giving them liberty of conscience by his own arbitrary dispensing
authority, and his expecting they should be content with their
religious liberty at the price of the Constitution?" In the letter
itself he pointed out that "the king's suspending of laws strikes at
the root of this whole Government, and subverts it quite. The Lords
and Commons have such a share in it, that no law can be either made,
repealed, or, which is all one, suspended, but by their consent."

In January, 1688, Defoe having inherited the freedom of the City of
London, took it up, and signed his name in the Chamberlain's book,
on the 26th of that month, without the "de," "Daniel Foe." On the
5th of November, 1688, there was another landing, that of William of
Orange, in Torbay, which threatened the government of James the
Second. Defoe again rode out, met the army of William at Henley-on-
Thames, and joined its second line as a volunteer. He was present
when it was resolved, on the 13th of February, 1689, that the flight
of James had been an abdication; and he was one of the mounted
citizens who formed a guard of honour when William and Mary paid
their first visit to Guildhall.

Defoe was at this time twenty-eight years old, married, and living
in a house at Tooting, where he had also been active in foundation
of a chapel. From hose factor he had become merchant adventurer in
trade with Spain, and is said by one writer of his time to have been
a "civet-cat merchant." Failing then in some venture in 1692, he
became bankrupt, and had one vindictive creditor who, according to
the law of those days, had power to shut him in prison, and destroy
all power of recovering his loss and putting himself straight with
the world. Until his other creditors had conquered that one enemy,
and could give him freedom to earn money again and pay his debts--