IX GOVERNMENT 387 



Government. Two centuries have elapsed since 

 this influence, having for some time made itself 

 felt among political philosophers, prompted that 

 systematic inquiry into the proper limits of govern- 

 mental action in general, which is contained in 

 John Locke's two "Treatises on Government," 

 published in 1689. 



The Revolution of 1688 marks one of the acute 

 stages of that contest between Liberalism and 

 Absolutism in these islands which began to mani- 

 fest itself in a remote period of our history. 

 Liberalism, represented by Parliamentary politi- 

 cians and Protestant theologians, had prevailed 

 over Absolutism, represented by the Stuarts in 

 the political sphere, and by Papistry, open or dis- 

 guised, in that of religion. The two " Treatises " 

 form an apology for the victors. A theoretical 

 justification for the accomplished fact was much 

 needed ; and Locke would have been unworthy of 

 his reputation as a speculative philosopher, if he 

 had failed to discover, or to invent, a theory suffi- 

 ciently plausible to satisfy those who desired 

 nothing better than to be persuaded of the justice 

 of acts, by which, in any case, they meant to stand. 

 The first essay is ostensibly directed at poor dead 

 and gone Sir Kobert Filmer, with his Adamic 

 mythology (which, by the way, Locke treats as if 

 it were serious history); but the controversial 

 shots are intended to pass through their ostensible 

 object and to slay the defenders of divine right, 



c c 2 



