2 c>6 A Sketch of the History Let. 8.

half light. But, my lord , I own it with fomefhame ; becaufe in truth nothing could be moreabfurd than the condudf we held. What! becaufewe had not reduced the power of France by thewar, nor excluded the houfe of Bourbon from theSpanilh fucceffion , nor compounded with herupon it by the peace ; and becaufe the houfe ofAuftria had not helped herfelf, nor put it intoour power to help her with more advantage andbetter profpecft of fuccefs — were we to leave thatwhole fucceffion open to the invafions of France ,and to fuffer even the contingency to fubfift, offeeing thofe monarchies united ? What! becaufe itwas become extravagant, after the trials fo latelymade, to think ourfclves any longer engaged bytreaty , or obliged by good policy, to put thehoufe of Auftria in poffeffion of the whole Spanilhmonarchy , and to defend her in this poffeffionby force of arms, were we to leave the whole atthe mercy of France ? If we were not to do fo ,if we were not to do one of the three things thatI faid above remained to be done, and if the emperorput it out of our power to do another of themwith advantage; were we to put it ftill more outof our power, and to wait unarmed for the deathof the king of Spain ? In fine, if we had not theprofpeift of difputing with France, fo fuccefsfullyas we might have had it, the Spanilh fucceffion,whenever it Ihould be open ; were we not onlyto ffiow by difarming, that we would not difputeit at all, but to cenfure likewife the fecond ofthe three things mentioned above, and which king