an earthquake, and not to fear the falling of a tile. In death all sorts of dyings are equal. What imports it, whether one single stone kills thee, or a whole mountain oppress thee? Death consists in the soul's leaving of the body, which often happens by slight accidents. But Christians, in all the miseries and dangers of humane life, have great comforts to lay hold on; which are, a good conscience, hope of glory, conformity unto divine will, and immutation and example of Jesus Christ; from these four he shall in life have happiness, in death security, and in eternity a reward. How unjust then was the complaint of Theophrastus, that nature hath given longer life unto many birds and beasts, than unto man. If our lives were less troublesome, he had some reason; but it being so fraught with miseries, he might rather think that life the happiest which was shortest: it is better to be young and die well, than to be old and die ill. This voyage being of necessity, the felicity of it consists not in being long, but in being prosperous; and at the last we arrive in the desired port. Therefore, supposing so many miseries, we cannot complain of God for giving us a short life, but of our selves, for having made it a bad one."

Since the above was extracted from the volume of Royal Tracts in Mr. Isted's library, I have met with a small pamphlet entitled

"The pious Sentiments of the late King James II. of blessed Memory, upon divers Subjects of Piety. Written with his own Hand, and found in his Cabinet after his Death." Lond. 1704. 12mo.

Some of the sentiments which this opusculum contains are so consonant with those of the present editor, and the reprehensions that accompany them apply so strongly to certain fashionable excesses of our own time, that he hopes to be excused for introducing a short citation. It is taken from "Seasonable Instructions for the Regulation of our Lives in a Christian Way."

"I have observed the playhouses, and other places of dangerous pleasures, as much frequented and even throng'd with company upon holy days as on other days in the week; as if the other parts of the week were not more than sufficient for innocent and honest recreations. By frequenting plays or other public assemblies of that nature, I am sure very many thereby have lost innocency, and not one has bettered himself and gain'd virtue.

"The same reason obliges us to forbear romances. Those who have the charge of young people, especially if they are girls, ought never to suffer the reading of such books. If no worse effect were to be apprehended, it is a vast loss of time. Besides that, it makes strong and lasting impressions upon the heart; fills it with vain, sorry, and foolish imaginations, and often with thoughts very criminal, and which are the beginnings of great evils. Let them rather be employed in the reading of history, which is profitable and pleasant.

"In fine, we must not be dismay'd nor dishearten'd in the pursuit of our duty, nor retarded in the good way which we have begun, for the railleries and

mockeries of the world. Let us courageously advance in the paths of perfection. Let us continually step forward, and every day gain some new degree of virtue in the course which we have undertaken. very dangerous to grow slack or lose ground."

Its

Mr. Seward has published some account of this monarch during his visit to the university of Oxford, from a letter of Dr. Sykes; and he has added several anecdotes from M. Miffon's diary of the times, in the second volume of his entertaining collections, edit. 4th; to which the reader is referred.]

[WA

QUEEN MARY II.

As entered in Mr. Gyll's copy of Royal and Noble Authors as a manuscript addition, from the insignificant consideration which follows:

"Sir Roger L'Estrange was in the commission of the peace for Westminster or Middlesex, during the reign of king Charles the second, and his brother; but probably did not continue so after the revolution, as queen Mary seemed to show great contempt of him, making the following anagram on his name:

Roger L'Estrange;

Lying strange Roger.

"The compiler of his life in the Biog. Brit. (vol. v. p. 2927, note T.) says he had this from the inform⚫ation of a lady living in 1752"."

The following anecdote of this princess is related in the preface to a Satyre upon King William, 1703. When reflections were once made before queen Mary of the sharpness of some historians who had left

QUEEN ELEANOR, the wife of Henry the fourth, has an equal title to the preceding for admission, as two Latin epistles addressed by her to pope Alexander, and to cardinal Jacinto, are contained in Spicilegio Dacherii, tom. ii. p. 452; though it is probable that these epistles were only written in the queen's name by her secretary, as has been suggested by David Irving, esq. the faithful chronicler of the Scotish poets, who inspected the volume in the advocates library, Edinburgh.