Selected quad for the lemma: death_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	begin_v	life_n	live_v	4,413	5	5.6341	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26396	A panegyric on our late sovereign Lady Mary Queen of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, of glorious and immortal memory who died at Kensington, on the 28th of December, 1694 / by James Abbadie ...; Panegyrique de Marie, reine d'Agleterre, d'Ecosse, de France, et d'Irlande. English	Abbadie, Jacques, 1654-1727.	1694 (1694)	Wing A56; ESTC R6372	22,151	34

bright Soul could from the Heavens whither she is ascended renew those Orders which her Modesty impos'd on Earth Sorrow and Gratitude would not suffer us to obey them Death which puts a period to the Glory of others seems only to begin hers How vast is the difference between her and the nameless Great those vulgar Princes who cease to be known assoon as they cease to live Her Works came out of the Grave when she enter'd into it Her Life hid her from us and her Death exposes her in all her Glory to our ravish'd Eyes Why cannot we do as much honour to her Memory as she was always ready to do to Merit and Vertue What do I say She made it her Pleasure to consider all sorts of Persons none were despicable in her sight She never spoke ill of any person nor ever suffer'd any person to be ill spoken of in her presence She esteem'd the Reputations of all mankind sacred and if ever the Serenity of her Mind was disturb'd by any motion of anger to which she was almost always a Stranger it was when any one had the confidence to speak ill of her Enemies in her presence She was so incredulous of the faults of others as if humane Nature had been faultless and so universally indulgent as if all mankind had belong'd to her What a noble Example has she set before Soveraigns who being the common Parents of their People are concern'd in the Reputation of all sorts of persons and ought no more to encourage Railing against their Subjects than they would against their own Children The Persons are usually despis'd whose Praises and Flatteries are esteem'd which is an Effect of Pride But MARY despis'd Praise and had an universal Charity for all sorts of persons This was the peculiar character of her Vertue Her Condescension and Bounty kept pace with the Advancement of her Fortune as if she had intended to comfort others and make amends for her surpassing them in Quality and Vertues She was easy of access to the unhappy she despis'd no Complaint and rejected no Request Her generous and magnanimous Temper would not suffer her to overcome Hatred and Envy any other way than by Kindness and good Offices She exceeded all other Women in Frugality but she was frugal only that she might be charitable and she was even more Charitable than Frugal reducing her self often to Poverty by her profuse Beneficency This is not an Idea of imaginary perfection It has been observ'd that after she had consum'd the regulated Fund of her Charity in extraordinary Bounties she distributed that which was appointed for her own necessary Charges to supply the Wants of the Poor And she felt a pleasure in this vertuous Poverty which they whose minds are addicted to the World shall never find in all their proud Abundance and cruel Superfluities 'T is certain that Self-love and Interest gain'd no ground in her Heart by her Advancement Her Greatness was for the benefit of others rather than for her own good She rejected the Pomp of it by her Humility and of all that Plenty of which she was Mistress she reserv'd nothing to her self but the pleasure of giving it away But what do I say She was also oblig'd to her Dignity for a thousand occasions to display her Clemency at a time when Severity might have seem'd not only pardonable but necessary to a Heart less heroical than hers Princes that regard their Safety more than their Honour content themselves with being prais'd for their rigorous Justice by which they serve the Interests of their own Preservation But Souls of the first form are not satisfied with the Empire that ●ear gives them over others but rather chuse to maintain their Authority by inspiring their Subjects with a Veneration for their Vertues They judge with reason that 't is nobler when possible to preserve the public Peace by Mercy than by Justice that 't is more honorable to conquer Hearts than to subdue Persons and that the State is doubly sav'd when the inclinations of its Enemies are disarm'd and they become its Friends and Servants Clemency is a Vertue that deserves to be more highly esteem'd for the greatness of the Dangers to which it exposes its Owners 'T is even more generous than Charity for the charitable man only gives away his Riches but he that is merciful hazards his very Life 'T is braver than Valour it self for it exposes it self to secret Foes which are more dangerous than those open Enemies whom Courage opposes And 't is greater than Moderation which finds its own security in forgetting private injuries whereas Clemency neglects the care of its own Preservation by pardoning the Enemies of the Public If Mercy had been to appear in a humane Form it would have certainly borrow'd that of the Queen It was sufficient to be unhappy to be esteem'd innocent by her She imitated God who exhorts Sinners to accept his Favors and adds Benefits to the Pardon that he gives them with a design to make them better she forc'd her greatest Enemies to be capable of Gratitude Her Clemency by an admirable Priviledge produc'd all the effects of Severity It deliver'd her every day from some new Enemy or crush'd some brooding Conspiracy The benefits that she bestow'd were Spies to discover the Plots of her Enemies and Guards to secure her against them and the Pardons which she granted so often and in so obliging a manner to those that had conspir'd against her Life furnish'd her with means to acquire new Glory and additional securities in every Attempt of her Enemies Blasphemy was the only crime that she would never forgive She was still struck with horror at the hearing of an impious Expression Yet she would not suffer her Indignation to transport her or make her forget that Calmness with which she administred Justice by depriving instantly of all Offices and banishing from her presence those that had dar'd to brave the Majesty of that God whom she serv'd with so much Fear By which she clearly show'd that it was not she that reign'd but God that reign'd by her Let the World admire as much as it pleases those humane Vertues which under great Names and venerable Out-sides hide our most real imperfections or rather those sacrilegious Vertues which rob God of our best Actions to ascribe them to our selves and are in some respect more criminal than the grossest Vices as being more injurious to God Piety alone deserves the name of Vertue because it seeks God in all things and refers all things to his Glory And Piety was the great business of the Queen's Life Her public and private Devotions from which no Trouble of State nor Danger that threaten'd her person could ever once divert her that Commerce of Piety which she held with God and the Commerce of Charity between her and her Brethren her Meditations and Reading of pious Books employ'd all her Mornings and consecrated to God the half of her Life

still enjoy'd him whom She lov'd and gave us a yearly and memorable Instance that Authority may be receiv'd with Tears and laid aside with Raptures of Joy Yet it would have seem'd that Authority had been Natural to Her so well She knew how to use it She was capable of the greatest and exact in the smallest things She acquir'd the Art of managing the Business of State by an unweary'd Application She had the dexterity to extend Her Empire over the Minds of Her People and reign'd in their Hearts by Her Clemency She commanded in such a manner as to make Obedience a Pleasure and She obey'd in Her turn as if She had never commanded She was always ready to yield to Reason and Truth but would never be perswaded to bestow on Recommendations the Reward of Merit and Vertue She was prepar'd for all Events by Her Resolution and She provided for them all by Her Wisdom She enjoy'd an undisturb'd serenity of Mind in the midst of Troubles and Dangers She was secret in Her Designs steady in Her Maxims and of an invincible Constancy under Difficulties And it may be said without Flattery that She reign'd without a Fault as Her Life was without a Blemish It seem'd that the King by entrusting her with the Administration of Affairs inspir'd her with all his Wisdom and that the Queen for the Heart she gave him had in exchange receiv'd his Judgment 'T is not impossible for a common Person to live without Reproach but we find no faultless Heroes And even the Greatest Vertues seem to be usually accompanied with the greatest Imperfections as if that which raises us above our selves was apt to disorder our Souls by putting them out of their Natural Posture But here we find an Eminent Merit without the least Fault or Weakness in an admirable Person who was as free from blame as if she had been sav'd from it by the Meanness of her Condition The Greatness of her Fortune might have expos'd her to all the Shafts of Malice if her Vertues had not impos'd Silence on Malice it self And even her Vertues might have expos'd her to Envy if they had been mixt with any Faults But who could blame such a compleat Merit such high Perfection and such Spotless Glory without renouncing his Judgment and exposing his Reputation But after all it must be acknowledg'd that it was neither the Dignity of her Rank nor the Lustre of her Heroical Perfections that render'd her Condition worthy of Envy All that which made the World admire her could not have hinder'd her from being an Object of Compassion in her own Eyes Heroes are mortal as well as other men and neither all their Glory nor our Tears can preserve them from that fatal Necessity We are charm'd with that which is no more to us than a bare Idea of Perfection We begin late to admire a Vertue that has ceas'd to appear and complain in vain of the cruelty of Death that has robb'd us of our dear Protectors They have taken an eternal Leave of us Their Great Names serve only to adorn their Epitaphs and embelish their Tombs and those Vertues which the World admir'd are like the Funeral Torches that signalize the Pomp of their Obsequies whose Splendour serves only to encrease our Affliction And who was better acquainted with these Truths than the Queen She made the Meditation of Death a continual Support to her Vertue She lov'd to discourse on that Subject with others and to entertain her self with the Thoughts of it Thus forsaking Vanity long before she was forsaken by it and banishing the World out of her Mind even whilst she liv'd in the midst of it She prevented by a voluntary Separation from it that forc'd Exile to which all Mankind is condemn'd and it may be said that in this Respect her Humility had left little or no Work for Death How rare is that Vertue and how becoming a Companion to Greatness Humility is most advantagiously plac'd in the Heart of a Soveraign for there it makes great Restitutions to God there it opposes the Flattery of the People who are wont to idolize Grandeur and teaches the Prince to despise himself in the midst of that Croud of flattering Admirers who adore his Faults and prostrate themselves before his Fortune But how much more admirable is that Vertue in those Great Souls who are more truely elevated above Kings by their Vertue than Kings are rais'd above other men by their Rank and Dignity 'T is a shame to be Proud when such excellent Persons as these are Humble 'T is an Honour to renounce vain-Glory when the most eminent Heroes are eminent also for their Humility That was the Character of our Queen Her Life her Conversation and her Carriage were but one continued expression of that Vertue Her Palace was a Temple of Modesty so diligent She was to free it from Vanity and Luxury She deckt her self with her own Vertues and neglected the Ornaments of Dressing She appear'd rather Neat than Magnificent in her Train and Furniture She was an exact Observer of the Rules of Decency without injuring her Humility and bestow'd no more on the Pomp of a Court than what the Dignity of her Rank did absolutely require And yet she seem'd to grudge her own necessary Expences as if she had stoln them from the Funds of her Charity Never any hid their Faults with more care than she took to conceal her Vertues This is the only Fault that she could ever be accus'd of Wonders are made to be seen and to make a strong Impression upon us and how many Wonders did she hinder us from seeing by hiding from us the Noblest parts of so beautiful a Life She lov'd to edify but not to be admir'd as if she could have purchas'd Humility at the rate of her Glory She condemn'd Thankfulness to silence and made this seeming Ingratitude the Condition of her Favours With one Hand she dry'd the Tears of the Afflicted and with the other drew a Veil over their Misery She was no less charitable in her way of relieving them than in the Relief she gave them With equal care she sought Occasions to exercise her Vertue and avoided every Temptation to vain Glory She always conceal'd the Good that she did and has been seen to weep for that which she could not do But in vain she impos'd a silence which sooner or later would certainly be broken The whole Universe that was a Witness of her Vertues the World that is fill'd with her Charity which she scatter'd through all Nations and all Climates such an infinite number of Persons that felt the comfortable Influences of her Bounty cry so much the louder after her Death as they were forc'd to be silent during her Life Imprison'd Gratitude shakes off its Fetters and breaks out impetuously We send forth our Complaints and Lamentations the expressions of our Grief and her Glory because we are not able to retain them longer and tho that