at he
is, at this day, the chief person aymed at by the Parliament--that is, by
the friends of my Lord Chancellor, and also by the Duke of Albemarle, by
reason of his unhappy shewing of the Duke of Albemarle's letter, the other
day, in the House; but that he thinks that he is not liable to any hurt
they can fasten on him for anything, he is so well armed to justify
himself in every thing, unless in the old business of selling places, when
he says every body did; and he will now not be forward to tell his own
story, as he hath been; but tells me he is grown wiser, and will put them
to prove any thing, and he will defend himself: besides that, he will
dispute the statute, thinking that it will not be found to reach him. We
did talk many things, which, as they come into my mind now, I shall set
down without order: that he is weary of public employment; and neither
ever designed, nor will ever, if his commission were brought to him wrapt
in gold, would he accept of any single place in the State, as particularly
Secretary of State; which, he says, the world discourses Morrice is
willing to resign, and he thinks the King might have thought of him, but
he would not, by any means, now take it, if given him, nor anything, but
in commission with others, who may bear part of the blame; for now he
observes well, that whoever did do anything singly are now in danger,
however honest and painful they were, saying that he himself was the only
man, he thinks, at the council-board that spoke his mind clearly, as he
thought, to the good of the King; and the rest, who sat silent, have
nothing said to them, nor are taken notice of. That the first time the
King did take him so closely into his confidence and ministry of affairs
was upon the business of Chatham, when all the disturbances were there,
and in the kingdom; and then, while everybody was fancying for himself,
the King did find him to persuade him to call for the Parliament,
declaring that it was against his own proper interest, forasmuch as [it
was] likely they would find faults with him, as well as with others, but
that he would prefer the service of the King before his own: and,
thereupon, the King did take him into his special notice, and, from that
time to this, hath received him so; and that then he did see the folly and
mistakes of the Chancellor in the management of things, and saw that
matters were never likely to be done well in that sort of conduct, and did
persuade the K