XXIII. 1788. well worthy of observation, as characteristic of the BOOK caprice and inconstancy of the public opinion, that this measure, which had nearly cost sir Robert Walpole his place, and even endangered his lifeand against which 200 members of the house of commons divided on the original motion of the minister, and which he was finally compelled to relinquish-was now opposed on the third reading of the bill by 20 voices only, in a thin and deserted house of 90 members. The session was terminated August 11, 1789, by a speech from the lord-chancellor in the name of the sovereign; in which it was observed," that although the good offices of the king and his allies had not been effectual for the restoration of the general tranquillity, the situation of affairs promised to this country the uninterrupted enjoyment of the blessings of peace." This was an assurance highly and peculiarly grateful, in consequence of the recent events which had taken place in the different kingdoms of Europe. A war had been kindled, which gradually diffused itself from the Euxine to the Baltic-from the arid wastes of Tartary to the snow-clad mountains of Norway; and the foundations of a great and stupendous revolution had been laid, which, almost instantly expanding itself into gigantic growth, became the subject of terror, no less than of astonishment, to the surrounding nations. BOOK XXIII. 1788. State of Eu Character peror Jo seph II. Never was Europe more deceived than in the idea she had originally formed of the character of the emperor Joseph II. upon whom, on his first rope. entrance into the grand scenes of public life, all of the em- eyes were fixed, and under whose specious exterior the credulous enthusiasm of hope had discovered all the qualities of a legislator and a hero : and he was confidently announced as the monarch destined to throw the splendid reputation of Frederic the Great into shade. Time however soon dispelled these false and flattering prepossessions; and he was perceived to be equally destitute of the talents and the virtues necessary to the forma tion of a great and illustrious character. Burning with an insatiable thirst for GLORY, that Moloch of princes, at whose bloody shrine millions of human victims have been offered, his mind seemed eternally harassed and haunted with the enquiry, "What shall I do to be for ever known?" While that justly celebrated statesman the prince de Kaunitz retained his influence over the councils of the court of Vienna, a veil was cast over the vices and defects of the sovereign. But as he advanced in life, and began to act upon his own ideas, and in reliance upon his own judgment, his vanity, his versatility, his rapacity, his rashness, and his folly, became apparent to all. Disappointed in his recent and favorite schemes of ambition, his evil genius now suggested another project still more absurd and impracticable than the former. 1 XXIII. 1788. Since the famous Treaty of Westphalia, by BOOK which the independency of Holland had been recognized by Spain, that haughty power, sensible of the erroneous policy which had lost so valuable a possession, adopted, with relation to the provinces which yet remained, a mild and lenient system of government. On the transfer of the Low Countries to the house of Austria by the Treaty of Utrecht, the same equitable treatment was observed; and that no less under the weak and oppressive reign of Charles VI. than the auspicious and benign government of his daughter, the celebrated Maria Theresa. During all the vicissitudes of politics and of power, the Austrian Netherlands continued to flourish under the protection of their own just laws, and the limitations of their free and happy constitution. Of the provinces subject to Austria, by far the most considerable and extensive is Brabant; and although the forms of government established in the different states bear a close analogy to each other, the constitution of Brabant is regarded as the best defined and most perfect. Like the constitution of England, it is compounded of three estates; and the executive authority is vested in the sovereign, who bears the title of Duke of Brabant. The legislative power, including the important prerogative of levying taxes, resides in the states of Brabant, which is in part an elective and representative assembly, though XXIII. 1788, BOOK not constructed on a very popular plan. The jurisdiction of civil and criminal causes is in the cities consigned to the magistrates, under various equitable restrictions. In the villages it nominally appertains to the lords of the manors or baronies; but it is in fact exercised by respectable persons, chosen for the most part by the inhabitants them< selves, from whose decision an appeal lies to the baronial courts. The supreme tribunal of justice is established at Brussels, and it is distinguished by the appellation of the Council of Brabant. Its functions are not, however, merely judicial. It is also a council of state, and participates largely in the executive power-for no act of the sovereign is valid till confirmed by the council under the great seal of Brabant. These and many other privileges were, after long and fierce contentions, guarantied for ever to the people of Brabant, by a charter granted by one of the antient dukes, and which, from the triumphal procession of the prince into his capital, on the original execution of it, is denominated the JOYEUSE ENTREE. The acuteness of philosophical and political theorists would no doubt detect with ease the gross defects of this rude and artless sketch of a free constitution. But its general and essential excellence is sufficiently demonstrated by the prosperous state of the country, and the passionate attachment of the people to their established form of ХХІІ. novations government. This free form of government Jo- BOOK seph the Second had, from deliberate malice, or, 1788. more candidly speaking, from excess speaking, from excess of presump-_His ty tion and folly, determined to subvert and destroy. rannical inOn the first of January, 1787, two imperial edicts in Brabant. were issued, formally suppressing the antient institutions, and even the Great Council of Brabant; establishing in their stead a new council of general government, assisted by tribunals erected on the 'severe and arbitrary model of those actually exist. ing under the proper Austrian government. As if this were not enough to rouse the spirit of resistance in the nation, the emperor, careful to heighten the enthusiasm of civil liberty with the rage of religious bigotry, annihilated at the same time the charter of the university of Louvain, and established a new general seminary for the study of theology—the professors to be nominated by the sole authority of the emperor. A violent and universal commotion instantly took place; and the states of Brabant, Flanders, and Hainault, assembling, forbade the people in express terms to pay any regard to the latè edicts. All ranks of men enrolled themselves in military associations for their common defence. Deputies were dispatched to Vienna to represent their grievances, and to remonstrate with the emperor in person against these atrocious and unprecedented violations of their rights. Agreeably to the irresolute |