soner. And here king Edward, again, shewed the cruelty of his disposition, for he ordered his brave enemy to be brought to London in chains, and then to be hanged, drawn, and quartered. Still, however, the Scots resisted; and, fighting under Robert Bruce, they drove the English out of Scotland, and then made Bruce their king. Edward saw, after all his fighting, and all his victories, that still he had little or no power remaining in Scotland. This thought made him extremely angry and violent; and he was resolved to leave no attempt untried for recovering his authority there. He accordingly sent another large army to oppose Bruce, and he gained a complete victory. Then he went again into Scotland, where he found the people more humble and submissive than he had ever seen them, and he seemed to expect that he should then bring them entirely into subjection. Vain, however, are all the projects of ambitious man, and miserable is it to make the misery of others the object of our desires! Edward had not long to live. He died at Carlisle, in the year 1207. But such was his animosity against the Scotch, that, even with his dying breath, he begged of his son Edward never to give up hostilities against them, till he had made a complete conquest of their kingdom. What a melancholy end,—for a man to die with such feelings on his mind! But so it is, if we encourage wrong feelings during our lives, they will be with us at our deaths,—either leading us astray by their bad influence, or harassing and tormenting us with a consciousness of their guilt. But to such a king as Edward the First, historians are generally ready to give a good character. And it is indeed true, that his warlike spirit led him to perform such exploits as brought glory and greatness to his kingdom; but how little does this contribute to the happiness of a people, compared with those peaceful and useful qualities which make a nation truly flourishing! And how can we admire the private character of a man who gave way to a temper so full of cruelty and violence? We are told that his person was very fine and comely, and that he was very tall, but that his legs were too long in proportion to his body. And thus he got the name of Longshanks. Ed ward Longshanks! What a name and title for a king! Ever yours, &c. QUESTIONS. Who was king of England after Henry the Third? What instance of affection is recorded of this lady? Was Edward brave and warlike; or the contrary? What country did Edward endeavour to add to England? Who was prince of that country before Edward attacked it? What description of people are said to have been a great check to king Edward's progress in Wales? How did Edward treat these bards, or poets? What stratagem is king Edward said to have made use of to get his son acknowledged prince of Wales? What has the eldest son of the king of England been called since the time when Edward thus got possession of Wales? What country did Edward next endeavour to gain possession of? What events in Scotland opened a way for Edward's ambi tious designs? Whom did Edward appoint king of Scotland? Who resisted Edward in Scotland? Was there a great battle? Where? Who conquered? How did the king treat William Wallace? Did the Scots still persevere ? Under whom? Who was then crowned king of Scotland? In what year ? What dying request did he make to his son? What was his personal appearance ? What name was he sometimes called by? LETTER XI. IN MY DEAR BOY, my last letter I gave you some account of the life of Edward the First; we now come to Edward the Second. This young prince was twentythree years of age when he began to reign. He was born, as I told you, at Caernarvon, in Wales; and he has commonly been distinguished by the name of Edward Caernarvon. This young king was received with great joy by the people. He had a fine manly form, and a kind and gentle disposition. But something more than this is required to govern a nation properly. It was soon found that he had neither abilities nor spirit enough to manage the great affairs of a kingdom. His father, you remember, had told him, with his dying breath, never to be at peace till he had completely conquered the Scotch. This was indeed a barbarous request, especially for a dying man, and, we know, moreover, that a king who delights in peace is much wiser than one who would seek for war :--at the same time, if a king does go to war, he ought to do it with spirit, and as if he were determined to conquer. Edward did indeed persevere in the war against the Scotch, but he managed it so ill, that he was completely beaten by Robert Bruce, king of Scotland, in the great battle of Bannockburn; and thus Edward lost all the power in Scotland that his fighting father had gained. But, besides his bad success in war, his affairs at home seemed to be constantly going wrong. Instead of carefully considering in his own mind what was best for his people, or of consulting his |