Duke of Venice; others for a Dutch republic; a third party for an ariftocracy; and most of all for fome new fabric of their own contriving. But however, let us confider them as a party, and under thofe general tenets wherein they agreed, and which they publicly owned, without charging them with any that they pretend to deny. Then, let us examine those principles of the Tories which their adverfaries allow them to profefs, and do not pretend to tax them with any actions contrary to thofe profeffions: after which let the reader judge, from which of these two parties a prince hath most to fear; and whether her Majefty did not confider the eafe, the fafety, and dignity of her perfon, the fecurity of her crown, and the tranfmiffion of monarchy to her Proteftant fucceffors, when the put her affairs into the prefent hands. Suppofe the matter were not entire; the Queen to make her choice; and for that end, fhould order the principles on both fides to be fairly laid before her. First, I conceive, the Whigs would grant, that they have naturally no very great veneration for crowned heads; that they allow the perfon of the prince may, upon many occafions, be refifted by arms; and that they do not condemn the war raised against K. Charles I. or own it to be a rebellion, although they would be thought to blame his murder. They do not think the prerogative to be yet fufficiently limited; and have therefore taken care (as a particular mark of their veneration for the illuftrious houfe of Hanover) to clip it ftill clofer against the next reign; which confequently they would be glad to fee done in the prefent ; not to mention that the majority of them, if it were put to the vote, would allow that they prefer a commonwealth before a monarchy. As to religion; their univerfal undisputed maxim is, that it ought to make no distinction at all among Proteftants; and in the word Proteftant they include every body who is not a Papist, and who will by an oath give fecurity to the government. Union in difcipline and doctrine, the offenfive fin of fchifm, the notion of a church and a hierarchy, they laugh at as foppery, cant, and prieftcraft. They fee no neceffity at all that there fhould be a national faith ; 315 faith; and what we ufually call by that name, they only ftyle the religion of the magiftrate *. Since the diffenters and we agree in the main, why should the difference of a few fpeculative points or modes of drefs incapacitate them from ferving their prince and country in a juncture, when we ought to have all hands up against the common enemy? and why should they be forced to take the facrament from our clergy's hands, and in our posture; or indeed why compelled to receive it at all, when they take an employment which has nothing to do with religion? These are the notions which most of that party avow, and which they do not endeavour to disguise or set off with falfe colours, or complain of being mifreprefented about. I have here placed them on purpofe in the fame light, which themselves do in the very apologies they make for what we accuse them of; and how inviting even these doctrines are for fuch a monarch to close with, as our law, both statute and common, understands a King of England to be, let others decide. But then, if to these we fhould add other opinions, which most of their own writers justify, and which their univerfal practice hath given a fanction to; they are no more than what a prince might reasonably expect, as the natural confequence of thofe avowed principles. For when fuch persons are at the head of affairs, the low opinion they have of princes will certainly lead them to violate that refpect they ought to bear; and at the fame time, their own want of duty to their sovereign is largely made up, by exacting greater fubmiffions to themfelves from their fellow-fubjects: it being indifputably true, that the fame principle of pride and ambition makes a man treat his equals with infolence, in the fame propor tion as he affronts his fuperiors: as both prince and people have fufficiently felt from the late ministry. Then, from their confeffed notions of religion as above related, I fee no reason to wonder, why they countenanced not only.all forts of diffenters, but the feveral gradations of Freethinkers among us (all which are openly inrolled in their party); nor why they were fo very averse from the prefent established form of worfhip, which, by prefcribing obedience to princes from the topic of con * See Letter on the Teft, vol. 3. p. 222. science, fcience, would be sure to thwart all their schemes of innovation. One thing I might add, as another acknowledged maxim in that party, and in my opinion as dangerous to the conftitution as any I have mentioned; I mean, that of preferring on all occafions the moneyed intereft before the landed; which they were fo far from denying, that they would gravely debate the reasonableness and juftice of it; and at the rate they went on, might in a little time have found a majority of reprefentatives fitly qualified to lay those heavy burdens on the reft of the nation, which themselves would not touch with one of their fingers. : However, to deal impartially, there are fome motives which might compel a prince under the neceffity of affairs to deliver himself over to that party. They were faid to poffefs the great bulk of cash, and confequently of credit in the nation; and the heads of them had the reputation of prefiding over thofe focieties who have the great direction of both fo that all applications for loans to the public forvice, upon any emergency, must be made through them; and it might prove highly dangerous to difoblige them, because in that cafe it was not to be doubted, that they would be obstinate and malicious, ready to obítruct all affairs, not only by fhutting their own purfes, but by endeavouring to fink credit, although with fome prefent imaginary lofs to themfelves, only to fhew it was a creature of their own. From this fummary of Whig principles and difpofitions we find, what a prince may reasonably fear and hope from that party. Let us now very briefly confider the doctrines of the Tories, which their adverfaries will not difpute. As they prefer a well-regulated monarchy before all other forms of government, fo they think it next to impoffible to alter that inftitution here, without involving our whole ifland in blood and defolation. They believe, that the prerogative of a fovereign ought at leaft to be held as facred and inviolable as the rights of his people; if only for this reafon, because without a due fhare of power he will not be able to protect them. They think, that by many known laws of this realm, both ftatute and common, neither the perfon nor lawful authority of the prince ought, upon 317 upon any pretence whatsoever, to be refifted or disobeyed. Their fentiments in relation to the church are known enough, and will not be controverted, being juft the reverse to what I have delivered as the doctrine and practice of the Whigs upon that article. But here I must likewife deal impartially too; and add one principle as a characteristic of the Tories, which hath much difcouraged fome princes from making ufe of them in affairs. Give the Whigs but power enough to infult their fovereign, ingrofs his favours to themfelves, and to opprefs and plunder their fellow-fubjects; they prefently grow into good humour and good language towards the crown; profefs they will stand by it with their lives and fortunes ; and whatever rudeneffes they may be guilty of in private, yet they affure the world that there never was fo gracious a monarch. But to the fhame of the Tories it must be confeffed, that nothing of all this hath been ever obferved in them; in or out of favour, you fee no alteration, farther than a little chearfulness or cloud in their countenances: the higheft employments can add nothing to their loyalty; but their behaviour to their prince, as well as their expreflions of love and duty, are in all conditions exactly the fame. Having thus impartially stated the avowed principle of Whig and Tory; let the reader determine as he pleafeth, to which of these two a wife prince may, with most fafety to himself and the public, trust his person and his affairs; and whether it were rafhnefs or prudence in her Majefty to make those changes in the miniftry, which have been fo highly extolled by fome, and condeinned by others. No 36. Thursday, April 12. 1711. Tres fpecies tam diffimiles, tria talia texta, I Write this paper for the fake of the Diffenters, whom I take to be the most spreading branch of the VOL. II. Dd Whig Whig party, that professeth Christianity; and the only one that feems to be zealous for any particular fyftem of it; the bulk of thofe we call the Low-church being generally indifferent and undetermined in that point; and the other fubdivifions having not yet taken either the Old or New Teftament into their fcheme. By the Diffenters therefore it will eafily be understood that I mean the Presbyterians, as they include the fects of Anabaptifts, Independents, and others, which have been melted down into them fince the reftoration. This fect, in order to make itself national, having gone fo far as to raise a rebellion, murder their King, deftroy monarchy and the church, was afterwards broken in pieces by its own divifions; which made way for the King's return from his exile. However, the zealous among them did ftill entertain hopes of recovering the dominion of grace; whereof I have read a remarkable paffage in a book published about the year 1661, and written by one of their own fide. As one of the regicides was going to his execution, a friend asked him, whether he thought the caufe would revive? He answered, the caufe is in the befom of Chrift; and as fure as Chrift rofe from the dead, fo fure will the caufe revive alfo. And therefore the Nonconformists were ftrictly watched, and restrained by penal. laws, during the reign of K. Charles II. the court and kingdom looking on them as a faction ready to join in any defign against the government in church or state. furely this was reasonable enough, while fo many continued alive who had voted, and fought, and preached against both, and gave no proof that they had changed their principles. The Nonconformists were then exactly upon the fame foot with our Nonjurors now, whom we double tax, forbid their conventicles, and keep under hatches, without thinking ourfelves poffeffed with a perfecuting fpirit; because we know they want nothing but the power to ruin us. This, in my opinion, fhould altogether filence the Difenters complaints of perfecution under K. Charles II. or make them fhew us wherein they differed at that time, from what our Jacobites are now. And Their inclinations to the church were foon difcovered, when K. James II. fucceeded to the crown, with whom they unanimously joined in its ruin to revenge themfelves for |