helped to alienate
the duke from the tories, with whom he had been hitherto connected.

COMMERCE PROHIBITED BETWEEN HOLLAND, FRANCE, AND SPAIN.

In the beginning of January, the queen gave the house of commons to
understand, that the states-general had pressed her to augment her
forces, as the only means to render ineffectual the great and early
preparations of the enemy. The commons immediately resolved, that ten
thousand men should be hired, as an augmentation of the forces to act
in conjunction with the allies; but on condition that an immediate stop
should be put to all commerce and correspondence with France and Spain
on the part of the states-general. The lords presented an address to the
queen on the same subject, and to the same effect; and she owned
that the condition was absolutely necessary for the good of the whole
alliance. The Dutch, even after the declaration of war, had carried on
a traffic with the French; and at this very juncture Louis found it
impossible to make remittances of money to the elector of Bwaria in
Germany, and to his forces in Italy, except through the channel of
English, Dutch, and Geneva merchants. The states-general, though shocked
at the imperious manner in which the parliament of England prescribed
their conduct, complied with the demand without hesitation, and
published a prohibition of all commerce with the subjects of France and
Spain.

BILL FOR PREVENTING OCCASIONAL CONFORMITY.

The commons of this parliament had nothing more at heart than a bill
against occasional conformity. The tories affected to distinguish
themselves as the only true friends to the church and monarchy; and they
hated the dissenters with a mixture of spiritual and political disgust.
They looked upon these last as an intruding sect, which constituted
great part of the whig faction that extorted such immense sums of
money from the nation in the late reign, and involved it in pernicious
engagements, from whence it had no prospect of deliverance. They
considered them as encroaching schismatics that disgraced and endangered
the hierarchy; and those of their own communion, who recommended
moderation, they branded with the epithets of lukewarm christians,
betrayers, and apostates. They now resolved to approve themselves
zealous sons of the church, by seizing the first opportunity that was in
their power to distress the dissenters. In order to pave the way to
this persecution, sermons were preached,