the defects of a barbarous education, already appeared in the view of penetrating obfervers to bode extraordinary. changes and events. His father Alexis, who died in 1675, left three fons, Theodore, Iwan and Peter, and a daughter, Sophia. Theodore dying in 1682 conftituted Iwan and Peter joint fovereigns; and, on account of the imbecility of Iwan and the tender years of Peter, Sophia was declared regent of the empire. She was a woman of great courage, addrefs and ambition. Her administration was violent and bloody; and the harbored the design of seizing on the empire, to the exclufion of her brothers. But Peter, who had now attained to the age of feventeen, with equal fagacity and refolution attacked the princess fuddenly at Moscow, defeated her partisans, and, making her a prifoner, compelled her to retire within the walls of a monaftery. Iwan dying in the prefent year, Peter now reigned fole emperor, and foon gave indications of anardent and afpiring mind, formed for vaft and boundless enterprise.

The court of Versailles having renewed its overtures for peace, and even delegated M. de Callieres to the states-general with specific proposals; the maritime powers, alarmed at the defection of the duke of Savoy, feemed at length to lend a serious car to the propofitions of France. And on the 3d of September, 1696, their high mightineffes, with the approbation of the king of England, came to a folemn resolution," that, in confequence of the conceffions of France to the Imperial demands, matters were now brought to fuch a crifis, that in concert with their allies the mediation of Sweden might be accepted." But Spain and the emperor in haughty terms fignified their opinion, that the declarations of France were not yet fufficiently explicit— they infifted upon the re-establishment of the treaty of Weftphalia in all its parts; and they added this extraordinary condition to their acceptance of the mediation, "that the king of Sweden, as guarantee of the treaty of Weftphalia,

phalia, fhould join his forces to those of the allies, in cafe France fhould refufe to accede to the terms propofed." The profpect of a peace, therefore, was to appearance still very distant; and the king of England, after adjusting measures for the next campaign, returned early in the month of October to England.

During his abfence in the fummer, a feffion of parliament had been held in Scotland-Lord Murray, created earl of Tullibardine, prefiding as high commiffioner. A fpirit of loyalty feemed to pervade the whole of their proceedings; the fupplies demanded by the court were granted without difficulty, and an affociation fimilar to that of England was adopted with equal unanimity.

Ireland this year fustained a great public lofs by the death of the lord-deputy Capel. Peace and order seemed, however, in a great measure restored. The government of that kingdom was transferred to fir Charles Porter, lordchancellor, and the earls of Montrath and Drogheda, as lords-juftices. A feffion of parliament being held, the af sociation of the English legislature was figned by all the members, excepting one Sanderson, who was thereupon indignantly expelled the house.

On the 20th of October, 1696, the day fixed for the meeting of the parliament of England, the king acquainted the two houses, "that overtures for peace had been made on the part of the enemy. But," said he, "I am fure we fhall agree in opinion, that the only way of treating with France is with our fwords in our hands." In reply to which, the commons prefented an addrefs framed in the fpirit of Roman magnanimity. "This is the eighth year," say they, "in which your majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the commons in parliament affembled, have affisted your majesty with large fupplies for carrying on a just and neceffary war in defence of our religion, preservation of our laws, and vindication of the rights and liberties of the people of England, which we have hitherto preserved, and

by the bleffing of GOD on your majefty's conduct and good government will steadfastly maintain, and entail on our pofterity. This has coft the nation much blood and treafure but the hopes of accomplishing fo great and glorious a work have made your fubjects cheerfully fupport the charge. And to fhew your majesty and all christendom, that the commons of England will not be amused or diverted from their firm refolutions of obtaining by war a fafe and honorable peace; we do, in the name of all those we represent, renew our affurances to your majefty, that this house will support your majefty and your government against all your enemies both at home and abroad; and that they will effectually affist you in the profecution and earrying on the prefent war against France." The king, highly pleased and gratified with thefe affurances, replied in warm terms," that the continuance of their zeal and affection was what of all things in the world he valued moft; and that he would make the good and fafety of the nation the principal care of his life.”

The profeffions of the commons by no means evaporated in mere words. The estimates of the neceffary supplies being laid before the house by Mr. Montague; it appeared that near fix millions were wanting for the current expences of the year; and upwards of five millions of floating debt, occafioned by the deficiency of former funds and taxes, were to be provided for. Meeting the embarrassments of the moment with firmness and fortitude, they came to a resolution," that the supplies for the service of the year 1697 fhould be raifed within the year," which was effected by a land-tax of three fhillings in the pound, and a very heavy capitation tax, in addition to the existing, burdens. The arrear of 5,160,000l, was provided for by loans and exchequer bills, which till this time, from the delay and uncertainty of payment, had fuffered an enormous depreciation. But the moft vigorous and effectual measures were now taken for the restoration of the public credit.

An:

An interest of 71. 128. per cent. was allowed upon these bills; they were taken by the government as money, in the payment of all duties excepting the land-tax; and the Commissioners of the Treasury were authorised by parliament to contract with such individuals or bodies corporate as they thought fit to exchange.thefe bills or tallies for ready money at a certain premium; which was first fixed at ten per cent. but afterwards funk to four; till in a fhort time, to the astonishment of the public, who had fo long seen them at 20, 30 or 40 per cent. discount, they rose to par, in confequence of these very easy and obvious, but at this period novel and marvellous, operations of finance. There were, nevertheless, those who mourned in fecret to fee national profufion and extravagance organifed into a system, and millions upon millions lavished and diffipated, as if the national wealth could never be exhaufted, and the heartsblood of the public were deftined eternally to feed the infatiable vulture of war.

So anxious were the commons to retrieve and establish parliamentary and public credit, that they condefcended to take very great alarm at a trifling jesting paragraph in a certain periodical paper published at this time, called The Flying Poft, expreffed as follows: "We hear that when the exchequer notes are given out upon the capitation fund, whofoever shall defire fpecie on them will have it, at five and a half per cent. of the fociety of gentlemen that have fubfcribed to advance fome hundreds of thousands of pounds." They voted this paffage to be "a malignant infinuation in order to destroy the credit and currency of the exchequer bills." They ordered the printer, John Salisbury, to be taken into custody; and gave leave to bring in a bill to prevent the writing, printing, or publishing any news without licenfe. And yet, when fuch a bill was prefented by Mr. Pulteney, it was, to the everlasting honor of the house, thrown out before a fecond reading; because, though they saw the mischiefs of the liberty of the press,

they

they knew not where to fix the power of restraint. This was happily the last attempt ever made to fetter the freedom of the prefs, that palladium of our liberties. Soon after the Restoration, an act, founded chiefly on the ftar-chamber decree of 1637, passed, to subject the prefs to the reftrictive power of a licenfer; but this, as the celebrated Blackftone obferves, "is to fubject all freedom of fentiment to the prejudices of one man, and make him the arbitrary and infallible judge of all controverted points in learning, religion, and government. The will of individuals ought to be left free; the abuse only of that free will is the proper object of legal punishment." The Licensing Act determined in 1679, but was revived by ftatute in the first year of James II. and continued till 1692, when it was again renewed for two years, and finally expired in 1694, when the prefs became properly free, as it will now in all probability remain till the conftitution of England, already shaken to its centre, fhall perish with it.*

The attention of the house was for a great part of the sesfion engaged and almost engrossed by a business, which, in the view of a distant posterity, can by no means appear of that moment and importance which it accidentally and artificially acquired in confequence of the temporary warmth of political contention. Sir John Fenwick, a man deeply concerned in the late confpiracy, had been apprehended in the month of June at New Romney, in his way to France. He had been accompanied during part of his flight by one Webber,

"It feems not more reasonable," fays Dr. Johnson, "to leave the right of printing unrestrained, because writers may be afterwards cenfured, than it would be to fleep with doors unbolted, because by our laws we can hang a thief." Thus, by a dangerous illufion are wit and metaphor too often by men of parts fubftituted for grave and folid argument. In the prefent inftance, the edge of the remark has been with great felicity turned against the remarker, by the counter observation, “ that, to suffer no book to be published without a license is tyranny as abfurd as it would be to fuffer no traveller to pass along the highway without producing a certificate that he is not a robber.”—Hayley's Life of MILTON.