tional expenditure to have been iffued " for preferving and restoring the peace of Europe." His majesty, nevertheless, declined to comply with their request; but informed them in general terms, that part of the money had been disbursed by his late majefty, conformably to the powers vested in him by parliament; and the remainder by himself, for carrying on neceffary and important fervices, which required the greatest secrefy. And he hoped that the house would repose the fame confidence in him, and be affured that the money had been neceffarily expended, agreeably to the ends for which it was granted. This answer, the house, upon calmer confideration, thought fit to approve; fir Robert Walpole affirming it to be "impoffible that public services fhould be carried on, confidering the great complication of interests on the continent, if every fbilling that was expended for the advancement of the common cause, and for maintaining the balance of Europe, was known to all the world:" though Mr. Pulteney, now in open oppofition to the court, inveighed against this vague and loose mode of accounting for the expenditure of the public money, as tending to render parliaments altogether infignificant; to encourage and invite the most fhameful embezzlements; and to fcreen corrupt and rapacious ministers from even the poffibility of detection and punishment. No impreffion, however, was made by thefe reafonings, as too plainly appeared by the discretionary vote of credit, paffed at the requifition of the court, by 237 voices against 101, previous to the clofe of the feffion.

In the course of the prefent year arrived in England Frederic prince of Wales, who had hitherto resided at Hanover, as if it were determined to perpetuate the Hanoverian fyftem, by fuffering no interruption of the original afsociations and attachments of the reigning family. About this time died Erneft Auguftus, bishop of Ofnaburg, only brother of the late king, and created by him duke of York, but never refident in England. He was fucceeded in the bishopric

bishopric by the elector of Cologne, agreeably to the pactum by which Ofnaburg is alternately poffeffed by a prince of the houfe of Brunfwic and that elector.

The congrefs at Soiffons made little progrefs in the bufinefs of pacification. France and Spain were now perfectly reconciled; and the court of Madrid, confiding in the ftrength of her ally, though her fhort-lived friendship with the emperor was now at an end, became lefs folicitous for an accommodation with England. Loud and general exclamations were raised, and petitions prefented from the great mercantile towns to the house of commons, at the meeting of parliament early in the year 1729, complaining of the loffes and obftructions they had fuftained in their commerce, through the depredations of the Spaniards in the WeftIndies. The house, in a grand committee, after an ample investigation of the fubject, paffed a resolution, justificatory of the inftructions given to admiral Hofier to feize the flota and galleons; and another, declaring that the Spaniards had violated the treaties fubfifting between the two crowns. And an address was presented to the king, defiring "that his majesty would be gracioufly pleased to use his utmost endeavors to procure juft and reasonable fatisfaction for these injuries, and for fecuring to his majesty's fubjects the free exercise of commerce and navigation to and from the British colonies in America;" which his majesty affured them he would not fail to do. The houfe of peers alfo refolving itself into a committee on the ftate of the nation, and the letter of the late king to the king of Spain, touching the reftitution of Gibraltar, among other state-papers, being laid before them, a refolution was moved, "That for the honor of his majesty, and the preservation and fecurity of the trade and commerce of the kingdom, effectual care should be taken, in the present treaty, that the king of Spain should renounce, in explicit terms, all claim and pretenfion to Minorca and Gibraltar." After a violent debate the mo→ tion was negatived, but not without a strong protest; and a fecond

a fecond motion, "That the houfe did entirely rely upon his majesty, that he would, for maintaining the honor and fecuring the trade of this kingdom, take effectual care in the present treaty to preserve his undoubted right to Gibral tar and Minorca," paffed in the affirmative. It is fingular, that an addrefs was again presented to the throne by the commons, defiring to be informed in what manner a large fum, ftated to have been expended for restoring the peace of Europe, was difpofed of; to which an answer, fimilar to that returned to the former address, was given, in which the house had again the complaifance to acquiefce. Previous to the recefs, the king declared his intention of vifiting his German dominions, leaving the queen fole regent, under whofe mild and equitable administration no cause of discontent or difaffection arofe. But Ireland had been for fome time past convulsed with folly and faction, in conse. quence of a patent granted to one Wood, by the late king, for coining a certain quantity of copper for the use of that kingdom, and which was confeffedly much wanted for the purposes of commercial intercourse. The coinage being found of a base and inferior quality, the famous Swift, dean of St. Patrick's, feized with eagernefs the opportunity of venting his fpleen and rancor against the government, by publishing a series of tracts, in which he attempted to prove, that the ruin of the kingdom must be the inevitable confequence of this abufe. Lord Carteret, being now appointed to the government of Ireland, was compelled to iffue, in his official capacity, a proclamation offering a reward for the difcovery of the author of these feditious and libellous publications. Notwithstanding which, this haughty and factious priest ventured to appear at all places of public refort as ufual, and had even, in the presence-chamber of the caftle of Dublin, the boldness to expoftulate with the lord lieutenant upon the pretended tyranny and iniquity of this proclamation, and prefumed to afk, "how it was poffible that his excellency could fuffer it to be iffued?" To

which lord Carteret, indulging the fympathies of friendhip and genius, with equal elegance and magnanimity replied, Res dura, et regni novitas, me talia cogunt moliri. Under the administration of this nobleman peace and order were restored and established, various excellent laws were enacted for the encouragement of manufactures, commerce, and agriculture, and many falutary regulations adopted in the civil departments of government. The beneficial effects of a liberal and enlightened policy were universally felt; and the parliament of that kingdom, in their unanimous approval of the measures of their prefent governor, paid that homage to wisdom which it had frequently been known to refufe to power.

The congrefs of Soiffons proving finally abortive, conferences were opened at Seville between the minifters of France, Spain, and England, to the exclufion of the emperor, who conceived much refentment at this affront i and a treaty was figned in the month of May, 1729, of which his imperial majesty openly and heavily complained to the diet affembled at Ratifbon, as contrary to the exprefs ftipulations of the quadruple alliance. In the courfe of this year Victor Amadeus, king of Sardinia, refigned his crown to his fon Charles Emanuel, and retiring to the caftle of Chamberri, efpoufed the countess of St. Sebaftian, who refused with difdain the title, as fhe could not participate in the power, of royalty. In October, 1729, died Peter II. czar of Mufcovy, and grandson of Peter the Great, by the unfortunate Alexiowitz. He was fucceeded on the throne of Ruffia by the princess Anne Iwanowna, duchess of Courland, fecond daughter of the czar Iwan, elder brother to Peter the Great. Early in the following year died pope Benedict XIII. and was fucceeded by cardinal Corfini, already near eighty years of age, who nevertheless filled the papal chair ten years under the name of Clement XII.

At

At this eventful period alfo a fudden and furprising te volution, if under fo defpotic a government any revolution can surprise, took place at Conftantinople, by the depo fition of the grand feignor Achmet III. and the elevation of his nephew Mahmout or Mahomet V. From the era of the memorable victory obtained by the illuftrious Sobieski under the walls of Vienna, the Ottoman power had fuffered a great and rapid decline; and Mahomet IV. who had fucceeded when an infant to the throne, on the depofition of his father the fultan Ibrahim (A. D. 1648), was himself in confequence of the general rage excited by the misfortunes of that difaftrous war, compelled to fubmit to the fame fate. During the fhort and feeble reigns of his brothers Solyman II. and Achmet II. the triumphs of the Imperialists continued. The reign of the succeeding emperor Mustapha II. fon of Mahomet IV. was diftinguished by the famous battle of Zenta won by prince Eugene, and the confequent treaty of Carlowitz. After a reign of feven years, the fultan Mustapha was, by another revolution, hurled from his throne, and his brother Achmet III. raised to the fame high and dangerous pre-eminence. This prince is well known by his hofpitable and generous reception of the king of Sweden, after the defeat of that monarch at Pultowa. Being afterwards involved in a war with the emperor Charles VI. his armies were repeatedly defeated by prince Eugene, and the war was terminated, greatly to the disadvantage of the Turks, by a treaty concluded under the mediation of Great Britain at Paffarowitz, A. D. 1718. The avarice and oppression of his fubfequent government, together with the war carried on negligently and unfuccefsfully against the Perfians, made the reign of Achmet odious to the people. Recourfe being had to a very unusual and dangerous expedient in Turkey, the impofition of a new tax called the Bedead, a fpecies of excife very arbitrary in the collection, in order to defray the expence of this war, three Janifaries, named