FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   204   205   206   207   208   209   210   211   212   213   214   215   216   217   218   219   220   221   222   223   224   225   226   227   228  
229   230   231   232   233   234   235   236   237   238   239   240   241   242   243   244   245   246   247   248   249   250   251   252   253   >>   >|  
h republic; a third party for an aristocracy, and most of them all for some new fabric of their own contriving. But however, let us consider them as a party, and under those general tenets wherein they agreed, and which they publicly owned, without charging them with any that they pretend to deny. Then let us _Examine_ those principles of the Tories, which their adversaries allow them to profess, and do not pretend to tax them with any actions contrary to those professions: after which, let the reader judge from which of these two parties a prince hath most to fear; and whether her M[ajest]y did not consider the ease, the safety and dignity of her person, the security of her crown, and the transmission of monarchy to her Protestant successors, when she put her affairs into the present hands. Suppose the matter were now entire; the Qu[een] to make her choice, and for that end, should order the principles on both sides to be fairly laid before her. First, I conceive the Whigs would grant, that they have naturally no very great veneration for crowned heads; that they allow, the person of the prince may, upon many occasions, be resisted by arms; and that they do not condemn the war raised against King Charles the First, or own it to be a rebellion, though they would be thought to blame his murder. They do not think the prerogative to be yet sufficiently limited, and have therefore taken care (as a particular mark of their veneration for the illustrious house of Hanover) to clip it closer against next reign; which, consequently, they would be glad to see done in the present: not to mention, that the majority of them, if it were put to the vote, would allow, that they prefer a commonwealth before a monarchy. As to religion; their universal, undisputed maxim is, that it ought to make no distinction at all among Protestants; and in the word Protestant they include every body who is not a Papist, and who will, by an oath, give security to the government. Union in discipline and doctrine, the offensive sin of schism, the notion of a Church and a hierarchy, they laugh at as foppery, cant and priestcraft. They see no necessity at all that there should be a national faith; and what we usually call by that name, they only style the "religion of the magistrate."[3] Since the Dissenters and we agree in the main, why should the difference of a few speculative points, or modes of dress, incapacitate them from serving their prince and c
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   204   205   206   207   208   209   210   211   212   213   214   215   216   217   218   219   220   221   222   223   224   225   226   227   228  
229   230   231   232   233   234   235   236   237   238   239   240   241   242   243   244   245   246   247   248   249   250   251   252   253   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

prince

 

person

 
security
 

religion

 
monarchy
 

veneration

 

present

 

Protestant

 

pretend

 

principles


commonwealth

 
include
 

prefer

 

Protestants

 
universal
 
undisputed
 
distinction
 

aristocracy

 

illustrious

 
prerogative

sufficiently
 

limited

 

Hanover

 

republic

 
mention
 
closer
 

majority

 

Dissenters

 

magistrate

 

incapacitate


serving
 

points

 

difference

 

speculative

 

doctrine

 

offensive

 

schism

 

discipline

 

government

 
notion

Church

 
necessity
 
national
 

priestcraft

 

hierarchy

 
foppery
 

Papist

 
thought
 

successors

 
charging