Category: Church of England

Tuesday, September 12. 1704.

Numb. 55.
[233]

I Am now upon a Question, Concerning the Oppressions of the Hungarians, by the Emperor’s Ministers.

I am not going to lessen their Grievances, nor indeed, to enquire into the Particulars; if they have been us’d as we are told they have, ’tis bad enough.

But the Case before us, is to bring the Subject of Complaint, and the Persons complaining, to a fair Head, and make the great Relative here agree with the Antecedent.

The Question is, Have the German’s opprest the Hungarians, as a Nation, or have they Persecuted and Injur’d them as Protestants? Continue reading Tuesday, September 12. 1704.

Saturday, September 2. 1704.

Numb. 52.
[221]

I Have done with the Swedes: Monsieur L—n may concern himself to defend the Polish Election, in what Way and Method he pleases; I am perswaded he will never Compass it to his Master’s Reputation.

Conquest indeed may go a great way; Victory is so Sacred a thing, and Men are so apt to give the Sanction of Right, where Heaven gives the Blessing of Success, that to Argue against the Justice of that Cause, to which the Sword gives the Authority, is almost to oppose the General Stress of Human Reasoning.

If Stanislaus the Palatin of Posen, for as yet I can call him no more, by the Assistance of the Swede, Conquers the present King of Poland, who shall dispute his being Lawful King? I question whether the King of Sweden himself, or half the Kings in Europe have better Titles.

If Conquest be not a Lawful Title to a Crown, we must go back to the Oracle and Enquire, where the Grand Spring of Title is to be found; and unless the People come in to help us out, I doubt we shall be at a loss. Continue reading Saturday, September 2. 1704.

Tuesday, August 29. 1704.

Numb. 51.
[217]

I Hinted in the last Review the Scandal rais’d on this Undertaking, viz. That it does not please every body; I hope some of the Gentlemen Objectors will take that Note for an Answer, as particularly the Gentleman who is so Angry at my Opinion, concerning the Consequences of the late Victory; and so much for Objectors.

’Tis my Satisfaction that they cannot, nor indeed have they attempted to Answer the Reasons brought on this Head; when they can, I shall most readily alter my Opinion.

I am of Opinion I have sin’d against Novelty in the Article of Sweden, and as most People have this Vice in their Judgments, to be always cloy’d with a long Story, I might have dwelt upon the Swedish Affair too long: The Fancy is the Weather-cock of the Soul, and ’tis always Vereing with the Gusts of Novelty; Men are eternally gapeing after Variety, and no Story can be so well told, as to please them, if it be too long in telling.

And yet I cannot satisfy my self to close with this humour of the Town, and quit a Subject, before I have gone thro’ it, to please the Luxuriance of the World’s imagination; such as think me dull, only because I am long, are like those that don’t approve of the Sermon, because they don’t love the Parson. Continue reading Tuesday, August 29. 1704.

Saturday, July 29. 1704.

Numb. 42.
[181]

HE is but a sorry Physician that tells us a Disease, but prescribes no Remedy: I have Entertain’d the World, in three Reviews together, with the Case of the Swedes, in the Dispute with Poland, and the War of the North; I have insisted long upon this Head, and ventur’d at an Essay on the great Damage done the Confederacy in General, and the Protestant Religion in Particular; I have said much of their opening a Gap in the Confederacy, at which the French Power has broke in; and I am yet unconvinc’d of any Mistake in the Matter.

I am oblig’d now to apply the Remedy to this Evil, and answer this great Question, How shall we help it?

I confess I could better have answered it six Months ago, and shown how you might have help’d it, than I can say now how it shall be help’d; but it may not be too late yet, especially if the King of Poland and the Confederacy can hold out but one Year longer.

If any Man ask me why I make an if of the latter, I answer, If the Duke of Marlborough succeeds in his Design on Bavaria, there is no doubt indeed of it; but if that had either been not undertaken, or had miscarried, I would not have answered for the Subsistence of the Confederacy one Year longer. Continue reading Saturday, July 29. 1704.

Tuesday, July 18. 1704.

Numb. 39.
[169]

EUROPE look’d without any concern upon the prodigious Conquests of the K. of Sweden; believing the Dane ought to be Chastis’d for so basely Invading the Dominions of a Prince, with whom he was in a strict League; without any Provocation, and without so much as a Declaration; and while that Prince was engag’d in a Bloody War, remote from his own Dominions.

But under all these Provocations, the King of Sweden used so much Moderation in his Victory, that he contented himself with forcing his Enemy to a Disadvantageous Peace, by which the Swede obtained great part of Schonen, a share in the Toll of the Sound, and a great many considerable Concessions.

But as Princes are not always capable of bounding their Ambition, and the Dangers of excess in Prosperity are very great, the King of Sweden pretending next Year, that the King of Denmark was Arming against him, but really vex’d at Heart, that he had let his Enemy slip out of his Hands, when he might have made an Entire Conquest of his Dominions; breaks the Peace, puts to sea with a great Fleet, Lands an Army in Seeland, and sits down again under the Walls of Copenhagen.

The Gallant Defence the King of Denmark made, how he would not quit the City, as his Councellors advis’d him, but resolv’d to be shut up with his Citizens; how he pitch’d his Royal Tent upon one of the Bastions of the City, and nearest to the Danger; that, as he said, he might call to his Soldiers, Come to the breach, and not bid them Go. How he Challeng’d the King of Sweden to fight him, hand to hand, for the Crown of Denmark, who told him for Answer, That Kings do not use to fight, but in good Company. These things I may hint for the Readers Diversion, and to Invite them to read the Histories of Those Times; but I omit Writing them at large, as Foreign to the present purpose. Continue reading Tuesday, July 18. 1704.

Saturday, April 1. 1704.

Numb. 8.The main title changes to A REVIEW OF THE Affairs of FRANCE with the publication of Numb. 8. The subtitle continues to read: Purg’d from the Errors and Partiality of News-Writers and Petty-Statesmen, of all Sides. The title retains this wording through the end of the first volume, closing with Numb. 102, published February 24, 1705. The Review changes titles again with the publication of Vol. 2, Numb. 1, on February 27, 1705. At that point the main title remains the same, but the subtitle becomes With some Observations on TRANSACTIONS at Home, a reflection of the Review’s trend towards domestic topics.
[45]

OUR last broke off at the Beginning of the March of the Germans, who encamp’d the first Night 22 Miles from the French Army, and making but a short stop, continued advancing for three days together, without halting or refreshing their Men.

The Duke de Vendosme immediately address’d himself to follow them, and with his usual Expedition was in full March with 18000 Men the next day by Noon; and this must pass with Men of Judgment for very great Dispatch.

We need not trouble the World with the History of this March, which is to be found in Our Gazetts, and will, no doubt, be transmitted to Posterity in all the Histories of the Times, as the greatest Action of the Age, How 16000 Men with their Cannon and Carriages, with a more numerous Army at their Heels, march’d in the Depth of Winter, in a wet rainy Season, thro’ a deep dirty and almost impassable Country, where in many Places they were fain to draw their Cannon by strength of hand, compass’d about with Enemies, Garrisons, and several strong Bodies posted in their Front, at all the Passes and Places of Advantage.

Thro’ all these Difficulties and Hazards they mov’d on with incredible and unparallel’d Expedition; and had it not been for the Breaking of a Bridge at passing the Bornia, they had never so much as been fought with in their Way. The Brush they had there was inconsiderable, and no way impeded their March; Till at last having travers’d the Cremonese and Milanese, and march’d above 200 Miles, they join’d the Duke of Savoy’s Forces on the Frontiers, brought with them 1500 Prisoners, and Hostages for three Millions in Contributions. Continue reading Saturday, April 1. 1704.

Saturday, March 18. 1704.

Numb. 5.
[33]

A DIGRESSION to the READER.

IT is not for want of Matter wherewith to Entertain the World, that this Paper is thus reduc’d from a whole to half a Sheet, the vast Extent of the Subject we have Entred upon, rather gives us Cause to fear Life will hardly Extend to Finish the Undertaking, and at the slow Rate of now and then a Paper, this Age will hardly come to the End of the History.

But the Necessities of Trade, not Improperly call’d the Iniquity of the Times, compel us to this Alteration, the Publishers of this Paper honestly Declaring, that while they make it a whole Sheet they get nothing by it; and tho’ the Author is very Free to give the World his Labour for God’s sake, they don’t find it for their Convenience to give their Paper and Print away.

But this is not all, the common Sellers of News, from the unusual Size, and general Success of this Paper, took Occasion to Impose upon the World and Sell it for Two Pence; which; which as it was raising a Tax without a Legal Power was thought Scandalous by the Club, and accordingly is thus effectually suppress’d.

And to convince the World, these are the true Reasons, they will find, That we have by the help of a smaller Print, and a larger Page, taken Care to put as much into this half Sheet as was in the former, and so the whole of the Matter is only the Injury done to the Eye-sight, in obliging the Gentlemen to read it in a smaller Character; and if we find the Subject grow too fast upon us, we shall help it by bringing the Paper out twice a Week.At this point in the Review the print shrinks, the layout shifts from single column to two columns, and the move from printing a full sheet to a half sheet reduces the pages from eight to four. All of these moves, as Defoe mentions in the first paragraphs of this number, were in response to booksellers charging two pennies for the paper because of its larger than usual size. Continue reading Saturday, March 18. 1704.