nues the persecution of the catholics rather from the hatred which he entertains for their religion, and from a desire to exalt heresy, which he favors more from a tenacious impression of the doctrine, than from motives of policy. "The king is prodigal in giving and in spending, and rather profuse than liberal. He is very courteous towards strangers, especially ambassadors, whom he caresses with all possible attentions and with rich presents at parting. "He speaks extremely well, and has a happy memory; gifts of which he has often made a great display, especially on occasions of opening the parliament, when, instead of confining himself to the dignified brevity observed by his predecessors, he has chosen to exhibit his talents in long speeches interspersed with many matters belonging to erudition rather than government. "Through life he has shown himself of a very timid nature, and has exhibited no martial spirit nor love of military men. He well understands the arts of simulation and dissimulation; as he clearly proved in Scotland, by amusing the catholic princes with promises of granting the free exercise of their religion to the English catholics when he should become their king, and flattering the heretics with assurances that he would make no change in the laws established by the queen. With the same artifice he now entertains several treaties of marriage, for his eldest son and only daughter, with different princes of the two parties. "The "The queen, a sister of the king of Denmark, is praised as one of the handsomest princesses of her time. She shows a noble spirit, and is singularly graceful, courteous and affable. She delights beyond measure in admiration and praises of her beauty, in which she has the vanity to think that she has no equal. Hence she makes public exhibitions of herself in a thousand ways and with a thousand different inventions, and sometimes to so great an excess, that it has been doubted which went furthest,-the king in the ostentation of his learning, or the queen in the display of her beauty. The queen is much attached to the free mode of life customary in England; and as she is very affable, she often puts it in practice with the ladies whom she admits to the greatest intimacy, visiting them by turns at their own houses, where she diverts herself with private amusements, laying aside all the dignity and majesty of a princess. "She rails against the Italian jealousy of women, and has more than once said jestingly to the ambassadors of Italian princes, that their countrymen ought to be banished from England for fear of their introducing the fashion of jealousy. Her great passion is for balls and public entertainments, which she herself arranges, and which serve as a public theatre on which to display her grace and beauty. She is fond of festivals after the mode of Italy, has a great taste for every thing Italian, and understands the language very well; so does also the king. "As to the royal children, the prince of Wales is now now fifteen, of a noble aspect, fine deportment and high spirit; but at present he appears somewhat fierce in his disposition. He spends much of his time in bodily exercises, of all which he is very fond, but most particularly those of a martial character. "The duke of York is nine years of age, and the daughter twelve, both handsome, and of a noble expression of countenance.” In speaking of the relations of England with foreign states, it is worthy of remark, that the cardinal represents the peace which she had recently concluded with Spain and with Flanders,-one power in effect,as "a concealed war of continual suspicions:" and he thus strongly states the causes of these jealousies: "The king of England dreads the vicinity of the Spanish army quartered in Flanders; and the fomentation which might hence be given to any disturbances among his own subjects. In Flanders also he says that the gunpowder-plot, an account of which has been published, was in part contrived; many noble English, Scotch and Irish, whom he calls rebels, are here received into the army and largely pensioned; here too seminaries for youth of both sexes, natives of his kingdoms, are established and largely supplied by the alms of the king of Spain; and finally, king James perceives that Flanders is in a manner the sole refuge of the catholics who are driven, or who fly, from his dominions; and that the persons who repair to his states for the purpose of preserving the catholic religion within them are principally educated here, in the seminaries seminaries above mentioned." The cardinal adds, that the king apprehends an invasion of Ireland from the ports of Spain. On the other hand, he observes that the revolt of the Dutch provinces was principally supported by the valor of the English auxiliaries, the best troops they ever had; and that should the war in Flanders recommence on the expiration of the twelve years' truce, the king of Spain would dread their receiving succours again from the same quarter. On the whole, he concludes that peace between these countries can be only nominal. It would have been well had king James settled his mind in a similar conviction a. The "Description of England" by cardinal Bentivoglio has never been printed. The above translations were made from a transcript of a copy existing among bishop Tanner's MSS. in the Bodleian library, obligingly communicated to me by B. H. Bright, Esq. CHAPTER CHAPTER XI. Court news.-Account of prince Henry.-Parliament.-Lord Salisbury's speech.-Grievances.-King's dislike to the common law. Cowell's Interpreter.-Arrogant speech of the king. Sir J. Spencer.-Letter of lady Compton.Creation of the prince of Wales.-Mask of queens.—Tilting.-Assassination of Henry IV.-Prosecutions of jesuits; -death of Cadwallader.-Death and character of father Parsons. Of archbishop Bancroft.-Motives of Abbot's promotion.-Affair of Sprot.-Baldwyn the jesuit.-Lord Herbert of Chirbury.-Free speech of sir H. Neville.Parliament dissolved. THE state of the court at the opening of the year 1610, is thus reported by Mr. Chamberlain in a letter to Winwood of February 13. "I can make you no long relation of our Christmas games, being grown such a house-dove that I stir little abroad, specially to look after such sports. The barriers on Twelfth-night they say were very well performed, and the prince behaved himself every way very well and gracefully. The three prizes were bestowed on the earl of Montgomery, young Darcy son to the lord Darcy, and sir Robert Gordon a Scot, more in favor of the nation than for any due desert. Instead of a plaudite, they had an exceeding good peal of ordnance or chambers, that graced the matter very much. VOL. I. Ꮓ "The |