things to imitate French manners; the great peers to speak French in their houses, in French to write their bills and letters, as a great piece of gentility, afhamed of their own: a prefage of their fubjection fhortly to that people, whofe fashions and language they affected fo flavishly "." That monarchy, whose universality the general adoption of her language had been expected to promote, has been itself overthrown. To the wider extenfion of thofe forms of government, which have fucceeded in that country, the affectation of her fashions and manners perhaps, rather than the ufage of her language, may be confidered as fubfervient. But Britain has ftood, and may it ftand to the laft period of time, "unfhaken, unfeduced," by fuch degrading imitations in a few faithlefs children. That innocence, and modefty, and tendernefs of heart, by which her daughters have ever been diftinguished; and that well-principled conduct, the true fpirit of liberty and real love of religion, for which her fons have been renowned; will never, let us hope, fall victims to the designs of a pretended philofophy, which confounds the diftinctions of right and wrong; to

-"thofe new-fangled toys, and trimming flight "Which takes our late fantasticks with delight."

Hift. of England, B. vi. edit. 1698. p. 111.

• From Milton's mafterly Verfes At a Vacation Exercife in the

About this time the King's impreffive book, entitled Eicon Bafiliké, or the Portraiture of his Sacred Majesty in his Solitudes and Sufferings," having been publifhed; Milton was ordered to prepare an anfwer to it. He accordingly printed, by authority, in 1649, his "Eiconolaftes," or the image-breaker; the purport of the King's book being, in his opinion, P" to catch the worthlefs approbation of an inconstant, irrational, and image-doting rabble." Milton's work has been tranflated into French; and two replies to it, one in 1651, the other in 1692 on its being reprinted at Amfterdam, have been published. It has been afferted, but not proved, that Milton together with Bradshaw prevailed upon the printer to interpolate a prayer, taken from Sidney's Arcadia, in fome editions of the King's book. Dr. Newton candidly obferves, "I cannot but hope and believe, that Milton had a foul above being guilty of fo mean an action to ferve fo mean a purpose; and there is as little reafon for fixing it upon him, as he had to traduce the King for profaning the duty of prayer with the polluted trash of romances.' For there are not many finer prayers in the best books of devotion; and the King might as law

College, addreffed to the corrupters his Native Language. See the Notes on ver. 18 of this poem, vol. vi. pp. 70, 71,

P Eiconoclaftes, at the end.

fully borrow and apply it to his own occasions, as the Apostle might make quotations from heathen poems and plays: And it became Milton the leaft of all men to bring fuch an accufation against the King, as he was himself particularly fond of reading romances, and has made use of them in fome of the beft and latest of his writings." Milton's fuppofed imposture has been alfo difcredited by Dr. Birch. 1

Having thus diftinguished himself as the advocate of republicanifin, the Members of the English council naturally appointed him to vindicate their cause against the attack of no mean opponent. King Charles the second, being now protected in Holland, had employed Salmafius, a learned Frenchman, profeffor of Polite Learning at Leyden, to write a defence of his late father, and of monarchy. Salmafius, Dr. Johnfon obferves," was a man of skill in languages, knowledge of antiquity, and fagacity of emendatory criticism, almost exceeding all hope of human attainment; and having, by exceffive praises, been confirmed in great confidence of himself, though he probably had not much confidered the principles of fociety or the rights of government, undertook the employment without diftruft of his own qualifications; and, as his expedition in writing was wonderful, in 1649 published De

See the Inquiry into the Orig. of Par. Loft, p. 273.

r

fenfio Regia." It is certainly remarkable that Salmafius, the penfioner to a republick, fhould write a vindication of monarchy. The States indeed ordered it to be fuppreffed. Before he had proceeded in his work, he was thus cautioned by his friend Sarravius "Periculofæ plenum opus aleæ aggrederis, Defenfionem dico nuper occifi Britanniarum Regis; maximè cùm veftri Ordines mediam viam fecent. Laudo tamen animi tui generofum propofitum, quo nefandum fcelus apertè damnare fuftines. Hac tamen te cautione uti opus eft, ne ita Majeftatem Regiam extollas, ut erga fubditos amorem videantur illis gratis largiri." From the correspondence of this learned Frenchman with Salmafius we learn fome curious particulars respecting the work, which occafioned Milton's elaborate answer. Sarravius advised him to read the king's book, as fubfervient to his purpose; a book, he fays, which he had read with the highest admiration: “adeò in ea [icone] plena omnia bonitatis erga fubditos eximiæ, et in Deum pietatis. Ex eo libro potueris non pauca depromere Apologetico tuo firmando." After the Defenfio Regia had been published, he informs him of the blame attached to him for not having

M. Gudii, et C. Sarravii, Epiftolæ, Ultrajecti, 1697. Sarrav. Ep. cxcviii. p. 203.

Ibid. Ep. ccv. p. 210,

t

fent a copy to the widowed queen of Charles;

who, though poor, would yet have paid the bearer. Sarravius informs him alfo of "reported antagonists, long before Milton appeared against him. Milton indeed commenced hoftile operation immediately on the publication of Salmafius's defence. But the various interruptions, which he mentions in the eloquent Preface to his Defenfio Populi, prevented his publick display of oppofition till the beginning of the year 1651.

Hobbes is faid to have declared himself unable to decide whofe language was best, or whose arguments were worst. In Dr. Johnson's opinion, Milton's periods were fmoother, neater, and more pointed; but he delights himself with teazing his adversary, as much as with confuting him. Milton's book was burnt at Paris, and at Toulouse. But this procured it more readers. From a letter of Nicholas Heinfius to Ifaac Voffius it appears to have been tranflated into Dutch, and to have been expected alfo in a French drefs. Into our own language it was tranflated, at the close of the feventeenth century, by Mr. Washington of the Temple. Salmafius's book attracted much

Ibid. Ep. ccxxiii. p. 223. “ Vidi nobilem Anglum expoftulantem, quòd omiferis unum exemplum mittere ad defuncti Caroli viduam, quæ hîc [Paris.] degit; Quamvis enim, inquiebat, fit in re minimè lautâ, tamen potuiffe folvere pretium tabellarii, qut illud attuliffet."

Ibid. Ep. ccxxxvii. p. 235.