' I begged he would at least
allow, that by the union the Scots were admitted to all the
privileges and immunities of English subjects; by which means
multitudes of them were provided for in the army and navy, and
got fortunes in different parts of England, and its dominions.
'All these (said he) become English subjects to all intents and
purposes, and are in a great measure lost to their mother-country.
The spirit of rambling and adventure has been always
peculiar to the natives of Scotland. If they had not met with
encouragement in England, they would have served and settled, as
formerly, in other countries, such as Muscovy, Sweden, Denmark,
Poland, Germany, France, Piedmont, and Italy, in all which
nations their descendants continue to flourish even at this day.'
By this time my patience began to fail and I exclaimed, 'For
God's sake, what has England got by this union which, you say,
has been so productive of misfortune to the Scots.' ' Great and
manifold are the advantages which England derives from the union
(said Lismahago, in a solemn tone). First and foremost, the
settlement of the protestant succession, a point which the
English ministry drove with such eagerness, that no stone was
left unturned, to cajole and bribe a few leading men, to cram the
union down the throats of the Scottish nation, who were
surprisingly averse to the expedient.
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