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Show A ColleCiion, ofthe FelicitieJ, offl.!.!een Elizabeth. within a very few dayes , of her Comming , to the Crown, when m~y Prifoners, were releafed, ou: of rrijim; (as the CuHorne is at the InauguratioN. of a Prince;) There camt: to I er, one day,as tbe W!S going to Chappell) a certain Cc1trtier, that h.ld the Libet ty of Eujfone; And either, outofhis own Motio J, or by th in ig t ion, ota wifer Man, prefented her with a Fctd.on ; Ancl before a great number of courtiers,faid to her,with a loud v lice; 1 hat there were yet four or five Prifone1's, tmjujily detained i1z Priflm; He came, to be a Suter, to hllve them Jet at Ltberty: Tho(e 'll'ere :~ the four Evtmge!ifls, and the Apo.ftk Saint Paul; who bad bee1t longf/Jut up, i11 an u-nltnnwn tongue, as if ~rein Prifon, fo as they could 110t co11vrrfe, witb the cent .. mon People. The ~een anf wered very gravdy; · hat it was befl jir:ft, tq enquire of them, whether they would be Jet ,1; liberty, or no i Thus ihe filenced, an unfeafonable Motion, with a doubtfull Anfwer; As referving the Matter wholly, i her own Power. Neither did {be bring in this Alteration, timoroufly, or by pieces, but in a gtave, and mature.) Manner, af~ er a C(I?Jjc ·ence bt·twixt oth Sides, and the Galling, and Conclufion of a Parliament. And thus withtn the Compafie of one year, ilie did fo eftab1iili , and fettle, all Matters) belonging to the ch1trc!J, as ilie J cparted n 0t, one Haires Breadth, fr'om them, to the end of her Life. l~ay, .u'ld her ufuall Cufiom was, in the beginnin~~ of every Parliament, ro forewarn the HtJJ{er, not to quefiion, or innovare, any thing, al ~ ready efiablifhed, in the piftipline, or lli~es of the C h1u~ch. And thus much ofht'r Religion. Now if there be any Severer Nature, that {hall tax her/or that lhe fuffered her felf, and was very wi1ling, ~o be courted, wooed,and to have Sonnetr made in her Commendation; And that ihe c•;urinued this, longer, then was decent for her yt:ars ; Not withfianding, if you will take this Matter at the befr,it is not wichout ~ngular Admiration; Being much like unto that, which we find tn Fabulous Narrations, of a certain ~een, in the FortHntl.fe Jjld1tdj, and ofher Court, and Fafhions, where Faire purpoje,and Love-nMbjng _was allowed, .but Llljcivicufnej]e bani£hed : But if you will take 1t at the worfi~even,fo it amoun teth, to a more high Admir:nioc; Confidering that thefe Courtjbips,did not much eclipfe her F t~me, and not at all her Majifty; Neither, did they make her:, Idle Apt for Government, or check, with the affaires, and bufinc.ffi· ''., f the P~tb!ic/z. For iuch paifages as thefe, do of£ en entcrta· t e time, even with the grrateH Princes. But to make a en< ,f r Ji.~ Difcourfe. Certainly, this Princiffe was Goot , Jnd Mor : And fucb, lhe would be acknowledged: .. ·be De·eC d y,c_; And defired, to purchafe F"ame, only by onou rabJe Co de·: And indeed, whilefi I mention her Morall F arts, thrre en s <! certain pafiage into my mind, which I will infert. One ) ., tv•n · order, to write to her Embajfadour, about certain Infrrucriong, t~ he delivered, apart, to the !f2_ueen Mother, of the Hcu(e of 1- a!ois: And that her Secretary, had inferted a certain Claufe,that the Em· ~--~--------------------------------~------- ~ba~dou ... ' _ A ~o~leftion; of the F elicitieJ , of !2!!een Elizabeth, bajfa~01tr fhould fay, as it were, t~-end~;r her,- to the 1f2!!:.een Mo-ther, Th~t they two, were the only pa1re, of Female Princes1ftom whom> for experrence, aNd Arts of Government, there was no lt:j]e expefled then from the grcat~ft Kings : She utterly diOiked the Comparifon: an.d c.omman~ed lt to be put our, faying; 7 hat foe praflifed >other P!lf:CTjller, and Arts of Government, then the ~een Mother did. Be .. ttdes, fhe was not a little pleafed,if any one lhould fortune to tell her, that fuppofe,ih.e had lived in a private Fortune, yet ilie could not ~ave efcaped, wnhout fome Note of Excellency, and singula~~ ty, tn her Sex. So little did £he delire, to borrow, or be behold~ ng to ~er Fortune, for ht:rPraife. But if I fhould wade further ~nto thts ff2.!!eenes Praifu, M()rall-, or Politick, either, I mufillid~ mto certatn Common places, and Heads of J/ertue which were not worthy of fo great a Princeffe; Or if I fhould deftre to give her Verl1te~, the r:ue Grac_e, and Lulhe, I mufr fall int~ a Biflory of her Lif~; W~tch requtreth,both better Leifure,and a better Pen, then mme ts. Thus much in brief~ according to my ability 1 B~t to fay t_he Truth; 'The onl_y Commender> of this Ladies vertuer) is Tzme; Wh1ch, for as many Ages, as it bath runn, hath not yet ~ewed us,oneoft~e Female Sex~equall to Her)in the Adminiflr~ttum :.of a Kingdom. --~ c AN I |
