Let. 8.
fometimes too much for him: but if they did toolittle of one kind, time and accident did the reffc^Diftinct dominions , and different pretenfions ,created contrary interefts in the houfe of Auftria:and on the abdication of Charles the fifth, hisbrother fucceeded, not his fon, to the empire.The houfe of Auftria divided into a German anda Spanifh branch: and if the two branches cameto have a mutual influence on one another and fre-quently a common intereft, it was not till one ofthem bad fallen from grandeur, and till the otherwas rather aiming at it, than in poffeflion of it.In fliort Philip was excluded from the imperialthrone by fo natural a progreffion of caufes andeffects , ariftng not only in Germany but in hisown family, that if a treaty had been made toexclude him from it in favor of Ferdinand,fuch a treaty might have been faid very probablyto have executed itfelf.
The precaution I have mentioned, and thatwas negle&ed in this cafe without any detrimentto the common caufe of Europe , was not negle<ft-ed in the grand alliance of one thoufand fevenhundred and one. For in that, one of the endspropofed by the war is, to obtain an effe&ual fecu-rity again ft the contingent union of the crowns ofFrance arid Spain . The will of Charles the fecondprovides againft the fame contingency: and thisgreat principle of preventing too much dominionand power from falling to the lot of either of thefamilies of Bourbon or Auftria, feemed to beagreed on all fides; fince in the partition - treaty