Peter the Great was in the end victorious in this long conflict; and having attached large portions of Sweden to his territory, with a navy upon the Baltic, and a disciplined army, began to be regarded as a European power, and was quite disposed to make his voice heard in the diplomacy of Europe.  Queen Anne having died, leaving no children, the law of hereditary descent carried the crown of England to Germany, and placed it upon the brow of the Elector of Hanover, who, as grandson of James I., was the nearest heir, but who could not speak a word of English, who knew nothing of constitutional law, and who was about as well qualified to govern England as a Patagonian or Esquimaux would have been.  But obedience to this law of hereditary descent was a political necessity.  There were thousands of able men in England who could have administered the government with honor to themselves and to the country.  But it is said in reply that the people of England, as a body, were not then, and probably are not even now, sufficiently enlightened to be intrusted with the choice of their own rulers.  Respect for the ballot-box is one of the last and highest attainments of civilization.  Recent developments in our own land have led many to fear that barbarism is gaining upon the people.  If the ballot-box be overturned, the cartridge-box must take its place.  The great battle we have to fight is the battle against popular ignorance.  The great army we are to support is the army of teachers in the schools and in the pulpit, elevating the mind to the highest possible intelligence, and guiding the heart by the pure spirit of the gospel.

The emperor was so crowded with affairs of immediate urgency, and it was so evident that he could not drive Philip from the throne, now that he was recognized by all Europe, that he postponed the attempt for a season, while he still adopted the title of King of Spain.  His troops had hardly returned from the brilliant campaign of Belgrade, ere the emperor saw a cloud gathering in the north, which excited his most serious apprehension.  Russia and Sweden, irritated by some of the acts of the emperor, formed an alliance for the invasion of the German empire.  The fierce warriors of the north, led by such captains as Charles XII. and Peter the Great, were foes not to be despised.  This threatened invasion not only alarmed the emperor, but alarmed George I. of England, as his electorate of Hanover was imperiled; and also excited the fears of Augustus, the Elector of Saxony, who had regained the throne of Poland.  England and Poland consequently united with the emperor, and formidable preparations were in progress for a terrible war, when one single chance bullet, upon the field of Pultowa, struck Charles XII., as he was looking over the parapet, and dispersed this cloud which threatened the desolation of all Europe.