thousand years all things are changed; the antient virtus of mankind is extinguished; and the love that every one had to his country is turned into a care of his private interefts: I answer, that time changes nothing, and the changes produced in this time proceed only from the change of governments. The nations which have been. governed arbitrarily, have always fuffered the fame plagues, and been infected with the fame vices; which is as natural, as for animals ever to generate according to their kinds, and fruits to be of the fame nature with the roots and feeds from which they come. The fame order that made men valiant and induftrious in the fervice of their country during the first ages, would have the fame effect, if it were now in being: men would have the fame love to the public as the Spartans and Romans had, if there was the fame reafon for it. We need no other proof of this than what we have feen in our own country, where, in a few years, good difcipline, and a just encouragement given to thofe who did well, produced more examples of pure, complete, incorruptible, and invincible virtue than Rome or Greece could ever boaft; or if more be wanting, they may easily be found among the Switzers, Hollanders, and others: but it is not neceffary to light a candle to the fun. SECT SECT. XXIV. Popular governments are lefs fubject to civil disorders than monarchies; manage them more ably, and more eafily recover out of them. IT is in vain to feck a government in all points free from a poffibility of civil wars, tumults, and feditions: that is a blessing denied to this life, and referved to complete the felicity of the next. But if these are to be accounted the greatest evils that can fall upon a people, the rectitude or defects of governments will beft appear, if we examine which species is more or lefs exposed to or exempted from them. This may be done two ways. 1. By fearching into the caufes from whence they may or ufually do arise. 2. Which kind has actually been most frequently and dangerously disturbed by them, To the firft: feditions, tumults, and wars, do arife from mistake, or from malice; from juft occafions, or unjuft: from mistake, when a people thinks an evil to be done or intended, which is not done nor intended, or takes that to be evil which is done, though in truth it be not fo. Well regulated cities may fall into these errors. The Romans being jealous of their newly recovered liberty, thought that Valerius Publicola defigned to make himself king, when he built a houfe in a place that feemed too ftrong and eminent for a private man. The Spartans Spartans were not lefs fufpicious of Lycurgus; and a lewd young fellow in a fedition put out one of his eyes; but no people ever continued in a more conftant affection to their beft deferving citizens, than both the Romans and the Spartans afterwards manifeited to those virtuous and wrongfully fufpected men. Sometimes the fact is true, but otherwife understood than was intended. When the Tarquins were expelled from Rome, the patricians retained to themfelves the principal magiftracies: but never thought of bringing back kings, or of fetting up a corrupt oligarchy among themselves, as the plebeians imagined: and this mistake being discovered, the fury they had conceived, vanished; and they who feemed to intend nothing less than the extirpation of all the patrician families, grew quiet. Menenius Agrippa appeafed one of the moft violent feditions that ever happened, amongst them (till civil interefts were pursued by armed troops) with a fable of the feveral parts of the body that murmured against the belly: and the most dangerous of all was compofed by creating tribunes to protect them. Some of the patrician young men had favoured the decemviri, and others being unwilling to appear against them, the people believed they had all confpired with thofe new tyrants: but Valerius and Horatius putting themselves at the head of those who fought their deftruction, they perceived their error, and looked upon the patricians as the beft defenders of their liberties: et inde," fays Livy, "auram libertatis "captare, unde fervitutem timuiffent." Democratical governments are most liable to these mistakes: in arifto cracies eracies they are feldom feen, and we hear of none in Sparta after the establishment of the laws by Lycurgus; but abfolute monarchies feem to be totally exempted from them. The mifchiefs defigned are often diffembled or denied, till they are past all poffibility of being cured by any other way than force: and fuch as are by ncceffity driven to use that remedy, know they muft perfect their work, or perish. He that draws his fword against the prince, fay the French, ought to throw away the fcabbard; for though the defign be never fo juft, yet the authors are fure to be ruined if it mifcarry. Peace is feldʊm made, and never kept, unless the fubject retain fuch a power in his hands, as may oblige the prince to ftand to what is agreed; and in time fome trick is found to deprive them of that benefit. Seditions proceeding from malice are feldom or never feen in popular governments; for they are hurtful to the people, and none have ever willingly and knowingly hurt themselves. There may be, and often is malice in those who excite them; but the people is ever deceived, and whatfocver is thereupon done, ought to be imputed to error, as I faid before. If this be difcovered in time, it ufually turns to the deftruction of the contriver; as in the cafes of Manlius Capitolinus, Spurius Melius, and Sp. Caffius: if not, for the most part it produces a tyranny, as in thofe of Agathocles, Dionyfius, Pififtratus, and Cæfar. But in abfolute monarchies, almost all the.. troubles that arife, proceed from malice; they cannot be reformed, the extinction of them is exceeding difficult, if they they have continued long enough to corrupt the people; and those who appear against them, feek only to fet up themselves, or their friends. Thus we fee, that in the civil wars of the caft, the queftion was, whether Artaxerxes or Cyrus, Phraartes or Bardanes,' fhould reign over the Perfians and Parthians: the people fuffered equally from both whilft the contefts lafted; and the decifion left them under the power of a proud and cruel mafter. The like is feen in all places. After the death of Brutus and Caffius, no war was ever undertaken in the Roman empire upon a better account than one man's private concernments: the provinces fuffered under all; and he, whom they had affifted to overthrow one wicked tyrant, very often proved worse than his predeceffor. And the only ground of all the diffentions with which France was vexed under the princes of Meroveus and Pepin's races, were, which of them should reign, the people remaining miserable under them all. The cafe is not much different in mixed monarchies : fome wars may be undertaken upon a just and public account, but the pretences are commonly falfe: a lasting reformation is hardly introduced, an intire change often difliked. And though fuch kingdoms are frequently and terribly diffracted, as appears by the before-mentioned examples of England, Spain, &c. the quarrels are, for the most part, begun, upon perfonal titles, as between Henry the First and Robert; Stephen and Maud; or the houfes of Lancaster and York: and the people who get nothing by the victory which way focver it fall, and |