the patriotic firmness of the Commons, and rebuking them for their seditious and even blasphemous presumption in disputing, to use his own language, "what a King may do in the height of his power," indignantly dissolved a Parliament which had opposed so steady and valiant a resistance to his encroachments.

Four years now elapsed before another Parliament was convened. In this interval, the spirit of liberty which animated the nation instead of suffering any abatement, had, if possible, acquired greater strength. The new Parliament instantly resumed the subject of the King's illegal impositions, in spite of every artifice employed to obtain from them first, additional supplies to meet the growing profusion of the court. Nothing marks more strikingly the rapid advance of the nation in intelligence and freedom than the fact that the Commons now passed an unanimous vote against the right of imposition claimed by the King, and proceeded immediately to demand a conference with the House of Lords, which, in the last Parliament, had refused their concurrence in establishing this great principle of English liberty. The King, incensed and alarmed at the increasing energy of the Commons, precipitately dissolved the Parliament, before they had passed a single bill, and superadded the outrage of imprisoning several of the members, who had incurred his displeasure by the freedom and boldness of their debates.

An interval of more than six years now occurred before the assembling of another Parliament. During this period, events of the most important character had taken place on the continent of Europe, which

strongly appealed to the sympathies, and deeply enlisted the feelings and sentiments of the English nation. The thirty years war had broken out in Germany, provoked by the persecutions and oppressions of the Emperor Ferdinand directed against the Protestant States of the Empire. Among those states, driven to raise the standard of a brave and bloody resistance, was Bohemia, which had conferred her sovereignty on Frederic, the Elector Palatine, who was married to the daughter of King James. Frederic was soon overwhelmed by the immense power of the House of Austria, and he was not only forced to flee from his new kingdom, but his hereditary dominion, the Palatinate, was overrun in every direction by the Spanish forces under Spinola. The progress of the combined arms of Spain and the Emperor was every where signalized by cruelties and rigors of the most revolting character exercised against the professors of the Reformed religion. The people of England, now cherishing the blessings of civil and religious liberty above all price, saw with generous and indignant sympathy the brave and unequal struggle of their protestant brethren on the continent. The principles of national honour and of national interest, as they conceived, alike required of them the vigorous support of the Palatine and his allies against their haughty and powerful oppressors.

James had embraced far different councils. His repugnance to appear, under any circumstances, to patronise the revolt of subjects against their sovereign, steeled his breast to the pleadings of nature for his son-in-law. His grand scheme of State policy was

to cultivate, above all other connexions, the alliance and friendship of Spain-a policy to which he had but a short time before basely sacrificed the life of Raleigh-and his heart was now wholly intent on cementing this alliance by the marriage of Prince Charles to a daughter of the Spanish King.

In this state of things, the third Parliament of King James was assembled. Its first session was rendered forever memorable by the impeachment and disgrace of the greatest genius of that age, if not of all time, who had tarnished the high office of Lord Chancellor which he then held, and his own still higher name, by yielding to the prevailing official corruption of the times, and receiving bribes from suitors in his court. In the melancholy record of the frailties of human nature, the fall of Bacon is the example most fitted of all others to impress a lesson of deep humility. Here was a character ennobled by the highest wisdom, the profoundest learning, the brightest parts, the most persuasive eloquence, and yet not proof against temptation of the lowest and most sordid kind. The contrite and humbled spirit with which he confessed his guilt before the House of Lords, "beseeching their Lordships to be merciful to a broken reed," and the affecting allusion to his weakness in one of the greatest of his works, where he says that born for science, he knows not by what evil destiny he could have been cast upon the stormy pursuits of public life, for which he was unfit,* disarm the judgment of

*"Ad literas potius quam ad aliud quicquam natus, et ad res gerendas nescio quo fato contra genium suum abreptus."

De augmentis Scientiarum Lib. VIII. c. 3.

posterity of any sterner feeling than one of commiseration, heightened by a painful sense of human infirmity in beholding so signal a defection from integrity and honour in one of such eminent gifts and unrivalled powers. Let him who in a vain reliance on his own strength, "thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall."

After this painful episode of the impeachment and conviction of Lord Bacon, the Commons entered upon the subject which, at that time, most deeply excited the feelings of the whole nation. While the victorious legions of Spain and the Emperor were advancing from conquest to conquest in Germany, and threatened the Protestant States, as well as the Palatinate, with total subjugation, the Representatives of the nation could not but see with the deepest concern the inactivity and timid neutrality of the King, and his bigotted attachment to the Spanish interest. Under the influence of these feelings, they framed a Remonstrance to be presented to the King, in which, after representing the danger to the liberties of Europe from the enormous growth of the Austrian power, and the tone of confidence and encouragement which had been assumed by the papists in England from witnessing the prostration of the Protestant States of Germany and the prospect of a closer alliance with Spain by the projected marriage of Prince Charles to the Infanta, they entreated His Majesty to undertake the defence of the Palatine, to direct his efforts against Spain, whose armies and treasures were the chief support of the Catholic Interest in Europe, and to enter into no negociation for the marriage of his son but with a protestant princess.

As soon as the King heard of the intended Remonstrance, he was filled with indignation at what he considered a daring invasion of his prerogative, peremptorily forbade the House to interfere with mysteries of State too deep for their comprehension, and threatened with chastisement the insolence of any member who should disregard his mandate. This led to an animated defence by the Commons of their right to treat, and express their opinions on, all matters of government in which the interests of the Kingdom were concerned, and to entire freedom of speech, and immunity from all external responsibility and control in their debates in Parliament. The controversy was kept up with increasing heats on both sides till the Commons entered upon their Journal a solemn protestation, called by Selden the second Magna Carta, in which, after setting forth the constitutional powers and privileges of Parliament to discuss and consider all matters touching the interests of the realm, and in doing so to enjoy freedom of speech and exemption from all impeachment or molestation elsewhere, they declare these privileges and franchises to be the "ancient and undoubted birthright and inheritance" of the people of England. The King sent for the Journals of the House, and, with his own hand, tore out the protestation. The Parliament was dissolved immediately after, and the dissolution followed up by the imprisonment of Sir Edward Coke, Sir Robert Philips, Selden, Pym, and other prominent members whom the King singled out as the victims of his threatened vengeance. Sir Edwin Sandys had previously fallen under the displeasure of the King and was already committed to prison.