But instead of this question, What would have been the confequence, if the late ministry had continued; I will propose another which will be more useful for us to confider; and that is, What we may reasonably expect they will do, if ever they come into power again? This, we know, is the defign and endeavour of all thofe fcribblers which daily fly about in their favour; of all the falfe, infolent, and fcandalous libels against the present administration; and of all those engines, fet at work to fink the actions and blow up the public credit. As for those who shew their inclinations by writing, there is one confideration, whieh I wonder does not sometimes affect them: for, how can they forbear having a good opinion of the gentleness and innocence of those, who permit them to employ their pens as they do? It puts me in mind of an infolent, pragmatical orator fomewhere in Greece, who railing with great freedom at the chief men in the ftate, was anfwered by one, who had been very inftrumental in recovering the liberty of the city, that he thanked the gods, they had now arrived to the condition he always wifhed them in, when every man in that city might fecurely fay what he pleafed. I wish these gentlemen would however compare the liberty they take, with what their mafters used to give; how many meffengers and warrants would have gone out against any who durft have opened their lips, or drawn their pens against the perfons and proceedings of their juntos and cabals? How would their weekly writers have been calling out for profecution and punishment? We re ད་་ member, when a poor nick-name*, borrowed from an old play of Ben Jonfon, and mentioned in a fermon without any particular application, was made use of as a motive to fpur on an impeachment. But after all it must be confeft, they had reafons to be thus fevere, which their fucceffors have not: their faults would never endure the light; and to have expofed them fooner would have raised the kingdom against the actors, before the proper time. But, to come to the subject I have now underta ken, which is, to examine what the confequences would be, upon fuppofition that the whigs were now restored to their power. I already imagine the present free parliament diffolved, and another of a different epithet met, by the force of money and management. I read immediately a dozen or two of ftinging votes against the proceedings of the late miniftry. The bill + now to be repealed would then be re-enacted, and the birth-right of an Englishman reduced again to the value of twelve-pence. But, to give the reader a ftrong imagination of fuch a fcene, let me represent the designs of fome men, lately endeavoured and projected, in the form of a paper of votes. "Ordered, "That a bill be brought in for repealing the fa"cramental test. "A petition of Tindal, Collins, Clendon, Cow"ard, and Toland, in behalf of themfelves and Volpone was a nick-name given to lord treasurer Godolphin. 110 66 many hundreds of their disciples, fome of whom "are members of this honourable house; defiring "that leave may be given to bring in a bill for qualifying atheists, deifts, and focinians to ferve their country any employment ecclefiaftical, civil, ❝or military. in "Ordered, "That leave be given to bring a bill, according "to the prayer of the faid petition; and that “Mr. Lechmere * do prepare and bring in the "fame. "Ordered, "That a bill be brought in for removing the "education of youth out of the hands of the cgy. 66 Another to forbid the clergy preaching cer"tain duties in religion; efpecially obedience to princes. "Another to take away the jurisdiction of bi"fhops. "Another for conftituting a general for life; "with inftructions to the commitee, that care may be taken to make the war laft as long as the life of the faid general. "A bill of attainder against James duke of “Ormond, John duke of Buckingham, Laurence "earl of Rochefter, fir Simon Harcourt knight, Ro"bert Harley and William Shippen efquires, Abi * Mr. Lechmere was one of the managers against Dr. Sacheverell, and fummed up the evidence. gail "gail Masham spinster, and others, for high-trea"fon against the junto. "That Sarah duchefs of Marlborough has been "a most dutiful, juft, and grateful fervant to her "That to advise the diffolution of a whig par "liament, or the removal of a whig miniftry, was "in order to bring in popery and the pretender; "and that the faid advice was high-treafon./ 86 "Refolved, "That by the original compact, the government of this realm is by a junto, and a ki, or queen; but the administration folely in the "junto. "Ordered, folely "That a bill be brought in for farther limiting "the prerogative. "Ordered, "That it be a standing order of this house, that "the merit of elections be not determined by "the number of voices, or right of electors, but by weight; and that one whig fhall weigh down "ten tories. "A motion being made, and the question being 66 put, that when a whig is detected of manifest bribery, and his competitor, being a tory, has "ten to one a majority, there fhall be new elec"tion; it paffed in the negative. 7 "Refolved, 66 "Refolved, "That for a king, or queen of this realm, to "read, or examine, a paper brought them to be figned by a junto minifter, is arbitrary and illegal, and a violation of the liberties of the peo"ple." 66 These, and the like reformations, would in all probability be the first fruits of the whigs refurrection; and what structures fuch able artists might in a fhort time build upon fuch foundations, I leave others to conjecture. All hopes of a peace cut off; the nation industriously involved in farther debtts, to a degree that none would dare undertake e managerment of affairs, but those whofe interest lay in ruining the conftitution; I do not fee how the wifeft prince, under fuch neceffities, could be. able to extriate himself. Then as to the church; the bishops would by degrees be dismissed, first from the parliament, next from their revenues, and at laft from their office; and the clergy, inftead of their idle claim of independency on the state, would be forced to depend for their daily bread on every individual. But what fyftem of future government was defigned; whether it were already digefted, or would have been left for time and incidents to mature, I fhall not now examine. Only upon this occafion I cannot help reflecting on a fact, which it is probable the reader knows as well as myself. There was a picture drawn fome time ago, representing five perfons, as large as the life, fitting in council together, like a pentarchy; a |