The fight lafted for three hours, and I verily believe we should have taken the Frenchman, had we but `had fome more men left behind; but unfortunately, we loft all our men, just as we were going to get the victory.

"I was once more in the power of the French, and I believe it would have gone hard with me, had I been brought back to Breft; but, by good fortune, we were retaken by the Viper. I had almoft forgot to tell you, that, in that engagement, I was wounded in two places; I loft four fingers of the left hand, and my leg was fhot off. If I had had the good fortune to have loft my leg, and ufe of my hand, on board a King's ship, and not aboard a privateer, I fhould have been intitled to cloathing and maintenance, during the rest of my life; but that was not my chance: one man is -born with a filver fpoon in his mouth, and another with a wooden ladle. However, bleffed be God, I enjoy good health, and will for ever love liberty and Old England. Liberty, property, and Old England, for ever, huzza!"

Thus faying, he limped off, leaving me in admiration at his intrepidity and content; nor could I avoid acknowledging, that an habitual acquaintance with mifery ferves better than philofophy to teach us to defpife it.

Copy of a letter from the Duchefs of Cleveland, to King Charles II. taken from an hiftorical and critisal account of the life of Charles II.

T

Paris, Tuesday the 28th.—78. Was never fo furprized in my holle life time as I was at my coming hither, to find my Lady Suffex gone from my house and monaftery, where I left her, and this letter from her, which I here fend you the copy of. I never in my holle life time heard of fuch government of herself as she has had, fince I went into England. She has never been in the monaftery two days together, but every day gone out with the ambaffador and has often lain four days together at my houfe, and fent for her meat to the ambaffador, he being always with her till five o'clock in the morning, they two fhut up together alone, and would not let my maiftre d'hotel wait, nor any of my fervants, only the ambaffador's. This has made fo great a noife at Paris, that he is now the holle difcourfe. I am fo much afflicted, that I can hardly write this for crying, to fee a child that I doted on, as I did on her, fhould make me fo ill a return, and join with the worst of men to ruin me. For fure never malice was like the ambaffador's, that only because I would not answer to his love, and the importunities he made to me, was refolved to ruin me. I hope your majefty will yet have that juftice and confideration for me, that though I have done a foolish action, you will not let me be ruined by this most abominable man. I do confefs to you, that I

did write a foolish letter to the Chevalier de Chatilion, which letter I fent inclofed to Madam de Pallas, and fent her's in a packet I fent to Lady Suffex by Sir Henry Tichborn; which letter fhe has either given to the ambassador, or elfe he had it by his man, to whom Sir Harry Tichborn gave it, not finding my Lady Suffex. But as yet I do not know which of the ways he had it; but I fhall know as foon as I have spoke with Sir Henry Tichborn. But the letter he has, and I doubt not but he has or will fend it to you. Now, all I have to say for myself is, that you know as to love, one is not miftrefs of one's felf, and that you ought not to be offended at me, fince all things of this nature is at an end with you and I. So that I could do you no prejudice. Nor will you, I hope, follow the advice of this ill man, who in his heart I know hates you, and were it not for his intereft would ruin you too if he could. For he has neither confcience or honour, and has feveral times told me, that in his heart he defpifed you and your brother; and that, for his part, he wifhed with all his heart that the parliament would fend you both to travel; for you were a dull governable fool, and the duke a wilful fool. So that it were yet better to have you than him, but that you always chofe a greater beaft than yourself to govern you. And when I was to come over, he brought me two letters to bring to you, which he read both to me before he fealed them. The one was a man's, that he faid you had great faith in; for that he had at feveral times foretold things to

you that were of confequence and that you believed him in all things, like a changeling as you were: and that now he had wrote you word, that in a few months the king of France and his fon were threatened with death, or at leaft with a great fit of fickness, in which they would be in great danger, if they did not die: and that therefore he counfelled you to defer any refolutions either of war or peace till fome months were paft; for that if this happened, it would make a great change in France.

The ambaffador, after he had read this to me, faid, "Now the good of this is," faid he, "that I can do what I will with this man, for he is poor, and a good fum of money will make him write whatever I will." So he propofed to me that he and I fhould join together in the ruin of my Lord Treafurer and the duchefs of Portsmouth, which might be done thus ; the man, tho' he was infirm and ill, should go into England, and there after having been a little time to folicit you for money; for that you were so base, that though you employed him, you let him ftarve; fo that he was obliged to give him fifty pounds, and that the man had writ feveral times to you for money. "And," fays he, "when he is in England, he fhall tell the king things that he forefees will infallibly ruin him; and fo wifh thofe to be removed, as having an ill ftar, that would be unfortunate to you, if they were not removed :" but if that were done, he was confident you would have the most glorious reign that ever was. "This," fays he, "I am fure I can order fo as to bring to a

good

good effect, if you will. And in the mean time I will try to get Secretary Coventry's place, which he has a mind to part with, but not to Sir William Temple; because he is the Treasurer's creature, and he hates the Treasurer, and I have already employed my fifter to talk with Mr. Cook, and to mind him to engage Mr. Coventry not to part with it as yet, and he has affured my Lady Harvey he will not. And my lord Treasurer's lady and Mr. Berree are both of them defirous I should have it. And when I have it, I will be damned if I do not quickly get to be Lord Treafurer; and then you and your children fhall find fuch a friend as never was. And for the King, I will find a way to furnish him fo eafily with money for his pocket and his wenches, that we will quickly out Bab. Nay, and lead the king by the nofe. So when I had heard him out, I told him, I thanked him, but that I would not meddle with any fuch thing: and that for my part I had no malice to my Lady Portsmouth, or to the Treafurer, and therefore would never be in any plot to deftroy them. But that I found the character, which the world gave of him was true, which was, that the devil was not more defigning than he was; and that I wondered at it, for fure all these things working in his brain, mut make him very uneafy, and would at laft make him mad.-'Tis poffible you may think I fay all this out of malice. 'Tis true he has urged me beyond all patience: but what I tell you here is most true; and I will take the facrament on it whenever you pleafe. 'Tis certain I would not have been fo bafe as to have in

formed against him for what he faid before me, had he not provoked me to it in this violent way that he has. There is no ill thing which he has not done to me, and that without any provocation of mine, but that I would not love him. Now, as to what relates to my daughter Suffex and her beha viour to me, I must confefs that afflicts me beyond expreffion, and will do much more, if what he has done be by your orders. For though I have an entire fubmission to your will, and will not complain, whatever you inflict upon me; yet I cannot think you would have brought things to this extremity with me, and have it not in your nature ever to do cruel things to any thing living.

I hope therefore you will not begin with me; and if the ambaffador has not received his orders from you, that you will feverely reprehend him for this inhuman proceeding. Befides, he has done what you ought to be very angry with him for; for he has been with the king of France, and told him that he had intercepted letters of mine by your order; by which he had been informed that there was a kindness between me and the Chevalier de Chatilion; and therefore you bade him take a courfe in it, and ftop my letters; which accordingly he has done. And that upon this you ordered him to take my children from me, and to remove my Lady Suffex to another monaftery; and that you was refolved to flop all my penfions, and never to have any regard to me in any thing. And that if he would oblige your Majefty, he fhould forbid the Chevalier de Chatilion ever feeing me, upon

the

the difpleasure of lofing his place, and being forbid the court; for that he was fure you expected this from him. Upon which the king told him, that he could not do any thing of this nature: for that this was a private matter, and not for him to take notice of. And that he could not imagine that you ought to be fo angry, or indeed be at all concerned; for that all the world knew, that now all things of gallantry were at an end with you and I. And that being fo, and fo public, he did not fee why you fhould be offended at my loving any body. That it was a thing fo common now-a-days to have a gallantry, that he did not wonder at any thing of this nature. And when he faw the King take the thing thus, he told him if he would not be fevere with the Chevalier de Chatilion upon your account, he fuppofed he would be fo upon his own for that, in the letters he had difcovered, he found that the Chevalier had propofed to me the engaging of you in the marriage of the Dauphin and Mademoiselle and that was my greatest business into England t. That before I went over, I had fpoke to him of the thing, and would have engaged him in it, but that he refufed it for that he knew very well the indifference you fhewed whether it was fo or no, and how little you cared how Mademoifelle was married that fince I went into England it was poffible I might engage fomebody or other in this matter to prefs it to you; but that he knew very

:

well, that in your heart you cared not whether it was fo or no, that this bufinefs fetting on foot by the Chevalier. Upon which the king told him, that if he should show him any letters of the Chevalier de Chatilion to that purpose, he should then know what he had to fay to him; but that till he faw thofe letters, he would not punish him without a proof for what he did. Upon which the ambassador fhewed a letter, which he pretended one part of it was a double entendre. The king faid he could not fee that there was any thing relating to it, and fo left him, and faid to a perfon there, fure the ambaffador was the worft man that ever was; for because my Lady Cleveland will not love him, he ftrives to ruin her the basest in the world; and would have me to facrifice the Chevalier de Chatilion to his revenge; which I fhall not do, till I fee better proofs of his having meddled in the marriage of the Dauphin and Mademoiselle than any yet the ambaffador has fhewed me. This, methinks, is what you cannot but be offended at, and I hope you will be offended with him for his holle proceeding to me, and let the world see you will never countenance the actions of fo bafe and ill a man. I had forgot to tell you that he told the King of France, that many people had reported, that he had made love to me; but that there was nothing in it; for that he had too much refpect for you to think of any fuch thing. As for my Lady Suffex, I hope you will think

fit to fend for her over, for the is now mightily difcourfed of for the ambaffador. If you will not believe me in this, make enquiry into the thing, and you will find it to be true. I have defired Mr. Kemble to give you this letter, and to discourse with you at large upon this matter, to know your refolution, and whether I may expect that juftice and goodness from you which all the world does. I promise you that for my conduct, it fhall be fuch, as that you nor nobody shall have occafion to blame me. And I hope you will be just to what you faid to me, which was at my boufe when you told me you had letters of mine; you faid, "Madam, all I ask of you for your fake is, live fo for the future as to make the least noise you can, and I care not who you love." Oh! this noife that it had never been, had it not been for the ambaffador's malice. I cannot forbear Once again faying, I hope you will not gratify his malice in my ruin.

N. B. Anne Palmer, narural daughter by adoption of King Charles II. by Barbara, Duchefs of Cleveland, was married to Thomas Lennard. Lord Dacres, created earl of Suffolk by King Charles II. Hiftory of the Royal Family, p. 256. 8vo. London. 1713;—and Wood's Fasti, vol. ii. c. 154.

The following letter, first published in the Gazetteer, contains so many Strokes of good ferfe and just fa. tire, that any apology for the republication of it would be unneceffary.

Good Sir,

AM an old man, and little used to writing; but, Sir, as I fee you are fo obliging to others as to communicate their sentiments, and complaints to the world, I dare say you will mine.

I was for many years refident in London; but an old uncle, in the year 1729, dying, and leaving me a tolerable eftate in Gloucestershire, I preferred eafe to affluence, and retired from noife and bustle, to peace and quiet.

Among my friends in town was one Mr. Holland, a draper, in Cheapfide: he was a good, honest, pains-taking man if you dined with him, a joint of meat and a pudding was the utmost of his entertainment; I never saw wine in his houfe but at Christmas, or on a wedding-day; we had a glafs of good ale, and after dinner we went to our business, and did not fit three or four hours as you do now. He wore his cap the greatest part of the day, and wan't afhamed to take the broom and the fcraper, and clean before his door. He had a good understanding, and was honeft to a degree of admiration: I fear I fhall never fee his like again; he is dead, poor man, died in July 1750, leaving ten thousand feven hundred pounds, all got by care and industry, between feven children, fhare and fhare alike.

Bufinefs, Mr. Printer, calling me to town this fpring, (my daughter's marriage, good Sir, if you muft know,) I refolved to inquire

after my old friend's family: he had three fors; the eldeft I found was ruined by horfe-racing, and

went.