He, in infinite mercy, opened the eyes of the nation, and brought many to renounce in practice what they had previously too much asserted and pressed as their favourite principle. He put it into the hearts of the chief persons in the nation, to implore the assistance of the Prince of Orange, the sovereign's son-in-law; who, as Bishop Burnet asserts, carried in his heart the words he ordered to be put on his standard-THE PROTESTANT RELIGION, AND THE LIBERTIES OF ENGLAND! This great and noble-spirited prince, did, at the earnest and reiterated entreaties of the most enlightened and best friends of the nation put his life in his hand, and expose himself, for our rescue, not only to the perils of the sea, but also to those more dangerous storms which Popish fury and revenge would not fail to raise against him on the shore. And God was pleased to bless the generous enterprise with the desired success.

This prince set sail from Helvoetsluys, with a fleet of more than four hundred vessels, and an army of above fourteen thousand men; and, after a voyage of two days, landed at Broxholme, in Torbay, on the fifth of November, 1688, which was the anniversary of the gunpowder plot. The manner in which this deliverance was effected, proves that the hand of God was in it. Though it was not miraculous, yet, without contradiction, it was marvellous. A wind blew which exactly served the Prince of Orange, and, with this wind, there was a fog which prevented his ships from being discovered by the English fleet, then consisting of thirty-seven men of war, and seventeen fire-ships, which lay ready near Harwich to attack the Dutch, had they seen or met with them. Thus the fleet, which brought over our deliverer, large as it was, made its way without being discovered! Bishop Burnet observes, that as soon as the wind had

landed the Dutch at Torbay, it presently wheeled about into another quarter! Indeed, many more wonderful instances of the interference of a superintending Providence, in this enterprising undertaking, might be noticed.

This deliverance was accomplished with singular dispatch; for, from the landing of the Prince of Orange at Torbay, to the abdication of King James II. was only forty-three days! And though so soon completed, yet it was effected with the effusion of very little blood. It is remarkable, that no more divine severity was mixed with so great a mercy. This much enhanced the blessing, and put an early credit on the honoured instrument employed; for the amazing facility with which the whole was managed, served to illustrate the goodness of his The chief reason of this was, that God took the hearts of men into his own hands, and turned them as he pleased: he animated the friends of the Revolution, and dispirited its enemies; so that, from the aspect of the whole progress of things, it became evident to the world it was the Lord's doing.

cause.

This astonishing event filled the hearts of all Protestants with a lively joy. King James II. found himself intimidated, his` counsels broken, his armies unfaithful, and his people resolved, at any rate, to get rid of a Popish prince, and the religion of Rome together. Soon after which, the unhappy king, who had been grossly misled by Popish councils, and those superstitious and tyrannical principles which had been infused into him, during his exile among Papists, abdicated his throne, and fled to France. Hereupon, the Lords and Commons of England, regularly convened, did, in gratitude, make their deliverer their king, and placed him on the throne as the guardian of British liberty, and the defender of

the Protestant faith: from whence we date the REVOLUTION. Thus, in a short time, the Protestant religion and legal constitution, which lay bound as a sacrifice on the altars of Popery, were rescued and restored; and Protestants were delivered from the frightful prospect of either dying at the stake, or living slaves. The Prince of Orange became our William III. of immortal memory! At whose approach, dangers vanished, Popery stole away in silence, the throne was filled with the consent of a free people, and the laws returned to their regular course. King William's undertaking was crowned with almost miraculous success, and the voice of the nation proclaimed the mercy of the deliverer.

King William was averse from persecution. He therefore began his reign by attempting to repeal those laws which enjoined uniformity of worship; and though he could not entirely succeed in his liberal design, yet a toleration was granted to such Dissenters as should take the oath of allegiance, and hold no private conventicles. Many were the blessings enjoyed under his reign, for he always continued a prince of known justice, honour, clemency, and goodness. If the Dissenters did not enjoy all the advantages they expected, this was owing more to the iniquity of the times, than to any inclination in the king. Those whom he had obliged, by putting them into a capacity of serving him, and promoting the interests of the nation, abused his favour to quite a contrary end; they often disconcerted his measures, betrayed his purposes, and clogged the wheels of government.

The apprehensions of the Papists concerning the Revolution, were very unpleasant to themselves. It could not be expected that they would view it without an evil

eye. They soon exerted themselves to represent it as an odious thing, and united their energies to deprive the nation of the blessings resulting from it. So early as the 27th of February following, King James sailed from Brest with a considerable number of French troops, for Ireland, and he landed at Kingsale on the 12th of March. Here the Papists carried on their designs for some time with a high hand: but, afterwards, by the good hand of God on King William, he beat King James in the field, and drove him again out of the kingdom.

But the spirit of Popery and rebellion continued to work: the Papists used all their arts and influence to restore the abdicated king, and replace him upon the British throne. Hence it was, that when King William was in Ireland, the Jacobites in England concerted measures with France to restore King James, and laid a plan for that purpose, which had much the appearance of succeeding. They agreed that part of the French fleet should sail up the river Thames; the Jacobites in London at that instant should make an insurrection, seize the queen, and some of the chief ministers. Another part of the fleet was to land eight thousand men at Torbay, and then sail into the Irish seas, and prevent the return of King William and his forces. But, under God, the vigilance of the queen defeated this design.

Various methods were taken by the Papists and Jacobites to subvert the happy Revolution; some of which were vile and odious. Many falsehoods were contrived and spread abroad, to create jealousies in the minds of the people. Honest and brave actions were misrepresented, and seeds of discontent sown every where. Seditious libels were scattered in every direction through the kingdom, and large sums of money artfully applied to gain such as loved the wages of unrighteousness. At

length, things arrived at such a crisis, that the Jacobites, thinking of nothing less than an invasion, in 1692, attempted it. King James, in pursuance of their scheme, came to La Hague, with a considerable army, and there lay ready to embark for England. To facilitate this, the French king gave orders to Marshal Torville to fight the English fleet, before it was joined by the Dutch; and on the success they promised themselves in this engagement, the fate of England seemed to depend. And here God signally interposed, for the Dutch and English fleets providentially joined; and on the 19th of May, engaged the enemy, burnt and shattered their ships, and obtained a decisive victory. Admiral Russel was so successful, as to pursue great part of the fleet into the harbour of La Hague; and having possessed himself of such of their ships as lay nearest the shore, he drove the French, with their own guns, from their platforms and batteries; and did all this in sight of the camp which lay ready to invade England.

This disappointment was sensibly felt by King James; and now almost any one would have thought the Revolution established. But after various unsuccessful efforts, in the 7th year of the reign of King William, there was formed the most execrable conspiracy of assassinating the king's person, and invading the kingdom. This villany had been more than once attempted abroad, but now it was to be performed at home. Sir George Barkley came over from France, with a commission from King James, to attack and seize the king in his winter quarters. Several more came over, and conspired with others in this country, how to effect this bloody design. At last they agreed that a lane near Brentford should be the scene of this tragedy, and that it should be perpetrated when the king returned from hunting. But the ever-blessed God