toriness of his majefty's answers to the propofitions of peace; and in 1648, he with feveral other members of the houfe of commons, was refused admittance into the houfe by the army, and imprifoned, on account of their zeal for a peace, and for an agreement with the king. Upon this, he became a bitter enemy to Cromwell, attacked him with great feverity in his writings, and making over his eftate to his relations, refufed the payment of taxes, and openly defied Cromwell's authority, for which he was committed close prifoner to Dunfer-calle, in Somerfetfire, on the first of July, 1650. The year following he was removed to Taunton caftle, and afterwards to Pendennis cafile; after which he wrote a number of books upon various fubjects. In February 1659-60, he, as a fecluded member, was restored to his feat in the house of commons, when he became inftrumental in recalling king Charles II, and was chofen burgefs for the city of Bath, to fit in the healing parlia. ment, which met on the 25th of April, 1660. At the Reftoration he was made chief keeper of his majetty's records in the Tower of London, and appointed one of the fix commiffioners for appeals and regulating the excife. In 1661 he was a gain elected member for Bath. He died at London on the 24th of October, 1669. "William Prynne (fays Mr. Granger) a man of four and auflere principles, took upon him felf the office of cenfor, and boldly tiepped forth to correct every enormity in church and flate. He wrote a gainf bifhops, players, long hair, and love locks; and was therefore dignified by his party with the appellation of Cato. He was a man of great reading; and there appear in his writings a copiousness with out invention, and a vehemence without fpirit. This voluminous rhapfodift gave his works, in forty volun.es folio and quarto, to the fociety of Lincoln's-Inn, There is a catalogue of them in the Athene Oxonienfes. The most valuable of his performances by far, is his Collection of Records, in four large volumes, which is a very useful work." Mr. Wood fuppofes that he wrote a fheet for every day of his life, computing from the time of his arrival at man's citate. The Life of William Pultney, Efq; PULTNEY, (William) Efq: afterwards earl of Bath, wis defcended from one of e most ancient families in the kingdom, bel was born in the year 1682. As he a plentiful fortune, he early obtained that in the hout of commons, and beto diinguish himself by heing a warm Azad against the ministry in the reign ueen Anne. lie bad fagacity to de bai in P tect their errors, and fpirited eloquence fufficient to expose them. In 1714, king George I. afcending the throne, raised Mr. Pultney to the post of secretary at war. Not long after, he was appointed cofferer of his majesty's houfhold; but the intimacy which had fubfifted between him and Sir Robert Walpole, who then acted as prime minifter, was soon interrupted, by its being fufpected that Sir Robert was delirous of extending the limits of prerogative, and promoting the intereft of Hanover, at the expence of his country. Ac cordingly in the year 1725, the king, by the advice of this minitter, defiring that a fum of money fhould be voted him by the commons, in order to discharge the debts contracted in his civil government, Mr. Pultney moved, that an account thould be laid before the house, of all money paid for fecret services during the laft twenty-five years to the then present time. This caufed an irreconcileable breach between the two minitters, which in two years after broke out into open invective. When the house of commons were deliberating upon the loan of the bank, which Sir Robert warmly efpoused, Mr. Pultney obferved, that shifting the funds was but perpetuating taxes, and putting off the evil day; and fome warm altercation passed between him and the prime minister; however, Sir Robert carried it in the house for this time. Nor did Mr. Pultney confine his difpleafure at the minister to his perfon only, but to all his measures; fo that fome have been of opinion, that he often oppofed Sir Robert when the meafures he purfued were beneficial to the public. However, it would be tedious to our readers, as well as unentertaining, to go through the course of the oppofition between them; fince to do this to any purpose, would be to analyse their speeches, which the nature of the prefent abfiract will not admit of. It is fufficient to obferve, that this course of leady oppofition at lait became fo obnoxious to the crown, that the king, on the firt day of July, 1731, called for the council book, and with his own hand firuck the name of William Fultney, Efq; out of the lift of privy counfellors: his majesty further ordered him to be put out of all commiflions for the peace; the feveral lords lieutenants, from whom he had received deputations, were commanded to revoke them, and the lord chancellor and secretaries of ftate were directed to give the neceffary orders tor that purpofe. A proceeding fo violent in the miniltry, only ferved to inflame this gentleman's refentment, and increafe his popularity. It was fome time after this that he made that celebrated fpeech, 181. Hiftory of Madame d'Efcombas. fpeech, in which he compared the miniftry to an empiric, and the conftitution of Englard to his patient. This pretender in phyfic, fald he, being confulted, tells the d'empered perfon, there were but two or three ways of treating his difeafe, and he was afraid that none of them would fucceed. A vomit might throw him into convulfions that would occafion immediate death, a purge might bring on a diarrhea that would carry him off in a fhort time; and he had already bled so much, and fo often, that he could bear it no longer. The unfortunate patient, shocked at this declaration, replies, Sir, you have always pretended to be a regular doctor, but I Low find you are an errant quack; I had an excellent confiitution when I first fell into your hands, but you have quite defroyed it; and now I find I have no other chance for faving my life but by calling for the help of fome regular phyfician." In this manner he continued inflexibly fevere, attacking the measures of the minifter with a degree of eloquence and farcafm that Worfted every antagonist; and Sir Robert, was often heard to say, that he dreaded his tongue more than another man's fword. In the year 1738, when oppofition ran fo high that feveral members openly left the houle, as finding that party and not reafon carried it in every motion, Mr. Pultney thought proper to vindicate the extraordinary fep which they had taken; and when a motion was made for removing Sir Robest Walpole, he warmly fupported it. II ry, to the reverend Dr. Douglas; and an annuity of fix hundred pounds to the ingenious Mr. Colman, whom, it is fud by fome, he affilted in writing the Connoiffer. The History of the famous Madame D'Eftombas, executed a few Years ago at Paris, for being privy to the Murder of her Husband by a former Lover. LL-fuited matches are productive of fuch complicated mifery, that it is a wonder it should be necessary to declaim against them, and by arguments and examples expofe the folly, or brand the cruelty of fuch parents as facrifice their children to ambition or avarice. Daily experience, indeed, fhews that this mifconduct of the old, who by their wildom fhould be able to direct the young, and who either have, or are thought to have, their welfare alone in view, is not only fubverfive of all the blifs of focial life, but often gives rife to events of the mo✯ tragical nature. .s any truth that regards the peace of families cannot be too often inculcated, I make no doubt but the following hiftory, the truth of which is known to fome in England, and to almost all France, where it happened, will prove acceptable to the public. At Paris, whofe fplendour and magnificence ftrikes every ftranger with surprize, where motives of pleasure alone feem to direct the actions of the inhabitants, and politeness renders their converfation deWhat a fingle feffion could not effect, firable, scenes of horror are frequent awas at length brought about by time; and midft gaiety and delight; and as human in the year 1741, when Sir Robert found nature is there feen in its most amiable his place of prime minifter no longer ten-light, it may there likewise be seen in its able, he wifely refigned all his employ moft fhocking deformity. ments, and was created earl of Orford. His oppofers, among whom Mr. Pultney had long been foremost, were assured of being provided for, and among feveral other promotions, Mr. Pultney was fworn of the privy council, and foon afterwards created earl of Bath. He had long lived in the very focus of popular obfervation, and was refpected as the chief bulwark again the encroachments of the crown. But from the moment he accepted a title, all his favour with the people was at an end, and the rest of his life was fpent in Contemning that applaufe which he no longer could fecure. Dying without iffue On the 8th of June, 1764, his title became extinct; and his only fon having died fome time before in Portugal, the paternal eftate devolved to his brother lieutenant-geeral Pultney. In his will he left four hundred pounds to his coufin, Mrs. JohnEn; five hundred pounds, with his libra It must be owned, without compliment to the French, that fhining examples of exalted virtue are frequent amongst them: but when they deviate from its paths, their vices are of as beinous a nature as those of the moft abandoned and diffolute Heathens. The force of truth has made Monfieur Bayle acknowledge, that if all the poifonings and affaffinations that the intrigues of Paris give rife to, were known, it would be fufficient to make the most hardened and profligate shudder. Though fuch bloody events do not happen so often in London, they are, notwithstanding, but too frequent; and, ss the avarice of the old fometimes confpires with the paffions of the young to produce them, the tory I am going to relate, will, I hope, be not unedifying to the inhabitants of thefe kingdoms. A citizen of Paris, who, though he could not amafs wealth, for the acquifiB 2 tion fingle. Monfieur d'Efcombas was highly mor tion of which he had an inordinate paffion, their pleafures which they lay under when acquired, by his unwearied efforts, wherewithal to maintain his fall family handfomely. He had a daughter, whofe beautified to fee Monjoy in fuch high faveur ty feemed to be the gift of Heaven, be- with his wife; yet he did not know how ftowed upon her to encrease the happiness to get rid of him, though he had not the of mankind, though it proved in the end leaft doubt but that he difhonoured his fatal to herfelf, her lover, and her huf- bed. On the other hand, Madame d'Efband. combas and Monjoy, who looked upon the old man as an obftacle to their pleafures, were impatient for his death; and the lover often declared, in the prefence of his miftrefs, that he was refolved to remove the man who flood between him and the happinefs of calling her his own. In a word, he plainly difcoverd his intention of affaftinating her husband; and fhe, by keeping the fecret, feemed to give a tacit confent to his wicked purpose. Their defign was to marry publicly, as foon as they could difpatch a man who was equally odious to them both, as a spy who watched all their mətions, and kept them under conftant refraint. Monfieur d'Efcombas, a citizen advanced in years, could not behold this brilliant beauty without defire; which was, in effect, according to the witty obfervation of Mr. Pope, no better than withing to be the dragon which was to guard the Hesperian fruit. The father of Ifabella (for that was the name of the young lady) was highly pleafed at meeting with fo advantageous a match for his daughter, as old d'Eicombas was very rich, and willing to take her without a portion; which circumfiance was fufficient, in the opinion of a man whofe ruling paflion was a fordid attachment to intereft, to atone for the want of perfon, virtue, fenfe, and every other qualification. Ifabella, who had no alternative but the choice of a convent, or of Monfieur d'Elcombas, preferred being configned to his monumental arms, to being, as it, were, buried alive in the melancholy gloom of a convent. The confequences of this unnatural union were fuch as might be expected. As Madame d'Efcombas in fecret loathed her husband, her temper was in a fhort time foured by living with him, and the totally lost that ingenuous turn of mind, and virtuous difpofition, which he had received from nature. Certain it is, that a woman's virtue is never in greater danger than when he is married to a man the diflikes: in fuch a cafe, to adhere ftrictly to the laws of honour, is almoft incompatible with the weakness of human nature. Madame d'Efcombas was courted by feveral young gentlemen of an amiable figure, and genteel addrefs; and it was not long before her affections were entirely fixed by Monjoy, an engineer, who was equally remarkable for the gentility of his perfon, and the politenefs of his behaviour. There is not a city in the world where married women live with lefs reftraint than at Paris: nothing is more common there than for a lady to have a declared gallant, if I may be allowed the expreffion; infomuch, that women, in that gay and fafionable place, may be juttly faid to change their condition for the reafon af fined by Lady Townly in the play, Badly, to take off that relliaint from It was not long before Monjoy had the opportunity he withed for: he happened accidentally to fup with the husband of his miftrefs, at a houfe not far from the Luxemburg palace; and fupper being over,, defired him to take a walk into the gardens belonging to it; which the old man, who dreaded Monjoy as much as he hated him, did not dare to decline. In their way thither, Monjoy found fome pretence or other to quarrel with him; and, having joltled him down, juft as they came to the fteps at the entrance of the garden, ftabbed him feveral times in the back, and left him there breathless, and covered all over with wounds, which were given him in fuch a manner, as made it evident to every body that he had been treacherously killed. It has been justly obferved, that murderers often run headlong into the punifhment which they have incurred by their crimes, and the conduct of Monjoy fhews this obfervation to be juft. No fooner had he committed the barbarous action above mentioned, but he went to a Commiffary, whofe office is much the fame in France with that of a Juftice of Peace in England, and declared, upon oath, that he had killed M. d'Efcombas in his own defence. The Commiffary was at fir fatisfied with his account, and would have difmiffed him; but Monjoy being in a great flut.er, and continuing to fpeak, dropped fome words which gave the Commifiary a fufpicion of his guilt. He accordingly fent for the body, and his fufpicions were confirmed by a view of it. The affin was therefore com mitted |