Page:The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, Volume 18.djvu/179

Rh last leave of their husbands," &c. Good God! that ever I should live to see the protestant cause abandoned by a queen (who has sacrificed for the sake of it what was perhaps dearer than her life,) by the nobility, clergy, and gentry, of the nation; and the sole defence of it left to Ridpath, Dick Steele, and their associates, with the apostles of Young Man's coffeehouse! Before I leave this head, I would desire these gentlemen, who are constantly making such malicious insinuations against men of honour and probity, to remember, the oath of abjuration (what they so often quote, and what every honest man will keep) contains faith and true allegiance to their present sovereign, in as strong terms as the renunciation of the pretender; and that he, who violates the first part of the oath, gives but a small security for his observation of the latter, unless they think that which was last swallowed must be always uppermost.

Another cause of their joy upon the spreading of this false news is, their discontent at the peace. And in this indeed the queen has reason to rejoice, that has no enemies but such as are enemies to peace. But is not the hopes of a new war an admirable subject for joy, a most endearing token of their love to the successor, and one of their new methods of keeping up his interest, to represent him to the people as bringing over war in his train? It is foreign to my present purpose to enter into a full discussion of this subject: but the quarrelling with the peace, because it is not exactly to our mind, seems as if one that had put out a great fire should be sued by the neighbourhood for some lost goods, or damaged houses; which happened, say they, by his making Rh