cumstance, that occasioned the or ders, added, That it was a glorious opportunity for the English to distinguish themselves; and that your lordship, by leading them on, would gain immortal honour." You yet expressed your surprize at the order, saying it was impossi ble the duke could mean to break the line. My answer was, that I delivered his serene highness's orders, word for word, as he gave them. Upon which you asked, which way the cavalry was to march, and who was to be their guide. I undertook to lead them towards the left, round the little wood on their left, as they were then drawn up, where they might be little exposed to the enemy's cannonade. Your lordship continued to think my orders neither clear nor exactly delivered; and expressing your desire to see l'rince Ferdinand, ordered me to lead you to him; which order I was obeying when we met his serene highness. During this time I did not see the cavalry advance. Capt. Smith, one of your aids de camp, once or twice made me repeat the orders I had before delivered to your lordship; and I hope he will do me the justice to say, they were clear and exact. He went up to you, whilst we were going to find the duke, as I imagine, being sensible of the clearness of my orders, and the necessity of their being immediately obeyed. I heard your lordship give him some orders. What they were I cannot say, but he immediately rode back towards the cavalry. Upon my joining the duke, I repeated to him the orders I had delivered to you, and appealing to his serene highness, to know whether they were the same he had honoured me with, I had the satisfaction to hear him declare, they were very exact. His serene highness immediately asked, where the cavalry was; and upon my making answer, that Lord G did not understand the order, but was coming to speak to his serene highness, he expressed his surprize strongly. I hope your lordship will think I did nothing but my duty, as aid de camp, in mentioning to his serene highness my orders being so much questioned by your lordship. I am, &c. Copy of the declaration of Captain Smith, aid de camp to Lord G S WH Minden, Aug. 3, 1759. WHAT I have to say with regard to the orders Col. Fitzroy brought, and to their not being put in execution, is--I heard Lord G- S say, on his receiving them, as they differed from those he had just before received by Captain Ligonier, he would speak to the prince himself; and accordingly put his horse in a gallop to go to him. I immediately went up to Colonel Fitzroy, and made him repeat the orders to me twice. I thought it so clear and positive for the British cavalry only to advance where he should lead, that I took the liberty to say to his lordship I did think they were so; and offered to go and fetch them, whilst he went to the prince, that no time might be lost. His answer was, was, he had also an order from the prince, from Mr. Ligonier, for the whole wing to come away; and he thought it impossible the prince could mean that. I replied, that if he would allow me to fetch the British, they were but a part, and if it was wrong, they could sooner remedy the fault. He said, then do it as fast as you can. Ac cordingly I went, as fast, as my horse could go, to Gen. Mostyn. He knows the rest. This is all that past, as near as I can recollect. It was spoke as we galloped, and could not be long about, as I have been on the ground since, and do not believe, when his lordship sent me back, I had above six hundred yards to go to Gen. Mostyn. STATE CHARACTERS. fering the acrimony of that answer Character of Edward Hyde, Earl of to have passed to the Commons. WE Clarendon. E shall look upon this nobleman in two distinct lights; as a statesman, in which we shall consider his integrity and corruption; as a writer, in which we shall observe his genius or incapacity. And first, as a statesman; that he was a very able counsellor and a trusty one to his prince, will appear from his great excellence in penning those several remonstrances, arguments, answers, and declarations, which tended to support the constitution of the people, in vindication of that just equilibrium between the King, Lords, and Commons, which was notoriously invaded by the usurpation of Cromwell and his partizans. The merit of these arguments has been hitherto given to his master Charles the first; and the enemies of Mr. Hyde have accused him of having led the King too far into non compliance with the will of his parliament: this imputation, however, will appear groundless to any one who will please to remember, that he presumed so far as to advise the King to amend and soften the acrimony of his answers to the parliament, from whom he was one of the commissioners: if he had so great an inclination to prevent the King from non-compliance, as has been said by some, he had here a fair opportunity of making a most fatal breach between them, by suf His tender concern for that important branch of the constitution, episcopacy, cannot be too much commended by those who have a regard for the religion of the church of England. He must be allowed to have well discharged his trust, in faithfully attending and instructing his pupil, the Prince of Wales; and to Lord Clarendon cannot be imputed any of his royal highness's excesses, who held them in the highest detestation, and by repeated and open advice endeavoured to depress them; which freedom of ten and greatly provoked the King, who said, that the lord chancellor was obstinate and imperious, and never liked any thing but what he proposed himself; a manifest symptom that he advised him well, but not gratefully; that the counsel was salutary, but not palatable. Indeed most of the allegations laid to his charge are so unreasonable at first sight, that we are apt to be surprized at the virulence of his too powerful enemies, who at length triumphed in his disgrace; and, to make that disgrace more contemp tuous, caused his apology to the Lords to be burnt by the common hangman, which, with the punster, was certainly a burning shame and a flagrant ignominy. Neither Charles the first or second were fools as to their understandings, and they both equally revered the counsels of Mr. Hyde and the lord chancellor: the son paid a veneration to his advice, because he believed it to be just and wise, though to him not toothsome. His generosity to his most invete rate enemies, Coventry and Arlington, was illustrious; for when it was well known, that a combination had been entered into by those gentlemen to undo the chancellor, under the mediation of the favou rite lady, it is well known, that he was applied to by several members of the house of commons to accuse them, who told him, that they would accuse him, and be beforehand with him, if he did not. They said, That there was but one way to prevent the prejudice against him, which was by falling first upon them, which they, the members, could and would assist him in, if he would join them in such information as it could not but be in his power to do if he pleased; that they were both grown very odious in general, the one for his supercilious behaviour towards all men, and for the manner of getting into his office, by having an old faithful servant turned away and the other, for being formerly entrusted and employed by Cromwell, and as notoriously corrupt in selling all offices, when entrusted by the King." They further told the lord chancellor, "That he never said or did any word or action in the most secret council, but they two had declared to his prejudice; and that if he would now, as secretly as might be, give them such information and light as might furnish matter of impeachment against those two gentlemen, they would divert the storm which was gathering, and which threatened to break upon his head;" all which application he politely rejected. As to the calumny of his having hoarded vast estates in his administration, by corruption and bribery, the badness of his fortune, at the time of his disgrace, very evidently proves the contrary; which could not be owing to dissipations of his own, from which he was very averse, being a temperate man, a great reader, and no way inclined to waste. Another imputation of being chief minister, and having the power and credit to do, or advice to be done, all he had a mind to, it must be urged in his defence, that he had no such weak masters, or joint privy counsellors, to deal with, as to be governed solely by him, or to be controlled or directed in their measures (often of a very delicate, dangerous, and extraordinary texture) by one man, he often having given up his opinion, particularly in war, from which he was more averse than any other man in the kingdom, whose constitution was sore, and whose pulse he had a right to feel and understand as wellas most, and whose wealth, the sinews of war, was no ways able to support, as there was little or no money in the nation, and no alliances made with the neighbouring princes; a war which, the chancellor foresaw would be the greatest misfortune to the kingdom. Nor was it owing to his majesty's want of foresight that alliances had not been made previously thereto, nor to his own want of care, or to that of the other privy councellors intrusted with him, as co-operators in the direction of state; but to the conjunct and complicated affairs which distracted France, Spain, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, the Empire and England. As he did T 2 from |