insolence. lead a party against him, and to oppose the tax 1672. that he demanded, of a whole year's assessment. I Laudersoon grew so weary of the court, though there was dale's great scarce a person so well used by him as I my self was, that I went out of town. But duke Hamilton sent for me; and told me, how vehemently he was solicited by the majority of the nobility to oppose the demand of the tax. He had promised me not to oppose taxes in general: and I had assured duke Lauderdale of it. But he said, this demand was so extravagant, that he did not imagine it would go so far: so he did not think himself bound, by a promise made in general words, to agree to such a high one. Upon this I spoke to duke Lauderdale, to shew him the inclinations many had to an opposition to that demand, and the danger of it. He rejected it in a brutal manner, saying, they durst as soon be damned as oppose him. Yet I made him so sensible of it, that he appointed the Marquiss of Athol to go and talk in his name to duke Hamilton, who moved that I might be present: and that was easily admitted. Lord Athol pressed duke Hamilton to come into an entire confidence with duke Lauderdale; and promised, that he should have the chief direction of all affairs in Scotland under the other. Duke Hamilton asked, how stood the parliament of England affected 339 to the war. Lord Athol assured him, there was a settled design of having no more parliaments in England. The king would be master, and would be no longer curbed by a house of commons. He also laid out the great advantages that Scotland, more particularly the great nobility, might find by striking in heartily with the king's designs, and in making him absolute in England. Duke Hamilton 1672. answered very honestly, that he would never engage in such designs: he would be always a good and faithful subject: but he would be likewise a good country man. He was very unwilling to concur in the land tax. He said, Scotland had no reason to engage in the war, since as they might suffer much by it, so they could gain nothing, neither by the present war, nor by any peace that should be made. Yet he was prevailed on, in conclusion, to agree to it. And upon that the business of the session of parliament went on smoothly without any opposition. : The duchess of Lauderdale, not contented with the great appointments they had, set herself by all possible methods to raise money. They lived at a vast expense and every thing was set to sale 5. She carried all things with a haughtiness, that could not have been easily borne from a queen. She talked of all people with an ungoverned freedom, and grew to be universally hated. I was out of measure weary of my attendance at their court, but was pressed to continue it. Many found I did good offices. I got some to be considered and advanced, that had no other way of access. But that which made it more necessary was, that I saw Sharp and his creatures 1672. were making their court with the most abject flattery, and all the submissions possible. Leightoun went seldom to them, though he was always treated by them with great distinction. So it was necessary for me to be about them, and keep them right: otherwise all our designs were lost without recovery. This led me to much uneasy compliance; though I asserted my own liberty, and found so often fault with their proceedings, that once or twice I used such freedom, and it was so ill taken, that I thought it was fit for me to retire. Yet I was sent for, and continued in such high favour, that I was again tried, if I would accept of a bishopric, and was promised the first of the two archbishoprics that should fall. But I was still fixed in my former resolutions, not to engage early, being then but nine and twenty nor could I come into a dependance on them. addresses tion. Duke Lauderdale, at his coming down, had ex- He expected pected that the presbyterians should have addressed for a tolera themselves to him for a share in that liberty which 340 their brethren had now in England; and which he had asserted in a very particular manner at the council table in Whitehall. One Whatley, a justice of peace in Lincolnshire, if I remember the county right, had disturbed one of the meeting houses, that had got a licence pursuant to the declaration for a toleration: and he had set fines on those that met in it, conformably to the act against conventicles. Upon which he was brought up to council, to be reprimanded for his high contempt of his majesty's declaration. Some privy counsellors shewed their zeal in severe reflections on his proceedings. Duke Lau 1672. derdale carried the matter very far: he said, the king's edicts were to be considered and obeyed as laws, and more than any other laws. This was writ down by some that heard it, who were resolved to make use of it against him in due time. He looked on near two months after he came down to Scotland, waiting still for an application for liberty of conscience. But the designs of the court were now clearly seen into. The presbyterians understood, they were only to be made use of in order to the introducing of popery. So they resolved to be silent and passive. Upon this he broke out into fury and rage against them. Conventicles abounded in all places of the country. And some furious zealots broke into the houses of some of the ministers, wounding them, and robbing their goods, forcing some of them to swear that they would never officiate any more in their churches. Some of these were taken and executed. I visited them in prison; and saw in them the blind madness of ill-grounded zeal, of which they were never fully convinced. One of them seemed to be otherwise no ill man. Another Designs from Hol in Scotland. of them was a bold villain. He justified all that they had done, from the Israelites robbing the Egyptians, and destroying the Canaanites. That which gave duke Lauderdale a juster ground land to raise of offence was, that one Carstairs, much employed a rebellion since that time in greater matters, was taken in a ship that came from Rotterdam. He himself escaped out of their hands: but his letters were taken. They had a great deal writ in white ink; which shewed, that the design of sending him over was, to know in what disposition the people were, promising arms and other necessaries, if they were in a condition to give the government any dis- 1672. turbance. But, the whole was so darkly writ, much being referred to the bearer, that it was not possible to understand what lay hid under so many mysterious expressions. Upon this a severe prosecution of conventicles was set on foot: and a great deal of money was raised by arbitrary fines. Lord Athol made of this in one week 1900l. sterling. I did all I could to moderate this fury: but all was in vain. 341 Duke Lauderdale broke out into the most frantic fits of rage possible. When I was once saying to him, was that a time to drive them into a rebellion? Yes, said he, would to God they would rebel, that so he might bring over an army of Irish papists to cut all their throats. Such a fury as this seemed to furnish work for a physician, rather than for any other sort of men. But after he had let himself loose into these fits for near a month, he calmed all on the sudden perhaps upon some signification from the king; for the party complained to their friends in London, who had still some credit at court. He called for me all on the sudden, and put me A farther indulgence. in mind of the project I had laid before him, of putting all the outed ministers by couples into parishes" so that instead of wandering about the country, to hold conventicles in all places, they might be fixed to a certain abode, and every one might have the half of a benefice. I was still of the same mind: and so was Leightoun; who compared this to the gathering the coals that were scattered over the house, setting it all on fire, into the h A Scotish project; instead of feeding fifty, you starve one hundred. S. |