may be mild, moderate and merciful in his Anger; but Clemency is the peculiar Property of Kings and Magiftrates, who have the fole Power of mitigating the Severity of Laws in punishing Malefactors for the better Confervation of Society, Safety, and Peace; the very End of all Government. Clemency, to ufe Bona's Description of it in his Guide to Eternity, (and I know not a Jufter; done in English by the famous Sr. R. L'estrange, never to be forgotten) "Is not only the Privilege, "the Honour, and the Duty of a Prince, but it

is likwife his Security; and better than all his. Garrifons, Forts, and Guards, to preserve him"felf and his Dominions in Safety. When a « Prince comes to be fear'd, he's hated; and "when he comes to be hated, the People wish him

out of the World. His Strength lies not fo "much in his Arms and Magazines, as in the "Hearts of his Subjects: For whoever contemns "his own Life, is Master of another Man's. Many Executions are as great a Reproach to

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a Government; as many Funerals to a Phyfi "cian. That Prince is truly Royal, who masters "himself; looks upon all Injuries as below him; " and governs by Equity and Reason, not by "Paffion. The greatest Minds are ever the most "ferene and quiet.

IN diftributive Juftice, the principal Thing to be confider'd is Impartiality; which is fo effential to the very Nature, Conftitution and Establishment of it in good Order of Truth; that, without this Qualification, it becomes the contrary Vice of Injuftice, and finks into the worst of Characters for Corruption, Tyranny, or arbitrary Power. Let the Sky fall, and Fuftice be done; fays the Moralift. Let the Confequences

fequences be what they will, of Apprehenfion, Hazard or Danger, it is, ftill oblig'd to do its Duty. And if it is rightly adminifter'd; it must be done without any perfonal Refpect to Party or Faction, on either Side of the unhappy Diftinction between Whig and Tory. What's Sawce for the Goose, ought to be Sawce for the Gander alfo, impartially; as certain as an Oracle in a civiliz'd Government. But if any Geometrical Proportion, or Reafon and Discretion may be urg'd for the different Punishments of the fame fpecifical Offenders; it can only be juft where the Crimes are differently circumftantiated, with greater or lefs Aggravations which is nothing to the Merits of the Caufe, but only as it diftinguishes the Demerits of the Malefactors. This Proverb however, in former Times, fpoil'd all the Politicks of the Green-Ribbon-Club; and for once balk'd the Bill of Exclufion, by disconcerting their partial Proceedings. But would it not be the groffeft Injustice, and give the greatest Offence among honeft People, to destroy one Man and fave another, as notoriously guilty of the fame Fact to all Intents and Purpofes? Crimes therefore ought to be equally punifh'd upon the fame Criminals with the most impartial Judgment: and even to an Arithmetical Proportion too, where the aggravating Circumftances do not differ in the Action, and the Cafe is the fame in all Points. But, and if the Court has a Mind to preferve him that ftole the Horfe, I hope he fhall not fuffer that only look'd over the Hedge; by the Prejudice and Mifapplication of the well-meaning Proverb. All Partialities of this Kind have ever been

deem'a

deem'd egregiously impolitick in publick Af

fairs.

IMPARTIALITY likewife ought to be ftrictly obferv'd in Mercy, as the fole conftituent Power of its Truth and Righteousness. It chiefly confifts in the equitable Distribution of Royal Favours and Rewards, as Juftice does in that of Punishments. Perfons of equal Parts and Merit ought, by good Reafon, to have equal Preferments, or Pofts of Honour, Dignity and Truft, if poffible, either in Church or State; according to their refpectiveQualifications. There need be no great Difparity of Grants, Gifts and Graces beftow'd from Above, but only to the more worthy Patriots, and the more orthodox Divines. Those that are equally peccant, on the other Hand, and alike undeferving Trefpaffers in Politicks, fhould, by Right, have the fame hard Fate, or meet with the fame merciful Treatment. A Peer of the Realm, God bless him! deserves no more Favour from his injur'd Prince, than a poor illiterate Peasant; ingag'd in the fame Treachery, Confpiracy or Treafon: notwithstanding his Nobility. In the ingenious Juvenal's Judg

ment

-tanto confpectius in fe Crimen habet; quanto major, qui peccat, habetur. The greater the Perfon is, offending; the greater is the Crime of the Offender. However, to fhew Mercy is the true Character of a Chriftian Hero, and the very Criterion of a good Governour. Nothing can conduce more to the political Welfare of his Realms, or more perpetuate the peaceable Duration of his Reign. He will always have Reafon to triumph in the faithful Hearts and Affections of his loving Subjects; fit fure upon the Throne of his

mer

merciful Ancestors; and bid Defiance to all Foreign Pretenders, Invaders or Ufurpers of his Crown, as well as Domestick Depofers or Disturbers of hisRight. He will be fafe still in the general Voice of his unanimous People, both with divine and humane Acclamations of Joy.

BUT as a Sovereign Prince may reftrain his Clemency too much on the one Hand; fo he may extend it too far on the other, to his own Disadvantage. To hang-up all or fave all, whether Murderers, Rebels or Traytors, would be the most dangerous Extremes of a discommendable Cruelty in that Refpect, and a ridiculous Indolence in this: So that true Mercy must confift in a due Medium, and difcreet Management between those Two fatal Rocks of Imprudence, Rigour and Remifness; upon which Royal Majefty it felf has more than once been split to Pieces, and Monarchy caft away in the Shipwrack of State. According to the Wisdom and Conduct of Kings in older Times: Things go beft, when the truest Merit takes Place; Things are beft manag'd, when the trucft Juftice is adminifter'd; Things are in the best Condition, when the truest Mercy is practis'd; the fairest Judgment executed, and the greatest Right recover'd, reftored and re-instated, either in Law or in Equity. A King may be too merciful, as well as unmerciful, upon popular Infurrections or rebellious Doings. Ats of Grace from Time to Time may be advifeable and prudent; but not to make immutable Decrees of Indemnity for ever, or vaft Conceffions of Oblivion to all Pofterity: after a dreadful, deftructive, bloody Civil War. Such. a good-natur'd condefcending Prince would have no Mercy for

himself, by cramping his Power, or giving away his Prerogative, and parting with his own Security. It would be nothing but indangering his Crown again, to gratify fome artificial Statefmen's politick Defigns of an afpiring Ambition, either to ennoble their own Perfons at Court, or aggrandize their Fortunes by an Affectation of Honour and Popularity. It would only be difcouraging his faithful Friends, to countenance his Enemies; and ruining fome loyal fuffering Families, to confirm the Plunderers in the full Poffeffion and Injoyment of their unjuft Acquifitions,

ON the other Hand again; as it would be look'd upon to be a ftrange Kind of unmerciful Partiality, or at least the falfeft Perverfion of Juftice, for a King to punish his Friends and fpare his Foes, to execute thofe and preferve these fo it would be reckon'd the most barbarous Piece of inhumane Cruelty, to cutoff all for the Fault of one rebellious Ringleader. Take off the Heads of the mighty Authors, and the petty Traytors will quickly dwindle of Courfe into nothing; fneak Home peaceably, or skulk Abroad for Fear of impartial Deftruction without Mercy. What, and if the Jack Daws are fometimes rafhly got among the Rooks, ingag'd through Inadvertency perhaps, or ignorantly drawn-in by fome Ipecious Pretences of Religion and Law; or that damnable Doctrine of doing Evil that Good may come on't, by a diabolical Pofition: 'Tis a Pity however, they fhould all go to Pot together, by the utmoft Rigour of Justice. A wife Prince will eafily feparate the one from the other, difcern the Innocent from the GuiltyNocent, diftinguifh the grand Offenders from

the