Great. Empress of Ruffia's acceffion to the throne. Dif gufted with the English court. Accedes to the treaty of Vienna, and death. Earl of Macclesfield, lord high chancellor, impeached, tried, and fent to the Tower. Admiral Hofier's difaftrous expedition to the Weft Indies. Sir Peter King created lord King, and lord high chancellor-resigns. Lord Talbot appointed chancellor. Death and character. Is fucceeded by fir Philip Yorke, who is created baron Hardwicke. Convention of Aix-la-Chapelle. The king's death, and character. It will now be proper to revert to thofe domestic occur T rences, the relation of which has been interrupted by a recital of foreign tranfactions. The riots and tumults which were the natural confequence of the measures adopted by the prefent miniftry, broke out afresh from time to time in various parts of the kingdom with alarming fymptoms of difaffection and violence. But the fpirit of disloyalty and fedition feemed to display itself at this period with more confpicuous malignity at the city of Oxford than perhaps any other place; infomuch that it was neceffary by the government to ftation there a confiderable military force, between whom and the youth of the university frequent occafions of quarrel arofe, fome of which were of magnitude to come under judicial cognisance; and that ancient and venerable feat of the muses seemed by a deplorable fatality to be converted into the temple of civil discord. On the return of the king from the continent numerous addreffes of congratulation were prefented; amongst which one from the university of Cambridge, particularly noticing the fuppreffion of the late rebellion, was moft graciously received. At a meeting of the vice-chancellor and heads of the houfes in Oxford, a motion been made for that purpofe, it was rejected with marked indignation. Dr. Smalridge, bishop of Bristol and dean of 1 Christ church, had the preceding year being removed from his post of lord almoner for refusing, with Atterbury bishop of Rochester, to fign the proteftation of the episcopal bench against the claims of the pretender: this prelate now gratified his resentment by declaring " that the rebellion had been long fuppreffed, and that there would be no end of addreffes fhould one be prefented every time his majesty returned from Hanover-that any marks of royal favor they had received were more than counterbalanced by the troops now quartered upon them-and that the hiftory of this country afforded no precedent for addressing a king on his return from his GERMAN DOMINIONS." As a decifive proof of their alienation from the court, or rather the government, fir Conftantine Phipps, who on a strong prefumption of difaffection had been removed from his office as one of the lords justices of Ireland, had an honorary degree conferred upon him with marks of peculiar diftinction: and the earl of Arran, on the attainder of his brother the duke of Ormond, was chofen to fucceed him as chancellor of the university.* The cry of "the CHURCH So marked at this period was that opposition of politics by which the two universities were long distinguished, and all symptoms of which are not at this day entirely obliterated, that we cannot wonder the court should embrace with eagerness every opportunity to display its resentment against the one, and its approbation of the other. A royal prefent of books having been fent to Cambridge foon after the commencement of the tumults at Oxford, the celebrated Dr. Trapp took occafion from this circumstance to pen the following well-known epigram: Our royal mafter faw with heedful eyes The wants of his two Universities : Troops he to Oxford fent, as knowing why That learned body wanted loyalty, But books to Cambridge gave, as well discerning That that right loyal body wanted learning. This epigram received a very happy and decifive retort from the late fir William Brown, as it is faid, impromptu : The king to Oxford fent a troop of horse, For tories know no argument but force. With equal care to Cambridge books he sent, For whigs allow no force but argument. CHURCH and SACHEVEREL" feemed ftill to retain its full efficacy and influence over the multitude; and the dwelling-houses and meeting-houses of the fectaries were the favorite objects of the popular vengeance. In confequence of these outrages the house of commons presented an address to the king, in which they state, "that great numbers of his majesty's deluded fubjects had affembled in a tumultuous and rebellious manner, had committed great diforders, and done great injuries to others of their fellow-fubjects and fellow-proteftants-and they declare it to be their indifpenfable duty to exprefs their utmost abhorrence of all fuch traitorous proceedings, and their highest refentment against the authors and promoters of them; and beseech his majefty, that the laws now in force may be put in fpeedy and vigorous execution against them. And they farther defire, that in justice to those who for their zeal and firm adherence to his majesty's government have been fufferers in the faid tumultuous and traitorous disorders, his majesty would be graciously pleased to direct an exact account to be taken of the loffes and damages fuftained by fuch fufferers, in order that full compenfation may be made; and affuring his majesty that all expences fo incurred fhall be made good out of the firft aids granted by parliament." To which the king replied, "that he would give immediate directions for putting in execution the several matters fo juftly recommended to him." This was followed by a very loyal and proper addrefs from the diffenters themselves, acknowledging the feasonable protection granted them by government, and expreffing" a grateful fenfe of his majesty's gracious answer to the addrefs of his faithful commons in favor of those whofe fufferings they fo juftly impute to the zeal difplayed by them. for his majesty's person and government. We defire,” say they, "nothing more than to enjoy our civil rights, with a full liberty to profefs our own religious fentiments, which we take to be a privilege due to all men. Nor know we any any reason why we have now fuffered from the outrages of difaffected perfons, but because we were known to be a body of men fixed in our duty to your majefty." To this address his majefty replied in the moft gracious terms, "exprelling his deep concern at the unchriftian and barbarous treatment which they had met with, and affuring them of his royal protection and a full compenfation for all their sufferings. At this period the RIOT ACT paffed for the prevention of fimilar diforders, declaring it to be felony for more than twelve persons to remain affembled more than one hour after its being publicly read by the magiftrate: and by the falutary operation of this law, the internal tranquillity of the kingdom was in a great degree restored and eftablished. * Notice has been already taken of the refignation of Mr. Walpole, who had fucceeded, on the decease of the earl of Halifax, to the high and important poft of first lord commiffioner of the treafury. During his fhort continuance in office he had exhibited a fignal proof of his financial ability, in the introduction of the memorable bill which enacted, that all the public funds redeemable by law, and bearing higher intereft than five per cent. be redeemed according to their respective provifoes or clauses of redemption, The earl of HALIFAX furvived a very fhort time only, his appoint ment as first lord commiffioner of the treasury, which office he had before sustained with high reputation, during the latter years of the reign of king WILLIAM-dying after a few days illness, in the vigor of his age, May 19, 1715. It is believed that he afpired to the poft of lord-high-treasurer, and was little pleafed at the king's determination to put the treafury into commiffion. Though the abilities of this nobleman as a financier and a flatefman were unqueftionably great, he is chiefly known to posterity as a munificent patron of literature; maintaining in this respect an illuftrious rivalship with the earl of Oxford, the head of the oppofite faction; and in the space of eighty intervening years, thefe noblemen have had, it is not enough to fay, no equals, but no fucceffors. When, on the great and me morable change of administration, A. D. 1710, the earl of Halifax, inter seded redemption, or, with confent of the proprietors, be converted into an intereft or annuity not exceeding five per cent. ceded with the earl of Oxford in favor of the English Menander, Congreve, who, through the favor of Halifax, enjoyed a lucrative place under the government; Oxford with great dignity and elegance, replied, "Non obtufa adeo geftamus pectora Pœni, Nec tam averfus equos Tyriâ fol jungit ab urbe.” A very invidious caricature portrait of the earl of Halifax is to be found in the fatires of Pope, under the name of Buro: "Proud as Apollo on his forked hill Sat full-blown Buro, puff'd by every quill; But ftill the great have kindness in reserve— He help'd to bury whom he help'd to starve.” Pope has elsewhere taken pains to impress the idea, that this nobleman was a mere fciolift in literature; and having matters of much more importance than poetry to engage his attention, it may easily be supposed that his criticisms were often hafty and fuperficial. The poetical remains of lord Halifax, it must be confeffed, do little honor to his memory, except as they afford a proof of his early and devoted attachment to the mufes. There is however one beautiful paffage, which well deferves to be rescued from oblivion, in his epifle to the earl of Dorset, on the victory gained by king WILLIAM on the banks of the Boyne, in which that monarch received a flight contufion from a musquet-ball, which grazed on his shoulder: "O, if in France this hero had been born, Their plays, their fongs, would dwell upon his wound, Boyne would for ages be the painter's theme, The Gobelins' labor, and the poet's dream ; |