in After-Ages was called the Convention of the Three Eftates. For the Frame of this Government was the very fame which the Ancient Philofophers, and among them Plato and Aristotle (whom Polybius imitates) judged to be the best and moft excellent in the World, as being made up and conftituted of a mixture and juft temperament of the three kinds of Government, viz. the Regal, Noble, and Popular. Which Form of a Commonwealth, Cicero (in his Books de Republica) prefers to all other whatsoever. For fince a Kingly and a Popular Government do in their Natures differ widely from each other, it was neceffary to add a third and middle State participating of both, viz. that of the Princes or Nobility; who, by reafon of the Splendor and Antiquity of their Families, approach, in fome degree, to the Kingly Dignity; and yet, being Subjects, are upon that account on the fame foot and intereft with the Commons. Now of the Excellency of this Temperament in a Commonwealth, we have a most remarkable, Commendation in Cicero, taken by him out of Plato's Books de Republicâ ; which, because of its fingular Elegancy, we fhall here infert at length.

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Ut in fidibus (inquit) ac tibiis, atque cantu ipfo, ac vocibus, tenendus eft quidam concentus ex diftinctis fonis, quem immutatum ac difcrepantem aures eruditæ ferre non poffunt; ifque concentus ex diffimillimarum CC vocum moderatione concors tamen efficitur, & congruens; Sic ex fummis, & mediis, & "infimis interjectis ordinibus, ut fonis, mode"ratâ ratione civitas, confenfu diffimillimorum EC concinit, & quæ harmonia à muficis dicitur in 66 cantu, ea eft in Civitate concordia: arctiffimum

atq; optimum in Repub. vinculum incolumitatis, quæ fine juftitiâ nullo pacto effe poteft.

i. e. As in Fiddles and Flutes, and even in εc Singing and Voices, a certain Confort of "diftinct Sounds is to be obferv'd; which if "it be alter'd, or not tunable, skilful Hearers cannot bear or endure: And this Confort of very different Tones, is, through a juft proportion of the Notes, rendred Concord, and very agreeable: Even fo a Commonwealth, judiciously proportioned, and compofed of the firft, the middlemoft, and the lowest of the States, juft as in Sounds) through the con"fent of People very unlike to each other,

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becomes agreeable: And what Musicians in "Singing call Harmony, that in a Common"wealth is Concord; the very best and strongest "Bond of Safety for a Government, which can never fail of being accompanied with

fuftice. Our Anceflors therefore following this method, of a juft mixture of all the three kinds, in the conftituting their Commonwealth, moft wifely ordained, that every year, on the Calends of May, a Publick Council of the whole Nation fhou'd be held at which Council the great Affairs of the Republick fhou'd be tranf acted by the common confent and advice of all the Eftates. The wifdom and advantage of which inftitution, appears chiefly in these three things: First, That in the multitude of prudent Counsellors, the weight and excellency of Counsel fhews it felf more apparently, as Solemon and other Wife Men have faid. Secondly, Because it is an effential part of liberty, that the fame perfons, at whofe coft and peril any thing is done, Jhou'd have it done likewife by their authority and advice for 'tis a common Saying) what concerns

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all, ought to be approv'd by all. Laftly, That fuch M Ministers of State as have great Power with the Prince, and are in high Employments, may be kept within the bounds of their duty, thro' the awe they stand in of this great Council, in which all the demands and grievances of the Subject are freely laid open. For fuch Kingdoms as are ruled by the arbitrary Will and Pleasure of one Prince, may moft juftly (as Ariftotle in his third Book of Politicks obferves) be reckon❜d Governments of Sheep, cc and brute Beafts, without Wit or Judgment; ċċ not of Freemen, who are endued with Un"derstanding, and the Light of Reafon. The Cafe is thus That even as Sheep are not guided or tended by one of their own kind, nor Boys govern'd by one of themselves, but by fomething of more Excellency; even fo a Multitude of Men ought not to be ruled and govern'd by one fingle perfon, who perhaps understands and fees lefs than feveral others among them; but by many felect perfons, who, in the opinion of all Men, are both very prudent and eminent; and who act by united Counfels, and, as it were, by one Spirit, compofed and made up of the Minds of many Wife Men.

Now whereas it may be objected, that most Kings have a conftant Privy-Council to advife them in the Administration of publick Affairs: We answer, That there is a great deal of difference between a Counsellor of the King, and a Counsellor of the Kingdom. This last takes care of the fafety and profit of the whole Commonwealth; the other ferves the humour and ftudies the conveniencies of one Man only and befides, thefe King's Counsellors refide, for G 2

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the most part, in one certain place; or at least near the Perfon of the Prince, where they cannot be fuppofed to be throughly acquainted with the condition of the more remote Cities or Provinces; and being debauched by the Luxury of a Court-life, are easily depraved, and acquire a lawlefs Appetite of Domineering; are wholly intent upon their own ambitious and covetous defigns; fo that at last they are no longer to be confider'd as Counsellors for the good of the Kingdom and Commonwealth, but Flatterers of a single Perfon, and Slaves to their own and their Prince's Lufts. Concerning this matter, we have a most excellent Saying of the Emperor Aurelian, recordMy Father used to ed by Flavius Vopifcus."tell me (fays Aurelian) that the Emperor Dioclefian, whilft he was yet a private Man, frequently faid, That nothing in the World was more difficult than to govern well. For, "four or five perfons combine together, and unanimously agree to deceive the Emperor; "they determine what fhall be approved or "difapprov'd. The Emperor, who, for the moft part, is fhut up in his Palace, knows "nothing of the truth of

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pell'd to hear and fe affairs; he is com

only with their Ears "and Eyes; he makes Judges, fuch persons as do not deferve to be made fo; he removes "from Offices in the Commonwealth fuch as " he ought to keep in ; in fhort, a good pro"vident and excellent Emperor is fold by fuch "Counfellors. Now our Ancestors, in the conftituting their Commonwealth, wifely avoiding these mischiefs (as Mariners wou'd do dangerous Rocks) decreed that the Publick Affairs fhou'd be managed by the joynt Advice and Counfel

Counsel of all the Eftates of the Kingdom. To which purpose the King,the Nobles, and the Reprefentatives of the Commons out of the feveral Provinces, were obliged to meet at a certain time. every year. And this And this very fame Institution we find to have been that of many other Nations. First in our Ancient Gallia, where the Adminiftration of Publick Affairs was intrufted with the Common Council of the chofen Men in the whole Nation, as we have above demonftrated. But because we are now fpeaking of a Kingdom, I fhall give Inftances of them. 'Tis manifeft, that in old times the Council of the Ampbytions was inftituted in Greece (as Suidas and others teftify) by King Amphyction, Son of Deucalion; and therein it was ordained, that at a certain appointed time every year, Reprefentatives chofen out of the twelve Commonwealths of Greece fhou'd meet at Thermopyla, and deliberate concerning all the weighty Affairs of the Kingdom and Commonwealth: For which reafon, Cicero calls this the Common-Council of Græcia, Pliny calls it the Publick Council.

We find the like Wisdom in the Conftitution of the German Empire, wherein the Emperor reprefents the Monarchical State, the Princes reprefent the Aristocratical, and the Deputies of the Cities the Democratical; neither can any matter of moment appertaining to the whole German Republick be firm and ratified, but what is firft agreed upon in that great Convention of the Three Eftates. To this End was framed that ancient and famous Law of the Lacedemonians, which joyned the Ephori to their Kings; "Who, as "Plato writes, were defigned to be like Bridles to the Kings, and the Kings were obliged (C to govern the Commonwealth by their Ad

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