e limitations of the government seem to have been more sensibly
felt, and more carefully maintained, by Henry than by any of his
predecessors.

* Cotton, p. 364.

** Cotton, p. 406.

*** Cotton, p. 426.

**** Cotton, p. 438.

***** Cotton, p. 456, 457.

****** Cotton, p 462.

During this reign, when the house of commons were at any time brought to
make unwary concessions to the crown they also showed their freedom by
a speedy retractation of them. Henry, though he entertained a perpetual
and well grounded jealousy of the family of Mortimer, allowed not their
name to be once mentioned in parliament; and as none of the rebels
had ventured to declare the earl of Marche king, he never attempted to
procure, what would not have been refused him, an express declaration
against the claim of that nobleman; because he knew that such a
declaration, in the present circumstances, would have no authority, and
would only serve to revive the memory of Mortimer's title in the minds
of the people. He proceeded in his purpose after a more artful and
covert manner. He procured a settlement of the crown on himself and his
heirs male,[*] thereby tacitly excluding the females, and transferring
the Salic law into the English government. He thought that, though the
house of Plantagenet had at first derived their title from a female,
this was a remote event, unknown to the generality of the people; and
if he could once accustom them to the practice of excluding women, the
title of the earl of Marche would gradually be forgotten and neglected
by them. But he was very unfortunate in this attempt. During the long
contests with France, the injustice of the Salic law had been so much
exclaimed against by the nation, that a contrary principle had taken
deep root in the minds of men; and it was now become impossible to
eradicate it. The same house of commons, therefore, in a subsequent
session, apprehensive that they had overturned the foundations of the
English government, and that they had opened the door to more civil
wars than might ensue even from the irregular elevation of the house
of Lancaster, applied with such earnestness for a new settlement of the
crown, that Henry yielded to their request, and agreed to the succession
of the princesses of his family;[**] a certain proof that nobody was, in
his heart, satisfied with the king's title to the crown, or knew on what
principle to rest it.

But though the