for Wantonness and Licentioufnefs, which are its evil Genii, tempt all depraved Tempers to abuse it, and expofe many to the Lafh of the Laws, and to the juft Indignation of Power; which none, who feel, forgive, however they deferve it. At the fame time, the natural Defire of Mankind to expect more Favour than they merit, provokes unjuft Refentments against Government, and a certain Infirmity (of which we all in fome Degree partake) to be uneafy with what we have, and to endeavour after more, inclines Multitudes, either out of Views of private Benefit to themselves, or general Views of encrease of Privilege to the Order in which they ftand, to follow any fet of Men, who take the Lead in Oppofition of any kind.

All these move by a fecret Principle to that Quarter where it erects its Standard, be it juft or unjuft, be it to fave or to deftroy their Country.

It is obvious from hence, and it is a Truth that cannot be difputed, however it may affect the Credit of many pretended Patriots, that the discontented Party of all Denominations consist in general of Men of no Principle, and of very unworthy Character. It's Root is always the fame ;-but indeed it's Effects are very different. It becomes in fome Conjunctures of very beneficial Confequence, when it is led by Men of honest Views; and equally pernicious in others, when conducted by Men of a different Character.-In the firft Cafe, it is an Oppofition; in the fecond it is a Faction.

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Faction is of two kinds in this Country,-Oppofition led by Republicans; and Oppofition led by Jacobites. Of the two great Parties into which this Nation has been long dividedthe Whigs (though not Republicans) have formerly join'd the firftthe Tories (though not Jacobites) do conftantly abet the last.—They who know the Nature of this Country, who are acquainted with our Hiftory, need no Definition or Description of these two Parties, and all who are capable of Obfervation and Reflection can eafily trace the Reasons of their respective Conduct. It is therefore fufficient for us in this Place, that this is a Fact, which cannot be denied; and without a zealous Attachment of one or other of these two Parties, Faction is incapable of doing much Prejudice to Britain.

A Faction of the former kind once deftroyed the Liberties and Conftitution of this Nation. It grew up unobserved with the great Improvements of its Commerce, and was nourished in the uncommon Measure of Profperity, which arofe from a long Tranquillity, and a wonderful Encrease of Wealth after the Discovery of the West Indies, which diffused itself

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through the Commons, and gave them Ability to contend with a Prince, who, ignorant of this new acquired Vigor of the People, and vainly fond of Power, provoked it by avowed Attempts to introduce an abfolute Authority.

This Faction, by the Imprudence of that Prince, appeared at first no more than an honeft Oppofition. But abetted at length by the Majority of the Nation, (who neither perceived how dangerous it was, nor could have well avoided joining with it, if they had, to preferve themselves against the violent Attack then made upon their Freedom,) grew too ftrong both for the Prince and for the Laws. The miferable Confequences that it brought upon us are related at large in the Hiftories of England from 1642 to 1660.

Thefe Evils of Faction in a Republican Form, prevented its Revival again in the fame Shape.-The People of England had (fince the Union of the two Houfes of York and Lancaster) never seen it in another. They therefore feared it in no other. This gave it Opportunity to fhew itself in a new Form, and Oppofition became again a Faction in the Reign of the late King William, and a Faction of a much more dangerous Nature than the firft.

For whereas the Republicans, who are the Leaders of the first Faction, are in this Country little more than Whigs overheated by Oppreffion, and an extravagant Abufe of Power; as in reality there is very little of that Principle exifting among Men of Property and Fortune, and as it is chiefly confined to Men of an inferior Clafs; they may be eafily brought to moderate their Views by what it is in the Power of every honeft Government to apply: But the Leaders of the second Faction fet out with Expectations, that no Government, without being felo de fe, can gratify. For they set out upon the View of changing the Princes upon the Throne, and in neceffary Confequence to transform the Conftitution and Religion of the Kingdom.

In a word, a Jacobite Faction affumed the Shape of Oppofition in that Reign; that is, the People under the Circumstances I have mentioned, and the Difcontented of all Denominations acted in a Party, directed either fecretly or openly by Leaders, whofe Views intended the Reftoration of King James II. or of his Family.

Now that this Faction was more dangerous than that which had appeared before, is farther manifeft from hence. That the Republicans profeffed a Principle, and of a kind, which led them to do very great and glorious things. Their Zeal was indeed mistaken, but it clafh'd in its Purfuit, neither with the Honour nor the Independency of their Country, and the Strength of

this Party lay in the Acceffion of those who had the greatest Share of Senfe and Honefty.-They were therefore steady in every Conjuncture to defend the Nation against its Enemies. abroad, and particularly against its most dangerous Enemy of all the French; and unless in Times of extream and rare Neceffity, were deferted conftantly by their Auxiliaries the Whigs, before they could bring their Scheme to any mature Effect.

But the Jacobite Faction professed no Principle at all, or fuch as deferves the Name of none. They had indeed a View, but it was private Title, the Intereft of one Man, and of one Family. An Object in itself unworthy any Party, and criminal too in the higheft Degree, in this Inftance, because it was the private Title, and the Intereft of a Man and Family, who by their Education and Religion were nourished in a fatal Enmity to their Country.-Thefe Men therefore, from the indifpenfible Nature of this their first View, could be animated with no good Sentiment for the Publick, and from the Circumftances of their Cafe, were obliged to affift the Ambition, fupport the Power, and abet the Views of France, by whofe Force alone they could hope to bring their Point to bear. Their Oppofition therefore tended in every Step to deftroy the Honour and Independency of their own Country. The Strength of their Party lay in the Acceffion of those who were the weakest and most dishonest Men; for who elfe could join in such a View as this; and therefore as all who furnished them Affistance must be either tainted in their Principles to their Country, or wrong in their Heads before they could engage with them, their Conduct was conftant, or wilful Error; and thus their Auxiliaries the Tories, if ever they separated from their Faction, never did it till it was almoft too late, and never faw that they were deceived, or that they blindly concurred to the Ruin of their Country, till that Ruin was at the very Gate.

It is vifible from hence, that there is much less Danger from a Republican than from a Jacobite ; or in fofter Terms, from a Whig than from a Tory Oppofition. A Whig Oppofition is therefore that alone with which the People for many Years have ventured to concur, and the only one with which they can for a Moment concur fafely.

But even when they follow this, they are not always without fome Danger. For when Oppofition under any Title rifes high, and becomes formidable, demanding fuch Terms, as Government is honestly under equal and real Difficulty either to grant or to refufe, the Symptoms are ftrong, and the Sufpicion generally juft, that fuch an Oppofition is converted into Faction.-Nor can the Generality of Men diftinguish easily of what Species it may be; for both the Republican Principles, and

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the Jacobite Views, being long fince fufficiently detected, and being therefore both become deteftable to all honeft Men; both the one and the other are extreamly careful not to avow their refpective Pursuits.-When they take off the Mafk with greatest Freedom, the Republicans denominate their Faction by no harsher Name than that of a Whig, nor the Jacobites than that of a Tory Oppofition.-Nor would the Whigs be brought to support the one, nor the Tories to abet the other without this Artifice; and yet by this Delufion of Names, both Parties have been at different Times led on till they have very near deftroyed the Conftitution. In fact, every Faction will, without Scruple, affume any Appellation to impofe upon Mankind; and the moft inveterate Jacobite Faction, to carry its View, will profefs to act upon a Whig Principle, when that becomes the favourite Principle, as it is at this Time. An Oppofition therefore may become Republican or Jacobite, when the Vulgar little conceive it to be either. The Judgment must be formed not upon what Men call themselves, but upon what they do, upon what they act, upon what is the vifible Tendency of their Measures and Purfuits.Whether they are a Faction or not, or of what Species their Faction is, can be determined only by their Conduct, and may be infallibly determined by that means. Now the Criterion of a Whig Conduct, is (as may be collected from what we have already obferved) to refift and reduce the Power, and the Criterion of a Jacobite or Tory Faction, directly or indirectly, to affift, encourage, and fupport the Interests of France.

This I have premised to give a general Idea of the Nature of Oppofition, and of Faction in this Country, that I may with more Facility lay open to the Publick what I have to offer as to the Oppofition of this Time-and which I think it my Duty to offer, because I will be bold to affirm, that they are grofsly deceived in it, and that inftead of pursuing a Whig Oppofition, which they conceive it to be, they now abet and fupport a Tory Oppofition, and a Jacobite Faction, which from the Circumstances of this Time, and the Impudence of its proceeding, is become more dangerous than ever that Faction yet has been in this Nation.

Had this been afferted two Years ago, it would have met with nothing but Ridicule, and it would have been impoffible to have induced the Majority of the People of England to have believed that the Jacobites could have ever given this Country any Uneafinefs again.-The Reafon is very evident.

All the ill Humours of the Nation collected together had, for feveral Years laft paft, combined a very strong Oppofition; but this Oppofition was led by Whigs, by Men known to be of this Principle, and they had the Afcend

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ant both by their fuperior Abilities and Experience, and by the Turn of the Nation, to fuch a Degree, that they kept down all Efforts of the Jacobites. They directed the Means of Oppofition; and the Tendency was therefore to Points wholly free from any Symptoms of that kind. The Tories and Jacobites fullenly worked on under thefe Leaders, and could never attain any Degree of Influence over Men of better Parts, and better Principles; they knew not directly whither they were going, but they hoped towards Confufion, and that they might have a Chance to work out fomething if that Confufion fhould arife. The People at the Beginning of this Oppofition, which lafted near twenty Years, were living in great Numbers, who remembered the Conduct of this Faction in the Reign of King William and Queen Arne.-They remembered how, after King William was feated upon the Throne, and after being grown deteftable by various Attempts of Plots and Affaffinations, they had been obliged to foften their true Name into that of Tory; how under that Title they had difclaimed their fecret Tenet, and profeffed only to maintain certain Opinions as to Church and State, which had been plaufibly introduced among the People in the great Rebellion by the Clergy, and inculcated from the Pulpit, to make a Party against the violent Doctrines of the Republicans of that Time.-The wrong Opinions of the one begot those wrong Opinions of the other: And though the Paffion of the firft had been difgraced by the Iffue of that Rebellion, the Nonfenfe of the other had not yet difgraced itself fo far.-The Prefbyterians had ruined both the Church and Monarchy; but the High Churchmen had not brought in Popery and arbitrary Power, they had even affifted (at laft) in fome Degree at the Revolution to keep it out-The Publick in general were not able to judge but of what they faw; and they did not see how near they were to have done both before they had the Sense to stop, nor how they were puzzled to reconcile their Nonfenfe with that Conduct. These therefore were the favourite Party of that Time.-Of these the Jacobites laid hold :-All this the People, during the late Oppofition, faw very clearly; (for many, as I have obferved, were at the Commencement of it living, when the Jacobites, thus under the Name of Tories, led the Oppofition of that Time ;) how the People were de-* luded by it; whither they were carried, and what Pretences they had used.

They remembered that this Faction fet out with a furious pretended Zeal for Monarchy, Non-Refiftance and Hereditary Right; they remembered how they stirred up the People

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