all the perfons, and promised the king to bring in ample teftimony and evidence against them; and all this in a season when the king's affairs were in so good a pofture, that there was no need of fuch a defperate remedy, and when the heart of the contrary party was fo near broken, that they needed fuch an expedient to keep up their credit and ability to do further mifchief. And therefore many fober men detefted that advice as the moft vifible introtroduction to all the mifery that afterwards befel the king and kingdom. Yet his great fpirit was fo far from failing, that when he faw the whole city upon the matter in arms to defend them, knowing in what house they were together, he offered the king, with a felect number of a dozen gentlemen, who, he prefumed would stick to him, to feize upon their perfons, dead or alive, and without doubt he would have done it, which muft likewife have had a wonderful effect. But that counfel being rejected, and finding his credit abated in all places, he tranfported himself out of the kingdom, and was fhortly after, by a wonderful retaliation of providence, and in the fame method of contempt, which he had caufed to be practifed towards the other, (by publishing a proclamation to reftrain them from going out of the kingdom, when he knew they were together in London, and environed with a ftrength and power enough to drive the king him felf from Whitehall, as they shortly did) accufed of high treason, upon the most flight and trivial fuggeftions, and a proclamation iffued out for his apprehenfion; all which would have brought another man to make ferious reflections upon himself, and extinguished that inordinate heat of VOL. XXVIII.

brain and fancy, which had so often tranfported him to unreasonable and unprofperous refolutions. But all this nothing allayed that flame, or extinguished that fire in him, but as foon as the war broke out, or rather, as foon as there was any appearance of it, he re-tranfported himself again into England, raised a regiment of horse, and charged in the head of it at the battle of Edge. hill with as much courage as any man, and afterwards marched with prince Rupert towards the north and in the way, finding the close in the city of Litchfield garrifoned by the rebels, and fecured by a ftrong old wall and a mote, and the prince refolving to reduce it, he cauled his foot to ftorm it, which being beaten off, and indeed not being fufficient in number to make fuch a general affault as was neceffary, the other, to encourage the officers of the horfe to make an attempt in another place, offered himself to go at the head of them, and fo led them through the mote to another part of the wall which was thought to be weaker; by means whereof, and the garrison within being divided into feveral quarters, the foot entered the place, and made themselves mafter of it with great difficulty, and with great lofs, and very many of the horie officers who entered by the mote were killed, and the rest beaten off, himfelf being in the mud to the middle, and fhot through the thigh with a mufquet bullet, was wonderfully brought off, and afterwards recovered his wounds; bút not finding that refpect from the prince which he had promifed, himfelf, he gave up his regiment of horfe, and retired to the court, where he was fure to find good countenance.

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Though he had thus difcharged himself from any command in the army, he was always ready to engage himself as a volunteer with it upon any brisk adventure; fo he was, after the relief of Gloucefter, in the pursuit of the earl of Effex's army, and was in the first engagement at Aubourne, where he was hurt, and had all the powder of a piftol fhot in his face, by which it was thought he had lo ft both his eyes, the bulle dropping or paffing by; and the lord Falkland being the next day Killed at Newberry, he was fhortly after made fecretary of ftate, and betook himself to the discharge of it with great intentnefs of mind, and induftry enough, and continued in that employment many years; in all which time he ran many adventures, and frequently found himself at a lofs when he believed he had attained his point, and at laft found the greatest part of the officers of the army fo implacably irreconciled towards him, that he was again forced to retire from his majesty's fervice with his full approbation and confent, who in truth could not but find him at leaft very unfortunate. And by degrees, after feveral very brifk attempts of feveral kinds, in which he fhewed as much refolution and dexterity as could be expected from a man of great wit and unqueftionable courage, he was forced to transport himself into Ireland, about the time that the prince of Wales (after fo great fucceffes of the rebels, and the king's armies being upon the matter totally defeated) by his father's command to tranfport himfelf out of England, took his firft refuge in the ifle of Scilly, from whence he might naturally fend to and receive intelligence from Ire land.

It hath been obferved before, that. the perfon of whom we difcourfe had fo rare a compofition by nature and by art, for nature alone could never have reached to it, that he was fo far from ever being dismayed (and greater variety of misfortune never befel any man) upon any misfortune, that he quickly recollected himself fo vigorously, that he did really believe his condition improved by that ill accident, and that he had an opportunity thereby to gain a new flock of reputation and honour; and fo, he no fooner found himself in Ireland (when that kingdom was in the greatest distraction imaginable by the perfidioufness of the Irish, who having made a peace with the marquis of Ormond, the king's lieutenant for that kingdom, and within a few days renounced and broke it again) but he believed he was upon a stage where he should at wonders, and unite all the divided affections, and all the diftinct interefts, and make them all fubservient to the king. The quarrel was religion, which had tranfported both parties to the utmoft outrages of blood and animofity, which can refult from that unhappy fpring; and though the foberer part of the nation did really and confcientiously defire to return to their allegiance, and had thereupon prevailed fo fas with their general council, that they had confented to a peace, as is faid before, and which was accordingly publifhed; yet the malignant party was fo much fuperior and prevalent, that within few days they cancelled all that was done, imprisoned the principal perfons who had contributed to that peace, and put the managery of their whole affairs into the hands of men of another temper. and committed the whole nation,

and

and as much of the kingdom as they could difpofe of, to the entire protection and difpofal of the pope, in the perfon of his nuncio, Rinuccini, whom he had lately fent thither, with a very large fupply of arms and ammunition, to interrupt their fubmiffion to the king. He was a man of a haughty and phantaftical humour and nature, with a perplexed understanding; all his faculties being difpofed principally to make eafy things hard, and to create intricacies out of the most clear and manifest consultations. This was the condition and posture that Ireland was in when this gentleman arrived there, the whole kingdom being fo near reduced to the obedience of the nuncio, that he seemed to have nothing to do, but to fhut up the lord lieutenant in Dublin, till he could by a clofer fiege like wife fubdue that capital city, and in order thereunto, he was drawing together an army from all the quarters of the kingdom. This was now a fcene fit for the other's activity, and being received very kindly by the lord lieutenant, out of refpect to his perfon, and the character he had under the king, he quickly took upon him to fay any thing in the king's name, which the lord lieutenant believed (for he was fteered by him) might contribute to his majefty's service in a time of fo great jealoufy. About the fame time an express arrived from Scilly, who was fent thence to the lord lieutenant from the prince of Wales, to inform his lordship, that his highness was newly retired to that ifland, where he meant to refide as long as he should find it convenient; and because the ifland was poor, and unfurnished with men, his highness wished that he might have a hundred men fent

him, with good officers for a guard to his perfon; having fent at the fame time to his royal mother the queen, who was then at Paris, to procure him money from thence for the fupport of his perfon and the payment of the foldiers. This news came no fooner to Dublin, but the perfon we mentioned prefently conceived that the prince's prefence in Ireland would fettle and compofe all the factions there, reduce the kingdom to his majesty's fervice, and oblige the pope's nuncio, who was an enemy to the peace, to quit his ambitious defigns. The lord lieutenant had fo good an opinion of that expedient, that he could have been very well contented, that, when his highness had been forced to leave England, he had rather chosen to have made Ire land than Scilly his retreat; but being a wife man, and having many difficulties before him in view, and the apprehenfion of many contingencies which might increafe thofe difficulties, he would not take upon him to give advice in a point of fo great importance; but forthwith, having a couple of frigates ready, he caufed a hundred men with their officers to be prefently put on board, according to his highness's defire, and the lord Digby (who always concluded that that was fit to be done, which his first thoughts fuggefted to him, and never doubted the execution of any thing which he once thought fit to be attempted) put himself on board thefe veffels, refolving that upon the ftrength of his own reafon he should be able to perfuade the prince, and the council which attended him, forthwith to quit Scilly and to repair to Dublin; which he did not doubt might be brought to pass in that way that would have been grateful to the. lord lieutenant. The prince within C 2

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tended the prince, with whom he had a particular friendship, and lamented to him the lofs of fuch an occafion, which would inevitably reftore the king, who would be equally ruined if the prince went into France, of which he spake with all the deteftation imaginable, and faid, he was fo far fatisfied in his confcience of the benefit that would redound from the one, and the ruin which would inevitably fall out by the other, that he faid, if the perfon with whom he held this conference would concur with him, he would carry the prince into Ireland even without, and against his confent. The other perfon anfwered that it was not to be attempted without his confent, nor could he imagine it poffible to bring it to pass if they fhould both endeavour it; he replied, that he would invite the prince on board the frigates to a collation, and that he knew well he could fo commend the veffels to him, that his own curiofity would eafily invite him to a view of them, and that as foon as he was on board, he would cause the fails to be hoifted up, and make no ftay till he came into Ireland. The other was very angry with him for entertaining fuch imaginations, and told him they neither agreed with his wifdom nor his duty, and left him in despair of his conjunction, and at the fame time of being able to compafs it. He had no fooner difcharged himfelf of this imagination, but in the inftant (as he had a moft pregnant fancy) he entertained another with the fame vigour, and refolved with all poffible expedition to find himfelf at Paris, not making the leaft queftion but that he fhould convert the queen from any further thought offending for the prince into France,

and as eafily obtain her confent and approbation for his repairing into Ireland; and he made as little doubt, with the queen's help, and by his own dexterity, to prevail with France to fend a good fupply of money by him into Ireland, by which he fhould acquire a most univeríal reputation, and be the moft welcome man alive to the lord lieutenant; and tranfported with this happy auguration he left Jersey, leaving at the fame time his two fhips and his foldiers, and half a dozen gentlemen of quality, who, upon his defire and many promifes, had kept him company from Ireland,, without one penny of money to fubfift upon during his abfence.

As foon as he came to Paris and had feen the queen, whom he found very well inclined to do all the could for the relief of Ireland, but refolute to have the prince her fon immediately with her, notwithstanding all the reafons preffed against it by the lords of the king's council who had been fent from Jerfey, he attended the cardinal, who underftood him very well and knew his foible. He received him with all the ceremony and demonftration of refpect he could poffibly exprefs, entered upon the difcourfe c England, and celebrated the part which he had acted upon that tage in fo many actions of courage and faga. city, of the higheft prudence and cin cumfpection, with an indefatigable induftry and fidelity; he told him that France found too late their own error, that they had been well content to fee the king's great puiffance weakened by his domeftic troubles, which they wished only should keep him from being able to hurt his neighbours, but that they never had

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