which we met with in turning to the Life of Lord Bacon, in the Biographia Britannica. "Public Hiftories," fays the judicious Writer of that article, may contain mifinformations, fecret Hiftories are frequently full of wilful mistakes, "but facts from private Letters can never mislead us." And certain it is, that many of the particulars touched in the volume before us, may serve to caft additional and true light on the hiftory of the times and perfons to which they relate.

FOREIGN ARTICLE.

Du Contract Social; ou principes du Droit Politique. Par J. 7. Rouffeau. 12mo. Amfterdam, chez Rey.

Or, A Treatise on the Social Compact; or the principles of Politic Law; concluded. See Page 449.

N his third book, Mr. Rouffeau enters on the fubject of Politic Law, and the Adminiftration of Government; beginning with an accurate explanation of the nature of Government in general, and proceeding to confider it under its feveral particular forms. In this part of the work, our Author appears to great advantage; inveftigating the fundamental principles of civil Polity, with equal folidity of judgment, and acuteness of penetration. He examines what species of Government is moft proper for particular people and countries; fpecifies the indications of a good adminiftration, together with the abufes of it; and the decay and diffolution of the body politic.

He confiders particularly the various meafures by which the fovereign authority may be fupported; and the means of preventing the ufurpations of Government. Our Readers will find fomething ftriking, if not altogether new, in his ftrictures on Reprefentatives. "When the fervice of the public, fays he, ceafes to be the principal concern of the Citizens, and they chufe rather to ferve the community by their purfe than with their perfons, the State is already verging on its ruin. Instead of marching out to fight, they hire Soldiers, and ftay themselves at home; inftead of going to meet each other in confultation concerning the public weal, they chufe Deputies in their ftead, and trouble their heads no more about the matter. Thus, in confequence of their indolence and

wealth,

wealth, they have Soldiers to ferve their country, and Reprefentatives to fell it.

"It is the buftle of Commerce and the Arts, the thirft of Gain, Effeminacy, and the love of Indolence, that have converted perfonal fervice into that of money. A part of our profits is readily given up to augment our eafe. Give to Government your money, and you will foon be furnished with chains. The word Finance is a flavifh term, and unknown in a true city. In a State really free, the Citizens act with their hands, and not with their purfes. So far from paying to be exempted from doing their duty, they will rather pay to be permitted to do it themfelves.

"Indifference for the welfare of one's country, the force of private intereft, the extenfiveness of States, and their conquefts, gave rife to the method of reprefenting a whole people in the public affemblies of the nation, by a certain number of Deputies.But, for the same reason that the fovereignty cannot be alienated from the people, it cannot be reprefented: it confifts effentially in the general will and confent of the whole, and this cannot be reprefented by any partial number of Deputies; who are not truly the Reprefentatives of the people, but Commiffaries, that can come to no definitive conclufion. Thofe laws which the whole body of the people do not perfonally ratify, are invalid; they are, in fact, no laws. The English think themselves a free nation; but they are greatly miftaken; they are fuch only during the election of Members of Parliament. When these are chofen, the Electors become flaves again, and of no confequence. Indeed, the use they make of that tranfitory interval of liberty, fhews how much they deferve to lose it."

In the fourth and laft part of this tract, the Author continues his confiderations on the means of confirming the conftitution of a State; illuftrating the arguments he advances by examples from the practice of the Romans; and clofing his fubject with fome obfervations on Religion, confidered merely in a political point of view. A short abstract of this chapter may be not disagreeable to our Readers.

"In the first ages of the world, men had no other Kings than their Gods, nor any other Government than what was purely Theocratical. It required a long time for them to be able to look on a fellow-creature as their Mafter.

"Hence, a Deity being conftantly placed at the head of every polical fociety, it followed, that there were as many different Gods as people. Two different communities, ftrangers to each other, and almost always at variance, could not long acknowlege the fame Mafter; nor could two armies drawn up against each other in battle, obey the fame Chief. Thus Polytheim became a natural confequence of the divifion of nations, and thence the want of civil and theological toleration in any.

"If it be asked, why there were no wars on the score of Religion among the Pagans, when every State had thus its peculiar Deity and worship? I anfwer, it was for this very reafon, that each State having its own peculiar Religion as well as Government, no diftinétion was made between the obedience due to their Gods and that due to their laws. Their political were thus theological wars; and the departments of their Deities, were prefcribed by the limits of their respective nations. The God of one people had no right or authority over another people; nor were these pagan Deities at all ambitious of exclufive empire; partaking, without jealousy, in the command of the world. Even Mofes himfelf fpeaks fometimes in this manner of the God of Ifrael. It is true, the Hebrews defpifed the Gods of the Canaanites, a people pro fcribed and devoted to deftruction, and whofe poffeffions were given them for an inheritance; but they speak reverently of the Deities of the neighbouring nations whom they were forbidden to attack. Wilt not thou poffefs that, fays Jeptha to Sihon, King of the Ammonites, which Chemosh thy God giveth thee to poffefs? So whomjoever the Lord our God shall drive out from before us, them will we poffefs. There is in this paffage, I think, an acknowleged fimilitude between the rights of Cheimofh, and thofe of the God of Ifrael.

"But when the Jews, being fubjected to the Kings of Babylon, and afterwards to thofe of Syria, perfifted in refufing to acknowlege any God but their own, this refufal was elteemed an act of rebellion against their Conqueror, and drew upon them thofe perfecutions which we read of in their history, and of which no other example is afforded us till the establishment of Christianity.

"The religion of a people being thus exclufively attached to the laws of the State, the only method of converting other nations, was by fubduing them; Warriors were the only Miffioraries; and the obligation of changing their religion

being a law to the vanquished, they were firft to be conquered before they were follicited on this head. So far were men from fighting for the Gods, that the Gods combatted, as they do in Homer, for mankind. Each people demanded the victory from its relpective Deity, and repaid the fervice by the erection of new altars.

"The Romans, before they befiaged any fortrefs, fummoned its Gods to give it up; and tho' it be true, they left. the Tarentines in poffeffion of their angry Deities, it is plain they looked upon those Gods as fubjected, and obliged to do homage to their own: they fometimes left the vanquished in poffeffion of their religion, as they did of their laws. wreathe for Jupiter in the Capitol, being often the only tribute they exacted.

A.

"At length the Romans, having extended their religion with their empire, and fometimes even adopted the Deities of the conquered, the people of this vaft empire found themfelves in poffeffion of a multitude of Gods and religions; which not differing very effentially from each other, Paganism became infenfibly one and the fame religion, throughout the known world.

66

Things were in this ftate when Jefus came to establish his fpiritual kingdom; which neceffarily dividing the theological from the political fyftem, gave rife to thofe inteftine divifions which have ever fince continued to embroil the profeffors of Christianity.

"Now this new idea of a kingdom in the other world, having never entered into the heads of the Pagans, they always regarded the Chriftians as actual rebels, who, under a hypocritical fhew of fubmiffion, waited only a proper opportunity to render themfelves independent, and artfully to ufurp that authority, which, in their weak and rifing ftate, they pictended to respect and this was undoubtedly the cause of their being perfecuted.

"What the Pagans had feared, in procefs of time, alio came really to pass. Things put on a new face, and the humble Chriftians, as their number increased, changed their tone and language; while their pretended kingdom in the other world became, under a vifible head, the moft defpotic and tyrannical,

in this.

"As in all countries, however, there were civil Governors, and laws, there refulted from this twofold power a perpetual ftruggle

ftruggle for jurifdiction, which renders a perfect fyftem of domeftic policy almoft impoffible in Chriftian States; and prevents us from ever coming to a determination, whether it be the Prince or the Prieft we are bound to obey.-—-—

"In England, as well as in Ruffia, the Monarch, as head of the State is alfo head of the Church; but by this title they are lefs Mafters than Minifters of the religion; they are not poffeffed of the right to change it, but only to maintain it in its prefent form. Wherever the Clergy conftitute a political body, they will be both the Master and Legislator in its own caufe. There are, therefore, two Sovereigns in England and Ruffia, as well as elfewhere."

Our Author conceives that, by a proper examination of hiftorical facts in this view, it would be eafy to refute both the fentiments of Bayle and Warburton; the former of whom pretends, that no religion is of use to the body politic; and the other, that Chriftianity is its beft and firmest support. He endeavours next to fhew the incompatibility of the characters of the true Chriftian and the Patriot; tho', we think, with more fpeciousness than folidity. There is much propriety, however, in what he advances concerning that political creed which the Sovereign hath a right to impofe on the fubject.

"The right which the focial pact confirms on the Sovereign, extending no farther than to public utility, the subject is not accountable to him for any opinions he may entertain that have nothing to do with the community. Now, it is of great importance to a State, that every Citizen fhould be of a religion that may inspire him with a love for his duty: but the tenets of that religion are no farther interefting to the community than as they relate to morals, and to the discharge of thofe obligations which the profeflor of them lies under to his fellow-citizens. If we except thefe, the fubject may profefs as many others as he pleafes, without the Sovereign having any right to interfere; for as the latter has no jurifdiction. in the other world, it is no bufinefs of his, what becomes of his fubjects in a future life, provided they behave as good Citizens in the prefent.

"There is a profeflion of Faith, therefore, purely political, the articles of which, it is the bufinefs of the Sovereign to afcertain, not precifely as articles of religion, but as the fentiments due to fociety, without which it is impoffible to be a good citizen, or a faithful fubject. Without obliging

any