tself be the most blameless, cannot escape severe censure; but one
who overlooks for her pleasure so many other weighty considerations, was
equally capable, in gratifying her appetites, to neglect every regard to
honor and humanity: that Mary was not ignorant of the prevailing opinion
of the public with regard to her own guilt, and of the inferences which
would every where be drawn from her conduct; and therefore, if she still
continued to pursue measures which gave such just offence, she ratified
by her actions, as much as she could by the most formal confession,
all the surmises and imputations of her enemies: that a prince was here
murdered in the face of the world; Bothwell alone was suspected and
accused; if he were innocent, nothing could absolve him, either in
Mary's eyes or those of the public, but the detection and conviction
of the real assassin: yet no inquiry was made to that purpose, though a
parliament had been assembled; the sovereign and wife was here plainly
silent from guilt, the people from terror: that the only circumstance
which opposed all these presumptions, or rather proofs, was the
benignity and goodness of her preceding behavior, which seemed to remove
her from all suspicions of such atrocious inhumanity; but that the
characters of men were extremely variable, and persons guilty of the
worst actions were not always naturally of the worst and most criminal
dispositions; that a woman who, in a critical and dangerous moment, had
sacrificed her honor to a man of abandoned principles, might thenceforth
be led blindfold by him to the commission of the most enormous crimes,
and was in reality no longer at her own disposal: and that, though
one supposition was still left to alleviate her blame; namely, that
Bothwell, presuming on her affection towards him, had of himself
committed the crime, and had never communicated it to her; yet such a
sudden and passionate love to a man whom she had long known, could not
easily be accounted for, without supposing some degree of preceding
guilt; and as it appeared that she was not afterwards restrained, either
by shame or prudence, from incurring the highest reproach and danger,
it was not likely that a sense of duty or humanity would have a more
powerful influence over her.

These were the sentiments which prevailed throughout Scotland: and as
the Protestant teachers, who had great authority, had long borne an
animosity to Mary, the opinion of her guilt was by that