n his dominions. This was an
appalling menace. Queen Anne accordingly sent Lord Whitworth on a
formal embassy to the tzar, with a diplomatic lie in his mouth.
Addressing Peter in the flattering words of "most high and mighty
emperor," he assured him, that the offending tradesman had been
punished with imprisonment and rendered infamous, and that an act of
Parliament should be passed, rendering it no longer lawful to arrest
a foreign embassador. The offender had not been punished, but the act
was subsequently passed.

The acknowledgment, accompanied by such flattering testimonials of
respect, was deemed satisfactory. The tzar had demanded the death of
the offender. Every Englishman must read with pride the declaration of
Queen Anne in reference to this demand.

"There are," said she, "insuperable difficulties with respect to the
ancient and fundamental laws of the government of our people, which we
fear do not _permit_ so severe and rigorous a sentence to be given, as
your imperial majesty first seemed to expect in this case. And we
persuade ourselves that your imperial majesty, who are a prince famous
for clemency and exact justice, will not require us, who are the
_guardian and protector of the laws_, to inflict a punishment on our
subjects which the law does not empower us to do."

The whole of Livonia speedily fell into the hands of the tzar and was
reannexed to Russia. Pestilence, which usually follows in the train of
war, now rose from the putridity of battle fields, and sweeping, like
the angel of death, over the war-scathed and starving inhabitants of
Livonia, penetrated Sweden. Whole provinces were depopulated, and in
Stockholm alone thirty thousand perished. The war of the Spanish
Succession was now raging, and every nation in Europe was engaged in
the work of destruction and butchery. Spain, Portugal, Italy, France,
the German empire, England, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, were all
in arms, and hundreds of millions of men were directly or indirectly
employed in the work of mutual destruction. The fugitive king, Charles
XII., was endeavoring to enlist the energies of the Ottoman Porte in
his behalf, and the Grand Seignor had promised to throw his armies
also, two hundred thousand strong, into the arena of flame and blood,
and to march for the conquest of Russia.

Peter, conscious of the danger of an attack from Turkey, raised an
army of one hundred and twenty-five thousand men, when he was informed
tha