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qualified to fit at the Helm, and undertake the Steerage of the Affairs of a Kingdom. For thefe Reafons amongst others, it is expedient for the Peace and Happiness of a Land, that its Prince be of High Birth and Noble Extraction: Hereby Princes have the advantage of other Men to govern aright, and are beft furnith'd with Art and Strength to weild and manage the weighty Concerns of the State, for their own Honour, and the Peoples Good.

II. Secondly, I proceed in the next place to apply the Affertion of the Wife-Man, in the Text, to our own Nation; by examining how far our Government refembles that, which He declares to be moft conducive to the happiness of a Nation.

lico lib.5.

And firft, whereas Kingly Government is requi fite hereto; This our Ifland of Great Britain has been, from the first Notices we can trace thereof until this time, under a Monarchical Form. The Cafar de Romans upon their Entrance, found the Southern bello galpart of it divided into feveral petty and independent Kingdoms; the Northern at that time was not fo well known; yet we never hear of any other than Kingly Government there. Upon their quitting their Conquefts, the Saxons foon enter'd, and erected an Heptarchy, or feven diftinét Kingdoms, which continued till about the beginning of the Ninth Century, when they were united into one. Thence unto the prefent time, under Saxons, Danes and Normans, Monarchy, and no other Form, has flourifh'd within this Realm. 'Tis true indeed, that about the middle of the aft Century,

there

were found amongst us wicked Men, Sons of Belial, fearing neither God, nor the King, who, out of a pretence of establifhing a more pure Religion, trans form'd themfelves like him, whose Agents they C 2

were

were, into Angels of Light, and overthrew all that was Good or Sacred.

Then was it that Monarchy lay bleeding, and, for about the Space of twelve Years, was forcibly kept out from its ancient Abode and Seat of refidence; and bleffed times, without doubt, they were; when every man, there being no King in our Ifrael, did that which was right in his own eyes; times of great Diforder and Confufion, unfetled and tumultuous, as appears by that Variety of Schemes and Models of Government, which, in the space of fo few years, did obtain, in a word, what thrô jealoufies and fuffpicions on the one hand, and fears of having their defigns detected on the other, the Nation never found reft or quiet, till Church and State were again fix'd upon their proper and refpective Bafis's, Epifcopacy and Monarchy.

And fuch is the prefent Conftitution of our Monarchy, as might well render it, when known and confider'd of, admirable in the judgment of all but thofe, whofe Spirits are fo low and abject, as to delight in their flavery; or fuch as have been train'd up in fuch nice, but miftaken Notions of freedom, as to think all Orders and Injunctions proceeding from a fingle Authority, without their Confent, as fo many encroachments upon their Liberty. The Prerogatives of our Monarchs are fufficient to render them Supreme and Sovereign with relation to their Subjects, and Great and Potent in the Eyes of Neighbouring Princes: on the other hand the priviledges of the People are fo very confiderable, that, if they know their own good, their Condition confidered as Subjects must be eafy to themfelves, and fuch as might be envied by thofe of other Nations. The Power of our Prince is fuch, that, while the Subject keeps himfelf

himself within the bounds of Duty and Allegiance, the Government cannot be Popular; and the Conceffions of former Reigns, which have pafs'd into Laws for the fecurity of the People, and thereby become fo many limits and boundaries to prevent the immoderate growth of Regal Power, and keep it from twelling to that degree, as to become altogether abfolute; thofe Conceflions, I fay, that have been confirm'd, ratified and establish'd by the Legiflative, are fo great and advantageous, that, while any refpect is paid to thofe Laws, there can be no fuch thing as Tyranny.

In fhort, the British Monarchy is fo well mix'd and temper'd, as from thence must arife a firm and vigorous Conftitution of the Body Politic; not fuch indeed, as will alway fecure it from being diftemper'd, not fuch as will conftantly preferve it from the danger of being convuls'd: For it is here as in the Body Natural, whofe Conftitution, let it be never fo robuft, found and healthful, is now and then by the combin'd force of some peccant and malignant Humors alway lurking within, affaulted and fhaken, and its regular motions difturb'd, and sometimes to that height doth the diforder proceed, as to loosen and diffolve the whole Frame and Fabrick of that noble and admirably contriv'd Machine, the Humane Body But, then, as the being fubject to Diseases, and Death, is no objection against the wife and excellent contrivance of Man's Body, for the feveral ends and purposes to which it was defign'd, fo neither ought the Miferies and Calamities that fome time: or other the best Conftituted Nation may undergoe,, be urg'd against its particular Form, fince in all Bo-. dies Politic, there are never wanting Members corrupt and unfound, Men of reftlefs and ungovernable; Spirits,

સ

Spirits, turbulent and malitious, factious and feditious, extremely fond of Innovations, and never contented under the prefent management of Affairs, let the Adminiftration be what it will. Whatever commotions then fhall arife from this caufe, to vex and disturb a well conftituted State or Community, to deftroy its peace and quiet, and put its foundations out of course, are to be charg'd on nothing elfe, but the follies and petulancies of men: Whatever mifchiefs may formerly have arifen within this our Kingdom, either from the bufie Plots and Machinations of ill-principled Men on the one hand, or from any falfe Steps that were taken, and Errors committed on the other hand, they muft ftill leave our Form of Government blamelels, fince it is of the fame kind with thats which is declar'd by Solomon, and by a greater than Solomon, if we confider who indited his Writings, to be naturally conducive to the Peace and Happinefs of a People. (

A

Secondly, it is requir'd in the next place in order to this great Endy that the Monarch be of HighBirth, and Noble Extraction, and this is not wanting in our Cafe. For our prelent moft Gracious Sovereign QAN N, whom, as on this Day, God was pleas'd to fee upon the Throne of her Ancestors, for which caufe we are here affembled to pay our moft just tribute of praife and thankfgiving to him that ruleth over all the kingdoms of the Earth, to offer Sacrifices of Tweet Savour unto the God of Heaven, and to pray for the Life of the QUEEN. Our prefent Sovereign, I fay, has a moff indifputable claim to that qualification requir'd in a Prince, to make the People happy of being one of High Birth, and Moft Noble Extraction. Her Defcent is counted from WILLIAM the Conqueror, by Eleven1 retinige

interme

intermediate Kings, and, by another branch of that Line, from the long Race of our Saxon Kings; and related is the to Seventeen Kings and Queens befides, who have all fway'd the English Sceptre, feveral of whom ftand moft defervedly renown'd in Hiftory, for noble and valorous Atchievments, for fübjecting Scotland, for fubduing Wales and Ireland, for their great Victories gain'd in France, and for the Conqueft of that Kingdom, as alfo for Great Piety, for the accomplishing of highly.ufeful and worthy designs.

For intance, in the Reign of EDWARD VI a Prince of a towardly difpofition and pregnancy, and one who was early acquainted with Vertue, was the Reformation of Religion begun here in England In his reign, notwithstanding what fteps were: made that way by his Father K. HENRY VIII: muft the Era of the Reformation be fix'd; then it was that it took footing, and by degrees made a fair progrefs; but by reafon of the fhort period of his Life, and the oppofite Methods made ufe of in the next Reign, it was discountenanc'd, retarded and quash'd, till the Succeffion of Q ELIZABETH, of Glorious Memory, to the Throne; when it was again vigorously promoted, and the Glory of perfecting and compleating, of fetling and effablifhing. fo great a Work was referv'd to her times. In her Reign was Religion reftor'd to its priftine Purity, and our Church conftituted in a mean equally remote, as well from the Errors and Superftition of Popery, as from the Indecency of Fanaticifm'; and is, at this. time, the Glory of our own, and the Envy of Reform'd Nations abroad.

Solong then, as Pure Religion has any worth or value in it, fo long as the Worshipping of God in the Beauty of Holiness is a priviledge defirable by all wife

and