tinguish'd themselves for their Infidelity, and had
declared themselves Enemies to the Religion of the Country, by which
means the whole Order lost their Sway with the People; besides which,
the richer Sort amongst them were generally reputed to be much addicted
to Gluttony.

Of the Policy and Government of the _Cacklogallinians_.

The _Cacklogallinians_ boast mightily of their being the only Nation in
the World which enjoys Liberty, and therefore, upon all Occasions, they
talk of, and treat the rest of the World as Slaves. They pretend to
maintain, that their Monarchy being elective, their Emperors are no more
than their Servants, and that they can exercise no longer a Power, than
they are pleas'd to give it them, which is just as much as will serve to
put the Laws in Execution, and keep the great Machine of Government in
good Order; and that whenever he attempts to transgress those Bounds,
they make no Ceremony of turning him out, and setting up another in his
Room. But, by what I could judge by my own proper Observation, this
appeared to me, to be no more than an empty Boast (for indeed the
_Cacklogallinians_ are apt to run into an Extravagance of Vanity,
whenever they speak of themselves) for in my Time my Friend and Patron
the first Minister acted as absolutely, and dependently of all Creatures
(except of the _Squabbaws_) as the most arbitrary Prince, who
acknowledges no Law but his own Will and Pleasure.

It is, true there is a Council consisting of a great Number of Persons,
in whose Name all great Affairs relating to the Civil Government are
transacted, the Members of which Council are call'd _Bable-Cypherians_;
but it is no Secret, that the first Minister causes whom he pleases to
sit in this Council, as well as turns out any Person he dislikes; and
while I was amongst them, there happen'd some Instances of what I
maintain; and he contrived to have several whom he suspected of being
Enemies to his Family, or to his Administration, to be disgraced from
the said Council, and others appointed in their Places: Nay, I have
often seen several worthless Birds paying their Court to the first
Minister, and solliciting him to be admitted into the Great Council,
in the same manner that they begg'd for an Employment; yet at the same
time, if you were to talk to a _Cacklogallinian_, he wou'd pretend to
persuade you, that no Fowl of any Rank or Quality whatsoever can ever
sit in the said Council, but by the Majority of f