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HISTORY OF ENGLAITO.

CHAP.

_xx.

JC94.

the Crown of Scotland to the Sovereigns whom the Estates had-chosen, having domineered without a rival, during severalmonths, in the Parliament at Edinburgh, having seen beforehim in near prospect the seals of Secretary, the coronet of anEarl, ample wealth, supreme power, he had on a sudden sunkinto obscurity and abject penury. His fine parts still remained;and he was therefore used by the Jacobites: but, though used,he was despised, distrusted and starved. He passed his life inwandering from England to France and from France back toEngland, without finding a resting place in either country.Sometimes he waited in the antechamber at Saint Germains,where the priests scowled at him as a Calvinist, and where eventhe Protestant Jacobites cautioned one another in whispersagainst the old Republican. Sometimes he lay hid in the gar-rets of London, imagining that every footstep which he heardon the stairs was that of a bailiff with a writ, or thatof a King’smessenger with a warrant. He now' obtained access to Shrews-bury, and ventured to talk as a Jacobite to a brother Jacobite.Shrewsbury, who was not at all inclined to put his estate andhis neck in the power of a man whom he knew' to be both rashand perfidious, returned very guarded answers. Through somechannel which is not known to us, William obtained full in-telligence of what had passed on this occasion. He sent forShrewsbury, and again spoke earnestly about the secretaryship.Shrewsbury again excused himself. His health, he said, w'asbad. “That,” said William, “is not your only reason.” “No,Sir,” said Shrewsbury, “it is not.” And he began to speak ofpublic grievances, and alluded to the fate of the Triennial Bill,w'hich he had himself introduced. But William cut him short.“There is another reason behind. When did you see Mont-gomery last?” Shrewsbury was thunderstruck. The Kingproceeded to repeat some things which Montgomery had said.By this time Shrewsbury had recovered from his dismay, and