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S
THROUGH SWEDEN. 83
and extraordinary good fortune when the courage and talents of
warlike princes find an objee worthy of their fire and genius.
Such, happily, was the deftiny of Guftavus Vafa and Guftavus
Adolphus, both juftly denominated Great: fuch was that of the
Princes of Orange, whofe noble career was concluded by Wil-
liam II. king of England. But perhaps had a caufe truly glorious
been wanting to thofe princes, their natural love of pre-eminence
and fame might have taken a lefs favourable direction. The wars
of Charles XII. were originally juft and honourable, but he car-
ried them beyond the point where they ought to have ended; and
from a frantic paffion for military exploits, he ufed them for the
purpofe of gratifying his own inclination, and not as the means of
repelling aggreffion, and fecuring his country again{t the injuftice
of its neighbours. How much more truly glorious would it have
been if he had {topped in his career of victory, and given repofe
to his bleeding and exhaufted people! The war in which Guf-_
tavus III. engaged with the Ruffians, and in which he certainly
difplayed a magnanimity and perfonal intrepidity in no degree
inferior to thofe of his braveft anceftors, was provoked by the
intrigues and the overbearing pretenfions of the northern auto-
crafy. But the experiment whether Guftavus, had it been in his
power, would not have preferred the gratification of his own am-
bition to the folid interefts of his country, was never fairly tried.
_A peace between the Ruffians and the Turks was unavoidably
followed by an accommodation between the Ruffians and the
Swedes, by which the latter certainly obtained the greateft fhare
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