and did he not withdraw himself from his benefactor, to serve against him under his greatest enemy; protesting, in his letter to the king, "that his deser"tion from his majesty proceeded from no other "cause, than the inviolable dictates of conscience, " and a high and necessary concern for his religion, "with which he was instructed that nothing could " come in competition * ? Did the duke do all this most positive, clear, and decisive proofs. The only evidence of the fact is the deathbed confession of sir George Hewit; who, after having received emoluments and honours from William, repented, in his last moments, of his conduct toward his former master.-James, suspecting Churchill and the duke of Grafton, once intended to have sent them, under a guard, to Portsmouth; but he judged that severity, instead of aiding, would hurt his affairs. MACPHERSON. * His desertion from king James might in some measure be excused from its utility. But his design of placing that unfortunate prince a captive in the hands of his rival is utterly inconsistent with the common feelings of mankind. With regard to HIM, he was a bencfactor, a friend, and even a father. He raised HIM from obscurity to independence, to fortune, and to honour. He placed HIM in that only state, that could render his desertion destructive to his own affairs. If his misconduct had rendered James unworthy of the returns of gratitude due to other men, why was king William also deceived? If no measures were to be kept with either of those monarchs, why was England betrayed to her mortal enemy? Though these questions can scarcely be answered to satisfaction, they admit of alleviations. In the characters of mankind, some allowances must be made for their passions and frailties. The attention to interest, which passed through the whole conduct of Marlborough, might suggest to his prudence, to quit the fortunes of a man apparently destined for ruin. His spirit might induce him to oppose king William; as the cold reserve, neglect, and aversion of that prince, might offend his pride. In this state of mind, his lordship could hardly separate the interest of the kingdom from that of the king: and he informed the French court this for the church of England; and will our author, or any of the whiggish side, persuade us he can so far recede from his former principles, to take party against that very church he has helped to preserve? to join in opposition to her, with her bitterest foes, when he is already as great and rich as a subject ought to be? No! no! Such restless spirits as this writer, who, in the words of Mr. Dryden, "fire that world which of they were sent by preaching to warm;" those "Phaetons of mankind," abuse the reputation of the greatest persons, and do themselves honour at the expense of others, who, being equally ignorant many things, yet pretend to determine of all the affairs of war and the cabinet; to enflame the people, abuse the ministry, and the queen through them; to trouble the waters, in hopes crowns and mitres may be found floating on the surface, and ready to fall to the share of the boldest hand. How can We shall next consider the "scandalous manner "of treatment" the duke of Marlborough, as this writer tells us, "has met with from the Examiner "and his party;" for, he is sensible, the usage he gave him was "not wholly from himself." he be sensible of that? For to this day it does not appear who the Examiner is, nor that he had instructions to talk of Crassus, Catiline, or Anthony. That pen still remains concealed; neither rewards nor presents have been given to any, that we can suppose was author of those papers. Whoever he were, he court of the expedition against Brest [in 1694], more with a design of being revenged on William, than with a view to serve France at the expense of England. MACPHERSON. has had the modesty not to reveal himself, though his remarks were only against those persons whom the queen had thought fit to dispense with from farther serving her; the general excepted, as this writer would have us believe: but he is the satirist, who makes the application. Cannot a person treat of the excessive avarice and sordid behaviour of Marcus Crassus, but, because the duke of Marlborough is known to be an extreme good husband of his money, he must needs intend his grace as a parallel? Indeed! Does this libeller think there is so near a resemblance between them? Why, where then is the injustice? To show that there has been any, let him convince us that his grace is become generous, or less in love with riches; and the comparison will cease. But till then, though he were the conqueror of Europe, instead of Flanders, the people will be apt to detest a vice they are sure to suffer by; regarding it as a counterpoise to the bravest actions, or indeed the only motive to the performance of them: and where interest is suspected to be the spur to glory, the reputation will always be less clear and shining. As to the comparison with Catiline, I find not the least ground for it; nor can it be so intended, though the old Medley, with his unfair quotation, has charged it upon the Examiner. The passage is in the fourth Examiner *, to which I refer the reader, which can never, I hope, be applicable to England; for, how ambitious soever a general may prove, a brave, true English army cannot create either fear or * It is in the forty-ninth Examiner. This is an additional proof (if it needed any) that Dr. Swift wrote as far as No. 45. Mrs. Manley began No. 46; and calls No. 49, the fourth. On this subject see a note hereafter. danger danger of their becoming a mercenary army. But the author farther tells us, the Examiner was "pleased "to make the civil comparison of the duke of Marl"borough and his duchess, to Anthony and Fulvia." What is there said of Anthony is so little, that it is scarce worth any body's taking it to themselves. I am sorry an author cannot introduce a figure, though in poetry, of a haughty, proud, wrathful, and envious woman, but the application must be presently made to his hand: as if there were no vices in history, but what could be parallelled in life! In such a case, I must say, as I did just before in that of Crassus, with this addition, that sure there must be some sort of resemblance, or one's very friends would never dare to make the ready comparison ! Behold here, the utmost of that charge this author has drawn up, of what has been done, by way of mortification, to the duke of Marlborough. Alas ! this is but one instance of the liberty of the press; whereas the present ministry may complain of a hundred but their heads are too strong to be shaken by such impotent blasts, or disordered by every libeller's malice. What clouds of pointless arrows, though sent with a good will, have flown from the Observator, the Review, and Medley! how have great and mean geniuses united to asperse their conduct, and turn the management of the late persons in power upon these! Humourous, senseless ballads; foolish parallels; the titles of Oxford and Mortimer, have been an ample field. Who but must despise such wretched wits? I could quote several others, if it were not reviving them from their See "The Lives of Roger Mortimer and Robert Harley, 1711." obscurity, 66 66 obscurity, or rather giving new life to those stillborn, shapeless births, which but just appeared and perished. Nor do I remember any person to have so far gloried in those monstrous productions, as to own being a parent to them, but the renowned Dr. Hare *. The close of his fourth letter of the "Management " of the War" is indeed very extraordinary; where he tells, "If they should describe the duke of Marlborough to be a short, black, fattish, illshaped man, that loves to drink hard, never speaks "to be understood, is extremely revengeful and ill"bred; if they should represent his mind to be a "complication of all ill qualities," &c. Here is more malice, though less wit and truth, than any thing they accuse in the Examiner. In times of liberty and faction, we must expect that the best persons will be libelled; the difference lies in the skill of the libeller. One draws near the life; another must write the name under, or else we cannot understand for, as yet I never met one person, that could find out who Dr. Hare designed, by his short, black, fattish, ill shaped man; though he has so far exceeded the liberty the Examiner has taken, as to pretend to paint the very lineaments of the body, as well as those of the mind. Thus far you see what little reason our author has to complain for the duke of Marlborough's hard usage; but he grows bolder, and, in just despair of the continuation of a war from which he reaps so many advantages, attacks what (notwithstanding the many refinements of some late patriots) I take still to be an undoubted prerogative of the crown, the power * See above, p. 46. of |