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History of the Nonjurors.
23

and Scott himself mentions facts which are opposed to the previous statement. "The Whigs were willing to seize liberty under a new leader; and the Tories deemed it not incompatible with their principles of obedience to receive it from the hands of a Prince, whose consort would, in all probability, have a right to their future allegiance. In one thing only the Tories and Whigs differed: the Tories intended no more by asking the protection of the Prince of Orange, than to procure a great parliamentary settlement for the security of the national religion and laws: but the Whigs, concealing their intentions in public, animated each other thus in private."[1] Dalrymple observes, that the Whigs were of opinion, that they could compel the King to descend from the throne by the voice of the people. The duplicity of the Whigs will be manifest from other proceedings, which will be detailed in the progress of this work. On all occasions they appear to have consulted their own interests rather than their country's welfare.

To illustrate the motives by which the various parties of that period were influenced, and to show that a combination of circumstances contributed to the completion of the Revolution, I may refer to the state of things on the Continent. It is a fact, that the Pope himself contributed money towards the expense of William's expedition. This circumstance is placed beyond a doubt. The Pope was opposed to the interests of France: consequently he promoted the design of the Prince, in order that he might weaken the French monarch. "The finest stroke of the Prince's policy was his art in deluding the Pope. Taking advantage of that Pontiff's animosity against


  1. Dalrymple, i. 204-5.