4thly, To wean the People from their Affection to the House of Auftria, to diminish their Apprehenfion, or to encrease their Fears of the French Power, either, juft as Events should make it most convenient to do. To undermine the great and falutary Principle of fupporting a Balance of Power upon the Continent, by Pretences of the Inability of the Nation, of the Folly of engaging in Wars, in which we propofed to make no Acquifition for ourfelves, and of the Security of this Nation in its maritime Force alone, let what would happen upon the Continent.

5thly, To bait the People by the Profpect of an Encrease of Popular Power, by propofing Alterations in the Constitution, the Effects of which, and confequently the neceffary Measure of which, the common fort are by no means able to understand. ··6thly,To poifon the Affections of the People to the Prince upon the Throne, by endeavouring to convince them, that every publick Measure was influenced by his Ambition, Refentments, Paffions, or Attachment to fome Foreign Territory.

Mr. Addifon observes in one of thofe excellent Papers called the Freeholder, which he wrote expressly against the fame Faction, then in its Zenith, foon after the End of the late Queen's Reign; that even at that Time perfonal Abufe had been remarked to be the prevailing Characteristick of that Party,and he gives the Reafon for it, which still holds good at this Day, That having nothing of Weight to offer against their Antagonists, if they speak at all, it must be against their Perfons; when they cannot refute an Adverfary, the fhortest Way is to libel him, and to endeavour to make his Perfon odious, when they cannot reprefent his Notions as abfurd.-It was the Fort of their Party, and practifed at all Times; it was by the infamous Obfervation of that Maxim, Calumniari fortiter ut aliquod adhæreat, and by their fcandalous Perfonalities against the great Duke of Marlborough, the prefent Dutchefs, the Treafurer Godolphin, and all the Whigs who fupported their glorious Measures, that they routed them at laft. They met with too much Encouragement then not to tread in the fame Steps,-the Examiner had then the Impudence to accufe that Miniftry of carrying on that War upon different Principles from thofe upon which it was begun, which could not have been, unless that War had been begun upon the Principle of preferving inftead of diftreffing France.-And the prefent Faction, with equal Affurance, fcandaloufly inconfiftent, as they are themfelves, accufe the new Part of the Adminiftration of Inconfiftency, at the Time they are carrying on Measures for reducing France with the utmoft Vigour; when it is notoa Freeholder, N° 19. G 2

4

rious,

rious, to have been the grand Principle and View upon which they engaged in Oppofition. Yet glaringly abfurd and fhamelefs, as this Charge evidently appears to be, upon the leaft Reflection, they have actually and incredibly, by their Emiffaries properly planted, and properly inftructed, brought Numbers of the Vulgar to join in the chorus of this Song.-No Man could venture to vote on a different Side in the most indifferent Propofition, but he was treated with immeafurable Abuse :-By this Excefs of Calumny and Malice, they had more than one Advantage in View. -It ferved to terrify weak Minds to return and be more fteady.-And though fome Men of true Spirit might be the more determined to defert them, they found the Lofs of thefe outbalanced by the Number of thofe, who were awed and intimidated by it.

In this manner the whole World must be fenfible how far they have proceeded, fparing neither Age nor Sex, Rank nor Character, which Abufe has been fwallowed with as much Difgrace to thofe who have received it, as to those who have delivered it. But Envy and Malice are two great Ingredients in the Tempers of Men, and the Commonalty look upon the Indulgence of this crooked Difpofition to be a Mark of an independant Spirit; according to that old Obfervation of the great Hiftorian Tacitus, Obtrectatio livor pronis auribus accipiuntur, quippe adulationi fœdum crimen fervitutis, Malignitati falfa fpecies libertatis ineft.

The fecond Part of their Plan was purfued with equal Industry, the fame Author, in another of his Papers, obferves, how fteadily this Set of Men have conftantly diftinguished themselves by their little Regard to Truth, their little Solicitude for what the thinking Part of Mankind would confider of their Conduct, or how long the Lye of the Day would laft.-He enumerates a Multitude of their delufive Inventions, in the Reign of King William, and in his own Time, adding a juft and melancholy Obfervation, that their felf-interested and defigning Leaders cannot defire a more ductile and eafy People to work upon.-Trufting to this Ductility, and the undiftinguifhing Nature of the common Race of Men, they made no Scruple to charge thofe, who fupport the prefent Measures, with a Change of Principles-Confounding thus the Oppofition with the thing intended by it, and making Oppofition itself a Principle, which no honeft Man will ever make it. The People are told, that it was the Principle of the new Adminiftration to oppose the Government, that they do not oppofe the Government now, therefore the new Adminiftratim have deferted their former Principle. This paffes for found Logick, upon the fimple Herd they lead. It is vain to fhew the * Freeholder, N° 7.

bare-faced

bare-faced Falacy, that it was their Principle to oppofe the Meafures, only when they thought them bad, and that it was the Meafures and not the Government they oppofed; that the Measures are now changed, and they think them no longer bad, that therefore they are no Deferters of their Principle, if they now defift from Oppofition.-Confiding farther in the Ignorance of their Creatures, they make no fcruple to throw into their general Charge against those who support the present Measures, many of those paft Occurrences and Errors, which happened before their Time, which they formerly condemned, and which are now, (if not equally exploded) at least equally counter-acted both by the new and old Part of the Adminiftration, and the Confequences of which they are now every Hour labouring to remedy and avert. Thus wilfully mifreprefenting every Meafure, jumbling and confounding Facts and Dates, Names and Things, fo crude and fo irrational, that none but the lowest of the Vulgar could be able to digeft them.

They proceeded with the fame Diligence in the Execution of the third Article of this Plan,-for no fooner was any Gentleman, who had been engaged in the late Oppofition, admitted into Employment, than Heaven and Earth were moved to prevent his Re-election. When they had once given over the Thoughts of being employed themselves, the Note was immediately changed; and it is a Matter never to be fufficiently admired, how ftupidly the People, in many places, fell into their Views, without confidering the Abfurdity of what they were put upon to do. When the Houfe adjourned, the Doctrine then was, as I have before obferved, that a Change of the. Minifter, and the Introduction of honeft Men into Employments, were the utmost Objects of the People's Wish, and must in the end enfure whatever else was wanting. But it feems, fince the Tories were not to be admitted, no other Men were to be deemed honeft. Nay, after a little time, when it was found, that those of more obnoxious Principles were abandoned to Despair, even a Tory, under thefe Circumftances, found it difficult to be permitted quietly to be rechofen-fo filly were the little Tools of this Faction, as to delight in, and admire at the Wisdom and Integrity of a Maxim now established, that none of the Party fhould have a Place, till the Views of their Great ones were complied with firft. They ftill went on calumniating the new Adminiftration for not making Changes faft enough, when they themselves had fhut the door against it, and when no Man, who was not willing to facrifice his Fortune, by the vaft Expence of a certain Oppofition, or expofe his Perfon to the dangerous Infults of the Mobs they raised upon every such occasion, could

accept.

accept. Thus the People were brought to infift upon a Point, which, like Ideots, they were led at the fame time palpably to prevent themselves.-Í have not mifrepresented this Matter; it is well known, that this was the Method of their Proceeding to all Perfons without Diftinction, and they begun it, before any Man could have given poffibly any Reafon to be diftrusted by his Country, because it was begun before the Parliament met again, after the famous Adjournment. An honourable Gentleman, (who by the greatest Number of Voices, that ever any Man had upon fuch an occafion, was elected Chairman of the Committee of Elections but a few Weeks before, who in that nice Conjuncture, for his unexceptionable Character, with regard to all Parties, was pitched upon for that Office by the whole Oppofition, who neither had, nor could have had, at that time, given a fingle Vote to diminish that Reputation,) being advanced to be a Commiffioner of the Admiralty by his Majefty, (for no other reafon, but that he was thought agreeable to the People,) was immediately marked out, as an Object of Deteftation to his Country, and not fuffered to be chofen into Parlia ment again. Another Right Honourable Member advanced to the fame Office, was perfecuted, if poffible, with more scandalous Circumftances, the Mob of the whole County, for which he ferved, were hired to infult him.-Subfcriptions raifed out of the Pockets of the whole Faction, nay_preffed publickly in the very Houfe of Commons to make a Purfe to carry on an Oppofition to him: Though at the fame time, this Noble Perfon was a Servant to the first Subject of this King, dom, preferred at his Requeft and Recommendation, and advanced as a kind of Pledge of Union between the Royal Family itself; and though his Mafter was confeffedly, the Perfon by whose Influence and Concurrence in the Caufe of his Country, the late Oppofition was principally brought to its Iffue, who had fuffered infinitely more in the Course of it, than the meaneft private Gentleman in the Kingdom, and who had done that for the Publick, which no Man in his Station ever did before him, which could not have been expected of him, and after this Treatment, muft never be expected of any other in the fame Situation. Thus they gave fair Warning to the Father, by their Conduct to the Son, what he had to expect from this Set of Men, who, hardened by Disappointments of their own creating, infenfibly loft all regard, either to Prudence, Decency, or Gratitude.

I fhall not in this Place proceed to obferve minutely, upon the manner of executing all the other Particulars of their Plan, because it required a confiderable time before they could ripen the People, into a fufficient degree of Madness, to endure thofe

grofs

grofs Attempts upon their Understandings and their Principles, which they have fince made with too much Succefs. The Arts to be exerted to thefe Ends, were a little flow in Operation, and to be practifed at firft tenderly. However, they ventured to found the Ground they ftood upon, and to make fome Trial, what Abfurdities the Temper of the Times would bear.

In Order to do this, almost as foon as the Parliament was met, they began to oppofe every fingle Propofition that was made by the new Adminiftration; and though now thofe very Measures were purfued, with the utmost Vigour, upon which they themselves, and the whole Voice of the People, had fo long and vehemently infifted; and for not pursuing which an Enquiry was actually fet on foot, into the Conduct of the late Minifter, who upon this account was, according to their own Doctrine, to make attonement by no lefs a Sacrifice than that of his Life, his Eftate, his Honours, and the utter Ruin of his Pofterity; yet with a bare-faced Affurance, which raised the Deteftation and Aftonishment of all reafonable Men, and which was a very Mockery upon Common Senfe, they opposed the fending 16,000 of our Troops into Flanders, the taking 4,000 of the Irish Troops upon the British Establishment, to be sent after the former, and even in fome degree obftructed the Vote for 500,000l. to affift the Queen of Hungary.-It was vifible enough, and it had been their own Form of Reasoning but a fewWeeks before, that Meafures of this kind, nay more vigorous, if poffible, were neceffary to be taken in that defperate Situation in which we then flood, to convince the Dutch, the King of Sardinia, and all foreign Powers, that we were now in earnest. -The Experience they had long had of our Councils would not fuffer them to truft us lightly:-The Form of the Dutch Government in particular, made them flow to refolve, and their Situation made it defperate to engage, till they were fure of a folid Support:-The King of Sardinia had heartily and generously stept into the Breach, but his Circumstances were, if poffible, ftill more critical :-The Kings of Pruffia and Poland neither could have ftopped, if they would, nor probably would if they could, and must have been hurried on where France fhould have directed, or their own Ambi tion have invited; if by the gathering of this Cloud, a Storm had not been threatned from the Quarter of Great Britain, which might have created both Doubts and Terror as to the Event of their Quarrel; this was therefore the only way to induce them to be more moderate and circumfpect in their Proceedings. It was certain, that nothing lefs than this could fuftain the drooping Spirits of the Queen of Hungary, and of

her