Part 3

But we have another melancholy incident, which attends the queen's mortality, and which makes this question more than ordinarily seasonable to be asked at this time; and that is, that not only the queen is mortal, and she must die, and the time uncertain; so that she may die, even to-day, before to-morrow, or in a very little space of time: but her life is, under God's providence, at the mercy of papists and jacobites' people; who, the one by their principles, and the other by the circumstances of their party, are more than ordinarily to be apprehended for their bloody designs against her majesty, and against the whole nation. Nay, there seems more reason to be apprehensive of the dangerous attempts of these desperate people, at this time, than ever, even from the very reasons which are given all along in this work, for our being safe in our privileges, our religious and civil rights, during her majesty's life. It would be mispending your time to prove that the papists and jacobite parties in this nation, however they may, as we have said, be under ties and obligations of honour, interest, and gratitude, &c., not to make attempt upon us during the queen's life; yet that they are more encouraged at this time than ever they were to hope and believe, that when the queen shall die, their turn stands next. This, we say, we believe is lost labour to speak of: the said people, the popish and tory party, will freely own and oppose it. They all take their obligations to the queen to end with her majesty's life. The French king, however in honour and gratitude he may think himself bound not to encourage the pretender to insult her majesty's dominions, while the queen, with whom he personally is engaged by treaty, shall remain alive, will think himself fully at liberty from those obligations when the queen shall die. If we are not misinformed of the French affairs, and of the notions they have in France of these things, they are generally no otherwise understood than that the king of France is engaged by the peace now in view, not to disturb her majesty's possession during her reign and her life; but that then the pretender's right is to be received everywhere. The pretender himself, howsoever, as above said, he may despair of his success in attempting to take possession during the queen's life, will not fail to assume new hopes at her majesty's death: so much then of the hopes of popery and French power; so much of the interest of the pretender depending upon the single thread of life of a mortal person; and we being well assured that they look upon her majesty only as the incumbent in a living, or tenant for life in an estate, what is more natural, than in this case for us to apprehend danger to the life of the queen; especially to such people, who are known not to make much consciences of murdering princes, with whom the king-killing doctrine is so universally received, and who were so often detected of villanous practices and plots against the life of Queen Elizabeth, her majesty's famous predecessor, and that upon the same foundation, viz., the queen of Scots being the popish pretender to the crown; what can we expect from the same party, and men acting from the same principles, but the same practices? It is known that the queen, by course of nature, may live many years, and these people have many reasons to be impatient of so much delay. They know that many accidents may intervene to make the circumstances of the nation, at the time of the queen's death, less favourable to their interests than they are now; they may have fewer friends, as well in power, as out of power, by length of time, and the like: these, and such as these considerations may excite villanous and murderous practices against the precious life of our sovereign (God protect her majesty from them); but while all these considerations so naturally offer themselves to us, it seems most rational, needful, seasonable, and just, that we should be asking and answering this great question, What if the queen should die?

Thus far we have only asked the question itself, and showed our reasons, or endeavoured to justify the reasonableness of the inquiry. It follows that we make some brief essay as an answer to the question. This may be done many ways; but the design of this tract is rather to put the question into your thought, than to put an answer into your mouths. The several answers which may be given to this important question may not be proper for a public print; and some may not be fit so much as to be spoken. The question is not without its uses, whether it be answered or no, if the nation be sufficiently awakened but to ask the question among themselves; they will be brought by thinking of the thing to answer it one to another in a short space. The people of Britain want only to be showed what imminent danger they are in, in case of the queen's decease: how much their safety and felicity depend upon the life of her majesty, and what a state of confusion, distress, and all sorts of dreadful calamities they will fall into at her majesty's death, if something be not done to settle them before her death; and if they are not during her majesty's life secured from the power of France, and the danger of the pretender.

END OF "WHAT IF THE QUEEN SHOULD DIE?"