An Answer to a Scurrilous Pamplet [1693] Part 1

An Answer to a Scurrilous Pamplet [1693].

by Anonymous.

The Author of the _Memoirs_ had so little to apprehend in his Reputation either at home or abroad from the feeble Efforts of _Monsieur de Cross_ in his late trifling _Invective_, that had it not been for the repeated Instances of some Friends, who were unwilling to have such a wretched Scribler escape unpunished, he had never condescended to the severe penance of sitting an hour upon him. To their Importunities, and not to his own Inclinations is the Reader obliged for the following _Remarks_, which as they serve to justifie those particular pa.s.sages in the _Memoirs_ that are so outrageously exclaimed against by Mr. _de Cros_, so they discover, _en pa.s.sant_, several Intrigues. .h.i.therto not so well known or understood.

Though we may safely allow it to be some sort of Mortificatioa for any one to see himself lie under the lash of a Man of Wit; yet certainly 'tis infinitely more supportable than to be a.s.saulted by a Malice altogether made up of Phlegm and Dulness. _aeneae magni dextra cadis_, was said by way of Consolation to young _Lausus_ as he fell by the hands of that celebrated Heroe. When we lie under an unavoidable necessity of being encountered in Publick, 'tis some Comfort to be engaged with Bravery and Honour: In such a Case there is Reputation to be got if we come off with Victory; but to be forced to enter the Lists with a feeble, inglorious and despicable Adversary, is somewhat afflicting; there can be no Skill, no Dexterity shown in putting by his Thrusts, and there is no Reputation acquired by gaining the Conquest.

Certainly there never appeared in the World a Paper so little performing what it seems to promise in the t.i.tle page, so mean and undesigning, and in short so below the mighty Character of its Author who so often takes care to instruct us that _a great Prince and a King did not disdain to employ him as a Counsellor of State_, as this rambling, incoherent unthinking Letter. But perhaps it may be alledged by some of its Favourers, that the sincerity of what it pretends to relate, may atone for all its other palpable defects, since to use his own magnificent Expression our Deserter of a _Monk_ is pleased to a.s.sure us, _p. 9._ that _the only Heroe of his Piece shall be Truth_: And indeed the Matter wou'd be somewhat mended if the Case were so; but for certain Considerations best known to himself our Letter-Writer has been so complaisant to his Heroe, as not to give him any trouble at all. However this pleasant pa.s.sage puts me in mind of a certain person of the Long Robe who a little after the Restauration, when writing of Plays was more in fas.h.i.+on than it is at present, must needs threaten the Stage with a Play; and as a Hero is a very necessary Ingredient in all or at least most Compositions of that Nature, he designed to furnish himself with a Hero that should work Miracles, defeat Armies, charm the Ladies, and make as considerable a Figure as any Hero that had visited the World for many Ages. After he had amused himself some Months with this painful Undertaking, a Friend of his happens to interrogate him upon this Article, and asks him what Progress he had made in his Play, and how his Hero fared. To which the poor Gentleman replied, that a certain Misfortune had befallen him which had put a stop to the Affair. In short, after a tedious Enquiry, he informs him that he had unluckily killed his Hero in the first Act, and so cou'd not for the heart of him tell how to advance any farther.

This was fairly and civilly done in our Gentleman. He had cut out so much Work for his Hero in the first Act, that he had left him nothing to do in any of the rest; and therefore was obliged to dispatch him in his own defence; but Monsieur _de Cros_ never so much as introduces his Hero in one single Paragraph of his Letter: He threatens indeed to bring him in Play one time or another, but for all that keeps him still as invisible as a Fairy Treasure, and his Hero has no more to do throughout the whole piece, than one of the _Mutae Personae_ in the ancient _Drama_.

Monsieur _de Cros_ is pleased to address his Letter to a certain n.o.ble Lord in _Nubibus_; for he no where takes occasion to name him, and this was certainly done with no other Prospect than only to recommend his Trifle the better to his Readers. He owns, _p. 3._ that _Sir_ W. T. _is a Man of some Merit, and that he has been employed a long time upon very important Affairs_, but then with his usual Confidence affirms that _he knew very little of the Secret of the late King of_ England's _Designs_. Sir _W. T._ no where pretends in his Memoirs that he knew the bottom of all the Court-Intrigues, that were managed with so much Artifice by the prevailing Ministry of those times; nay he congratulates his good Fortune that he was never made acquainted with them; and though from several remarkable Circ.u.mstances he has all the Reason imaginable to suspect that some things were not so fairly meant as was openly pretended, yet he knows no Reason why they should not trust him in any Occasions wherein the Honour of his Master or the true Interest of the Kingdom were concerned: And as for the rest, he thinks it the highest Complement the Ministry ever made him, not to disclose them to him.

Upon this Consideration says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 4. _I had no great Curiosity to peruse the Memoirs, well judging that the Author was not able to give me any tolerable Light into the discovery of so many secret Intrigues that were carried on at that juncture: And besides_, continues he, _I had Reason to doubt whether these Memoirs were not princ.i.p.ally designed to be a Panegyrick upon himself, and to blacken the Reputation of several Persons of eminent Quality and Merit, because_, adds he, _I was particularly acquainted with the Pride of Sir_ W. T. _who fansies himself to be the wisest and ablest Politician of his Age._ If Sir _W. T._ is that vainglorious and ill-natured Animal as Monsieur _de Cros_ represents him to be, he here solemnly promises him that he will never come to him to learn either Humility or good Manners; and if he has been severe upon any of the Great Men then in Vogue, he has done no more than what every Body almost in the Nation has done since. He barely contents himself with the Satisfaction of having been in some measure serviceable to his King and Country; and since he has not made his Fortunes at the expence of either, he supposes he may lawfully mention his Services without the horrid Crime of Ostentation or Vanity.

But to let the World see that Monsieur _de Cros_ has no Malice in his Heart, but that he really designs Sir _W. T_'s Good, he condescends p.

5. to give him wholesome Advice, and sets him Copies to write after.

To this purpose he recommends to his Perusal _the Memoirs of_ Villeroy, _the Negotiations of_ Jeanin, _and the Letters of Cardinal_ Dossat, _in all which there reigns a Spirit of Sincerity and Modesty_. Sir _W. T._ never presum'd to set himself in Compet.i.tion with any of those ill.u.s.trious Persons; he is no Stranger to their Merits or Character, but is afraid that Monsieur _de Cros_ has proposed some Models to him which he never intends to follow himself.

It was not Sir _W. T_'s Bookseller that called him _One of the greatest Men of this Age_, as Monsieur _de Cros_ falsely insinuates, _p. 5._ but a reverend Prelate of our Church, who published the _Memoirs_ without the Author's Consent or Privity; and who, in his Advertis.e.m.e.nt to the Reader, does not stile him _Un des Grands Hommes de ce Siecle_, as Monsieur _du Cros_ maliciously has printed it, but only _an Ornament to Learning and to his Country_: So that this being a Mystery to no body in _England_, he wonders how some People come to make such Blunders about it in _Holland_. But by this and several Instances of the like Nature, any man may easily guess what famous Exploits Monsieur _de Cros_ designs to perform with the Help of his _Hero_.

To make good the Charge of Presumption with which Monsieur _de Cros_ taxes the Author of the Memoirs, he cites a Pa.s.sage, _p. 6._ which be found accidentally at the first opening of his Book; and a.s.sures his n.o.ble Lord, that he doubts not but he shall be able in a short time to produce several others to the same Effect. _The Negotiations which I had managed at the_ Hague, _at_ Brussels, _and at_ Aix la Chappelle, _and saved_ Flanders _out of the hands of France in 1668, made them believe that I had some Credit amongst the_ Spaniards, _as well as in_ Holland. Indeed, as he has cited this Pa.s.sage, any one would believe, that all the Glory and Merit of Preserving _Flanders_ was intirely owing to Sir _W. T_'s Conduct; and with this wrong Scent Monsieur _de Cros_ runs along very furiously, talks of erecting Statues, of the Ingrat.i.tude of _Spain_ and _Holland_, with abundance of other bitter things, with which his Indignation plentifully furnishes him at all times. But our Comfort is, that this Pa.s.sage is nothing near so criminal and arrogant in the Original as our Letter-monger would have it; and therefore it may not be _mal a propos_ to cite it fairly. [A]_This I suppose gave some Occasion for my being again design'd for this Amba.s.sy, who was thought to have some Credit with_ Spain _as well as_ Holland, _from the Negotiations I had formerly run through at the_ Hague, Brussels, _and_ Aix la Chapelle, _by which the remaining Parts of_ Flanders _had been saved out of the Hands of_ France _in the Year 1668._ In the first Citation it looks as if Sir _W. T_'s Management of the Treaty had wholly occasioned the Preservation of _Flanders_, whereas in the latter, if it meets with a true Construction, nothing more is meant, but that the Negotiations at the abovementioned Places, in which Sir _W. T._ had his share amongst the other Ministers that acted there, retrieved _Flanders_ from ruin. If we may believe Monsieur _de Cros_, he will positively tell us _p. 8. that all the Merit and Glory of the Peace as well as of the Triple League, ought in justice to be ascribed to the generous Resolution and Constancy of the States-General, who employ'd, upon this Occasion, a Minister who far surpa.s.sed Sir W. T.

in Prudence, in Experience and all Abilities_. Sir _W. T._ has nothing to quarrel with Monsieur _de Cros_ for upon this last Article; (tho, as he is sure, no one is the worse for his Calumnies, so he thinks no one is the better for his Commendations,) nor is he insensible what a generous Part the States-General acted at this important Conjuncture, when the publick Repose of all _Europe_ so much depended upon their Resolutions and Conduct: Only he thinks it hard that _England_ should not be allowed the least Share in the Turn of these Affairs, and that the Ministers of so powerful a Crown should be pa.s.sed over in Silence without any Mention or Acknowledgement, as if they had been reckoned abroad for so many Cyphers.

[A] _Memoirs_, p. 30.

After this Fit of Pa.s.sion is over, the Weather begins to clear up with our Author, and, during this Interval, he makes bold to acquaint his Lords.h.i.+p, p. 8. _that he does by no means design in this Place to examine Sir_ W. T's _Memoirs to the Bottom; No, he will take some better Opportunity for that, and then, if G.o.d spares him with Life and Health, he fairly promises him a Volume of Remarks, at least as big as Sir_ W. T's _Book_. Those Persons that are never so little vers'd in the true Character of Monsieur _de Cros_, need not be informed that he promises mighty things, and performs just nothing at all. This unlucky s.h.i.+fting off his Resentments to a fitter Occasion, (tho 'tis certain he can never meet with a more proper one to unload himself of them) looks like making Exceptions to the Ground when a man is to meet his Adversary with his Sword in his Hand in the Field. In common Prudence he ought to have acquitted one part of the Debt now, and then the World would have been so civil as to have taken his Word for the Payment of the rest. However let this terrible Day come as soon as it will, Sir _W. T._ is under no Agonies at the thought of it: For let our Monsieur scribble a Cart-load of Books if he pleases, 'tis a sad but undeniable Truth, that 'tis in his Power to injure no man breathing by them but only his Bookseller.

_Had I the Vanity like him_, says the modest, self-denying Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 8. _to print my Memoirs in my Life-time, I have now a very fair Pretence to do it._ Well, certainly there never dropt in this World so unwary a Pa.s.sage as this from the Pen of a Counsellor of State and all that! For who will now be ever brought to believe that Monsieur _de Cros_ is acquainted with the Intrigues of other People, and consequently in a Capacity of writing Memoirs, who is a meer Stranger at Home, and so utterly unacquainted with himself. _If I had the Vanity_; No, never fear it, do but consult a certain thing called a Looking-Gla.s.s every Morning, and thou mayst with a safe Conscience say _good morrow_ to one of the compleatest Pieces of Vanity in the Universe. But once more, _If I had the Vanity like him_, meaning Sir _W. T._ What Occasion Monsieur _de Cros_ had to pubblish so unjust and invidious a Calumny, no body can tell but himself; for had he consulted either the Reverend Publisher's Epistle to the Reader, or Sir _W. T._'s to his Son, or lastly maintained any manner of Correspondence with his old Acquaintance in _England_, it had been impossible for him to make so gross, so unpardonable a Mistake. All or any of these must certainly have convinced him that Sir _W. T._ knew no more of the publis.h.i.+ng of the Memoirs than his ungenerous Adversary Monsieur _de Cros_.

Well, but to pursue him in his Reveries; _I should publish_, says our mortal Foe to Vanity, p. 9. _juster and more solid Memoirs than Sir_ W. T. _has done, if I had any Inclinations to appear in Print_; and yet to see what a strange Spirit of Contradiction possesses some people, he adds in the very next Lines that follow, _Not that I have the Presumption to imagine my self more capable of performing such an Undertaking than He is_. In the first place he proclaims it to all Mankind, that he is fitter to write just and solid things than Sir _W. T._ and secondly, before the Words are well out of his Mouth, he would not be guilty of so much presumption as to think himself better qualified for such an Undertaking than Sir _W. T._ If there be any meaning in this sensless inconsistent pa.s.sage, it amounts only to this, _viz._ That 'tis possible for a Man to write more justly and solidly than another (as for instance Monsieur _de Cros_ (if you'll take his own Word for it) can write more justly and solidly than Sir _W. T._) and yet after all, with these two Qualifications, is not capable of writing better than he that has neither of them. Writing _justly_ and _solidly_ are none of Monsieur _de Cros_'s Talents; and therefore he was resolved to be revenged upon them.

What follows is extremely surprizing. _Whenever I put Pen to Paper_, says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 9. _I will write without Complaisance, without Flattery, without Pa.s.sion_: 'Tis strange he did not add _without Sence and Meaning_. No doubt but Monsieur _de Cros_ will write without Complaisance let him begin when he will; so far we readily believe him: But that he will ever be persuaded to renounce two of the dearest Qualities about him, Flattery and Pa.s.sion, is somewhat hard to digest. 'Tis true he promises fine things all along, but is still so unkind to himself as to give us but very small hopes that he'll remember to be as good as his Word. And 'tis very natural for the censorious World not to regard what a Man promises, especially if he does not regard them himself. In this small inconsiderable Letter, as short as it is, he has taken care to exercise both his Flattery and his Pa.s.sion; and if it was impossible for him to write four Sheets without calling them both to his a.s.sistance, can it be supposed he can write threescore without a spice of them? Nay, continues the sweet-tempered Monsieur _de Cross_, _I will not express the least Pa.s.sion, no, not so much as against Sir_ W. T. _but will do him the kindness to instruct him in abundance of things, which he poor Man has executed without knowing the true Reason why he was set on to do them_. This is an Effort of good Nature which Sir _W. T._ little imagined to receive at his Adversary's hand, and upon that score very much questions the continuance of it. Perhaps, as was intimated before, the Court might employ Sir _W. T._ in some Affairs, without acquainting him with the true Grounds and Motives; and 'tis evident Sir _W. T._ no where denies it. However if Monsieur _de Cros_ will so far oblige him as to give him a true Light into those Matters, he promises to receive it with all due Grat.i.tude and Deference.

_I came not by this Intelligence_, says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 9. _by being a Counsellor of State to King Charles the II._ How then in the name of Wonder came he by it? _But by having had the Happiness for several years to possess no small room in the confidence of a certain Minister, who has in several occasions of the last Importance been as it were the_ Primum Mobile _of that Conduct, which has surprized all_ Europe. 'Tis a scurvy Complement, this to the Memory of K.

_Charles_ (whom for all that _de Cros_ pretends still to honour) to tell the World that Monsieur _Barillon_ (for that is the first Letter of this certain Minister's Name) an Amba.s.sador of a foreign Prince, and one engaged in Interests visibly opposite to those of _England_, knew more of his Affairs than any of his own Subjects and Privy-Counsellors. The whole Nation is indeed satisfied that our Court was at that juncture too much influenced by _French_ Councils; but few will be brought to believe that the _French_ knew more of our own Affairs than we our selves did. By their Bribes and constant Application to the Ministry then reigning we grant they might know as much as we, but hardly more, unless it be proved that we did their Business implicitly, just as Sir _W. T._ run through several Negotiations for K. _Charles_, without knowing the Reasons and Grounds of them. As we have already observed, 'tis no new thing for our mighty Statesman to contradict himself, and he does it _tres grossierement_ in this particular. Here he informs us that he owes all his Intelligence to his frequent Conversations with Monsieur _Barillon_; and a little below, where we shall, perhaps, examine this Matter more carefully, we are told, _p. 29._ that this Amba.s.sador came not to _London_ till several years after his Arrival there, and that then he never maintain'd any Commerce with him _au prejudice de son devoir_, i. e. to the prejudice of his Duty. Now how Monsieur _de Cros_ as Counsellor of State to King _Charles_ the II. should be ignorant of several important Affairs relating to that Prince, but as the Confident of Monsieur _Barillon_, should be made acquainted with them, and yet all this while preserve his _Duty_ inviolate, is a contradiction fit to be reconciled by no Man but the Party that made it.

Having thus made it appear from whence he borrowed his Materials, Monsieur _de Cros_ very gravely a.s.sures his n.o.ble Lord, _p. 11._ that _after his death infallibly, and perhaps while he is alive_ (for alas, poor Gentleman, he never knew his own Mind above a quarter of an hour) _his Memoirs shall appear in publick, and there he will discover abundance of things the truth of which has been hitherto concealed with so much Address and Dexterity_. Lord what an insufferable deal of Impertinence and Noise have we already had about the intended Writings of Monsieur _de Cros_. First of all he promises, _p. 8._ to print a Book of Remarks upon Sir _W. T_'s Memoirs, and this Book is to be at least full as big as the Memoirs. In the second place, _p. 9._ he promises to visit the World with a Book of his own Memoirs, in which (to see how strangely Children and Books do sometimes degenerate from their Parents) there is to be neither one Word of Complaisance, nor Flattery, nor the least grain of Pa.s.sion. Nay what is more remarkable, it shall reveal several important but hidden Truths; it shall unlock the Cabinets of Princes; it shall turn _Whitehall_ and _Versailles_ inside out, and in short come out with a hundred more Advantages than ever any Book before it could boast off.

But what will you say to him, if after all this Parade and Ostentation, he never publishes his _Memoirs_; for upon my Word the thing is extremely doubtful. Can it be imagined that a Man of Monsieur _de Cros_'s Christian Temper and Complexion will ever be accessary to any Man's Ruine, but especially to that of a great Minister of State, _who can be reproached with nothing in the World_, p. 12. _but only a blind Obedience to the Will of the King his Master_? No, no, he is far from pursuing the Destruction of any one, tho' never so great an Enemy to him; and therefore since his Memoirs will most _infallibly_ ('tis his own Expression, _ibid_) produce so tragical an effect, there's no Question but he may be easily prevailed with to suppress them. Besides what may serve to confirm us farther in this Opinion, he solemnly professes, _p. 12. that he still preserves a profound respect for the Memory of the late King, and that he has a great regard for several Persons of Quality who even at this time of day are deeply interested that he should hold his Tongue_. Now from hence I gather that as 'tis impossible for him to write his Memoirs without being somewhat familiar with the Reputation of King _Charles_ the II. (and if so, why does he quarrel with Sir _W. T. p. 38._ for _prost.i.tuting that Prince's Reputation_, since by this pa.s.sage 'tis apparent that a Man cannot avoid the doing of it, provided he designs to write sincerely) so 'tis probable that this Consideration may incline a Man of his Compa.s.sion and Bowels to forbear the sacrificing a dead Monarch to his Indignation; especially since it must be attended with the unavoidable ruine of several eminent Persons still alive. Thus after a due Examination of the Matter, I find 'tis a difficult Case to resolve whether Monsieur _de Cros_ will _infallibly_ publish, or else _infallibly_ suppress his Memoirs.

If Monsieur _de Cros_ designed this Letter as a Specimen of what he shortly resolves to enrich the World with, he's extremely mistaken in his Politics. To pretend it is an Answer to the Impostures of Sir _W. T. Reponse aux impostures de Monsieur le Chevalier Temple_ (for all this it threatens to perform in the t.i.tle Page) and yet not to prove him faulty in one single Matter of Fact, but only in general Terms to say he is frequently mistaken, which yet the best Man in the World may be without deserving the Name of Impostor; and that care shall be taken to satisfie him better at some other Opportunity, was certainly the grossest and most absurd _Soloecism_ in the World. But not to dwell any longer upon this nauseous Chapter, I am sorry for my Reader's sake, who it may be expected a more agreeable Entertainment, that I have obliged my self to pursue Monsieur _de Cros_ from Paragraph to Paragraph: For Connexion being the least thing he troubles his Head with, his Answerer, of Consequence, must be forc'd to ramble along with him: But this being too late to be prevented now, I return to him once more.

_My Lord 'tis not my Design_ (cries Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 13.) _to write you a Letter full of Invectives against Sir_ W. T. Now if that were not his Design, he would very much oblige the World to let them know at his first Convenience what it was. _Neither shall I descend into the Particulars of his Conduct._ A wonderful great Favour! and Sir. _W. T._ to show he is resolved not to be behind-hand with him in Courtesie, promises by way of requital, never to trouble himself with the Particulars of his. _I shall say no more at present than what is barely necessary to convince your Lords.h.i.+p and all the World, that I have the means in my hands to revenge my self abundantly for the injuries he has done me._ To return a full Answer to this last period, we need only put him in mind of the Proverb, _Canes timidi vehementius latrant quam mordent_, and much good may it do him.

The next Paragraph carries a very mournful Mien with it; for there he complains that Sir _W. T._ set upon him first, that he writes with a Spirit of Vengeance, that he suffers himself to be transported with ungovernable Heats like a Man who fancies he is touch'd to the Quick: But now mind what follows, _As for my self_ p. 13. _I protest to you My Lord, that I write_ de Sang Froid _in cold Blood_. How consistent Writing in cold Blood and a hot Head is, I leave it to Monsieur _de Cros_ to determine at his Leisure. In the mean time an inconsidering Man who sees such sort of Stuff so often repeated would imagine that our _Letter-writer_ had all the Meekness of a Primitive Saint, and carried no such thing as a Gall about him; when 'tis plain, we may say the same thing of his Gall, what some Physicians have observed of the Liver in a vitiated Const.i.tution, _crescente Liene decrescit reliquum Corpus_; and that his has increased at the Expence of the rest of his Body.

To be fully satisfied of the Truth of this, let us examine what follows next. _'Tis true_, says Monsieur _du Cros_, p. 14. _that Sir_ W. T. _has glittered for some time, but then he borrowed all his l.u.s.tre princ.i.p.ally from the Protection of a certain n.o.ble-Man whom at last he betray'd, and of whom he makes insolent mention in his Memoirs, and that with the blackest Ingrat.i.tude that may be_. This is a very severe Charge, if it could be made out: But neither did Sir _W.

T._ derive all his l.u.s.tre from my Lord _A----n_, nor does he treat him insolently any where in his Memoirs. As soon as that Lord forsook his Master's and the Kingdom's real Interests to cultivate the growing Power of a Neighbouring Nation, Sir _W. T._ thought it high time to leave him; but it never enter'd so much as into his Thoughts to betray him. _After this_, continues our Pamphleteer, _he advanced himself by the Patronage of some other Persons, to whose Service he intirely devoted himself, to the Prejudice of his Duty; and so well did he insinuate himself into their Confidence and good Graces, the Post he was in giving him the privilege to have a frequent Access to their Persons, that he was in a Capacity to have rendred very considerable Services both to the King his Master and to his Country if he had made the best Use of that Advantage._ If Sir _W. T._ ever failed of doing the best Offices he could for his King and Country, it might perhaps proceed from want of better Information, but his Duty and Affection were never in fault. This he thinks a sufficient Reply to this ill-grounded Calumny; for he never dedicated himself so intirely to the Service of other Persons (Monsieur _de Cros_ must here mean the P.

of _O._) as to make the least Infringement of his Allegiance. And this will notoriously appear by several Pa.s.sages in the Memoirs, but particularly p. 153. where Sir _W. T._ gives a large Account of a long Conversation between the P. of _O._ and himself in the Garden at _Hounslerd.y.k.e_. The Prince had been telling him before, that the Dispositions and Designs of the Court were generally thought so different from those of the Nation, especially upon the Point of Religion, that his Friends there did not believe the Government could be long without some great Disturbance unless they chang'd their Measures, which was not esteem'd very likely to be done. To which Sir _W. T._ answered _That his Friends (as they pretended) in_ England _must see farther than he did to believe the King in any such Dangers and Difficulties as they imagined. That the Crown of_ England _stood upon surer Foundations than ever it had done in former times, and the more for what had pa.s.sed in the late Reign; and that he believed the People would be found better Subjects than perhaps the King himself believ'd them. That it was however in his Power to be as well with them as he pleased, and to make as short Turns to such an End; if not, yet with the help of a little good Husbandry he might pa.s.s his Reign in Peace, tho not perhaps with so much Ease at home or Glory abroad as if he fell into the Vein of his People._ What could Monsieur _de Cros_ himself have done more in such a Station? Here was not the least Injury design'd to the late King, and as for the other Part of Sir _W. T_'s Discourse, his Obligations as well as Ties of Friends.h.i.+p to the Prince necessitated him to give him a faithful Representation of Affairs in _England_. But our furious Counsellor of State is still inveighing against Sir _W. T. for being often deficient in an exact Fidelity, which every Minister is obliged to preserve inviolably even in Matters of the least Consequence_. Sir _W. T._ to his great Comfort is not the first Minister that has sometimes made bold to disobey or suspend his Masters Orders, by the same Token that there are the Names of several upon Record, who after they have transgress'd upon this Point, instead of Frowns or Punishments, have received Rewards from their respective Princes as soon as they came to be better inform'd.

After all an implicite blind Obedience may do well in _France_, or under a despotick Climate; but all the Application in the World will never bring it to Perfection in _England_.

Well, but says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 15. _the late King of_ England _found him out at last, and was so sensible of it, that tho he dispatch'd him with a Commission into_ Holland, _he did it only out of a Consideration of the Acquaintance he had there_. And a little lower, _Nor was he then made use of but only in such Occasions as are never devolv'd upon a Man with whose Conduct and Trust a Prince is well satisfied, or for whom he has any regard and esteem; a Truth owned and acknowledged by Sir_ W. T. _himself in his Memoirs_. If Sir _W. T._ had half the Vanity that makes so large a Share in the Composition of Monsieur _de Cros_, he has here a fine Opportunity to tell the World what particular Confidences his Prince reposed in him; but as this can be no News to his Friends in _England_, so he does not esteem it worth the while to proclaim it to Foreigners, some of whom perhaps are too much prejudiced against him to receive any thing in his Behalf. 'Tis true indeed, that Sir _W. T._ frequently takes notice in his Memoirs of the many Marches and Counter-Marches of our Court, as he had just Reason to do, and as all _Europe_ observed as well as he. However he must humbly beg Monsieur _de Cros_'s Pardon, if he cannot believe that they were done with any Design to _prost.i.tute_ him to the World: For if that were true, he thinks they carried on their Revenge too far, and instead of prost.i.tuting his Character did but prost.i.tute their own more effectually.

_And thus it is visible_, continues Monsieur _de Cros_ p. 16. _that the King, a little after the Peace of_ Nimeguen _neglected him_. If making Offers to him of a Secretary's Place immediately after his Arrival, be the Sign of Neglect, all this is certainly true; _and seldom employ'd him. 'Tis not as Sir_ W. T. _would make the World believe, the Love of Retirement, and his Indisposition of Body, that made him throw up his Employs; for never Man more pa.s.sionately desir'd to have his Share in the Publick Administrations than he._ Well, 'tis no Miracle however to see a Man who is perfectly so unacquainted with his own Humour to be a Stranger to all the rest of Mankind. The Author of the Memoirs was at this time prevailed with by the King to have a Part in a New Const.i.tution of Council; and after almost two years unsuccesful Endeavours at some Union, or at least some Allay of the Heats and Distempers between the King and his Parliaments, took up a Resolution of having no more to do with affairs of State; and accordingly sent his Son in 1680. to acquaint his Majesty with it.

Whether he has departed from these Resolutions since, he leaves it to the World to judge.

After Monsieur _de Cros_ has throughly chafed himself by a.s.signing, as he pretends, the true Reason why Sir _W. T._ was discarded the Court, namely, the King's being dissatisfied with his Services, and Sir _W. T_'s endeavouring all that in him lay to frustrate the King's Commands, contained in a Dispatch which our _Letter-writer_ left with him at the _Hague_, as he was going to _Nimeguen_ by his Majesty's Order, to conclude a Peace _Don't expect_, says he p. 17. _My Lord, that I should here acquaint you with the true Cause of so extraordinary a Resolution, which according to Sir_ W. T. _entirely changed the Fate of Christendom. I should do him too great a Pleasure if I should reveal so important a Secret, and several other Intrigues, in which some Persons, both of the late and this Reign in_ England, _are nearly concerned._ But two or three Pages above, Monsieur _de Cros_ spoke in another Tone, _je lui fair ai le plaisir de le mieux instruire_, p. 9. but now the Weather-Gla.s.s is alter'd with him, so that, for all I can discover, we must e'en tarry till his Remarks, or his Memoirs are printed, and till then blunder in the Dark. 'Tis true, he is pleased to give a very pleasant reason why he is by no means for opening his Raree-show at present, which the Reader may take in his own Words; _I doubt not_, cries he, p. 18. _but Sir_ W. T.

_pa.s.sionately desires it; he knows well enough that a full Discovery of these Practises would incense the Parliament against the Advisers of them; and 'tis their Ruin he wishes at the Bottom of his Heart_. And a little lower, _Besides, I would not at this critical Conjuncture, when K._ William _labours with so much Zeal and Glory to procure the Repose of Christendom, and the Happiness of his own Subjects, revive those Animosities and Quarrels which have already occasioned but too many Convulsions in_ England, _and might be a great obstacle to that Union, which is so necessary towards the happy Execution of the Designs of this great Monarch_. Most Authors have their _le Fort_ and _le Foible_; but this Discourse of Monsieur _de Cros_ is altogether made up of _Foibles_. For him to imagine that the great Senate of _England_ has nothing else to do but to read his Books and be directed by them, is such a horrid piece of Vanity that nothing can parallel. No, Monsieur _de Cros_ may safely print his Book, and yet for all that K.

_William_ with his Confederates may re conquer _Flanders_, the Parliament supply the King with Money, and not so much as one single Courtier be sent to Gra.s.s. And this is so certain a Truth, that he needs not be in a moment's pain about it; for if his Memoirs are no more regarded in _England_ than his Letter has been, he can injure no man living by them, but, (as we have already told him) _himself_ and his _Bookseller_.

Well, at last, (Heaven be prais'd) we are come to the Merits of the Cause; and now it appears that the true and real Cause why Monsieur _de Cros_ has all along so vehemently declaimed against Sir _W. T._ proceeded not from his giving a wrong Relation of State-Affairs, from his disturbing the Sacred Ashes of King _Charles_ the Second, from his neglecting to execute his Master's Orders, from his inexcusable Ingrat.i.tude to his Protector and Patron, or, in fine, from his Pride, his Opiniatrete, or any crime of that Nature. 'Tis a Thing of a nearer Relation, and of a deeper Concern. He had injuriously attacked the Reputation of Monsieur _de Cros_, and now he must expect to be severely handled for it.

_At this time_, says our incensed Statesman, p. 19. _there arrived from_ England _one_ de Cros, _as Sir_ W. T. _has express'd it, I shall not, my Lord, make any stop at this term of Contempt, One de Cross_; tho to his great Commendation be it spoken, he has almost spent a whole Page about it before he has done, _'tis in Relation to my self an Expression of the blackest Malice_. From thence he takes the Hint to be speak himself to his Reader, telling him that the late King of _England_ did him the Honour to treat him with more Respect and Civility, both in his Pa.s.s-ports, his Letters, and the Commissions he entrusted him with. He says 'twas _fort Cavalierement_, in plain English, impudently done to speak after that saucy manner, of a Man that was born of a tolerable good Family, that had been honour'd near twenty years with several Employments, and whom a great Prince and a King did not disdain to take for a Counsellor of State. There is a certain Figure in Rhetorick (I have forgot the Name of it) which the Grammarians tell us we are guilty of committing, when we pretend to pa.s.s over those very things which we design to enumerate; and this I find has been very serviceable all along to Monsieur _de Cros; he won't make any stop at those words, no, not he; he won't rake into the Particulars of Sir_ William's _Life, no not he_, but all the while does it; and to say the truth, there's nothing in the whole Rhetorick that he copies with so good a Grace. Well, let all Authors for the future, as they hope to avoid Sir _W. T_'s sad Destiny, whatever they do, be sure to mind their Heraldry; for they may see what a terrible Adversary he has drawn upon himself by making a small mistake in that ancient and honourable Science.

The Author of the Memoirs, _p. 325._ giving a short account of Monsieur _de Cros_ and his Character, was so ill advised as to throw out these Words: _He had formerly been a_ French _Monk, and some time since had left his Frock for a Petticoat_. And now 'tis worth the while to observe what judicious Remarques our furious _Letter-Writer_ has made upon them. _This is a fine reproach_, says he, _p. 20. to come out of the Mouth of a Protestant Amba.s.sador, one that belonged to a Monarch who stiles himself Defender of the Faith; and in short, one that so loudly declared at_ Nimeguen _that he'd have nothing to do with the Pope's Nuncio._ A very hard Case this, that Sir _W. T._ shall not have the liberty to acquaint the World that Monsieur _de Cros had been a Monk_, because, forsooth, his Master was Defender of the Faith: Nor to take notice that _he had exchanged his Frock for a Petticoat_, because he would not shake hands with the Pope's Nuncio at _Nimeguen_.

This is a strange sort of reasoning, but not very terrible. But perhaps the Apology that follows may make some amends for the whipp'd Cream above. _I don't know, my Lord, whether it is a scandalous thing to be a Monk, this I am certain of, that it is infinitely less scandalous to have been one._ Sir _W. T._ will never contradict Monsieur _de Cros_ upon this Article, nor did he say in his Memoirs that 'tis scandalous to be a Monk: But Monsieur _de Cros_, who values himself much upon his Politics, seeing he was unable to carry on the War much longer at his own Expence, was resolved to fight his Battles with the whole Body of the Regular Ecclesiastics; and therefore making it a Cloister Quarrel, indicts him upon a _Scandalum Monachorum_. But to proceed, _I make no doubt_, continues he, _but that among the Monks as well as among the rest of Mankind, one may find sad wretched Fellows_, (Speak softly lest any of the Brothers of the Surcingle hear thee) _of mean, base Parentage_, (Prethee for your old Acquaintance sake, not so loud) _of infamous, irregular Lives_ (nay, now you have undone yourself with them for ever) _Drones, good for nothing_, (I find he'll never have done with this Chapter) _without Honour, Good Manners, or Reputation_. And yet not a quarter of an hour agoe it was no scandal to be in such blessed Company. _Sir_ W. T. _without Question looked upon me to be one of this number._ This is more than he knew; but however since he has positively a.s.serted it, Sir _W. T._ will not contradict him. _But then_, says our _Furioso_, turning the Tables, _p. 21. there are also to be found among them Persons ill.u.s.trious for the Sanct.i.ty of their Manners, Men of extraordinary Merit, and of the highest Quality, Sons of Princes and of Crown'd Heads, nay, Kings themselves, and Sovereign Pontiffs_. He is now thinking to cajole the Monks after he had so plentifully bespatter'd them before: And must fain let the World see how dexterously he can blow Satyr and Panegyrick with the very same Breath. _But if this sort of Life is not reckoned now a days, as it has been heretofore, so certain a Character of an honest good Man does Sir_ W. T. _imagine he dishonours me, when he says that for a Petticoat I have abandoned a Profession which he himself looks upon to be so contemptible._ If Sir _W. T._ has not dishonoured Monsieur _de Cros_, why all this Fury, this Heat and Indignation? All that the Author of the Memoirs said was very harmless. As an Historian he was obliged to give a short Account of those persons, whose Actions he there recounts. Mr. _de Cros_ happening to be a Man very remarkable towards the conclusion of the Treaty of _Nimeguen_, Sir _W. T._ acquaints the World with part of his History, and in particular says he had been formerly a Monk. Nor does Monsieur _de Cros_ deny it, and yet for all that fansies himself abominably injured. What! because he reported him to have been of that Profession of Life which has bred so many learned Men, furnished the Almanack with so many Saints, Thrones with so many Kings; nay, and the Pontifical Chair with one third of her Popes?----But some people I see are never well, full nor fasting.

Mr. _Dryden_, I remember, amongst several other judicious Remarks that so frequently occur in his _Essay upon Dramatick Poetry_, has this of the famous _Johnson_, which in my Opinion (and I think I have not lost all my Taste in my Old Age) is admirable. _Ben_, says he, never introduces any Person upon the Stage, but first of all informs his Reader of his Character, and by that means bespeaks his attention. As for instance if a _La fool_ is to be brought in, he makes a Foot-boy till _True wit_, that one Monsieur _La-fool_ is coming to pay him a Visit; and before he makes his appearance, _True-wit_ lets his Friends know, and consequently, by them, the Audience, what sort of a Gentleman _La-fool_ is, and what are his best Qualities. By this ingenious Piece of Conduct the Poet takes care to please his Spectators, who it may be are at first as uneasie to see a strange Face upon the Stage, as in Company at the Tavern, till they are better acquainted with his Dispositions; and then his Conversation is always more edifying. The same management has been used by several Historians (and not to descend into a _detail_ of the rest) by _Sall.u.s.t_ himself, a Writer of the first Rank and Quality: And why Sir _W. T._ should not practise it, is certainly a Mystery. If then the Matter of Fact be true (nor dares _de Cros_ deny it) where's the Imposture? If the Truth that is told does no ways reflect upon the Reputation of the Party concerned (as he himself owns it) where's the Injury, where's the Affront?

Indeed as a famous _Grecian_ Philosopher is reported thus to have express'd himself in relation to his Thoughts of Humane Life, That it was much better not to have been born than to live at all: So in relation to the Monastick State, one may say without breach of Charity, that it is (at least as the Sentiments of the World run now) far preferable not to have been a Monk, than sometimes to have been one: For though 'tis no scandal to wear a Cowl, I am sure there's no Credit got by wearing it. In all such large Societies, the number _des miserables, d'une ba.s.se naissance, gens inutiles, sans honneur & sans reputation_, are ten to one in comparison of the _tres celebres par la Santete de leur moeurs, d'un merite extraordinaire_, &c. And so much in answer to Monsieur _de Cros's Princes_ and _Kings_, _Cardinals_ and _Popes_.

_I will not here tell you_, says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 21. _how I came to be engaged in this Life in my younger Days_. Truly that is somewhat hard. _Neither will I tell you the Reasons why I quitted it._ This is the hardest of all: For though we may allow Monsieur _de Cros_ to have gone into a Convent for little or no reason at all; yet 'tis a very severe Case if a Man of his Kidney had not several good Reasons to leave it: His Youth excuses the former; but he was certainly at Years of Discretion, when he abdicated the Monk, and set up the Lay-man. But let us comfort our selves. The Memoirs will be printed, and then we shall know all.

However though Monsieur _de Cros_ at this present Writing would not acquaint his n.o.ble Lord with the Reasons of his Change; yet he is so far complaisant as to satisfie him that _it was not for a Petticoat: Ce ne fut pas au moins pour une juppe_, p. 21. And then he gives an admirable Reason for what he says. _I pa.s.sed several Years without having any Inclinations to a Petticoat_. A pretty Argument; and therefore a Petticoat was not the cause of his Change. But as the Schoolmen say, _Quod primum in intentione, ultimum in executione_: And so in the present Case, a Petticoat might be the first thing in Monsieur _de Cros_'s Intention, though it happened to be the last in Execution. _Nay it appeared to the World_, p. 22. _that I was very irresolute and difficult in my Choice_. And who can blame him for it.

The Matrimonial Vow is infinitely a greater Curb than the Monastick. A man if he can make Friends with the Pope may get himself absolved from the latter; or in case of Necessity, may turn his own Pope, as Monsieur _de Cros_ did: But a Wife is not to be discarded at that easie rate. 'Tis not the old Gentleman with the Cross-Keys and Triple-Crown, but with the Scythe and Hour-gla.s.s that can free a Man from his Spouse, and set him at liberty.

_I had too much Advantage on my side_, p. 22. _to change the Frock for the Petticoat I have chose, not to do it._ Well this plain Consession makes amends for all. What was pretended a little before, _viz._ That _some Years were pa.s.sed before I had any Inclinations to a Petticoat_, was spoke by the Politician: But here the true, the sincere, the undebauched Monk speaks, who owns he would have taken up a Petticoat much sooner, but only was looking sharp out all this while for one that was well fringed with _Advantages_. And now as there are abundance of Husbands in the World, who as soon as their Wives happen to be mentioned in Company, cannot forbear to enlarge upon their several Perfections and Vertues; so it fares with Monsieur _de Cros_, for now he is got into his _Petticoat_, he will never have done. _'Tis a Petticoat_, continues he, _d'une etoffe d' Ecosse, of Scotch Cloth, which has been of far greater Ornament and Service to the Crown of_ England, _than even Sir_ W. T. himself. Since his Petticoat has done such rare Exploits, by my Consent let Monsieur _de Cros_ write a Panegyrick upon it. But by the bye this is a very figurative way of Writing; and therefore, though I don't understand it, I hope there may be some meaning in the bottom. _If he does not know so much already_, p. 26. _the History of the last Transactions in_ England _and_ Scotland _will better inform him._ Here we are referr'd again to a _Hans en Kelder_ of a History, which when it will be mid-wifed into the World the Lord knows. But I wonder extremely why he wou'd condescend so low to compare his useful Petticoat to Sir _W. T._ as why in another place _p. 8._ he tells us that the _Dutch_ Minister who forwarded the Triple-League, surpa.s.sed Sir _W. T._ in Prudence. A very sorry Complement this, both to his serviceable Petticoat and to his prudent _Dutch_ Minister, if as he pretends, _p. 62._ Sir _W. T._ was taken abroad _pour dupe_, for a Cully.

_I will not say any more of this Matter_, continues Mounsieur _de Cros_, p. 22. _because I have no mind to engage my self to publish the Misfortunes and Disorders of Sir_ W. T's _Family_. Methinks he might have left out Disorders, for Misfortunes is enough; _and that in my Opinion wou'd not be fair and honest_. Why the bare mention of a Petticoat should engage him in such a Narration, is hard to conceive; and yet this blind Insinuation is infinitely more malicious than if he had wandered into a large History. There the World would have been satisfied what these Misfortunes were, with which Monsieur _de Cros_ so brutally refreshes Sir _W. T_'s memory; whereas this blind _Innuendo_ leaves open room for the Conjectures and Surmises of all people, who in such Cases generally imagine the worst. _I have no Occasion_, says he, _that I know of, to complain either of his Wife, his Son, or his Daughters_; why then all these invidious Hints? Is it not enough for other Persons to condemn our Author, but must he pa.s.s Sentence upon himself.

_But suppose_, says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 23. _that I had quitted the Frock, for the Petticoat, what of all that? 'Tis no more than what an infinite number of Persons of eminent Worth, such as Nuncio's, Bishops, Cardinals, Kings, and Popes have done in their time: Nay, there have been some Princesses in the World that have changed a Veil for a pair of Breeches, whose Posterity I don't question are held in great Veneration by Sir_ W. T. All this may very well be; and yet I cannot but observe how natural it is for your great Persons to excuse themselves by the Example of their great Predecessors. And thus the poor Ant in the Epigram that unfortunately tumbled down the Precipice of a Mole-hill, comforted her self with the Precedent of _Phaeton: 'Tis true_, says she, _I have had a d.a.m.n'd Fall here; but what then?

Sic cecidit Phaeton_, Phaeton _had one before me_.

_If I had been a sort of an Agent for Sweden_, says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 24. _as Sir_ W. T. _has represented me, I should not have defended my self upon that score; I should have taken it for a great Honour to be employed by so mighty a King_. I wonder then where was the hurt if Sir _W. T._ conferr'd a _Swedish_ Agents.h.i.+p upon him.

_But at that time I was at the Court of_ England _in Quality of Envoy-Extraordinary from the Duke of_ Gottorp, _whom Sir_ W. T. _never so much as mentions in his Memoirs, although he had two Ministers at the Congress, and_ France _stipulated for his re-establishment in the second Article of the Peace_. By Monsieur _de Cros_'s leave, the Agent was some Years older than the Envoy; and if Sir _W. T._ has omitted the Duke of _Gottorp_ in his Memoirs, 'twas pure Forgetfulness, but not want of respect. _Well_, concludes he, in a great Fit of Devotion, _p. 26. Heaven be praised Sir_ W. T. _is not the Dispenser of Glory and Immortality_. And Heaven be likewise praised, say I, Monsieur _de Cros_ is not the Dispenser of Scandal and Ignominy.

Sir _W. T._ in his Memoirs, _p. 335._ speaking of Monsieur _de Cros_, happen'd to let fall this short particular. _At_ London _he had devoted himself wholly to Monsieur_ Barillon, _the_ French _Amba.s.sador, though pretending to pursue the interests of_ Sweden.

Upon this Monsieur _de Cros_ raises a furious Outcry, and to furnish himself with a better pretence of complaining of his unjust usage, as he imagines, he has quite perverted the meaning as it lies in the Original: For whereas Sir _W. T._ barely says, that he devoted himself to the Service of the _French_ Amba.s.sador at _London_, without specifying any time at all, Monsieur _de Cros_ has translated it, _Des qu'il avoir ete a Londres_, that is, _ever since he came to_ London; and thereupon informs his Reader that Monsieur _Barillon_ was not at _London_ when he was sent thither, but the Marquis _de Ruvigny_, who was afterwards succeeded by Monsieur _de Courtin_. By this piece of _Fourberie_, to give it no worse a Name, he thought to have eluded the severe, but just imputation cast upon him by Sir _W. T._ of being one of _Barillon_'s Creatures, but with what Success any unprejudiced Reader may see. For,

Observe what he says in the next Paragraph. _I never devoted my self to that Amba.s.sador_, p. 29. _and never maintained any Correspondences with him to the prejudice of my Duty._ As just before Monsieur _de Cros_, with an ingenuity peculiar to himself, had made Sir _W. T._ speak what he never designed, in order to invalidate his Testimony; so here, forgetting it seems what he had formerly advanced, he gives himself the Lye. There is no doubt but every man may make as bold with his own Reputation as he pleases, but then this gives him no Privilege to invade that of his Neighbour: and therefore Sir _W. T._ though he allows Monsieur _de Cros_ the liberty to contradict himself as often as he in his great Wisdom sees fit, and easily forgives him that Offence; yet he desires him for the future not to commit the same violence upon others.

It may very pertinently be demanded what Monsieur _de Cros_ means by these Words, _to the prejudice of his Duty_: For a man that pays so small a regard to Truth, as he seems to do, perhaps, may think nothing in the World an infringement of his Duty. But let us hear him explain himself upon this Chapter. _I confess, indeed_, p. 30. _that when he_, meaning Monsieur _Barillon, employ'd himself for the Interests of my Master, and of_ Sweden, _I became intirely devoted to him_. At last Monsieur _de Cros_ owns himself to be devoted to Monsieur _Barillon_; however to mollifie it somewhat, he pretends that he never made those Advances till that Amba.s.sador cultivated the Interests of his Master and of _Sweden_. A miserable Evasion! for how perfidiously the Ministers of that Crown have all along dealt with their Allies, let _Candy_ and _Messina_ proclaim to the World. Their Friends.h.i.+p has been fatal to all that ever depended upon it, as the Histories of the last Times will evidently show; and though they pretended never so cordially to espouse the Quarrel of their Confederates, yet they seldom scrupled to abandon their Interests when it made never so little for their Advantage to do it.

_How this Dispatch by_ de Cros _was gained, or by whom_ (says Sir _W.

T._ in his Memoirs, _p. 336._) _I will not pretend to determine._ And a little lower: _The Account I met with at Court was, that these Orders were agreed and dispatched one morning in an hours time, and in the Dutchest of_ Portsmouth's _Chamber by the intervention and pursuit of Monsieur_ Barillon. In this place Sir _W. T._ by no means pretends, to decide the Question, but only relates what were the general Sentiments of the Court upon it, and for the Truth of this, appeals to several eminent Persons still living. But it is pleasant to observe what a learned Harangue Monsieur _de Cros_ has made upon this Account. _'Tis a great deal of pity_, says he, _p. 35. that an Amba.s.sador of_ England, _who had the Secretary's place so often proffer'd him, was not only during his absence, when he was negotiating the Publick Affairs at_ Nimeguen _and the_ Hague, _but even at his return into_ England, _so little instructed in what had pa.s.sed there, and princ.i.p.ally in an Affair of this Importance and Consideration._ Perhaps 'tis a great deal of pity, as he says; but by his favour 'tis no wonder at all, especially considering the Const.i.tution of our Court at that juncture, that when they were to play any private Game, they never thought it worth their while to acquaint Sir _W. T._ with their Intrigues; nor does he envy the good Fortune of Monsieur _de Cros_ for being made a Party in them.

_What a horrid Impertinence_, adds our Declaimer, _p. 38. was it in him to endeavour to perswade the World, that the most important Affair of that time, on which according to him, the Fate and Destiny of_ Christendom _depended, was dispatched and concluded in an hour's time in the Dutchess of_ Portsmouth's _Apartment by the Intervention of Monsieur_ Barillon. We may well allow Monsieur _de Cros_ to Christen Truth by the Name of Impertinence, because he's so seldom guilty of such Impertinences; and his Memoirs when they visit the World, whatever Faults they may be charged with, will be never liable I believe to that Exception. Sir _W. T._ as has been already said, only delivers this as the Opinion of the Court, without interposing his own Sentiments: And indeed to any unprejudiced Person, who considers what an unfortunate influence that Amba.s.sador in conjunction with the Mistress had upon the late King, this Account will not appear so _impertinent_ as Monsieur _de Cros_ represents it.