could; and fear, from my never having before attempted a thing of the kind, it will be full of errors, and being much fatigued from writing of it, from the original, in eight and forty hours, of the facts contained therein, I believe they are correct; I am ready to assert, in the most solemn manner, that I know them all to be true.

(Signed)

CHARLOTTE DOUGLAS.

JOHN DOUGLAS.

In the presence of

AUGUSTUS FREDERICK.

Greenwich Park, Dec. 3, 1805.

Copies of all the Papers alluded to in this Detail are in the Hands of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales.

(No. 2.)

Narrative of the Duke of Kent.

TO introduce the following relation, it is necessary for me to premise that, on entering the Prince of Wales's bedroom, where our interview took place, my Brother, after dismissing his attendants, said to me, that some circum. stances had come to his knowledge, with respect to a transaction with the Princess of Wales, in which he found that I had been a party concerned; that if he had not placed the most entire reliance on my attachment to him, and, he was pleased to add, on the well-known uprightness of my character and principles, he should certainly have felt himself in no small degree offended, at having learnt the facts alluded to from others, and not, in the first instance, from me, which he conceived himself every way entitled to expect, but more especially from that footing of confidence on which he had ever treated me through life; but, that being fully satisfied my explanation of the matter would prove, that he was not wrong in the opinion he had formed of the honourable motives that had actuated me in observing a silence with regard to him upon the subject; he then was anxiously waiting for me to proceed with a narrative, his wish to hear which, he was sure he had only to express, to ensure my immediate acquiescence with it. The Prince then gave me his hand, assuring me he did not feel the sinallest degree of displeasure towards me, and proceeded to introduce the subject upon which he required information; when, feeling it a duty I owed him, to withhold from his knowledge no part of the circumstances connected with it that I could bring back to my recollection, I related the facts to him, as nearly as I can remember, in the following words:

"About a twelvemonth since, or thereabouts, (for I "cannot speak positively to the exact date), I received at "note from the Princess of Wales, by which she requested

86

66

46

me to come over to Blackheath, in order to assist her "in arranging a disagreeable matter between her, Sir Sidney Smith, Sir John and Lady Douglas, the particu"lars of which she would relate to me when I should call. "I, in consequence, waited upon her, agreeable to her desire, a day or two after, when she commenced the conversation by telling me, that she supposed I knew "she had, at one time, liv'd with Lady Douglas on a footing of intimacy, but that she had had reason after"wards to repent having made her acquaintance, and was "therefore rejoiced when she left Blackheath for Ply"mouth, as she conceived that circumstance would break "off all further communication between her and that Lady; that, however, contrary to her expectation, upon "the return of Sir John and her from Plymouth to London, Lady Douglas had cailed and left her name twice "or three times, notwithstanding she must have seen

66

66

that admission was refused her; that having been con"firmed in the opinion she had before had occasion to "form of her Ladyship, by an anonymous letter she had

66

received, in which she was very strongly cautioned against renewing her acquaintance with her, both as being unworthy of her confidence, from the liberties she "had allowed herself to take with the Princess's name, "and the lightness of her character, she had felt herself obliged, as Lady Douglas would not take the hint that "ber visits were not wished for, to order Miss Vernon to "write her a note, specifically telling her, that they "would in future be dispensed with; that the conse

66

quence of this had been an application, through one of "her ladies, in the joint names of Sir Sidney Smith, Sir "John and Lady Douglas, for an audience, to require an "explanation of this, which they considered as an af"front; and that being determined not to grant it, or to "suffer any unpleasant discussion upon the subject, she "entreated me to take whatever steps I might judge best

46

"to put an end to the matter, and rid her of all further "trouble about it. I stated, in reply, that I had no "knowledge of either Sir John or Lady Douglas, and "therefore could not, in the first instance, address myself "to them; but that I had some acquaintance with Sir Sidney Smith, and if the Princess was not averse to "that channel, I would try what I could in that way "effect. This being assented to by the Princess, I took my leave, and, immediately on my return home, wrote a note to Sir Sidney, requesting him to call upon me as "soon as he conveniently could, as I had some business to speak to him upon. Sir Sidney, in consequence, "called on me (I think) the next day, when I related to "him the conversation, as above stated, that I had had with the Princess. After hearing all I had to say, he observed, that the Princess, in stating to me, that her prohibition to Lady Douglas to repeat her visits at Blackheath, had led to the application for an audience "of Her Royal Highness, had kept from me the real "cause why he, as well as Sir John and Lady Douglas *had made it, as it originated in a most scandalous anonymous letter, of a nature calculated to set on Sir John and him to cut each other's throats, which, from the hand-writing and stile, they were both fully convinced "was the production of the Princess herself. I naturally "expressed my sentiments upon such conduct, on the

66

66

66

66

46

part of the Princess, in terms of the strongest animad"version; but, nevertheless, anxious to avoid the shame"ful eclat which the publication of such a fact to the "world must produce; the effect, which its coming to "the King's knowledge would probably have on his

46

health, from the delicate state of his nerves, and all the "additional misunderstandings between His Majesty and "the Prince, which, I foresaw, would inevitably follow, "were this fact, which would give the Prince so powerful "a handle to express his feelings upon the countenance

"shewn by the King to the Princess, at a time when I knew him to be severely wounded by His Majesty's "visits to Blackheath, on the one hand, and the reports

he had received of the Princess's conduct on the other, "to be brought to light; I felt it my bounden duty, as an "honest man, to urge all these arguments with Sir Sidney

Smith, in the most forcible manner I was master of; "adding also, as a further object, worthy of the most se"rious consideration, the danger of any appearance of "ill-blood in the Family at such an eventful crisis, and "to press upon his mind the necessity of his using his "best endeavours with Sir John Douglas, notwithstand"ing all the provocation that had been given them, to "induce him to let the matter drop, and pursue it no "further. Sir Sidney observed to me, that Sir John

Douglas was a man, whom, when once he had taken a line, from a principle of honour, it was very difficult to persuade to depart from it; however, as he thought. that if any man could prevail upon him, he might flat*ter himself with being the most likely to persuade him, from the weight he had with him; he would immediately try how far he could gain upon him, by making use of those arguments I had brought forward to induce "him to drop the matter altogether. About four or five

66

66

days after this, Sir Sidney called upon me again, and "informed me, that upon making use with Sir John of " ́those reasons, which I had authorized his stating to be

those, by which I was actuated in making the request, "that he would not press the business further, he had not "been able to resist their force; but that the whole ex"tent of promise he had been able to obtain of him,

46

amounted to no more, than that he would, under exist.

ing circumstances remain quiet, if left unmolested; for "that he would not pledge himself not to bring the sub"ject forward hereafter, when the same motive might no longer operate to keep him silent. This resuit I com