A Memorial Offered to John Williams, Part of biography 1 · Letter 25 – Letter 29
SIR,
151. IT is not for me upon a ſudden to offer my Reaſons unto your Majeſty, to alter a Concluſion of Conſcience, once Reſolved on by your Majeſty, conſidering how Guilty I am both of mine own Greenneſs and Interruptions in theſe Studies, and of your Majeſties deep Learning, in that part of Divinity eſpecially. But becauſe I do conceive that your Majeſties doubting in this kind is an abſolute Condemnation of the Prince, who hath already Subſcribed, and Preſented theſe Oaths in their Perfection and Formalities to be taken by your Majeſty, and yet continueth (my Soul for his) as Zealous a Proteſtant as any Lives in the World (which his Majeſty by a ſhort Interruption did with Tears acknowledge) I would preſume to ſay ſomewhat in defence of his Highneſs in this Caſe, tho I dare not be ſo bold as to apply or refer it to your Majeſty. Two things appear unto me conſiderable in this Caſe, the advancing of the True Religion, and the ſuppreſſing of the Adverſe within this Kingdom. The former is a matter directly of Conſcience, and your Majeſty is bound in Conſcience to take care of the ſame to the uttermoſt of your Power. And if your Son had ſuffered (as he hath not) one Syllable to be inſerted into the Oaths or Articles derogating from the Religion Eſtabliſhed, he was worthily therein to be deſerted, and God to be by your Majeſty preferred before him. The ſuppreſſing of the Adverſe within this Kingdom, is to be conſider'd in two degrees; Firſt, Ita ut non praeſit.Secondly, Ita ut non ſit. For the firſt I think his Highneſs doth make it a matter of Religion and Conſcience, that Popery do not praeeſſe, prove ſo predominant in your Kingdoms, as that the Religion Eſtabliſh'd be thereby diſgraced, or dejected. For certain he makes it a Conſcience not to Erect Altare, contra altare. For as for the Leave he promiſeth for Strangers to be preſent at Divine Offices with the Family of the Infanta, it is per conniventiam, and as his Highneſs ſhall approve thereof. For the ſecond Degree, Ita ut non ſit, that the Popiſh Religion ſhould be quite extirpated, or the Penal Statutes for the ſuppreſſing the ſame, be ſtrictly Executed; His Highneſs dares not make this a matter of Conſcience and Religion, but a matter of State only. If the Prince ſhould make this a matter of Conſcience, he ſhould not only conclude the French King to be a falſe Catholic, for not ſuppreſſing the Proteſtants; and the Eſtates of the Low-Countries to be falſe Proteſtants for not ſuppreſſing the Papiſts atAmſterdam, Rotterdam, and Utricht eſpecially, but ſhould conclude your Sacred Majeſty to have often offended againſt your Conſcience (an horrible thought from ſuch a Son to ſuch a Father) becauſe your Papiſts are not ſuppreſſed, and your Penal Statutes have been ſo often intended and remitted. Theſe things you may well do, this Point continuing but a matter of State; but you may not do it, without committing a vaſh Sin, if now you ſhould ſtrein it up to a matter of Conſcience and Religion, againſt the Opinion of all moderate Divines, and the Practice of moſt States in Chriſtiandom, I conclude therefore, that his Highneſs having admitted nothing in theſe Oaths or Articles, either to the prejudice of the true, or the Equalizing, or Authorizing of the other Religion, but contained himſelf wholly within the Limits of Penal Statutes, and connivences, wherein the Eſtate hath ever Challenged and Uſurped a directing Power, hath Subſcribed no one Paper of all theſe againſt his own, nor (I profeſs it openly) againſt the Dictamen of my Conſcience. As ſoon as I had ended, the King ſpake Largely and Chearfully, That in Conſcience he was ſatisfied. To which the Lords likewiſe as generally, gave their Applauſe. So the reſt of the Counſel were Summon'd againſt the next Sunday, the Arch-biſhop ofCanterbury, Marqueſs Hamilton, the Earl of Worceſter, the Biſhop of Winton, Viſcount Grandiſon, the LordCary, the Lord Belfaſt, with others whom I may have forgot. And all was diſpatch'd before the Embaſſadors, as I need not to relate; becauſe SirFr. Cottington can beſt do it. And if this Service may conduce to bring your Highneſs with Speed and Safety to all faithful ones, that deſire it with their earneſt Prayers; I ſhall be the Happieſt among
Your Highneſs's Moſt Humble Servants, &c.
152. So powerful and perſpicuous was the Lord Keeper's Theology, that all the Worthies of David, his Majeſties Secret Counſel, concurr'd in the Confirmation. Among whom was Biſhop Andrews, the Torturer of the beſt Roman Champion with his mighty Learning. Another was Archbiſhop Abbots, about whom Mr. Sanderſon is moſt negligently miſtaken, to write thus, Pag. 550. That he was then ſuſpended from his Function, and from coming to the Council-Table. He ſat that Day with the Lords, and was the firſt that ſubſcribed in the Catalogue, as himſelf obſerves. It may be Mr. Sanderſon could not reconcile, (nor I neither) how he ſhould ſign to the Ratification, and undertake a long Letter to King James to diſprove it with many Flouriſhes, Cab. p. 13. The ſame Fountain cannot ſend forth ſalt Water and freſh, Jam. 3.12. Therefore I deny the Letter, (I believe juſtly) to have been written by him. Such Frauds are committed daily, to ſet Credit to ſpurious Writings under a borrowed Name. A. Gell. picks out a fit Merchant for ſuch Ware, Sertorius, a brave Commander, but a great Impoſtor. Literas Compoſitas pro veris legebat, Lib. 15. Cap. 22. But I will prove my Conjecture ſtrongly. Firſt, So wiſe a Man would not ſhame himſelf with Inconſtancy; Act one thing to Day with his Sovereign Lord, and pluck it down to Morrow. Secondly, The Letter crept out of Darkneſs Thirty Years after the Prince came out of Spain, and Twenty Years after the ſuppoſed Authors Death. A large time to hatch a Fable. Thirdly, The Lord Keeper, (vide ſupra) certified the Prince, that before the Lords came together to conſult about the eaſe of the Oaths, two Speeches were in many Hands riſe in London; The one for the Negative, under the Archbiſhop's Name; The other for the Affirmative, under the Lord Keepers Name, when no Colloquy had been begun about it. Was it not as eaſie for the ſame Author, or ſuch another, to forge a Letter, as well as a Speech? Fourthly, The Archbiſhop was ſo ſtout in the Pulpit at Whitehal, as to deplore the Prince's abſence, and his departure out of the Kingdom. The ill reliſh of that paſſage, (I know it by the Papers under my Hand) was ſent abroad as far as Spain by Sir Edw. Villiers. And I dare ſay the Tydings of that Letter, had followed the News of the Sermon, if it had been a Chicken of the ſame Brood. Finally, There was nothing done that needed a Recantation. Yet Opinions were ſo various, that ſome ſpread it for a Fame, That the Prince himſelf gave the Lord Keeper no Thanks for his Labour. But that which follows will encounter it, to break the Chaw-bone of the Lye; as it is to be found in a Poſtſcript of his to the Duke, Cab. p. 85.
May it pleaſe your Grace,
I Troubled his Highneſs with a long Relation of the Conſulto we had about his Majeſties taking the Oaths. About which I was affrighted by Great Men, that I had done his Highneſs a Diſpleaſure, to preſs his Majeſty to aſſent to the ſame. And I proteſt I was ſo poorly accompanied in my Opinion, that I was truly afraid I had not done well. And therefore I took occaſion to write my Reaſons at large to the Prince; which I heard by Sir John Hipſley from your Grace was well taken. I humbly thank your Grace, who I know forwarded the ſame. And ſo I perceive by a Letter from his Highneſs, ſo full of ſweetneſs, as I am overwhelmed.
That ſweet Letter is preſerved, written every Syllable with his Highneſs's own Hand, which will ſhew the ſufficiency of his Pen at thoſe young Years, but much more the Pleaſure he took in thoſe, that did him faithful Service.
My Lord,
THere are three Circumſtances which double any Good Turn that one Friend does to another; To be done in abſence, being undeſired, and in time of Neceſſity. You have not only done me a Friendly Office, but in a time when my Reputation lay at the Stake, I being abſent (upon an Occaſion that few are fully ſatisfied with) and in a thing that I did not particularly ask your help in: And laſtly, With that which Crowns every Action, Good Succeſs. I will not ſay how much I am bound to you for this: For it were too much a Complementary way, which I neither love, nor am good at; but only that I deſire to have an Occaſion to requite, though not to put me out of this Debt. How things ſtand here, you have known before this time. And I have nothing as yet to deſire you to facilitate with you. If you deſire to know how ſoon I ſhall begin my Journey homeward, I think certainly that it will be about the 27th of the next Month. But I fear that the Infanta ſhall not go with me. So I end,
Your loving and conſtant Friend, Charles P. Madrid, July 30. 1623.
This was ſent away in 17 Days after the Agreement was ſtruck up at Wanſted. Happy are they, who, being put to drudge at the Plough of State-Affairs, do reap the Harveſt of ſuch Gracious Acceptance. And a Prince will find it true, that he gets as many Hearts, when he receives the Devoirs of his Subjects comfortably and ſmilingly, as when he rewards them bountifully. So Pliny in the Paneg. to Trajan, Non minùs regium ſummaeque humanitatis parva lubenti facilique ſuſcipere animo, quàm magna largiri: A King cannot always reward, but he may always commend the well-deſerving of his Vaſſals. Which is good Intereſt, though it be not the Principal. For an Ingenuous Servant, that is not yet gratified, is ſolaced with Hope: But he that is not ſtroak'd with good Words, is diſcourag'd for ever.
153. Enough is contein'd in this little touch, that his Highneſs in his Letter of ſurpaſſing Love was juſt to himſelf, as well as gracious to his truſty Miniſter. One Man's Wit wrought Miracles here to ſoder up all the broken pieces of the buſineſs. Though the Prince had skilful Men about him, yet there wanted ſuch another Head-piece at his Elbow in Spain. I cannot but think of him, when I remember what Cuiacius ſaid of his great Maſter in the Caeſarean Law, Nemo unus erit unquam Papinianus. Neither let his Praiſe fall lower, becauſe he was not a Neſtor in Years: For he was elder at this time, than Papinian was when he died. He followed the Cares of the Prince in Madrid, when his Imployment was call'd for, but being far off, not altogether with the like ſucceſs. It was hot Weather now in that Torrid Climate, the Bocca Difurno, as they call it; and the Treaty of the Match was not a little ſcorch'd. The Duke wrote to the Lord Keeper, July 8. That he did not altogether diſtruſt a good End: His Highneſs in his, July 30. ſeems to preſage That he hop'd for a deſired End. The Words are ſufficiently chearful; but ſome Art was in them. For peruſing the very Reports of thoſe gallant Perſons, when they came into England, I find all things about this time look very ſickly, and with a Face of Conſumption. The Earl of Briſtol, an underſtanding Author in theſe Affairs, writes, That the Match was ſo really intended, that it was paſt all danger of miſcarrying, if the fault were not on our ſide; yet together he confeſſeth, That the Spaniards have committed many Errours in their proceeding with the Prince, Cab. P. 23. Right: For 'tis eaſie to tumble forth an huddle of them at this time. The Ratification of the Articles was ready to be publiſh'd by the Nuncio after much ado: But the Pope dies July 8. Benè fecit Regulus quod mortuus eſt, melius ſi ante, ſays Pliny, Lib. 6. Ep. ad Arn. But well had it been, if old Gregory had lived longer, or died ſooner. The Life of his Diſpenſation and Confirmations expired with him. All the Ground we had trod muſt be trod over again; and we are carried back to the beginning of the Race, from whence we ſtarted: And no coming forward, no not a foot, till St. Peter's Chair was fill'd again. Whoſe Succeſſor was not choſen till Auguſt the 6th. Nor he at leiſure to mind this Matter in his new Pontificality till September. Nor a ſecond Impreſſion of a Diſpenſation to be gotten, till November even ſpent. Who would not have conſider'd the Diſdain that a generous Love, and a more generous Mind, muſt conceive, to have the Cherry bob at his Lip, and to be ſnatcht from him? Quo propiùs acceſſeris ad ſpem fruendi, hòc impatientius careas, ſays the ſame Pliny, Lib. 6. Ep. 1. But let a free born Spirit ſee what it is to wait upon the Papal Pleaſure, ſo lingring, ſo imperious, I know not which is worſt. Chriſtianity bids us ſubmit to them which watch over our Souls, Heb. 13. but it doth not make us Religious Slaves. Therefore the Prince declar'd it for his reſolute Mind, That he would not abide the delay of the next Miſſive from Rome, nor ſtay for the Birth of another Elephant: Neither ſhould all the Syrens in Spain ſtop his departure. Which made them whiſper, That his Highneſs would rob them of his Company, and take no leave; and ſet ſome, though not openly, to keep Centinel to prevent him. Which ſurmiſe he confronted with a Meſſage, equal to the beſt of the ancient Apophthegms, That though he came thither privily out of Love, he ſcorn'd to ſteal away privily out of Fear. But when he heard that ſome were ſet in ambuſh to interrupt his Return, he bore it Heroically, and without ſtrife of Paſſion, becauſe he knew no Remedy to help it, and wrote to the King his Father to be couragious in the ſufferance with theſe Lines: That if his Majeſty ſhould receive any Intelligence, that he was deteined in that State as a Priſoner, he would be pleaſed, for his ſake, never to think of him more as a Son, but to reflect with all Royal Thoughts upon the good of his Siſter, and the ſafety of his own Kingdoms. That Family, and thoſe Children, with whom King Philip held leſs Amity than with the Engliſh, ſecur'd us afterwards from thoſe fears. But for other things, the Grandees of the Conſulto (till their heat had vapoured out) ſtood upon ſuch Terms, as had no Equity or Moderation. For when Sir Fr. Cottington return'd with our Kings Oath, plighted to the annexed Conditions for the eaſe of the Roman Catholicks, the Spaniards made no Remonſtrance of Joy, (ſays the Prince in his Report) or of an ordinary liking to it. Therefore the Lord Keeper obſerving that they had an inſatiate and hydropical Malady, that the more they gulpt down the more they thirſted, he tried if they would take this Julip as he prepared it in his Letter to the Duke of Buckingham.
July 21. May it pleaſe your Grace,
I Have Received yours of the 8 of Julyby the Lord Andover, and heartily thank your Grace for the News, though not ſo compleatly good, as we deſir'd; yet better then for many days together I expected; beſide the hope I retain it may ſtill be better; His Majeſty and the Lords have taken the Oaths, and the Laws againſt the Roman Catholicks are actually ſuſpended (as upon my Credit and Honeſty they were a good while before;) Now July, Auguſt, September,and a piece of October are left for a further Probation. This being ſo, what good will it do that Wiſe and Great Eſtate, to Publiſh to all Chriſtiandom their diffidence of ſo juſt a Prince, eſpecially being Sworn, and Depoſed. Your Grace knoweth very well (I would the State of Spain knew as much) that all our Proceedings againſt Recuſants is at our Aſſiſes, which are holden at this inſtant, and do not return again till after the firſt of March: So as all the probate of the ſuſpenſion of the Laws againſt them, betwixt this and the firſt ofMarch, will be ſeen and diſcerned by the laſt of our Auguſt. For between that and the firſt of March, there can be no Trial at all. I know if this were underſtood in that place, it were unanſwerable. For the Proceedings in the King's-Bench, which only can be objected, are altogether depending upon Indictments at the Aſſiſes; ſo that the Spring once ſtopt (as now it is) theſe Rivers grow Dry, and run no more. This will mollifie all Stubborneſs, which is Reſolv'd to ſtoop to Reaſon, &c.
Here's a Remonſtrance then which nothing could be more placid, or more ſolid; upon which I look, as upon Thaboren in Parthia, as Juſtin deſcribes it lib. 41. Cuius loci ea conditio eſt, ut ne que munitius quicquam, ne que amoenius eſſe poſſit. Juſt at this time the Days of Trouble look'd darker and darker in Spain. The Prince, diſguſted to Treat with a People that ask'd much and granted little; and Wire-drew Counſels into Vexatious length, reſolv'd to take his leave: and ſhew'd the King of Spain his Fathers Royal and Indiſpenſable Pleaſure, that no Proffer ſhould interpoſe, but that he ſhould haſten him, for which his Navy did attend him upon the Coaſt of Biſcay. That it was no fault of his that he muſt depart when the Treaty was ſo imperfect, but in them that made it a Juſtitium, or Intermiſſion of all Proceedings, becauſe upon the Death of the Pope, the Court of Rome was not open. Olivarez to divert his Highneſs, made Two Propoſitions; Firſt, That the Prince would come in to the Conditions as they came formerly from Rome, or to ſtay till new ones might be agreed upon, and Ratified at Rome; Hoc illud cornucopiae eſt, ubi in eſt quicquid volo, ſays Pſeudolus in Plautus. Grant the Conde to make his Reference to Rome, and you grant him all. That's the Goats-Horn, or Jugglers Box, out of which he can fetch any thing with a ſleight. The Prince anſwer'd him very gravely for one ſo young, (as he made the Report at St. James's) The firſt motion he had declin'd before, neither had he chang'd his Judgment; nor ſhould they find him a Shechem, to paſs over into a New Religion for a Wife, Gen. 34. The other Motion he accepted this way, He would go for England to perfect the Articles there, and let them do the like at Rome. Olivarez admired at his Reply, but took it up with this Anſwer, That to be gone ſo ſoon, and nothing Model'd to the Content of any ſide, would be a Breach; therefore he humbly beſought his Highneſs to ſtay but Twenty Days, and he ſwore by all the Saints of Heaven, then he was ſure it would be a Marriage. The Duke of Buckingham ſtanding by, ſaid, It is well, but it might have been as well Seven years ago: Which put the Conde to a great Anger, and in his Anger made him Fome out a Secret, That there was no Match intended Seven Months ago; and ſays he, I will fetch that out of my Desk that ſhall aſſure you of it. So he produced a Letter, written to one Don Baltaſar, with King Philip III. his own Hand, as he Vowed. The Prince was allowed to Read it then as much as he would, but not to take a Copy, (all this was declared to the next Parliament in the Banquetting-Houſe:) His Highneſs, with Sir Wal. Aſton, better Skill'd in the Caſtilian Language, Tranſlated the Letter, as their Memories would bear it away, and kept it for a Monument. This is the Letter which I think Mr. Prinn was the firſt that divulged, out of the Lord Cottington's Papers, which he had Ranſack'd. Whether it were a true Letter of King Philip's lies upon Olivarez Credit, (it never came out of his Cuſtody) or whether the Prince and Sir W. Aſton miſt nothing of the right Senſe of it, through Frailty of Memory, when they came to Recollect the Sum of it in private, is not yet decided. Salomon alluding to the Contradictions that are in ſome Mens Parables, ſays, They are like the Legs of the Lame, that are not equal, Prov. 26.7. Let the beſt Bone-ſetter in the Hundred ſet theſe Legs even if he can. An Authentical Notary in Spain, Conde Olivarez ſhews it under Black and White, that Philip, the Father of the Infanta, who died Anno 1621, held our King in Hopes, but never intended to give his Daughter to the Prince of Wales. Hear the Evidence of the other ſide: His Highneſs Remembred the Parliament, That Sir Wal. Aſton was ſtruck Mute at the Reading of the Letter; for upon the Death of the late King of Spain, being ſent from his Maſter our Soveraign to the King of Spain that now is, to underſtand his Mind upon the Treaty of Marriage; he receiv'd this Chearful Anſwer, That he was ſorry he had not the Honour to begin it, but now he would purſue it with all Alacrity. The Earl of Briſtol is another Witneſs, Cab. p. 27. I inſiſted that Two Millions for the Portion were by the laſt King ſettled, and agreed with me. That this King had undertaken to purſue the Buſineſs as it was left by his Father, and to make Good whatſoever he had promiſed; Thereupon I deſired that the Original Papers and Conſultoes of the laſt King might be ſeen; which very honeſtly by the Secretary Cirica were produced; and appeared to be ſuch, that I dare ſay there was not any Man that ſaw them, that doubteth of the laſt Kings real Intention of making the Match: So I leave theſe Contradictions to bluſh at the ſight of one another: But to me, Olivarez his Fidelity is the Leg that halts. For as Tully ſaid of Roſcius, the Comoedians Adverſary, Quod ſibi probare non poſſit, id perſuadere alteri conatur, he could never perſuade that vigorouſly to another which he disbelieved himſelf. It is a tedious thing to be tied to Treat with one that cares not for his own Honour, nor regards his Modeſty with whom he Treats. I mean that ſame Perſon, that Baſhaw of King Philip, the Conde Duke, who entramel'd as many Devices as his Pate could bring together, to raiſe a Duſt; and made Demands meerly to ſatisfie his own Pride, that he might boaſt he had ask'd them, though his diſcretion taught him that he could never obtain them. When Sir Fr. Cottington return'd to Madrid with the great Article, procur'd to ſuſpend the Penal Statutes of England in favour of Recuſants, he preſented it to the Conde, and expected, as the Caſttlian Phraſe is, Las Albricias, a reward for bringing of good News; the Conde ſtoop'd not ſo low as to give Thanks; but, having peruſed the Paper, told Sir Francis, it would be expected the Prince ſhould Negotiate a plain Toleration; for the Proteſtants that endured that which was in his Hand, would patiently endure more. Sir Francis Anſwered him with the Old Simile, That his Lordſhip was no good Muſician, for he would peg the Minikin ſo high, till it crack'd. Concerning his Attemptings upon the Prince, my ſupply is out of private Letters that came from Friend to Friend. The Conde had Oblig'd his Honour to his Highneſs, when he came Firſt to the Court of Spain, never to meddle with him about his Religion. He kept not his promiſe; but ſolicited his Highneſs, that as he lov'd his Soul, he would return to England a Catholic in his Senſe. Well my Lord, ſays the Prince, You have broken your Word with me, but I will not break my Faith with God. Another time he beſought his Highneſs to afford his Company at a Solemn Maſs; No Sir, ſays the Prince, I will do no ill, nor the ſuſpicion of it. Once more this Idern told his Highneſs, that he would accompliſh all that he could deſire from the Crown of Spain, if he would profeſs himſelf a Son of the Roman Church; he ſhould not only carry home the braveſt Lady for Beauty, Birth, and Vertue that was; but be made as great a King in Riches and Power as was in Europe. But as the Prophet ſays, Iſa. 63.5. Excandiſcentia mea fulcivit me, my Fury it upheld me; ſo the Prince was heated at the Offer, and gave this provocation to him that had provok'd him, that it was ſuch a another Rhadomontade, as the Devil made to Chriſt, All theſe things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and Worſhip me. Next to matters of Religion, the ſtiffeſt thing that was tugg'd for in this Month, was about the Reſtitution of the Palatinate. The Secretary of the Elector came to Madrid with Letters to the Duke about it, which were not firſt imparted to the King his Father-in-Law. But all that ſhall be drawn up into one Proceſs in the Tranſactions of Auguſt.
155. But in all Diſputes for Sacred or ſecular Matters, the Miniſters of our King were the more Naked and Unarm'd, when they came to the puſh of the Spaniſh Subtleties, becauſe they kept not the correſpondence with themſelves. If my Lord of Buckingham could have faſhion'd his mind to draw the ſame yoke with the Earl of Briſtol, who was moſt converſant upon the place, and beſt knew the Arts of that Nation, ſucceſs had been more Fortunate. But thoſe Civil Diſcords were the Cauſe of many diſorders and incivilities. Therefore the King impoſed on the Lord Keeper, to uſe his Pen once more to reconcile them, which he did not fail to do the very next day, which was his Majeſties Remove to begin the Weſtern Progreſs.
July 22.
May it pleaſe your Grace,
I would not be troubleſom with this Second Letter, but chiefly to let your Grace know, that you never stood in your Life more uprightly in his Majeſties Favour, then at this inſtant; and that I ſhall need to pour out no other Prayers unto God, but for the continuation of the ſame. For Gods ſake Write to my Lord Hamilton, and acquaint his Lordſhip with ſome Paſſages of your Affairs. For my ſelf I ſhall be content to Rove, and gueſs at them. And I hope your Grace will be pleaſed to pardon this Excurſion, that is my running this ſecond or third time into buſineſs, which I am told (but cannot by any means believe it) hath already drawn your Grace's Offence againſt me. It is a moſt Humble, Zealous, and earneſt Petition to your Grace, to Seal up, and really confirm that agreement and reconciliation, which to the great Contentment of all your Friends (but the Regret of ſome among us) you have made with the Earl of Briſtol. What I wrote formerly might be ill placed, and offend your Grace; but all proceeded from as true and ſincere a Heart unto your Grace, as you left behind you in all this Kingdom. But the renewing of it now again hath a Root from a higher Power, who hath obſerv'd your Grace his Favour ſo abounding towards me; and my acknowledgments, ſo far as my poor ability permitteth, ſo returned to your Grace, that he was pleaſed to ſay unto me this Morning, upon this Theme, That he knew you would regard any Repreſentation that I ſhould recommend unto you. In good Faith his Majeſty is more then Zealous, not only of fair Terms of Friendſhip, but of a near Alliance, formerly ſpoken of, between your Grace, and that Earl. Of whoſe Sufficiencies and Abilities I perceive His Majeſty to retein an extraordinary good Opinion; which in all Humility I thus leave to your Lordſhips Wiſdom and Conſideration.
The Earl of Briſtol had heard how the Lord Keeper had ventur'd to make this Pacification, and writes to him, Cab. p. 20. That the Friendſhip of the Duke was a thing he did infinitely deſire, that he did much Eſteem the good Offices his Lordſhip bad done therein, but that he conceived that any motion he had made in that kind, had been deſpis'd, rather then received with Thankfulneſs.
156. He might have ſaid more then deſpiſed; for they were received with that ſad Interpretation, that upon it the Duke removed his Affections from the Lord Keeper for ever; quite contrary to Solon's Rule, neither to chooſe a Friend ſuddenly, nor to looſe him ſuddenly. But after all the Lord Keepers Faithfulneſs, and that he watch'd the good of the Dukes Affairs in his abſence, with as much tenderneſs, as a Nurſe doth a ſucking Child at her Breaſt, his Grace reſolv'd to pluck down the higheſt Roof of his Dignity, as ſoon as he could. Nor was he the ſurer to eſcape that Anger for fair Words. Tacitae magis & occultae inimicitiae timendae ſunt, quàm indictae & apertae. Cic. 7. Verrin. Yet the threatning broke out by one man, who was glad to cheriſh it. For Sir John Michel did not hide it, that my Lord Mandevile, Lord Preſident of the Councel, ſhew'd him a Letter from Spain, aſſuring that the firſt Action the Duke would Embark himſelf in when he came home, ſhould be to remove him out of his Place, Cab. p. 89. With which the threatned party was not much daunted, knowing what a Maſter he ſerved; that King, whoſe Speech utter'd at Sterling at fourteen years of Age, hath Wiſdom becoming one of fourty, Spotwoods p. 288. I will ſtudy to be indifferent and to beſtow my Favours impartially, and never repoſe my ſelf upon any one ſo much, as to deny others the regard that is due unto them. The Duke was a generous, and incorrupt Patron; an exactor of great Duty from thoſe he prefer'd, or a great Enemy. Let him allow himſelf what he could ask for all his Favours, this Man was ready to pay him. If he would be deceiv'd by crafty Underminers into the diſtruſt of his trueſt Friend, when he could not ſerve him in unfit ways, the fault is in the want of his Grace's inſight, or inconſtancy. But as I find it in the Poſthumous Meditation of the moſt Noble Lord Capel, p. 21. Favour is a fine Thred, which will ſcarce hold one tug of a crafty Tale-bearer. The Obſervator on H. L. lights upon this Quarrel (I do not purſue the Lord Keepers Enemies: But if I meet them I will not ſhun them) Thus, He being Drunk with Wormwood; Lam. 3.15. That he had done many ill Offices to the Duke, when he was in Spain p. 36. Many? and yet Name none? If he will pick his Ears clean from the filth of Hatred, I will tell him what my Lord Duke took to be ill Offices. The Firſt Diſpleaſure (and never laid down) was, That the knowledge came to the King by his means, who thoſe Gentlemen were, that importun'd his Grace by their Expreſſes ſent into Spain, to rend the Treaty of the Match in ſunder, or to Act againſt it with all Wit and Power. The accuſed Lord proteſted upon his Salvation he was not the Diſcoverer. The acclearment is fair, and the Proof nothing; who is able to make Anſwer to Jealouſie, that grows out of the Mud of a man's Brain, like a Bull-ruſh? I will Relate what the Earl of Rutland, the Duke's Father-in-Law, return'd again, when he had gone between them often to diſmount this Objection; that the Duke ſaid, Whenſoever I Diſagree with him, he will prove himſelf to be in the Right; and though I could never detect him hitherto to be Diſhoneſt, I am afraid of his Wit. The Second Offence taken was, That he would have perſwaded the Duke into a good Opinion of the Earl of Briſtol; and Reaſon for it; becauſe he would have kept his Lordſhip in a good Opinion with the King. To which all his Allies, all that Studied him, all that Honour'd him, did not contribute ſo much, nor had the King's Ear ſo much as he had to effect it. To ſit Heraclides his Adagy to him, Nemo benè merito bovem immolavit, praeter Phariam. He was another Pharias, that offered the beſt Sacrifice to that Lord, that had deſerved the beſt of him. When I find the King had his part in that which was ſo ill taken anent the Earl of Briſtol, I can find no blame in it. But if it had been an Error, it was a ſanctified one, to labour to convert Enmities unto Love unfeigned. And ſhould a Talent of Anger be weighed againſt a Grain of Offence? There was no Error; there was no Offence, but that Infelicity which the Wiſe Man Bias obſerv'd to be in ſuch Caſes. That it is better to be Judg in a Cauſe between two Enemies, then two Friends; for of two Friends I ſhall make one mine Enemy; but of two Enemies it is likely I ſhall make one my Friend; Laert in vità. The Third Scandal was, That he ſet forward the Treaty of the Marriage with Oars, and Sails of Ingeny and Induſtry. A new Crime Caius Caeſar, and never heard before. He was a Servant in it. He was Conjur'd unto the Care of it by the King; and he was as Truſty to it, as the Soul of his Majeſty could wiſh. The beſt Head-piece of our Councel in Spain look'd upon him as the chief Adjutant, Cab. p. 23. Thus the Earl of Briſtol: If there ſhould be any doubt, I am ſure that your Lordſhip would put to a helping hand, to keep the buſineſs from being overthrown, ſince you have done ſo much for the overcoming of former difficulties, and the bringing it to the paſs it is now in. The Duke was fallen, by the wylineſs of others, and by his own wilfulneſs, into a contrary Motion; when the Lord Keeper ſaw the Councils of his greateſt Friend eſloigned from thoſe of his dread Sovereign, he had been a Beaſt if he had not given the Right Hand to Loyalty. Patrem primum, poſtea Patronum proximum nomen habere, ſays Cato in A. Gel. lib. 5. A King is a common Father; Obſervance is due to thy Father firſt, and afterward to thy Patron.
157. Yet why ſhould things ſubordinate be at odds, as if they were contraries? The leſſer Circle is not oppoſite, but within the greater. Moſes, and his Miniſter Joſuah, the King and his Choiceſt Servants, are not Repreſented as two, but as one perſon to Allegiance. The Lord Keeper held faſt to them both, that both might hold faſt to themſelves; nor would he leave the Duke to his own … king, as far as the King diſlik'd him; but perſiſted to diſpleaſe him into the good Opinion of his Majeſty. Vera amicitia eſt idem velle, & idem nolle, ſays …elius. If this young unforeſeeing Lord ſhould perſiſt to hate that which the King lov'd, his vigilant Counſellor knew, that the King would uſe him no longer a Friend, but would remove him from that privacy wherein he had bred him. This, and much more, was proſecuted in Auguſt.
Sancta Patres Auguſta vocant, Ovid. Faſt. lib. 1.
In the Language of Old Latium, Auguſt, and Sacred ſignified the ſame. 'Twere good if it would prove ſo now. But it began with diſcontent on every ſide, and never mended. Our Wiſe King no longer ſmother'd his Paſſion, but confeſs'd at ſundry times a great fault in himſelf, that he had been ſo improvident, to ſend the Duke on this Errand with the Prince, whoſe bearing in Spain was ill Reported by all that were not partial. He put the bafful ſo affectedly upon the Earl of Briſtol at every turn, that thoſe Propoſitions which his Majeſty had long before approved with deep Wiſdom, and ſetled with the Word of Honour, were ſtruck out by my Lord of Buckingham, only becauſe Briſtol had preſented them. Nay, if the Prince began to qualifie the unreaſonableneſs, he would take the Tale out of his Highneſs's Mouth, and over-rule it; and with ſuch youthful and capricious Geſtures, as became not the lowly Subjection due to ſo great a Perſon, but leaſt of all before Strangers. It was an Eye-ſore to the Spaniards above any people, who ſpeak not to their King, and the Royal Stems of the Crown, without the Complement of Reverence; nor approach unto them without a kind of Adoration. The more the Prince endur'd it, the more was their judgment againſt it. For every Mouth was fill'd with his Highneſs's Praiſe, and nothing thought wanting in him to be abſolutely good and Noble, but to know his own Birth and Majeſty better, and to keep more diſtance from a Subject. So the Earl of Briſtol Writes Cab. p. 20. I proteſt as a Chriſtian, I never heard in all the time of his being here, nor ſince, any one Exception againſt him, unleſs it were for being ſuppoſed to be too much guided by my Lord of Buckingham; which was no Venial Sin in their cenſure. For how much their gall Super-abounded againſt that Lord, the ſame Earl could not hold to write it to the Lord Keeper, bearing Date Auguſt 20. I know not how things may be Reconciled here before my Lord Duke's departure, but at preſent they are in all Extremity ill, betwixt this King, his Miniſters, and the Duke. And they ſtick not to profeſs, that they will rather put the Infanta head-long into a Well, then into his Hands. One thing that fill'd up the Character of my Lord Duke before in this Work was, that he had much of the brave Alcibiades in him: In this they differ; that Plutarch's Alcibiades ſuited himſelf ſo well, to the Manners and Cuſtoms of all Courts, where he came, that he gave ſatisfaction to all Princes; and they were beſt pleaſed with him, that moſt enjoy'd him. The great Lord Villiers was not ſo Fortunate; for he thrived not in the Air of Madrid; and he brook'd the Air of Paris as ill, about two years after upon the like Occaſion. And no marvel. For as Catulus ſaid of Pompey in Paterculus, Praeclarus vir Cn. Pompeius, ſed reipub. liberae nimius. So this Lord was a worthy Gentleman, but too big to be one in a Free Treaty with other Miniſters. The Lord Keeper, who was the Socrates to this Alcibiades, had Noted his Lordſhips Errors, and unbeſeeming Pranks before. For which he look'd for no better, then he that rubs a Horſe that is gaul'd. Yet he reſolv'd to ſhoot another Arrow the ſame way, that the former went; though the Duke had threatned to break his Bow as ſoon as he came Home. But he was too prudent to be ſcared from doing Duty to ſo great a Friend. foreign, ſays Ariſtotle. He is neither Wiſe nor Faithful, but a Flatterer, that denies his Spirit ingenious Freedom. And it is a Speech worthy of Sir Ph. Sidney, which the Lord Brooke aſcribes to him, Pag. 42. of his Life: That he never found Wiſdom, where he found not Courage. Therefore the Lord Keeper writes to the Duke, Aug. 3. of which this is the Moral, to him that reads it intelligently. That no Man living can keep Favour, who keeps not Conditions that merit to perpetuate Favour.
May it pleaſe your Grace,
I Have no more to trouble your Grace at this time withal, than the Expreſſion of that Service, and thoſe Prayers, which, as I do truly owe, ſo ſhall I ever as faithfully perform to your Grace. New Comers may make more large and ample Promiſes, but will in the end be found to fall ſhort of your old Servants in Reality and Performances. If your Grace hath by this time thought, that I have been too bold, and too near your Secrets, in thoſe Counſels I preſumed upon in my laſt Letters; I beſeech you to remember how eaſie it was for me to have held my Peace; how little Thanks I am like to receive from any other, beſide your Grace, for the ſame; how far I am in theſe Courſes from any end of mine own, beſide your Proſperity and Security. If your Grace would give me leave to deliver my Opinion upon the main, though no Hunter after Court-News, it is this. Your Grace ſtands this Day in as great Favour with his Majeſty, as your Heart can deſire. And (if I have any Judgment) in far more Security of Continuance, than ever you did, if you remain (as for ought I can perceive you do) in the ſame State with the Prince, in the ſame Terms (as your Pains have deſerved) with the Princeſs; and out of Quarrels and Recriminations (which will but weaken both Parties, and make way for a third) with the reſt of his Majeſties Agents in this Negotiation. I cannot but preſume once more to put your Grace in mind, that the nearer you are drawn to his Highneſs in Title, the more you are, with all Care and Obſervance, to humble your ſelf unto him, in Speech, Geſture, Behaviour, and all other Circumſtances, yea, although his Highneſs ſhould ſeem to require the Contrary. This cannot be any way offenſive to your own, and is expected to the utmoſt Punto by that other Nation. I do preſume of Pardon for all my Follies in this kind, and that whatſoever is wanting in my Diſcretion, your Grace will be pleaſed to make up out of my Sincerity and Affection—However your Grace and the Earl of Briſtol ſhall conclude, I hope your Grace will pardon my Zeal (though peradventure not according to Knowledge) aiming only at your Grace's Service, the Amplitude, and Continuance of your Greatneſs. For whatſoever your Grace ſhall determine and conclude, I do, and ſhall implicitly yield unto the ſame. Yet am ſtill of Opinion, the way of Peace to be the broad way to enlarge and perpetuate your Grace's Greatneſs and Favour with his Majeſty, &c.
This was bold, but faithful and ingenious Dealing: The Duke's laſt Meſſenger, whom he ſent into England, before he arrived, Sir J. Hipſley, gave him a touch of the ſame, Cab. P. 316. For God's-ſake carry the Buſineſs with Patience betwixt my Lord of Briſtol and you. And again in the ſame—For God's-ſake make what haſt you may Home, for fear of the worſt: For the King's Face began to gather Clouds upon the Quarrel between his Miniſters in Spain, which did ſo much diſturb the Match. Sir John Hipſley, and ſuch as he, the Duke could paſs them over for raſh Writers, but he would never forgive it to the Lord Keeper, who invited him to ſee his Errors. But like old Galeſus in Virgil, Aen. 7. who was knocked down while he went betwen the Latins and Trojans to reconcile them.
Dum paci medium ſe offert, juſtiſſimus unus,
Qui fuit.—
So it hapned to him that pleaded in this Mediation, to be offered upon the Sacrifice, and Service of making Love.
159. Nevertheleſs, to draw out the Thread of Favour to more length, which the Duke had with the King, and that the Deſtinies might not cut it off, the Lord Keeper wrote to his Majeſty upon Sir John Hipſley's Arrival in the midſt of Auguſt, That he had heard more of the Duke's moſt laudable Diligence in Spain, from Sir John, than ever he could learn before; that Malice it ſelf could not but commend his Zeal, and that Humanity could not but pity the Toil he had, to reduce that intricate and untoward Buſineſs of the Palatinate to ſome good Succeſs. He might well call them intricate and untoward, for the Spaniſh Motions were circular Nothings, much about, and nothing to the Point. Moſt true it is, that the Articles anent the Marriage were drawn up, and reſtricted to ſome Heads and Numbers (though not perfected) three years before the Emperor had entred into the Palz with any Hoſtility. Therefore the Spaniards diſputed thus; Bring not the motion of it into this Treaty, as a thing born out of due time. What were it elſe, but, as the Proverb ſays, Extra chorum ſaltare, to Dance well, but quite out of the meaſure of the Maſcarata? We anſwered, if things had been, as they are now, at the beginning, this had then been a principal Capitulation. Nor had we honerated the Articles with a new Propoſition, unleſs themſelves, that is, the Houſe of Auſtria, had caſt us into the Gulph of a new Extremity. Reduce the King and his Poſterity to the ſame Peace they were in, when we began to treat, and we ask no more. But as Seneca ſays, Lib. 4. de ben. c. 35. Omnia eſſe debent eadem quae fuerant cum promitterem, ut promittentis fidem teneas. But upon ſo great a Change, there is neither Inconſtancy, nor Encroachment, to fall into new Conſultations. For all this, though nothing but Pertinacy durſt ſtand the Breath of ſo much Truth, the others came no nearer to us, but kept further off, affirming (as it is in the Report made at St. James's) that they conceived our King expected no Reſtitution at all for his Son and Daughter, and that they ſuppoſed his Majeſty had already digeſted that bitter Potion. We told them, they muſt not diſſemble before us, as if they knew not the Contrary. For his Majeſty never intermitted to rouſe up their Embaſſadors to give him a fair Anſwer about it; and had ſtopt the Treaty of the Match, if they had not opened the Way by Proteſtation made in the Faith of their King, that the Palatinate ſhould be rendred up with Peaceable Poſſeſſion. What Shape could Olivarez put on now? none but his own: a ſtately Impudency. For he told us in the broad Day-light, that all former Promiſes, ſpoken before the Prince's Coming, whether by Embaſſadors to our King, or by Count Gondamar, to my Lord of Briſtol and others, were but Palabras de cumplimiento, Gratifications of fine Words, but no more to be taken hold of, than the Fables and Fictions of Greece before the Wars of Theſeus. The Prince came over him at this with a blunt Anger, that if there were no more Aſſurance in their Word, it was paſt the Wit of Man to know what they meant; but he would tell them really his Father's, and his own Meaning, That without his Siſter's, and her Husband's Inheritance reſtored, they neither intended Marriage nor Friendſhip. When King Philip had heard with what Courage and Determination his Highneſs had ſpoken, like Caeſar in Velleius, Se virtute ſuâ, non magnitudine hoſtium metiens, it put that King and his Counſel to a middle-way, as they called it, To treat upon the old Articles, and no other, as falling perpendicularly on the Marriage, but to take into a concurrent Deliberation, the Reſtitution of the Prince Elector's Country. Let Metaphyſical States-men ſcratch their Heads, and find a real Diſtinction, if they can, between theſe Formalities. Yet Sir Walter Aſton followed them in that Way, and paid them in the ſame Coin with this Diſtinction, Cab. P. 38. That the King his Maſter preſt for the Reſtitution of the Palatinate, and Electoral Dignity to the Prince, his Son-in-Law, not as a Condition of the Marriage, but to be ſetled together with the Marriage—And again, Not as a Condition, but as a Fruit and Bleſſing of the Alliance—And to make the Coming of the Excellent Princeſs, the Infanta, of more Eſteem to his Subjects, bringing with her (beſide the Glory of her own Virtue and Worth) the Security of a perpetual Peace and Amity. Theſe were Punctilio's in Honour, but juſt Nothings in Wiſdom; the Cauſe of the Palatinate muſt not be tempered at the ſame Forge, but apart, not a Ruſh was gotten by it, and time waſted; for our Miniſters were reſolved to conclude neither, unleſs they perfected both.
160. The Sennor Duca Olivarez made ſuch Work upon this Theme, and turn'd it into ſo many Forms, that it makes him ridiculous in the Hiſtory, Vertumnis, quotquot ſunt, natus iniquis. Horat. And ſo diſaſtrous a Counſellor, through his Variableneſs, that it was his Fault that cauſed a Diſtruſt in the main, as wiſe Spotſwood ſays, Pag. 544. The Prince conceived there was nothing really intended on the King of Spain's Part, but that the Treaty was entertained only till he (and the Houſe of Auſtria) had reduced Germany into their Power, which might be ſuſpected without Injury, by looking upon this Vertumnus in all his Changings. Seven Months before the Prince took his Journey, and came to caſt the Die upon the whole Stake, to win or looſe all, Mr. End. Porter was ſent to Spain, and ſpake with the great Conde, who ſnapt him up, and gave him this unkind Welcome in a Chaſe, That they neither meant the Match, nor the Reſtitution of the Palatinate. Preſently the Earl of Briſtol gave him a Viſit, and a Diſcourſe about it: In a trice he winds himſelf out of his former Fury, and vows he would do his beſt to further both. The next Diſcovery breaks out by Mr. Sanderſon's Diligence, Pag. 540. in a Letter of the Conde's to King Philip, Novemb. 8. 1622. That the King of Great Brittain affected the Marriage of his Son with the Infanta, and was more engaged for the Palatinate—And as a Maxim, I hold theſe two Engagements in him to be inſeparable—For us, though we make the Marriage, we muſt fail in the other—Then you will be forced to a War with England, with which, all Convenencies, that were formerly thought upon, will ceaſe. The Remedy which he propounds, to fail without all theſe Shelves, I never did light upon out of this Letter. 'Tis thus—The Emperor, as your Majeſty knows by his Embaſſador, deſires to Marry his Daughter with the King of England's Son; and I doubt not but he will be glad to Marry his Second Daughter to the Palatine's Son—So all the Conventencies of Alliance will be as full in this—For it accommodates the Matter of the Palatinate, and the Succeſſion of his Grand-Children without Blood or Treaſure. Here is a new Bride appointed for his Highneſs, the eldeſt Daughter of the Emperor, which is unlikely to be intended, becauſe it comes from none but ſuch an Author as Olivarez, and in as much as when Count Suartzenburg came about eighteen Months before Embaſſador to our King from Caeſar, this was not moved at that Oportunity, and when the Prince came to Spain, no ſhadow of it remained, but it was vaniſhed like a Morning-miſt before the Sun. Now follow their Whimſies and their In and Outs at the Conſulto, when the Prince was among them. The firſt Onſet that Olivarez gave, was, That they were ready to follow all the Demands of the King of Great Brittain, concerning the Match for his Son; to the Demands for his Son-in-Law, he ſaid, they were not in their Power to effect, his Country was extended upon by the Emperor, his Electoral Dignity inveſted in the Duke of Bavaria. And within this Charm they kept us long, till we were weary with their Obſtinacy, and ſate down a while, as when Boys Scourge a great Top till they make it ſleep. At laſt, the Prince's Highneſs, offended that he could gain nothing by this Alliance for his dear Siſter's Good, offered to give King Philip a Farewel, that he might look timely at Home for the Relief of her Miſery. On this, no man courts his Highneſs to ſtay, ſo much as Olivarez; and to ſlacken his Return, revives the Conſult of the Reſtitution, promiſeth the ſtrongeſt Mediation that the King his Maſter could make with the Imperialiſts and Bavarians; which if it were rejected (but they hoped better) he would be forward, for his Part, to ſtir up his Catholick Majeſty to give his Brother, the King of England, Aſſiſtance by Arms, to procure him his Satisfaction. Yet, whatſoever he ſaid, his Heart lay a thought farther, and he had a Trick to redeem himſelf out of this Promiſe; for he told his Highneſs, in a Weeks ſpace after, that he found their Nation ſo linked to the Love of the Houſe of Auſtria, that they would never march chearfully into the Field againſt it. For all this the Weather-cock turn'd, and he was affrighted in a moment into a good Mind again. So did his Highneſs report at St. James's, that a falſe Alarum being brought to Madrid, that Count Tilly, with his whole Body of Foot and Horſe, was routed in Germany, inſtantly the Conde Duke came, with as much Fear as Haſt, unto the Prince, and with as much Lowlineſs as his Knee upon the Ground, vowed he would give him a Blank for the Reſtitution of the Palſgrave's Intereſt; but when the Second (that is, the worſt) News came, that the Duke of Brunſwick was quite defeated, the Mood was changed with the Man, and he ſpake as loftily from that Matter, as if the great Armada had been failing again upon our Brittiſh Ocean. Into how many Paces did Hipocriſie put him? Sincerity would have got him Honour, diſpatch the Work, and ſaved him all this Trouble; for with the ſame Study, nay, with far leſs, men may attain to be ſuch as they ought to be, which they miſ-ſpend, in ſeeking to be ſuch as they are not, Quibus id perſuaſum eſt, ut nihil mallent ſe eſſe quàm bonos viros, iis reliquam facilem eſſe doctrinam Cic. de orat. lib. 3. After that great Don Jaſper had put himſelf to the Expence of all this Folly, he riveted in two Straws more like than Wedges, to cleave the Knot. Firſt, Let the Marriage be Conſummated, and then deſpair not but the Princeſs Infanta would beg the Palatinate with her earneſt Prayers, that ſhe might be received with Honour and Applauſe among her Husband's People. That is, Seal their Patent, and we ſhall have an empty Box to play with. Or elſe marry the Lady, and leave her behind, till the Buſineſs for the Palſgrave's Patrimony were accommodated, which is like Velez's Trick in Guſman of Alfarach, to … away both the Bride, and the Bride-Cake. The great Projector held cloſe to one Propoſition at the laſt, that ſince Prince Frederick the Elector, had highly offended Caeſar, in the Attempt, and Continuance of it, in the Matter of Boh…mia no Account ſhould be had of his Perſon, but Reſtitution ſhould be made to his Eldeſt Son, by Marrying the Second Daughter of the Emperor; in which Clauſe the Prince concurred. But the Sting in the Tail was, that he ſhould be bred up in the Emperor's Court, to mold him into a Roman Catholick. Upon which his Highneſs broke off, the Earl of Briſtol (as a ſharp Letter chargeth him, written by the Prince, Cab. Pag. 17.) ſwallowing down that Difficulty at a Gulp, becauſe without ſome ſuch great Action, neither Marriage nor Peace could be had. But Sir Wal. Aſton flew back, ſaying, He durſt not give his Conſent for fear of his Head. Now we have the Duke Olivarez in all his Party-colours, who knew that the Breach of Alliance with England would be tranſcendently ill for Spain, yet he would hazard a Miſchief, unleſs he might tear a Princely Limb from the Proteſtant Religion not unlike to the Paeotlans in Juſtin, lib. 8. Tanto edio Pho…ſunn ardentes, ut obliti cladium …, perire ipſi, q…àm non perdere eos praeaptarent. How the Duke Olivarez ſmoothed it, a Letter of his, which would make a Pamphlet for the length, will manifeſt, which to this day hath lain in Obſcurity, but is worthy to come abroad. It follows—