THE DANGER OF Court Differences, &c.

STATE Polity, is the Devil's Divinity, ſaid good old Biſhop La⯑timer the Martyr, when ſome of the Moderators in Refor⯑mation were for Tem⯑poriſing between Popery and the Pro⯑teſtant Religion, and for not making a thorough Turn, for fear of the high Popiſh Party among the People.

[4] The Caſe was this, and the Hiſto⯑ry of it may be for our Edification.

The King being ſettled in the Throne, and having declar'd Himſelf a Proteſtant, and that as He was the firſt Proteſtant King that ever wore the Crown, ſo He reſolv'd to make the firſt avow'd effectual Step to a Reformation. The good Biſhops, the godly and zealous Miniſters, and the religious People of all Kinds, who had been Sufferers in the late Reign, and under the Tyranny of his Fa⯑ther; theſe, I ſay, began to lift up their Heads, own'd the King warm⯑ly, and encourag'd Him exceedingly in the bleſſed Work of Pulling up Popery and Tyranny by the Roots; and Planting the Proteſtant Religion and Liberty in the Room of it.

BY THE WAY, you are deſired to NOTE, that Popery and Tyranny went then always together, tho' Ty⯑ranny has got another Companion ſince, call'd High Church; with the Reformation came in Engliſh Liberty, [5] that is to ſay, the Perfection of it; and as that Reformation went on far⯑ther and farther, Liberty grew in its Stature and Strength, till it arriv'd to where it is now. But of this, on a⯑nother Occaſion I may ſay more.

When the Reformation, I ſay, was thus attempted, the Popiſh Clergy, the High Church of that Day, raiſed a hideous Out-Cry, that the Church was in Danger; and not only ſo, but poſſeſs'd the ignorant People all over the Kingdom with ſuch blind Zeal, and ridiculous Notions, as well of the King, as of the Reformation, that it firſt ſpread in a general Diſaffection, and afterwards broke out into a moſt dangerous Rebellion, in ſeveral Parts of the Kingdom, particularly in the Weſt; where the City of Exeter was cloſely beſieged by 20000 Rebels; and at Norwich, where KET, a Tan⯑ner, at the Head of 30000 Men, took the City twice, and did a great deal of Miſchief.

When theſe Rebellions were, by the Zeal and Loyalty of the Prote⯑ſtant [6] (Whig) Party, and by the Aſ⯑ſiſtance of ſome Foreign Troops, (Ger⯑mans) reduced, and the Rebels had received the Reward of their Trea⯑ſon, ſome in the Field, and ſome af⯑terwards at the Gallows, it was not doubted but then, the King being eſtabliſhed, and his Enemies ſubdued, the Work of Reformation might go on without interruption, and that its Enemies would receive all poſſible Diſcouragement at Court; the rather, becauſe it was known, that the true Settlement of God's Church, and of the true Religion, was the King's fix'd Deſign; That as He had Zeal ſufficient to ſuffer any thing rather than to give over his juſt Underta⯑king, ſo He had Courage, even beyond himſelf, both to ſtand by his Friends, and to do Juſtice to his Enemies, and to fear no Man.

But in the middle of this happy Scituation of Things, a curſed Spirit of Trimming, call'd at that Time State Policy, thruſt it ſelf in among the great Men at Court; and had not the Courage, Steddineſs, and Reſolu⯑tion [7] of the King, tho' not at that Time fully acquainted with the En⯑gliſh Government, interpoſed, the Re⯑formation had been ruin'd, and cruſh'd in its Birth; all the Blood and Trea⯑ſure ſpent, all the long ſtruggle of the Proteſtant Party in the preceed⯑ing Reign, and all the Expectations the World had entertained of a hap⯑py Eſtabliſhment in this Nation, had been loſt and deſtroyed; indeed, not⯑withſtanding all the King could do, and even in ſpight of his Reſolution to the contrary, it did make great Impreſſions upon his Affairs, and great Havock among his Friends; brought his Friends to fall out and quarrel with one another, and obliged the mildeſt and moſt merciful King on Earth to ſign the Execution of his neareſt Friends; and now, as one Party, then another, got uppermoſt in the Adminiſtration, the poor af⯑flicted Prince was oblig'd to act now this Way, then that Way, contrary even to his own Inclination, and ſometimes almoſt contrary to his Principle.

[8] We, who are the Poſterity of thoſe Reformers, and who now enjoy our Liberty and Religion, as the Conſe⯑quence of that excellent Prince's Zeal and Sincerity in Religion, have reaſon to be thankful that He ſtood his Ground in religious Matters; and had He with the ſame ſteddineſs and Cou⯑rage governed his turbulent, merce⯑nary, and ever-claſhing, diſagreeing Courtiers, we had, perhaps, enjoy'd many Ages ago an Inheritance of Li⯑berties which the World are not yet acquainted with; for 'tis evident, that the Pride, the Ambition, the Avarice and Envy which reign'd among the Miniſters of that Reign, ſo effectual⯑ly diſconcerted their Meaſures, and divided their Intereſts, that they could not ſupport the Settlement of the Succeſſion beyond the Life of that King, but fell firſt off from one ano⯑ther, and then fell all in with Mary, the Daughter of King Henry, who was declared Illegitimate, was ſet a⯑ſide by the Eſtabliſhment, and was no better at that Time than a Po⯑piſh Pretender; and had not a more [9] Maſculine Spirit govern'd them in the next Reign after, tho' in the Per⯑ſon of a Woman, we had, as the Ef⯑fect of thoſe Court Diviſions, been all at this time Papiſts and Slaves, Ido⯑laters in our religious Conduct, and mean dejected Scoundrels in our civil Conduct, and ſuch would our Poſte⯑rity have been alſo.

The Secret Hiſtory of this Devi⯑liſh Court Snare, I mean as to the religious Part, and as well what Dan⯑ger it put the Reformation in, as alſo how it was quaſh'd with one noble ſteddy Word of that reſolute and pious Prince, muſt needs be very di⯑verting and profitable to all that read it, eſpecially at a time, when the E⯑nemies of the ſame Reformation are trying the ſame Helliſh Practices up⯑on the very ſame Nation.

The Sum of the Story is this: The King being young in the Govern⯑ment, at his firſt Acceſſion to the Crown, was however very happily ſurrounded with grave and wiſe Coun⯑ſellers, in whoſe Wiſdom and Fideli⯑ty, [10] Vigilance and Courage, the Na⯑tion had a full ſatisfaction: They fought his Battles abroad with Gal⯑lantry, and with Succeſs; they go⯑verned his Affairs at Home with ex⯑traordinary Sagacity, Judgment, Pru⯑dence, and Juſtice: The very Name of the King began to be terrible to Popery; The Mobbs and Tumults abated, as well as the Rebellious were quaſh'd, and which was ſtill better than all, the general Diſaffection of the People began to wear off, and the publick Affairs ſeemed to run with a full Channel into Peace and Set⯑tlement, when two unhappy things, which on a ſudden broke out among the Courtiers and Miniſters of State, had like to have overthrown Peace, Settlement, Religion, nay, King and all.

Theſe were,

• 1. Trimming, and Temporizing in the Reformation. And,
• 2. Diviſion and Faction among the Courtiers.

[11] I'll be very brief in the Account I ſhall give of theſe Two unhappy things, and yet I deſire ſo to ex⯑plain the Circumſtances, and ſo faith⯑fully to relate the Conduct of the Perſons, that the Warning it may be to future Ages may be flagrant, and the Moral or Improvement may revive with the Story.

The Rebellious juſt now mention'd, had been in behalf of, or rather on the Pretence of Zeal for the Church, and it had been indeed a moſt dan⯑gerous Criſis to have ſuch bold and deſperate attempts made in the In⯑fancy of the King's Affairs.

Some of the States Men, who were in the Main real Friends to the Re⯑formation, and very faithful to the King and his Intereſt, yet intimida⯑ted a little by the Dangers they had been in, and by the Daily Inſolence and Threats of the Popiſh Party, who were ſtill very numerous in the Country, ſtarted very unhappily, and in an ill Hour, this wretched Opini⯑on [12] or Notion, (viz.) That it was too bold an attempt for the King, to undertake to make a thorough Reformation at once upon the Peo⯑ple; that it would exaſperate the Ro⯑man Party, and as they had power⯑ful Alliances abroad, and formidable Numbers at Home, they would not only be always Plotting againſt the publick Peace, but that it was too probable they might ſome time or other get the Start of them, and ruine them all; and that therefore it were but good State Policy to tem⯑porize a little, to go on by Degrees, and to act with Popery, as ſome of the good Kings of Judah did with Idolatry, of whom it was ſaid, They did that which was right in the Sight of the Lord. Nevertheleſs the high Places were not taken away, but the People burnt In⯑cenſe yet in the high Places, 2 Chron. XX. 33.

In like manner, they were for let⯑ting the Reformation go on gradual⯑ly, leaving ſuch of the Reliques of Popery as were of leſs Conſequence for a while unreformed, admitting a [13] Mixture of Papiſts and Proteſtants into their Councils and Adminiſtra⯑tion, that the former might be there⯑by be engaged by the Court Ser⯑vices, and Preferments, to embark no more with, or encourage the People in their Diſaffection; Nor did it end in this Propoſal of a motley Miniſtry, but even a motley Reformation was to be the Conſequence, and the High Church were to be ſo blended with the low, that is to ſay, Papiſt with Proteſtant, and ſo much of the Re⯑liques of Popery were to have been left in the new Eſtabliſhment of Re⯑ligion, that as a famous States Man of that Day, who had more Since⯑rity than all of them, ſaid, meaning the Duke of Suffolk, They would ſet up a Religion that was neither Pa⯑piſt nor Proteſtant, that God would not own, nor themſelves under⯑ſtand.

When this Project was laid before the King, He cauſed the Arch-Biſhop of Canterbury to read it over to Him. But it diſguſted Him extremely; and when the other Biſhops began to [14] ſpeak in Favour of it, the King, who had more Courage and Honeſty than all of them, anſwered in that memo⯑rable Expreſſion of Scripture, Curſed be he that doth the Work of the Lord deceitfully: And when another Bi⯑ſhop asked a little tartly, What then muſt be done? Shall we be always fighting about difficult Queſtions? The King ſtill ſtanding ſteady to his Prin⯑ciples, and ſhewing an abhorrence of the Cowardice and Treachery of his Courtiers, riſing up in ſome Heat, replied in the Words of our Saviour, Every Plant which my Heavenly Fa⯑ther has not Planted ſhall be rooted up; and no Man durſt move any thing of that Kind to Him ever after.

This Zeal and Courage of the King eſtabliſhed the Reformation.

This Trimming and Treachery, would have ſent them all back to Popery.

Leaving this Hiſtory to be cloſe⯑ly applied, as Occaſion ſhall offer, I proceed to the ſecond Thing which [15] ruined the Peace of that bleſſed King's Reign, and which, as I have ſaid, let in a Popiſh Pretender upon them in the next, and this was,

2. Diviſions at Court. Emulation, Ambition, Avarice, and Envy, poſ⯑ſeſt the Minds of his Courtiers, and the Conſequences were theſe.

• 1. They ruined and deſtroyed one another.
• 2. They brought in the half re⯑formed Courtiers that them⯑ſelves had ſpued out, letting in their Enemies to ſupport their Factions one againſt a⯑nother.
• 3. Thoſe very Enemies, who came in by theſe Diviſions, brought in a Popiſh Pretender upon them in the next Reign, and brought them all to Fire and Faggot.

If this were a Parable or Allego⯑ry only, by which to repreſent to our [16] preſent People, the Dangers which might poſſibly happen upon taking in their Enemies, to fortifie and form Intereſts againſt their Friends, and to ſupport their ſeveral Parties one a⯑gainſt another, it might have been thrown by and diſregarded as the Chimera of a ſcribbling Head, which had in it no more than ſuch People generally produce.

But as it is a real Hiſtory, the Matters of Fact upon Record, and the Truth of them not to be diſ⯑puted; as the Tragical Part which follow'd was acted upon the Stage of our own Country, and the Fire and Faggot of their Popiſh Perſecu⯑tions ſmoaked in our own Streets, as it was not long ago, and the Ruine of thoſe who ſuffered under it is felt in our Families even to this Day, it comes with the greater E⯑nergy upon us, the Force of it is not to be reſiſted, nor can the Cau⯑tion given from it be called unjuſt or improper.

[17] Like Cauſes produce like Conſe⯑quences in all Ages, or at leaſt, may do ſo; it may not therefore be im⯑proper to look briefly over the Court Diviſions of that Reign, and ſee how they began, how they were carried on, and how it came to paſs that the beſt and only Eſtabliſhment of thoſe Times for a Proteſtant Succeſ⯑ſion, was overthrown and deſtroyed, meerly and only by the Contention and Diviſions of the great Men at Court; and in doing this, we may take ſome notice of their Perſons.

The Great Men at Court in that Day, conſiſted of the Duke of Somer⯑ſet, prime Miniſter, Uncle to and Protector of the King, Captain Gene⯑ral, and Commander in Chief of all his Forces; the Duke of Northum⯑berland, formerly Earl of Warwick, of the antient Family of Dudley; Mr. Stanhope, a great Friend and Aſ⯑ſiſtant to the Duke of Somerſet; Mr. Cecil, Secretary of State; the Mar⯑quiſs of Northampton.

[18] Among theſe, it is neceſſary to give a brief Deſcription of a few; The Two contending Factions, and which made moſt ſtir with their Strife, were the two Dukes of Somer⯑ſet and Northumberland, commonly known in thoſe dangerous Times, when People durſt not ſpeak plain, by the Diſtinction of Duke Blue, and Duke Green, of which I can give no other Account than by Traditi⯑on, that the one being a Southern Title, had reference to the Garter of St. George. And the other being a Northern Title, might have the like to that of St. Andrew, whoſe Enſigns are the Blue and Green Ribband But I do not find that the Perſon was ever received as a Knight of that Order.

Duke Blue had great Perſonal Me⯑rit, and was exceedingly beloved both by the King and the People; he was an able States Man, and a very great Soldier; he had by his Wiſdom and Prudence greatly aſſiſted in ſet⯑ [...]g the Prince upon the Throne, [19] and was his laſt reſort for Council; for as he had a great Intereſt a⯑mong the People by his Fame, and a⯑mong the Nobility by his great Al⯑liances with the beſt Families; ſo he had a Mind always preſent to him⯑ſelf in the greateſt Exigence, and was eſteemed to be the beſt Man of Council of that Age, eſpecially upon any dangerous Juncture. In the Field, he was ſuperior to himſelf, if I may ſo ſay; I mean, that there he excelled not only all Mankind, but even outdid all his own other Excel⯑lencies; and this he ſhew'd at that memorable Battle of Pinkie, by which, as well as on many other Occaſions, he had in the preceeding Reigns made the Engliſh Arms, as well as his own Conduct, terrible to the World.

Having ſaid thus much of his Per⯑ſon, it cannot be omitted, becauſe ſomething of it will come neceſſari⯑ly to be mention'd hereafter, that he was not more happy in his own Character, than he was unfortunate in that of his Wife; a Woman of a [20] terrible Spirit, inſupportably Haugh⯑ty, Turbulent, Covetous, Treache⯑rous, Revengeful, and being withal buſie and medling in publick Mat⯑ters, puſh'd her Husband upon the worſt Scenes of his Life, and which indeed ended in his Ruine. I have only to add, that as their Charact⯑ers were the Reverſe of one ano⯑ther, ſo was the influence they had in the World; one being exceeding⯑ly beloved, and the other univerſally hated by the People.

The Duke Green was of a Cha⯑racter quite different from the other, having very few good Qualities to re⯑commend him; the beſt that could be ſaid of him was, that he was of a very great and antient Family, famous for Heroes, and Men of Gallantry and Cou⯑rage, and was himſelf a Man of a da⯑ring and enterpriſing Courage. But tho' he had on many Occaſions ſhewn his Gallantry in Action, yet he was by moſt thought fitter to Command un⯑der another, than to lead Armies as General in Chief; yet in this it was thought he had the Misfortune to dif⯑fer from common Fame in the Opinion of himſelf.

[21] He ſerv'd under Duke Blue, at the great Battle of Pinkie; but was very willing to have it ſaid, that the great Vi⯑ctory obtained that Day, was owing more to his Conduct, than that of the General, and had ſometimes the Vanity to ſay, that if he had had the Com⯑mand, the War would have been car⯑ried on more to the King's Advantage; however, as Duke Blue conſented after⯑wards to leave the Conduct of the War to him for one Campaign, it did not ap⯑pear.

In a Word, tho' they both appear'd Friends to the King, and to his Intereſt, and on all Occaſions acted with their utmoſt for his Service, yet it was well known they were not cordial Friends to one another; but did one another in their Turn all the ill Offices they could, till it brought Duke Blue firſt to the Block, and Duke Green followed in a very little while after, the ſame Way.

In the Fate of Duke Blue, followed ſeveral of his faſt Friends, for Men of ſuch Figure ſeldom fall alone, Mr. Stan⯑hope, Sir Ralph Vane, [...] and ſeveral others, were put to Death, tho' all innocent, being meer [22] Sacrifices to the political Rage of Duke Green; and the King himſelf, who lived but a little while after, yet lived to be ſatisfied of their Innocence, and to la⯑ment, in the moſt moving Terms, the fatal Diviſions of his Miniſters, which had brought him to cut off his moſt faithful Servants, and had impoſed up⯑on him, in a moſt vile Manner, to ſhut his Ears againſt the Remonſtrances of his beſt Friends in their Favour; the bit⯑ter Remembrance of which, follow'd the good Prince to his Grave.

After the King's Death, Duke Green, who was the chief Favourite of the Succeſſor, aſſumed the Prime Mi⯑niſtry and Management of Affairs. But the Pretender got ground every Day, tho' really, more by the Hatred the People bore to Duke Green, than from any real Diſaffection to the Succeſſor; at length the Proteſtant Succeſſor was entirely abandoned by the Nation, tho' a Perſon of the moſt amiable Perfecti⯑ons, moſt agreeable and engaging Tem⯑per, and moſt perfect Virtue in the World.

Thus a Popiſh Pretender was brought in, the Proteſtant Cauſe was loſt, and [23] the Proteſtant Succeſſor Depoſed and Murther'd, purely from the Hatred the People bore to the wicked Actions of him, who was then Head of the Party; whoſe Conduct was always raſh and fooliſh, and who having broken the U⯑nity and Harmony which was before happily carried on thro' all the publick Affairs, had divided the Court, ſome one Way, ſome another, particu⯑larly had taken into the Adminiſtration People of quite differing Principles from the King, and of views differing from his Intereſt; which, it ſeems, he did at all Hazards, only to make his Party ſtrong againſt his Enemy; nor was Duke Blue, but eſpecially his Wife, back⯑ward in the ſame unhappy Meaſures, making uſe of their Power with the King, to bring in, and keep in ſeveral People, both in the Army, in the Navy, and in the Civil Affairs, ſuch People as were not Friends to His Majeſty's Intereſt, ſo be it they were Friends to their Par⯑ty, and willing to engage againſt their Oppoſers.

This being the Practice on both ſides, they declar'd openly againſt one ano⯑ther, and were openly called by the [24] Neuters at Court, as well as by the Peo⯑ple, the Blue Faction, and the Green Faction.

There was indeed another Sort, which was called the third Party; theſe were headed by Mr. Cecil, one of the Secre⯑taries of State, and by the Perſon who principally managed the King's Trea⯑ſure, whoſe Name I do not remember; but they were too weak to carry on any Deſign, and the King alſo was prevailed with to diſcountenance them, or at leaſt, not to ſhew them that Favour which they at firſt expected, ſo that they were able to do little; and the Blue and Green Factions drawing all to them⯑ſelves, theſe ſoon loſt their principal Ad⯑herents, who were drawn in to ſide with one Faction or the other, as their Profits or Deſigns led them on.

As for the Chancellor, he was a weak, or rather, indolent Perſon, whoſe Cha⯑racter was not extraordinary, and his Body infirm; and Duke Green having no kindneſs for him, and yet not ca⯑ring to puſh directly at him, becauſe he thought the King had ſome kind⯑neſs for him, perſuaded him to reſign the Seals; he having deſired to loſe his [25] Place with as little Diſgrace as poſſible. The Seals were ſoon after given to a Perſon quite in another Intereſt.

From theſe Diſſentions and Diviſions at Court, ſays a Reverend Hiſtorian of thoſe Times, it followed, that nothing was ſeen during that bleſſed King's Reign but Troubles, Commotions, and Diſ⯑quiets, both in Church and State, till Way was made, by the Diſtractions of the State, to overthrow the whole Con⯑ſtitution, deſtroy the Reformation, and let in Popery and Perſecution in the Reign that followed.

It is time to turn to our own Times, to which we may make a ſudden Tran⯑ſition, without letting drop the Memo⯑ry of what has been ſaid. It had que⯑ſtionleſs been a piece of very happy Advice, whoever had given it, if ſome clear ſighted Perſon had in thoſe Days earneſtly preſs'd and adviſed the States-Men of King Edward to unite in their Duty to the King, and their Care of the Common-wealth, and not to ſuf⯑fer their Avarice or Ambition, their Pride, or their Paſſions, to have any ſhare in the Meaſures they were taking; but to carry on the Publick Affairs with Zeal, for the good of their Country, and [26] the Intereſt of their Sovereign; fortify⯑ing the King's Intereſt, by the good A⯑greement of his Servants, and the Fide⯑lity of his Councellors, which had they done, they were able enough to have tranſmitted the Crown to the Prote⯑ſtant Succeſſor, after the King's Death, in ſpight of all that Popery and Popiſh Intereſts could do to the contrary. For it was even then true, that the Intereſt of the Popiſh Succeſſor had very little, if any Foundation in this Kingdom, but what was founded among Proteſtants themſelves; making good that old Axi⯑ome of Policy, that England can never be ruined, or her Liberties deſtroy'd, by any Power other than her own. So that it was the Ignorance, Weakneſs, and Di⯑viſion of Proteſtants, that ſet the Crown at that Time on the Head of Popery, not the real Power of the Papiſts.

Whether there may be any Parallel drawn from thoſe Times to the preſent, is not ſo much the Deſign of this Work, as it is to caution the greateſt Men of the preſent Age againſt the Miſchiefs of Dividing and Separating themſelves in⯑to Parties and Factions of any kind, as the only fatal thing that can befal them and the whole Kingdom at this Time, [27] and leave the next Reign expoſed to the Diſaſter of a Popiſh Succeſſor.

The whole Body of the People of En⯑gland ſeems now to be united under the Reign of King George, and that Union is ſettled and confirmed by the ſteddy Ad⯑miniſtration of his Majeſty's Affairs; by a well choſen Miniſtry, Faction is found at preſent only among the Defeated Par⯑ty, and their Diſappointments are made irretrievable only by the Vigilance and Unanimity of his Majeſty's Councils and Meaſures.

By the ſame Rule, if that Vigilance and Unanimity abates; if ſome draw one Way, ſome another; if the Miniſters of State let go the Reins of the Admini⯑ſtration, and fall out one with another; if theſe Conquerors fall out about divi⯑ding the Spoil, where is the Strength of the Adminiſtration? What will all the Victory they now triumph in amount to? Faction will quit the routed Party immediately, and harbour her hated Head in the Verge of the very Houſhold: And what will follow, Diviſions, Envy, making and ſtrengthening of Parties at Court, fortifying Intereſts, and ſupport⯑ing themſelves with Numbers, ſtrug⯑gling for Places, and bringing in Friends; [28] and thus, in a Word, the Civil War will be tranſpoſed from the remote Parts to the very Walls of the King's Palace, and which is worſt of all, to the very inſide of thoſe Walls.

And not to repreſent Things in a more dangerous Poſture than they real⯑ly will repreſent themſelves, I ſhall lay down a little the uſual Riſe and Progreſs of Court Diviſions.

Court Diviſions generally ſpring from two Fountains, Avarice and Envy; I know there are two ſofter Words to be given it, which are more Courtly in⯑deed, but not more ſignificant, nor ſo juſtly adapted to deſcribe the thing, (viz.) Ambition. and Emulation; but I keep to the Terms. I think all the Ambition we now ſee practiſed may be well ſtyled Avarice, and all their Emula⯑tion centers in Envy.

Theſe creep inſenſibly into Courts, the firſt Diſcovery of it we find in the Great Men engroſſing Places of vaſt Pro⯑fit, many of them into one Hand; we ſaw lately a great Man poſſeſt of about ſeven, if not more, Places of immenſe Profit, and juſtly diſmiſs'd for not be⯑ing content with that.

[29] This prompts them to heave and thruſt at one another, Picquing and Ca⯑balling to ſupport themſelves, and ſup⯑plant others; whether this be the Caſe among us now or not, it is not my Buſi⯑neſs to enquire; it's evident this has fre⯑quently been the Caſe in the Engliſh Court in former Times, and it is as evi⯑dent, and for this Reaſon I mention it, that this Party-making and dividing at Court, never yet failed to overthrow and turn out the Party that's ſo divided; and if this ſhould be the Caſe now, what have we to expect?

Wherefore the People of England are more than ordinarily concerned to uſe the utmoſt Intereſt they have in the preſent great Miniſters, or thoſe to whom the Adminiſtration is intruſted, to perſuade, intreat, and in ſhort, warn them againſt dividing their Intereſt.

To begin this Perſuaſion, I ſhall take the Liberty to tell a ſhort Story, which I am able to Name the Perſons too who were concerned.

Soon after the Reſtoration of King Charles the IId. when the Civil War was laid aſleep by the general Act of Oblivion, many of the old Round-Head Party began to appear openly, [30] who had skulkt about for fear of the Revenge of the Cavalier Party when they ſhould come in, and who expect⯑ed to be proſcrib'd and excepted, as is u⯑ſual, in the general Pardon.

One Major Gladman, an old Soldier, and who had been very much concern⯑ed in the Governing Party, was ſitting in a Coffee-Houſe in the City ſmoak⯑ing a Pipe, when an antient Gentleman in a long Shoulder Belt, which was at that Time the Badge of a Cavalier, came and ſat by him; he began very high with him, Are not you ſuch a Man, Sir? Yes, Sir, replies the Major: Then you are one of thoſe Fools, Sir, ſays he, that have managed this poor Nation after your wretched manner, and muſt give an Account to Heaven for what you have done.

We muſt ſo, Sir, replies the Major; but, Sir, ſince the King has been pleaſed to give an Act of Oblivion, and all theſe Things are laid aſleep Sir, it is not the kindeſt thing Gentlemen can do to us, to inſult us with it, when we have no freedom to reply.

Yes, yes, the Act of Oblivion has buried it, ſays the old Gentleman, and I am not going to revive that; but [31] Heaven will call you all to Account for being the moſt unaccountableſt Fools in the World, that when He had given you Victory, and committed the Na⯑tion to your Government, and we poor Cavaliers durſt not ſhow our Faces in the World, you, in a ſhameful and moſt contemptible manner, pul⯑led one another to pieces for the Spoil; and giving up all your Advantages, brought us in again with your own Hands. Are you not a Parcel of Fools?

Indeed, Sir, ſays the Major, you have toucht us in a ſore Place; if our Diviſi⯑ons had not opened a Door for you, it was impoſſible you could ever have re⯑turned.

Let all thoſe who God and King George have entruſted with any ſhare of the Honour and Truſts of the preſent Government, ſtand warned by ſuch a Story as this. Nothing can wound the preſent Intereſt of King George, nothing can give Life to his Enemies, nothing can revive the Jacobite Cauſe, in a Word, nothing can effectually ruine us now, but dividing.

Not all the Power of France can hurt us, we ſee that cringing, and reduced, and complying with any Conditions [22] to get an Alliance with us for their own Preſervation.

Not all the other Popiſh Powers of Europe can hurt us; we ſee them ſolli⯑citing and entreating to be admitted in⯑to the ſame Alliance for their Security.

Not all the Jacobite High-flying Party at Home; we ſee them reduced, and the Pallace of the King crouded with Peti⯑tioners, begging Reprieves for their principal Leaders, to ſave them from the Scaffold and the Gallows.

What then can hurt us, what can be capable to weaken our Hands, ſo ſtrengthen'd by Conqueſt? to weaken our Meaſures directed by ſuch Heads, to ſlacken the Reins of our Admini⯑ſtration, committed to ſuch; nothing but private Feuds and Factions, no⯑thing but Diviſions among our ſelves; and then no Government is ſo fixt, no King ſo eſtabliſh'd, no Conſtitution ſo well founded, but it will undo, and overthrow it.

Let us go among the High Party, and hear what they ſay, and indeed we need go no farther to confirm the Argument, what is it has given Life to their dejected Souls, bright⯑en'd [33] their Countenances, and put their Expectations again upon the Wing.

It was but the other Day that all their broken Reeds having fail'd them, they were brought to give up their Cauſe, and to confeſs they had nothing left to do but to deſpair.

Now they are another People; they promiſe themſelves new Scenes, flat⯑ter themſelves with new Hopes, and encourage one another to new Miſ⯑chiefs; we ſee their Leaders meet⯑ing in Cabals, great Conferences held upon the preſent Scituation of their Affairs, and Meaſures taken with aſ⯑ſurance of Succeſs, for the Forming their Intereſt, and Propagating their Cauſe, even to Avignon it ſelf the Encouragement is ſpread; and we have Letters from thence, which ſay, their Friends in England give them En⯑couragement to look for great Things in their Favour, for that, ſay they, we are aſſured there are great Divi⯑ſions at Court; that the Whigs are fallen out among themſelves; that Argyle being out on one Hand, and T [...]d on the other, great In⯑tereſts are made to bring them in [34] again, which there is ſome hopes of; that, on the contrary, great Parties are made againſt them; and that by means of theſe Diſſentions, the Friends to another Intereſt are careſs'd more than uſual; for that States Men ne⯑ver value who they take into Buſi⯑neſs, if it be found neceſſary to ſup⯑port them againſt their Opppoſers.

To conclude, the beſt Conſtruction which I can make of the whole Mat⯑ter is, in Favour of this Intelligence from Avignon, (viz.) that it is a meer piece of Jacobite News; that indeed it is an idle Rumour, or a malicious one; that it is impoſſible it ſhould be true; and that the Caſe at Court ſtands directly thus, and no otherwiſe, viz.

That there is an entire Harmony and Unity in every Part of the Ad⯑miniſtration among the Miniſters of State; that there is not ſo much as the leaſt Jealouſie, Uneaſineſs, or Miſ⯑underſtanding among them; that a perfect Friendſhip and good Corre⯑ſpondence ſpreads it ſelf through the [35] Minds and Management of all the great Men at Court, and an exact Ʋniformity in their Meaſures; that if there is any Ambition among them, it is only in the great Struggle, to render their Auguſt Maſter the beſt Services; be moſt vigilant for his Safety, and moſt vigorous in Oppo⯑ſition to his Enemies the Jacobites.

Conſequently, that all the Rumours ſpread aborad of Factions in the Court, and of Diviſions into Parties looking this Way, and that Way, are Chi⯑merical, Groundleſs, and of no Value, and are not to be regarded other⯑wiſe, than to let us ſee, to what the Jacobite Intereſt tends, what they drive at, and what we are to expect from them, if ever that fatal Time ſhould come, when the Miniſters of State ſhould break and divide from one another, and open the Gaps and Breaches which the Proteſtant Suc⯑ceſſion had ſo happily cloſed.

The Reaſons in Particular which I give, why I cannot believe any ſuch Rumour, and why I muſt believe that [34] [...] [35] [...] [36] all theſe Accounts of Diviſions among the Miniſtry, come from a Wicked, Deſperate, Jacobite Party, who deſire to ſow Strife among us all, and ex⯑pect a Harveſt to their Party from it; I ſay, the Reaſons of this Opinion of mine, are ſuch as theſe:

• 1. Becauſe I take the Miniſtry to be honeſt Men, and their Honeſty is engaged.
• 2. Becauſe I take them to be no Fools, and their Senſes are engaged.

It is no time to flatter great Men, and ſpeak fine Words to them, becauſe they are in Figure and Authority; the Nation is intereſted in their Conduct, and will be injur'd or advantag'd as they behave.

We have boaſted of them hitherto, and hope we have had Reaſon; we have ſung their Fame, and inſulted the To⯑ries when they have attempted to de⯑fame and leſſen them on any Account whatever; we have reſted upon them in a full expectation of their anſwering the beſt Things we could ſay.

[37] We have upbraided the Tories with their corrupt Adminiſtration, their gra⯑tifying their Avarice, their Ambition, their Revenge; with betraying their Queen, and Country, and Poſterity, to puſh their ſeparate Intereſts; After we had run a Length of Reproaches up⯑on their want of Honeſty, their Vices, their falſhood to their Oaths, their ex⯑poſing their Country to French and Popiſh Tyranny, and their being of mercenary Turn-coat Principles; do⯑ing all this to ſerve the French, who had bought them; and the Clergy, who had debauch'd the, I ſay, af⯑ter we had loaded them with all that they deſerved on this Account; how did we at laſt laugh at them for Fools in their Politicks, weakening and de⯑ſtroying their new Schemes, and blow⯑ing up all their own Mines, by breaking among themſelves, and dividing into Factions and Parties.

Did we not tell them, they were whetting the Knives that would cut their own Throats, and building the Scaffolds for their own Execution? Did we not ſet ſtill and laugh at them, [38] for opening the Gaps, at which we told them, we, the Whigs, would enter and blow them all up? Did we not fre⯑quently ſay, that tho' they were ſuch Knaves as to deſign the Pretender, yet they were withal ſuch Fools, as to bring in the Houſe of Hanover for us, by the meer Madneſs of their Meaſures?

What could the Houſe of Hanover, before the King's Acceſſion, deſire more; or what News could they have deſir'd more agreeable, more ſatisfactory, than that their Enemies in the late Miniſtry were divided, that they were falling out for Places, and ſetting up Factions in the Court one againſt another, for engroſſing the Adminiſtration? Was not this to tell them in plain Words, that they were not fit for the Poſt they were in, and that nothing was to be ap⯑prehended from them, but that when⯑ever the Crown ſhould deſcend, they would either break quite in Pieces, and vaniſh into nothing, leaving the Way open for their Enemies to come in without Reſiſtance; or that they would be tripping up one another's Heels, to ſee who ſhould be foremoſt in Sacrifi⯑cing the reſt to the Succeſſor.

[39] Nor were we in the Wrong in our Judgment, for juſt thus it was; and the Event has proved them as great Fools in their Dividing, as they could be Knaves in their firſt Uniting.

Will it be leſs true in the preſent Caſe, if we could believe any thing of the Rumours that are ſpread; Can the Honeſty or the Senſes of the preſent Miniſtry be ſpoken of with the leaſt Satisfaction, if they ſhould act thus? Would they not be the moſt Unac⯑countable of all Men that ever pretend⯑ed to the Uſe of Reaſon, and the worſt of all Lunaticks? It cannot therefore be, it muſt all be a Slander, an abomi⯑nable curſed high Church Slander. To tell us of a Ma [...] Faction, and an Arg [...] Faction, and a Wa [...]le Par⯑ty, it muſt be regarded like the Gaſco⯑nades of the Tories, when they told us of the Earl of Marr's mighty Forces, the terrible Fortifications he had raiſed about Perth, the vaſt Levies making for him abroad, and the great Succours he had received from France; which appeared at laſt to be only a great Miſt, that waſted before the Sun; a great Croud, which ſeparated and diſappear⯑ed [40] at the Approach of but Ten Thou⯑ſand Men.

The Circumſtances of the preſent Miniſtry confirm us in this Opinion al⯑ſo; they have the moſt happy Settle⯑ment in their Hands, that ever this Na⯑tion enjoy'd, ſecur'd by victorious Troops, a ſteddy and unanimous Par⯑liament, and an eaſie ſatisfied People; they are ſupported by a wiſe and mag⯑nanimous Prince, ſtrong in his Intereſt abroad, growing in the Affections of the People at home; Rebellion, like the Dragon under the Feet of St. George, is conquer'd, and lies grovelling in the Duſt; Jacobitiſm is reduc'd to a State of Deſpair; Popery has laid by its Pre⯑tenſions; and ſuppliant France ſeeks Aid at our Court againſt her own State Factions.

The preſent Miniſtry have nothing to wiſh which they do not enjoy, they have nothing to do but to Congratu⯑late one another, and enjoy in Com⯑mon the full Favour of their Prince, do their Duty, and receive the Reward of their Fidelity.

Can it be poſſible then that theſe Men ſhould fall out with one another?

[41] Can there be Room among them for Ambition, or Envy, or Faction, ſo much as to put a Foot in? no, 'tis impoſſible. Do they not ſwim in a full Sea of the King's Bounty? Are not all their Foes made their Footſtool? Have they not all that, one would think, Ava⯑rice or Ambition could prompt them to ask? What can they without bluſh⯑es, deſire of their Country more than they enjoy?

For theſe Men to fall out, to di⯑vide into Factions and Parties, what would it be, but to tell the World, that they are not the Men they have been taken for; that however they have made Pretences to be diſinter⯑eſted, and to have ſerv'd King George purely for the Juſtice of his Cauſe, and the good of their Country, that yet they are true States Men, that they are of the ſame Mold with others that went before them; that their aim has been all along their own Intereſt, the ſatisfying their own voratious Appe⯑tites, and the moſt unbounded Ava⯑rice; that Pride, and the worſt ſort of Ambition, has been the Helm that ſteers all their Actions, and that no⯑thing [42] but to be above one another, can make Peace among them; in a Word, that every Man wants to be prime Miniſter, and cannot bear to ſee any Man have a Share of Power or of Favour equal with himſelf; in which they muſt make good Mr. Dryden's ſaying reverſe, viz.

Courtiers of every Party are the ſame.

For theſe Men to divide, and bandy againſt one another, as it has been ſcandalouſly ſaid of them, would be to tell the World, they have no va⯑lue for King George, no regard to his Intereſt, no concern for his Safe⯑ty, or his Family; that they ſerve Him only for what they can get by Him, and in Hopes of getting the ſupreme Management under Him; and care not what Hazard they run of his Intereſt, to ſecure their own. For this Reaſon, one cannot without the greateſt Contempt of their Per⯑ſons and Deſigns, and thinking them the moſt Perfidious Generation of Men in the World, I ſay, one cannot ſo much as entertain a Notion of their being any ways Guilty.

[43] Should Diviſion and Faction creep in among the preſent Mannagers of Affairs, what muſt we expect? in⯑deed, what may we not expect, but that the whole Party ſhould divide as they divide, and where will this end? If a Kingdom divided againſt its ſelf cannot ſtand, how ſhall a Party divided againſt it ſelf be ſupported? And if this preſent Intereſt, divide again, what is before them, but that the Intereſt of the Tories, and the Pretender, which has been bro⯑ken and trampled under Foot, purely by the Harmony and Unanimity of Councils, with which His Majeſty's Affairs have been bleſs'd, ſhall re⯑vive and overwhelm us all: United as we were, none can ſay we were not in Danger, and next to God's directing Providence, nothing but the Vigilance and ſteddy Conduct of the King and his Miniſtry, united toge⯑ther Heart and Hand, to ſurprize and circumvent the Enemy, render'd their too well laid Deſigns abortive.

If that Unity is broken, if the Eyes that ſhould watch for the pub⯑lick [44] Safety, are employed in an en⯑vious Glancing at one another, watch⯑ing their private Advantages, to ſup⯑plant and diſplace, eſtabliſh and bring in, as their own ambitious Views direct; what will become of the pub⯑lick Intereſt? Who will look out for that? And how will the Ship of State run on Ground and ſplit upon the Rocks, while the Pilots forget to Steer, and are falling out among themſelves?

The firſt Step which Party Men generally take to ſupport themſelves, when they lay Deſigns one againſt another, is, to ſtrengthen themſelves with Friends and Dependents, who ſhall be ready at all Times to ſerve and ſupport them, eſpecially where any thing that may injure them is to be paſſed by Votes. To do this, they make uſe of their Intereſt with the Sovereign, to recommend and bring ſuch Perſons into pub⯑lick Employment, as well to keep others out, as to fortifie their own Intereſt; for Numbers has always [45] been eſteemed a great Thing at Court.

To do this, we always find they make no ſcruple to court mu⯑tually in their turn, I ſay, to court the Party that are out, who they bring into play, upon Pretence of their being turn'd, or of having pro⯑miſed to be directed.

This was what the Courtiers did in King William's Time, when the Lord Haverſhame deſcribed it by that unhappy, but ſignificant Word, a Motley Miniſtry; and how far that Motley Miniſtry went towards ruining that Prince's Affairs, is too recent in Memory to be forgot. How far the like Folly would go to ruine our preſent Affairs, we ought to tremble to think of.

When the Parties thus bring in their Enemies, Two Things fre⯑quently follow, and indeed, ſeldom fail.

• 1. That they cannot, when they find their miſtake, get them out again.
• 2. That they often maſter and throw out thoſe that brought them in.

We need not look far back for Examples of this Kind, the People now at Court know too much of this. Truth, to have any occaſion to be put in Mind of it. The Court Revolution of 1709, is an eminent Inſtance of it, and to that they are referred.

The Sum of the Matter is, that it cannot, without moſt uncommon, and moſt injurious Reflections upon the preſent Adminiſtration be ſug⯑geſted, that there are any Miſunder⯑ſtandings, Dividings, or Factions a⯑mong them; their Honeſty will not permit it, their Senſes muſt be their Protection againſt it, they cannot do it without being Fools to them⯑ſelves, Traytors to King George, and [47] Knaves to their Country, and for this Reaſon I conclude that it is all falſe, a meer Rumour, raiſed by their Enemies to amuſe the World, ſcan⯑dalize the Government, and bouy up their own ſinking Party.

If it ſhould appear to be otherwiſe, you ſhall hear farther.