set my ships on fire, and destroy us all. Now this similitude of our destinies having endeared you to me, I thought my comparing our notes together might mitigate part of your affliction. Nay, thus far we are again alike in the frowns of insulting fortune, that they will make new medals with the old inscription, _dux fœmina facti_. Indeed you must give me leave, Sir, to be a little free with you, that is, to tell you for ought I know, providence may have ordered it so, to shew that the wisdom of man is really but a chimera, and as _Spain_, when in the highest exaltation of its glory, with a vast fleet that was three years equipping, and consisted of no less than 130 sail of ships, enough to have forc’d her way thro’ the universe; yet with all this preparation, a single woman, embroil’d in her state at home, not only made head against us, but even quite destroy’d us; insomuch, that the kingdom of _Spain_ was never fully able to recover the vast expence of this fleet, and the continued losses that attended its being beaten: in like manner, Sir, what know we but that the kingdom of _France_, being now even at the summit of glory, and by the accession of the _Spanish_ interest, so entirely at his own devotion, may not see all his laurels torn from his brows by a queen, and to the dishonour of the _Salic_ law, make the greatest of all its monarchs truckle to a woman, whom they thought incapable of reigning. I don’t say this will be certainly so, but examining all occurrences hitherto, it looks but scurvily upon the _Spanish_ and _French_ side. For _France_ was never so many times, and so considerably defeated since he sat upon the throne, and that too both by sea and land. Indeed the _English_ in these parts grow very pragmatical upon it, and at every turn call for _a son of a whore of a_ Spaniard _to make snuff of_. Cardinal _Granvil_, that was the ablest head-piece of his time, avers it so positively, that I dare not aim at a contradiction; and his opinion is, That the _English_, who are naturally good when they are yielded to, and only obstinate and angry when they are oppos’d, will ever be happily governed by a queen; and he assigns this for a reason, that the monarchy of _England_ having a great alloy of a republick, they are more jealous of their warlike princes than of their weak ones, and least they should happen to give a daring prince an unhappy opportunity of treading upon their necks, if they should stoop any thing low, they will always in parliament keep him at some distance; but as a woman cannot pretend to guide the reins of empire by a strong hand, they must do it by a wise head; therefore not trusting so much to her own judgment, as hot-headed man does, she does nothing without the advice of her council; and that is a small parliament, as a parliament is a grand national council, and this method of government suits best with the _English_ temper: from whence I conclude, that _England_ never was in so fair a prospect of doing