their religion and country. Thefe two letters had a wonderful effect upon Officers, foldiers, and feamen; fo that, from this time, many of them refolved not to draw their fwords in this quarrel, till they had a free Parliament to fecure their religion and li berties.

The King's fleet confifted of fixty-one men of war, of which thirty-eight were of the line of battle. Several English authors venture to affirm, this fleet was more than fufficient to defeat that of the States. I know not upon what their affertion is grounded; but it seems to me, it is full as likely, that, in cafe the fleets had engaged, the King's would have fhared the danger. While the English fleet lay at anchor at the Gunfleet, the Lord Dartmouth, the Admiral, called a Council of war, wherein it was debated, Whether it was proper to put to fea and engage the enemy? An author, who has writ the Naval Tranfactions of the English, fays on this occafion, That this propofal carried the greatest weight with it, had there been a real defign of obstructing the Prince of Orange in his paffage to England. But, instead of that (continues he) matters were fo concerted and agreed among the Flag-officers and Commanders, that, had the Admiral come fairly up with the Dutch, it would not have been in his power to have done them much damage: Wherefore, by a great majority, it was refolved to continue there, in order to intercept the Dutch fleet.

The damage fuftained by the Prince's fleet, in the late ftorm, was fo inconfidera ble, and fo eafily repaired, that in eleven days it was in condition to put to fea again. The ift of November, in the afternoon, the Prince imbarked on a new veffel, called the Brill, and the fleet at first fteered north ward; it was thought the defign was to land fomewhere in the North of England; and, Burnet fays, the firft fcheme was to anchor in the mouth of the Humber; but, during the night, whether the Prince had changed his mind, or was hindered from purfuing this courfe by a violent east-wind, all the fleet fteered towards the eastern coafts of

England; after which they fhortened fail, for fear of accidents in the night. The next morning, the fleet failed towards the channel, without meeting any English fhip, and, in their paffage, discovered the coafts of Effex and Kent. The 3d of November the fleet entered the channel, and lay by between Calais and Dover, to ftay for the fhips that were behind. Here the Prince called a Council of war. It is eafy to imagine what a glorious fhew the fleet made. Five or fix hundred fhips in fo narrow a

channel, and both the English and French fhores covered with numberless fpectators, are no common fight; for my own part, who was then on board the fleet, I own it ftruck me extremely.

The King, upon advice of the Prince's defign to land in the North, had fent part of his army that way; but it was with the utmoft furprise that he received several expreffes, with the news that the enemy's fleet was failing weftward: He, however, flattered himself, that the Lord Dartmouth would purfue and give a good account of them; but, for what reafon I know not, the English fleet remained in their ftation, till the enemy's ships had paffed by.

The fourth of November being Sunday, and the Prince's birth-day, now thirty-eight years of age, was by him dedicated to devotion, the fleet ftill continuing their course, in order to land at Dartmouth or Torbay ; but in the night, whether by the violence of the wind, or the negligence of the pilot, the fleet was carried beyond the defired ports, without a poffibility of putting back ; fuch was the fury of the wind. This accident gave them the melancholy prospect of being forced to fail on to Falmouth, or some other inconvenient place; but foon after the wind turned to the fouth, which happily carried the fleet into Torbay, the most convenient place for landing the horfe of any in England. The forces were landed with fuch diligence and tranquillity, that the whole army was on fhore before night. The next morning, the wind turning weft blew fo tempeftuoufly, that, had the landing been deferred a few hours, probably it would not have been poffible to difembark the troops. This wind prevented the Lord Dartmouth, who was come in fight of the Dutch fleet, from attacking it, and obliged him to go into Portimouth. Upon this occafion, these two famous verfes of Claudian were applied to the Prince of Orange:

O nimium dilecte Deo, cui militat æther, Heaven's favourite! to whom the skies asEt conjurati veniunt ad claffica venti. fiftance lend,

Whilft on thy fails confpiring winds attend.

It was thus the Prince of Orange landed in England, without any oppofition, the 5th of November, whilft the English were celebrating the memory of their deliverance from the Powder-plot, about fourfeore years before. This is one of the most remarkable æra's in the English history, and which probably will never be forgot by that nation.

The Prince's army marched from Torbay about noon the next day, in very rainy weather and bad roads. The foldiers, before

shey

they landed, were ordered to bring three days bread with them, and they carried their tents themfelyes; but the Officers, even the molt confiderable, were in a very uneafy fituation at their first incampment, being wet to the skin, and having neither cloaths for change, nor bread, nor horses, nor fervants, nor other bed than the earth all drenched with rain, their baggage being yet in the ships. Had this fituation lafted two days more, the Officers, as well principal as fubaltern, would have been reduced to great extremities. But the Prince did all that was in his power to procure them refreshment: He ordered horfes, carriages, and provifions from the neighbouring country; and in this state purfued his march to Exeter, about twenty miles from Torbay.

As foon as the King heard the Prince was landed, his first care was to order his army to rendezvous in fome convenient place. He chofe Salisbury-plain, whither his army repaired from feveral parts with all poffible diligence. They, who have faid that he ought to have marched directly to Torbay at the head of his army, did not confider that the thing was impracticable. The greatest part of his army was as yet difperfed in different quarters; part had marched to the North, and part to Portsmouth to fecure that place, which was of great confefequence; the Irish forces were ftill in and about Chester, and the Scotch at Carlife. The King, when he quitted London, could not avoid leaving there a good body of troops, unless he would have hazarded the fering that powerful city, where he was not beloved, declare for the enemy. But it is ftrange, that the King, though he had two months notice of the Prince's intended in vafion, had neglected to form a camp of 20,000 men in the heart of the kingdom, to be ready to march against him on the first Dews of his landing. This was a precaution taken by fome of his predeceffors on the like occafion, when they expected a defcent without knowing in what place, and which might have ferved him for an example. His negligence therefore feems inexcufable, fince, after the Prince's arrival at Torbay, he was obliged to lose so much time in afsembling his army of more than 30,000 men. Very probably, if his forces had been ready, and he had marched into the Welt, the Prince would have been extremely embarrassed, who ftaid ten days at Exe. ter, without any great increase of his army. Had he fhewn fo much firmness as Kichard II. on the like occafion, he would doubt et's have prevented the defertion of numers, who perhaps were not yet determined abandon him, and only refolved it, be

cause they faw in his conduct a confterna tion, which to them feemed ominous. But this is all conjecture.

However, the King, having sent a reinforcement to Portsmouth under the Duke of Berwick, vainly amufed himself with endeavouring to persuade the people, that the Prince's forces were too contemptible to infpire him with fear. He printed a lift of all the regiments of the Prince's army, with the companies, troops, Officers, and foldiers belonging to each: But the Prince's declaration was more relied on than this lift; wherein it was faid, he would not have come with fo fmall a number of troops, had: a conquest of England been intended; from whence it was inferred, that he was affured of affiftance, which would appear in due, time.

The King affected to express a great confidence, as being fuperior in number of forces. The better to fhew he was incapable of fear, hearing that the counties of Kent and York, and the city of London, were preparing to addrefs him for an accommodation with the Prince of Orange, lie publicly declared, That he would look upon all thofe as his enemies, who should pretend to advise him to treat with the invader of his kingdoms. At the fame time, he published a declaration, endeavouring to demonftrate, that the Prince's fecret defign was to ufurp the crown. But, for fuch a declaration to have any effect, it must have come from a Prince believed innocent, and unjustly attacked. But the people were far from this belief, they rather looked on the King as intending to fubvert their religion and liberty, and on the Prince of Orange as the nation's deliverer.

Mean while, the Prince, now at Exeter, found not at first the encouragement that he expected. The Bishop, Dr. Lamplugh, on the first news of his landing, pofted to Court, where he was rewarded with the archbishopric of York, which had been kept long vacant, with intention, as it was thought, to confer it on Father Petre, the King's Confeffor. The Sunday after the Prince's arrival at Exeter, Dr. Burnet mounting the pulpit to read his declaration, all the Canons and part of the congregation left the church, not to be prefent at the reading, On the other hand, few came to offer their fervice to the Prince, and the le vy of three regiments of foot, for which he had granted commiffions, proceeded but flowly: Not but that, in general, the people of the country were inclined to the Prince, and wifhed well to his undertaking but the memory of the feverities against the Duke of Monmouth's adherents was yet to recent,

that

that every one feared to engage in a like enterprise, the fuccefs whereof was uncertain. In fhort, the Prince remained nine days at Exeter, without being joined by any perfon of diftinction. It is even pretended, that, in a Council of war held at Exeter, he fuffered it to be proposed to him to reimbark for Holland. But on the tenth day fome of the principal Gentlemen of the country joined him. Among thefe was Sir Edward Seymour, by whofe advice an affociation was drawn, and figned by all perfons then with the Prince, or who afterwards repaired to him. It was likewise fent to several other parts of the kingdom, and figned by great numbers; it was as follows:

• We whofe names are hereunto fubfcriBed, who have now joined with the Prince of Orange, for the defence of the Proteftant religion, and for the maintaining the ancient government, and the laws and liberties of England, Scotland, and Ireland, do engage to Almighty God, to his Highness the Prince, and to one another, to stick firm to this caufe, in the defence of it, and never to depart from it, till our religion, laws, and liberties are fo far fecured to us, in a free Parliament, that they fhall no more be in danger of falling into Popery and flavery. And whereas we are engaged in this common caufe under the protection of the Prince of Orange, by which means his perfon is exposed to danger, and to the curfed, attempts of Papifts and other bloody men; we do therefore folemnly engage to God, and to one another, that, if any fuch attempt be made upon him, we will purfue not only thofe that make it, but all their adherents, and all that we find in arms against us, with the utmost severity of a juft revenge, to their utter ruin and destruction; and that the execution of any fuch attempt (which God of his infinite mercy forbid!) fhall not divert us from profecuting this caufe which we do now undertake, but that it fhall engage us to carry it on with all the rigour that fo barbarous an attempt fhall defervé.'

From this time, the face of the Prince of Orange's affairs, who left Exeter to march to Salisbury, was intirely changed. Every day brought him perfons diftinguished by their birth, eftates, or employments: The Lord Colchester, fon to Earl Rivers, a Lieutenant in the life-guards, waited upon the Prince, accompanied by Mr. Wharton, Col. Godfrey, John Howe, Efq; four life-guard men, and about threefcore men more on horfeback. Thefe were followed by the Earl of Abington, Capt. Clarges, Mr. Ruffel, and others. But, what was more

material, the Lord Cornbury, fon to the Earl of Clarendon, Colonel of dragoons, leaving Salisbury, under pretence of an order from the King to beat up one of the enemies advanced pofts at Honiton, carried with him his own regiment, and thofe of horse of Berwick, St. Alban's, and Fenwick; and, with the major part of them, went over to the Prince at Exeter.

About the fame time, the Lord Delamere took arms in Cheshire, and declared openly openly for the Prince, inviting all his tenants to follow his example. The Lord Lovelace was also marching to Exeter, with fixty or feventy horfemen; but, paffing through Cirencester, was made prifoner, by the militia of the county, after a warm fkirmish, in which ten or twelve men were killed on both fides.

On the other hand, the two Archbishops, five Bishops, the Dukes of Grafton and Ormond, the Earls of Dorfet, Clare, Clarendon, Burlington, Anglesey, Rochefter; the Lords Newport, Paget, Chandois, Offul. fton; meeting together in London, drew up a petition, which was figned at the Bifhop of Rochester's house at Westminster : The intent of it was to pray the King to call a free Parliament, and find fome expedient to fatisfy the Prince of Orange. The petition being delivered, and afterwards printed by the Lords for their own vindication, this anfwer was returned from the King, which was also published: My Lords, what you afk of me I moft paffionately defire; and I promise, upon the faith of a King, that I will have a Parliament, and fuch an one as you ask for, as foon as ever the Prince of Orange has quitted this realm: For how is it poffible a Parliament fhould be free in all its circumftances, as you petition for, while an enemy is in the kingdom, and can make a return of near a hundred voices? This anfwer was not fatisfactory to the Lords, who eafily faw, that the King was far from defiring a free Parliament, nor would have any but of which he could be master,

Though the King ftill put on a face of affurance, the defertion in his army made him very uneafy; he knew not what to refolve, in the fear of fome conspiracy among the Officers to deliver him to the Prince of Orange, if he should put himself at the head of the army. This was the reafon of his ftopping the march of his forces, artillery, and his own equipage. But, in a Council held on this occafion, it was judged neceffary for him to be as foon as poffible with his army, in order to keep those firm to their duty who were yet unresolved; he therefore

departed,

departed, the 17th of November, after having recommended the care of the city to the Lord-mayor, and, in a speech to the Officers about him, renewed his promife of calling a Parliament, as foon as the Prince of Orange had quitted the kingdom: He told them, if they defired any thing more, he was ready to grant it; but that if, after all, any of them was defirous to go over to the Prince of Orange, he was willing to grant them paffes, and fpare them the fhame of deferting their lawful Sovereign.' But, at the very time he feemed, difpofed to give a general fatisfaction, he left at Whitehall a Council compofed of five Lords, all odious to the people, except the Lord Godolphin : The other four were the Chancellor Jeffe ries, the Lords Arundel and Bellatis, both known Papifts; and the Lord Preston, fufpected of favouring Popery. It is faid, the King defigned to leave there alfo his Confeffor, Father Petre, but the Jefuit chofe rather to retire to France.

The King arrived the 19th of November at Salisbury, where the Officers of his army, who were most devoted to him, paid him their compliments, and expreffed an abhorrence of Lord Cornbury's defection. At his arrival he was feized with a bleeding at the nofe, which increased the next day, as he was going to view part of his army, quartered eight miles from Salisbury. On the fame or the following day, moft of the chief Officers applied themfelves to the Earl of Feverfham, their General, defiring him to affure the King, That, upon any occafion, they thould be ready to fpill the laft drop of their blood in his fervice; but yet they could not in conscience fight against a Prince, who was come over with no other defign, than to procure the calling of a free Parliament, for the fecuring of their religion and liberties.' This declaration, at which the King was extremely furprifed, fhewed him, that his army, which had been always his principal refuge, could not be relied on. The Earl of Feverfham, ftrongly fufpecting the Lord Churchill (afterwards Duke of Marlborough) one of the King's favourites, Lieutenant-general, Captain of a troop of his life-guards, and Gentleman of his Bedchamber, was very earnest with the King to have him fecured; but the King, whether he had no fuch fufpicion, or feared it would occafion a mutiny, would not follow his advice: However, the very next day, the Lord Churchill went over to the Prince of Orange, accompanied by the Duke of Graf

ton, Col. Berkley, four or five Captains of his own regiment, and fome other Officers. Father Orleans infinuates, that he had form ed a defign to deliver the King to the Prince of Orange, which was prevented by his Majesty's bleeding at the nofe, at the time he intended to go and view his troops at Warminster, the mott a vanced poft of his But this accufation is groundless, and intirely destroyed by the respectful letter written by that Lord to the King, and which I therefore think proper to infert here :

army.

SIR, Since men are feldom fufpected of fincerity, when they act contrary to their interests; and though my dutiful behaviour to your Majefty in the worst of times (for which I acknowledge my poor fervices much overpaid) may not be fufficient to incline you to a charitable interpretation of my actions; yet, I hope, the great advantage I enjoy under your Majefty, which I can never expect in any other change of Government, may reafonably convince your Majesty and the world, that I am acted by a higher principle, when I offered that violence to my inclination and intereft, as to defert your Majefty, at a time when your affairs feem to challenge the strictest obedience from all your fubjects, much more from one who lies under the greatest personal obligations imaginable to your Majesty. This, Sir, could proceed from nothing but the inviolable dictates of my confcience, and a neceffary concern for my religion, which no good man can oppofe, and with which, I am inftructed, nothing ought to come in competition. Heaven knows, with what partiality my dutiful opinion of your Majefty hath hitherto reprefented thofe unhap py defigns, which inconfiderate and felfinterefted men have framed against your Majefty's true intereft and the Proteftant religion; but, as I can no longer join with fuch, to give a pretence by conqueft to bring them to effect, so I will always, with the hazard of my life and fortune (fo much your Majefty's due) endeavour to preferve your royal perfon, and lawful rights, with all the tender concern, and dutiful refpect, that

becomes

Your, &c.'

This letter is a clear evidence, that nothing was farther from the Lord Churchill's thoughts, than to deliver the King to the Prince of Orange.

[To be continued.]

Voltaire's

CONGRESS and TREATY with the

CHINESE.

T is proper to begin with forming a

against any nation, except against a few hords, which were either quickly fubdued, or left to themselves without concluding any treaty. Thus thefe people, fo famous for

nefe and Ruffian empires. After paffing through Siberia, properly fo called, and leave ing far away to the fouth a hundred hords of Tartars, with white and black Calmucs, and Moguls of the Mahometan and Pagan religion, you advance to the 130th degree of longitude, and 52d of latitude, upon the river Amur. To the northward there is a great chain of mountains, extending to the Frozen fea beyond the polar circle. This river runs the space of 500 leagues through Siberia and Chinese Tartary, and, after fo long a courfe, empties itself into the fea of Kamtfhatka. At the mouth of this river, they are faid to have a fish of a much larger fize than the hippopotamus of the Nile, and that the tooth thereof is a much harder and whiter ivory. It is further pretended, that that this was formerly a material of traffic, and that they used to convey it through Siberia; which is the reafon that many of them are still found buried in the fields. This is the most probable account of their foffil ivory, of which we have already made mention; for it feems quite chimerical to pretend, that formerly there were elephants in Siberia.

The Amur is filed the Black river by the Mantchoux Tartars, and the Dragon river by the Chinese.

It was in this part of the world, which for fo many ages had been never heard of by other nations, that the Chinese and Ruffians were difputing about the limits of their empire. The Ruffians were poffeffed of fome forts towards the river Amur, within 300 leagues of the great wall. There had been feveral hoftilities committed by both nations, on account of thofe forts; till at length they came to a right understanding, with respect to their real interefts. The Emperor Camhi, preferring peace and commerce to an unprofitable war, fent feven Ambafladors to Niptchou, one of thofe fettlements. The Ambaffadors had 10,000 men in their retinue, including their efcort. This was Afiatic pomp; but it is very remarkable, that there had been no inftance in the annals of the empire of an embaffy to a foreign power; and, what indeed is fingular in its kind, the Chinese had never concluded a treaty of peace, fince the foundation of their monarchy. Though twice conquered by the Tartars, who were both times the aggreffors, they never made war

to what we call the law of nations,' that is, to the vague rules of war and peace, to the privileges of foreign Minifters, to the formality of treaties, with the obligations from thence refulting; and, laftly, to the difputes concerning precedency and point of honour.

But the difficulty was to know in what language the Chinese could poffibly nego tiate with the Ruffians in the midst of deferts. This was removed by two Jefuits, the one a Portuguese, named Pereira; the other a Frenchman, whofe name was Gerbillon: They fet out from Pekin along with the Chinese Ambassadors, and were the real negotiators. They conferred in Latin with a German, belonging to the Ruflian embaffy, who understood this language. The head of the Ruffian embaffy was Gollowin, Governor of Siberia, who had a more fplendid retinue than the Chinese themselves, and thereby gave a high idea of the Ruffian empire to a people who looked upon their own government as the only power upon earth. The Jefuits fixed the limits of both empires at the river Kerbechi, near the spot where the treaty was concluded. The country fouth of that river was adjudged to the Chinefe; the north to the Ruffians, who lost only a fmall fort, which happened to have been built beyond the limits. A peace was agreed to; and, after fome contefts, both the Ruffians and Chinese swore to it in these terms: If any of us entertains the leaft thought of renewing the flames of war, we befeech the fupreme Lord of all things, who knows the heart of man, to punish the traitor with fudden death."

From this form of treaty, figned by the Chinese and by Christians, we may infer two points of great importance; the first, that thofe who adminifter the Chinese government are neither atheifts nor idolaters, as they have been fo often reprefented by contradictory implications; the fecond, that all civilifed nations in effect acknowledge the fame God, notwithstanding the particular errors they may labour under from the prejudice of education. The treaty was reduced into Latin, and two copies were made of it. The Ruffian Ambassadors fet their names the first to the copy left in their poffeffion; and the Chinese alfo figned theirs the first, according to the European manner of treating between equal powers. On this

occation