being hoped, that all parties might have been brought to Will.III. concur in fupporting it. But the effects had not answered 1701-2. expectation: Diftinctions had been made between a king de jure' and a king de facto'; by which men plainly declared, with whom they believed the right was lodged. This opinion muft, whenever that right comes to be claimed, oblige those who hold it to adhere to fuch claimants. It feemed therefore in fome fort neceflary, that the government should know on whom it might depend. The difcrimination made by fuch a teft, was to be without compulfion or penalty; no hardship was put on any perfon by it. Those who refused to give this fecurity, would fee what just cause of jealousy they gave, and would thereby be obliged to behave themfelves decently and with due caution. When a government tendered an oath, though under no penalty, that was a fufficient authority for all to take it, who were fatisfied with the fubftance of it. While therefore there was fo great a power beyond fea, that efpoufed fo openly the pretenfions of this young man, and while there were juft grounds to fufpect, that many at home favoured him, it feemed very reasonable to offer a method, by which it fhould appear, who obeyed the prefent government from a principle, believing it lawful, and who fubmitted only to it as to a profperous ufurpation. About twenty lords perfifted in their oppofition to this bill, those who were for it being thrice that number. But in the houfe of commons, when it appeared how the lords were inclined, they refolved to bring in a bill that fhould oblige all perfons to take this abjuration. It was drawn by Sir Charles Hedges. All employments in church and ftate were to be fubject to it. Some things were added to the abjuration, fuch as an obligation to maintain the government in king, lords and commons, and to maintain the church of England, together with the toleration of Diffenters. Mr. Finch offered an alteration to the clause abjuring the prince of Wales, fo that it imported only an obligation not to affift him but, though he prefled this with unufual vehemence in a debate that he refumed feventeen times in one feffion, against all rules, he had few to fecond him in it. The debate, whether the oath fhould be impofed or left free, held longer. It was carried but by one vote to impofe it. The party chofe that, rather than have it left free; for they reckoned, that the taking an oath, which was impofed, was a part of their fubmiffion to the ufurpation; but the taking any oath, which ftrengthened the government, of their own accord, did not fuit with their other principles. But, to help the matter with Q4 Will.III. a fhew of zeal, they made the claufe, which impofed it, 1701-2. very extenfive, fo that it comprehended all clergymen, fellows of colleges, fchool-mafters, and private tutors. The clause of maintaining the government in king, lords, and commons,' was rejected with great indignation, fince the government was only in the king; the lords and commons being indeed a part of the conftitution, and of the legislative body, but not of the government. This was a direct republican notion, and ufed to be condemned as fuch by the fame perfons who now preffed it. It was further faid, that, if it appeared, that our conftitution was in danger, it might be reasonable to fecure it by an act and oath apart; but fince the fingle point that required this abjuration, was the French king's declaring, that the pretended prince of Wales was king of England, it was not fit to join matters foreign to that in this oath. Upon the fame reafon, the claufe in favour of the Church, and of the Toleration were also laid aside. The defign of this act was to difcover to all, both at home and abroad, how unanimoufly the nation concurred in abjuring the pretended prince of Wales. But here was a claufe to one part of which (the maintaining the church) the Dif fenters could not fwear; and even the more moderate men of the Church, who approved well of the toleration, yet might think it too much to fwear to maintain it, fince it was reafonable to oblige the Diffenters to use their liberty modeftly, by keeping them under the apprehenfion of having it taken away, if it was abused by them. One addition was offered to make it equally penal to compafs or imagine the death of her royal highnefs the princefs Anne of Denmark, as it is to compafs or imagine the death of the king's eldeft fon and heir, which was admitted without any debate or shadow of oppofition. The Tories pretended great zeal for her highnefs, and gave it out, that there was a design to fet her aside, and to have the house of Hanover to fucceed the king immediately; though it could never be made appear, that any motion of this kind had ever been either made or debated, even in private difcourfe, by any of the whole Whig party. Great endeavours were used, and not altogether without effect, to infufe this jealoufy into the princefs, and into all about her, not without infinuations that the king himself was inclined to it. When this claufe was offered, its being without a precedent gave handle enough to oppofe it; yet there was not one word faid in oppofition to it in either house, all agreeing heartily in it. This ought to have put an end to the ful fpicion ; picion; but furmifes of that kind, when raised on defign, Will.III, are not foon parted with. The commons, after a long delay, fent up the bill for abjuring the pretended prince of Wales. In the house of lords. the Tories oppofed it all they poffibly could; and, as it was a new bill, the debate was intirely open. They first moved for a claufe, excufing the peers from it. If this had been received, the bill would have been certainly loft, for the commons would never have yielded to it. When this was rejected, they tried to bring it back to be voluntary. This motion was thought a ftrange inconfiftency in thofe, who had argued againft even the lawfulness of a voluntary oath; but it was visible, that they intended by it only to lofe or at leaft to delay the bill. When this was over-ruled by the houfe, not without a mixture of indignation in fome against the movers, they offered next all thofe claufes, which had been rejected in the house of commons, with fome other very ftrange additions, by which they discovered both great weaknefs and an inveterate rancour against the government; but all the oppofition ended in a proteft of feveral peers against the bill, when it paffed on the 24th of February (b). (b) This proteft was as follows. 1. We conceive that no new oath fhould be impofed upon the fubject, forafmuch as thofe, established by an act made in the first year of the reign of his majefty and the late queen Mary, were, together with our rights and liberties, afcertained in that act under the terms of our Submiffion to his majefty, which were enacted to ftand, remain, and be the law of this realm for ever; and which, we conceive, do comprehend and neceffarily imply all the duty and allegiance of the fubject to their lawful king. 2. And much lefs fhould any new oath be impofed upon the lords, with fuch a penalty as to lofe their feats in parliament, upon their refufing it; fuch a penalty being, in fome measure, The an intrenchment upon our con- 3. And, if fuch an infringe-- 4. And if any further evidence of the fubjects fidelity were, at this time, neceffary to be required, we conceive a new oath is no fuch evidence, nor any additional fecurity to the go 1701-2. All for war. The two India compa nies united. Will.III. The public intereft was now fo vifible, and the concur 1701-2. rent fenfe of the nation ran fo vehemently for a war, that even those, who were most averfe to it, found it convenient to put on the appearance of zeal for it. The city of London was more united than it had been at any time during this reign; for the two companies that traded to the Eaft-Indies, faw, that their common intereft required they should come to an agreement; and, though men of ill defigns did all they could to obftruct it, yet in conclufion it was happily effected. This made the body of the city, which was formerly much divided between the two companies, fall now into the fame measures. But thofe, who intended to defeat all this good beginning of the feffion, and to raise a new flame, fet on debates, that must have embroiled all again, if they had fucceeded in their defigns. They began with com government; because those who 5. If a new oath were necef- by allowing men liberty to take it in their own fenfe; whereas this, as all other oaths, ought to be taken in the fenfe of the impofer, which hath not been declared in this cafe, though we earnestly preffed it, and though it has been done in other cafes of the like nature. 6. And we conceive, that it neceffarily follows from hence, that this oath can be no bond of union among those, who do take it; nor any true mark of diftinction between the friends and the enemies of this government; and therefore repugnant to the very nature of a telt. Winchelfea, Pr. H. L. II. 34. plaints plaints of fome petitions and addreffes, that had reflected on Will. III. The houfe had a multiplicity of other bufinefs before 6 (c) In the controverted election at Maidstone, between Thomas Bliffe and Thomas Culpepper, Efquires, it was refolved, That the latter had been not only guilty of corrupt, fcandalous and indirect practices, in endeavouring to procure himfelf to be elected a burgefs, but likewife, being one of the inftruments in promoting and prefenting the fcandalous, infolent, and feditious petition,' commonly called, the Kentish petition,' to the laft houfe of commons, was guilty of promoting a fcandalous, villainous, and groundlefs reflection upon that houfe, by afperfing the members with receiving French money, or being in the intereft of France; for which offence he was ordered to be committed to Newgate, and to be profecuted by his majesty's attorneygeneral. The house alfo refolved on the 26th of February, 1. That, agreeable to the opi- for |