concerned in any such duel where any person shall be slain, or die of his wounds received therein, but will leave all such persons to the utmost rigour and severity of the laws: And further, that we will not suffer or endure any person or persons to be or remain in our court, who shall presume to intercede in the behalf of any person or persons that shall offend contrary to this our proclamation. And for the better avoiding all such duels, we do hereby straitly charge and command all person and persons whatsoever who shall receive or know of any challenge sent or delivered as aforesaid, that they do forthwith give notice thereof to some of our Privy Council, or otherwise to some Justice of Peace near the place .where such offence shall be committed, upon pain of our highest displeasure, and being left to be procceded against according to the strictest rigour and severity of the laws.

"Given at our Court at Whitehall, the ninth day of March 1679, in the two and thirtieth year of our reign."

There is no part of the British character more inexplicable than that which makes the populace so extremely willing to acquiesce in the arguments and assertions of interested persons: the most absurd and improbable falsehoods are received as. truths; and though we are generally a reasoning and a thinking people, and, after deliberation almost always right in our decisions, there is not

a nation

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a nation in Europe, whose subjects are less correct in forming an immediate just conception of men and their intentions. A curious instance of the truth of this remark took place in April 1680. A person, whose name is not mentioned, who had been particularly active in procuring the King's letters patent for a collection throughout the kingdom to redeem the English captives at Algiers, summoned the relations and friends of those people to meet him at Whitefriars, where he intended to gratify them with a view of the brief under the great seal. Unfortunately for this humane gentleman, he had not the brief in his own possession, but expected to meet another who had, at the time appointed; that other, however, was not punctual to the hour; he was, therefore, under the necessity of stating to the assembly, that he had obtained the brief, and would exhibit it as soon as the bearer arrived. The murmurs produced by this delay now became absolute abuse. "This being observed by a cunning blade," says the Mercurius Anglicus, "he laid hold of the opportunity, and, by heightening their distrust, made a party for himself, out of whom he got store of money, perswading them to complain to the Council of the injury done' them by the person first mentioned, and that he would do their business to their content."

Blinded by rage, and desirous of revenge for the supposed disappointment of their hopes, these infa

Z 2

infatuated people divided immediately; part going to Whitehall to prefer their complaint, and part remaining to revile and threaten the patient sufferer in their cause, whose personal safety was seriously endangered; and he would perhaps have become a victim to their fury, had not the brief at length arrived, which having shewn them, their curses were changed to blessings, and their abuse to commendations of the sity of their benefactor.

genero

How

When we express our surprise at the strange conduct of the ignorant persons concerned in the above transaction, it should be tempered with the reflection that education had not, in this case, assisted nature in forming just conclusions those of exalted stations in life furnish more reason for animadversion, when they provoke the punishment education and experience convince them must follow the commission of evil. are we to account for the dissolute manners of the Monarch and his courtiers, from the Restoration to the close of the reign of Charles II. after the dreadful experience produced by the Interregnum? Surely the fact is quite as inexplicable as the intemperance of the populace. Many methods were adopted, sometimes through malice, and perhaps a sense of duty, to revenge the cause of injured virtue, by exposing the King to contempt and abhorrence, and not one exceeded that which produced the following declaration

from

from the Sovereign, whose feelings must have been acute indeed at the time of its publication in the London Gazette.

"At the Court at Whitehal, April 26, 1680.His Majesty having commanded the Council to meet this day extraordinarily, acquainted them, that he lately had notice of a false and dangerous rumour spread abroad, of a black box pretended to be found, wherein was contained a writing, importing a marriage, or contract of marriage, between his Majesty and the Duke of Monmouth's mother; which his Majesty did positively. declare to be altogether false; and therefore said, he thought himself obliged in honour and conscience to have the matter throughly examined and searched into, and that, in order thereunto, he had sent for Sir Gilbert Gerard, who was reported to be the person that had seen some such writing, or to have had the same in custody.

"Whereupon Sir Gilbert Gerard being called in before his Majesty in Council (his Royal Highness and all the Judges of the Courts at Westminster being present by his Majesties particular command), this following question was by his Majesties order, and by the advice of his Privy Council, and by the opinion of all the Judges proposed to him, viz. Whether he knew of, or had seen, any writing, importing a marriage, or contract of marriage, between his Majesty and the

Duke

Duke of Monmouth's mother; to which Sir Gilbert Gerard, having taken his oath upon the holy Evangelists, made answer, that he never had seen any such writing, nor was there ever any such committed to his custody, nor did he know of any such thing; whereunto he also subscribed his name. After which, his Majesty, declaring he resolved to use all means possible to find out the author of this report, required all the Lords of the Council, and the Judges there present, to give an account, whether they had heard of any discourses relating to the said or any like matter: To which they all answered, they had heard of nothing concerning it but a flying and imperfect rumour of late discoursed of; one of the Lords of the Council only acquainted his Majesty, that a gentleman had told him of some particular discourse he had lately heard of that matter.

"His Majesty thereupon commanded Mr. Secretary Jenkins to examine the said gentleman, or any other who should be named by him, in order to trace the said false report up to the first author and inventor of it."

He that would give a faithful picture of manners must descend to the actions and inventions of the vilest of mankind. Unfortunately the majority of men are capable of artifice and meanness; hence but too many of my anecdotes are illustrations of knavery. Poor Robin's Intelligence, a publication of 1679, furnishes a case in point.

"Smith