upon every part of this head, propofing numberlefs enquiries and objections, which I think it not prudent or convenient to repeat. Upon what I faid in relation to our courts of justice, his majefty defired to be fatisfied in feveral points and this I was the better able to do, having been formerly almoft ruined by a long fuit in chancery, which was decreed for me with cofts. He afked what time was ufually spent in determining between right and wrong, and what degree of expence. Whether advocates and orators had liberty to plead in caufes manifeftly known to be unjuft, vexatious, or oppreffive. Whether party in religion or politics were obferved to be of any weight in the scale of juftice. Whether those pleading orators were perfons educated in the general knowledge of equity, or only in provincial, national, and other local cuftoms. Whether they or their judges had any part in penning thofe laws, which they affumed the liberty of interpreting and gloffing upon at their pleasure. Whether they had ever at different times pleaded for and against the same cause, and cited precedents to prove contrary opinions. Whether they were a rich or a poor corporation. Whether they received any pecuniary reward for pleading or delivering their opinions. And particularly, whether they were ever admitted as members in the lower fenate. He fell next upon the management of our treasury; and faid, he thought my memory had failed me, because I computed our taxes at about five or fix millions a year, and, when I came to mention the iffues, he found they fometimes amounted to more than double; for the notes he had taken were very particular in this point, because he hoped, as he told me, that the knowledge of our conduct might be useful to him, and he could not be deceived in his calculations. But, if what I told him were true, he was ftill at a lofs how a kingdom could run out of its estate like a private perfon. He asked me, who were our creditors; and where we found money to pay them. He wondered to hear me talk of fuch chargeable and expenfive wars; that certainly we must be a quarrelfome people, or live among very bad neighbours, and that our generals must needs be richer than our kings. He asked what business we had out of our own islands, unless upon the fcore of trade or treaty, or to defend the coafts with our fleet. Above all, he was amazed to hear me talk of a mercenary standing army in the midst of peace, and among a free people. He faid, if we were governed by our own consent in the perfons of our reprefentatives, he could not imagine of whom we were afraid, or against whom we were to fight; and would hear my opinion, whether a private man's house might not better be defended by himself, his children, and family, than by half a dozen rascals picked up at a venture in the ftreets for fmall wages, who might get an hundred times more by cutting their throats, He He laughed at my odd kind of arithmetic (as he was pleased to call it) in reckoning the numbers of our people by a computation drawn from the several fects among us in religion and politics. He faid, he knew no reason why thofe, who entertain opinions prejudicial to the public, fhould be obliged to change, or should not be obliged to conceal them. And as it was tyranny in any government to require the firft, fo it was weakness not to enforce the fecond: for a man may be allowed to keep poifons in his clofet, but not to vend them about for cordials. He observed, that among the diverfions of our nobility and gentry I had mentioned gaming he defired to know at what age this entertainment was usually taken up, and when it was laid down; how much of their time it employed: whether it ever went fo high as to affect their fortunes: whether mean vicious people by their dexterity in that art might not arrive at great riches, and fometimes keep our very nobles in dependance, as well as habituate them to vile companions, wholly take them from the improvement of their minds, and force them by the loffes they received to learn and practise that infamous dexterity upon others. He was perfectly astonished with the historical account I gave him of our affairs during the last century, protcfting it was only a heap of confpiracies, rebellions, murders, maffacres, revolutions, banishments, the very worst effects that avarice, faction, hypocrify, perfidiousness, cruelty, rage, madness, hatred, envy, luft, malice, and ambition could produce. His majesty in another audience was at the pains to recapitulate the fum of all I had fpoken; compared the questions he made with the answers I had given; then taking me into his hands, and ftroaking me gently, delivered himfelf in these words, which I thall never forget, nor the manner he spoke them in: My little friend Grildrig, you have made a most admirable panegyric upon your country; you have clearly proved, that ignorance, idleness, and vice are the proper ingredients for quali¬ fying a legiflator; that laws are beft explained, interpreted, and applied by those whose intereft and abilities lie in perverting, confounding, and eluding them. I obferve among you fome lines of an inftitution, which in its original might have been tolerable, but these half erafed, and the reft wholly blurred and blotted by corruptions. It doth not appear from all have faid, how any one perfection is required toward the procurement of any one station among you; much lefs, that men are ennobled on account of their virtue, that priests are advanced for their piety or learning, foldiers for their conduct or valour, judges for their integrity, fenators for the love of their country, or counfellors for their wisdom. As for yourself, continued the king, who have spent the greatest part of life in travelling, I am well difpofed to hope you may hitherto have escaped your you many many vices of your country. But by what I have gathered from your own relation, and the anfwers I have with much pains wringed and extorted from you, I cannot but conclude the bulk of your natives to be the most pernicious - race of little odious vermin, that nature ever fuffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth. CHAP. VII. The author's love of his country. He makes a propofal of much advantage to the king, which is rejected. The king's great ignorance in politics. The learning of that country very imperfect and confined. The laws, and military affairs, and parties in the ftate. OTHING but an extreme love of truth N could have hindered me from concealing this part of my ftory. It was in vain to difcover my resentments, which were always turned into ridicule; and I was forced to reft with patience, while my noble and beloved country was fo injurioufly treated. I am as heartily forry as any of my readers can poffibly be, that fuch an occafion was given: but this prince happened to be fo curious and inquifitive upon every particular, that it could not confift either with gratitude or good manners to refuse giving him what fatisfaction I was able. Yet thus much I may be allowed to say in my own vindication, That I artfully eluded many of his queftions, and gave to |