The Statesman.
London, England, 1815-03-29 00:00:00

7b TAB EDITOR or rim ST4TESM4I.

1139 more than once fell to the lot of thd
Bishops of Salisbury to perform the duty or reli-
gious monitor to Diglkii Princes. The present ye:
nerable Bishop of that See lig now the spirituel coon.
sellor of the PRINcE REGENT, as Dr. BURNET, his
worthy predecessor, formerly was to CHARLES 11.
It is true, the duties of the present Bishop are, front
the improved Manners and morals of the Cndrt,
more circumscribed and less arduous than thesit
which the excellent Dr. BURNET had in his time to
di.charge. how that Prelate, eminent alike for
piety and learnirg, acquitted himself in the very dif-
ficult situation in which lie was placed, has long
been a matter of historical record. That excellent

Bishop addressed a letter to CitAltt.Es, which abouhds
with topics of useful meditation to the best of Kings,
and with salutary and important advice to the worst
I—it would have been of great use to So LordoN the
wise, as well as to REIIOBOAM the wicked.
Before, however, I present your Readerb with
this admirable letter, I must request 'their attention
to the following concise, but candid character of
CHARLES, drawn by the Bishop, which will better
enable them to judge how far such a case called for
the earnest expostulation and solemn remonstrance it
drew forth :—" King Cusar.r.s3s behaviour *as di
thing never enough to be commended ; he was a
perfectly well-bred man—easy of access, free in his
discourse, and sweet in his deportment. This was
n.anaged with great art, and it covered bad designs
—it was of such use to him, that it may teach all
succeeding Princes of what 'adifintige ati 'althea' or
access and an obliging behaviour may be : this pre•
served him—it often disarmed those resentments

which his ill conduct in every thing, both public and
private, possessed all thinking people with very
early, and nll sorts of people at last ; and yet none
could go to him, but they were in a great measure
softened before they left him. it looked likea charm
that could hardly be resisted : yet there was no good
nature under that, nor was there any truth in him."
To this sort of man, and this sort •of King, did.
Bishop BURNEr address the following letter, on the
29th of January, 1680; that is, on the very eve of
that day set apart for the commemoration of his
Royal Father's Martyrdom
th
I May it please your Majesty,—l have not pre.
. sumed to trouble your Majesty for some months,
not having any thing worth your time to offer ; an l
now I chuse rather this way, since the infinite duty
j I owe you puts me under restraints in eiscourse,
which I cannot so easily overcome. What I shalt
now suggest to your Majesty, I do it as in the pre-
; sence of Almighty Gon, to whom I know I must
give an account of all my actions ; I therefore beg
you will be graciously pleased to accept this most
faithful zeal of your poor subject, who hath tfo other
design in it than your good, and the discharge of Ids
own conscience.
" I must first then assure your Majesty, I never
discovered any thing like a design of raising rebellion
among all those with whom I converse; bet I shalt
add, on the other hand, that most people grow sullen,
and are highly dissatisfied with you, and distrustful
of you. Formerly your Ministers, or his Royal
Highness (his brother, the Duke or Yoet)s bete
the blame of things ungrateful ; but now itithis Oposi!
(yourself, and time, which cures most other (Hs-
i tempers, increases this. Your last Speech makes
imany think it will be easy to fetch up Petitions from
all parts of England : this is now under consult*.
tion, nod is not yet determined; but I find so many
inclined to promote them, that as far as I can judge,
it will go that way. If your Majesty calls a Row
Parliament, it is believed, that those who have
promoted the Petitions will be generally elected ;
for the inferior sort of people are much set upon'
them, and make 'their judgment of men, from their
behaviour in that matter. The soberer sort of
those, who are ill plensad with your conduct, reckon
that either the state of your affairs beyond sea, or of
your Exchequer at hone, will, ere long, necessitate
your meeting your Parliament ; and that then things
must be rectified : and, therefore, they use their
utmost endeavours to keep all quiet. If your Ma-
jesty halite Session in April, for supporting your
Allies, I find it is•resolved by many, that the,money
necessary to maintain your alliances shall be put
into the hands of Commissioners, to'issue it as they
shall answer it to the two !Iowa; and these v. ill Me
so chosen, that as it is likely that the persons will he
very unacceptable to you, so they being trust.'d with
the money, will be as a Council of State to con-
troul all your Councils. And as to your Exchequer,
I do not find any inclination to consider your ne•
cessity, unless many things be done to put them into
another disposition, than I can observe in them.—
The things that will be demanded, will not be of so
easy a digestion, as that I can imagine you will ever
be brought to them, or indeed that it will be reason•
able or honourable for you to grant them. So that,
in this disorder of affairs, it is easy to propose dif.
ficulties, but not so easy to find out that which may
remove them.

" There is one thing, and indeed the only thing,
in which all honest men agree, as that which can easi-
ly extricate you out of all your troubles: it is not
the change of a Minister, or of a Council, a new
Alliance, or a Session of Parliament; but it is (and
suffer me, Sir, to speak it with a more than ordinary
earnestness) a change in your own heart, and in your
Course of life. And now, Sir, if you do not with in-
dignation throw this paper from you, permit me (with
all the humanity of a subject prostrate at your feet)
to tell you, that all the distruit your people have of
you—all the necessities you are now under—all the
indignation of Heaven that is now upon you, and ap-
pears in the defeating all your Councils, flow from
this, that you have not feared or served GOD, but
have given yourself up to so many sinful pleasures.
Your Majesty may, perhaps, justly think, that many
of those that oppose you have no regard to religion ; -
but the body of your people consider it more that,
you imagine. I do not desire your Majesty to put
oti an hypocritical show of religion as liontx 111. of
France did, hoping thereby to have weathered the
storms of those times. No ! that would be soon soya
through, and as it would provoke Goo,,mure, so it
would increase jealousies. No, Sir; it must be real,
and the evidences of it signal : all those about you who
are the occasion of sin, chiefly the women, must be re-
moved, and yoUr Court r(formed. Sir, if you will
turn you to religion sincerely, and seriously, .you