200

IIISTOHY OP ENGLAND.

CHAP.

XX.

1693 .

of the wealth and the intelligence were Protestant. It was to- no purpose that they informed their master that the Declarationof April 1692 had been read with exultation by his enemies andwith deep affliction by his friends, that it had been printed andcirculated by the usurpers, that it had done more than all thelibels of the "Whigs to inflame the nation against him, and thatit had furnished those naval officers who had promised him sup-port with a plausible pretext for breaking faith with him, andfor destroying the fleet which was to have convoyed him back tohis kingdom. lie continued to be deaf to the remonstrances ofhis best friends in England till those remonstrances began to beechoed at Versailles. All the information which Lewis and hisministers were able to obtain touching the state of our islandsatisfied them that James would never be restored unless hecould bring himself to make large concessions to his subjects. Itwas therefore intimated to him, kindly and courteously, butseriously, that he would do well to change his counsels and hiscounsellors. France could not continue the war for the purposeof forcing a Sovereign on an unwilling nation. She was crushedby public burdens. Her trade and industry languished. Herharvest and her vintage had failed. The peasantry were star-ving. The faint murmurs of the provincial Estates began to beheard. There was a limit to the amount of the sacrifices whichthe most absolute prince could demand from those whom heruled. However desirous the Most Christian King might be touphold the cause of hereditary monarchy and of pure religionall over the world, his first duty was to his own kingdom; and,unless a counterrevolution speedily took place in England, hisduty to his own kingdom might impose on him the painful ne-cessity of treating with the Prince of Orange. It would there-fore be wise in James to do without delay whatever he couldhonourably and conscientiously do to win back the hearts of hispeople.