Wee have little to communicate to your Exey from hence, for all forreigne news your Excy will receive much fresher from other hands then it can come from us, and besides the last French post brought not in one letter directed to your Exc. I have presumed to call upon Mr. Perwich to continue his correspondence dureing your Excies absence in the same manner he did before; for the rest of the correspondents they are as yet pretty punctuall with us. Wee talke much here of the army which is with all speed to be transported for Holland; certaine it is the generall rendevous is appointed to be the 10 or 12 of the next month upon Blackheath, and that severall vessells are hired for their transportation, and yesterday were pressed above 100 lighters. Collonell Russell seems dissatisfied at the Duke of Bucks being preferred before him, and it is said that he will not onely not accept of the command of Major-Generall but lay downe that of Collonell to the King's Regiment, though his friends hope he will be better advised. The people about towne entertaine themselves with a story concerneing my Lord Treasurer being overthrowne in his coach as he was comeing privately from Somersett House with Father Patricke on Whit Sunday eve,' while at his house it was given out that his Lordshipp was private and would not be spoke with by anybody that afternoone. And now all the discourse is concerneing his successor; many think Sir Thomas Osborne will be the man, though some speak of Commissioners, and, amongst others, name Sir Robert Carr for one. This day at Councell was onely heard the cause between Mr. Gold and Mr. Sidney at Leghorne; after much contest both parties submitted the businesse to arbitrators. 2 I have not to this day been able to get any of the East India papers out of Sir Samuel Moreland's hands, though Mr. Shelden has often called upon me; he putts me of from day to day, of which 2 Sir S. Morland, the great inventor, who had been employed under Cromwell in Thurloe the Secretary's office, and was rewarded by Charles II. for having betrayed I cannot imagine the reason, unlesse he scrupule to trust me with them. I humbly commend myselfe to your Excies favour and protection, who am, with all duty and devotion, My Lord, Your Exeies most faithfull, humble, and obedient servant, Acknowl. 27 May. R. YARD. No. 4.-FROM HENRY BALL. May it please your Exey, Whitehall, May, 23 1673. My last to your Excy was to Dover, since which wee have had only the Dutch and Flanders mayles, but this day no forreigne letters. Yesterday my Lady O'Bryen sent for me and told me that one of her Ladyship's to your Excy, which shee thinkes was sent by me on Thursday was 7 night by Mr. Mountague's boy, never came to your Exeyes hand, which her Ladyship as well as I wonder much at, in regard her servant saw me putt it up in mine and give it to the boy. I putt her Ladyship in hopes it [might] light into the hands of your Exeyes servants after your departure, and so when your Excy mentioned the not receiving it, it was not then come to hand, not knowing else how it could possibly miscary. In your Exeyes last to Mr. Yard you were pleased to command me to write to your Exey the reports of the towne, which I shall secrets to him. The King made him a Baronet and Gentleman of the Privy Chamber. He was employed in the Foreign Office for the ciphers. Sir W. Temple, in one of his letters from the Hague to Lord Arlington, speaks of Morland's having given him a lesson on the ciphers at the Foreign Office. (Courtenay's Life of Temple, i. 190.) most faithfully observe, begging only your Excyes pardon for the mistakes and falsityes of them, and that your Exey will excuse me for writing exactly what I heare. The whole towne is now no longer in doubt of my Lord Treasurer's being a Roman Catholique, since the passage that unluckily fell out on Saturday last, which day his Lordship having given out he sett apart from all business to prepaire for the Sacrament, the people reported he would take it in St. Martin's Church, but such was the misfortune that that afternoone, comeing out of Somersett House in a private coach, the back way, with only Father Patrick with him, at the entrance into the Broad Place in the Strand, the coach was unfortunately overthrowne, and his Lordship and the Father exposed to the view of the streete, one bringing his hatt, another his perriwig, with complements that they were very sorry for the mischance, so that his Lordship tooke boate and came privately home by water. They say now of him that he has been but lately seduced, and that by Father Patrick, who, though seemingly acts a hard head, has more witts than he suffers to appeare at once. And that on Wednesday last the Councell was conveened on purpose about resolveing what to do with him since he quitted not the nation according to order. Sir Thomas Osborne all say shall have the staffe, or one of the com missioners, and some put in my Lord Arlington. A Roman Catholique told me, discourseing of it, that my Lord Treasurer he wondered was not concerned at the generall report of his ingratitude to my Lord Arlington,1 since none had been more gratefull, as particularly in upholding his interest when flagging under the contrary faction 1 Evelyn, a warm friend of Clifford, who gives him in all other respects the highest praise, speaks very reproachfully of his ingratitude to Arlington, who had been his patron, and powerfully helped for the King's making him Treasurer of the Household in 1668. Evelyn mentions his having seen Clifford's letters on that occasion to Arlington, and says " they were written with such submissions and professions of his patronage as I had never seen any man acknowledging." Evelyn accuses Clifford of having pretended to Arlington that he was working in his interest to get him made Lord Treasurer, while he managed to get it for himself, "assuring the King that Lord Arlington did not desire it.” (Evelyn's Diary, August 18, 1673.) of Orrery, and that he was confident my Lord Arlington would not stand long (which I believe, if he or his faction could prevent it). They marke now in the towne that my Lord Clifford has always observed popish hollydays, and would never doe business on any of them, and that his chappell was only for fashion and for his servants, his Lordship nor Lady never frequenting it. Collonell Russell continues firme in his resolutions not to serve under the D. of Buckingham, and intends therefore to be going into the countrey suddainly, so that they talke as if he should be layd bye and the comand of that regiment given to the Duke of Buckingham, who should alwayes attend it, and Sir Thomas Morgan goe in his roome. The 14th of the next is they say to be the generall review of his Majestyes forces at Black-Heath, his Majesty having, besides the Duke of Buckingham's recruites, ordered 40 to be added to each company in his present army. The people seeme much satisfyed at the great hopes of footing in Holland or Zealand, and promise themselves after this warr a long succession of peace. Only great wagers are laid dayly in the coffee-houses about the meeting of the Parliament, some saying they must, others they cannot safely meet.2 Her Majesty has been these two dayes not well, but without the least appearance of danger. 3 The Venetian Resident here is recalled, and now Sir Thomas Higgons takes his leave this weeke to go thither. I must now beg 1 Orrery is Roger Boyle, Earl of Orrery, known as Lord Broghill during the Protectorate, when he was a friend of Cromwell. After Lord Chancellor Clarendon's fall in the end of 1667, Orrery had for some time great influence in Charles the Second's councils, but he held no office beyond being a Privy Councillor. (Rawdon Papers, Letters 101, 103.) There is a statement, evidently derived from himself, that the Duke and Duchess of York urged him to apply for the Lord Chancellorship when Clarendon was removed. (Morrice's Memoirs of Orrery, prefixed to his State Letters, p. 76.) " Parliament, after the cancelling of the Declaration of Indulgence and the passing of the Test Act, had been adjourned on March 29 to October 20: when it did meet, it was for technical reasons prorogued till the 27th, and then met for a session, which was, however, suddenly cut short by a prorogation on November 9. 3 Sir Thomas Higgins, M.P. for Windsor. Marvell's description of him (1677) is: "hath a pension of 500l. per annum, and hath had 4,0007. in gifts, married to the Earl of Bath's sister." He was married to Elizabeth, Countess of Essex, widow of Robert Devereux, third Earl, who died in 1646. your Excellency to permitt me to add a line of the account of the wine, &c. the money for which (Mr. Yard telling me he had none) I went with him and borrowed to give the Quaker, who would not trust us out of his sight. The Quaker's bill came to 30l. 10s. 2d. and 31. 10s. for the carriage backward and forward, all which is now demanded of mee againe, being 34l. in all, which I most humbly beg your Excy to order Mr. Yard or I may receive of Mr. Newcombe to defray it according to promise. In all humility and due respect I most humbly am, May it please your Excy, Your Excies most humble and obedient servant, Acknowl. 27 May. HENRY BALL. No. 5.-FROM ROBERT YARD. May it please your Exey, Whitehall, 26 May, 1673. Since my last wee have the good news of the arrivall of the Streights Fleet, under the convoy of Capt. Narbrough at Plimouth. This afternoone a very sober marchant was with me and told me that with this fleet was arrived the Humphry and Elizabeth (a ship of 40 guns sent out by the East India Company in November last with recruits for the fort at [St.] Helena) and the Suratte marchantman of 26 guns from the East Indies, that the captaine of the former advises that he, togeather with the said Suratte marchant, were at St. Helena when three Dutch men-of-war, fitted out at the Cape of Good Hope by the Dutch, arrived there, and that they were in fight with them one whole day till evening, when the Dutch (while our ships expected to engage them againe the next morneing) gott to the other side of the island and in the night landed 700 men, who without any difficulty made themselves masters of the fort; upon which the Humphry and Elizabeth togeather with the Suratte took their course to Brasile, where they |