Alliance with the King, my Mafter, and do not. fuffer A. C. your felves to be feared by the unfair Defcription that is 1706. given you of his Loffes. Whatever they are, They do not difcompofe his great Mind; They do not difturb his Councils; They do not exhauft his Treafures They do not cool the Zeal of his Subjects; He will not grow weary of Combating for the Liberty of Europe; and he will not be wanting in any thing to preferve yours, if it ever should be attack'd. This, my Lords, is what he has commanded me to declare to you affuring you of his powerful Protection, and of his federal and ever inviolable Friendship.

The Canton of Bern refented fo much Monfieur de Puifieux's publishing the Draught of a Memorial, which Monfieur de Mellarede defign'd to prefent to the Cantons, (mention'd in the foregoing Speech). that they wrote the following Letter to that Mi- The Canton nister.

Moft Excellent Lord,

WE E were perfuaded, when your Excellency

communicated to us by a Perfon of Con'fidence, the Memorial of the Minifter of Savoy intercepted in Italy, that your Excellency had no other Design in it, but to communicate the true Sentiments of that Minifter with refpect to us, with the Views he had propos'd to himself in his Negotiations, and the Methods he was to take, in order to fucceed in them; fo that we might take neceffary and convenient Precautions to prevent any thing that might be prejudicial to the Intereft of our State: And had your Excellency ftop'd there, 'we fhould not have fail'd of returning you Thanks. "In the mean time we cannot conceal, that we look upon it with a quite different Afpect, fince we perceive that your Excellency has not only printed that Memorial, with feveral Reflections and fome Expreflions which we cannot but refent, but that you have also publish'd the fame here, and through all Swifferland.

Indeed, we could have wifh'd that the Minister of Savoy had never wrote fuch a Memorial, as evidently fhews, that he does not underftand our Conftitutions fo well as he imagines: But we alfo per

of Bern's Letter to the French Ambaga dor.

A. C. 1706.

6

ceive thereby, that Foreign Minifters who refide in Swifferland, give, many times, provoking Impreffions of our Nation to their Mafters, and endeavour to do it ill Offices; and when they cannot fucceed in their Negotiations, they throw the Blame upon the Laudable Cantons; but this we refer to the Almighty, who is the Protector of Innocence and Truth: For we cannot hinder 'Foreign Minifters to write and report what they pleafe to their Princes and Superiors, or to inform them contrary to Matter of Fact. As fuch we look. upon this intercepted Memorial of the, Minifter, of Savoy, who, in all probabality, wrote it as a fecret Relation to the Prince, his Mafter; and tho' indeed it be ill founded, difobliging and difadvantageous to us, it appears, however, that the Author had Difcretion enough to conceal it, and that it is against his Will, it fell into the Hands of Stangers, or was publish'd.

On the contrary, we have reafon to be very much furpriz'd, that your Excellency did not better confider before you printed or publifh'd the Memorial aforefaid, with your Reflections; for tho' your Excellency had not thought fit to fhew any Regard for our State in that Matter, yet we think you ought to have avoided it, in confideration of the troublefom and dangerous Confequences that might attend. fuch a Publication; and fo much the more, that your Excellency being known to be a Perfon of confummate Experience, and great Learning, you must needs perfectly underftand the Refpect due from Publick Minifters towards Kings, Princes, and Free-States; befides your Excellency is not ignorant, that in all Ages the beft govern'd Monarchies and Republicks have had their own Faults; fo that your Excellency is able to judge how much the Honour and Reputation of Sovereign Princes and States might fuffer, were it allow'd publick Minifters to expofe them thus, with fo much Contempt, on the great Theatre of the World, and openly in Print to publish the Domeftick and Perfonal 6 Affairs of thofe Princes and States, with whom they refide, and in this manner to discover to all

the World their Real or Imaginary Faults or A. C. 'Weakneffes. 1706.

It is eafie to perceive that this must produce Contempt of higher Powers, Mifunderstandings betwixt Neighbours, Troubles, inteftine Divifions, and fuch other fatal Effects. This is fuch a Thing as no Sovereign would ever allow in his own Minifters, and much lefs order them to do that to others, which he would take as the greatest Affront "if done to himself.

،

Thefe are the weighty and juft Confiderations which incline us to believe, that if his Moft Chriftian Majefties more great and important Affairs had allow'd him to caft his Eye upon that Memorial, and the Reflections join'd to it, he would certainly never have approv'd that you fhould have commu'nicated the fame to us,and much lefs that you should "have Printed, and Publifhed them, fince thofe Reflections tend to give a very contemptible Idea of our State, which has the Honour notwithstanding to be ftrictly allied with his Majefty; And fince they fpeak alfo of an Irruption into our Country, tho we always thought that the Treaty of a perpetual Peace, betwixt us and the Crown of France, ought to have protected us against all Hoftilities on his Part, and that the effectual and Important Services which the Crown has receiv'd from us on many 'Occafions deferv'd better. In fhort, thofe Re'flections meddle with our Domeftick Affairs, and that in fuch a manner, as to ftir up dangerous Di'vifions among Ourfelves; and what touches us yet more, tend to fow Jealoufie and Miftruft amongst our Dear Allies against us, as if there were fome among us capable of defigning to break the Helvetick Union; of difturbing the Peace of our. Country, and of invading the Sovereignty of the other Laudable Cantons; Nay, as if we had a Defign to imploy for that end the Superiority of Forces, which the Reflections afcribe to us, tho' we thought we had given convincing Proofs, ou feveral Occafions, that we never had the leaft Inclination to make ufe of thofe pretended Forces, fo much defpifed by the Reflections, to offend any of our Dear Allies and Confederates, or to invade their Rights and Sovereignties; but that on the M

con

A. C.

contrary. we referve them only to make ufe of 1706. them, with God's Affiftance, against thofe who 'fhall attempt to deftroy our common Liberty, and the Helvetick Union, which our Ancestors and We have fo carefully entertain'd and preferv'd.

"Therefore we moft earnestly pray, that your Excellency would, for the time to come, forbear fuch Infinuations against our State, which we cannot but refent, may be of dangerous Confequence; and fo far from establishing Union, Peace and Tranquility, that, on the contrary, they will be an infallible Occafion of Discord and Mifunderftanding. And as, on our Part, we have always made it our chief Care Faithfully and Religioufly to obferve the Alliance which we have with the 'Crown of France, as well as the Union with our Dear Allies and Confederates of the Laudable Helvetick Body, We have ground to hope that his moft Chriftian Majefty, and our faid Dear Allies, will not be wanting to do the like to us: And therefore we expect that your Excellency will for the time to come, give us no caufe for fuch Complaints, but that you will rather employ your good Offices, that the Arrears of our Penfions, and other Debts 'due to us, may be paid us according to our Treaties. This would be a Way, not only to confirm our Fæderal Amity with the Crown of France, but alfo to augment it: And this we fhall have Reafon to look upon as a fincere Proof of the Good Will which your Excellency has fo often affured us of, and carefully lay hold on all Occafions to teftify to your Excellency, that, &c.

In this Critical Juncture, an Extraordinary Affembly of the Grandees of Spain, was held at Madrid, Monfieur to whom Monfieur Amelot, the French Ambaffador, Amelot's made the following Speech.

Speech to

the Gran- Illuftrious Grandees,

dees of

Spain.

Have call'd this Illuftrious Affembly together, by the King my Mafter's Orders, to know 'your Excellencies true Sentiments, after the TWO 'DISGRACES that have befallen the two Crowns, both in Catalonia and Flanders. The King, my Mafter, complaining of the inconfiderable Afliftance he receives from you, has oblig'd me to call

⚫ this

this Council, to tell you, That the King his Grand- A. C. Son, having by Right of Blood, been call'd to the 1706. Crown of Spain, He does not pretend to maintain him against the Difpofitions, which feveral of your Excellencies may have for the Arch-Duke, who comes without Right, with open Force, to trouble the Repofe of the Monarchy. If his Catholick Majefty, a Prince fo Gracious, whom God has given you, fhould not find a Place in all the Hearts of this Nation, having attempted nothing against the Laws and Religion of the Kingdom; how fhall it be believ'd, that a Nation fo Chriftian and Catholick can fide with an Ufurper, accompanied with 'a Number of Hereticks, who endeavour his Settlement only by the Over-turning of Altars? The King, my Mafter, preferring God's Worship before all Worldly Crowns, would fooner confent to the King, his Grand-Son's RETURN, than be the Caufe of all the Sacriledges that are committed in the Invafion of this Monarchy: wherefore I be feech your Excellencies to be plain with me, and to let me know the true Sentiments you have for your Prince. This Speech being ended, the Duke of Medina Celi, reprefented the Grievances of the Spanish Nation; complaining in particular, That the Administration of the Treafury was under the Direction of a French Man: That Arbitrary Courfes had been used against fome Grandees; And that the Trade to the West-Indies, the only Riches of Spain, was wholly engrofs'd by France. Mon fieur Amelot anfwer'd, That the King, his Mafter, had given him Power, to affure their Excellencies, That his Majefty would redrefs all their Grie vances, and remedy the Inconveniencies, of which they were apprehenfive; in all which, he would abfolutely follow their Excellencies Advice. Upon thefe Affurances, the Duke of Medina Celi reply'd, in the Name of the Affembly, That the King of Spain might depend upon it, That they would facrifice their Lives and Fortunes to fupport him, in order to which, they would maintain 40000 Men at their own Expence, without diminishing ⚫his Revenue; And that he might with all fecurity, return to Madrid, where his Catholick Majefty would receive Demonftrations of their Fidelity.

M 2

Then