Charles the Ift, having the fame views, the fame pursuits, the fame favourites as his father, trod in the fame fteps, until he met with an untimely fate. His murderer, not having even the fhadow of a title to the crown, could not expect allegiance; had he lived, he must have been a tyrant; "fire would have come forth from this bramble, and would have devoured the cedars of Lebanon *".

Charles the IId was not qualified to govern a free people. He loved pleasure, he hated business. Incapable of friendship, he had not one favourite, but he had many creatures. Surrounded by his miftreffes, and moft abandoned debauchees, he led a diffipated life, and fquandered away, in idle expences, the immenfe fums granted him by parliament; for, while his vaft revenue was confumed on one hand by his mistresses, and plundered by his creatures on the other, he was continually afking his parliament for fresh supplies, under various false

* Judges ix.

pretences,

pretences, and never afked in vain. Thus his court became a fchool of debauchery, where his miftreffes ruled, and by their cabals and intrigues difpofed of every thing. While Charles was given up to pleasure, others laboured for him: at the head of these was the Duke of York, his brother; who, being a bigot, wifhed to make the king abfolute, that he might establish the Roman catholic religion in England; while the king, who was no bigot, could with only to introduce the Catholic religion, that he might establish arbitrary power. Father Orleans, the Jefuit, acknowledges, that the design of the court, from the beginning, was to make the king abfolute; and king James the IId, in his manufcript hiftory, preferved in the Scots collection in Paris, under the care of Father Gordon, confeffes, that the defign of the cabal was to change the national religion, and establish Popery. Charles was a penfioner to Louis the XIVth, and betrayed his country to that reftless monarch. All Europe was aftonifhed to fee England, without provo

cation,

cation, and contrary to her interest, assisting France to over-run the Netherlands, and fwallow up the Dutch. The mystery is now perfectly cleared up, by the abovementioned manuscript; from which it appears, that as a recompence, Louis was to affift Charles in overturning the conftitution, and changing the religion of his country. To defray the expences of this war, the king, hoping he never should have occafion to meet his parliament again, fhut up the exchequer. Louis, in one campaign, took fixty-five places, fubdued the greatest part of the United Provinces, and was proceeding to invade Holland with one hundred and fifty thousand men, when they opened their fluices, and laid the country under water. The combined fleets could have transported any of thefe troops to England, had the king of France been fincere in his profeffions, or faithful to his engagements; but Charles found that he was betrayed by that perfidious monarch, and therefore, after two years intermiffion, affembled his faithful parliament: how

ever,

ever, being offended at the remonstrances he met with, he foon diffolved it. The three last years of his life, his affection for his brother made him afraid to meet a parliament: during this period, all feemed to go on fmoothly; at the end of it, he determined to change his measures, but fudden death prevented him. That he was unhappy, and meant to change his measures, is now rendered indubitable by his brother's manufcripts; and that he defigned to exclude his brother, and fubftitute his fon, is not unlikely. If this king ever had one wish for the happiness of his fubjects, it must have been in thefe laft moments of his life; and if he ever reigned in the affections of his people, it must have been in the first days of his acceffion to the throne.

James the Ild.-Subjects are so much inclined to have a good opinion of their fovereign, that even James was beloved in the beginning of his reign. His folemn declaration, made at his acceffion, and often repeated, that he would preferve the government both in church

and

and ftate, as it was then by law established," gained him unbounded confidence with his too credulous parliament; whose heedlefs and inconfiderate liberality, in fettling an annual revenue of more than two millions on him for life, made him independent of his people. He never promised to preferve the religion of the church of England, as it was then by law established; though his parliament, as it appears, understood him fo; for they did not know that he was a Jefuit. The Duke of Monmouth having prematurely excited a rebellion, was foon defeated, taken, and beheaded. Lord Chief Juftice Jefferies was fent into the Weft of England, to try the unhappy prifoners, where he had an opportunity of gratifying his favage difpofition, by hanging above fix hundred men *, and setting up their quarters in the highway. Such as could pay him well he releafed. For this fervice he was made Lord Chancellor, and Baron Wem. This