best of my Ability, without loading me with unjuft Reproach. In this reasonable Expectation Mr. Walpole generously lent me his Protection; and though he could not perfuade my Judges to do me Juftice, he convinced them I deferved a different Sentence from what they pronounced. But, alas, they had learn'd, by long Practice, to do fhameful Things without being afham'd; and tho' your Arguments could command their Affent, it could not make them utter it in my Favour. You fent them away, I thank you, with the fame Thoughts of themselves, which you had of them; and whatever Force and Oppreffion determined, in the Eye of Reafon and Confcience the Judges were convict, and the accufed Man found innocent.

I humbly thank you for your eminent Part in this Affair, and congratulate you on receiving the Favour of your Prince for your Service to your Country.

As doing Good to the Publick is the Motive of conferring Favours, it is, with fuch as you, the Rule in enjoying them. I wish you the Poffeffion of all your frank Heart defires; and am, with great Respect,

SIR,

Your most Obliged,

Moft Obedient,

and moft Humble Servant,

Richard Steele.

THE

PREFACE.

TH

HIS Defence was printed before the Death of Her late Majefty; but upon that Accident the Publication was deferred, left fome Handle might be taken to interrupt the Business of the Nation, by an Offence given to Perfons who were principally guilty of the Oppreffion here reprefented. They might poffibly have attempted to borrow another Caft of Confcience in their Favour; and it was to be feared, that the fame Tyranny, which punished a Man for a thing in which he ought to have been encouraged and fupported,would have gone on to condemn the leaft Murmur against its Determination. I have faid Tyranny, because to refolve or act against Justice, Truth,or commonSenfe, is as much Tyranny in an Affembly as a fingle Perfon. But I must do the Majority of the Houfe which expelled me the Justice to own, that they carried themselves as Men confcious they were doing wrong; and no one appeared active in it but profelfed Slaves and Hirelings, that is to fay, fuch as I have called in the following Narrative the Meffengers of the Treafury: Members of the Houfe who were immediately dependant upon or

related

related to a noble Lord whom I need not name, that fent Orders by his Kinfman to turn a Commoner of England out of Parliament, because it was not his Lordship's good Pleasure he should fit there any longer. When a Man is out of Power, it is ufual to detract from the Fame of his bigh Talents and Qualifications: But I cannot be guilty of fuch Injustice to this great Man; for never was Minister fince the Creation more thoroughly Mafter of that great Necessary in bim who meditates vaft Designs, the Choice of Inftruments. Machiavel, in fome Part of his presious Writings, advises against the Choice of raw Marderers, for fuch are apt to utter fome Soft Word flowing from Compaffion, or other Weaknefs, for want of the Habit of Bloodshed, which might spoil the whole Defign. Our Heroe cannot be accused of being injudicious this way; and I have a thousand times fate in deep Admiration of his Choice of Agents, who if they had been the leaft Grain more rich, more poor, more foolish, more wife, more tall, more fhort, more Knaves, or more Fools, had been unfit for the work in hand. Had any Man against his Measures in either of the Aflemblies more Eloquence, more Penetration, or more Credit than comes to a fingle Member's Share, let fuch a one open his Mouth, he should be attacked with one who had as much Right to speak as himfelf, with fo firm Abfurdity, and then feconded by One just one Degree worse than him, and a third Half-Fool pin up the Mutter with an Af fertion ftill wilder, to the utter Confufion of the Man in bis Senfes, whofe noble Faculty of adorning the Caufe of Truth fhould be immediately reduced to an Interjection of Sorrow, and down be muft fit. Such was our Heroe's Manner of de

molishing

molishing and fruftrating all Perfons against him. The fame Genius in disappointing the Force of fu perior Talents, ran through all Parts of Bufinefs.

The Writings hereafter spoken of were an apparent Vindication of the King's Title to the "Crown, and an boneft Reprefentation of the dangerous State of the Nation. Now would any Man living believe, that it was in Nature this could be made an Accufation before an House of Commons? But fo it was; and there appeared in it Fellows born and contrived by Nature for fuch a Work; Creatures that could vex, but not make you angry, fuch mean Inftruments of Iniquity, that the Wickedness was disparaged by their managing it, and the Flagrancy and dangerous Confequence of what was doing, was hidden by the Inconfiderableness of the Agents. A Perfecution from them was like being troubled with Vermin. The' I had too much at Stake to be in Humour enough to enjoy the Scene, there was, with all the Cruelty of it, fomething particularly Comick in the Affair. All the Men of Senfe in the Majority of the House, tho' they did not defign to deny a Friend a Vote, food off, and left the whole Management to the Family and the Office.

The Onfet was made in the pooreft manner, and the Accufation laid with an infipid Action and cold Expreffion. The Accufer arraigned a Man for Sedition, with the fame Indolence and Indifference as another Man pares his Nails: What was spoken appeared only a Rheum from the Mouth, and Mr. Foley, as well as do what he did, might have blown his Nofe, and put the Queftion. But tho' the Choler of my Accufers was corrected by their Phlegm, infomuch that

they

they were harmless with Ill will; yet had they Perfeverance to go on, infenfible of the Raillery of the contrary Party, and the Contempt of their own. The most lamentable thing of all to confi der was, that tho' there was not one Man of Honour, who spoke on the fide of the Ministry, but did it upon general Terms, wherein he appa rently discovered his Difapprobation of the Work he was about, fo many honest Gentlemen should join in a Vote of Expulfion!

It is poffible fome Gentlemen might think in their Confciences, it is an immoral Action for any private Man to animadvert upon the Adminiftration of the Publick. God forbid I should Jay there were not fome worthy Men who were thus perfwaded in this Cafe; but if they were fo, I know not why they should, as Members of the House of Commons, punish a Man for what be did before he came into the House, efpecially fince that Thing would have been laudable in him to have done, if he had been in the Houfe.

All I fall preface further is, that I thought the Circumstances of Great Britain and Europe were fuch as made it an honest and neceffary Action to interrupt and oppofe the Measures of the Miniftry. When I thought it my Duty, I thank God, I had no further Confideration for my felf than to do it in a lawful and proper Way, fo as to give no Disparagement to a Glorious Caufe from my Indifcretion or want of Judgment. A Work against them I was the rather enclined to undertake, because the Exceptions which were made against the Conduct of the Miniftry feemed wild and calumnions, when written by nameless Authors; but when any Man with his Name afferted Things were amifs, it would behove the Perfons