Selected quad for the lemma: friend_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
friend_n	answer_n	great_a	letter_n	916	5	6.8005	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A48005	A letter from a gentleman in Yorkshire, to his country-man in London, concerning the Duke of Leeds with an answer to the said letter.	Gentleman in Yorkshire.	1695 (1695)	Wing L1396; ESTC R9449	10,064	35

Argument of guilt against the Duke upon the absconding of his Valet de Chambre Monsieur Robart who I remember waited upon the Lord Willughby when we were at York and they would insinuate as if he could discover something against his Grace But this does seem stranger than the rest to believe that if he could say any thing against the Duke his Grace hath not better means and opportunity if he had pleased to secure his own Servant's Testimony to be for his Master's Interest than any body else could have to make him swear against his Master for nothing unless they have a better opinion of a Stranger 's Conscience who is said to be a Swiss than of an Englishman's so that this pretence is lookt upon as frivolous and some suspect whether my Lords Enemies may not rather have prevailed with him to withdraw because his absence serves them both to create a suspicion and delay whereas it is next to an impossibility that his appearance can be prejudicial to the Duke for if he can say nothing against his Grace it would be to his advantage and supposing that he could I will not admit for my Country-mens sakes that a French or Swiss Servant has a more nice and squeamish Conscience for Truth than an English one and I dare appeal to such Servants themselves how many of them would be Proof against a good Reward from their Master to stretch a little for him especially when they should have nothing on the other side for betraying him it being in truth no better than treachery in a Servant to swear against his Master in a case where there is neither Treason nor Felony in it nor indeed so much as to be call'd a Crime till the Parliament thought fit to make it one by a Law ex post facto which may prove a very dangerous President This is another Instance of our wonder how that which hath been so constantly Practised in all times past by most of the Companies trading beyond the Seas viz. The giving Summs of Money at Court for the procuring and inlarging their Charters should without any notice before-hand of its being a Fault be now called an High Crime and Misdemeanor by Act of Parliament and under such heavy Penalties as some do now suffer without any benefit of the Habeas Corpus which ought to be so Sacred to us when in all probability the Punishment would not have been made greater for the trangression of such a Law if it had been a known Law before and had been wilfully broken It is also greatly observable That those Libellers who have shew'd they would omit nothing which they could hope would any way blemish the Duke have not said one Syllable of any Proof made of that matter with which they would charge him but tells us of Contracts and Discourses betwixt one Sir Bazil Firebrass and one Mr. Charles Bates about those Guinea's which are before mentioned and brings it to the Duke only by Sir Bazil''s pretending that the said Mr. Bates should say sometimes to him that he could not treat with Sir Bazil without speaking with his Friend at St James's and the said Firebrass saith that Bates did once name the Duke but does not pretend that himself did ever speak with the Duke about any such Matter only says that he was sometimes brought to the Duke by the said Bates and that his Grace was kinder to them after the Money was given to Mr. Bates I confess this is such a way of charging Men with Crimes as I hope we of lesser Rank shall never be made liable to and Sir Bazil's part in it is what does agree with the Character he hath in many other things if the Stories be true which are related of him in all places where his Name is mentioned for although in this Matter about the Duke all he is able to do amounts but to raise a Suspicion by Hear-say if all his Depositions were true yet he is willing rather to expose his own Reputation which perhaps he thought was to venture nothing than not endeavour to blemish the Duke 's as much as he could and since no apparent advantage could accrew to him for doing so it must certainly have been either a considerable Reward or some other Design beyond his own which must have tempted him to make any mention at all of Moneys which as appears by the Pamphlets related not to any of the Summs with which the said Sir Bazil is charged and much less to have brought the Duke's Name to be concern'd in it In short both the Matter and Manner of making such Reflections against the Duke as they have done by these Pamphlets are so far from harming the Duke or wounding his Reputation in these Parts that the Authors of them are lookt upon as Men who are Malicious and Enemies to the Government as much as to the Duke for unless he had been guilty of the breach of some known Law he has deserved too much from this Government to have been traduced under it as a Criminal in Print when if Gratitude can be due from a Nation to a Subject I am sure he may expect it with an unquestionable Claim to it Upon the whole as I have said we are very desirous to know what the meaning of all this can be and from what Spring it arises since it is certain that the King can no more approve it than we can understand why such discouragements should be put upon such an Useful and Experienc'd Minister at a Time when the Kingdom hath more than ordinary need of such to preserve it I desire therefore that you will favour me with what Information you can in these Matters which will be a great Satisfaction to many besides my self and will infinitely oblige SIR Your most Humble Servant AN ANSWER To the Preceeding LETTER From a Friend in LONDON LONDON Printed in the Year MDCXCV AN Answer c. SIR I Have Received yours and have seen Letters from divers other Gentlemen in the Country who do wonder no less than you at the Prosecution which hath been against the Duke of Leeds For his Services to this King and Nation have been so publick that it was rather to be expected that he would have been supported by this Government although he had broken some Law if the Case had not been very Criminal than that we should have seen an Accusation brought against him for a Matter which as you have observed was to be made a Crime after it was committed if the Fact had been true and without any Proof appearing against him and upon such Circumstances as when considered must add to the admiration First In regard of his Accuser Sir Bazil Firebrass his Credit which needs very good concurring Testimony to support it against the meanest Man in the Kingdoms Secondly That there is no other Witness against the Duke but himself and what he says is only by Discourses with another Man viz. Mr. Bates who deposeth