ci-u.* 
 
OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 OF ILLINOIS 
 
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 a 33 
 
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THE 
 
 UEE 
 
 THE 
 
 Prefent Miniftry, 
 
 LEWIS XIV. 
 
 AND 
 
 PHILIP V. 
 
 Unanfwerably Vindicated, 
 
 With refpedl to his Catholick Majelly’s 
 PofietTion of Spain and the Indies con¬ 
 firm’d to > him in the Treaty of Peace 
 now on Foot. 
 
 y 
 
 In a LETTER to a Noble Lord, concerning 
 a fcandalous Libel, entitled, (2%QflnJ8 
 
 Cf Europe, &c . 
 
 To which is prefix’d, 
 
 A PREFACE relating fome Matters of 
 Fa£t, which may tend farther to open the 
 Eyes of Her Majeily’s Deluded Subjects* 
 
 Nmo potefi ad alinm transferrc plus juris , quam 
 ; r ipfe habet. 
 
 London: -Printed for John Morphew near; 
 Stationers* Hdtl, 1712* Price 3 d* 
 
lb. 
 
-«4 
 
 *****»****)St**»ti«*«**«**j««*****X!«* 
 
 •* 
 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 AV1NG read, [owe time ago, /# / 
 the Amfterdam Gazette, done by • 
 ‘ DuBreiul, # P^j^rW> /rowLon¬ 
 don, intimating. That a French * 
 Booh, lately Printed in Holland, 
 under the Title of Les Soupirs de : 
 TEurope, &c.. made a great Noife in England, .. 
 and vp as- tranjlating into our Tongue \ 1 waited * 
 with Impatience the Edition of that doughty ? 
 Piece. Nor was it out two Days, before 1 re - - 
 ceiv d Information, That it was tranjlated by Du j 
 B oyer ; and, That the JfatftOlT, for • whofe * 
 Caufe it was pul lift'd, . had bought up Fifteen .* 
 Hundred Copies the firft Day , boafling its Au ¬ 
 thor's Unanswerable Learning and Argumentation. _ 
 Now, as the Correfpondence between thofe French % 
 Hugonots, viz. Du Breuil at Amfterdam r and J 
 Du Boyer in fome Garret in or near the City of • 
 London, is no Secret ; it feems* to we> an eafy 
 Matter to guefs at its Ufefulnefs. The Former - 
 writes the Amfterdam Gazette $ the Latter The : 
 Political State of Great Britain, and Annals 
 ' of the QUEEN's Reign. Suppoflng, there- - 
 * fore, Du Boyer is dijpfeas'd with. any Pro- - 
 -> ceedings of HER M A J E S T Y,\ or > thofe 
 i who are put. in Authority under r HER"* he * 
 has Nothing to do, but to commit his own Re - - 
 - flexions thereupon to Writing, and deliver them. : 
 
 ^ in . at . the Foreign Poft-Uffice : : Du , Breuil l 
 
 A 2 _ Joan a 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 foon inferts them in his Gazette, and then Da 
 Boyer and the refl of 'em Kill give you a fair 
 Tranflation, in Jpite of your Teeth. And in¬ 
 deed, it were to be wi/b'd, Du Boyer had been 
 the only Perjon vers'd in this fond of Menage: 
 But I have feen the QUEEN, the Minifiry, and 
 the Parliament infulted even in the Middle of their 
 Sefjion, mth an Effronterie unheard-of till within 
 thefe two or three Tears . Letters, and Memorials, . 
 and Prefaces, and a thoufand other falfe and fcanr 
 dalous Stories, have been induftrioufly fpread, and 
 audacioufly avow'd , to incenfe the Mobb againfl the 
 Bejtof QUEENS, andBeftof PATRIOTSc : 
 And as, by the Style, and Manner, and Matter 
 of thefe Libels, it appears to every Common Reader, 
 they owe their Birth to an Engliih ifatttOlt fo 
 we find, that certain Mifcreants, who injuriously 
 call themfelves Engliihmen, arc never, wanting to 
 become their Fofier-fathers, and to introduce them 
 in an Engilh Drefs, under the Colour^ of a fair 
 Tranllation. A PraSlice tolerated in no Govern - 
 ment in the World, befides the Englifh. 
 
 'Twas the Notion of this Dutch Correfpondence , 
 that at firfi induced me to believe, The Groans of 
 Europe proceeded originally from the Tender 
 Breaflr of that celebrated Refugee from Religion, 
 Du Boyer, But upon perufing the Bool, 1 found, 
 that tho * it had no Foundation of Argument, it 
 yet contain d fome Things high above the Reach of my 
 fuppofd Author. Neither, as 1 defire to do every 
 Man Jufiice , would / rob his Fellow-Labourer, 
 that Renowned Arch-Enemy to GOD, His , 
 VICEGERENTS, and AMBASSADORS* 
 
 ] . hn Tol. nd, of the Honour which may accrue 
 to him from that Elaborate Worl. At the fame 
 
 ^ ^ ~ time 
 
P R E'FAC E. 
 
 time , 1 mufl not omit to recommend to my Gentle. 
 Readers, Du Boyer’* Political Fragments, his An¬ 
 nals, and particularly the Dedications of his Two 
 Tears lad publifh'd, for a Specimen of his Parts and 
 Principles, if it can avail them any thing to fee it. 
 
 I knew not how "tvs, but having fet off' my Preface 
 with the Names of fuch Authors, I am forc'd, by 
 a neceffary Induction, to make due Mention of 
 Tol. nd’* Senior in Impiety, the old Cameronian 
 Hypocrite R . dp. th, who is once more fully bent 
 upon the Martyrdom of a Pillory, for inventing 
 and publifhing more Scandal every Week in his fs 
 
 than, with Deference to my L.C.J's 
 Opinion, can be raked out of any Three Years of 
 Abel Roper’* Poft-Boys. 1 will allow Something 
 to be due alfo to his Ingenious Affiflant Bob Hufh ? 
 who happening to be expend the H..fe of C.mm.ns 
 for Notorious Bribery and Corruption, has the 
 Happinefs to be employ'd in the Glorious Underta¬ 
 king oj Libelling the Government ; tho' I cannot, 
 remember, that Mr. Gefar, formerly fent to the 
 Tower, for [peaking a Notorious Truth of the late 
 
 Lord 7 r . r, had ever any Preferment of this 
 
 kind confer/d upon Him . 
 
 Here 1 cannot enough commend the generous 
 Endeavours of a Knot of otherwife Obfcure Ci¬ 
 tizens tyd fafl together in the Band of Whig- 
 gifh Amity by the Bullying Maggot-monger andfelf- 
 conceited Politician H.lf.y, the D[appointed Cour¬ 
 tier P . ch. y, and the Noify Stockjobbing B. dc. ck ; 
 who finding them]elves utterly unable to. produce 
 any thing in Print, out of their own . Fund of 
 Natural Wit, have, by contributing a few 
 Guineas, mcerly forc’d up a Puny Author of 
 the fame Side, who, after having run himfelf 
 
 out 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 cut of Breath with Billingfgate Raillery, tads 
 a few of De FoeV Reviews to his Perfor¬ 
 mance, and calls it a Hiftory of the Jacobite' 
 Clubs, Price Six-Pence. How well this Piece 
 has fucceeded, very few Inow ; but mofl of thofe 
 few fay too many, and alledge, their Money 
 was thrown away . 
 
 I hope, the Liberties fecured to Us Engliflr- 
 men, by the late Happy Revolution, will bear 
 me out in doing Jufiice to fome Deadly Advo¬ 
 cates for Religion, as well as to thofe for Pro¬ 
 perty. / could run you over now a whole Alpha¬ 
 bet of fuch, as Cleveland had formerly Regard 
 to, when he made this lamentable Complaint *. 
 
 Unhappy Church! the Vipers that do lhare • 
 Thy greateft Honours, help to make thee bare 
 And void of all thy Dignities and Stores ! 
 Alas! Thine own Sons prove the Foreft Boars! 
 
 But 1 have too much Veneration for their Order, 
 to multiply on this Occafion. Suffice it to in¬ 
 fiance in S. A..ph, B.k.r, B.rt.n, B..!t.r, 
 Br.df.rd, Cl.rke, H .. dly, K . nn . t, . 
 S . r . m, W . ft, and the Ingenious and Mo¬ 
 de fi Canon-maker Wh .ft . n, Arabick Pro-- 
 feffor at his Houfe in Hatton-Garden j whofe 
 
 Efcape from the Upper H. .fe of C . i... n, 
 
 tho’ fo great a My fiery to mofi of the Infe- 
 riour d".gy, l do ajfure you, is none at all ' 
 cither to his AJfociate Eml . n, or to me 5 or, , 
 in general, to any who were oblig'd with the 
 Perufal of Wh . ft . ns Original Copy of his . 
 Hiftorical Preface. 
 
 Thefe , and fuch as thefe, are the Men, of ’/ 
 whom l would, advife alt true Englilhmen, as 4 
 
 .. they , 
 
P R E f a c e:. 
 
 they value the CHURCH, the QUEEN,' 
 or /^CONSTITUTION, to beware; for, 
 as their Champion De Foe avows, they fupport 
 their Caufe by Lyes and Faljhood. I would, 
 liiemfe caution them againfi all thofe in gene¬ 
 ral, who have fo accujlom’d themfelves to the 
 Cant-Words of Revolution, Liberty, Property*, 
 Pretender, Popery, Slavery, Arbitrary Power, 
 &c, that they can fcarce fay any thing elfe $ - 
 lecaufe it is notorious. That as thefe Men are 
 ready, upon all Occafions, to turn their liberty 
 into Iicentioufnefi, their Religion into Rebel¬ 
 lion, and their Faith into Faftion ; fo they 
 give what Strife they pleafe to the abovemen - 
 iiond Terms , about which they male fuch a- 
 Pother. How, for Infiance , do they found the 
 Revolution, but upon Rebellion ? Liberty,, 
 with them, is appropriated to themfelves; and 
 tho* 5 tis Arbitrary Power, Tyranny, and What 
 not ? in a King of England to divefi a Cor¬ 
 poration of its Charter $ a Whig Minifixy may • 
 very juftifiably impofe or tale away fuch Things 
 where they think fit • a Whig Lord-Mayor 
 may make what Alderman he pleafes , in Vio¬ 
 lation of' the Laws and Privileges of the City > 
 and finally , a Mercenary Whig Conftable {halt 
 be abetted in running Perfons of Worth and Re* 
 put at ion into a naufeous Prifon at Noon-day, in 
 order to be fent for Soldiers , contrary to Law . 
 
 This , O my Countrymen l is what Many of you 
 have found , by fad Experience , to be the Meaning 
 cf Liberty and Property, in the Hands of the 
 And ’tis much after the fame Manner 
 they proceed in all other Cafes. How do they 
 {hew their Affettion for the Q, U E E N, Otherrtift 
 
 thus* 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 than by mojl inhumanely reviling Her Royal Fa¬ 
 ther, Uncle, C'’(T. J 1 .<4#» am they better mamfejl 
 their SnbmiJJion to thofe true PATRIOTS now 
 in Authority, than by employing Kuffiatl0 to 4 - 
 fafimte them i or by Spiriting a ^5 - 1) - tt *#<2 4 
 JP - C-tflt-'g to cat their Throats, or a Lambeth- 
 eying B . .. ,p /0 I know not what —of 
 them } And yet, methinks the great Duty of Self- 
 Prefervation is too much negletted ! M-— lb—gh 
 has Leave to travel, as if S-—tsb-r-y *s Plotting of old 
 was effaced out of Memory , or there had never been 
 fitch Names as Gregg and Valiere in the World . 
 
 One Word concerning the following Pages , and 1 
 have done. 1 will be bold to fay 9 there never was 
 more Argument written in a fmailer Compafs, 
 than this is. It proves incontejtably King Phi- 
 Jip’r Right to the Crown of Spain, which tho * 
 it has Been all along evident, was nevertheless 
 conflantly denyd by the Whigs, Allowing Four 
 Things to give Right to Princes , viz/ Bloody 
 Pojfeffion, Confent of the People, and Conqueft * 
 does it not then appear, that the Emperor has no 
 Pretenfion, but the laft i After this, Pis an 
 amazing thing, that any Englifhman fbould be 
 fo obflinately blind , as to injifi upon his Coun¬ 
 try's Supporting that hopeleSs Claim $ but fuch as 
 we have been defcribing, are Men who delight 
 in War, and, therefore , are for him who will 
 carry That on longeft ; as appears from their 
 prefent Ufage of the Dutch, . whom they begin tot 
 load with opprobrious Names, for leaving hit 
 Imperial Majejly in the Lurch , '* <• 
 
Q UEE N, 
 
 THE 
 
 Prejent Mini fry, &c 
 
 VINDICATED. 
 
 •% 
 
 I $ your Opinion, my Lord* 
 That all Groans are referv’d 
 for the Pafiion of Love; and. 
 That the Fair Sex alone have 
 a Right to demand them : 
 But I have fent you a new 
 Book, which will teach you. 
 That Europe groans after o- 
 ther Objects. I leave it to you, my Lord, to 
 judge, whether the Author has any good Ground 
 to make the fineft Quarter of the World aft the 
 Perfon of Her adit ui $ but be Pure, don’t laugh 
 while Others are under Affliftion; fince ’twou’d 
 be Breach of Charity not to follow S't. Paul's Com* 
 mand, namely, to weep with thofe that rvedp. 
 
 The Objeft which excites the Groans of Eu¬ 
 rope , is the Queen of England's Speech to Her 
 Parliament concerning the Projeft of a General 
 
 B Peace. 
 
( 10 > 
 
 Peace. ^ You will be furpriz’d, my Lord, that 
 Europe is made to groan, upon the View of a 
 Plan of Peace, at a time when the People every 
 where concur, by their Vows, to obtain of Hea¬ 
 ven that which makes the Happinefs of all the 
 VVorld. 
 
 The Queen i>f Grext-Brimn being more fenfibly 
 touch’d with the real Calamities of Europe , than 
 with its pretended Groans; and Her Eyes being 
 •open’d with refpeft to the Motives which put 
 Chriftendom in a Flame; ‘She found that the am¬ 
 bitious Defigns of Two Powers bred that Com- 
 buftion, vi%. thofe of the Houfe of Auftrin on one 
 Side, and thofe of th z Sutes-General of th eVnited- 
 Trovhtces on the other. 
 
 Such was the Artifice of thofe Two Powers, 
 that they gain’d the Secret of arming, in their 
 Quarrel, half the Princes of Europe , to baffle 
 the Chimerical Project of Univerfal Monarchy, 
 which they charg’d upon Erwce y while, ’tis plain, 
 both from their Publick and Private Treaties, 
 their only Drift was, to aggrandize themfelves 
 at the Expence of the other Princes in Alliance 
 with them. .. I ■ * ■ 
 
 Many Years elaps’d, before the Veil, which 
 cover’d this Artifice, was taken off. Two great 
 Captains held the two Endson’c, and took Care 
 to hinder the Power which contributed moil to 
 the Support of the War, and receiv’d leaft Ad¬ 
 vantage by it, from prying into the Myftery of 
 the Emperor and the Dutch.* 
 
 5 Tis no new Thing to fee the Houfe of Juftria 
 intent upon her Grandeur ; but it is, to fee the 
 Principal Members of the Gemanick Body labour 
 for their own Deftruftion, by contributing to¬ 
 wards the Succels of Her ambitious Projefts. 
 Had not their Hatred of frme hoodwink’d moft 
 
 of 
 
t It) 
 
 of the Princes of the Empire, there’s not one 
 but would ‘Confide* what it has coft him, fince* 
 by an uninterrupted Succeifion, the Imperial Dig* 
 nity lias been conferred upon one Family only. 
 
 Italy, formerly fo ftudious to keep the Emperors 
 at a Diftance from her Neighbourhood, has lately 
 experienc’d, through her own Indolence, .what Hie 
 has, one Day, to fear ; fihce the Emperor, from 
 the Time he firft enter’d that Country, has made 
 all the Princes thereof groan in good earneft, by 
 exa&ihg immenfe Sums from them ; and forced 
 Torrents of Tears-from the Eyes of. all the 
 People where-ever his Troops have come, fparing 
 neither Things Sacred nor Prophane. . 
 
 The Dutch have no lefs manifefted their Am* 
 bition, tho* they have carry’d it after a more 
 fly and covert Manner, Every one knows, That 
 iince the Eftablifhment of their Sovereignty, by 
 the Affiftance of Queen Elizabeth and Henry 1\» 
 Lewis XIIL -and Lewis XIV* “Kings of France^ 
 there’s riot a'Quarter of the-World, which they 
 have not vifited, in order to lay a Foundation 
 for their Government, under Pretence of Com¬ 
 merce ; and that too, at the Expence of thofe, 
 who are even now their greateft Friends and 
 deareft Allies. 
 
 While Spain was in a manner in Combuftion 
 under the Reign of Charles II. the Dutch took 
 Advantage of that State of Impotency to aug¬ 
 ment their Barrier, and to reap feme Profit 
 from the Commerce of the Weft-Indies. From 
 that time, there has appear’d no Treaty, ei¬ 
 ther of Commerce, or of War, but the States- 
 General have Hid into it feme new Claufes to 
 their Advantage; and ’tis their dangerous Po¬ 
 liticks. that are now lately feen through, and 
 this kind of Management, which have induced 
 
 B 2 * the 
 
 <• AT ILL. LlBv 
 
C 12 ) 
 
 the Queen of England, and the New Miniftry, 
 to open their. Eyes with regard to the true In- 
 terefts of their Nation, and, with greater Wif- 
 dom than thofe who govern Holland , to liften 
 to the Propofals of the French King, though 
 much inferiour to thofe which that Prince made 
 at the Hague in 1709, and at Genruydenberp 
 in 1710. 1 [ 
 
 Your Lordfhip muft not imagine. That, agree¬ 
 ably to what the Hutch gave out, it was the Inte- 
 reft of their Allies, which then made them fo 
 difficult. England has difeover’d, notwithstanding 
 all their. Precautions, That : they were animated 
 by a Private Intereft, Supported by the Two 
 Generals who commanded their Armies, and 
 who found Means, by continuing the War, to 
 make themfelves neceffary, to enrich themfelves, 
 and to govern. 
 
 The Queen has expos’d that Myftery of Ini¬ 
 quity, by difplacing the Duke of Marlborough, 
 and all his Family, to the great Surprize of the 
 Hutch and the Whigs, who could not, with all 
 their Efforts, hinder the Parliament from pro¬ 
 ceeding againft that fortunate Commander, for 
 the Sums he had appropriated to himfelf. 
 
 The Emperor would foon be appriz’d -of the 
 Intentions of the States-General , if he himfelf 
 were to enter into a particular Examen of this 
 War. His Imperial Majefty would find, That 
 the Syftem of the Grand Alliance was, to en¬ 
 gage his Houfe in fuch great Enterprizes, to 
 the end that after the Peace, remaining Titular 
 Prince of the Netherlands , and not being able 
 ■to reimburfe the Sums advanc’d by Holland , he 
 muft, by way of Pledge, leave in the Hands 
 of that Kepublick the belt Places of thofe Pro¬ 
 vinces, which fo would undergo the Fate of 
 
 Maefiridt > 
 
( 15 ) 
 
 Miejtricht , and being made Part of the Barrier 
 demanded of France, muft confequently render 
 the Dutch Sovereigns of the Seventeen Provinces. • 
 Add to this, That if the Emperor were to be 
 Matter of Spain and the Indies, that Prince not 
 being in a Condition to traffick by Sea, he 
 would be oblig’d to have Recourfe to them* 
 and by that Means would exclude all other Na¬ 
 tions from the Commerce of America . 
 
 This, my Lord, is the Difcovery which the 
 Queen of England and Her New Miniftry have 
 nude, and which is to the Dutch a real Oc- 
 cafion of Groaning. It is hard indeed to fee 
 themfelves fruftrared of fo many Advantages by 
 a Plan of Peace, when they thought to obtain 
 them by the Continuation of the War. No 
 wonder, therefore^ they have kept up fo good 
 a Harmony with the Duke of Marlborough and 
 Prince Eugene, and fet lb many different En¬ 
 gines at work, to baffle the Queen’s Projefts 
 and that th^y-f^nishi themfelves fuch great- 
 Matters ftom the Junto of Whigs. 
 
 The Author of the Book of the Groans of Europe 
 had fpoken much more juftly, if he had entitled 
 h»s Work, The Groans of Holland, upon Compel'ing 
 the Negotiations at Utrecht with tbofe at the Hague 
 and Gertruydenberg, and flatting upon the dif \ 
 mol Conferences of the Viclory of Denain, the Taking 
 of M&rchiennes the Magazine of their whole Cam - 
 pagne, the Faifing the Siege of Landrecy, the Con- 
 quejt of Douay, that cj Quenoy, the Difappointment 
 of all their big Hopes , and their Infecurity in the midji 
 of thtir own Dominions ; They ! who but two 
 Months before boaftecl they would put Paris under 
 Contribution, and winter their Troops in the 
 Heart of France ! How ought this Reverfe, wrought 
 by the Finger of God, to humble them, and make 
 E them 
 
C 14) 
 
 them groin ! You will forgive me, My Lord, iff 
 don’t write you a formal Refutation of theGroans op 
 i Europe , whofe whole Fabrick is erefted upon the 
 Renunciation of AUrix-tberefa of Austria to the 
 Crown of Spain , which is a Plea produced in Court 
 after Verdift is given. 
 
 The Affair is decided! •— Philip V. fhall re¬ 
 main upon the Throne of Spain ; England acknow¬ 
 ledges him ; and the Emperor ought to be very 
 \vell fatisfy’d with the fine Partition that is yield¬ 
 ed to him, fmce’tisto the Longeft Sword, not to 
 Juftice, that the moft valuable Territories in Italy 
 are granted. ' ' v 
 
 Would the EmperoCs Council but reflefl with¬ 
 out Paffion upon the Queen of England's Scheme,, 
 they muft acknowledge, That that Princefs gives 
 3 iis Imperial Majefty a Satisfaftion, which in Faft 
 is not his Due*, fince, by the Treaty of Alliance, 
 he is excluded from all the Territories of the Spa¬ 
 nish Monarchy, in cafe he fhould come to the Em¬ 
 pire. Now this Cafe has happen’d, and yet he is 
 the Fir ft that crys out, and exclaims againft the 
 Qu een’s Conduct. ' * 
 
 9 Tis Europe's Misfortune, that Princefs was not 
 fooner inform’d of the Intentions of the Dutch $ 
 She would then have fav’d all the Blood that has 
 been fpilt thefe three laft Years, by taking juft 
 Meafures to put an end, by a fpeedy Peace, to a 
 War that has nude Europe groan for thefe dozen 
 Years. * * * 
 
 Thole who read the Queen’s Speech to Her 
 Parliament, without Prejudice, will be furpriz’d 
 at the wicked Turn which the Allies give it, but 
 more at the Endeavours of the Author of the 
 Groans, to perfuade the Publick, That the Allies 
 never had the leaft Intimation of the Queen’s De- 
 
 figns, with relation to a General Peace. 
 
 * • ' . That 
 
C *5 ) 
 
 That Author has forgot, how the Book of The 
 Conduft of the Allies has bely’d his Difeourfe, 
 fince for this Twelve-month paft they have not 
 ceas’d to fet their Emiffaries at work in England. 
 If it be true, what that Author advances, Thac 
 they were ignorant of the Queen’s Defigns, Why 
 fuch Debating in the Two Houfes of Parliament ? 
 Why fo many Struggles to fupport the Whigs, in 
 Oppofition to the Court and New Miniftry ? 
 Why was Count Gallas obliged to leave England^ 
 for (peaking with too little Moderation againft 
 the Projett of Peace ? Why, to conclude, was a 
 new Way of Negotiating at Vxreclot invented, and 
 the Regulating of the Conferences there, accor¬ 
 ding to thofe of Nimeguen and Rjfwick, obftinately 
 refus’d ? J J- * : 
 
 If, after all thefe fruitlefs Attempts, they will 
 plead Ignorance of a Fact made Publick by fo¬ 
 ie mn Communications, they muft take the whole 
 World for a Pack of Fools* Let them fay. they 
 don’t like it, and welcome; but ’tis a Shame to 
 affirm they did not know ir. 
 
 Agreeable to the Principles of the Emperor* 
 and the Dutch, the Right to Crowns does not go 
 by Proximity of Blood, or the molt Authentick 
 1 itles; but only according to what belt fuits the 
 Intereft of the Court of Vienna, and the States* 
 General. To fear the Aggrandizement of any 
 Power, is enough for them to arm all Europe a- 
 gainft a Prince declar’d by Nature, and dta- 
 
 blifh’d by Providence, to be Heir to his Ance- 
 ftors. 
 
 The Koufeof Auftria is happy, that this Maxim 
 which (he pleads now, was unknown Two Hun¬ 
 dred Years ago ; for had it been never fo little 
 practis'd then, fhe had never united to the Em¬ 
 pire the Kingdoms of Ro hernia and Hungary, which 
 
 have 
 
have render'd her fo formidable; and all Europe 
 would have excluded Charles V. from the Throne 
 of Spain, only Europe at that time of day Jsnew 
 not what it was to groan! 
 
 Such Maxims may be receiv’d among Barba¬ 
 rians, who had no other Law but their Caprice ; 
 but to introduce ’em among Chriftians, is to au¬ 
 thorize the moil unjuft Wars. 
 
 And yet this is the Foundation upon which 
 thofe in Holland build the honeft Defire of never 
 laying down their Arms, till they have done 
 .Things impoflible. 
 
 In a Regular Court of Juftice, where Equity, 
 not Violence decides, ’cwou’d be an eafy Mat¬ 
 ter to prove, That the Crown of Spain does 
 lawfully belong to Philip V. and ro a prudent 
 People, govern’d not by Paflion, but by Reafon, 
 Tvvou’d be as eafy to demonftrate, That it 
 cannot be fnatch’d away from him. The fi;ft 
 appears, in that his Right is eftablifh’d by the 
 Law of Nature, that or the Land, by Cuftora, 
 and the Will of Charles II. confirm’d by the 
 Joint Suffrages of all the States of the Monar¬ 
 chy, wbofe Bulinefs it is, according to the Au¬ 
 thor of the Groans , to confirm, or difannull all 
 Difpofitions made by the Kings of Spain. The 
 Lmperor has nothing to plead in Bar of tliefe 
 firrong Titles, but the Renunciation of Maria- 
 'Thtrtja of /luftria , eldeft Daughter of Philip IV. 
 the Nullity of which Aft has long fince been 
 made appear, fo that we need only refer any 
 one, who has an Inclination to make himfelf 
 Mafter cf this Argument, to the printed Books. 
 For my part, I fhall fay but one Word, but 
 that one Word pretty peremptory, to wit. 
 That the very Arguments made ufe of by the 
 Author of die G/oans 9 fhall fuftice me to prove, 
 
' C *;) 
 
 Tl^at if the Renunciation of Miyid-Tberefa- of 
 Jwna is valid, then the Will of Charles [[. is 
 ajio valid ; and if the Will is null, the Ro- 
 r.unciatiou muft be more null; and, confequenf- 
 
 ]Y\ of Nature, the Right of Blood, 
 
 b-ing on King Philip 9 s Side, the Crown of Spun 
 aoes undoubtedly belong to him ; and fo, the 
 W ar carry’d on againft him is unjuft. 
 
 For if, according to the Remarks of the Au¬ 
 thor of the Groms, pagg. 59 and 60. the Kings 
 Oi Spain, not enjoying the Kingdom ex dominion 
 f a *J n0 * fell > & iv e away, or alienate their Sub- 
 a ^lock of Sheep; it follows, That 
 the Kings of Spain are lefs able to oblige their 
 C muren to fell, yield, or make any Alienation 
 
 vyIiatfoever, of the Natural Rights they have to 
 the Crown. J 
 
 That Author produces feverai Inftances, which 
 P rov fj a jl Afts as have not been ap- 
 ^ tlie States of the Kingdom, are of none 
 
 tfietu 
 
 Now, the Emperor cannot deny, (for a f1 Eu. 
 rope knows it; but that Charles IPs Will was ap. 
 piov d by all the States of the Kingdom of Spain, 
 vvho, immediately upon the Death of chat Prince 
 lent a Llcmn Deputation into France, to defire the 
 King to grant the Duke of Anjou co Spain, purfuant 
 to the laft Will of Charles U. 1 
 
 I he Emperor muft, moreover, acknowledge. 
 That with all the Forces of the Allies, and all 
 t jC good Succefs imaginable, he could never 
 make that People own him for King, tho’ he 
 was twice Mafter of Madrid. 
 
 I would fain, therefore, have the Author of 
 the Groans tell us, what Title one muft have, 
 to be Lawful King of Spain. is it the Law of 
 the Land. That is for us. £s jc Cuftom f 
 
 C That 
 
C IS ) 
 
 m 
 
 That is fpr us. Is it a Will ? We have that. 
 Is it the Acclamation of the People ? I dare 
 fay, No-body but Philip V. will boaft of that: 
 It was univerfal upon his AcceiTion ; it lafted 
 three Years without the leaft Contradifticn; 
 and it was purely owing to Intrigue, that fome 
 few of his Subjects^ were afterwards debauch’d 
 to incur the Guilt of Manifeft Rebellion, by 
 violating their former Oaths. 
 
 But why does not our Author, in his pro¬ 
 found Erudition, and in the Collection of Pieces 
 he has made, fay one Word of the famous Wills 
 ol Charles V. and P.hilip II. ? The Reafon is, be- 
 caufe they make direftly againft him, and he 
 is not paid for fpeaking the Truth, which is 
 contrary to the Intent of thofe who fet him 
 to work. Now you mu ft know, thofe two 
 Wills contain a gradual and perpetual Subfti- 
 tution of the Crown of Spain , preferring the 
 Males before the Females, and the Elder Daugh¬ 
 ters before the Younger, in all their Pofterity. 
 I affirm, therefore, That either the Crown of 
 Spain ought to be regulated according to the 
 Difpofals of her Kings, or it cannot be fettled 
 by Right of Blood } in a word, either that 
 Crown is Alienable, or it is not. If it is Alie¬ 
 nable, the Subfiitution being made by the An¬ 
 cient Kings of the Houfe of Juftria, their De¬ 
 pendents could not change it; and confequent- 
 ly, neither pofteriour Wills, nor Renunciations, 
 nor any other Difpofal whatfoever, can preju¬ 
 dice it. Our Author is too well skill’d in the 
 Law, to be ignorant of its. firft Rudiments. If 
 the Crown is not Alienable, the Wills of 
 Chafes V. and Philip II. and, if you pleafe, 
 you may add that of Charles II. fignify’d no¬ 
 thing} for they fay nothing but what the Law 
 
. ( 19 ) 
 
 faid'-beforc : Eut the Wills of Philip III. and 
 Philip IV. being contrary to Law, are null to 
 all Intents and Purpofes, and the Renunciations 
 of Anne and Marta-Tberefa, being contrary to 
 Law, are alfo void to all Intents and Purpofes; 
 and confequently, the Wills of the three Mo- 
 narchs by which Philip V. is call’d to the Crown, 
 are no farther to be accounted valid, than as 
 they are agreeable to the Fundamental Laws of 
 the Kingdom; whence it follows, That if Phi¬ 
 lip IV, and MaxU-Thereja, his Daughter, had 
 any kind of Power to exclude fome of his De- 
 fcendents, contrary to all juftice ; Charles II. 
 had as good, to reftore them in the Order of 
 Juftice irfelf; if the Father had Power to do 
 an Injury, the Son might much more juftly re¬ 
 pair it. And indeed, this is the very Point 
 which renders Charles "s Difpofai legitimate and 
 fair, in that it reftored Things to their natural 
 Condition, and gave- us to u-nderftand how far 
 Renunciations are valid, to wit, in the Cafe- 
 of Incompatibility of Two Crowns ; and how 
 far they are not, vi{. to exclude the Sole and; 
 True Heir, " i. , 
 
 Thus Philip V. does not come to the Crown 
 in Right of his Grandmother, nor in Right of : 
 his Great-Grandfather by the Mother’s Side ; 
 but in Right of himfelf. He does not repre¬ 
 fen t them, that he Ihould be bound by their 
 Deeds ; but is call’d by the Laws, by Blood, 
 and by Nature. Charles II. did not properly 
 appoint him, but only pitch’d upon him among 
 his true Succeffors, becaufe the others were de- 
 fign’d to wear the Crown of France, and it bell' 
 fuited the Intereft of the Two Kingdoms, to 
 have two different Kings. 
 
 • • ■ ' w m / 9 
 
 C 2 
 
 Thus, 
 
(*>).; 
 
 Thus much for Reafons, which I defy the 
 Author in quertion to anfwer, otherwife than 
 by Groxv.s . But there is one Thing very cu* 
 rious in his Book ; and that i$ > that after he 
 has laid down Principles, he. denies all the 
 Confcquences. Perfonal Difpofitions, according 
 to him, are mere Ballads; but Renunciations 
 are Fundamental Laws, as if Renunciations 
 were not Perfonal Difpofitions. 
 
 I’d fain ask him, whether the Corns* rn idiSi 
 had better Authority to fubvert the Ancient 
 Laws, than the Cortes in* 1739. had to main* 
 tain them? The Former* excluded the Chil¬ 
 dren of Marix-Jl:erefx ; the Latter fwore, that 
 Phi, ip V. and his Children are Rightful King*. 
 If the Former had Power to make a Law, cer¬ 
 tainly the Latter might make one too. What, 
 therefore, is the Difference between ’em? Why, 
 the pretended Law of 1618. was contrary to 
 the Irrevocable Laws of the Monarchy ; and 
 that of 1709. was the. Reftoring and Confirm¬ 
 ing of them* Pray obferve, 'by the by, how 
 careful the duftrixn Princes were, to make Ma¬ 
 ria TLerefa, and the Archduchcfs Ele&refs of Bx - 
 varix t ( who might transfer the Right to Spxin 
 cllewhere ) renounce, tho’ thofe Princeffes who 
 might carry it into the Germxn Branch, never 
 did fo. Is it not plain, This was purely to 
 frx that Patrimony in themfelves, notwithftand- 
 ing the Rules they had given them, acknow¬ 
 ledging it Feminine for their Houfe, and Mafcu- 
 Une for all the World befides ? It was to do 
 Violence to Nature, and force Providence; and 
 therefore, you fee. Providence laugh’d at ’em, 
 and Nature has got the better. Nothing, after 
 all, can be eftablifh’d upon, a more folid Foun¬ 
 dation, than Philip Y’s, Right; and nothing can 
 
( 21 ) 
 
 fee worfc grounded, than the Emperor’s Pre- 
 ten Rons. There now remains only to prove. 
 That it would be the higheft Degree of Chi¬ 
 merical Folly in the World, to perfift obfti- 
 nately to dethrone that Prince, 
 
 What has been left undone, to compafs that 
 End? How many Rivers of Blood fpilt? What 
 immenfe Treafures lavifh’d, to gain that Point 
 fo much the Defire of ail the Confederate 
 Powers ? Can Men hope for greater SucceflTes 
 than thofe they have had, which avail’d ’em 
 Nothing ? As long as the Spaniards continue 
 faithful, you might get 20 Battles of Saragojfa , 
 and 25 Times take Madrid, and yet be forc’d 
 after all to retire in Confufion. 
 
 The Allies were the fame with refpeft to 
 Spain, as the Chymifts are about the Philofo- 
 phers Stone. They always thought to hold it: 
 fall, and yet they always loft it; becaufe, in- 4 , 
 deed, they wanted the Firft Matter, the Hearts 
 of the People. Is it juft, therefore, to fall out 
 with the Queen, becaufe (he was the firft that 
 difeover’d the Impolfibility of an Enterprize the 
 Court of Vienna was pleas’d to put Her upon ? 
 Are not the moft (hort-liv’d Errors the beft? 
 
 But then, fays the Author of the Groans , you 
 accufe the Queen of flattering Herfelf without 
 Foundation, when (he declar’d to Her Parlia¬ 
 ment, fo many times over, That the War mull 
 be carry’d on, till the Houfe of Aujtria was 
 put in Pofleflion of Spain and the Indies . « 
 
 To this I anfwer. That we muft diftinguifh, 
 j. While the Emperor fofeph was yet alive, the 
 two Branches of that Houfe might be look’d up¬ 
 on as feparate, in like manner as that of Bourbon 
 now is but fince his Death without Male-Iffue, 
 All is united upon the fame Head ; and let our 
 
 Author, 
 
'Author, with his ridiculous Calculations, fay what* 
 he will, fo great Power in the Hands of one 
 Prince, at leaft as proud 2nd ambitious as any 
 of his Predeceffors, would be exorbitant. The 
 Queen, therefore, has good Reafon. to have differ 
 rent Sentiments fince April 1711. 2. Experience 
 
 teaches us many Things: Could it be imagin’d-, 
 at fir it. That Philip V. was fo belov’d of his Sub¬ 
 jects., that he fhould ever find in them Reffources 
 againft the greateft Rebuffs of Fortune? and. 
 That his Rival Ihould never be lefs Maiter of 
 Spain ^ than when in PoiTeffion of its Capital ? Such 
 Events are fo miraculous, that they could not be 
 believ’d without Experiment; but to have two 
 feveral Tryais, and not believe it, is an unpar¬ 
 donable Biindnefs in Men who fit at the Helm of 
 Governments, 3. The Queen was not yet fenfi- 
 ble of the Breach of Faith of Her Allies. Cer¬ 
 tain Perfons abufing the Confidence HerMajefty 
 fancy’d to be due to their Wit, and Parts, and Suc- 
 ceffes, facrificed Her infenfibly to the Court of 
 Vienna, to Holland) and to their private Interefts, 
 by inducing Her to continue, under the Colour of 
 a fcrupulous Fidelity to Her Engagements, a War 
 from which She alone was to reap no Advantage* 
 tho’ at the fame time it ruin’d Her Subjetts. TTis 
 true, we read in Fables, That the Monkey 
 made ufe of the Cat’s Paw to rake the Chefnuts 
 out of the Fire; but we do not find, That when 
 the Cat grew weary of her Complaifance, the 
 donkey had the Impudence to cry out Murder, 
 and to upbraid her with Breach of Faith. 
 
 We have -but one Thing more to examine; 
 namely, Whether Europe ought rather to groan 
 upon the Making cf a Peace according to the 
 Queen’s Plan, than upon the Profpeft of an ever- 
 iaiiing War, agreeable to the Schemes of the /m- 
 
 pemlifts 
 
! 
 
 C 23) 
 
 jeridlifis and the Dutch . Not to infift upon the 
 Common-Place, which fays, A bad Peace is better 
 than a good War , let us fee, with our Author, Whe- 
 ther the Peace now in Agitation, is not prefera¬ 
 ble to the War in Cogitation, If it is bad, the 
 High Allies were in the wrong, when in the Year 
 1701. they made their Treaty of Grand Alliance $. 
 for by this Project of Peace, they have Ail they 
 then defired, and all the Advantages they pro¬ 
 pos’d to themfdves by taking up Arms. It is 
 properly from that Treaty, that the Queen of 
 Great Britain has drawn up the Articles of a Ge¬ 
 neral Satisfaction. If the Emperor and the Dutch 
 have taken no Care of their Interefts, at a time 
 when Nothing hindred them from ftipulating 
 what they pleas’d, they can blame no body but 
 themfelves: But, fays our Author, their Stomach 
 is fince come to them, and they’ll cry, if they are 
 not humour’d ; they thought to have fwallow’d 
 up. one Crown, and to have divided the other. 
 Hire I mull put my lall Queftion to him, and 
 intreat him, and all the Scribblers of Libels againft 
 France , to tell me, once for all, upon what Foot we 
 •ought to regard that Crown? They generally 
 alledge Two things againll her. 1. That her 
 Power mull abfolutely be reduced; and 2. That 
 this might eafily be done. Thefe two Suppofi- 
 tions feem to them neceffary to excite Hatred 
 and Hope at the fame time*, but unhappily they 
 incur a childilh Contradiction ; for, to prove the 
 one, they fay, France has formidable Forces, and 
 inexhauftible Funds \ and, That if Care be not 
 taken, fhe will over-run Europe : To prove the 0- 
 ther, they affirm, That France is at the laft Gafp, 
 has but one Squeek for her Life, and that one 
 Pufh more would etfcCUially do her Bufinefs. This 
 does not at ail agree, and therefore is very eafi- 
 
( *4 ) 
 
 IV anfwerM. If fhe ‘is fo weak, why ate you 3 - 
 
 frlid of her? If (he is fo ftrong, how will you 
 reduce her? Men of SenfeaitU Gravity, who do 
 not exaggerate Matters, content themfelves with 
 fpeaking a Truth upon this Occafion, to wir, 
 That France is powerful enough to withftand the 
 greateft Efforts of her Enemies, and yet is not 
 llrong enough to attack the Liberties of Europe. 
 If fhe took care to extend herfelf fome forty or 
 fifty Years ago, it was becaufe Paris was a little 
 too near her Frontier. Prince Eugene will con¬ 
 firm what I fay, who having laid Siege to Van- 
 drecy, promis’d his Army to winter them in the 
 Ille of France, and that Major-General Groveftiyn 
 had already befpoke their Quarters. It is not/ 
 therefore, boundlefs Ambition in a Prince to en¬ 
 deavour to cover his Kingdom on the fide it is 
 moft ftreighfen’d ; but it is, to defire to poflete 
 at the fame time Germany, the Netherlands, Hun - 
 gary, Bohemia , Italy, Spain , and the Indies. v 
 
 We mull therefore conclude. That h War, 
 which, if fuccelsful, would rend to Nothing 
 but to double the Territories of the Hutch, and 
 to quadruple thofe of the Emperor; and which, 
 if not fuccefsful, might give France more Terri¬ 
 tories than fhe defires; is a War which it is 
 high time to put an end to; and, That on the 
 contrary, a Peace which leaves the Two Great 
 Houfes in an exaft Equilibrium, and reftores a 
 perfeft Tranquillity to poor Europe torn in 
 pieces by fo many Calamities, can make No* 
 body groan, but the Difturbers of the Publick 
 Peace, and the Common Enemies of Mankind* 
 
 I am, £ 3 V. 
 
 V FINIS.