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of state are trusted to other hands. Some have rifen to them by drudging long in bufinefs: Some have been made minifters almoft in the cradle and the whole power of the government has been abandoned to others in the dotage of life. There is a monarchy, an abfolute monarchy too, I mean that of China, wherein the administration of the government is carried on, under the direction of the prince, ever fince the dominion of the Tartars has been established, by feveral claffes of Mandarins, and according to the deliberation and advice of feveral orders of councils the admiffion to which claffes and orders depends on the abilities of the candidates, as their. rife in them depends on the behaviour they hold, and the improvements they make afterwards. Under fuch a government, it is neither impertinent nor ridiculous, in any of the fubjects who are invited by their circumstances, or pushed to it by their talents, to make the history of their own and of other couns tries a political ftudy, and to fit themfelves by this. and all other ways for the fervice of the public. It is not dangerous neither; or an honour, that outweighs the danger, attends it: fince private men have a right by the ancient conftitution of this government, as well as councils of ftate, to represent to the prince the abufes of his administration. fill men have not there the fame occafion to concerni themfelves in the affairs of the ftate, as the nature of a free government gives to the members of it. In our own country, for in our own the forms of a free government at least are hitherto preserved, men are not only defigned for the public fervice by the sircumstances of their fituation, and their talents,

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all which may happen in others: but they are defigned to it by their birth in many cafes, and in all cafes they may dedicate themfelves to this fervice, and take, in different degrees, fome fhare in it, whether they are called to it by the prince or no. In abfolute governments, all public fervice is to the prince, and he nominates all thofe that ferve the public. In free governments, there is a distinct and a principal service due to the ftate. Even the king, of fuch a limited monarchy as ours, is but the first fervant of the people. Among his subjects, fome are appointed by the conftitution, and others are elected by the people, to carry on the exercife of the legislative power jointly with him, and to controul the executive power independently on him. Thus your Lordship is born a member of that order of men, in whom a third part of the fupreme power of the government refides: and your right to the exercise of the power belonging to this order not being yet opened, you are chofen into another body of men, who have different power and a different constitution, but who poffefs another third part of the fupreme legislative authority, for as long a time as the commiffion or truft delegated to then by the people lafts. Free-men, who are neither born to the first, nor elected to the laft, have a right how. ever to complain, to reprefent, to petition, and, I add, even to do more in cafes of the utmost extre- · mity. For fure there cannot be a greater abfurdity,' than to affirm, that the people have a remedy in refiftance, when their prince attempts to inflave them; but that they have none, when their representatives fell themelves and them...

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The fum of what I have been saying is, that, in free governments, the public fervice is not confined. to those whom the prince appoints to different posts in the administration under him; that there the care of the ftate is the care of multitudes; that many are called to it in a particular manner by their rank, and by other circumstances of their fituation; and that even those whom that prince appoints are not only answerable to him, but, like him, and before him, to the nation, for their behaviour in their feveral pofts. It can never be impertinent nor ridiculous therefore in fuch a country, whatever it might be in the Abbot of St. Real's, which was Savoy I think; or in Peru, under the Incas, where, Garcilaffo de la Vega says, it was lawful for none but the nobility to study--for men of all degrees to inftruct themselves in thofe affairs wherein they may be actors, or judges of thofe that act, or controulers of thofe that judge. On the contrary, it is incumbent on every man to inftruct himfelf, as well as the means and opportunities he has permit, concerning the nature and interefts of the government, and those rights and duties that belong to him, or to his fuperiours, or to his inferiours. This in general; but in particular, it is certain that the obligations under which we lie to ferve our country increase, in proportion to the ranks we hold, and the other circumstances of birth, fortune, and fituation, that call us to this fervice; and, above all, to the talents which God has given us to perform it.

It is in this view, that I fhall addrefs to your, Lordship whatever I fhall have further to say on the Atudy of history.

LET

LETTER VI.

From what period modern hiftory is peculiarly ufeful to the fervice of our country, viz.

From the end of the fifteenth century to the prefent.
The divifion of this into three particular periods:
In order to a sketch of the history and state of Europe
from that time.

SINCE then you are, my Lord, by your birth,

by the nature of our government, and by the talents God has given you, attached for life to the fervice of your country; fince genius alone cannot enable you to go through this fervice with honour to yourself, and advantage to your country, whether you fupport or whether you oppose the adminiftrations that arife; fince a great ftock of knowledge, acquired betimes and continually improved, is neceffary to this end; and fince one part of this stock muft be collected from the ftudy of hiftory, as the other part is to be gained by obfervation and experience; I come now to speak to your Lordship of fuch hiftory as has an immediate relation to the great duty and business of your life, and of the method to be observed in this ftudy. The notes I have by me, which were of fome little use thus far, ferve me no farther, and I have no books to confult. No matter; I fhall be able to explain my thoughts without their affistance, and lefs liable to be tedious. I hope to be as full and as exact on memory alone,

as

as the manner in which I fhall treat the fubject requires me to be.

I fay then, that however clofely affairs are linked together in the progreffion of governments, and how much foever events that follow are dependent on thofe that precede, the whole connection diminishes to fight as the chain lengthens; till at last it seems to be broken, and the links that are continued from that point bear no proportion, nor any fimilitude to the former.

I would not be understood to speak only of thofe great changes, that are wrought by a concurrence of extraordinary events; for instance the expulfion of one nation, the deftruction of one government, and the establishment of another: but even of those that are wrought in the fame governments and among the fame people, flowly and almoft imperceptibly, by the neceffary effects of time, and flux condition of human affairs. When fuch changes as thefe happen in feveral states about the fame time, and confequently affect other states by vicinity, and by many different relations which they frequently bear to one another; then is one of thofe periods formed, at which the chain fpoken of is fo broken as to have little or no real or visible connection with that which we fee continue. A new fituation, different from the former, begets new interefts in the fame proportion of difference; not in this or that particular state alone, but in all thofe that are concerned by vicinity or other relations, as I faid just now, in one general fyftem of policy. New interefts beget new maxims of government, and new methods of conduct. Thefe, in their turns, beget new manners, new habits, new customs.

VOL..I.

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