and will ferve you; and your back is no fooner turned, but he tells those about him you are a dog and a rafcal. He goeth conftantly to prayers in the form of his place, and will talk bawdy and blafphemy at the chapel door. He is a prefbyterian in politics, and an atheist in religion; but he chufeth at prefent to whore with a papift. In his commerce with mankind his general rule is, to endeavour to impofe on their understanding, for which he hath but one receipt, a compofition of lies and oaths: and this he applieth indifferently to a freeholder of forty fhillings, and a privy counfellor; by which the eafy and the honeft are often either deceived or amused, and either way he gaineth his point. He will openly take your employment away to-day, because you are not of his party; tomorrow he will meet or fend for you, as if nothing at all had paffed, lay his hands with much friendship on your fhoulders, and, with the greatest eafe and familiarity, tell you that the faction are driving at fomething in the houfe; that you must be fure to attend, and to fpeak to all your friends to be there, although he knoweth at the fame time, that you and your friends are against him in the very point he mentioneth and, however abfurd, ridiculous, and grofs this may appear, he hath often found it fuccessful; fome men having fuch an aukward bafhfulness, they know not how to refufe on a fudden, and every man having fomething to hope or fear, which often hinders them from driving things to extremes with perfons of power, whatever provocations they may have received. He hath funk his fortune by endeavouring to ruin one kingdom

[England], and hath raised it by going far in the ruin of another [Ireland.] With a good natural understanding, a great fluency in speaking, and no ill taste of wit, he is generally the worst companion in the world; his thoughts being wholly taken up between vice and politics, fo that bawdy, prophanenefs, and bufinefs, fills up his whole converfation. To gratify himself in the two firft, he maketh use of fuitable favourites, whofe talents reach no higher than to entertain him with all the lewdness that passeth in town. As for business he is faid to be very dexterous at that part of it which turneth upon intrigue; and he feemeth to have transferred those talents of his youth, for intriguing with women, into public affairs. For as fome vain young fellows, to make a gallantry appear of confequence, ftill chufe to venture their necks by climbing up a wall or window at midnight to a common wench, where they might as freely have gone in at the door, and at noon-day; fo his excellency, either to keep himself in practice, or advance the fame of his politics, affects the most obfcure, troublefome, and winding paths, even in the most common affairs, those which would be brought about as well in the ordinary terms, or would follow of course, whether he intervened or not.

He bears the gallantries of his lady with the indifference of a ftoic, and thinks them well recompenfed by a return of children to fupport his family, without the fatigues of being a father. He has three predominant paffions, which you will feldom find united in the fame man, as arifing from different difpofitions of mind, and naturally thwarting

each

each other: thefe are, love of power, love of money, and love of pleafure: they ride him fometimes by turns, and fometimes all together. Since he went into Ireland, he feemeth moft difpofed to the fecond, and hath met with great fuccefs, having gained by his government, of under two years, five and forty thousand pounds, by the moft favourable computation, half in the regular way, and half in the prudential.

He was never yet known to refufe or keep a promise. But here I defire to diftinguish between a promife and a bargain; for he will be fure to keep the latter when he has the fairest offer.

along as it were out of a rocki his founding a military difcipline in thefe nations, fuch as is not to be found in any example of preceding times; and whereby the noble foldiers of these nations may, without flattery, be commended for piety, moderation, and obedience. as a pattern to be imitated, but hardly to be equalled by fucceeding generations: his wifdom and piety in things divine; his prudence in management of civil affairs, and conduct in military, and admirable fucceffes in all, made him a prince indeed among the people of God; by whofe prayers being lifted up to the fupreme dignity, he became more highly feared in their hearts, because in all his actings, it was evident that the main defign was to make his own intereft one and the fame with theirs, that it might be fubfervient to the great intereft of Jefus Chrift.

And in the promoting of this, his fpirits knew no bounds; his af fection could not be confined at home, but broke forth into foreign parts, where he was univerfally ad mired by good men, as an extraordinary perfon raised up of God; and by them owned as the protector and patron of the evangelical profeffion. This being faid, and the world itself witness of it, we can only add, that God gave him bleffings proportionable to all thefe vir tues, and made him a bleffing to us by his wifdom and valour, to fecure our peace and liberty, and to revive the ancient renown and reputation, of our native country.

After all this, it is remarkable how it pleafed the Lord, on this day, to take him to reft, it having formerly been a day of labour to him; for which both himself and

the

the day (September 3) will be moft renowned to pofterity; it having been to him a day of triumphs and thankfgiving, for the memorable victories of Dunbar and Worcester *: a day which, after so many strange revolutions of Providence, high contradictions, and wicked confpiracies of unreasonable men, he lived once again to fee; and then to die with great affurances and ferenity of mind, peaceably in his bed.

Thus, it hath proved to him to be a day of triumph, indeed; there being much of Provideuce in it, that, after fo glorious crowns of victory, placed on his head by God, on this day, having neglected an earthly crown, he should now go to receive the crown of everlasting life.

1

Being gone, to the unfpeakable grief of all good men, the privy council immediately affembled; and being fatisfied that the lord protector was dead, and upon fure and certain knowledge that his late highness did, in his life-time, according to their humble petition and advice, declare, and appoint the most noble aud illuftrious lord, the lord Richard, eldest son of his faid highness, to fucceed him in the government as lord protector, it was fo refolved at the council; which being made known to the officers of the army, it was pleasant to behold with how much content and fatisfaction they received the notice of it, and unanimously concurred therewith; being refolved, to their utmost, to maintain the fucceffion

according to law: which worthy refolution of theirs, as it fpeaks them men of honour, prudence, and fidelity, mindful of the merits of their late great leader and common father, and of the grand interest and establishment after all our fhakings; fo it is but answerable to the worth and nobleness of his son, who, in all refpects, appears the lively image of his father, the true inheritor of all his chriftian virtues; a person, who, by his piety, humanity, and other noble inclinations, hath obliged the hearts of all, and thereby filled this people with the hopes of much felicity, thro' God's bleffing upon his government."

Then follows an account of the privy conncil's waiting on Richard, his fhort fpeech to them, and the manner of his proclamation: all which, being in every refpect the fame as at the acceffion of every king, is not worth tranfcribing, as there would be nothing new in it, more efpecially at this juncture, when we had a recent example.

This panegyric on Oliver and his fon is clofed with the following prayer: "May all the days of his highness's life be crowned with the bleffings of the most high God, and the highest affections of his people."

Such was the language made ufe of by the friends and partizans of Oliver Cromwell, whofe real character, after fuch extravagant applanfes on one fide, and detractions

the other, has been never better or more truly prefented, than by

the

the great earl of Clarendon, who ftiles him, a great wicked man.

Remarkable Speech of Richard Cromwell to his Parliament.

As

S this fpeech is curious in itself, and not to be met with in any of the common or general hiftories of England, we imagine the perufal of it will not be difagreeable. The ftile is perfectly puritanical; but, as Richard was never accused of hypocrify, had no fhare in the crimes of his father, and ever led an innocent life, the language appears not in fo ridiculous a light, as when proceeding from the mouth of a man, the whole tenor of whofe actions contradicted and belied his words. The terms in which he fpeaks of his father, though it is needless to mention they are in the highest degree falfe and flattering, are no other than could be expected from him on fuch an occafion, at fuch a juncture, and to fuch an audience. The oration was as fol

lows:

in whofe hands our breath is, and whofe are all our ways, because of his judgments) fo as to acknowledge him in his goodness to thefe: lands, in that he hath not added forrow to forrow, and made the period of his late highness's life, and that of the nation's peace, to have been in one day.

Peace was one of the bleffings of my father's government; a mercy after fo long a civil war, and in the midft of fo great divifion which that war bred, is not ufually afforded by God unto á people in fo great a measure. i

The Caufe of God and thefe na tions, which the late protector was engaged in, met, in all the parts of it, as you well know, with many enemies and great oppofition; the archers, privily and openly, forely grieved him, and fhot at him; yet his bow abode in ftrength, and the arms of his hands were made ftrong. by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob.

As to himfelf; he died full of days, fpent in fore and great travail; yet his eyes were not waxed dím, neither was his natural ftrength abated; as it was faid of Moses, he was serviceable even to the last.

As to these nations, he left them in great honour abroad, and in full. peace at home: all England, Scotland, and Ireland, dwelling fafely, every man under his vine, and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beersheba.

He is gone to reft, and we are entered into his labours; and, if the Lord hath ftill a bleffing for thefe lands, (as I truft he hath) as our peace hath been lengthened out to this day, fo fhall we go on to reap the fruit, and gather the harvest, of what his late