! From hence we may draw a plain and natural Inference, That
a Commonwealth is not fit for us, because we arejotfit for
a Commonwealth.

~ This being granted, the Supposition of this Form of Govern-
ment of England, with all its Consequences as to the present
Question, must be excluded, and Absolute Monarchy having
been so too by the Reasons at once alledged, it will without
further Examination fall to a Mixt Government, as we now are.
I will not say, that there is never to be any Alteration; the

Constitution

of a New Model at Sea, 1694. 175

Constitution of the several Parts that concur to make up the
Frame of the present Government may be altered in many
things, in some for the better, and in others, perhaps for the
worse, according as Circ^mstan^cjs_shallarisel£Lillduce A.C&fl22#e,-
and as Passion and Interest shall have more or less Influence
upon the Publick Councils ; but still, if it remaineth in the
vphole so far a mixt Monarchy, that there shall, be..a, restraint
upon tlxe Prince as to the Exercise of a Despotick Power ^\tjm
enough to make it a Groundwork for the. present Question. It
appeareth then that a bounded Monarchy is that kind of Govern-
ment which wiU most probably prevail and continue in England ;
from whence it must follow (as hath been hinted before) that
eveiy considerable Part ought to be so composed, as the better
to conduce to the preserving the Harmony of the whole Con-
stitution. The Navy is of so great Importance, that it would
be disparaged by calling it less than the Life and Soul of
Government.

Therefore to apply the Argument to the Subject we are upon ;
in case the Officers be all Tarpaulins, it would be in reality too
great a tendency to a Commonwealth; such a part of the
Constitution being I)emocra#ic«% disposed may be suspected
to endeavour to bring it into that Shape; and where the
influence must be so strong, the Supposition will be the more
justifiable. In short, if the Maritime Force, which is the only
thing that can defend us, should be wholly directed by the lower
sort of Men, with an intire Exclusion of the Nobility and
Gentry, it will not be easy to answer the Arguments supported
by so great a probability, that such a Scheme would not only
lean toward a Democracy, but directly lead us mtojt.

Let us now examine the contrary Proposition, viz. that all
Officers should be Gentlemen.

Here the Objection lieth so fair, of its introducing an Arbi-
trary Government,that it is as little to be answered in that respect,
as the former is in the other. Gentlemen in a general Definition,
wUl be suspected to lie more than other Men under the Tempta-
tions of being made Instruments of unlimited Power; their
Relations, their Way of Living, their Tast of the Entertainments

of

176 A Rough Draught

of the Court, inspire an Ambition that generally draweth their
Inclinations toward it, besides the gratifying of their Interests.
Men of Quality are often taken with the Ornaments of Govern-
ment, the Splendor dazleth them so, as that their Judgments
are surprized by it ; and there will be always some that haYfi_aQ_
little remorse for invading other Mens Liberties, that it maketh
them less solicitous to preserve their own.

These things throw them naturally into such a dependance
as might give a dangerous Biass ; if they alone were in Command
at Sea, it would make that great Wheel turn by an irregular
Motion, and instead of being the chief means of preserving the
whole Frame, might come to be the chief Instruments to dis-
compose and dissolve it.

The two former exclusive Propositions being necessarily to
be excluded in this Question, there remaineth no other Ex-
pedient, neither can any other Conclusion be drawn from the
Argument as it hath been stated, than that there must be
a mixture in the Navy of Gentlemen and Tarpaulins, as there
jis in the Constitution of the Government, of Power and Liberty.
This Mixture is not to be so rigorously defined, as to set down
the exact Proportion there is to be of each ; the greater or lesser
Number must be directed by Circumstances, of which the
Government is to Judge, and which make it improper to set
such Bounds, as that upon no occasion it shall on either side be
lessened or enlarged. It is possible the Men of Wapping may
think they are injured, by giving them any Partners in the
Dominion of the Sea ; they may take it unkindly to be jostled
in their own Element by Men of such a different Education,
that they may be said to be of another Species ; they will be
apt to think it an Usurpation upon them, and notwithstanding
the Instances that are against them, and which give a kind of
Prescription on the other side, they will not easily acquiesce in
what they conceive to be a hardship to them.

But I shall in a good measure reconcile my self to them by
what follows; viz. The Gentlemen shall not be capable of
bearing Office at Sea, except they be Tarpaulins too ; that is to
say, except they are so trained up by a continued habit of living

at

of a New Model at Sea, 1694. 177

at Sea, that they may have a Right to be admitted free Denizens
of Wapping. Upon this dependeth the whole Matter ; and hi-
deed here lieth the difficulty, because the Gentlemen brought up
under the_ Connivance of a looser Discipline, and of an easier
admittance, will take it heavily to be reduced within the Fetters
of such a New Model ; and I conclude, they will be so extreamly
averse to that which they call an unreasonable Yoke upon them,
that their Original Consent is never to be expected. But if it
appeareth to be convenient, and which is more, that it is
necessary for the Preservation of the whole, that it should be
so ; the Government must be call'd in Aid to suppress these
first Boilings of Discontent ; the Rules must be imposed with
such Authority, and the Execution of them must be so well
supported, that by degrees their Impatience will be subdued,
and they will concur in an EstabUshment to which they will
every day be more reconciled.

They will find it will take away the Objections which are
now thrown upon them, of setting up for Masters without
having ever been Apprentices ; or at least, without having served
out their Time.

Mankind naturally swelleth against Favour and Partiality;
their belief of their own Merit maketh Men object them to
a prosperous Competitor, even when there is no pretence for it ;
but when there is the least handle offered, to be sure it will be
taken. So, in this Case, when a Gentleman is preferr'd at Sea,
the Tarpaulin is very apt to impute it to Friend or Favour:
But if that Gentleman hath before his Preferment passed through
all the Steps which lead to it, so that he smelleth as much of
Pitch and Tar, as those that were Swadled in Sail-Cloath ; his
having an Escutcheon will be so far from doing him harm, that
it will set him upon the advantage Ground : It will draw a real ■
Respect to his Quality when so supported, and give him an
Influence and Authority infinitely superior to that which the
meer Sea-man can ever pretend to.

When a Gentleman hath learned how to Obey, he will grow]
very much fitter to Command ; his own Memory will advise hini^
not to inflict too rigorous Punishments. He will better resist

»»T.„rAx N the

178 A Rough Draught

the Temptations of Authority (which are great) when he re-
flecteth how much he hath at other times wished it might be
gently exercised, when he was liable to the Rigour of it.

When the undistinguish'd Discipline of a Ship hath tamed
the young Mastership, which is apt to arise from a Gentleman's
Birth and Education, he then groweth Proud in the right place,
and valueth himself first upon knowing his Duty, and then
upon doing it.

In plain English, Men of Quality in their several Degrees
must either restore themselves to a better Opinion, both for
Morality and Diligence, or else Quality it self will be in danger
of being extinguished.

The Origmal Gentleman is almost lost in strictness ; when
Posterity doth not still further adorn by their Virtue the
Escutcheon their Ancestors first got for them by their Merit,
they deserve the Penalty of being deprived of it.

To expect that Quality alone should waft Men up into Places
and Imployments, is as unreasonable, as to think that a Ship,
because it is Carved and Gilded, should be fit to go to Sea with-
out Sails or Tackling. But when a Gentleman maketh no other
use of his Quality, than to incite him the more to his Duty, it
will give such a true and settled Superiority, as must destroy
all Competition from those that are below him.

It is time now to go to the Probationary Qualifications of an
Officer at Sea : And I have some to offer, which I have digested
in my Thoughts, I hope impartially, that they may not be
Speculative Notions, but things easy and practicable, if the
directing Powers will give due Countenance and Incouragement
to the Execution of them : But whilst I am going about to set
them down, though this little Essay was made to no other End,
than to introduce them, I am upon better Recollection, induced
to put a restraint upon my self, and .rather jcetra^ct the Promise
I made at the beginning, than by advising the particular
Methods by which I conceive the good End that is aimed at
may be obtained, to incur the Imputation of the thing o£ the
World of which I would least be guilty, which is of anticipating,
by my private Opinion, the Judgment of the Parliamentj_or_

/ seeming

of a New Model at Sea, 1694. 179

seeming out of my slender Stock of Reason to dictate tP the
Supream Wisdom-oLthe Nation. They will, no doubt, consider
the present Establishments for Discipline at Sea, which are
many of them very good, and if well executed, might go a great
way in the present Question. But I will not say they are so
perfect, but that others may be added to make them more
effectual, and that some more Supplemental Expedients may be
necessary to compleat what is yet defective : And whenever the
Parliament shall think fit to take this Matter into their Coii-
sideration, I am sure they will not want for their Direction the
Auxiliary Reasons of any Man. without Doors, much less of
one, whose Thoughts are so intirely and unaffectedly resigned
to whatever they shall determine in this, or any thing else
relating to the Publick.

MAXIMS

N a

i8o

MAXIMS

OF

STATE.

I . r~~t ^ HAT a Prince who falleth out with Laws, breaketh
I with-hig.best F?-zerarf«. '

-M. 2. That the exalting his own Authority above his
Laws, is like letting in his Enemy to surprize his Guards : The
Laivs are the only Guards he can be sure will never run away
from him,

3. A Prince that will say he can do no Good, except he may
do every thing; teacheth the People to say, They are Slaves, if
they must not do whatever they have a mind to.

4. That Power and Liberty are like Heat and Moisture ;
where they are well mixt, every thing prospers ; where they are
jsingle, they are destructive.

5. That Arbitrary Power is like most other things that are
very hard, they are also very apt to break.

6. That the profit of Places should be measured as they are
more or less conducing to the PubUck Service ; and if Business
is moje necessary than Splendor, the Instrument of it oughVm"
Proportion to be better paid ; that the contrary Method is as
impertinent, as it would be to let the Carving of a Ship cost
more than all the rest of it.

7. That where the least useful part of the People have the

most

3Iaocims of State. i8i

most Credit with the Prince, Men will conclude, That the way
to get every thing, is to be good for nothing.

8. That an extravagant Gift to one Man, raiseth the Market
to every body else ; so that in consequence, the unlimited
Bounty of an unthinking Prince maketh him a Beggar, let him
have never so much Money.

9. That if ordinary Beggars are whip'd, the daily Beggars in
fine Cloaths (out of a proportionable Respect to their Quality)
ought to be hanged.

10. That Pride is as loud a Beggar as Want, and a great
deal more Sawcy,

11. That a Prince, who will give more to Importunity than
Merit, had as good set out a Proclamation to all his Loving
Subjects, forbidding them to do well, upon the penalty of being
undone by it.

12. That a wise Prince will not oblige his Courtiers, who are
Birds of Prey, so as to disobhge his People, who are Beasts of
Burthen,

13. That it is safer for a Prince to Judge of Men by what
they do to one another, than what they do to him.

14. That it is a gross Mistake to think. That a Knave be-
tween Man and Man, can be honest to a King, whom, of all
other. Men generally make the least Scruple to deceive.

15. That a Prince who can ever trust the Man that hath once
deceived him, loseth the Right of being Faithfully dealt with by
any other Person.

16. That it is not possible for a Prince to find out such an
Honest Knave, as will let no body else Cheat him.

17. That if a Prince doth not shew an Aversion to Knaves,
there will be an Inference that will be very Natural, let it be
never so Unmannerly.

18. That a Prince who followeth his own Opinion top soon,
is in danger of repenting it too late.

19. That it is less dangerous for a Prince to mind too much

what the Peo^le^BMi t^^" *°° ^^*'^^-

30. That a Prince is to take care that the greater part of the
People may not be angry at the same time ; for though the

first

1 82 Maocims of State.

first beginning of their III Humour should be against one
another, yet if not stopt, it will naturally end in Anger against
him.

21. That if Princes would Reflect how much they are in the
Power of their Ministers, they would be more circumspect in
the Choice of them.

32. That a wise Prince will support good Servants against
Mens Anger, and not support ill ones against their Comp laint .

33. That Parties in a State generally, like Freebooters, hang
out False Colours ; the pretence is the Publick Good ; the real
Business is, to catch Prizes ; like the Tartars, where-ever they
succeed, instead of Improving their Victory, they presently fall
upon the Baggage.

24. That a Prince may play so long between Two Parties,
that they may in time join together, and be in earnest with him.

25. That there is more Dignity in open Violence, than in the
unskilful Cunning of a Prince, who gpeth about to Impose upon
the People.

26. That the People will ever suspect the Remedies for the
Diseases of the State, where they are whoUy excluded from
seeing how they are prepared.

27. That changing Hands without changing Measures, is as
if a Druntcard in a Dropsey should change his 2)oc^pr«, and Jiot
his Dyet.

28. That a Prince is to watch that his Reason may not be so
subdued by his Nature, as not to be so much a Man of Peace,
as to be a jest in an Army ; nor so much a Man of JVar, as to
be out of his Element in his Council.

29. That a Man who cannot mind his own Business, is not
to 1)6 trusted with the King''s.

30. That Quality alone should only serve to make a shew in
the Embroidered Part of the Government ; but that Ignorance,
though never so well born, should never be admitted to spoil the
Publick Business.

31. That he who thinks his Place below him, will certainly
be below his Place.

32. That when a Princes Example ceaseth to have the force

"of

Maxims of State. 183

of a Law, it is a sure sign that_his^Po2^r is wastiijg, aud that
there is but little distance between Men's neglecting-t0-7»«ite^
and their refusin g to Obey.

33. That a People may let a Kinff fall, yet still re main a
People; but if a iTm^ let His People slip from him, he is no
longer Kini;.

JDVEB-

i84

^Dl^ER TISEMEN T.

^Ince the Death of the Ingenious
Translator of these Essays, an im-
perfect Transcript of the following Letter
was intended for the Press, but having
the good fortune to meet with a more
correct Copy, I thought my self under
a necessity of Publishing it with this Third
Edition, not only to do Justice to his
Memory, but to the Great Person he Chose
for his Patron.

M. G.

i85

■A Letter sent by his Lordship to Charles
Cotton, Esq.; upon his New Translation
and Dedication o/' MontaigneV Essays.

SIR.

I have too long delayed my Thanks to you for giving me such
an obhging Evidence of your Remembrance: That alone
would have been a welcome Present, but when join'd with
the Book in the World I am the best entertain'd with, it raiseth
a strong desire in me to be better known, where I am sure to be
so much pleased. I have till now thought Wit could not be
Translated, and do still retain so much of that Opinion, that
I believe it impossible, except by one whose Genius cometh up
to that of the Author. You have so kept the Original Strength
of his Thought, that it almost tempts a Man to believe the
Transmigration of Souls, and that his, being us'd to Hills, is
come into the Moore-Lands to Reward us here in England, for
doing him more Right than his Country wiU afford him. He
hath by your means mended his First Edition : To transplant
and make him Ours, is not only a Valuable Acquisition to us,
but a Just Censure of the Critical Impertinence of those French
Scribblers who have taken pains to make little Cavils and
Exceptions, to lessen the Reputation of this great Man, whom
Nature hath made too big to Confine himself to the Exactness
of a Studied Stile. He let his Mind have its full Flight, and
sheweth by a generous kind of Negligence that he did not Write
for Praise, but to give to the World a true Picture of himself
and of Mankind. He scorned affected Periods, or to please the
mistaken Reader with an empty Chime of Words. He hath no
Affectation to set himself out, and dependeth wholly upon the

Natural

1 86

Natural Force of what is his own, and the Excellent Application
of what he borroweth.

You see. Sir, I have kindness enough for Monsieur de Mon-
taigne to be your Rival, but no Body can pretend to be in equal
Competition with you : I do willingly yield, which is no small
matter for a Man to do to a more prosperous Lover ; and if you
will repay this piece of Justice with another, pray believe, that
he who can Translate such an ^w^Aor without doing him wrong,
must not only make me Glad but Proud of being his

Very humble Servant,

Hallifax.

i87
A

CHARACTER

OF

KING CHARLES 11.

I. Of his Religion.

A Character differeth from a Picture only in this^ every Part
-* ^ of it must be like, but it is not necessary that every
Feature should be comprehended in it as in a Picture, only
some of the most remarkable.

This Prince at his first entrance into the World had Adversity
for his Introducer, which is generally thought to be no ill one,
but in his case it proved so, and laid the foundation of most of
those Misfortunes or Errors, that were the causes of the great
Objections made to him.

The first Effect it had was in relation to his Religion.

The ill-bred familiarity of the Scotch Divines had given him
a distaste of that part of the Pi-otestant Religion. He was left
then to the little Remnant of the Church of England in the
Fauxbourg St. Germain ; which made such a kind of figure, as
might easily be turn'd in such a manner as to make him lose
his veneration for it. In a refined Country, where Religion
appeared in Pomp and Splendor, the outward appearance of
such unfashionable Men was made an Argument against their
Religion ; and a young Prince not averse to rallery, was the
more susceptible of a contempt for it.

(/I The Company he kept, the Men in his Pleasures, and the
Arguments of State that he should no t appear too much a
Protestant, whilst he expected Assistance from a Popish Prince ;
^11 these, together with a habit encouraged by an Application

to

i88 A Character of

to his Pleasures, did so loosen and untie him from his first
Impressions, that I take it for granted, a fter the first Ye^ C-jir
two, he was no more a Protestant. If you ask me what he was,
my answer must be, that he was of the Religion of a young
Prince in his warm Hlood, whose Enquiries were more applied
to find Arguments against believing, than to lay any settled
Foundations for acknowledging Providence, Mysteries, S^c. A
General Creed, and no very long one, may be presumed to be
the utmost Religion of one, whose Age and Inclination could
not well spare any Thoughts that did not tend to his
Pleasures.

In this kind of Indifference or Unthinkingness, which is too
natural in the beginnings of Life to be heavily censured, I will
suppose he might pass some considerable part of his Youth. I
must presume too that no Occasions were lost, during that Time,
to insinuate every thing to bend him towards Popery. Great Art
without intermission, against Youth and Easiness, which are
seldom upon their guard, must have its Effect. A Man is to be
admired if he resisteth, and therefore cannot reasonably be
blamed if he yieldeth to them. When the critical Minute was,
V\\ not undertake to determine ; but certainly the inward Con-
viction doth generally precede the outward Declarations : At
what distances, dependeth upon Mens several Complexions and
Circumstances ; no stated Period can be fixed.

It will be said^that he Jbad not ReligiQDu-,eiiQUgh..J;.Q_have
Conviction; that is a vulgar Error. Conviction indeed is not
a proper word but where a Man is convinced by jReason ; but
in the common acceptation, it is applied to those who cannot
tell why they are so : If Men can be at least as positive in
a Mistake as when they are in the right ; they may be as clearly
convinced when they do not know why, as when they do.

I must presume that no Man of the King^s Age, and his
Methods of Life, could possibly give a good reason for chang-
ing the Religion in which he was born, let it be what it wiU.
But our Passions are much oftener convinced than our Reason.
He had but little Reading, and that tending to his Pleasures
more than to his Instruction. In the Library of a young Prince,

the

King Charles II. 189

the solemn Folios are not much rumpled^ Books of a lighter
Digestion have the Dog's Ears.

Some pretend to be very precise in the time of his Recon-
ciling; The Cardinal de Retz, S^c. I will not enter into it
minutely, but whenever it was, it is observable that the Govern-
ment of Prance did not think it adviseable to discover it openly ;
upon which such obvious Reflections may be made, that I
will not mention them.

Such a Secret can never be put into a place which is so
closely stopt, that there shall be no Chinks. Whispers went
about, particular Men had Intimations: Cromwell had his
Advertisements in other things, and this was as well worth his
paying for. There was enough said of it to startle a great
many, though not universally diffused ; So much, that if the
Government here, had not crumbled of itself, his Right alone,
with that and other clogs upon it, would hardly have thrown it
down. I co nclude that whe n he came in to England he was as
certainly^ a Roman Ca tMlii±^iLS thathewas a Man of Pleasure; ~

both very consistent_b y visiblc-J Ixpierience. ' ""—

It is impertinent to give Reasons for Mens changing their
Religion. None can give them but themselveSj_ as every Man 1
has quife^a different way of arguing : A thing which may very
well be~ accounted for. They are differing kinds of Wit, to be •
quick to find a Fault, and to be capable to find out a Truth :
There must be industry in the last ; the first requires only ;
a lively heat, that catcheth hold of the weak side of any thing, but
to choose the strong one is another Talent. The reason why Men
of Wit are often the laziest in their Enquiries is, that their
heat carrieth their Thoughts so fast, that they are apt to be
tired, and they faint in the drudgery of a continued Application.
Have not Men of great Wit in all times permitted their Under-
standings to give way to their first Impressions ? It taketh off
from the Diminution when a Man doth not mind a thing;
and the King had then other Business : The inferior part of the
Man was then in Possession, and the Faculties of the Brain, as
to serious and painful Enquiries, were laid asleep at least, tho'
not extinguished. Careless Men aremoatsiibject to Superstition.

Those

190 A Character of

Those who do not study Reason enough to make it their Guide,
have more Unevenness : As they have Neglects, so they have
Starts and Frights ; Dreams will serve the turn ; Omens and
Sicknesses have violent and sudden Effects upon them. Nor
is the strength of an Argument so effectual from its intrinsick
Force, as by its being well suited to the Temper of the Party.

The genteel part of the Catholick Religion might tempt a
Prince-that had iiiore of the fine Gentleman than Ms ^Jigcnijig
Capacity required : and the exercise of Indulgence to Sinners
being more frequent injt^ than of injiictmci Fenance, might be"
some _recoram£iidatiQn__JMistresses of that Faith are stronger
Specificks in this case, than any that are in Physick.

The Roman Catholicks complained of his Breach of Promise
to them very early. ^ There were broad peepings out. Glimpses
so often repeated, that to discerning Eyes it was flaring : In
the very first Year there were such Suspicions as produced
melancholy shakings of the Head, which were very significant.
His unwillingness to marry a Protestant was remarkable, though
both the Catholick and the Christian Crown would have
adopted her. Very early in his Youth, when any - German
Princess was proposed, he put off the discourse with Rallery.
A thousand little Circumstances were a kind of accumulative
Evidence, which in these Cases may be admitted.

Men that were earnest Protestants were under the sharpness
of his Displeasure, expressed by Rallery, as well as by other
ways. Men near him have made Discoveries from sudden
breakings out in Discourse, c^c. which shewed there was a Root.
It was not the least skilful part of his concealing himself, to
makg~the l^S3iDhiDkn5e~le aned toward FanTndiffe rence InT
Religion.

HeTiad Sicknesses before his Death, in which he did not
trouble any Protestant Divines ; those who saw him upon his
Death-bed, saw a great deal.

As to his writing those ^ Papers, he might do it. Though

neither

^ Upon the Words of his Declaration.

"^ Two Papers in Defence of the Roman Catholick Religion, found in this
King's strong Box, in his own hand, and published by King James II.
afterwards.

King Charles II. 191

neither his Temper nor Education made him very fit to be an
Author, yet in this case, (a l^nown Topick so very often re-
peated) he might write it all himself, and yet not one word of
it his own. That Ch urch's Argu ment doth so agree with Men
unwilling to take pains, the Tenrgtation^of, putting an End to
all the trouble of enquiring is so great, that it must be very
strong reason that can resist : The Ki ng ha d only his nieer ;
natura TJj'aculties, vn lhout any Acqui sitions to im prove them ;
so that it is no wonder Tit an Argument which g ave such Ease f
and M§M££_to_ his Mind^ rnaHe" such an Impression, that with
thinking often of itj j(as_Men _m^ apt todo~of every°"thing they
like) he niight^by the Effect chiefly of his Memory, put_
together a few Lines with his^own Hand, without any help at
the _ tim e ; in which there was nothing extraordinary, but that
one so little inclined to write at all, should prevail with himself
to do it with the Solemnity of a Casuist.

II. His Dissimulation.

ONE great Objection made to him was the concealing him-
self, and disguising his Thoughts. In this there ought
a Latitude to be given ; it is a Defect not to have it at all, and
a Fault to have it too much. Human Nature will not allow the '
Mean : like all other things, as soon as ever Men get to do
them well, they cannot easily hold from doing them too much.
■'TIS the case even in the least things, as singing, SfC.

In France, he was to dissemble Injuries and Neglects, from
one reason ; in England he was to dissemble too, though for
other Causes ; A King upon the Throne hath as great Tempta-
tions (though of another kind) to dissemble, as a King in Exile.
The King of France might have his Times of Dissembling as
much with him, as he could have to do it with the King of
France : So he was in a School.

No King can be so little inclined to dissemble but he must
needs learn it from his Subjects, who every Day give him such

Lessons

192 A Character of

Lessons of it. Dissimulation is like most other Qualities, it
hath two Sides ; it is necessary, and yet it is dangerous too.
To have none at all layeth a Man open to Contempt, to have
too much exposeth him to Suspicion, which is only the less
dishonourable Inconvenience. If a Man doth not take very
great Precautions, he is never so much shewed as when he
endeavoureth to hide himself. One Man cannot take more
pains to hide himself, than another will do to see into him,
especially in the Case of Kings.

It is none of the exalted Faculties of the Mind, since there
are Chamber-Maids will do it better than any Prince in
Christendom. Men given to dissembling are like Rooks at play,
they will cheat for Shillings, they are so used to it. The vulgar
' Definition of Dissembling is downright Lying ; that kind of it
; which is less ill-bred cometh pretty near it. Only Princes and
Persons of Honour must have gentler Words given to their
Faults, than the nature of them may in themselves deserve.

Princes dissemble with too many not to have it discovered ;
no wonder then that He carried it so far that it was discovered.
Men compared Notes, and got Evidence ; so that those whose
Morality would give them leave, took it for an -Exeuse for
serving him ill. Those who knew his Face, fixed their Eyes
there ; and thought it of more Importauca^to see, than to hear
what he said. His Face was as little a Blab as most Mens, yet
though it could not be called a prattling Face, it would some-
times tell Tales to a good Observer. When he thought fit to
be angry, he had a very peevish Memory; there was hardly
a Blot that escaped him. At the same time that this shewed
the Strength of his Dissimulation, it gave warning too ; it fitted
his present Purpose, but it made a Discovery that put Men more
upon their Guard against him. Only Self-flattery furnisheth
perpetual Arguments to trust again : The comfortable Opinion
Men have of themselves keepeth up Human Society, which
would be more than half destroyed without it.

III. His

King Charles II. 193

III. His AmoukSj Mistresses, Sj-c.

T T may be said that his Inclinations to Love were the Effects
-■- of Health, and a good Constitution, with as little mixture of
the Seraphick part as ever Man had : And though from that
Foundation Men often raise their Passions ; I am apt to think
his stayed as much as any Man's ever did in the lower Region.
This made him like easy Mistresses : They were generally re-
signed to him while he was abroad, with an imphed Bargain.
Heroick refined Lovers place a good deal of their Pleasure in the
Difficulty, both for the vanity of Conquest, and as a better
earnest of their Kindness.

After he was restored. Mistresses were recommended to him ;
which is no small matter in a Court, and not unworthy the
Thoughtseven of a Party^. A Mistress either dexterous in her-
self, or well-instructed by those that are so, may be very useful
to her Friends, not only in the immediate Hours of her Ministry,
but by her Influences and Insinuations at other times. It was
resolved generally by others, whom he should have in his Arms,
as well as whom he should have in his Councils. Of a Man
who was so capable of choosing, he chose as seldom as any Man
that ever lived.

He had more properly, at least in the beginning of his Time,
a good Stomach to his Mistresses, than any great Passion for
them. His taking them from others was never learnt in a
Romance ; and indeed fitter for a Philosopher than a Knight-
Errant. His Patience for their Frailties shewed him no exact
Lover. It is a Heresy according to a true Lover's Creed,
ever to forgive an Infidelity, or the Appearance of it. Love of
Ease will not do it, where the Heart is much engaged ; but
where mere Nature is the Motive, it is possible for a Man to
think righter than the common opinion, and to argue, that
a Rival taketh away nothing but the Heart, and leaveth all
the rest.

In his latter Times he had no Love, but insensible Engage-

HALiFAx o ments

194 ^ Character of

ments that made it harder than most might apprehend to untie
them. The Politicks might have their part ; a Secret, a Com-
mission, a Confidence in critical Things, though it doth not
give a Lease for a precise term of Years, yet there may be Diffi-
culties in dismissing them ; there may be no Love all the while ;
perhaps the contrary.

He was said to be as little constant as they were thought to
be. Though he had no Love, he must have some Appetite, or
else he could not keep them for meer ease, or for the Love of
sauntring ; Mistresses are frequently apt to be uneasy ; they
are in all Respects craving Creatures ; so that though the taste
of those Joys might be flattened, yet a Man who loved Pleasure
so as to be very unwilling to part with it, might (with the
Assistance of his Fancy, which doth not grow old so fast)
reserve some supplemental Entertainments^ that might make
their personal Service be still of use to him. The Definition of
Pleasure, is what pleaseth, and if that which grave Men may call
a corrupted Fancy, shall adminster any Remedies for putting
off mourning for the loss of Youth, who shall blame it ?

The young Men seldom apply their censure to these Matters ;
and the elder have an Interest to be gentle towards a Mistake,
that seemeth to make some kind of amends for their Decays.

He had Wit enough to suspect, and he had Wit enough too
not to care : The Ladies got a great deal more than would have
been allowed to be an equal bargain in Chancery, for what they
did for it ; but neither the manner, nor the measure of Pleasure
is to be judged by others.

Little Inducements at first grew into strong Reasons by de-
grees. Men who do not consider Circumstances, but judge at
a distance, by a general way of arguing, conclude if a Mistress
in some Cases is not immediately turned off, it must needs be
that the Gallant is incurably subjected. This will by no means
hold in private Men, much less in Princes, who are under
more Entanglements, from which they cannot so easily loosen
themselves.

His Mistresses were as different in their Humours, as they
were in their Looks. They gave Matter of very different Reflec-
tions.

King Charles II. 195

tions. The last ^ especially was quite out of the Definition of
an ordinary Mistress ; the Causes and the Manner of her being
first introduced were very different. A very peculiar Distinction
was spoken of, some extraordinary Solemnities that might
dignify, though not sanctify her Function. Her Chamber was
the true Cabinet Council. The King did always by his Councils, •:
as he did sometimes by his Meals ; he sat down out of form
with the Queen, but he supped below Stairs. To have the
Secrets of a King, who happens to have too many, is to
have a King in Chains : He must not only, not part with
her, but he must in his own Defence dissemble his dislike :
The less kindness he hath, the more he must shew: There
is great difference between being muffled, and being tied:
He was the first, not the last. If he had quarelled at some
times, besides other Advantages, this Mistress had a powerful
Second (one may suppose a kind of a Guarantee) ; this to a
Man that loved his Ease, though his Age had not helped, was
sufficient.

The thing called Sauntering, is a stronger Temptation to
Princes than it is to others. The being galled with Impor-
tunities, pursued from one Room to another with asking Faces ;
the dismal Sound of unreasonable Complaints, and ill-grounded
Pretences; the Deformity of Fraud ill-disguised; all these
would make any Man run away from them; and I used to
think it was the Motive for making him walk so fast. So
it was more properly taking Sanctuary. To get into a Room,
where all Business was to stay at the Door, excepting such
as he was disposed to admit, might be very acceptable to
a younger Man than he was, and less given to his Ease. He
slumbered after Dinner, had the noise of the Company to divert
him, without their Solicitations to importune him. In these
Hours where he was more unguarded, no doubt the cunning
Men of the Court took their times to make their Observations,
and there is as little doubt but he made his upon them too :
Where men had Chinks he would see through them as soon as

any
' The Dutchess of Portsraoa^A.
o2

196 A Character of

any Man about him. There was much more real Business
done there in his Pohtick, than there was in his personal
Capacity, Stans pede in uno ; and there was the French part
of the Government, which was not the least.

In short, without endeavouring to find more Arguments, he
was used to it. Men do not care to put off a Habit, nor do
often succeed when they go about it. His was not an unthink-
ingness ; he did not perhaps think so much of his Subjects as
they might wish ; but he was far from being wanting to think
of himself.

IV. His Conduct to his Ministers.

HE lived with his Ministers as he did with his Mistresses ;
he used them, but he was not in love with them. He
shewed his Judgment in this, that he cannot properly be said
ever to have had a Favourite, though some might look so at
a distance. The present use he might have of them, made him
throw Favours upon them, which might lead the lookers on
into that mistake ; but he tied himself no more to them, than
they did to him, which implied a sufficient Liberty on either
side.

Perhaps he made dear Purchases : If he seldom gave pro-
fusely, but where he expected some unreasonable thing, great
Rewards were material Evidences against those who received
them.

He was free of access to them, which was a very gaining
Quality. He had at least as good a Memory for the Faults of
his Ministers as for their Services ; and whenever they fell, the
whole Inventory came out ; there was not a slip omitted.

That some of his Ministers seemed to have a Superiority, did
not spring from his Resignation to them, but to his Ease. He
chose rather to be eclipsed than to be troubled.

His Brother was a Minister, and he had his Jealousies of
him. At the same time that he raised him, he was not dis-
pleased

King Chakles II. 197

pleased to have him lessened. The cunning Observers found
this out, and at the same time that he reigned in the Cabinet,
he was very familiarly used at the private Supper.

A Minister turned off is like a Lady's Waiting- Woman, that '
knovreth all her Washes, and hath a shrewd guess at her Stray-
ings : So there is danger in turning them off, as well as in
keeping them.

He had back Stairs to convey Informations to him, as well
as for other Uses ; and though such Informations are some-
times dangerous, (especially to a Prince that will not take the
pains necessary to digest them) yet in the main, that humour of
hearing every bodji^agcdnsl an][body, kept those about him in ■
more awe, than they would have been without it. I do notj
believe that ever he trusted any Man, or any set of Men so
entirely, as not to have some Secrets, in which they had no\
share : As this might make him less well served, so in some '
degree it might make him the less imposed upon.

You may reckon under this Article his Female Ministry ; for
though he had Ministers of the Council, Ministers of the
Cabinet, and Ministers of the Ruelle ; the Ruelle was often the
last Appeal. Those who were not well there, were used because
they were necessary at the time, not because they were liked ;
so that their Tenure was a little uncertain. His Ministers were
to administer Business to him as Doctors do Physick, wrap it
up in something to make it less unpleasant ; some skilful
Digressions were so far from being Impertinent, that they
could not many times fix him to a fair Audience without them.
His aversion to Formality made him dislike a serious Discourse,
if very long, except it was mixed with something to entertain
him. Some even of the graver sort too, used to carry this very
far, and rather than fail, use the coarsest kind of youthful talk.

In general, he was upon pretty even Terms with his Ministers, f
and could as easily bear their being hanged as some of them
could Ms being abused.

V. Of

igS A Character of

V. Of his Wit and Conversation.

HIS Wit consisted chiefly in the Quickness of his Appre-
hension. His Apprehension made him find Faults, and
that led him to short Sayings upon them^ not always equal, but
often very good.

By his being abroad, he contracted a Habit of conversing
familiarly, which added to his natural Genius, made him very
apt to talk ; perhaps more than a very nice judgment would
approve.

He was apter to make broad Allusions upon any thing that
gave the least occasion, than was altogether suitable with the
very Good-breeding he shewed in most other things. The
Company he kept whilst abroad, had so used him to that sort
of Dialect, that he was so far from thinking it a Fault or an
Indecency, that he made it a matter of Rallery upon those
who could not prevail upon themselves to join in it. As a
Man who hath a good Stomach loveth generally to talk of
Meat, so in the vigour of his Age, he began that style, which
by degrees grew so natural to him, that after he ceased to
do it out of Pleasure, he continued to do it out of Custom.
The Hypocrisy of the former Times inclined Men to think
they could not shew too great an Aversion to it, and that
helped to encourage this unbounded liberty of Talking, with-
out the Restraints of Decency which were before observed. In
his more familiar Conversations with the Ladies, even they must
be passive, if they would not enter into it. How far Sounds as
well as Objects may have their Effects to raise Inclination,
might be an Argument to him to use that Style ; or whether
using Liberty at its full stretch, was not the general Induce-
ment without any particular Motives to it.

The manner of that time of telling Stories, had drawn him
into it ; being commended at first for the Faculty of telling
a Tale well, he might insensibly be betrayed to exercise it too
often. Stories are dangerous in this, that the best expose
a Man most, by being oftenest repeated. It might pass for an

Evidence

King Charles II. 199

Evidence for the Moderns against the Ancients, that it is now
wholly left off by all that have any pretence to be distinguished
by their good Sense.

He had the Improvements of Wine, &c. which made him
pleasant and easy in Company ; where he bore his part, and was
acceptable even to those who had no other Design than to be
merry with him.

The Thing called Wit, a Prince may taste, but it is dangerous
for him to take too much of it ; it hath Allurements which by
refining his Thoughts, take off from their dignity, in applying
them less to the governing part. There is a Charm in Wit,
which a Prince must resist : and that to him was no easy matter ;
it was contesting with Nature upon Terms of Disadvantage.

His Wit was not so ill-natured as to put Men out of
countenance. In the case of a King especially, it is more
allowable to speak sharply q/them, than to them.

His Wit was not acquired by Reading ; that which he had
above his original Stock by Nature, was from Company, in
which he was very capable to observe. He could not so
properly be said to have a Wit very much raised, as a plain,
gaining, well-bred, recommending kind of Wit.

But of all Men that ever liked those who had Wit, he could
the best endure those who had none. This leaneth more towards
a Satire than a Compliment, in this respect, that he could not
only suffer Impertinence, but at sometimes seemed to be
pleased with it.

He encouraged some to talk a good deal more with him, than
one would have expected from a Man of so good a Taste : He
should rather have order'd his Attorney-General to prosecute
them for a Misdemeanour, in using Common-sense so scurvily
in his Presence. However, if this was a Fault, it is arrogant
for any of his Subjects to object to it, since it would look like
defjdng such a piece of Indulgence. He must in some degree
loosen the Strength of his Wit, by his Condescension to talk
with Men so very unequal to him. Wit must be used to some
Equality, which may give it Exercise, or else it is apt either
to languish, or to grow a little vulgar, by reigning amongst Men

of

200 A Character of

of a lower Size^ where there is no Awe to keep a Man upon
his guard.

It fell out rather by Accident than Choice, that his Mistresses
were such as did not care that Wit of the best kind should
have the Precedence in their Apartments. Sharp and strong
Wit will not always be so held in by Good-manners, as not to be
a little troublesome in a Ruelle. But wherever Impertinence
hath Wit enough left to be thankful for being well used, it
will not only be admitted, but kindly received ; such Charms
every thing hath that setteth us off by Comparison.

His Affability was a Part, and perhaps not the least, of his
Wit.

It is a Quality that must not always spring from the Heart;
Mens Pride, as well as their Weakness, maketh them ready to
be deceived by it : They are more ready to believe it a Homage
paid to their Merit, than a Bait thrown out to deceive them.
Princes have a particular Advantage.

There was at first as much of Art as Nature in his Affability,
but by Habit it became Natural. It is an Error of the better
hand, but the Universality taketh away a good deal of the Force
of it. A Man that hath had a kind Look seconded with
engaging Words, whilst he is chewing the Pleasure, if another
in his Sight should be received just as kindly, that Equality
would presently alter the Relish : The Pride of Mankind will
have Distinction ; till at last it cometh to Smile for Smile,
meaning nothing of either Side ; without any kind of Effect ;
mere Drawing-room Compliments ; the Bow alone would be
better without them. He was under some Disadvantages of
this kind, that grew still in proportion as it came by Time to be
more known that there was less Signification in those Things
than at first was thought.

The Familiarity of his Wit must needs have the Effect of
lessening the Distance fit to be kept to him. The Freedom
used to him whilst abroad, was retained by those who used it
longer than either they ought to have kept it, or he have suffered
it, and others by their Example learned to use the same. A
King of Spain that will say nothing but Tiendro cuydado, will,

to

King Charles II. 201

to the generality, preserve more Respect ; an Engine that will '
speak but sometimes, at the same time that it will draw the
Raillery of the Few who judge well, it will create Respect in ,
the ill-judging Generality. Formality is sufficiently revenged
upon the World for being so unreasonably laughed at ; it is
destroyed it is true, but it hath the spiteful Satisfaction of seeing
every thing destroyed vrith it.

His fine Gentlemanship did him no Good, encouraged in it
by being too much applauded.

His Wit was better suited to his Condition before he was
restored than afterwards. The Wit of a Gentleman, and that
of a crowned Head, ought to be different things. As there is
a Crown Law, there is a Crown Wit too. To use it with
Reserve is very good, and very rare. There is a Dignity in
doing things seldom, even without any other Circumstance.
Where Wit will run continually, the Spring is apt to fail ; so
that it groweth vulgar, and the more it is practised, the more
it is debased.

He was so good at finding out other Mens weak Sides, that
it made him less intent to cure his own : That generally
happeneth. It may be called a treacherous Talent, for it
betrayeth a Man to forget to judge himself, by being so eager
to censure others : This doth so misguide Men the first Part of
their Lives, that the Habit of it is not easily recovered, when
the greater Ripeness of their Judgment inclineth them to look
more into themselves than into other Men.

Men love to see themselves in the false Looking-glass of other 5
Mens Failings. It niaketh a Man think well of himself at the
time, and by sending his Thoughts abroad to get Food for
Laughing, they are less at leisure to see Faults at home. Men
choose rather to make the War in another Country, than to
keep all well at home.

VI. His

202 A Character of

VI. His Talents, Temper, Habits, c&c.

HE had a Mechanical Head, which appeared in his
Inclination to Shipping and Fortification, <^c. This
would make one conclude, that his Thoughts would naturally
have been more fixed to Business, if his Pleasures had not
drawn them away from it.

He had a very good Memory, though he would not always
make equal good Use of it. So that if he had accustomed
himself to direct his Faculties to his Business, I see no Reason
why he might not have been a good deal Master of it. His
Chain of Memory was longer than his Chain of Thought; the
first could bear any Burden, the other was tired by being
carried on too long ; it was fit to ride a Heat, but it had not
Wind enough for a long Course.

A veiy great Memory often forgetteth how much Time is lost
by repeating things of no Use. It was one Reason of his
talking so much ; since a great Memory will always have
something to say, and will be discharging itself, whether in or
out of Season, if a good Judgment doth not go along with it,
to make it stop and turn. One might say of his Memory, that
it was a Beaute Journaliere ; Sometimes he would make shrewd
Applications, c^c. at others he would bring things out of it,
that never deserved to be laid in it.

He grew by Age into a pretty exact Distribution of his
Hours, both for his Business, Pleasures, and the Exercise for
his Health, of which he took as much care as could possibly
consist with some Liberties he was resolved to indulge in
himseK. He walked by his Watch, and when he pulled it out
to look upon it, skilful Men would make haste with what they
had to say to him.

He was often retained in his personal against his politick
Capacity. He would speak upon those Occasions most dex-
terously against himself; Charles Stuart would be bribed
against the King ; and in the Distinction, he leaned more to his
natural Self, than his Character would allow. He would not

suffer

King Charles II. 203

suffer himself to be so much fettei^d by his Chai-acter as was
convenient ; he was still starting~6ut of it^ the Power of Nature
was too strong for the Dignity of his Calling, which generally
yielded as often as there was a contest.

It was not the best use he made of his Back-stairs to admit
Men to bribe him against himself, to procure a Defalcation,
help a lame Accountant to get off, or side with the Farmers
against the Improvement of the Revenue. The King was made
the Instrument to defraud the Crown, which is somewhat
extraordinary.

That which might tempt him to it probably was, his finding
that those about him so often took Money upon those Occasions ;
so that he thought he might do well at least to be a Partner.
He did not take the Money to hoard it ; there were those at
Court who watched those Times, as the Spaniards do for the
coming in of the Plate Fleet. The Beggars of both Sexes
helped to empty his Cabinet, and to leave room in them for a
new lading upon the next Occasion. These Negotiators played
double with him too, when it was for their purpose so to do.
He knew it, and went on still ; so he gained his present end,
at the time, he was less sohcitous to enquire into the Con-
sequences.

He could not properly be said to be either covetous or liberal ;
his desire to get was not with an Intention to be rich ; and
his spending was rather an Easiness in letting Money go, than
any premeditated Thought for the Distribution of it. He
would do as much to throw off the burden of a present Im-
portunity, as he would to relieve a want.

When once the Aversion to bear Uneasiness taketh place in
a Man's Mind, it doth so check all the Passions, that they are
dampt into a kind of Indifference; they grow faint and
languishing, and come to be subordinate to that fundamental
Maxim, of not purchasing any thing at the price of a Difficulty.
This made that he had as little Eagerness to oblige, as he had
to hurt Men ; the Motive of his giving Bounties was rather to
make Men less uneasy to him, than more easy to themselves ;
and yet no iU-nature aU this while. He would slide from an

asking

204 A Character of

asking Face^ and could guess very well. It was throwing a
Man off from his Shoulders, that leaned upon them with his
whole weight; so that the Party was not gladder to receive,
than he was to give. It was a kind of implied bargain ;
though Men seldom kept it, being so apt to forget the
advantage they had received, that they would presume the King
would as little remember the good he had done them, so as to
make it an Argument against their next Request.

This Principle of making the love of Ease exercise an entire
Sovereignty in his Thoughts, would have been less censured in
a private Man, than might be in a Prince. The Consequence
of it to the Publick changeth the Nature of that Quality, or else
a Philosopher in his private Capacity might say a great deal
to justify it. The truth is, a King is to be such a distinct
Creature from a Man, that their Thoughts are to be put in
quite a differing Shape, and it is such a disquieting task to
reconcile them, that Princes might rather expect to be lamented
than to be envied, for being in a Station that exposeth them, if
they do not do more to answer Mens Expectations than human
Nature will allow.

That Men have the less Ease for their loving it so much, is so
far from a wonder, that it is a natural Consequence, especially in
the case of a Prince. Ease is seldom got without some pains,
but it is yet seldomer kept without them. He thought giving
would make Men more easy to him, whereas he might have
known it would certainly make them more troublesome.

When Men receive Benefits from Princes, they attribute less
to his Generosity than to their own Deserts ; so that in their
own Opinion, their Merit cannot be bounded ; by that mistaken
Rule, it can as little be satisfied. They would take it for a
diminution to have it circumscribed. Merit hath a Thirst upon
it that can never be quenched by golden Showers. It is not
only still ready, but greedy to receive more. This King
Charles found in as many Instances as any Prince that ever
reigned, because the Easiness of Access introducing the good
Success of their first Request, they were the more encouraged
to repeat those Importunities, which had been more effectually

stopt

Kj,ng Charles II. 205

stopt in the Beginning by a short and resolute Denial. But his
Nature did not dispose him to that Method, it directed him
rather to put off the troublesome Minute for the time, and that
being his Inclination, he did not care to struggle with it.

I am of an Opinion, in which I am every Day more confirmed
by Observation, that Gratitude is one of those things that
cannot be bought. It must be born with Men, or else all the
Obligations in the World will not create it. An outward Shew j
may be made to satisfy Decency, and to prevent Reproach ; |
but a real Sense of a kind thing is a Gift of Nature, and never \
was, nor can be acquired. '

The Love of Ease is an Opiate, it is pleasing for the time, 1
quieteth the Spirits, but it hath its Effects that seldom fail to
be most fatal. The immoderate Love of Ease maketh a Man's .
Mind pay a passive Obedience to any thing that happeneth : It
reduceth the Thoughts from having Desire to be content.

It must be allowed he had a little Over-balance on the well-
natured Side, not Vigour enough to be earnest to do a kind
Thing, much less to do a harsh one ; but if a hard thing was
done to another Man, he did not eat his Supper the worse for
it. It was rather a Deadness than Severity of Nature, whether
it proceeded from a Dissipation of Spirits, or by the Habit of
Living in which he was engaged.

If a King should be born with more Tenderness than might
suit with his Office, he would in time be hardned. The Faults
of his Subjects make Severity so necessary, that by the frequent
Occasions given to use it, it comes to be habitual, and by
degrees the Resistance that Nature made at first groweth fainter,
till at last it is in a manner quite extinguished.

In short, this Prince might more properly be said to have :
Gifts than Virtues, as Affability, Easiness of Living, Inclinations
to give, and to forgive : Qualities that flowed from his Nature
rather than from his Virtue.

He had not more Application to any thing than the Preserva-
tion of his Health ; it had an intire Preference to any thing else
in his Thoughts, and he might be said without Aggravation to
study that with as little Intermission as any Man in the World.

He

2o6 A Character of

He understood it very well, only in this he failed, that he thought
It was more reconcilable with his Pleasures, than it really was.
It is natural to have such a Mind to reconcile these, that 'tis
the easier for any Man that goeth about it, to be guilty of that
Mistake.

This made him overdo in point of Nourishment, the better to
furnish to those Entertainments ; and then he thought by great
Exercise to make Amends, and to prevent the ill Effects
of his Blood being too much raised. The Success he had in
this Method, whilst he had Youth and Vigour to support him
in it, encouraged him to continue it longer than Nature allowed.
Age stealeth so insensibly upon us, that we do not think of
suiting our way of Reasoning to the several Stages of Life ; so
insensibly that not being able to pitch upon any precise Time,
when we cease to be young, we either flatter ourselves that we
always continue to be so, or at least forget how much we are
mistaken in it.

VII. Conclusion.

AFTER all this, when some rough Strokes of the Pencil
-have made several Parts of the Picture look a little hard,
it is a Justice that would be due to every Man, much more to
a Prince, to make some Amends, and to reconcile Men as much
as may be to it by the last finishing.

He had as good a Claim to a kind Interpretation as most
Men. First as a Prince : living and dead, generous and well-
bred Men will be gentle to them ; next as an unfortunate Prince
in the beginning of his Time, and a gentle one in the rest.

A Prince neither sharpened by his Misfortunes whilst Abroad,
nor by his Power when restored, is such a shining Character,
that it is a Reproach not to be so dazzled with it, as not to be able
to see a Fault in its full Light. It would be a Scandal in this
Case to have an exact Memory. And if all who are akin to his
Vices, shoidd mourn for him, never Prince would be better
attended to his Grave. He is under the Protection of common

Frailty,

King Charles II. 207

Frailty, that must engage Men for their own sakes not to be too
severe, where they themselves have so much to answer.

What therefore an angry Philosopher would call Lewdness, let '
frailer Men call a Warmth and Sweetness of the Blood, that
would not be confined in the communicating itself ; an over-
flowing of Good-nature, of which he had such a Stream, that it :
would not be restrained within the Banks of a crabbed and
unsociable Virtue.

If he had sometimes less Firmness than might have been
wished ; let the kindest Reason be given, and if that should be
wanting, the best Excuse. I would assign the Cause of it to
be his loving at any rate to be easy, and his deserving the
more to be indulged in it, by his desiring that every body else
should be so.

If he sometimes let a Servant fall, let it be examined whether
he did not weigh so much upon his Master, as to give him a fair
Excuse. That Yieldingness, whatever Foundations it might lay
to the Disadvantage of Posterity, was a Specifick to preserve us
in Peace for his own Time. If he loved too much to lie upon
his own Down-bed of Ease, his Subjects had the Pleasure,
during his Reign, of lolling and stretching upon theirs. As
a Sword is sooner broken upon a Feather-bed than upon a
Table, so his Pliantness broke the blow of a present Mischief
much better than a more immediate Resistance would perhaps
have done.

Ruin saw this, and therefore removed him first to make way
for further Overturnings.

If he dissembled ; let us remember, first, that he was_a King, .^
and that Dissimulation is a Jewel of the Crown ; next, that it i
is very hard for a Man not to do sometimes too much of that,
which he concludeth necessary for him to practice. Men should
consider, that as there would be no false Dice, if there were
no true ones, so if Dissembling is grown universal, it ceaseth
to be foul play, having an implied Allowance by the general
Practice. He that was so often forced to dissemble in his own
Defence, might the better have the privilege sometimes to be
the Aggressor, and to deal with Men at their own Weapon.

Subjects

2o8 A Character of King Charles II.

Subjects are apt to be as arbitrary in their Censure, as the
most assuming Kings can be in their Power. If there might
be matter for Objections, there is not less reason for Excuses ;
The Defects laid to his Charge, are such as may claim Indulgence
from Mankind.

Should no body throw a Stone at his Faults but those who
are free from them, there would be but a slender Shower.

What private Man will throw Stones at him because he
loved ? Or what Prince, because he dissembled ?

If he either trusted, or forgave his Enemies, or in some Cases
neglected his Friends, more than could in Strictness be allowed ;
let not those Errors be so arraigned as take away the Privi-
lege that seemeth to be due to Princely Frailties. If Princes
are under the Misfortune of being accused to govern ill, their
Subjects have the less right to fall hard upon them, since they
generally so little deserve to be governed well.

The truth is, the Callings of aJKing, with all its glittering, hath
such an unreasonable weight upon it, that they may rather expect-
to be lamented, than to be envied for being set upon a Pinacle,
where they are exposed to Censure, if they do not do more to
answer Mens Expectations, than corrupted Nature will allow.

It is but Justice therefore to this Prince, to give all due
Softenings to the less shining Parts of his Life ; to offer Flowers
and Leaves to hide, instead of using Aggravations to expose
them.

Let his Royal Ashes then lie soft upon him, and cover him
from harsh and unkind Censures ; which though they should
not be unjust, can never clear themselves from being indecent.

Political

209

Political Thoughts

AND

REFLECTIONS.

'" - i\ " Of Fundamentals.

EVERY Party, when they find a Maxim for their turn, they ,
presently call it a Fundamental, they think they nail it i
with a Peg of Iron, whereas in truth they only tie it with a wisp .'
of Straw.

The word soundeth so well that the Impropriety of it hath
been the less observed. But as weighty as the word appeareth,
no Feather hath been more blown about in the World than this
word. Fundamental.

It is one of those Mistakes that at sometimes may be of use, "
but it is a Mistake still.

Fundamental is used as Men use their Friends ; commend '
them when they have need of them, and when they fall out, find ^
a hundi-ed Objections to them.

Fundamental is a Pedestal that Men set every thing upon that
they would not have broken. It is a Nail every body would
use to fix that which is good for them : for all Men would
have that Principle to be immoveable, that serves their use at

the time.

Every thing that is created is Mortal, ergo all Fundamentals
of human Creation will die.

A true Fundamental must be like the Foundation of a House ;
if it is undermined the whole House falleth. """'

The Fundamentals in Divinity have been changed in several
Ages of the World.

They have made no difiiculty in t he several C ouncils, to
destroy an3~excommunicate~Men Foi^sseftirig Things that at
other Times were called Fundamehtals. ' ™™ '-^

„..irA^ ~^ P " Philosophy,

2IO Political Thoughts and Reflections.

Philosophy, Astronomy, <^c. have changed their Fundamentals
as the Men of Art no doubt called them at the time. Motion
of the Earth, 8^c.

Even in Morality one may more propei'ly say. There should
be Fundamentals allowed^ than that there are any which in
Strictness can be maintained.

However this is the least uncertain Foundation : Fundamental
is less improperly applied here than any where else.

Wise and good Men will in all Ages stick to some Funda-
mentals, look upon them as sacred, and preserve an in vi olable /
Respect for them ; but Mankind in general ma ke Morality' ^
a more malleable thing than it ought to fee.

There is then no certain Fundamental but in Nature, and yet
there are Objections too. It is a Fundamental in Nature that
the Son should not kill the Father, and yet the Senate of Venice
gave a Reward to a Son who brought in his Father's Head,
according to a Proclamation.

Salus Populi is an unwritten Law, yet that doth not hinder
but that it is sometimes very visible ; and as often as it is so,
it supersedeth all other Laws which are subordinate Things
compared.

The great Punishments upon Self-murder, are Arguments
that it was rather a tempting Sin to be discouraged than an
unnatural Act.

It is a Fundamental that where a Man intendeth no hurt he
should receive none, yet Manslaughter, 4"C. are Cases of
Mercy.

That a Boy under Ten shall not suffer Death, yet where
Malitia supplet mtatem, otherwise.

That there were Witches — much shaken of late.
' That the King is not to be deceived in his Grant — The
practical Fundamental the contrary.

That what is given to God cannot be alienated. Yet in
practice it is, by Treaties, Sgc. and even by the Church itself,
when they get a better bargain by it.

I can make no other Definition of a true Fundamental than
this : viz. That whatever a Man hath a desire to do or to hinder^

if

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 211 ,

if he hath uncontested and irresistable Power to effect it, that \
he will certainly do it. f

If he thinketh he hath that Powers though he hath it not, he
will certainly go about it.

Some would define a Fundamental to be the settling the Laws
of Nature, and common Equity in such a sort as that they may
be well administered : even in this case there can be nothing
fixed, but it must vary for the Good of the whole.

A Constitution cannot make itself ; some body made it, not
at once but at several times. It is alterable ; and by that
draweth nearer Perfection ; and withouFsuiting itself to differing /
Times and Circumstances, it could not live. Its Life is pro-
longed by changing seasonably the several Parts of it at several
times.

The Reverence that is given to a Fundamental, in a general
unintelligible Notion, would be much better applyed to that
Supremacy or Power which is set up in every Nation in differing >
Shapes, that altereth the Constitution as often as the Good of I
the People requireth it. /

Neither King nor People would now like just the original
Constitution, without any varyings.

If Kings are only answerab le to God, that__dgthjiot spciire
them even in this World ;^nceff^God^ugon_^jJSk,fi^^
fit not to slay, liemaketh the People his Instruments. . -'■--

I am pefswadM'tlTM'15Trere~eveFa'ny single Man had Power
to do himself right upon a deceitful Trustee, he would do it.
That Thought well digested would go a great way towards the
discouraging Invasions upon Rights, 8^c.

I lay down then as a Fundamental, 1st, that in every Consti-
tution there is some Power which neither will nor ought to be ,,
bounded. /

a. That the King's Prerogative should be as plain a thing as I
the People's Obedience. J

3. That a Power which may by parity of Reason destroy the| I
whole Laws, can never be reserved by the Laws. I

4. That in all limited Governments it must give the Governor'
Power to hurt, but it^can^ never be so interpreted as to give him

p 2 Power

212 Political Thoughts and Refledioiis.

Power to destroy, for then in effect it would cease to Jbe a
limited Government.

5. That Severity be rare and great ; for as Tacitus sayeth of
Nero, ' Frequent Punishments made the People call even his
Justice Cruelty.'

6. That it is necessary to make the Instruments of Power
easy ; for Povrer is hard enough to be digested by those under
it at the best.

7. That the People are never so perfectly backed, but that
they vein kick and fling if not stroked at seasonable times.

, 8. That a Prince must think if he loseth his People he can
never regain them.

It is both veise and safe to think so.

9. That Kings assuming Prerogative teach the People to do
so too.

10. That Prerogative is a Trust.

11. That they are not the King's Laws, nor the Parliament's
Laws, but the Laws of England, m which after they have passed
by the Legislative Power, the People have the Pro/^er^j/'j and the
■ King: the Executive part. ~ " '

12. That no Abilities should qualify a noted Knave to be em-
ployed in Business. A Knave can by none of his Dexterities
make amends for the Scandal he bringeth upon the Crown.

13. That those who will not be bound by the Laws, rely upon
j Crimes : a third way was never found in the World to secure
( any Government.

14. That a Seaman be a Seaman ; a Cabinet-Counsellor a
Man of Business ; an Officer, an Officer.

15. In corrupted Governments the Place is given for the sake
of the Man ; in good ones the Man is chosen for the sake of the
Place.

16. That Crowds at Court are made up of such as would
deceive : The real Worshippers are few.

17. That Salus Populi is the greatest of all Fundamenta ls,
yet not altogether an immoveable one. It is a Fundamental for
a Sliip to ride at Anchor when it is in Port, but if a Storm
cometh the Cable must be cut.

18.

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 2 1 3

18. Property is not a fundamental Right in one Sense,
because in the beginning of the World there was none,
so that Property itself was an Innovation introduced by
Laws.

Property is only secured by trusting it in the best Hands, and
those are generally chosen who are least likely to deceive ; but
if they should, they have a legal Authority to abuse as well as>
use the Power with which they are trusted, and there is no
Fundamental can stand in their way, or be allowed as an Excep-
tion to the Authority that was vested in them.

19. Magna CAar^ would fain be made to pass for a Funda-
mental ; and Sir Edivard Coke would have it, that the Grand
Charter"was for the most part declaratory of the principal
Grounds of the fundamental Y&v/s oVEngldnd.

If that referreth to the Common Law, it must be made out
that every thing in Magna Charta is always and at all times
necessary in itself to be kept, or else the denying a subsequent
Parliament the Right of repealing any Law doth by consequence
deny the preceding Parliament the Right of making it. But
they are fain to say it was only a declarative Law, which is very
hard to be proved. Yet suppose it, you must either make the
Common Law so stated a thing that all Men know it before-hand,
or else universally acquiesce in it whenever it is alledged, from
the Affinity it hath to the Law of Nature. Now I would fain
know whether the Common Law is capable of being defined,
and whether it doth not hover in the Clouds like the Prerogative,
and bolteth out like Lightening to be made use of for some
particidar Occasion ? If so, the Government of the World is
left to a thing that cannot be defined ; and if it cannot be de-
fined, you know not what it is ; so that the supream Appeal is,
we know not what. We submit to God Almighty though he
is incomprehensible, and yet He hath set down His Methods ;
but for this World, there can be no Government without a
stated Rule, and a Supream Power not to be controled neither
by the Dead nor the Living.

The Laws under the Protection of the King govern in the
ordinary Administration ; the extraordinary Power is in Acts

of

2 14 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

of Parliament, from whence there can be no Appeal but to the
same Power at another time.

To say a Power is Supream, and not Arbitrary, is not Sense.
It is ackno\vledg'd Supreani, and therefore, ^c.

If the Common Law is Supream, then those are so who judge
what is the Common Law ; and if none but the Parliament can
judge so, there is an end of the Controversy; there is no
Fundamental ; for the Parliament may judge as they please,
that is, they have the Authority, but they may judge against
Right, their Power is good, though their Act is ill ; no good
Man will outwardly resist the one, or inwardly approve the
other.

There is then no other Fundamental, but that every Supream
Power must he Artntrary.

Fundamental is a Word used by the Laity, as the Word
Sacred is by the Clergy, to fix every thing to themselves they
have a mind to keep, that nobody else may touch it.

Of Princes.

A PRINCE who will not undergo the Difficulty of Under-
standing, must undergo the Danger of Trusting.

A wise Prince may gain such an Influence, that his Counte-
nance would be the last Appeal. Where it is not so in some
degree, his Authority is precarious.

A Prince must keep up the Power of his Countenance, which
is not the least of his Prerogatives.

The Conscience, as well as the Prerogative of a King, must be
restrained or loosened as is best for his People.

It may without Scandal be made of stretching Leather, but it
must be drawn by a steady Hand.

A King that lets Intercession prevail, will not be long wor-
shipped.

A Prince used to War getteth a military Logick that is not
very well suited to the Civil Administration.

If

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 215

If he maketh War successfully^ he groweth into a Demi-God ;
if without Success, the World throweth him as much below
Huuianity as they had before set him above it.

A Hero must be sometimes allowed to make bold Strokes,
without being fettered by strict Reason.

He is to have some generous Irregularities in his Reasoning,
or else he wiU not be a good Thing of his Kind.

Princes (their Reivards of Servants).

WHEN a Prince giveth any Man a very extravagant Re-
ward, it looketh as if it was rather for an ill thing than
a good one.

' Both the Giver and Receiver are out of countenance where
they are ill suited, and ill applyed.

Serving Princes will make Men proud at first, and humble
at last.

Resolving to serve well, and at the same time resolving to
please, is generally resolving to do what is not to be done.

A Man that will serve well must often rule the Master so hard
that it will hurt him.

It is thought an unsociable Quality in a Court to do ones
Duty better than other Men.

Nothing is less forgiven than setting Patterns Men have no
mind to follow.

Men are so unwilling to displease a Prince, that it is as
dangerous to inform him right, as to serve him wrong.

Where Men get by pleasing, and lose by serving, the choice
is so easy that no body can miss it.

Princes, their Secrets.

MEN are so proud of Princes Secrets, that they will not see
the danger of them.
When a Prince trusteth a Man with a dangerous Secret, he
would not be sorry to hear the Bell toll for him.

Love

2 1 6 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

Love of the Subjects to a Prince.

THE Heart of the Subjects yieldeth but a lean Crop where
it is not cultivated by a wise Prince.
The Good-will of the Governed will be starved, if it is not
fed by the good Conduct of the Governors.

Suffering for Princes.

THOSE who merit because they suffered, are so very angry
with those that made them suffer, that though their
Services may deserve Employment, their Temper rendereth
them unfit for it.

Of Ministers.

THE World dealeth with Ministers of State as they do
with ill Fidlers, ready to kick them down Stairs for
playing ill, though few of the Fault-finders understand their
Musick enough to be good Judges.

A Minister who undertaketh to make his Master very great,
if he faileth, is ruin'd for his folly ; if he succeedeth, he is
feared for his Skill.

A good Statesman may sometimes mistake as much by being
too humble as by being too proud : He must take upon him
in order to do his Duty, and not in order to the setting
himself out.

A Minister is not to plead the King's Command for such
things as lie may in justice be supposed to have directed.

It is dangerous to serve where the Master hath the Privilege
not to be blamed.

It is hard for a Prince to esteem the Parts of a Minister
without either envying or fearing them ; and less dangerous

for

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 217

for a Minister to shew all the Weakness than all the Strength
of his Understanding.

There are so many things necessary to make up a good
Minister, that no wonder there are so few of them in the
World.

Tliere is hardly a rasher thing, than for a Man to venture -
to be a good Minister.

A Minister of State must have a Spirit of liberal Oeconomy,
not a restrained Frugality.

He must enlarge his Family-Soul, and suit it to the bigger
Compass of a Kingdom.

A Prince should be asked, why he toill do a thing, but not •
why he hath done it.

If the Boys were to choose a School-master, it should be one I
that would not whip them ; the same thing if the Courtiers
were to choose a Minister.

They would have a great many Play-days, no Rods, and
leave to rob Orchards. — The Parallel will hold.

Wicked Ministers.

A Cunning Minister will engage his Master to begin with
-* ■*• a small wrong Step, which will insensibly engage him
in a great one.

A Man that hath the Patience to go by Steps, may deceive
one much wiser than himself.

State-business is a cruel Trade ; Good-nature is a Bungler
in it.

Instruments of State-Ministers.

MEN in Business are in as much danger from those
that work under them, as from those that work against
them. When

2i8 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

When the Instruments bend under the Weight of then* Busi-
ness, it is like a weak-legged Horse that brings his Rider down
with him.

As when they are too weak they let a Man fall, so when they
are too strong they throw him off.

If Men of Business did not forget how apt their Tools are to
break or fail, they would shut up Shop.

They must use things called Men under theni, who will spoil
the best Scheme that can be drawn by Human Understanding.

Tools that are blunt cannot cut at all, and those that are
sharp are apt to cut in the wrong place.

Great difference between a good Tool and a good Workman.

When the Tools will be Workmen they cut their own Fingers,
and every body^s else.

Of the People.

THERE is more Strength in Union than in Number ; wit-
ness the People that in all Ages have been scurvily used,
because they could so seldom agree to do themselves Right.

The more the weaker, may be as good a Proverb as. The
more the merrier.

A People can no more stand without Government than a
Child can go without Leading-Strings : as old and as big as
a Nation is, it can't go by itself, and must be led. The
Numbers that make its Strength, are at the same time the
Cause of its Weakness and Incapacity of Acting.

Men have so discovered themselves to one another, that Union
is become a mere Word, in reality impracticable.

They trust, or suspect, not upon Reason but ill-grounded
Fame ; they would be at ease, saved, protected, 4"C. and give
nothing for it.

The lower Sort of Men must be indulged the Consolation of
finding fault with those above them ; without that, they would
be so melancholy, that it would be dangerous, considering their
Numbers.

They

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 219

They are too many to be told of their Mistakes, and for that
Reason they are never to be cured of them.

The Body of the People are generally either so dead that
they cannot move, or so mad that they cannot be reclaimed : ^
to be neither all in a Flame, nor quite cold, requireth more
Reason than great Numbers can ever attain.

The People can seldom agree_ to move togethfiL-against- -a
Government, but thejcan to sit still and let it be u ndone .

Those that will be Martyrs for the People, must expect to be-
repayed only by their Vanity, or their Virtue.

A Man that will head the Mob is like a Bull let loose, tyed
about with Squibs and Crackers.

He must be half mad that goeth about it, yet at some times
shall be too hard for all the wise Men in a Kingdom : For
though good Sense speaketh against Madness, yet it is out of
Countenance whenever it meets it.

It would be a greater Reproach to the People that their
Favour is short-livM, if their Malice was not so too.

The Thoughts of the People have no regular Motion, they
come out by Starts.

There is an accumulative Cruelty in a number of Men,
though none in particular are ill-natured.

The angry Buzz of a Multitude is one of the bloodiest Noises
in the World.

Of Government.

AN exact Administration, and good choice of proper
JTx. Instruments doth insensibly make the Government in
a manner absolute without assuming it.

The best Definition of the best Government is, that it hath
no Inconveniences but such as are supportable j but. Incon-
venierTcesT there must beT

The Interest of the Governors and the Governed is in reality
the same, but by Mistakes on both Sides it is generally very

differing.

T

220 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

differing. He who is a Courtier by Trade, and the Country
Gentleman who will be popular, right or wrong, help to keep
up this unreasonable Distinction.

There are as many apt to be angry at being well, as at being
ill governed. For most Men to be well ^qvernedjniust be
scuryily used.

As Mankind is made, the keeping it in order is an Ul-natured
Office.

It is like a great Galley where the Officers must be whipping
with little Intermission, if they will do their Duty.

It is in a disorderly Government as in a River, the lightest
Things swim at the top.

A Nation is best to be judged by the Government it is under
at the time. Mankind is moulded to good or ill, according as
the Power over it is well or ill directed. A Nation is a Mass of
Dough, it is the Government that kneadeth it into. Form.

Where Learning and Trade flourish in a Nation, they pro-
duce so much Knowledge, and That so much Equality among
Men, that the Greatness of Dependencies is lost, but the Nation
in general will be the better for it : For if Jh£^G£vernment^ be
wise, it is the more_ea^ily_^verned ; if not, the jad Govern-
ment is the more easily overturnedj_^;_MensJ)eJng more_ united
against it than when they depended upon great Men ; who
might sooner be gained over and weakend by being divided.

There is more reason for allowing Luxury in a Military
Government than in another ; the perpetual Exercise of War
not only excuseth but recommendeth the Entertainments in
the Winter. In another it groweth into a Habit of uninter-
rupted Expences and idle Follies, and the Consequences of
them to a Nation become irrecoverable.

CLERGY.

IF the Clergy did not live like temporal Men, all the Power
of Princes could not bring them under the temporal
Jurisdiction.

They

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 221

They who may be said to be of God Ahiiighty^s Houshold,
should shew by their Lives that he hath a well disciplined
Family.

The Clergy in this Sense, of Divin e Institu tion ; that God
hath made WShkind so weaEThat it must be deceived.

RELIGION.

IT is_a^strange thing that the way to save Mens Souls
should be such a cunning Tradey-as-.-to-.j'equife^^^kilfuL

MasteFi

The time spent in praying to God, might be better employed
in deserving well from him.

Men fhiiik praying the easier Task of the two, and therefore
choose it.

The People would not believe in God at all, if they were not
permitte5~t5" believe wroiTg^irTliimr""™

The several Sorts of ReTigTon in the World are little more
than so many spiritual Monopolies.

If their~fnterests could be reconcdled, their Opinions would
be so too."_ *" *• '«™'

Men pretend to serv£God AJflii^J^ who doth not need it,
' but make use of him because^tEiy.^Heed him. ""

Factions are like Pirates that set out false Colours j when
\ they come near a Booty Religion is put under Deck. -" -
\ Most Mens Anger about Religion is as ii two Meu should
quarrel for a Lady they neither of them cateior.

Of Prerogative, Power and Liberty. —— •

A Prerogative that tendeth to the Dissolution of all Laws
must be void in itself, felo de se ; for a Prerogative
is a Law. The reason of any Law is, that no Man's Will
should be a Law. ,,..-

The

222 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

The King is the Life of the Law, and cannot have a Pre-
rogative that is mortal to it.

The Law is to have a Soul in it, or it is a dead thing. The
King is by his Sovereign Power to add Warmth and Vigour to
the meaning of the Law. We are by no means to imagine
there is such an Antipathy between them, that the Prerogative,
like a Basilisk, is to kill the Law, whenever it looks upon it.

The Prince hath very rarely use of his Prerogative^ but hath
constantly a great Advantage by the Laws.

They attribute to the Pope indeed, that all the Laws of the
Church are in his Breast ; but then he hath the Holy Ghost for
his learned Counsel, S^c.

The People's Obedience must be plain, and without Evasions.
The Prince's Prerogative should be so too.

King Charles the First made this Answer to the Petition of
Right, (to the Observation whereof he held himself obliged in
Conscience, as well as of his Prerogative.) "^That the People's
'Liberties strengthen the King's Prerogative, and Jhe King's
' Prerogative is to defend the People's Liberties.'

That Prince's Declarations allow the Original ^Government
to come from the People, Prerogative never yet pretended to
repealiirgi

The first ground of Prerogative was to enable the Prince to
do good, not to do every thing.

If the ground of a King's desire of Power be his assurance of
himself that he will do no hurt by it ; is it not an Argument for
Subjects to desire to keep that which they will never abuse ?

It must not be such a Prerogative as giveth the Government
the Rickets ; all the Nourishment to go to the upper part, and
the lower starved.

As a Prince is in danger who calleth a stronger than himself
to his Assistance ; so when Prerogative useth Necessity for an
Argument, it calleth in a stronger thing than itself. The same
Reason may overturn it. Necessity too is so plain a thing,
that every body sees it, so that the Magistrate hath no great privi-
lege in being the Judge of it. Necessity therefore is a dangerous
Argument for Princes, since (wherever it is real) it constitutes

every

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 223

every Man a Magistrate, and gives as great a Power of dis-
pensing to every private Man, as a Prince can claim.

It is not so proper to say that Prerogative justifieth Force,
as that Force supporteth Prerogative. They have not been such
constant Friends but that they have had terrible Fallings out.

All Powers are of God ; and between Permission and Appoint-
ment, well considered, there is no real difference.

In a limited Monarchy, Prerogative and Liberty are as
jealous of one another as any two neighbouring States can be
of their respective Incroachments.

They ought not to part for small Bickerings, and must bear
little Jealousies without breaking for them.

Power is so apt to be insolent, and Liberty to be saucy, that
they are very seldom upon good Terms.

They are both so quarrelsome that they will not easily enter
into a fair Treaty. For indeed it is hard to bring them
together; they ever quarrel at a distance.

Power and Liberty are respectively managed in the World
in a manner not suitable to their Value and Dignity.

They are both so abused that it justifieth the Satires that are
generally made upon them. And

They are so in Possession of being misapplied, that instead of
censuring their being abused, it is more reasonable to wonder
whenever they are not so.

They are perpetually wrestling, and have had their Turns
when they have been thrown, to have their Bones broken by it.

If they were not both apt to be out of Breath, there would be
no living.

\~ If Prerogative will urge Reason to support it, it must bear
Reason when it resisteth it.

It is a DiminutiorL-instead_o£ a.jGlory^to- be-above treating
upon equal Terms with Reason.

If the People were designed to be the sole Property of the
supream Magistrate, sure God would have made them of
a differing and subordinate Species; as he hath the Beasts,
that by the Inferiority of their Nature they might the better
submit to the Dominion of Mankind,

If

2 24 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

If none were to have Liberty but those who understand what
it \s, there would not be many freed Men in the World.

When the People contend for their Liberty, they seldom get
any thing by their Victory but new Masters.

Liberty can neither be got, nor kept, but by so much Care,
that Mankind generally are unwilling to give the Price for it.
And therefore, in the Contest between Ease and Liberty, the
first hath generally prevailed.

Of Laws.

LAWS are generally not understood by three_ Sorts of
J PerspnSj viz. by those that make them, by those that
execute them, and by those that suffer, if they break them.

Men seldom understand any Laws but those they feel.

Precepts, like Fomentations, must be rubbed into us ; and
with a rough Hand too.

If the Laws could speak for themselves, they would complain
of the Lawyers in the first Place.

There is more Learning now req^uired to explain a Law made,
than went to the making it.

The Law hath so many Contradictions, and Varyings from
itself, that the Law may not improperly be called a Law-
breaker.

It is become too changeable a thing to be defined : it is made
little less a Mystery than the Gospel.

The Clergy and the Lawyers, like the Free-Masons, may be
supposed to take an Oath not to tell the Secret.

The Men of Law have a Biass to their calling in the
Interpretations they make of the Law.

Of Pabliaments.

THE Parliaments are so altered from their original Constitu-
tion, that between the Court and the Country, the House,
instead of being united, is like Troops of a contrary Party facing
one another, and watching their Advantage.

Even the well-meaning Men who have good Sense too, have

their

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 225

their DifBculties in an Assembly; what they offer honestly
for a good End, will be skilfully improved for an ill one.

It is strange that a gross Mistake should live a Minute in an
Assembly ; one would expect that it should be immediately
stifled by their discerning Faculties. But Practice convinceth
that a Mistake is no where better entertained.

In Parliaments, Men wrangle in behalf of Liberty, that do
as little care for it, as they deserve it.

Where the People in Parliament give a good deal of Money
in exchange for any thing from the Crown, a wise Prince can
hardly have an ill bargain. The present Gift begetteth more ;
it is a Politick kind of Generation ; and whenever a Parliament
does not bring forth, it is the Unskilfulness of the Government,
that is the cause of the Miscarriage.

Parliaments would bind and limit one another, and enact
that such and such things shall not be made Precedents.
There is not a word of Sense in this Language, which yet is
to be understood the Sense of the Nation, and is printed as
solemnly as if it was Sense.

Of Parties.

THE best Party is but a kind of a Conspiracy against the
rest of the Nation. They put every body else out of
their Protection. Like the Jews to the Gentiles, all others
are the Offscowrings of the World.

Men value themselves upon their Principles, so as to neglect
Practice, Abilities, Industry, 8{C.

Party cutteth off one half of the World from the other, so
that the mut ual Impr ovement_ of Mens UnderstaniingL by
conversing, ^c. is lost, and Men are halFiindone, when they
lose the advantage of knowing what their Enemies think of
them.

It is like Faith without Works ; They take it for a Dispensa-

Q tion

TT4T.TWAX **

2 26 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

tion from all other Duties, which is the worst kind of dispensing
Power.

It groweth to be the Master Thought ; the Eagerness against
one another at home, being a nearer Object, extinguisheth that
which we ought to have against our foreign Enemies ; and few
Mens Understandings can get above overvaluing the Danger
that is nearest, in comparison of that more remote.

It turneth all Thought into talking instead of doing. Men
get a habit of being unuseful to the Publick by turning in
a Circle of Wrangling and Railing, which they cannot get
out of: And it may be remarked, that a speculative Coxcomb
is not only unuseful, but mischievous : A practical Coxcomb
under discipline may be made use of.

It maketh a Man thi'ust his Understanding into a Corner,
and confine it till by degrees he destroys it.

Party is generally an Effect of Wantonness, Peace, and
Plenty, which beget Humour, Pride, &^c. and that is called
Zeal and publick Spirit.

They forget insensibly that there is any body in the World
but themselves, by keeping no other Company ; so they
miscalculate cruelly. And thus Parties mistake their Strength
by the same reason that private Men overvalue themselves ;
for we by finding fault with others, build up a partial Esteem
of ourselves upon the Foundation of their Mistakes : So Men
in Parties find faults with those in the Administration, not
without reason, but forget that they would be exposed to
the same Objections, and perhaps greater, if it was their
Adversary's turn to have the fault-finding part.

There are Men who shine in a Faction, and make a Figure
by Opposition, who would stand in a worse light, if they had
the Preferments they struggle for.

It looketh so like Courage (but nothing that is like is the
same) to go to the Ewtream, that Men are carried away with
it, and blown up out of their Senses by the wind of popular
Applause.

That which looketh bold is a great Object that the People
can discern ; But that which is wise is not so easily seen : It is

one

Political Thoughts and Reflections. 227

one part of it that it is not seen, but at the End of a Design.
Those who are disposed to be wise too late, are apt to be
valiant too early. 1

Most Men enter into a Party rashly, and. retreat from it as
shamefully. As they encourage one another at first, so they
betray one another at last : And because every Qualification is
capable of being corrupted by the Excess, they fall upon the
extream, to fix mutual Reproaches upon one another.

Party is little less than an Inquisition, where Men are under
such a Discipline in carrying on the common Cause, as leaves
no Liberty of private Opinion.

It is hard to produce an Instance where a Party did ever
succeed against a Government, except they had a good handle
given them.

No original Party ever prevailed in a turn ; it brought up
something else, but the first Projectors were thrown off.

If there are two Parties, a Man ought to adhere to that which
he disliketh least, though in the whole he doth not approve it :
For whilst he doth not list himself in one or the other Party,
he is looked upon as such a Straggler, that he is fallen upon by
both. Therefore a Man under such a Misfortune of Singularity,
is neither to provoke the World, nor disquiet himself, by taking
any particular Station.

It becometh him to live in the Shade, and keep his Mistakes
from giving Offence ; but if they are his Opinions, he cannot
put them off as he doth his Cloaths. Happy those who are
convinced so as to be of the general Opinions.

Ignorance maketh most Men go into a Party, and Shame
keepeth them from getting out of it.

More Men hurt others they do not know why than for any
reason.

If there was any Party entirely composed of honest Men, it
would certainly prevail; but both the honest Men and the
Knaves resolve to turn one another off when the Business is

done.

They by turns defame all England, so nobody can be employed
that hath not been branded : There are few Things so criminal

as a Place.

q2 Of

2 28 Political Thoughts and Reflections.

Of Courts.

THE Court may be said to be a Company of well-bred
fashionable Beggars.

At Court, if a Man hath too much Pride to be a Creature,
he had better stay at home: A Man who will rise at Court
must begin, by creeping upon All-four : A Place at Court, like
a Place in Heaven, is to be got by being much upon one's
Knees.

There are hardly two Creatures of a more differing Species
than the same Man, when he is pretending to a Place, and
when he is in Possession of it.

Mens Industry is spent in receiving the Rents of a Place,
there is little left for discharging the Duty of it.

Some Places have such a corrupting Influence upon the Man,
that it is a supernatural thing to resist it.

Some Places lye so fair to entertain Corruption, that it
looketh like renouncing a due Perquisite, not to go into it.

If a getting Fool would keep out of Business, he would grow
richer in a Court than a Man of Sense.

One would wonder that in a Court where there is so little
Kindness, there should be so much whispering.

Men must brag of kind Letters from Court, at the same
time that they do not believe one Word of them.

Men at Court think so much of their own Cunning, that they
forget other Mens.

After ajRevolutiou, You see the same Men in the Drawing-
room, and within a Week the same Flatterers.

Of Punishment.

WHEREVER a Government knows wAe» to sAowtheRod,
it will not often be put to use it. But between the want
of Skill, and the want of Honesty, Faults generally either
escape Punishment, or are mended to no Purpose.

Men

Political Thoughts and Reflectioris- 229

Men are not hang'd for stealing Horses, but that Horses may
not be stolen.

Wherever a Knave is not punished, an honest Man is
laugh'd at.

A Cheat to the Publick is thought infamous, and yet to accuse
him is not thought an honourable part. What a Paradox ! ^Tis
an ill Method, to make the Aggravation of the Crime a Security
against the Punishment ; so that the Danger is not to rob, but
not to rob enough.

Treason must not be inlayed Work of several Pieces, it must
be an entire Piece of itself. Accumulative in that case is
a murdering Word, that carrieth Injustice, and no Sense in it.

An Inference, though never so rational, should go no farther
than to justify a Suspicion, not so far as to inflict & Punishment .
Nothing is so apt to break vtdth Stretching, as an Inference ; and
nothing so ridiculous, as to see how Fools will abuse one.

Moral

230

Moral Thoughts.

AND

REFLECTIONS.

Of the World.

IT is from the Shortness of Thought, that Men imagine there
is any great Variety in the World.

Time hath thrown a Vail upon the Faults of former Ages, or
else we should see the same Deformities we condemn in the
present Times.

When a Man looketh upon the Rules that are made, he will
think there can be no Faults in the World ; and when he looketh
upon the Faults, there are so many he will be tempted to think
there are no Rules.

They are not to be reconciled, otherwise than by concluding
that which is called Frailty is the incurable Nature of Mankind.

A Man that understandeth the World must be weary of it ;
and a Man who doth not, for that Reason ought not to be
pleased with it.

The Uncertainty of what is to come, is suc h a dark Cloud, that
npJtliPrR.pasnn nnrjie hgion can quite break through it ; and~
the Condi tion" of Mankind is to be weary of wL a t we An kn ow» -
and afraid of wha t we do not.

The Wo'rid iTbeholden to generous Mistakes for the greatest
Part of the Good that is done in it.

Our Vices and Virtues couple with one another, and get
Children that resemble both their Parents.

If a Man can hardly inquire into a Thing he undervalueth,
how can a Man of good Sense take pains to understand the
World ?

To understand the World, and to like it, are two things not

easily to be reconciled.

That

Moral Thoughts and Reflections. 231

That which is called an Able Man is a great Over-valuer of
the World, and all that belongeth to it.

All that can be said of him is, that he maketh the best of the
General Mistake.

It is the Fools and the Knaves that make the Wheels of the
World turn. They are the World; those fevi' -who have Sense
or Honesty sneak up and down single, but never go in Herds.

To be too much troubled is a worse way of over-valuing the
World than the being too much pleased.

A Man that steps aside fi-ora the World, and hath leisure to
observe it without Interest or Design, thinks all Mankind as
mad as they think him, for not agreeing with them in their
Mistakes.

Of Ambition.

THE serious Folly of wise Men in over-valuing the World,
is as contemptible as any thing they think fit to censure.

The first Mistake belonging to Business is the going into it.

Men make it such a Point of Honour to be fit for Business,
that they forget to examine whether Business is fit for a Man
of Sense.

There is Reason to think the most celebrated Philosophers
would have been Bunglers at Business ; but the Reason is be-
cause they despised it.

It is not a Reproach but a Compliment to Learning, to say,
that Great Scholars are less fit for Business ; since the truth is.
Business is so much a lower thing than Learning, that a Man
used to the last cannot easily bring his Stomach down to the
first.

The Government of the World is a great thing ; but it is
a very coarse one too, compared with the Fineness of Speculative
Knowledge.

The Dependance of a great Man upon a greater, is a Sub-
jection that lower Men cannot easily comprehend.

Ambition

232 Moral Thoughts and Reflections.

Ambition hath no Mean, it is either upon all four or upon
Tiptoes.

Nothing can be humbler than Ambition, when it is so
disposed.

Popularity is a Crime from the Moment it is sought ; it is
only a Virtue where Men have it whether they will or no.

It is generally an Appeal to the People from the Sentence
given by Men of Sense against them.

It is stepping very low to get very high.

Men by Habit make irregular Stretches of Power, without
discerning the Consequence and Extent of them.

Eagerness is apt to overlook Consequences, it is loth to be
stopt in its Career ; for when Men are in great haste, they see
only in a straight Line.

Of Cunning and Knayery.

CUNNING is so apt to grow into Knaveiy, that an honest
Man will avoid the Temptation of it. But Men in this
Age are half bribed by the Ambition of circumventing, with-
out any other encouragements. So proud of the Character
of being able Men, that they do not care to have their Dexterity
confined.

In this Age, when it is said of a Man, He knows how to live,
it may be imply^d he is not very honest.

An honest Man must lose so many Occasions of Getting, that
the World will hardly allow him the Character of an Able one.

There is however more Wit requisite to be an honest Man,
than there is to be a Knave.

The most necessary thing in the World, and yet the least
usual, is to reflect that those we deal with, may know how to be
as arrant Knaves as ourselves.

The Eagerness of a Knave maketh him often as catchable, as
Ignorance maketh a Fool.

No Man is so much a Fool as not to have Wit enough some-
times

Moral Thoughts and Reflections. 233

times to be a Knave ; nor any so cunning a Knave^ as not to
liave the Weakness sometimes to play the Fool,

The Mixture of Fool and Knave, maketh up the parti-coloured
Creatures that make all the Bustle in the World.

There is not so pleasant a Quarry, as a Knave taken in a Net
of his oven making.

A Knave leaneth sometimes so hard upon his Impudence, that
it breaketh and lets him fall.

Knavery is in such perpetual Motion, that it hath not always
Leisure to look to its own Steps ; 'tis like sliding upon Scates,
no Motion so smooth or swift^ but none gives so terrible a Fall.

A Knave loveth Self so heartily, that he is apt to over-
strain it : by never thinking he can get enough, he gets so much
less. His Thought is like Wine that fretteth with too much
fermenting.

The Knaves in every Government are a kind of Corporation ;
and though they fall out with one another, like all Beasts of
Prey, yet upon occasion they unite to support the common
Cause.

It cannot be said to be such a Corporation as the Bank of
England, but they are a numerous and formidable Body, scarce
to be resisted ; but the Point is, they can never rely upon one
another.

Knaves go chain'd to one another like Slaves in the Gallies,
and cannot easily untie themselves from their Company. Their
Promises and Honour indeed do not hinder them, but other
intangling Circumstances keep 'em from breaking loose.

If Knaves had not foolish Memories, they would never trust
one another so often as they do.

Present Interest, like present Love, maketh all other Friend-
ship look cold to it, but it faileth in the holding.

When one Knave betrayeth another, the one is not to be
blamed, nor the other to be pitied.

When they complain of one another as if they were honest
Men, they ought to be laugh'd at as if they were Fools.

There are some Cunning-men who yet can scarce be called
Rational Creatures; yet they are often more successful than

Men

2 34 Moral Thoughts and Reflections.

Men of Sense, because those they have to deal with are upon
a looser Guard ; and their Simplicity maketh their Knavery
unsuspected.

There is no such thing as a venial Sin against Morality, no
such thing as a small Knavery : He that carries a small Crime
easily, will carry it on when it grows to be an Ox. But the
little Knaves are the greater of the two, because they have less
the Excuse of Temptation.

Knavery is so humble, and Merit so proud, that the latter is
thrown down because it cannot stoop.

Of Folly and Fools.

THERE are five Orders of Fools, as of Building: i. The
Blockhead, 2. Coxcomb, 3. Vain Blockhead, 4. Grave
Coxcomb, and 5. The Half-witted Fellow ; this last is of the
Composite Order.

The Follies of grave Men have the Precedence of all others,
a ridiculous Dignity, that gives them a Right to be laughed at
in the first place.

As the masculine Wit is the strongest, so the masculine
Impertinence is the greatest.

The Consequence of a Half- Wit is a Half- Will, there is not
Strength enough in the Thought to carry it to the End.

A Fool is naturally recommended to our Kindness by setting
us off by the Comparison. Men are grateful to Fools for giving
them the Pleasure of contemning them.

But Folly hath a long Tail that is not seen at first : for every
single Folly hath a Root, out of which more are ready to sprout ;
and a Fool hath so unlimited a Power of mistaking, that a Man
of Sense can never comprehend to what degree it may extend.

There are some Fools so low, that they are preferred when
they are laught at. Their being named putteth them in the
List of Men, which is more than belongeth to them.

One

Moral Thoughts and Reflections. 235

One should no more laugh at a contemptible Fool, than at
a dead Fly.

The Dissimulation of a Fool should come within the Statute
of Stabbing. It giveth no Warning.

A Fool will be rude from the Moment he is allowed to be
familiar; he can make no other use of Freedom than to be
unmannerly.

Weak Men are apt to be cruel, because they stick at nothing
that may repair the ill Effect of their Mistakes.

Folly is often more cruel in the Consequence, than Malice can
be in the Intent.

Many a Man is murthered by the well-meant Mistakes of his
unthinking Friends.

A weak Friend, if he will be kind, ought to go no farther
than Wishes ; if he proffereth either to say, or to do, it is
dangerous.

A Man had as good go to Bed to a Razor, as to be intimate
with a foolish Friend.

Mistaken Kindness is little less dangerous than premeditated
Malice.

A Man hath not the Relief of being angry at the Blows
of a mistaken Friend.

A busy Fool is fitter to be shut up than a downright
Madman.

A Man that hath only Wit enough not to do Hurt, com-
mitteth a Sin if he aimeth at doing Good.

His passive Understanding must not pretend to be active.

It is a Sin against Nature for such a Man to be meddling.

It is hard to find a Blockhead so wise as to be upon the De-
fensive ; he will be sallying, and then he is sure to be ill used.

If a dull Fool can make a Vow and keep it, never to speak
his own Sense, or do his own Business, he may pass a great
while for a rational Creature.

A Blockhead is as ridiculous when he talketh, as a Goose is
when it flieth.

The grating a Gridiron is not a worse Noise, than the jingling
of Words is to a Man of Sense.

It

236 Moral Thoughts and Reflections.

It is Ill-manners to silence a Fool, and Cruelty to let him
go on.

Most Men make little other use of their Speech than to give
evidence against their own Understanding.

A great Talker may be a Man of Sense, but he cannot be one,
who will venture to rely upon him.

There is so much Danger in Talking, that a Man strictly wise
can hardly be called a sociable Creature.

The great Expence of Words is laid out in setting ourselves
out, or deceiving others ; to convince them requireth but a few.

Many Words are always either suspicious or ridiculous.

A Fool hath no Dialogue within himself, the first Thought
carrieth him without the Reply of a second.

A Fool will admire or like nothing that he understands,
a Man of Sense nothing but what he understands.

Wise Men gain, and poor Men live, by the Superfluities of
Fools.

TiU Follies become ruinous, the World is better with than it
would be without them.

A Fool is angry that he is the Food of a Knave, forgetting
that it is the End of his Creation.

Of HOPE.

HOPE is a kind Cheat ; in the Minute of our Disappoint-
ment we are angry, but upon the whole matter there is
no Pleasure vidthout it.

It is so much a pleasanter thing than Truth to the greatest
Part of the World, that it hath all their KindnesSj the other only
hath their Respect.

Hope is generally a wrong Guide, though it is very good
Company by the way. It brusheth through Hedge and Ditch
till it Cometh to a great Leap, and there it is apt to fall and
break its Bones.

It

3Ioral Thoughts and Reflections. 237

It would be well if Hopes carried Men only to the top of the
Hill, without throwing them afterwards down the Precipice.

The Hopes of a Fool are blind Guides, those of a Man of
Sense doubt often of their Way.

Men should do with their Hopes as they do with tame Fowl,
cut their Wings that they may not fly over the Wall.

A hoping Fool hath such terrible Falls, that his Brains are
turned, though not cured by them.

The Hopes of a Fool are Bullets he throws into the Air, that
fall down again and break his Skull.

There can be no entire Disappointment to a wise Man, be-
cause he maketh it a Cause of succeeding another time. A Fool
is so unreasonably raised by his Hopes, that he is half dead by
a Disappointment : his mistaken Fancy draweth him so high,
that when he falleth, he is sure to break his Bones.

Of ANGER.

ANGER is a better Sign of the Heart than of the Head ; it
MX. is a breaking out of the Disease of Honesty. Just Anger
may be as dangerous as it could be if there was no Provocation
to it ; for a Knave is not so nice a Casuist but that he will ruin,
if he can, any Man that blameth him.

Where Ill-nature is not predominant. Anger will be short-
breathed, it cannot hold out a long Course. Hatred can be
tired and cloyed as well as Love : for our Spirits, like our
Limbs, are tired with being long in one Posture.

There is a Dignity in Good-sense that is offended and defaced
by Anger.

Anger is never without an Argument, but seldom with a
good one.

Anger raiseth Invention but it overheateth the Oven.

Anger, like Drink, raiseth a great deal of unmannerly Wit.

True Wit must come by Drops ; Anger throweth it out in
a Stream, and then it is not likely to be of the best kind,

111 Language punisheth Anger by drawing a Contempt upon it.

Of

238 Moral Thoughts and Reflections.

Of Apologies

IT is a dangerous Task to answer Objections, because they
are helped by the Malice of Mankind.

A bold Accusation doth at first draw such a general Attention,
that it gets the World on its side.

To a Man who hath a mind to find a Fault, an Excuse gene-
rally giveth farther hold.

Explaining is generally half confessing.

Innocence hath a very short Style.

When a Jealousy of any kind is once raised, it is as often
provoked as cured by any Arguments, let them be never so
reasonable.

When Laziness letteth things alone, it is a Disease; but
when Skill doth it, it is a Vertue.

Malice may help a Fool to aggravate, but there must be Skill
to know how to extenuate.

To lessen an Object that at the first Sight giveth Offence,
requireth a dexterous Hand : There must be Strength as well
as Skill to take off the Weight of the first Impression.

When a Man is very unfortunate, it looketh like a saucy thing
in him to justify himself.

A Man must stoop sometimes to his ill Star, but he must
never lie down to it.

The Vindications Men make of themselves to Posterity would
hardly be supported by Good-Sense, if they were not of some
Advantage to their own Families.

The defending an ill Thing is more criminal than the doing
it, because it wanteth the Excuse of its not being premeditated.

An Advocate for Injustice is like a Bawd that is worse than
her Client who committeth the Sin.

There is hardly any Man so strict as not to vary a little from
Truth when he is to make an Excuse.

Not telling all the Truth is hiding it, and that is comforting
or abetting a Lye.

A long Vindication is seldom a skilful one.

Long doth at least imply Doubtful in such a Case.

A

Moral Thoughts and Reflections. 239

A Fool should avoid the making an Excuse, as much as the
committing a Fault ; for a Fool's Excuse is always a second
Fault : and whenever he will undertake either to hide or mend
a thing, he proclaimeth and spoileth it.

M

Of Malice and Envy.
ALICE is a greater Magnifying-Glass than Kind-

ness.

Malice is of a low Stature, but it hath very long Arms. It
often reacheth into the next World, Death itself is not a
Bar to it.

Malice, like Lust, when it is at the Height, doth not know
Shame.

If it did not sometimes cut itself with its own Edge, it would
destroy the World.

Malice can mistake by being keen as well as by being dull.

When Malice groweth critical, it loseth its Credit.

It must go under the Disguise of Plainness, or else it is
exposed.

Anger may have some Excuse for being blind, but Malice
none : for Malice hath time to look before it.

When Malice is overgrown, it cometh to be the highest degree
of Impertinence. For that reason, it must not be fed and
pampered, which is apt to make it play the fool. But where it
is wise and steady, there is no Precaution, that can be quite
Proof against it.

lU-will is seldom cured on a sudden, it must go off by degrees,
by insensible Transpiration.

Malice may be sometimes out of Breath, Envy never. A Man
may make Peace with Hatred, but never vdth Envy.

No Passion is better heard by our will, than that of Envy :
No Passion is admitted to have Audience with less Exception.

Envy taketh the Shape of Flattery, and that maketh Men
hug it so close, that they cannot part with it.

The

240 Moral Thoughts and Reflections.

The sure way to be commended is to get into a Condition of
being pitied. For Envy will not give its leave to commend
a Man, till he is miserable.

A Man is undone, when Envy will not vouchsafe to look
upon him.

Yet after all. Envy doth Virtue as much good as hurt, by
provoking it to appear. Nay, it forcibly draweth out, and
inviteth Virtue, by giving it a Mind to be revenged of it.

Of Vanity.

THE W^orld is nothing but Vanity cut out into several
Shapes.

Men often mistake themselves, but they never forget them-
selves.

A Man must not so entirely fall out with Vanity, as not to
take its Assistance in the doing great Things.

Vanity is like some Men who are very useful, if they are
kept under ; and else not to be endured.

A little Vanity may be allowed in a Man's Train, but it must
not sit down at Table with him.

Without some Share of it, Mens Talents would be buried like
Ore in a Mine unwrought.

Men would be less eager to gain Knowledge, if they did not
hope to set themselves out by it.

It sheweth the Narrowness of our Nature, that a Man that
intendeth any one thing extreamly, hath not Thought enough
left for any thing else.

Our Pride maketh us over-value our Stock of Thought, so as
to trade much beyond what it is able to make good.

Many aspire to learn what they can never comprehend, as
others pretend to teach what they themselves do not know.

The Vanity of teaching often tempteth a Man to forget he
is a Blockhead.

Self-conceit driveth away the suspecting how scurvily others

think of us.

Vanity

Moral Thoughts and Reflections. 241

Vanity cannot be a Friend to Truth, because it is restrained
by it ; and "Vanity is so impatiently desirous of shewing itself,
that it cannot bear the being crossed.

There is a Degree of Vanity that recommendeth ; if it goeth
further, it exposeth.

So much as to stir the Blood to do commendable Things, but
not so much as to possess the Brain, and turn it round.

There are as many that are blown up by the Wind of Vanity,
as are carried away by the Stream of Interest.

Every body hath not Wit enough to Act out of Interest, but
every body hath little enough to do it out of Vanity.

Some Mens Heads are as easily blown away as their Hats.

If the commending others well, did not recommend ourselves,
there would be few Panegyricks.

Mens Vanity will often dispose them to be commended into
very troublesome Employments.

The desiring to be remember'd when we are dead, is to so
little purpose, that it is fit Men should, as they generally are,
be disappointed in it. Nevertheless, the desire of leaving a good
Name behind us is so honourable to ourselves, and so useful to
the World, that good Sense must not be heard against it.

Heraldry is one of those fooUsh Things that may yet be too
much despised.

The Contempt of Scutcheons is as much a Disease in this
Age, as the over- valuing them was in former Times.

There is a good Use to be made of the most contemptible
Things, and an ill one of those that are the most valuable.

Of Money.

IF Men considered how many Things there are that Riches
cannot buy, they would not be so fond of them.
The Things to be bought with Money, are such as least
deserve the giving a Price for them.

Wit and Money are so apt to be abused, that Men generally
make a shift to be the worse for them.

HAurAx R Money

242 Moral Thoughts and Reflections.

Money in a Fool's Hand exposeth him worse than a pyed
Coat.

Money hath too great a Preference given to it by States, as
well as by particular Men.

Men are more the Sinews of War than Money.

The third part of an Army must be destroyed, before a good
one can be made out of it.

They who are of opinion that Money will do every thing, may
very well be suspected to do every thing for Money.

False Learning.

A Little Learning misleadeth, and a great deal often stupi-
fieth the Understanding.

Great Reading without applying it, is like Corn heaped that
is not stirred, it groweth musty.

A learned Coxcomb dyeth his Mistakes in so much a deeper
Colour : A wrong kind of Learning serveth only to embroider
his Errors.

A Man that hath read without Judgment, is like a Gun
charged with Goose-shot, let loose upon the Company.

He is only well furnished with Materials to expose himself,
and to mortify those he liveth with.

The reading of the greatest Scholars, if put into a Limbeck,
might be distilled into a small quantity of Essence.

The Reading of most Men, is like a Wardrobe of old Cloaths
that are seldom used.

Weak Men are the worse for the good Sense they read in
Books, because it furnisheth them only with more Matter to
mistake.

Of Company.

MEN that cannot entertain themselves want somebody,
though they care for nobody.
An impertinent Fellow is never in the right, but in his being
weary of himself.

By

Moral Thoughts and Reflections. 243

By that time Men are fit for Company, they see the Objec-
tions to it.

The Company of a Fool is dangerous as well as tedious.

It is flattering some Men to endure them.

Present Punishment attendeth the Fault.

A following Wit will be welcome in most Companies ; A
leading one lieth too heavy for Envy to bear.

Out^doing is so near reproaching, that it will generally be
thought very ill Company.

Any thing that shineth doth in some measure tarnish every
thing that standeth next to it.

Keeping much Company generally endeth in playing the Fool
or the Knave with them.

Of Friendship.

FRIENDSHIP Cometh oftener by Chance than by Choice,
which maketh it generally so uncertain.

It is a Mistake to say a Friend can be bought.

A Man may buy a good Turn, but he cannot buy the Heart
that doth it.

Friendship cannot live with Ceremony, nor without Civility.

There must be a nice Diet observed to keep Friendship from
falling sick ; nay, there is more Skill necessary to keep a Friend,
than there is to reclaim an Enemy.

Those Friends who are above Interest are seldom above
Jealousy.

It is a Misfortune for a Man not to have a Friend in the
World, but for that reason he shall have no Enemy.

In the Commerce of the World, Men struggle little less with
their Friends, than they do vnth their Enemies.

Esteem ought to be the ground of Kindness, and yet there are
no Friends that seldomer meet.

Kindness is apt to be as afraid of Esteem, as that is to be
ashamed of Kindness.

Our Kindness is greatest to those that will do what we would
have them, in which our Esteem cannot always go along.

R 3 Miscel-

244

Miscellaneous Thoughts

AND

REFLECTIONS.

Of Advice ' I "*HE Rule of doing as we would be done by, is never less
"^•ection'' observed than it is in telling others their Faults. But Men

intend more to shew others that they are free from the Fault,
than to dissuade them from committing it.

They are so pleased with the prudent Shape of an Adviser,
that it raiseth the value they have of themselves, whilst they are
about it.

Certainly, to give Advice to a Friend, either asked or unasked,
is so far from a Fault, that it is a Duty ; but if a Man love to
give Advice, it is a sure sign that he himself wanteth it.

A Man whilst he is advising putteth his Understanding upon
Tiptoes, and is unwilling to bring it down again.

A weak Man had rather be thought to know, than know, and
that maketh him so impatient to be told of a Mistake.

He who will not be the better for other Mens Faults, hath no
cure left for his own.

But he that can probe himself to cure his own Faults, will
seldom need either the Surgery of his Friends or of his
Enemies,
^^^-^^M- ' IN a corrupted Age the putting the World in order would
<em«on^jjj.gg(j Confusion.

A rooted Disease must be stroaked away, rather than kicked
away.

As soon as Men have Understanding enough to find a Fault,
they have enough to see the danger of mending it.

Desiring to have any thing mended, is venturing to have it
spoiled : To know when to let Things alone, is a high pitch of

good

Miscellaneous Thoughts and Reflections. 245

good Sense. But a Fool hath an Eagerness, like a Monkey in
a Glass Shop, to break every thing in the handling.

Curing and Mending are generally meer Words of Art not to
be relied upon. They are set out in Bills, but the Mountebanks
only get by them.

GREAT Bashfulness is oftener an Effect of Pride than of Bashfal-
Modesty.

Modesty is oftner mistaken than any other Virtue.

WISE Venturing is the most commendable Part of human Boldiies>i.
Prudence.

It is the upper Story of Prudence, whereas perpetual Caution
is a kind of under-ground Wisdom that doth not care to see
the Light.

It is best for great Men to shoot over, and for lesser Men to
shoot short.

MEN who borrow their Opinions can never repay their Debts. Bon-ow-

They are Beggars by Nature, and can therefore never get *? "f ^i"'
a Stock to grow rich upon.

A Man who hath not a distinguishing Head, is safest by not
minding what any body sayeth.

He had better trust to his own Opinion, than spoil another
Man^s for want of apprehending it.

IT is some kind of Scandal not to bear with the Faults of an Candour.
honest Man.

It is not loving Honesty enough to allow it distinguishing
Privileges.

There are some decent Faults which may pretend to be in the
lower Rank of Virtues ; and surely where Honour or Gratitude
are the Motives, Censure must be a good deal silenced.

MEN must be saved in this World by their Want of Of Cau-
tion and
Faith. Suspiinon.

A Man that getteth Care into his Thoughts, cannot properly
be said to trade without a Stock.

Care and right Thought will produce Crops all the Year with-
out staying for the Seasons.

A Man is to go about his own Business as if he had not
a Friend in the World to help him in it.

He

246 3Iiscellaneous Thoughts

He that relieth upon himself will be oppressed by others with
Offers of their Service.

All are apt to shrink from those that lean upon them.

If Men would think how often their own Words are thrown
at their Heads^ they would less often let them go out of their
Mouths.

Mens Words are Bullets that their Enemies take up and make
use of against them.
."^TMan watches himself best when others watch him too.

It is as necessary for us to suppress our Reason when it
offendeth, as our Mistakes when they expose us.

In an unreasonable Age, a Man's Reason let loose would
undo him.

A wise Man will do with his Reason as a Miser doth with his
Money, hoard it, but be very sparing in the Expence of it.

A Man that should call every thing by its right Name, would
hardly pass the Streets without being knocked down as a common
Enemy.

A Man cannot be more in the Wrong than to own without
Distinction the being in the Right.

When a Man is very kind or very angry, there is no sure
Guard but Silence upon that Subject.

A Man's Understanding is easily shoved out of its Place by
warm Thoughts of any kind.

We are not so much Masters of our Heat as to have enough
to warm our Thoughts, and not so much as to set them on fire.

A great Enemy is a great Object that inviteth Precaution,
which maketh him less dangerous than a mean one.

An old Man concludeth from his knowing Mankind, that
they know him too, and that maketh him very wary.

On the other hand, it must be allowed, that a Man's being
deceived by Knaves hath often this Ul Effect, that it maketh
him too jealous of honest Men.

The Mind, like the Body, is subject to be hurt by everything
it taketh for a Remedy.

There are some such very great Foreseers, that they grow
into the Vanity of pretending to see where nothing is to be seen.

He

and Reflections. 247

He that will see at too great a distance, will sometimes mis-
take a Bush for a Horse : The Prospect of a wise Man will
be bounded.

A Man may so overdo it in looking too far before him, that
he may stumble the more for it.

And, to conclude. He that leaveth nothing to Chance will do
few things ill, but he will do veiy few things.

Suspicion is rather a Virtue than a Fault, as long as it doth
like a Dog that watcheth, and doth not bite.

A wise Man, in trusting another, must not rely upon his
Promise against his Nature.

Early Suspicion is often an Injury, and late Suspicion is
always a Folly.

A wise Man will keep his Suspicions muzzled, but he will
keep them awake.

There can no Rules be given to Suspicion, no more than to
Love.

Suspicion taketh Root, and beareth Fruit, from the moment
it is planted.

Suspicion seldom wanteth Food to keep it up in Health and
Vigour. It feedeth upon every thing it seeth, and is not curious
in its Diet.

Suspicion doth not grow up to an Injury till it break eth out.

When our Suspicion of another Man is once discovered by
him, there ought to be an end of all further Commerce.

He that is never suspected, is either very much esteemed, or
very much despised.

A Man^s Interest is not a sufficient Ground to suspect him,
if his Nature doth not concur in it.

A weak Man hath less Suspicion than a wise one, but when
he hath it, he is less easily cured.

The Remedies as often increase the Disease, as they do allay
it ; and a Fool valueth himself upon suspecting at a venture.

MANY Men swallow the being cheated, but no Man could Cheata.
ever endure to chew it.

Few Men would be deceived, if their Conceit of themselves
did not help the Skill of those that go about it.

COMPLAINING

248 Miscellaneous Thoughts

Complaint. COMPLAINING is a Contempt upon ones self :

It is an ill Sign both of a Man's Head and of his Heart.
A Man throweth himself down whilst he complaineth ; and
when a Man throweth himself down, no body careth to take
him up again.
Content. CONTENT layeth Pleasure, nay Virtue, in a Slumber, with
few and faint Intermissions.

It is to the Mind, like Moss to a Tree, it bindeth it up so as
to stop its Growth.
Converts. THE Impudence of a Bawd is Modesty, compared with that
of a Convert.

A Convert hath so much to do to gain Credit, that a Man is
to think well before he changeth.
I>e.nres. MEN generally state their Wants by their Fancy, and not by

^eir Reason.

The poor young Children are whipt and beaten by the old
ones, who are much more inexcusably impertinent.

Not having things, is a more proper Expression for a Man of
Sense than his wanting them.

Where Sense is wanting, every thing is wanting.
A Man of Sense can hardly want, but for his Friends and
Children that have none.

Most Men let their Wishes run away with them.
They have no mind to stop them in their Career, the Motion
is so pleasing.

To desire what belongeth to another Man is Misprision of
Robbery.

Men are commanded not to covet, because when they do they
are very apt to take.
Difficulty. A DIFFICULTY raiseth the Spirits of a great Man, he
hath a mind to wrestle with it, and give it a Fall.

A Man's Mind must be very low, if the Difficulty doth not
make a part of his Pleasure.

The Pride of Compassing may more than compare with the
Pleasure of Enjoying.
JOissem- NOTHING SO ridiculous as a false Philosopher, and nothing
" so rare as a true one.

Men

and Reflections. 249

Men take more pains to hide than to mend themselves.

MENS Pride, as well as their Weakness, disposeth them to Dream/,-.
rely upon Dreams, from their thinking themselves of such
Importance as to have Warning of what is to befal them.

The Enquiry into a Dream is another Dream.

IT is a piece of Arrogance to dare to be drunk, because a Man Drunhen-
sheweth himself without a Vail. "***•

THE best way to suppose what may come, is to remember E.rp/'-
what is past. "^"'^■

The best Qualification of a Prophet is to have a good^^^
Memoiy.

Experience maketh more Prophets than Revelation.^. -

The Knowledge that is got without Pains, is kept without
Pleasure.

The Struggling for Knowledge hath a Pleasure in it like that
of Wrestling with a fine Woman.

EXTREMITY is always ill, that which is good cannot live Eictreme.s.
a Moment with it.

Any body that is Fool enough will be safe in the World, and
any body that can be Knave enough will be rich in it.

The generality of the World falleth into an insufficient Mean
that exposeth them more than an Extreme on either Side.

THOUGH Memory and Invention are not upon good Terms, Faculties

vet when the first is loaded, the other is stifled. C'*f

•' . „ Mind.

The Memory hath Claws by which it holdeth fast; but it

hath no Wings, like the Invention, to enable it to fly.

Some Mens Memory is like a Box, where a Man should
mingle his Jewels with his old Shoes.

There ought to be a great Difference between the Memory
and the Stomach ; the last is to admit every thing, the former
should have the Faculty of Rejecting.

It is a nice Mean between letting the Thought languish for
want of Exercise, and tiring it by giving it too much.

A Man may dwell so long upon a Thought, that it may take
him Prisoner.

The hardest thing in the World is to give the Thoughts due
Liberty, and yet retain them in due Discipline.

They

250 Miscellaneous Thoughts

They are Libertines that are apt to abuse Freedom, and do
not well know how to bear Restraint.

A Man that excels in any one thing has a kind of arbitrary
Power over all that hear him upon that Subject, and no Man's
Life is too short to know any one thing perfectly.

The modern Wit is rather to set Men out, than to make them
of any Use.

Some Men have acted Courage who had it not ; but no Man
can act Wit, if Nature doth not teach him his Part. True Wit
is always revenged upon any false Pretender that meddleth
with it.

Wit is the only thing that Men are willing to think they can
ever have enough of.

There is a happy Pitch of Ignorance that a Man of Sense
might pray for.

A Man that hath true Wit will have Honour too, not only to
adorn, but to support it.
Families. THE building up a Family is a Manufacture very little above
the building a House of Cards.

Time and Accidents are sure to furnish a Blast to blow it
down.

No House wanteth new Tiling so often as a Family wants
Repairing.

The Desire of having Children is as much the Effect of
Vanity as of Good-nature.

We think our Children a Part of ourselves, though as they
grow up they might very well undeceive us.

Men love their Children, not because they are promising
Plants, but because they are theirs.

They cannot discredit the Plant, without disparaging the Soil
out of which it came.

Pride in this, as in many other things, is often mistaken for
Love.

As Children make a Man poor in one Sense, so in another
they inforce Care, and that begetteth Riches.

Love is presently out of Breath when it is to go up Hill, from
the Children to the Parents.

'TIS

and Reflections. 251

'TIS good to have Men in Awe, but dangerous to have them Fear.
afraid of us.

The Mean is so nice, that the hitting upon it is oftner the
Effect of Chance than of Skill.

A Degree of Fear sharpeneth, the Excess of it stupifieth.

It is as scandalous not to fear at some times, as it can be to
be afraid at others.

FOLLY begets Want, and Want Flattery ; so that Flattery, Flattery.
with all its Wit, is the Grandchild of Folly.

Were it not for Bunglers in the manner of doing it, hardly
any Man would ever find out he was laughed at.

And yet, generally speaking, a Trowel is a more effectual
Instrument than a Pencil for Flattery.

Men generally do so love the Taste of Flatteiy, their Stomach
can never be overcharged with it.

There is a Right Reverend Flattery that hath the Precedence
of all other Kinds of it.

This Mitred Flattery is of all others the most exalted. It
ever groweth in proportion, and keepeth pace with Power.
There is a noble Stroke of it in the Articles sent to Princess
Mary from Henry VIII. 'Such is his Majesty's Gracious and
'Divine Nature — shewing Mercj^to such as repentantly cry and
' call for the same.'

FORGETTING is oftner an Aggravation than an Excuse. Forgetfvl-

The Memory will seldom be unmannerly but where it is "***"
unkind.

THERE needeth little Care to polish the Understanding ; Good-
if true Means were used to strengthen it, it will polish itself. manners.

Good-manners is such a Part of Good-sense, that they cannot
be divided ; but that which a Fool calleth Good-breeding is the
most unmannerly thing in the World.

Right Good-manners require so much Sense, that there is
hardly any such thing in the World.

GOOD-NATURE is rather acted than practised in the Good-
World. "«'"'■'•

Good-nature to others is an inseparable Part of Justice.

GOOD-WILL, like Grace, floweth where it listeth. Good-^-ill.

Men

252

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Men mean so very well to themselves^ that they forget to
mean well to any body else.
Heat. GOOD-SENSE will allow of some intermitting Fevers, but

then the Fit must be short.
Honesty. HE that can be quite indifferent when he seeth another Man
injured, hath a lukewarm Honesty that a wise Man will not
depend upon.

He that is not concerned when he seeth an ill thing done to
another, will not be very eager to do a good one himself.
Hypocrisy. THERE is so much Wit necessary to make a skilful
Hypocrite, that the Faculty is fallen amongst Bunglers, who
make it ridiculous.
Injuries. AN Injury may more properly be said to be postponed, than
to be forgiven.

The Memory of it is never so subdued, but that it hath
always Life in it.

The Memory of an Enemy admitteth no decay but Age.

Could we know what Men are most apt to remember, we
might know what they are most apt to do.

It is a general Fault that we dislike Men only for the
Injuries they do to us, and not for those they do to Mankind.
Yet it will be hard to give a good Reason why a Man who hath
done a deliberate Injury to one, will not do it to another.

The Memory and the Conscience never did, nor never will
agree about forgiving Injuries.

Nature is Second to the Memory, and Religion to the
Conscience.

When the Seconds fight, the latter is generally disarmed.
Integrity. A MAN in a corrupted Age must make a Secret of his
Integrity, or else he will be looked upon as a common
Enemy.

He must engage his Friends not to speak of it ; for he setteth
himself for a Mark to be ill used.
Jti.itice. AS far as keeping distance is a sign of Respect, Mankind

hath a great deal for Justice.

They make up in Ceremony what they want in Good-will
to it.

Where

and Reflections. 253

Where the GeneraUty are Offenders^ Justice cometh to be

Cruelty.

TO Love, and to be in Love with any thing, are Things as To Low,
j./v . J c) J T i- ond he in

dittenng, as good oense and Impertinence. ^^^g ^if.

When we once go beyond bare liking, we are in danger oiferent.
parting with Good-Sense ; and it is not easy for Good-Sense to
get so far as liking.

WHEN by habit a Man cometh to have a bargaining Soul, Lucre.
its Wings are cut, so that it can never soar.

It bindeth Reason an Apprentice to Gain, and instead of
a Director, maketh it a Drudge.

THE being kind to a Lyar, is abetting a Treason against Lying.
Mankind.

A Man is to inform the first Magistrate, that he may be
clap'd up.

Lies are embi'oidered with Promises and Excuses.
A known Lyar should be outlawed in a well ordered Govern-
ment.

A Man that renounceth Truth, runneth away from his trial
in the World.

The use of Talking is almost lost in the World by the habit
of Lying.

A Man that doth not tell all the Truth, ought to be hanged
for a Clipper.

Half the Truth is often as arrant a Lye, as can be made.
It is the more dexterous, but not the less criminal kind of
Lying.

NAMES to Men of Sense are no more than Fig-leaves; to the Names.
generality they are thick Coverings that hide the Nature of
Things from them.

Fools turn Good-Sense upon its Head, they take Names for
Things, and Things only for Names.

IT is a general Mistake to think the Men we like are good Partia-
for every thing, and those we do not, good for nothing. ' ^'

A MAN who is Master of Patience, is Master of everything else. Patience.
He that can tell how to bear in the right Place, is Master of
every body he dealeth with.

POSITIVE

2 54 Miscellaneous Thoughts

Positive- POSITIVE is the Perfection of Coxcomb, he is then come

to his full Growth.
Prospe- IT sheweth Mens Nature, that when they are pampered in
any kind, they are very apt to play jadish Tricks.

One of the Tricks of any Creature that is wanton, is to kick
what is next them.
Quiet. EVERY thing that doth us good is so apt to do us hurt too,

that it is a strong Argument for Men to be quiet.
If Men would think more, they would act less.
The greatest Part of the Business of the World, is the Effect
of not thinking.
Reason'^ MOST Men put their Reason out to Service to their Will.
sio7i. ' ^^^ Master and the Man are perpetually falling out.

A third Man will hazard a beating, if he goes about to part
• them.

Nothing hath an uglier Look to us than Reason, when it is
not of our side.

We quarrel so often with it, that it maketh us afraid to come
near it.

A Man that doth not use his Reason, is a tame Beast ;
a Man that abuses it, is a wild one.
Reputa- IT is a self-flattering Contradiction, that wise Men despise
the Opinion'of Fools, and yet are proud of having their Esteem.
Self-love. SELF-LOVE rightly defined, is far from being a Fault.

A Man that loveth himself right, will do every thing else
right.
Shame. A MAN who doth not think he is punished when he is

blamed, is too much hardened to be ever reformed.

The Court of Shame hath of late lost much of its Jurisdic-
tion. It ought by right both to judge in the first Instance, and
to exclude all Appeals from it.

Shame is a Disease of the last Age, this seemeth to be cured
of it.
Singula- SINGULARITY maybe good Sense at home, but it must
*■ not go much abroad.

It is a Commendation to be that which a crowd of mistaken
Fools call Singular.

There

and Reflections. 255

There can hardly be a severer thing said to a Man in this
Age, than that he is Uke the rest of the World.

SLANDER would not stick, if it had not always something Slander.
to lay hold of.

A Man who can allow himself the Liberty to slander, hath
the World too much at his Mercy.

But the Man that despiseth Slander deserveth it.

SPEAKERS in Publick should take more Pains to hold in Speakers
their Invention than to raise it. '" Publick.

Invention is apt to make such Sallies, that it cannot secure
its Retreat.

He that will not make a Blot, will be pretty sure in his time
to give a Stroke.

A patient Hearer is a sure Speaker.

Men are angry when others do not hear them, yet they have
more Reason to be afraid when they do.

MISPENDING a Man's time is a kind of self-homicide, it is Time the

1 • T •!! i 1. c loss of it.

makmg Liie to be 01 no use.

TRUTH is not only stifled by Ignorance, but concealed out Truth.
of Caution or Interest ; so if it had not a Root of Immortality,
it must have been long since extinguished.

THE most useful Part of Wisdom is for a Man to give ^^isdom.
a good guess, what others think of him.

It is a dangerous thing to guess partially, and a melancholy
thing to guess right.

Nothing would more contribute to make a Man wise, than to
have always an Enemy in his view.

A wise Man may'have more Enemies than a weak one, but he
will not so much feel the weight of them. Indeed the being
wise doth either make Men our Friends, or discourage them
from being our Enemies.

Wisdom is only a comparative Quality, it will not bear
a single Definition.

A MAN hath too little Heat, or Wit, or Courage, if he hath ^««'^-
not sometimes more than he should.

Just enough of a good thing is always too little.

Long Life giveth more Marks to shoot at, and therefore old

Men

256 Miscellaneous Thoughts and Reflections.

Men are less well thought of, than those who have not been so
long upon the Stage.

Other Mens Memories retain the ill, whilst the good Things
done by an old Man, easily slip out of them.

Old Men have in some degree their Reprisals upon younger,
by making nicer Observations upon them, by virtue of their
Experience.

FINIS.

Oxford : Horace Hart, Printer to the University