ors,--usually ended by bringing shame and loss on
such persons as greedy hopes or vain curiosity bribed to become their
patrons.

That general "Instauration" of the sciences which the mighty genius of
Bacon had projected, was a scheme too vast and too profound to be
comprehended by the minds of Elizabeth and her statesmen; and as it was
not of a nature to address itself to their passions and interests, we
must not wonder if they should have regarded it with indifference. At
this period, too, it existed only in embryo; and so little was the
public intellect prepared to seize the first hints thrown out by its
illustrious author, that even many years afterwards, when his system had
been produced to the world nearly in a state of maturity, the general
sentiment seems pretty much to have corresponded with the judgement of
king James, "that the philosophy of Bacon was like the peace of God,
which passeth all understanding."

All these considerations, however, are scarcely sufficient to vindicate
the boasted discernment of Elizabeth from disgrace, in having suffered
the most illustrious sage of her reign and country, who was at the same
time its brightest wit and most accomplished orator, known to her from
his birth, and the son of a wise and faithful servant whose memory she
held in honor,--to languish in poverty and discouragement; useless to
herself and to the public affairs, and a burthen to his own thoughts.

The king of France found it expedient about this time to declare himself
a convert to the church of Rome. For this change of religion, whether
sincere or otherwise, he might plead, not only the personal motive of
gaining possession of the throne of his inheritance, which seemed to be
denied to him on other terms, but the patriotic one of rescuing his
exhausted country from the miseries of a protracted civil war; and
whatever might be the decision of a scrupulous moralist on the case, it
is certain that Elizabeth at least had small title to reprobate a
compliance of which, under the reign of her sister, she had herself set
the example. But the character of the protestant heroine with which
circumstances had invested her, obliged her to overlook this
inconsistency; and as demonstrations cost her little, she not only
indicted on the occasion a solemn letter of reproof to her ally, but
actually professed herself so deeply wounded by his dereliction of
principle, that it was necessary for her to tranquillize her mind by