South Sea Project took Effect, which run up that Stock to above a thousand per Gent, and ruined so many Families, that the Lamentation was general, almoft all Degrees of People were engaged; the Courtiers, moft Perfons of Quality, Gentlemen, Merchants, Tradefmen, Artizans, even common Servants, who almoft all fuffered, excepta few, who were behind the Curtain and in the Secret. Mr. Pope was a great Enemy to the Scheme, and then and fince has fufficiently fhewn how he detefted the Contrivers of it, and pitied the Sufferers, among which were fome of his great Friends, publick Enquiry was made after fome of the Promotersof it, but the Iniquity was fix'd where the Search did not reach, and the Wrong was without Reparation.

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In this Calamity was funk for a Time the very Spirit of the Nation, and Arts feem'd to ftand ftill; the Gentry were impoverished, and only a few confederate Villains, and thofe favoured by them, made any tolerable Figure, Families of dejected Faces, that were a Month before bleft with a Train of Domefticks and fhining Equipages, were feen on Foot fighing through the publick Streets: This Mr. Pope thought once to have made the Subject of a particu-, lar Satire, and certainly he had wanted nothing to whet the Edge of it, but fo many of the little common Writers laid hold of it, induc'd by Hunger and Request of Friends, that Mr. Pope left it to them, only occafionally in the Course of his Writing, giving now and then a Lafh, to let the World know he was neither Actor nor Abettor of any fuch Wickedness and Folly, which on Reflection looks more like Fafcination and epidemical Madnefs, than the voluntary Act of a great and free People, after having had the Example of France to warn them.

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It was now when the Minds of the People were much dejected, that the Papifts endeavoured to establish once more, if poffible, the Romifb Religion, and accordingly from divers. Parts of Italy and France under different Covers and Pretenfions came flocking, regular Priefts,, Dominicans, Carmelitans, Francifcans, and fome Jefuits, and Notice was taken that there were many of our reform'd Church daily, perverted, the Infection fpread much among the lower Sort of People, for thofe miffionary Priefts had a Fund of Money fufficient to put a Youth out Apprentice to any Artizan who was of the Romish Faith, on Condition that he should conftantly adhere to the Mafs, and they likewife lent Money to young Men juft out of their Apprenticeships, Sums not ex[ceeding twenty Pounds, to fet up with, as well as that they paid fmall Debts, not exceeding half that Sum, for Perfons involv'd, ftill on the Terms of renouncing the Religion here by Law eftablifh'd, and embracing the Sacrament of Tranfubftantiation, and fince that Time, the Number of Papists in England has increas'd confiderably, but we dare be perfwaded, notwithstanding this, to fay what a certain great Prelate of Canterbury pofitively pronounced on bis Death-bed, that Popery should never darken this Nation any more, indeed his own Writings remain a Strong Prefervative against it.

Many of the abovementioned Miffionaries or Emiffaries, which you please to call them, made themfelves known to Mr. Pope, who was wifer than to have any Hand in the Affair, and told them, that they were breaking the Laws of this Land, and refifting the higher Powers, which St. Paul had exprefly forbid, as well as broke their religious Vows, to all which they pleaded a Difpenfation from Rome, which is a Salvo for any Thing, they even went fo

far

far as to tempt him to retire abroad, and become a Prieft, giving him frequent Promifes of great ecclefiaftical Dignities; but the most that ever we know was gain'd from him was once to fay, that if his Religion had been the common Religion of England, he would have been in holy Orders; fo that had it not been for the Revolution which happened the very Year he was born, inftead of having the Life of a great Poet to write, we had in all Probability, had that of a Bishop, or fome mitred Abbot.

But the Nation had been long uneafy, even in fome former Reigns, with Fears of Popery and arbitrary Power; and then many of the very Court and Council appear'd unfatisfy'd on that Account. Some were vex'd alfo for two other Reafons; the great Diminution of their Salaries by the ill-tim'd Retrenchments of the Treafury, and their finding all the Power and Favour ingrofs'd by a few, and thofe alfo the foolifheft of all the Roman Party.

But a more dangerous Symptom of the future, Change, was a Desertion among the Officers of King James's Army, and at laft of the Lord Churchill himfelf, tho' a Kind of Favourite.

Yet all this was nothing in Comparison of the Princess's withdrawing herself from Court by Night, without any Servants, except the Lady Churchill and Mrs. Berkly, conducted by the Bishop of London, whofe late Difgrace at Court had help'd him to a reverential Sort of Popularity, which he, of all the Bifhops, would leaft have found otherwife.

Tis no Wonder after this, if the King began to -miftruft every Body; which made him on a fudden leave his Army at Salisbury, in order to confider his Condition more fecurely at London. In quitting his Army thus fuddenly, the King was thought too fufpicious and precipitate: But he had juft before err'd

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as much by his Dilatorinefs, as he did now by his Hafte for when the Lord Churchill deferted him at Salisbury, he fent Orders immediately to feize all his Papers at Whitehall, before he had fecur'd either his Lady or the Princefs; which was only frightening the one and difobliging the other.

When the King was return'd from Salisbury, his Council was reduc'd within a very narrow Compafs; and, fince he ever before thought no Body entirely in his Intereft, except they were of his Religion alfo, at this fufpicious Time he confulted with a few Papifts only; who unanimoufly advis'd him to fly, be caufe they might hope to keep an Intereft with him remaining in France, whither they were now fore'd to escape themselves.

ཟླ་བ་༤་་མ

The King, however, refolv'd to try one Remedy firft, or at leaft by that to difguife his intended Flight the better; and therefore fummoned all the Peers in Town to a Kind of general Council in Whitehall; at which fome of the Bifhops, as well as temporal Lords, open'd their Grievances fo boldly, that he condefcended to fend two of them, viz. the Marquis. of Hallifax and the Earl of Nottingham, as his Commiffioners to the Prince of Orange; joining the Lord Godolphin with them, who was the only Man that had the Cunning, or elfe the good Fortune, to be at once in fome Favour with both the King and Prince of Orange.

In the mean Time he fent away the Queen in all Hafte and Privacy, under the Conduct of Monf. de Lauzun, who took with her him who is now call'd the Chevalier de St. George.

Juft as he was ftepping into Bed, the Night before his going away, the Earl of Mulgrave happened to come into the Bed-chamber; which being at fo late an Hour, might poffibly give the King fome Appre

henfion

henfion of that Lord's fufpecting his Defign, with which he was refolv'd not to truft him, nor any o ther Proteftant whatfoever: He therefore ftopp'd fhort, and turn'd about to whisper him in the Ear, that his Commiffioners had newly fent him a very hopeful Account of fome good Accommodation with the Prince of Orange; to which that Lord only reply'd with a Queftion, afking him if the Prince's Army halted, or approach'd nearer to London? The King own'd they still march'd on, at which the other fhook his Head and faid no more; only made him a low Bow with a dejected Countenance, humbly to make him underftand, that he gave no Credit to what the King's Circunftances at that Time oblig'd him to diffemble.

Thus referv'd was the King to every Body about his withdrawing himfelf. The myfterious Carriage of this abfconding coft the Lord Chancellor Jefferies his Life, (a Thing indeed of little Value to any Body befides himself) who died afterward in Prifon, for Want of having the fame Warning given him to ef cape, which had been given to the Earl of Melford and Father Peters. The Nuntio alfo escaped very narrowly, after having ftol'n away to Gravefend behind the Coach of an Envoy of Savoy.

But to return to the King. At Three o'Clock in the Morning he withdrew himself by a back Way out of the Bed-chamber, commanding the Duke of Northumberland (whom he left there on a Pallet Bed, according to the Custom of his Place of Gentleman of the Bed-chamber in Waiting not to open the Door before his ufual Hour of rifing; at which Time feveral Perfons of Quality, according to Cuftom, being come to attend him at his Levee, divulg'd the News immediately of his being gone away.

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