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burdens which it made necessary would not have been borne byeither England or Holland during a single year. When Williamsaid that he would rather die sword in hand than humble him-self before France, he expressed what was felt, not by himselfalone, but by two great communities of which he was the firstmagistrate. With those two communities, unhappily, otherstates had little sympathy. Indeed those two communities wereregarded by other states as rich, plaindealing, generous dupesare regarded by needy sharpers. England and Holland werewealthy; and they were zealous. Their wealth excited thecupidity of the whole alliance; and to that wealth their zeal wasthe key. They were persecuted with sordid importunity by alltheir confederates, from Ccesar, who, in the pride of his solitarydignity, would not honour King William with the title of Ma-jesty, down to the smallest Margrave who could see his wholeprincipality from the cracked windows of the mean and ruinousold house which he called his palace. It was not enough thatEngland and Holland furnished much more than their contin-gents to the war by land, and bore unassisted the whole chargeof the w’ar by sea. They were beset by a crowd of illustriousmendicants, some rude, some obsequious, but all indefatigableand insatiable. One prince came mumping to them annuallywith a lamentable story about his distresses. A more sturdybeggar threatened to join the Third Party, and to make a se-parate peace with France, if his demands w r ere not granted.Every Sovereign too had his ministers and favourites; and theseministers and favourites were perpetually hinting that Francewas willing to pay them for detaching their masters from thecoalition, and that it would be prudent in England and Hollandto outbid France.

Yet the embarrassment caused by the rapacity of the alliedcourts was scarcely greater than the embarrassment caused bytheir ambition and their pride. This prince had set his heart

chap.

XIX.

ioua.