f Purbeck's lunacy. On the other
hand it might possibly, if not plausibly, be argued that it may only
mean that he was in a very bad state of bodily health accompanied by
great mental depression. Some readers of these pages may have
experienced the capabilities of a liver in lowering the spirits.

As Lady Purbeck says, her mother had now "lost the good opinion" of
Buckingham, and undoubtedly this was because she had refused to
increase his brother's allowance. So early as 28th November, 1618,
John Pary wrote to Carleton,[59] regretting that he had not applied to
Lady Bedford to use her influence in order to obtain a certain
appointment, instead of applying to Lady Elizabeth, who had fallen out
with Buckingham, and now had no influence whatever with him.

Lady Elizabeth, therefore, after having risen by her own skill to be
one of the most influential women in England--perhaps the most
influential--and that in the face of enormous difficulties, was
beginning to fall from her high estate. And besides the bitter
disappointment of the loss of influence and of royal smiles, a
grievous and humiliating family sorrow was in store for her.

These pages do not constitute a brief on behalf of Lady Purbeck. It is
desired that they should do her justice--full justice; but too little
is recorded of her personal character to permit any attempt to portray
it in detail, or even to make a bold sketch of its principal features.
Of her circumstances it is much easier to write with confidence. We
have already learned much about them. We have seen that she was
brought up in an atmosphere of perpetual domestic discord, ending in a
physical struggle between her father and her mother for the possession
of her person: that she was afterwards flogged until she consented to
make a marriage contract with a man much older than herself, whom she
disliked intensely--a form of marriage which was no marriage, as her
will for it was wanting and she was literally forced into it, if any
girl was ever forced into a marriage.

An old husband hateful to a young wife would become yet more
unattractive if he became insane, or eccentric, or even an irritable
invalid. Then his change of religion would most likely annoy her
extremely. Whether a husband leaves his wife's religion for a better
or a worse religion, it is equally distasteful to her.

Her condition would be made still further miserable when she was
turned out of her own home, and practically robbed