: phen correct his former bad conduct? Did he dismiss his odious foreign favourite? Did he discharge his lawless foreign hirelings, who had been so long the scourage and the reproach of England? Have they not lived ever fince upon free quarter, by plundering our houfes and burning our cities? And now, to complete our miseries, a new army of foreigners, Angevins, Gafcons, Poitevins, I know not who, are come over with Henry Plantagenet, the son of Matilda and many more, no doubt, will be called to affift him, as foon as ever his affairs abroad will permit; by whofe help, if he be victorious, England muft pay the price of their fervices: our lands, our honours must be the hire of thefe rapacious invaders. But fuppofe we should have the fortune to conquer for Stephen, what will be the confequence? Will victory teach him moderation? Will he learn from fecurity that regard to our liberties, which he could not learn from danger? A'as! the only fruit of our good fuccefs will be this; the eftates of the earl of Leicester and others of our countrymen, who have now quitted the party of the king, will be forfeited; and new confifcations will accrue to William of Ipres. But let us not hope, that, be our victory ever so complete, it will give any lafting peace to this kingdom. Should Henry fall in this battle, there are two other brothers to fucceed to his claim, and fupport his faction, perhaps with lefs merit, but certainly with as much ambition as he. What fhall we do then to free ourselves from all thefe misfortunes? -Let us prefer the intereft of our country to that of our party, and to all those paffions, which are apt, in civil diffenfions, to inflame zeal into madness, and render men the blind ftruments of thofe yery evils, which they fight to avoid. Let us prevent all the crimes and all the horrors tha t that attend a war of this kind, in which conquest itself is full of calamity, and our most happy victories deserve to be celebrated only by tears. Nature herself is dismayed, and fhrinks back from a combat, where every blow that we strike may murder a friend, a relation, a parent. Let us hearken to her voice, which commands us to refrain from that guilt. Is there one of us here, who would not think it a happy and glorious act, to fave the life of one of his countrymen ? What a felicity then, and what a glory, muft it be to us all, if we fave the lives of thousands of Englishmen, that muft otherwife fall in this battle, and in many other battles, which, hereafter, may be fought on this quarrel? It is in our power to do fo—It is in our power to end the controverfy, both fafely and honourably; by an amicable agreement; not by the fword. Stephen may enjoy the royal dignity for his life, and the fucceffion may be fecured to the young duke of Normandy, with fuch a prefent rank in the state, as befits the heir of the crown. Even the bittereft enemies of the king muft acknowledge, that he is valiant, generous, and goodnatured; his warmeft friends cannot deny, that he has a great deal of rashness and indiscretion. Both may therefore conclude, that he fhould not be deprived of the royal authority, but that he ought to be reftrained from a further abuse of it; which can be done by no means, fo certain and effectual, as what I propofe; for thus his power will be tempered . by the prefence, the counfels, and influence of Prince Henry; who from his own interest in the weal of the kingdom which he is to inherit, will always have a right to interpofe his advice, and even his authority, if it be neceffary, against any future violation of our liberties; and to procure an effectual redress of our grievances, which we have hitherto fought in vain. If all the English in both armies unite, as I 2 I hope I hope they may, in this plan of pacification, they will be able to give the law to the foreigners, and oblige both the king and the duke to consent to it. This will fecure the public tranquillity, and leave no fecret stings of refentment, to rankle in the hearts of a fuffering party, and produce, future disturbances. As there will be no triumph, no infolence, no exclufive right to favour, on either fide, there can be no fhame, no anger, no uneafy defire of change. It will be the work of the whole nation; and all must wish to fupport what all have eftablifhed. The fons of Stephen indeed may endeavour to oppose it: but their efforts will be fruitless, and must end very foon, either in their fubmiffion, or their ruin. Nor have they any reasonable cause to complain. Their father himself did not come to the crown by hereditary right. He was elected in preference to a woman and an infant, who were deemed not to be capable of ruling a kingdom. By that election our allegiance is bound to him during his life but neither that bond, nor the reason for which we chose him, will hold, as to the choice of a fucceffor. Henry Plantagenet is now grown up to an age of maturity, and every way qualified to fucceed to the crown. He is the grandfon of a king whofe memory is dear to us, and the nearest heir male to him in the course of descent : `he appears to resemble him in all his good qualities, and to be worthy to reign over the Normans and English, whose nobleft blood, united, enriches his veins. Normandy has already fubmitted to him with pleafure. Why fhould we now divide that dutchy from England, when it is fo greatly the interest of our nobility to keep them always connected? If we had no other inducement to make us defire a reconcilation between him and Stephen, this would be fufficient. Our eftates in both countries will by that means be-secured, which otherwife otherwise we must forfeit, in the one or the other, while Henry remains poffeffed of Normandy: and it will not be an eafy matter to drive him from thence, even though we should compel him to retire from England. But, by amicably compounding his quarrel with Stephen, we shall maintain all our interests, private and public. His greatnefs abroad will increase the power of this kingdom; it will make us refpectable and formidable to France; England will be the head of all, thofe ample dominions, which extend from the Bitish ocean to the Pyrenean mountains. By governing, in his youth, fo many different ftates, he will learn to govern us, and come to the crown, after the decease of king Stephen, accomplished in all the arts of good policy. His mother has willingly refigned to him her pretenfions, or rather fhe ac knowledges that his are fuperior: we therefore can have nothing to apprehend on that fide. In every view, our peace, our fafety, the repofe of our confciences, the quiet and happiness of our pofterity, will be firmly eftablished by the means I propose. Let Stephen continue to wear the crown that we give him, as long as he lives; but after his death let it defcend to that prince, who alone can put an end to our unhappy divifions. If you approve my advice, and will empower me to treat in your names, I will immediately convey your defires to the king and the duke. CHA P. VIII. MR. PULTENEY'S SPEECH ON THE MOTION FOR SIR, W REDUCING THE ARMY. E have heard a great deal about parliamentary armies, and about an army continued from year to year; I have always been, Sir, and always fhall be, against a ftand. ing army of any kind: to me it is a terrible thing, whether under that of parliamentary or any other defignation; a standing army is ftill a ftanding army, whatever name it be called by; they are a body of men distinct from the body of the people; they are governed by different laws, and blind obedience, and an entire fubmiffion to the orders of their commanding officer is their only principle. The nations. around us, Sir, are already enslaved, and have been enslaved by thofe very means; by means of their standing armies they have every one loft their liberties; it is indeed impoffible that the liberties of the people can be preferved in any country where a numerous standing army is kept up. Shall we then take any of our measures from the examples of our neighbours? No, Sir, on the contrary, from their misfortunes we ought to learn to avoid those rocks upon which they have split. Ir fignifies nothing to tell me, that our army is commanded by fuch gentlemen as cannot be supposed to join in any meafures for enflaving their country; it may be fo; I hope it is fo; I have a very good opinion of many gentlemen now in the army; I believe thy would not join in any fuch meafures; but their lives are uncertain, nor can we be sure how long they may be continued in command; they may be all difmiffed in a moment, and proper tools of power put in their room. Befides, Sir, we know the paffions of men, we know how |
