ture but what is consonant to nature. To a person of true taste it will be found often to heighten, by contrast, the capital emotion to be excited.

14. The compositions for the French stage in the end of the 17th century are strictly conformable to [the Aristotelian] dramatic rules, and many of those pieces are inodels of a correct and polished taste. The morality of the French drama of that age and the next is in general purer than ours; but their pieces are deficient in the nice delineation of character, and in the power of exciting the passions. Corneille and Racine brought the French tragedy to its highest elevation, as Moliere the comedy. Corneille has more grandeur and sublimity than his rival, who excels him in the tender and pathetic. The comedies of Moliere, highly amusing in the present time, were more particularly valuable in the age when they were written, and had a sensible effect in correcting its prevailing follies-the pedantry of the ladies, the ignorance and quackery of the physicians, and the pride and arrogance of the French noblesse. The last of the eminent dramatists, who adorned France in the 17th century was the elder Crebillon, who drew many sublime and impassioned scenes from the source of terror, and who, in all his works, was as eminently the friend of virtue as his worthless son has been the pander of vice.

15. The most eminent historians of the 16th century are De Thou, Davila, and Machiavel. De Thou [whose Lutinized name is Thuanus,] has written the annals of his · own time, from 1545 to 1607, with great judgment, and in most elegant Latin composition. The history of Davila, "The Annals of the Civil Wars of France in the time of the League," though the work of a partisan, is composed with no common degree of candour and impar tiality. Machiavel wrote, in the beginning of the 16th century, the "History of Florence," of which the style is classical and the matter well arranged, but too much interrupted by reflections and political discussions. In the 17th century Bentivoglio composed his "History of the Civil Wars of Flanders," with the most accurate knowledge of his subject, perspicuity of narrative, and eloquence of style. Among the English historians in the beginning of that period Raleigh is the most distinguished, though his "History of the World" is, in point of style, inferior to the judgment shown in the arrangement of the matter.

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In the latter part of the 17th century, Clarendon's "History of the Rebellion" is a work of the highest merit, whether we consider the authenticity of its facts, the deep knowledge of human nature displayed in the delineation of the characters, or the grave and manly eloquence of the style. If, in the opposition of political opinions, he has been deemed too partial in the defence of his sovereign, even his adversaries have admitted his perfect integrity, and entire conviction of the rectitude of the cause which he supports.

NOTE. The most important amongst the recent English works, relating to the period comprised in the foregoing portion of this work, are the following:

Freeman's "History of the Norman Conquest," Pearson's "History of England during the Early and Middle Ages," Froude's "History of England, from the reign of Henry VIII. to that of Elizabeth," Motley's "Rise of the Dutch Republic" and "The United Netherlands," Prescott's "Histories of Ferdinand and Isabella" and of the Spanish Conquests of Peru and Mexico, Helps' "Spanish Conquest in America."

Translations of Schiller's "Revolt of the Netherlands" and "Thirty Years' War," of Ranke's "History of the Popes," of Menzel's "History of Germany," Guizot's "History of the English Revolution," and a "History of Russia," compiled from the works of Karamsin and Ségur, are published in Bohn's Standard Library. Also editions of Roscoe's "Leo X.," "Lorenzo de' Medici," and Coxe's "House of Austria."

MODERN HISTORY.

(Continued.)

PART THIRD.

I.--France from the Death of Louis XIV., 1715, to the Peace of Vienna 1738.

1. The splendid reign of Louis XIV. was clouded towards its close by severe domestic calamity: within the space of eleven months, the dauphin his son, the duke of Burgundy, and his grandson the duke of Bretagne, had died, leaving only the duke of Berry, and an infant of delicate constitution, to intercept the claims of his nephew, the duke of Orleans. These strange events, which occurred during the years 1711 and 1712, gave rise to suspicions prejudicial to the reputation of the duke of Orleans, which seemed strengthened by the death of the duke of Berry (May 1714): but the duke (although addicted to immoral pleasures) seems to have possessed too generous a heart for such base deeds. The dauphin lived to become king, and survive the duke himself many years. At this time the public mind was much distracted by religious controversies; a mystical religion became the vogue, which, by subtle distinction and grave prudery, paved the road to infidelity and atheism.

2. On the demise of Louis XIV., his great grandson Louis XV. succeeded to the crown, in the sixth year of his age. The nation evinced the confidence they reposed in the duke of Orleans, by willingly acceding to the decree of the parliament, which, contrary to the will of the late king, had created him regent with all the plenitude of power.

3. The first object of the regent, on assuming the reins of government, was to maintain peace with all foreign states; this policy was rendered doubly necessary, the kingdom being burdened by a national debt (which alone amounted to 2,000,000,000 livres) and surrounded by jeaous neighbours, whose mortified pride only awaited a fitting opportunity to recover what the victorious Louis had taken from them in the late wars. The regent now wisely determined to form an alliance with England and Austria; in the first case the advantages were reciprocal, for England had already, by the treaty of Utrecht, undertaken to secure the crown to the regent, should Louis XV. die without issue, which rendered it no difficult task for the duke to comply with the wishes of the British ministry, by ceasing to encourage the designs of the pretender.

4. The regent's endeavours to restore the credit of the nation and lighten its burdens, were frustrated by the deeply laid schemes of the celebrated Spanish minister, Alberoni, a man of consummate talent, who had raised himself from the lowest offices in the church to the cardinalate, and whose influence now predominated in the Spanish court. In order to recover the Italian provinces, which had been detached from the Spanish crown since the treaty of Utrecht, cardinal Alberoni entertained the project of placing the pretender on the British throne, and securing the regency of France to his own king, by the downfall of the duke of Orleans; to which end he endeavoured to secure the aid of Russia and Sweden.

5. Since the treaty of Utrecht, much animosity had existed between the courts of Austria and Spain, the former being jealous of the occupation of the Spanish throne by Philip, and the latter at the dismemberment of its dominions without an adequate recompense. Matters now wore a serious aspect: a conspiracy to deprive the duke of Orleans of the regency was discovered at Paris, which led the regent to the immediate adoption of measures calculated to thwart Alberoni's projects; in furtherance of which a triple alliance was entered into between France and England, and Holland. But the ambitious cardinal was not to be deterred, especially as his schemes, directed more immediately against Austria, became doubly alluring, on account of the Turkish war, in which she was at this time involved, which necessarily employed the greater part of her army on the other side of Europe.

6. Spain, with no small degree of treachery, succeeded in wresting the island of Sardinia from Austria, and that of Sicily from the duke of Savoy. These proceedings led to the admission of Austria as a party to the alliance already formed between France, England, and Holland, for the purpose of settling the existing differences between the emperor and Spain, upon the following basis :-That the emperor should renounce all claims to the Spanish crown in favour of Philip, while Spain, in accordance with the treaty of Utrecht, should surrender the duchy of Milan and the kingdom of Naples to the emperor: that the duke of Savoy should yield Sicily to Austria, receiving in exchange the island of Sardinia from Spain: and that the reversions of the duchies of Parma and Placentia, and the grand duchy of Florence, should be secured to Don Carlos (the eldest son of Philip by his second marriage), to be holden as male fiefs under the emperor. Although these terms were highly favourable to the interests of Spain, the court of Madrid, elated by recent successes, affected to be far from pleased with them, and nothing short of the superior prowess of France and England, could have forced Philip to sign the articles of the quadruple alliance, which took place January 26th, 1720, and was followed by the disgrace and instant dismissal of the favourite Spanish minister, cardinal Alberoni.

7. From an apparent desire to lighten the nation's burden, the regent was induced to adopt the unfortunate Mississippi scheme projected by John Law, a Scotchman, for the purpose of reducing the national debt, which, after the infatuation had subsided, produced consequences of the most alarming kind; public credit became annihilated, and the nation thrown into a state of feverish excitement (1719).

8. A momentary stagnation was put to public affairs by the demise of the regent, the duke of Orleans, who died suddenly in a fit of apoplexy, December 1723. His unprincipled tutor, the Abbe Dubois, whom he had elevated to the rank of cardinal of Rome, and prime minister of France, died four months previously.

9. Louis XV. having attained his majority now reigned in person; he appointed the duke of Bourbon Condé to the office of prime minister, which he occupied but for a short time. Cardinal Fleury, who had been the king's preceptor, next filled the place (for the title of prime mi