and deferving Servants, who have fufficiently fhewn it in his Sickness, each of whom I have promised to recommend to your Grace, as any Occafion offers for their Preferments and Advantages, And thus I will difmifs your Grace for the prefent, and myself from this unpleafing Theme, referving myself to compliment my Lady Dutchefs, and Lady Offory, upon it (as my Wife does alfo) until we have better recollected ourfelves, a Matter of so hard Digestion; and in the mean time, only offering myself to obey all the Commands, your Grace fhall be pleased to lay upon me, on this, or any other Occafion.

THOUGH I had much more Fear than Hope of my Son Offory's Recovery, from yours of the 27th of laft Month, and did all that I could to prepare myself for what yours of the 31st brought me; yet I find I was mistaken in myself, and that I want the Compofure I ought to have. The Breach that the Death of fuch a Son has made in my Family, with all the Confequences of it, come into my Thoughts as faft as Grief will allow them Entrance. I confider my own Age, and my Grandfon's Youth, and how unfit we are to contend with public and domestic Difficulties. But God having let me fee the Vanity

D 5

and .

and Sinfulness of any Confidence and Reliance. upon that Son, will, I truft, upon a hearty Submiffion to his bleffed Will, extend his Protection to those he has left behind him. I have now in this World no Bufinefs of my own belonging to the Family, but to provide for his Widow and} fatherless Children; all I have, and fhall have, is, and I truft in God will be theirs; and I wifh for their Sakes, I had been a better Manager than I have been. My Son's Kindnefs to his Wife, and Care for her, increase my Value of him, and Sorrow for him. And I am glad he exprest it so frequently, when he thought of that Hour that is come upon us. But there was no other Need of it, than the Manifeftation of his Good-nature, for I am ready to do for her, whatever fhe or her Friends can wish; knowing that who are her Friends, muft be her Children's. What is to be done in Relation to the Payments of Debts and Rewards of Servants, I must have more Time, and more fettled Thoughts upon; only in general, my Intention is to fulfil all his Defires, as far as they can be reasonably executed.

1

The Body I wifh may remain in a decent Repofitory, till I am able to think of removing it where I purpose to lie myself. I am not able to judge of the Advantage of his Son's appearing fo early, but if the Bishop has delayed the fending him on your laft Summons till he hears from me, as by a Letter from him I find his Intention was, I defire he may be left there, till I am in a Cafe to offer your Lordship my Senfe concerning the difpofing of him for the time to come.

And if the Youth be with you, I wish he may be fent back, as foon as you have produced him where

where think fit. I should now own all your you Kindneffes to my Son, which have been fo long, fo conftant, and fo ufeful to him to the laft; and I am confident your Love will transfer to thofe he hath left. Think but how I loved and valued him; think me grateful, and then you will make some Estimate of my Senfe of your Concernment for him.

LETTER LX.

Sir George Etherege to the Duke of Buckingham.

I

My Lord,

Received the News of your Grace's retiring into Yorkshire, and leading a fedate contemplative Life there, with no lefs Astonishment than I fhould hear his Christian Majesty's turning Benedictine Monk, or the Pope's wearing a long Perriwig, and fetting up for a flaming Beau in the feventy-fourth Year of his Age. We have a Picture here in our Town-hall, which I never look but it makes me think on your Grace; and I dare swear, you will fay there is no Difhonour done you, when you hear whofe it is. In fhort, it is that of the famous Charles V, who among all the Magnificence which this foolish World affords, amidft all his African Lawrels and Gallic Triumphs, freely divefted himself of the Empire of Europe, and his hereditary Kingdoms, to pass

upon,

the

the Remainder of his Life in Solitude and Retirement.

Is it poffible that your Grace (who has feen ten times more Luxury than that Emperor ever knew, poffeffed as much too of the true real Greatness of the World as ever he enjoyed) fhould, in an Age ftill capable of Pleafure, and under a Fortune whofe very Ruins would make up a comfortable Electorate here in Germany; is it poffible, I fay, that your Grace should leave the Play at the Beginning of the fourth Act, when all the Spectators are in Pain to know what will become of the Hero, and what mighty Matters he is referved for, that fet out fo advantageoufly in the firft? That a Perfon of your exquifite Tafte, that has breathed the Air of a Court even from your Infancy, fhould be content, in that Part of your Life which is most difficult to be pleased, and most easy to be difgufted, to take up with the Converfation of Country Parfons (a Set of People whom, to my Knowledge, your Grace never much admired) and do Penance in the naufeous Company of Lawyers, whom I am certain you abominate?

To raise our Aftonishment higher, who could ever have prophefied, though he had a double Gift of Noftradamus's Spirit, that the Duke of Buckingham, who never vouchfafed his Embraces to any ordinary Beauty, would ever condefcend to figh and languifh for the Heiress apparent of fome thatch'd Cottage, in a Straw Hat, Flannel Petticoat, Stockings of as grofs a Thrum as the Blew-coat Boys Caps at the Hofpital, and a Smock (the Lord defend me from the wicked Idea of it!) of as course a Canvas as ever served an Apprentice to a Mackerel-boat? Who could believe,

till Matter of Fact had confirmed the Belief of it, (and your Grace knows that Matter of Fact is not to be difputed) that the moft polifhed, refined Epicure of his Age, that had regaled himself in the most exquifite Wines of Italy, Greece and Spain, would, in the laft Scenes of his Life, debauch his Conftitution in execrable Yorkshire Ale! And that he, who all his Life-time had either seen Princes his Play-fellows or Companions, would fubmit to the nonfenfical Chat and barbarous Language of Farmers and Higlers.

This, I confefs, fo much thocks me, that I cannot tell what to make on it; and unless the News came to me confirmed from fo many authentic Hands, that I have no Room to fufpect the Veracity of it, I fhould ftill look upon it to be apocryphal. Is your Grace then in earneft, and really pleased with fo prodigious an Alteration of Perfons and Things For my Part, I believe it; for I am certain that your Grace can act any Perfon better than that of a Hypocrite.

But I humbly afk your Grace's Pardon for this Familiarity I have taken with you; give me leave therefore, if you pleafe, to tell you fomething of myfelf. I prefume that an Account of what paffes in this bufy Part of the World will not come unacceptable to you, fince all my Correspondents from England affure me, that your Grace does me the Honour to inquire often after me, and has expreffed fome fort of a Defire to know how my new Character fits upon me.

Ten Years ago, I as little thought that my Stars defigned to make a Politician of me, and that it would come to my Share to debate in public Affemblies, as the Grand Signior dreamed of lofing Hungary; but my royal Mafter, having

the