HISTORY OF ENGLAND.

C HAP TER IV.

The death of King Charles the Second took the nation by chap.surprise. His frame was naturally strong, and did not appearto have suffered from excess. He had always been mindful of Charleshis health even in his pleasures; and his habits were such aspromise a long life and a robust old age. Indolent as he wason all occasions which required tension of the mind, he wasactive and persevering in bodily exercise. He had, whenyoung, been renowned as a tennis player *, and was, even inthe decline of life, an indefatigable walker. His ordinarypace was such that those who were admitted to the honour ofhis society found it difficult to keep up with him. He roseearly, and generally passed three or four hours a day in theopen air. He might be seen, before the dew was off the grassin St. James’s Park, striding among the trees, playing withhis spaniels, and flinging corn to his ducks; and these exhi-bitions endeared him to the common people, who always loveto see the great unbend.**

At length, towards the close of the year 1684, he was pre-vented, by a slight attack of what was supposed to be gout,from rambling as usual. He now spent his mornings in hislaboratory, where ho amused himself with experiments on the

* Pepys’s Diary, Dec. 28. 1663, Sepl. 2. 1667.

** Burnet, i 606.; Spectator, No. 402.; Lords’ Journals, Oct. 28. 1618;Cibber’s Apology.

Macaulay, History. II.

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