Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Observations Made In A Visit To The Tombs In Westminster Abbey,
OBSERVATIONS MADE IN A VISIT TO THE TOMBS IN WESTMINSTER ABBEY ,
Ifl DECEMBER 1784 .
BY W . HUTTON , F . S . A . SCO . OF BIRMINGHAM . ( CONCLUDED FROM P . 31 . )
ST . EDWAED ' S CHAPEL . RISING about twenty steps on the other side of the same aisle , we enter a kind of chamber , twenty feet square , called St . "Edward ' s chapel , joining the choir , on the west , where we become acquainted with another little group of kings . The first object which strikes the eye is the tomb ofthe saint , about nine feet high , fixed in
the centre , as lord of the place . Henry the Third erected it , in honour of the quondam saint , of whom he was very fond ; nor shall we be surprised , as every animal loves its like , that one weak prince should love another . . One of St . . Paul ' s injunctions is , Be not righteous over-much . We ' may infer , that too much religion may do . mischief , as . wt-11 as too little . If an over-stock of righteousness is prejudicial in . a private man , who moves in a narrow circle , what must it be in a sovereign , who influences a nation ? . •.
We have only two instances upon record , since-. Egbert annihilated the heptarchy , of princes , whose characters come under this description ;' Edward the Confessor , and Henry the Sixth ; and they both ruined their country . Edward , from a relig ious design of mortifying the flesh , neglected every conjugal duty , and foolishly disposed of that crown for which he ought to have provided a rightful owner . This furnished William the Conqueror with a pretext for overturning the
kingdom . She sustained a depression , unknown in our annals . Henry , the Sixth paid so much attention to divine things , he could scarcely be pronounced a man of the world . The duties of the Christian swallowed up those of the man . The ponderous chariot of government ran madly , for want of an able hand to direct the reins . The whole machine overturned , and destruction ensued .
The black characters of Richard the Third and Henry the Eighth were preferable to these tame spiritual kings ; for they only destroyed individuals ; but these , whole nations . A kingdom is not conducted by the innocence of a child , but the spirit of a man . The frogs were ill governed by King Log . A Mr . Keep , in the reign of James the Second , made a bold attack upon tire coffin of St , Edward . In rifling the bones , he found VOL , VI , M .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Observations Made In A Visit To The Tombs In Westminster Abbey,
OBSERVATIONS MADE IN A VISIT TO THE TOMBS IN WESTMINSTER ABBEY ,
Ifl DECEMBER 1784 .
BY W . HUTTON , F . S . A . SCO . OF BIRMINGHAM . ( CONCLUDED FROM P . 31 . )
ST . EDWAED ' S CHAPEL . RISING about twenty steps on the other side of the same aisle , we enter a kind of chamber , twenty feet square , called St . "Edward ' s chapel , joining the choir , on the west , where we become acquainted with another little group of kings . The first object which strikes the eye is the tomb ofthe saint , about nine feet high , fixed in
the centre , as lord of the place . Henry the Third erected it , in honour of the quondam saint , of whom he was very fond ; nor shall we be surprised , as every animal loves its like , that one weak prince should love another . . One of St . . Paul ' s injunctions is , Be not righteous over-much . We ' may infer , that too much religion may do . mischief , as . wt-11 as too little . If an over-stock of righteousness is prejudicial in . a private man , who moves in a narrow circle , what must it be in a sovereign , who influences a nation ? . •.
We have only two instances upon record , since-. Egbert annihilated the heptarchy , of princes , whose characters come under this description ;' Edward the Confessor , and Henry the Sixth ; and they both ruined their country . Edward , from a relig ious design of mortifying the flesh , neglected every conjugal duty , and foolishly disposed of that crown for which he ought to have provided a rightful owner . This furnished William the Conqueror with a pretext for overturning the
kingdom . She sustained a depression , unknown in our annals . Henry , the Sixth paid so much attention to divine things , he could scarcely be pronounced a man of the world . The duties of the Christian swallowed up those of the man . The ponderous chariot of government ran madly , for want of an able hand to direct the reins . The whole machine overturned , and destruction ensued .
The black characters of Richard the Third and Henry the Eighth were preferable to these tame spiritual kings ; for they only destroyed individuals ; but these , whole nations . A kingdom is not conducted by the innocence of a child , but the spirit of a man . The frogs were ill governed by King Log . A Mr . Keep , in the reign of James the Second , made a bold attack upon tire coffin of St , Edward . In rifling the bones , he found VOL , VI , M .