138

HISTORY OF ENGLAND,

CHAP.

I.

lieved him to be firmly established on the chair of state. In■ truth his situation was in some respects much more advanta-geous than that of his father. The young man had made noenemy. His hands were unstained by civil blood. The Ca-valiers themselves al'owed him to be an honest, good-naturedgentleman. The Presbyterian party, powerful both innumbers and in wealth, had been at deadly feud with the lateProtector, but was disposed to regard the present Protectorwith favour. That party had always been desirous to see theold civil polity of the realm restored with some clearer defini-tions and some stronger safeguards for public liberty, buthad many reasons for dreading the restoration of the oldfamily. Richard was the very man for politicians of thisdescription. His humanity, ingenuousness, and modesty,the mediocrity of his abilities, and the docility with which hesubmitted to the guidance of persons wiser than himself,admirably qualified him to be the head of a limited mo-narchy.

For a time it seemed highly probable that he would, underthe direction of able advisers, effect what his father hadattempted in vain. A Parliament was called, and the writswere directed after the old fashion. The small boroughswhich had recently been disfranchised regained their lostprivilege: Manchester, Leeds, and Halifax ceased to returnmembers; and the county of York was again limited to twoknights. It may seem strange to a generation which has beenexcited almost to madness by the question of parliamentaryreform that great shires and towns should have submittedwith patience, and even with complacency, to this change:but though reflecting men could, even in that age, discern thevices of the old representative system, and foresee that thosevices would, sooner or later, produce serious practical evil,the practical evil had not yet been much felt. Oliver’s repre-sentative system, on the other hand, though constructed on