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mies which act against France, we must live in hourly expectation of having thofe troops recalled, which they now leave with us; and this recall may happen in the midst of a siege, or on the eve of a battle. Is it therefore our intereft to toil on in a ruinous war for an impracticable end, till one of thefe cafes fhall happen, or to get under shelter before the ftorm?

There is no doubt but the prefent miniftry (provided they could get over the obligations of honour and confcience) might find their advantage in advifing the continuance of the war, as well as the last did, although not in the fame degree after the kingdom hath been fo much exhaufted. They might prolong it, till the parliament defire a peace; and in the mean time leave them in full poffeffion of power. Therefore it is plain, that their proceedings at prefent are meant to serve their country directly against their private intereft; whatever clamour may be raised by thofe, who for the vilest ends would remove heaven and earth to oppose their measures. But they think it infinitely better to accept fuch terms as will fecure our trade, find a fufficient barrier for the States, give reafonable fatisfaction to the Emperor, and restore the tranquillity of Europe, although without adding Spain to the empire; rather than go in a languishing way, upon the vain expectation of fome improbable turn for the recovery of that monarchy out of the Bourbon family; and at last be forced to a worfe peace, by fome of the allies falling off upon our utter inability to continue the war.

Some

Some Remarks on the BARRIER-TREATY between her Majefty and the STATES GENERAL.

To which are added, The faid BARRIER-TREATY, with the two feparate articles; Part of the Coun ter-project; The fentiments of Prince Eugene and Count Sinzendorf upon the faid treaty ;. and, A reprefentation of the English merchants at Bruges.

Written in the year 1712.

PREFACE.

WHEN I published the difcourfe, called, The

Conduct of the Allies, I had thoughts either of inferting or annexing the Barrier-treaty at length, with fuch obfervations as I conceived might be ufeful for public information: but that difcourfe taking up more room than I designed, after my utmoft endeavours to abbreviate it, I contented myself only with making fome few reflections upon that famous treaty, fufficient, as I thought, to anfwer the defign of my book. I have fince heard, that my readers in general feemed to wish I had been more particular, and have discovered an impatience to have that treaty made public, especially fince it hath been laid before the houfe of Commons.

That I may give fome light to the reader, who is not well verfed in thofe affairs, he may pleafe to know,

;

know, that a project for a treaty of barrier with the States was tranfmitted hither from Holland but being disapproved of by our court in feveral parts, a new project or scheme of a treaty was drawn up here, with many additions and alterations. This laft was called the counter-project; and was the measure, whereby the Duke of Marlborough and my Lord Townshend were commanded and inftructed to proceed in negotiating a treaty of barrier with the States.

I have added a tranflation of this counter-proje& in thofe articles where it differs from the barriertreaty, that the reader, by comparing them together, may judge how punctually thofe negotiators obferved their inftructions. I have likewife. fubjoined the fentiments of Prince Eugene of Savoy, and the Count de Sinzendorf, relating to this treaty, written, I fuppofe, while it was negotiating. And, laftly, I have added a copy of the reprefentation of the British merchants at Bruges, fignifying what inconveniencies they already felt and further apprehended from this barrier-treaty..

Some

Some Remarks on the BARRIER-TREATY, &c. *

IMAG

MAGINE a reasonable perfon in China reading: the following treaty, and one who was ignorant of our affairs, or our geography: he would con-ceive their High Mightineffes the States-General to be fome vaft powerful commonwealth, like that of Rome; and HER MAJESTY to be a petty prince,. like:

*Dr. Swift commenced the champion of Queen Anne's Tory miniftry as early as the month of November 1710, under the title of The Examiner. Befide which he wrote feveral other papers in defence of the Queen, the conftitution, and the miniftry; particularly Some advice to the members of the October club; The conduct of the allies; Remarks on the barrier treaty; The public spirit of the Whigs, (a treatise wherein we may obferve how well the Doctor was acquainted with the feveral interefts and defigns of all the princes in Europe); The preface to the Bishop of Sarum's introduction; and, Some free thoughts on the prefent fate of affairs. Thefe are a courfe of writings not to be confi lered in the light of occafional pamphlets, or little paltry journals, thrown into the world by fome backney jade, in the defence of corrup tion, and to ferve the iniquitous defigns of a party. No; thefe writ ings are to be confidered, and read over and over again, as lectures of true, unprejudiced, conftitutional politics, calculated to expofe the enemies of the public, and to maintain at once the honour of the crown, and the liberties of the people of England. I cannot but think, whoever is totally unacquainted with thefe political tracts,might be tempted to revife them carefully, were it only for the fake of extracting fome points of history, which, to many thoufands of the prefent age, are fomewhat more than paradoxes. -Whoever pretends to write the hiftory of Queen Anne's reign, without revifing diligently the works of this great author, will produce nothing better than fome lame, partial, infignificant Grubstreet performance, like the rest of those vile accounts which have already, in defiance of truth, been impofed upon the world. I am fure the present generation of men, that is, the prefent generation of landed men, who are in fact the only proprietors of the whole kingdom, feel it to their 4. that Swift's reafonings are juft, and that all his accounts are

true.

like one of those to whom that republic would fometimes fend a diadem for a prefent, when they behaved themselves well, otherwife could depofe at pleasure, and place whom they thought fit in his ftead. Such a man would think, that the States had taken our prince and us into their protection; and in return honoured us fo far, as to make use of our troops as some small affistance in their conquefts, and the enlargement of their empire, or to prevent the incurfions of barbarians upon fome of their outlying provinces. But how muft it found -in an European ear, that Great Britain, after maintaining a war for fo many years, with fo much glory and fuccefs, and fuch prodigious expence, after faving the Empire, Holland, and Portugal, and almoft recovering Spain, fhould, towards the clofe of a war, enter into a treaty with seven Dutch provinces, to fecure to them a dominion larger than their own, which she had conquered for them; to undertake for a great deal more without ftipulating the leaft advantage for herfelf; and accept, as an equivalent, the mean condition of thofe States affifting to preferve her Queen on the throne, whom by God's affiftance fhe is able to defend against all her Majesty's enemies and allies put together?

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Such a wild bargain could never have been made for us, if the States had not found it their intereft to ufe very powerful motives with the chief advifers, (I fay nothing of the perfon immediately employed); and if a party here at home had not been refolved, for ends and purposes very well known,

true. Swift. Mr. Swift thinks the Dean's political tracts fhould have been ranged in his works in the order in which he has incntioned them; and that his feveral poems relative to thofe times, and which in truth greatly illuftrate his political tracts, ought to be read in the following order, viz. The virtues of Sid Hamet the magi. cian's rod; The fable of Midas; Atlas, or, The minifter of state; Horace, epift. 7. book 1. imitated, and addressed to the Earl of Oxford; Horace, fat. 6. book 2. part of it imitated; The author on himself; The faggot. To the Earl of Oxford in the tower.

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