Lordships, but what is exactly true: And I do affure your Lordships in the firft Place, that (excepting the King's Bounty) I have never received or taken one Penny, but what was generally understood to be the just and lawful Perquifites of my Office, by the conftant Practice of the best of Times; which I do (in my own Judgment) conceive to be that of my Lord Coventry, and my Lord Etbefmere, the Practice of which I conftantly observed; although the Office in both their Times was lawfully worth double to what it was to me, and I do believe now is.

That all the Courtefies and Favours which I have been able to obtain from the King, or other Perfons, in Church, State, or Westminster-Hall, have never been voth to me Five Pounds; fo that your Lordships may be confident I am as innocent from Corruption, as from any disloyal Thoughts, which after near thirty Years Service of the Crown, in fome Difficulties and Distress, I did never fufpect would have been objected to me in my Age. And I do affure your Lordships, and will make it very manifeft, that the feveral Sums of Money, and fome Parcels of Land, which his Majefty hath bountifully bestowed upon me fince his Return into England, are worth more than all I have amounts unto ; fo far I am from advancing my Eftate by any indirect Means. And though this Bounty of his Majefty hath very far exceeded my Merits, or my Expectations; yet fome others have been as fortunate, at leaft in the fame Bounty, who had as Imall Pretences to it, and have no great Reason to envy my Condition.

Concerning the other Imputation of the Credit and Power of being chief Minifter, and fo caufing all to be done that I had a mind to do; I have no more to fay, than that I had the good Fortune to ferve a Master of very great Judgment and Understanding, and to be always joined with Perfons of great Ability and Experience; without whofe Advice and Concurrence, never any thing hath been done.

Before his Majesty's coming into England, he was conftantly attended by the Marquis of Ormond, the late Lord Culpepper, and Mr. Secretary Nicholas, who where equally trufted with myself, and without whofe joint Advice and Concurrence, when they were all present, (as fome of them always were) I never gave any Counfel.

As foon as it pleafed God to bring his Majefty into England, he established his Privy-Council, and fhortly out of them a number of Honourable Perfons of great Reputation (who for the most part are alive ftill) as a Committee for foreign Affairs, and Confideration of fuch things, as the Nature of them require much Secrecy: And with thefe Perfons he vouchfafed to join me, and I am confident the Committee never tranfacted any thing of Moment (his Majefty being always prefent) without prefenting the fame to the Council-Board: And I must appeal to them concerning my Carriage, and whether we were not all of one mind in all Matters of Importance: For more than two Years I never knew any Difference in the Council, or that there were any Complaints in the Kingdom, which I wholly impute to his Majesty's great Wisdom, and the intire Concurrence of his Council, without the Vanity of affuming any thing to myself: And therefore, I hope, I fhall not be fingly charged with any thing that hath fince fallen out amifs."

But

But from the time that Mr. Secretary Nicholas was removed from his Place, there were great Alterations; and whofoever knew any thing of the Court or Council, knew well how much my Credit fince that time hath been diminished, (though his Majefty graciously vouchfafed ftill to have my Advice in most of his Affairs) nor hath there been from that time to this, above one or two Perfons brought into the Council, or preferred to any confiderable Office in the Court, who have been of my intimate Acquaintance, or fufpected to have any Kind-. nefs for me; but most of them known to have been very long my Enemies, and of different Judgment and Principles from me, both in Church and State: And who have taken all Opportunities to have leffened my Credit to the King, and with all other Perfons, by mifreprefenting, and mifreporting all that I faid or did; and perfuading Men that I had done them fome Prejudice with his Majefty, or croffed them in fome of their Pretences, though his Majefty's Goodnefs and Juftice was fuch, that it made little Impreffion upon him.

In my humble Opinion, the great Misfortunes of the Kingdom have proceeded from the War, to which it was notoriously known, that I was always moft averfe; and may without Vanity fay, I did not only forfee, but I did declare the Mischiefs we fhould run into, by entering into War before any Alliance with the Neighbour Princes: And that it may not be imputed to his Majesty's Want of Care, or the Negligence of his Counsellors, that no fuch Alliances were entered into; I must take the Boldness to fay, that his Majefty left nothing unattempted in order thereunto: And knowing very well that France refolved to begin War upon Spain as foon as his Catholick Majefty fhould depart this World; which being much fooner expected by them, they had in the two Winters before been at great Charge in providing plentiful Magazines of all Provi-. fions upon the Frontiers, that they might be ready for the War: His Majefty used all possible means, to prepare and difpofe the Spaniards with that Apprehenfion, offering his Friendship to that degree, as might be for the Security and Benefit of both Crowns: But Spain, flattering itself that France would not break with them, at leaft, that they would not give them any Cause, by adminiftering matter of Jealoufy to them, never made any real Approach towards Friendship with his Majefty; but both by their Ambaffadors here, and to his Majesty's Ambaffadors at Madrid, always infifted as Preliminaries, upon the giving up of Dunkirk, Tangier and Jamaica.

But France had an Ambaffador here, to whom a Projecto for a Treaty was offered, and the Lord Hollis, his Majefty's Ambaffador at Paris, used all endeavours to promote and profecute the faid Treaty, yet it was quickly difcerned that the principal Defign of France was to draw his Majefty into fuch a nearer Alliance, as might advance the Defign, without which, they had no mind to enter into the Treaty propofed.

And this was the State of Affairs, when the War was entered into with the Dutch; from which time, neither concerned themselves with the making of Alliance with England.

As I did from my Soul abhor the entering into this War, fo I never prefumed to give any Advice or Counfel for the way of managing it, but by oppofing any Propofitions which feemed to the late Lord Treasurer, and myfelf, to be

unrea

unreafonable; as the Payment of the Seamen with Tickets; and many other Particulars which added to the Expence.

My Enemies took all Occafions to inveigh against me, and making Friend-. hip with others of the Council of more licentious Principles, as who knew well enough how much I difliked and complained of the Liberty they took to themfelves of reviling all Counfel, and Counsellors, and turning all things serious and fecret into Ridicule: They took all ways imaginable to render me ungrateful to all forts of Men (whom I fhall be compelled to name in my own Defence) perfuading those that mifcarried in any of their Defigns, that it was the Chancellor's doing; whereof I never knew any thing.

However, they could not withdraw the King's Favour from me; who was still pleafed to use my Service with others; nor was there ever any thing done but upon the joint Advice of at least the major Part of thofe that were concerned. And as his Majefty commanded my Service in the late Treaties, fo I never gave the leaft Advice in private, nor wrote one Letter to any Perfon in any of those Negotiations, but upon the Advice of the Council; and after it was read in Council, or at leaft by the King himself, and some other. And if I prepared any Inftructions or Memorials, it was by the King's Command, and the Request of the Secretaries, who defired my Affiftance: nor was it any Wifh of mine own, that any Ambaffador fhould give me Account of the Tranfactions, but to the Secretaries, with whom I was always ready to advise: Nor am I confcious to myfelf of ever having given Advice that proved mifchievous or inconvenient to his Majefty: And I have been fo far from being the fole Manager of Affairs, that I have not in the whole laft Year, been above twice with his Majefty in any Room alone, and very feldom in the two or three Years preceding.

And fince the Parliament at Oxford, it hath been very vifible that my Credit hath been very little, and that very few things have been hearkened unto; which have been propofed by me, but contradicted, eo nomine, because propofed by me.

I most humbly befeech your Lordships to remember the Office and Trust I had for feven Years; in which, in difcharge of my Duty, I was obliged to ftop and obftruct many Men's Pretences, and to refufe to fet the Seal to many • Men's Pardons, and other Grants, which would have been profitable to them which procured them; and many whereof, upon my Reprefentation to his Majefty, were for ever stopped: Which naturally have raised many Enemies

❝ to me.'

And my frequent concurring with the late Lord Treasurer, with whom I had the Honour to have a long and a faft Friendship to his Death, in prefenting several Exceffes and Exorbitances, (the yearly Iffue fo far exceeding the Revenue) provoked many Perfons concerned, of great Power and Credit, to do me all the ill Offices they could. And yet I may faithfully fay, that I never meddled with any part of the Revenue, nor the Adminiftrations of it, but when I was defired by the late Lord Treasurer to give him my Affiftance and Advice (having had the Honour to ferve the Crown as Chancellor of the Exchequer) which was for the moft Part in his Majefty's Prefence.

Nor have I ever been in the leaft degree concerned in point of Profit, in the letting any Part of his Majefty's Revenue; nor have ever treated or debated it,

but

but in his Maj fty's Prefence; in which my Opinion only concurred always with the major Part of the Counsellors who were present.

All which upon Examination will be made manifeft to your Lordships, how much foever my Integrity is blafted by the Malice of thofe, who I am confident, do not believe themselves. Nor have I in my Life, upon all the Treaties, or otherwife, received to the Value of one Shilling from all the Kings and Princes in the World, (except the Books of the Louvre Print, fent me by the Chancellor of France, by that King's Direction) but from my own Mafter; to whose intire Service, and to the Good and Welfare of my Country, no Man's Heart was ever more devoted.

This being my prefent Condition, I do most bumbly befeech your Lordships to retain a favourable Opinion of me, and to believe me innocent from those foul Afperfions, until the contrary fhall be proved; which I am fure can never be, by any Men worthy to be believed. And fince the Diftemper of the Time, and the Difference between the Two Houfes in the prefent Debate, with the Power and Malice of my Enemies, who give out, that they shall prevail with his Majefty to prorogue or diffolve this Parliament in Displeasure, and threaten to expose me to the Rage and Fury of the People, may make me looked upon as the Caufe which obftructs the King's Service, and the Unity and Peace of the Kingdom: I must bumbly beseech your Lordships, that I may not forfeit your Lordships Favour and Protection, by withdrawing myself from fa powerful a Perfecution, in hopes I may be able from fuch withdrawing bereafter to appear, and make my Defence: When his Majesty's Justice, to which I fhall always fubmit, may not be obstructed nor controuled by the Power and Malice of thofe who bave fworn my Deftruction.

A Letter from Amsterdam, to a Friend in England.

My kind Co-operator,

TH

HAT from you of the eighth Inftant I received, and am entirely yours.. God fpeed the Plow here, and in England. I hope in fhort time to give you a good Account of my little Embaffy in this place. No body at the Hague knows any thing of it yet; nor fhall they.. Be fure no Poft to fail me; elfe I and my Fellow-Labourers here fhall be to feek in our Bufinefs. Tell our Friends I cannot go quick and through with it, unless conftant Returns be made hither, to fill the Bag and the Bottle. Thefe are the Baits that I muft fish with: the fureft way to catch an Amfterdammer is by the Belly.

We were laft Night no less than three Nations together at Supper; but all of a Knot; nothing can untie us but want of Money. My Scotch Fugitive was fo fharp and quick upon fight of Flefh-meat, that he laid afide his long Grace, and without bleffing God, or curfing the Duke of L. he fell to, and fed like a Farmer; whilft I, fnapping a Bit now and then, fell to tunning up Old Hock in Min Heer the Burgomafter; for our Companion is of fuch a Humour, that till he be Top-full, he never vents his Oracles against the Houfe of Orange, and Court of England. But in this Pickle, the Man is old Dog at driving private

2

Trade,,

Trade, and Publick Counfels; So e're Supper was done, we became ripe for

Bufinefs.

About half an Hour after, came in two or three more of the Magiftrates, and with them fome Scots of the common Perfecution: then the Romer having walkt a round or two more, and our Letters of Intelligence from all Parts being read, your Accounts from England pleafed me beft; other from France were not much inferiour, and moft welcome to Min Heer, because as Monfieur Louvoy whistles, the Louveftein Party dances. No wonder then that the Influence from hence hath made fuch foul Weather at the Hague. That King faw 'twas his best way to quit the Flemish Campain, and divert his Army, when lefs than one quarter of the Charge may fave his Stake in Flanders till another Seafon, and perhaps without the ftriking fo much as one Stroke, fpoil the defign of Arms out of Eng

land and Holland.

He had Intelligence the Tide is turn'd in England: that whereas laft Year fome of us were for War against him, we now are the Men that cry it down: 1 perceive charging of Pistols by a French hand, may fometimes do more than all their Cannon: The Court fome Months ago were reviled as Men against the War, and Penfioners of France; Now I hear the Court Minifters begin to retort the like Jealoufie upon you and your Friends: Verily, the Dutch fay, yours is either the Floating-Inland, or founded upon Quick-filver: and this part of the Continent here, being a Quake-mire, is moveable too, though not fo quick; The French offer now as well as we to the Shrine of De Witt, the Martyr and Saint of this Republick; and his Louveftiners refolve that you and our Scotch Friends fhall not get all; for they, if they can, will do as much of his Business as the best about a pretended Project of Peace betwixt France and England in favour of the Swede; the Naffauvians now at the Hague, conclude it was but a French Piece of Gullery, to choak the Current of the General Confederacy: A meer State-Strategem to blow off the Prohibition of French Commodities in this Country.

'Twas neatly done, and had like to have taken Effect, Thanks be to you (SIR) and the rest of your Friends, who gave the Occafion, of difputing it here, by yoking your felves to the Prohibition firft, that this State might remain at Liberty to lurch you afterwards, if they think it convenient. 'Twas delicately done alfo to worry and hurry one another into Refolutions for a War before you were ready; and now when 'tis refolved on, to clog and clap on Weights to hinder it. At this rate things must needs very kindly operate: Your last hath given me and the reft of your Friends here admirable Satisfaction; go on and profper in all the Particulars of your Contrivance; the Day's your own: if we can but apply fresh Leeches to the Pofteriours of the Kingdom, we shall foon recover. Thofe that are here for the Intereft of Republick will be forward. enough too, if France be cordial (which we doubt not) to our Party. He hath his End in it upon them, and us: However, our Brains fhall ftretch hard but we will out-reach him. What a Sight 'tis to fee our Friends in England, Holland, and Scotland, fo well twifted! This three-fold Cord is ftrong enough to hang, or hamper all our Adverfaries.

Methinks I fee your Grandees lodged in Truckle-beds already; 'twill foon be done, if we first handsomely divide the Courtiers, and make ufe of the Envy of

fome