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A47970
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A letter directed to the Right Honourable the Earl of Perth, governour to the Prince
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Melfort, John Drummond, Earl of, 1649-1715.
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1700
(1700)
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Wing L1361; ESTC N18878
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3,951
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11
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A LETTER Directed to the RIGHT HONOURABLE THE Earl of Perth GOVERNOUR TO THE PRINCE LONDON Printed by Charles Bill and the Executrix of Thomas Newcomb deceas'd Printers to the Kings most Excellent Majesty 1700. Die Lunae 17 Februarii 1700. UPon Reading this day a Letter communicated to the House by His Majesties Command Dated 18th February 1701 and Directed To the Right Honourable the Earl of Perth Governour to the Prince These It is Ordered by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament Assembled That the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England do give Order that the said Letter be forthwith Printed and Published Matthew Johnson Cleric Parliamentor A LETTER Directed to the RIGHT HONOURABLE THE Earl of Perth GOVERNOUR to the PRINCE Friday 18th of February 1701. My D st B r SInce I promist to put in Writing what we had not time to talk fully of I am set down to it in the Morning that my Letter may be ready for the Messenger if any call I told you all that I had heard at Versailles and the favorable Audience I had of Madame de Mentenon for which I beg it of you to return my most humble Thanks to the Queen and beg of her to be so good as to Thank Madame de Mentenon and know from her what can be done in that matter It will be a great Charity in the Queen I told you amongst other things the great Fleet the King intends to put out this Summer the Orders being given and the Money ready the Stores full and every one concerned Active in their Stations There is no doubt but this Fleet will be Master of the Sea for some time if not for all the Summer because the Dutch dare not stir till the English be ready and they have long Debates yet before they can be in a Condition to Act if they have the Will and it is a Question if they will have it at all The King never had so favorable a Conjuncture if he can persuade this King that his Affairs are really in the Circumstances they are in but there is the Difficulty The King and Queen have more Authority with the King and with Madame de Mentenon than any other in the World can have but that's not all there should be some one Acceptable to the Ministers who should lay before them these Proofs their Majesties cannot enter into the Detail of and explain the Reasons make Plans and Memoires by their Majesties Approbation to Convince them of the necessity and to shew the easiness of Restoring the King the Glory it brings to their King and the Advantage to Religion How this will be done their Majesties are wise enough to Consider and I think it is not a Subject fit for me to enter upon but their Friends in general who know not the half of what I know in this matter think that it will not be well done by a Protestant Minister Lazy in his Temper Enemy to France by his Inclination Tainted with Commonwealth Principles and against the Kings Returning by any other Power than that of the People of England upon Capitulation and Terms who is suspected of giving aim to the Compounders if not worse That Mr. Carrell is qualified no man doubts but in Society with the other these who must be Instrumental will not trust him as he ought so that so long as the other is within distance of penetrating the Affairs they will never think themselves secure And yet the King has no such Game to play as by these very Persons who are thus defident namely the true Church of England Party the Catholicks and the Earl of Arran and I shall say something as to every one of them The King cannot but be sensible that the true Church of England Party and their Principal Head now the Bishop of Norwich has been silent of a long time and their Majesties may remember what weight the Court of France laid upon their joyning the King I mean the Non-swearing Clergy in case of a Landing Therefore all arts should be tried without delay to get them to enter into Correspondence again and every Impediment ought to be removed I say without exception and though sometimes it is of hard digestion for Soveraignes who ought to be obeyed without reserve to yield to the humours of Subjects yet Prudence should teach them when they cannot without hurting their Affairs do what they would to do what they can and remember the Fable of the Dog who lost the Substance for the Shadow Assurances from the Non-swearers the Soundest and Venerablist part of the English Church would be of great use at this time to persuade France to undertake this great Affair for besides their owne Example at a Landing and their Preaching and Writing to the People that their Religion was in no danger it is most certain they know better than any others can what the Church of England in general would do for the Kings Service and they being to run all the hazard would be better believed at the Court of France than any other as I found by experience As to the Catholicks and others Associate with them unfortunately for the King they were thought to have too much Inclination for me and so have been reckoned as useless to the King but I must beg leave to say that Undertaking was the best Feather in his Wing and was most justly thought so by him and by the Court of France too even to that degree they pretended if this and the other Article concerning the Clergy could be made Appear they would Concur with the King to Invade England They Consisted of Seven Regiments of Horse and Dragoons their Arms Trumpets Kettle Drums Standards c. were all ready and are yet in surety their Men were all Listed and their Officers Chosen and they had twenty Horses to a Troop which Troops lying at a distance in a Horse Country twenty Horses would soon have Mounted the rest Those who could not divine the Greatness and the Use of the Undertaking blamed the Rashness of it and even some Churchmen have not been disapproven for endeavouring undutifully because contrary to the Kings Written Orders to break the Designe but I desire you now for all this to believe that you have not such another Argument to use to the Court of France as this and if you could make it appear as it might have been done some Years ago I should have very good Hopes of this Summers Work Nay let the King have what other Hopes or even Promises you please from the Court of France this is to be Encouraged and if possible to be put in the Circumstances it was in for if ever there be a Landing in England to purpose it must be before they can be armed and they cannot be armed before the Parliament come to a Resolution concerning the War and considering the few Troops in England suppose these men to be no better than Militia what a Diversion would it
be It is not necessary for me to say any more of this Article till I know whether their Majesties have as good an Opinion of this Undertaking as I have If so I shall shew what I think to be done in it if otherwise I shall save the Pains As to the Earl of Arran it would be of great use to have an Understanding with him He will have none where can prye his all is at stake and he ought to be wary with whom he ventures to deal I think it better for the Kings Service that the Court Party prevailed in the manner they have done in the Parliament of Scotland than that the Country Party should have got their Will Opposition swells the Waters to a Flood and so long as the Country Party is not discouraged they gain more Ground in the Kingdom than they lose in Government So that the Disaffection to the Government will encrease and one may judge of the Nation in general which is of an other Temper than this pretended Parliament or rather Presbiterian Rabble ill representing the Nation For since even in it there is such a Struggle against the Government what would there be in a Free Parliament which the P. of O. durst never hazard to call The Nation then at least a great part of it being disaffected to this Government it is of the last Consequence that E. Arran may know what to do in case of an Invasion of England or in case he and his Friends be obliged for Self preservation to rise in their own Defence The Army who are and ever were well-affected are to be gained by Money and a little goes a great way with them The Disbanded Troops would be engaged and the Officers are well inclined The Places of Strength would be secured and such as can be put in Defence without Expences fortified To do all this at least such a part of them as can be begun with a small Sum will serve and He ought to have Hopes of it and of the Command These being only Heads to be discoursed of and much to be said of every part it is not to be thought that this Letter can carry a final Conclusion for it may be upon Discourse I might change my Mind or be more confirmed in and see further This makes me insist again to you upon two things as appearing to me absolutely necessary to put things upon a right foot The First is the removing of all Impediments out of the way and sending all Suspected Persons to Champagne or Burgundy according to their Goust And the Second is of the last Use both to their Majesties and the Prince which is the Establishing of such a Number under no Qualification to talk of their Affairs in their Majesties Presence with whom we can freely converse and propose what may be for their Majesties Service As for the First It will be for the Kings Reputation both at the Court of Rome France and with all his true Friends in England for many Reasons As for the Second It is according to Scripture In the multitude of Councellors there is safety Nothing is so dangerous as first to Determine what one will do and then hear Reasons against it and immitate the deaf Adder who hearkens not to the Voice of the Charmer let him Charm never so sweatly Reasons against a Resolution taken offend and the more Force they have they offend the more whilst before the Resolution be taken Reason has its Effect and the Determinations are not the Effects of Humour and Faction but of Prudence and Justice If in any thing I fail I'le Swear its want of Understanding and not of Will. And I beg that their Majesties may be persuaded that it is not Humour nor Vanity but their Service I have in my viewe who am My D st B r Most humbly Yours There are no Letters from England I expect and am promist I forgot to tell you that the Conjuncture ought to be improven so long as the Court of France have the Ill Opinion of the Pr. of Orange 's Treachery discovered lately in their hands Superscription For the Right Honourable the Earl of Perth Governour to the Prince These