LIFE OF ARCHBISHOP SHARP. 335 



Yet this regard was had to him, notwith- 

 standing, that the Queen would rarely give 

 her promise without his advice, and, generally 

 speaking, consent first obtained. And he did 

 not prove unworthy, either of this her Ma- 

 jesty's confidence in him, or condescension to- 

 wards him. For he neither would oppose any 

 man of real worth, upon account of party dis- 

 tinctions ; nor would he consent to her preferring 

 any man whose religious principles or morals 

 were ill spoken of or suspected, though he were 

 otherwise of great abilities, useful to the minis- 

 try, or favoured at Court. He had remarkable 

 struggles with great men upon this score, but 

 he held to his point, and he prevailed, at least 

 as to the promotions in England. He could not 

 bear she should give her preferments to persons 

 who had no other merit, no other title to her 

 favour, than their zeal for a party. And he 

 thought it hard (and used to tell her Majesty so), 

 that men of known virtue and learning should 

 not share in these favours, purely because they 

 fell under the denomination of party men. He 

 laid before *' her the ill consequences she would find 

 if she made distinctions of persojis as to high and 

 low Church, in the disposal of her Church prefer- 

 ments.''' He must mean, if she made 'party her 

 only or principal rule in the bestowing those 

 preferments. For at one time (as he observes) 



