AND TRANSLATIONS, WITH THE SOPHY. Written by the Honourable The Fourth Edition. To which is added, Cato-Major of Old-Age. LONDON, Printed by T. W. for H. Herringman and Sold by 1 TO THE KING. SIR, A Fter the delivery of your Royal Father's Perfon into the Hands of the Army, I undertaking to the Queen Mother, that I would find fome means to get access to him, The was pleafed to fend me, and by the help of Hugh Peters I got my admittance, and coming well inftructed from the Queen (his Majefty having been long kept in the Dark) he was pleafed to difcourfe very freely with me of the whole ftate of his Affairs: But, Sir, I will not launch into a Hiftory, inftead of an Epiftle. One Morning waiting on him at Caufham, fmiling upon me, he faid he could tell me fome news of my felf, which was, that he had seen some Verses of mine the Evening before (being those to Sir R. Fanshaw) A 2 278463 and and asking me when I made them, I told him two or three years fince; he was pleased to Say, that having never seen them before, He was afraid I had written them fince my return into England, and though he liked them well, he would advise me to write no more, alledging, that when Men are young, and bave little elfe to do, they might vent the over-flowings of their Fancy that way, but when they were thought fit for more ferious Employments, if they ftill perfifted in that courfe, it would look, as if they minded not way to any better. the o and as Whereupon I food corrected as long as 1 bad the honour to wait upon him, and at his departure from Hampton Court, he was pleafed to command me to stay privately at London, to fend to him and receive from him all his Letters from and to all his Correfpondents at home and abroad, and I was furnifht with nine feveral Cyphers in order to it: Which truft I performed with great fafety to the perfons with whom we correfponded; but about nine months after being discovered by The Epiftle Dedicatory. by their knowledge of Mr. Cowley's hand, 1 happily escaped both for my self, and those that held correspondence with me; that time was too hot and bufie for fuch idle fpeculations, but after I had the good fortune to wait upon your Majesty in Holland and France, you were pleafed fometimes to give me argu ments to divert and put off the evil hours of our banishment, which now and then fell not Short of your Majefties expectation. After, when your Majefty departing from St. Germains to Jersey, was pleafed freety (without my asking) to confer upon me that place wherein I have now the honour to ferve you, I then gave over Poetical lines, and made it my business to draw fuch others as might be more serviceable to your Majefty, and I hope more lafting. Since that time I never difobeyed my old Master's commands till this Summer at the Wells, my retirement there tempting me to divert thofe melancholy thoughts, which the new apparitions of Foreign invafion, and domeftick difcontent gave us: But thefe clouds being now happily blown over, and |