Another collection of philosophical conferences of the French virtuosi upon questions of all sorts for the improving of natural knowledg made in the assembly of the Beaux Esprits at Paris by the most ingenious persons of that nation / render'd into English by G. Havers, Gent. & J. Davies ..., Gent.

CONFERENCE CL. VVhether Alterations of States have natural Causes. (Book 150)

STates being compos'd of Realms or Provinces, these of Ci∣ties and Towns, these of Families, these of particular Per∣sons, and each Person having Natural Causes; 'tis clear that the Alteration of the Whole is to be attributed to the same Causes which make the change of its parts. Thus when all the Houses of a Town are afflicted with Pestilence, or consum'd by Fire, (which Accidents are capable of producing great Mutations in a Common-wealth) it cannot be otherwise express'd, but by saying, that the Town is burnt or wasted by the Plague. And as when the particular suffrages of each Counsellor tend to the absolution or condemnation of a Criminal, 'twere senseless to say, that the Sentence of the Court were other than that of the President and Counsellors; so also it is ridiculous to say, that the Causes of personal mutations are Natural, but not those of Political. As therefore 'tis almost the sole demonstration we have in Physicks, that our Bodies are chang'd and corrupted, because they are compos'd of the four Elements; in like sort, I conceive, the Cause of alteration befalling the body of a State, is to be sought in the Collection of the several members that compose it; which

coming to lose the harmony, proportion, and respect which made them subsist, they are dissolv'd and corrupted; which is a mutation, purely natural, and of absolute necessity.

The Second said, If God hath reserv'd any thing to his own disposal, 'tis that of Crowns and the preservation of States, which are the first and universal Causes of the safety of every par∣ticular person. Whence the transferring of those Crowns, from one State to another, which is a greater mystery, is a mutation purely supernatural; as not onely God himself hath manifest∣ed, when he subjected the State of the Israelites first to Judges and Captains, which was a kind of Aristocracy, and afterwards to Kings reducing them to a Monarchy; but also all such as have wrought great changes in States of the World: And Legislators knowing this belief imprinted in all Men's Minds, have affected the Reputation of being descended from, or favor'd by some Deity, as did Alexander the Great, and Numa Pompilius. Moreover, the Holy Scripture attributes to God the changing of Scepters, and frequently styles him the God of Battels, the winning and losing whereof, are the most common and manifest Causes of the change of States. And 'tis a pure effect of the Divine Will, that Men born free, subject themselves to the Will of one sole or few persons; so the changing of that Inclination, cannot proceed but from Him who is the searcher of Hearts, and gives us both to will and to do. If Natural Causes had their effects, as certain in Politicks as in Physicks, States should have their limited du∣rations, as Plants and Animals have: and yet there is such a dis∣proportion in the duration of all States, past and present, that one hath lasted above 1200. years, (as the French Monarchy, whose flourishing State promises as many more Ages, if the World continue so long) and another hath chang'd its Form several times in one yeat, as Florence. Upon which consideration, the greatest Politicians have put their States under the Divine Pro∣tection, and caus'd all their Subjects to venerate some particular Angel or tutelar Saint. Thus France acknowledges Saint Mi∣chael for its Protector; Spain, Saint James; Venice, Saint Mark; and even the Ethnicks thought that a City, (much less a State) could not be destroy'd till the Deity presiding over it were re∣mov'd. Whence Homer makes the Palladium of Troy, carry'd away by Ʋlysses, before the Greeks could become Masters of it.

The Third said, The Supream Cause exercises its Omnipo∣tence in the Rise, Conservation, and Destruction of States, as well as every where else; yet hinders not subordinate Causes from producing their certain Effects, natural in things natural, (as in the Life and Death of Men, which though one of the most notorious Effects of God's Power, and attributed to him by the Scripture and all the World, yet ceaseth not to have its infal∣lible and natural demonstrations.) Inlike manner, subordinate Moral Causes, produce their Moral and contingent Effects in Moral Things, such as that in Question is which Causes, depend∣ing

upon Humane Actions which arise from our Will, no-wise necessitated but free, cannot be term'd natural and constrain'd, unless either by those that subject all things here below to De∣stiny, which subverts the liberty of the Will (that is, makes it no longer a Will) or those who will have not only the manners of the Soul, but also the actions always to follow the tempera∣ment of the Body; which were hard to conceive, and yet would not infer a necessity in the alteration of States, since the effects of Love and Hatred, and other passions which give in∣clination or aversion are oftentimes prevented by thwarting causes. When the Lacedemonians chang'd the popular State of Athens into an Aristocracy of thirty Lords, whom they call'd afterwards the thirty Tyrants, no other cause can be assign'd thereof but the chance of War, which subjected the will of the Athenians to that of the Lacedemonians: And the same may be said of all other ancient and modern Revolutions. Indeed, if the causes in Policy had regular effects, or States were subject to natural declinations. Prudence, which is conversant about con∣tingent things to manage them freely and alter its course ac∣cording to occasion, should signifie nothing. 'Tis more credi∣ble that as in the state of Grace God hath left our actions to the disposal of Free-will, that we may work out our Salvation our selves; so in the administration of Republicks he hath left most things to chance, for imploying men's industry according to their will, whose motions being free and contingent, are dia∣metrically opposite to the necessity of natural causes.

The Fourth said, That these alterations may be, though vo∣luntary, yet natural, yea necessary too; our Will being as in∣clin'd to apprehended good, as our Intellect is to Truth. As therefore knowing this truth that 2 and 2 are 4, 'tis impossible but I must believe it; so, knowing that such an action will bring me good, I shall do it: so that the causes of humane actions have somthing of necessity, and (besides) having their foundati∣on in nature may in some sort be term'd natural. Moreover, since things are preserv'd by their like and destroy'd by their contraries (which contraries are under the same genus) it follows that all sublunary things having had a natural beginning must also have a like end. Desire of self-preservation, which is na∣tural, gave birth to States; but if, instead of this desire which renders Servants obedient to their Masters, these to the Magi∣strate, and him to the Sovereign, Rebellion and Treason de∣prive their Chiefs of the succour they expect from them, and by this means exposes the State in prey to the Enemies, it can∣not but fall to ruine; unless that some other natural cause, Per∣swasion (as that of Menenius Agrippa taken from the humane bo∣dy, upon a Secession of the Mechanicks of Rome from the Se∣nate) or an exemplary punishment reduce the Subjects to their forsaken duty. Whereby it appears that the State resumes its first vigor by as sensible and natural causes, as 'tis to be per∣swaded,

or become wise by others harm. Amongst many ex∣amples, the ruines of Troy and Thebes were caus'd by the rape of Helene whom the injustice of the Trojans deny'd to re∣store to her Husband, and the feud of two. Brothers aspi∣ring to the same Royalty: then which no causes can be as∣sign'd more natural and more necessarily inferring the loss of a State.