be accounted equal to Mr. Coxe, nor are these memoirs of Bolingbroke worthy to be ranked with those of his great rival, Sir Robert Walpole, yet they deserve to be read with attention, and generally with approbation. It could hardly be supposed a priori that a book could be so interesting, which is on the whole rather favourable to a man who has made himself obnoxious, on many accounts, to just and severe censure. Such men as Lord Bolingbroke are always the subjects of opposite opinions. By Pope he was extolled as the greatest man in the world, either in his own time, or with posterity; and he was hated not only by Sir Robert Walpole, the Whigs, and the dissenters, but also by the Earl of Oxford, Bishop Warburton, Dr. Johnson, and many others, to whom his Toryism would be no objection. Their hatred can be no cause of wonder, because he was governed by those dispositions which provoke hostilities, and involve a man in quarrels; which make him always at war with others, and never at peace with himself. His talents were of that dangerous sort which do most harm to their possessor; and the general effect of his sayings and doings, in every place of his residence, and in every part of his life, was to raise up enemies, and to exasperate their resentment. Whatever may be said, by his admirers and partisans, in praise of his genius and learning, the eloquence of his speeches, and the superiority of his writings, he who reads and considers the whole information about him, will be convinced that his unblushing wickedness, his insatiable ambition, his mischievous turbulence, his overweening pride, and his rancorous malignity, justify a strong aversion to his character, and furnish an efficacious antidote to his principles. The testimony of Lady Montague, which resulted from certain knowledge, will be an appropriate conclusion to this sketch. "Lord Bolingbroke is a glaring proof how far vanity can blind a man, and how easy it is to varnish over to one's self the most criminal conduct. He declares he always loved his country, though he confesses he endeavoured to betray her to Popery and slavery; and loved his friends, though he abandoned them in distress, with all the blackest circumstances of treachery." "I own I have small regard for him as an author, and the highest contempt for him as a man. He came into the world greatly favoured both by nature and fortune, blest with a noble birth, heir to a large estate, endowed with a strong constitution, and, as I have heard, a beautiful figure, high spirits, a good memory, and a lively apprehension, which was cultivated by a learned education. All these glorious advantages being left to the direction of a judgment stifled by unbounded vanity, he dishonoured his birth, lost his estate, ruined his reputation, and destroyed his health, by a wild pursuit of eminence in trifles. I think I may reasonably despise the understanding of one who conducts himself in such a manner as naturally produces such lamentable consequences, and continues in the same destructive paths to the end of a long life, ostentatiously boasting of morals and philosophy in print, and with equal ostentation bragging of the scenes of low debauchery in public conversation, though deplorably weak both in mind and body, and his virtue and his vigour in a state of non-existence." Letter to the Countess of Bute, July 20, 1755. WASHINGTON. "His career has few parallels for genuine patriotism, true wisdom, and solid worth." Dr. Aikin. The first English settlers in North America were driven thither by persecution. Laud and his associates punished all nonconformity to their standard, by pains and penalties, which were inflicted with such severity, that the victims of them were induced to leave their native country, and to seek an asylum in a foreign land. Great were the hardships which they suffered on their arrival on the American coast. The fatigues of their voyage brought on distempers; and when they came ashore, and were forced to lie in booths and tents, exposed to the wind and weather, a considerable number of them died. Their stock of provisions failed before they received farther supplies from England, by which they were reduced to great straits. The country, which was full of woods and thickets, exhibited a gloomy, cheerless aspect; and they had great apprehensions from the hostility of the natives. There they found rest; many of their brethren followed them to escape suffering; and their situation became more comfortable by their perseverance in labour, and the success which crowned their exertions. They increased, and multiplied, and replenished the earth on which their lot was cast, and, in course of time, became flourishing colonies. Their towns and villages were populous; the circumstances of those who were thrifty and industrious were easy and plentiful; their soil was well cultivated; and their commerce extended and advanced. But they did not forget the land of their fathers and of their nativity; nor could length of distance, nor lapse of time, alienate their hearts from its people. When they spoke of going to England, they always called it going home; and some of the first settlers cherished the hope of returning, up to the age of fourscore. They were partial to all persons who came from England; all English goods and English fashions were in great vogue; and most of their counties, towns, villages, and houses, were called by English names. earliest recollections and strongest attachments were associated with the dear country from which the cruelty of Laud, and the despotism of the Stuarts, had driven them. Their The relation between a state and its colonies was compared to that of a mother and her children; but when the children grew up, they began to have a will and a way of their own; and when the parent gave commands and imposed discipline for the purpose of holding them in continued subjection, they stood up for themselves, and opposed her as a step-mother who sacrificed their welfare to her own interests. By the |