Part 2

_My Lord 'tis not my Design_ (cries Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 13.) _to write you a Letter full of Invectives against Sir_ W. T. Now if that were not his Design, he would very much oblige the World to let them know at his first Convenience what it was. _Neither shall I descend into the Particulars of his Conduct._ A wonderful great Favour! and Sir. _W. T._ to show he is resolved not to be behind-hand with him in Courtesie, promises by way of requital, never to trouble himself with the Particulars of his. _I shall say no more at present than what is barely necessary to convince your Lordship and all the World, that I have the means in my hands to revenge my self abundantly for the injuries he has done me._ To return a full Answer to this last period, we need only put him in mind of the Proverb, _Canes timidi vehementiùs latrant quam mordent_, and much good may it do him.

The next Paragraph carries a very mournful Mien with it; for there he complains that Sir _W. T._ set upon him first, that he writes with a Spirit of Vengeance, that he suffers himself to be transported with ungovernable Heats like a Man who fancies he is touch'd to the Quick: But now mind what follows, _As for my self_ p. 13. _I protest to you My Lord, that I write_ de Sang Froid _in cold Blood_. How consistent Writing in cold Blood and a hot Head is, I leave it to Monsieur _de Cros_ to determine at his Leisure. In the mean time an inconsidering Man who sees such sort of Stuff so often repeated would imagine that our _Letter-writer_ had all the Meekness of a Primitive Saint, and carried no such thing as a Gall about him; when 'tis plain, we may say the same thing of his Gall, what some Physicians have observed of the Liver in a vitiated Constitution, _crescente Liene decrescit reliquum Corpus_; and that his has increased at the Expence of the rest of his Body.

To be fully satisfied of the Truth of this, let us examine what follows next. _'Tis true_, says Monsieur _du Cros_, p. 14. _that Sir_ W. T. _has glittered for some time, but then he borrowed all his Lustre principally from the Protection of a certain Noble-Man whom at last he betray'd, and of whom he makes insolent mention in his Memoirs, and that with the blackest Ingratitude that may be_. This is a very severe Charge, if it could be made out: But neither did Sir _W. T._ derive all his Lustre from my Lord _A----n_, nor does he treat him insolently any where in his Memoirs. As soon as that Lord forsook his Master's and the Kingdom's real Interests to cultivate the growing Power of a Neighbouring Nation, Sir _W. T._ thought it high time to leave him; but it never enter'd so much as into his Thoughts to betray him. _After this_, continues our Pamphleteer, _he advanced himself by the Patronage of some other Persons, to whose Service he intirely devoted himself, to the Prejudice of his Duty; and so well did he insinuate himself into their Confidence and good Graces, the Post he was in giving him the privilege to have a frequent Access to their Persons, that he was in a Capacity to have rendred very considerable Services both to the King his Master and to his Country if he had made the best Use of that Advantage._ If Sir _W. T._ ever failed of doing the best Offices he could for his King and Country, it might perhaps proceed from want of better Information, but his Duty and Affection were never in fault. This he thinks a sufficient Reply to this ill-grounded Calumny; for he never dedicated himself so intirely to the Service of other Persons (Monsieur _de Cros_ must here mean the P. of _O._) as to make the least Infringement of his Allegiance. And this will notoriously appear by several Passages in the Memoirs, but particularly p. 153. where Sir _W. T._ gives a large Account of a long Conversation between the P. of _O._ and himself in the Garden at _Hounslerdyke_. The Prince had been telling him before, that the Dispositions and Designs of the Court were generally thought so different from those of the Nation, especially upon the Point of Religion, that his Friends there did not believe the Government could be long without some great Disturbance unless they chang'd their Measures, which was not esteem'd very likely to be done. To which Sir _W. T._ answered _That his Friends (as they pretended) in_ England _must see farther than he did to believe the King in any such Dangers and Difficulties as they imagined. That the Crown of_ England _stood upon surer Foundations than ever it had done in former times, and the more for what had passed in the late Reign; and that he believed the People would be found better Subjects than perhaps the King himself believ'd them. That it was however in his Power to be as well with them as he pleased, and to make as short Turns to such an End; if not, yet with the help of a little good Husbandry he might pass his Reign in Peace, tho not perhaps with so much Ease at home or Glory abroad as if he fell into the Vein of his People._ What could Monsieur _de Cros_ himself have done more in such a Station? Here was not the least Injury design'd to the late King, and as for the other Part of Sir _W. T_'s Discourse, his Obligations as well as Ties of Friendship to the Prince necessitated him to give him a faithful Representation of Affairs in _England_. But our furious Counsellor of State is still inveighing against Sir _W. T. for being often deficient in an exact Fidelity, which every Minister is obliged to preserve inviolably even in Matters of the least Consequence_. Sir _W. T._ to his great Comfort is not the first Minister that has sometimes made bold to disobey or suspend his Masters Orders, by the same Token that there are the Names of several upon Record, who after they have transgress'd upon this Point, instead of Frowns or Punishments, have received Rewards from their respective Princes as soon as they came to be better inform'd. After all an implicite blind Obedience may do well in _France_, or under a despotick Climate; but all the Application in the World will never bring it to Perfection in _England_.

Well, but says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 15. _the late King of_ England _found him out at last, and was so sensible of it, that tho he dispatch'd him with a Commission into_ Holland, _he did it only out of a Consideration of the Acquaintance he had there_. And a little lower, _Nor was he then made use of but only in such Occasions as are never devolv'd upon a Man with whose Conduct and Trust a Prince is well satisfied, or for whom he has any regard and esteem; a Truth owned and acknowledged by Sir_ W. T. _himself in his Memoirs_. If Sir _W. T._ had half the Vanity that makes so large a Share in the Composition of Monsieur _de Cros_, he has here a fine Opportunity to tell the World what particular Confidences his Prince reposed in him; but as this can be no News to his Friends in _England_, so he does not esteem it worth the while to proclaim it to Foreigners, some of whom perhaps are too much prejudiced against him to receive any thing in his Behalf. 'Tis true indeed, that Sir _W. T._ frequently takes notice in his Memoirs of the many Marches and Counter-Marches of our Court, as he had just Reason to do, and as all _Europe_ observed as well as he. However he must humbly beg Monsieur _de Cros_'s Pardon, if he cannot believe that they were done with any Design to _prostitute_ him to the World: For if that were true, he thinks they carried on their Revenge too far, and instead of prostituting his Character did but prostitute their own more effectually.

_And thus it is visible_, continues Monsieur _de Cros_ p. 16. _that the King, a little after the Peace of_ Nimeguen _neglected him_. If making Offers to him of a Secretary's Place immediately after his Arrival, be the Sign of Neglect, all this is certainly true; _and seldom employ'd him. 'Tis not as Sir_ W. T. _would make the World believe, the Love of Retirement, and his Indisposition of Body, that made him throw up his Employs; for never Man more passionately desir'd to have his Share in the Publick Administrations than he._ Well, 'tis no Miracle however to see a Man who is perfectly so unacquainted with his own Humour to be a Stranger to all the rest of Mankind. The Author of the Memoirs was at this time prevailed with by the King to have a Part in a New Constitution of Council; and after almost two years unsuccesful Endeavours at some Union, or at least some Allay of the Heats and Distempers between the King and his Parliaments, took up a Resolution of having no more to do with affairs of State; and accordingly sent his Son in 1680. to acquaint his Majesty with it. Whether he has departed from these Resolutions since, he leaves it to the World to judge.

After Monsieur _de Cros_ has throughly chafed himself by assigning, as he pretends, the true Reason why Sir _W. T._ was discarded the Court, namely, the King's being dissatisfied with his Services, and Sir _W. T_'s endeavouring all that in him lay to frustrate the King's Commands, contained in a Dispatch which our _Letter-writer_ left with him at the _Hague_, as he was going to _Nimeguen_ by his Majesty's Order, to conclude a Peace _Don't expect_, says he p. 17. _My Lord, that I should here acquaint you with the true Cause of so extraordinary a Resolution, which according to Sir_ W. T. _entirely changed the Fate of Christendom. I should do him too great a Pleasure if I should reveal so important a Secret, and several other Intrigues, in which some Persons, both of the late and this Reign in_ England, _are nearly concerned._ But two or three Pages above, Monsieur _de Cros_ spoke in another Tone, _je lui fair ai le plaisir de le mieux instruire_, p. 9. but now the Weather-Glass is alter'd with him, so that, for all I can discover, we must e'en tarry till his Remarks, or his Memoirs are printed, and till then blunder in the Dark. 'Tis true, he is pleased to give a very pleasant reason why he is by no means for opening his Raree-show at present, which the Reader may take in his own Words; _I doubt not_, cries he, p. 18. _but Sir_ W. T. _passionately desires it; he knows well enough that a full Discovery of these Practises would incense the Parliament against the Advisers of them; and 'tis their Ruin he wishes at the Bottom of his Heart_. And a little lower, _Besides, I would not at this critical Conjuncture, when K._ William _labours with so much Zeal and Glory to procure the Repose of Christendom, and the Happiness of his own Subjects, revive those Animosities and Quarrels which have already occasioned but too many Convulsions in_ England, _and might be a great obstacle to that Union, which is so necessary towards the happy Execution of the Designs of this great Monarch_. Most Authors have their _le Fort_ and _le Foible_; but this Discourse of Monsieur _de Cros_ is altogether made up of _Foibles_. For him to imagine that the great Senate of _England_ has nothing else to do but to read his Books and be directed by them, is such a horrid piece of Vanity that nothing can parallel. No, Monsieur _de Cros_ may safely print his Book, and yet for all that K. _William_ with his Confederates may re conquer _Flanders_, the Parliament supply the King with Money, and not so much as one single Courtier be sent to Grass. And this is so certain a Truth, that he needs not be in a moment's pain about it; for if his Memoirs are no more regarded in _England_ than his Letter has been, he can injure no man living by them, but, (as we have already told him) _himself_ and his _Bookseller_.

Well, at last, (Heaven be prais'd) we are come to the Merits of the Cause; and now it appears that the true and real Cause why Monsieur _de Cros_ has all along so vehemently declaimed against Sir _W. T._ proceeded not from his giving a wrong Relation of State-Affairs, from his disturbing the Sacred Ashes of King _Charles_ the Second, from his neglecting to execute his Master's Orders, from his inexcusable Ingratitude to his Protector and Patron, or, in fine, from his Pride, his Opiniatreté, or any crime of that Nature. 'Tis a Thing of a nearer Relation, and of a deeper Concern. He had injuriously attacked the Reputation of Monsieur _de Cros_, and now he must expect to be severely handled for it.

_At this time_, says our incensed Statesman, p. 19. _there arrived from_ England _one_ de Cros, _as Sir_ W. T. _has express'd it, I shall not, my Lord, make any stop at this term of Contempt, One de Cross_; tho to his great Commendation be it spoken, he has almost spent a whole Page about it before he has done, _'tis in Relation to my self an Expression of the blackest Malice_. From thence he takes the Hint to be speak himself to his Reader, telling him that the late King of _England_ did him the Honour to treat him with more Respect and Civility, both in his Pass-ports, his Letters, and the Commissions he entrusted him with. He says 'twas _fort Cavalierement_, in plain English, impudently done to speak after that saucy manner, of a Man that was born of a tolerable good Family, that had been honour'd near twenty years with several Employments, and whom a great Prince and a King did not disdain to take for a Counsellor of State. There is a certain Figure in Rhetorick (I have forgot the Name of it) which the Grammarians tell us we are guilty of committing, when we pretend to pass over those very things which we design to enumerate; and this I find has been very serviceable all along to Monsieur _de Cros; he won't make any stop at those words, no, not he; he won't rake into the Particulars of Sir_ William's _Life, no not he_, but all the while does it; and to say the truth, there's nothing in the whole Rhetorick that he copies with so good a Grace. Well, let all Authors for the future, as they hope to avoid Sir _W. T_'s sad Destiny, whatever they do, be sure to mind their Heraldry; for they may see what a terrible Adversary he has drawn upon himself by making a small mistake in that ancient and honourable Science.

The Author of the Memoirs, _p. 325._ giving a short account of Monsieur _de Cros_ and his Character, was so ill advised as to throw out these Words: _He had formerly been a_ French _Monk, and some time since had left his Frock for a Petticoat_. And now 'tis worth the while to observe what judicious Remarques our furious _Letter-Writer_ has made upon them. _This is a fine reproach_, says he, _p. 20. to come out of the Mouth of a Protestant Ambassador, one that belonged to a Monarch who stiles himself Defender of the Faith; and in short, one that so loudly declared at_ Nimeguen _that he'd have nothing to do with the Pope's Nuncio._ A very hard Case this, that Sir _W. T._ shall not have the liberty to acquaint the World that Monsieur _de Cros had been a Monk_, because, forsooth, his Master was Defender of the Faith: Nor to take notice that _he had exchanged his Frock for a Petticoat_, because he would not shake hands with the Pope's Nuncio at _Nimeguen_. This is a strange sort of reasoning, but not very terrible. But perhaps the Apology that follows may make some amends for the whipp'd Cream above. _I don't know, my Lord, whether it is a scandalous thing to be a Monk, this I am certain of, that it is infinitely less scandalous to have been one._ Sir _W. T._ will never contradict Monsieur _de Cros_ upon this Article, nor did he say in his Memoirs that 'tis scandalous to be a Monk: But Monsieur _de Cros_, who values himself much upon his Politics, seeing he was unable to carry on the War much longer at his own Expence, was resolved to fight his Battles with the whole Body of the Regular Ecclesiastics; and therefore making it a Cloister Quarrel, indicts him upon a _Scandalum Monachorum_. But to proceed, _I make no doubt_, continues he, _but that among the Monks as well as among the rest of Mankind, one may find sad wretched Fellows_, (Speak softly lest any of the Brothers of the Surcingle hear thee) _of mean, base Parentage_, (Prethee for your old Acquaintance sake, not so loud) _of infamous, irregular Lives_ (nay, now you have undone yourself with them for ever) _Drones, good for nothing_, (I find he'll never have done with this Chapter) _without Honour, Good Manners, or Reputation_. And yet not a quarter of an hour agoe it was no scandal to be in such blessed Company. _Sir_ W. T. _without Question looked upon me to be one of this number._ This is more than he knew; but however since he has positively asserted it, Sir _W. T._ will not contradict him. _But then_, says our _Furioso_, turning the Tables, _p. 21. there are also to be found among them Persons illustrious for the Sanctity of their Manners, Men of extraordinary Merit, and of the highest Quality, Sons of Princes and of Crown'd Heads, nay, Kings themselves, and Sovereign Pontiffs_. He is now thinking to cajole the Monks after he had so plentifully bespatter'd them before: And must fain let the World see how dexterously he can blow Satyr and Panegyrick with the very same Breath. _But if this sort of Life is not reckoned now a days, as it has been heretofore, so certain a Character of an honest good Man does Sir_ W. T. _imagine he dishonours me, when he says that for a Petticoat I have abandoned a Profession which he himself looks upon to be so contemptible._ If Sir _W. T._ has not dishonoured Monsieur _de Cros_, why all this Fury, this Heat and Indignation? All that the Author of the Memoirs said was very harmless. As an Historian he was obliged to give a short Account of those persons, whose Actions he there recounts. Mr. _de Cros_ happening to be a Man very remarkable towards the conclusion of the Treaty of _Nimeguen_, Sir _W. T._ acquaints the World with part of his History, and in particular says he had been formerly a Monk. Nor does Monsieur _de Cros_ deny it, and yet for all that fansies himself abominably injured. What! because he reported him to have been of that Profession of Life which has bred so many learned Men, furnished the Almanack with so many Saints, Thrones with so many Kings; nay, and the Pontifical Chair with one third of her Popes?----But some people I see are never well, full nor fasting.

Mr. _Dryden_, I remember, amongst several other judicious Remarks that so frequently occur in his _Essay upon Dramatick Poetry_, has this of the famous _Johnson_, which in my Opinion (and I think I have not lost all my Taste in my Old Age) is admirable. _Ben_, says he, never introduces any Person upon the Stage, but first of all informs his Reader of his Character, and by that means bespeaks his attention. As for instance if a _La fool_ is to be brought in, he makes a Foot-boy till _True wit_, that one Monsieur _La-fool_ is coming to pay him a Visit; and before he makes his appearance, _True-wit_ lets his Friends know, and consequently, by them, the Audience, what sort of a Gentleman _La-fool_ is, and what are his best Qualities. By this ingenious Piece of Conduct the Poet takes care to please his Spectators, who it may be are at first as uneasie to see a strange Face upon the Stage, as in Company at the Tavern, till they are better acquainted with his Dispositions; and then his Conversation is always more edifying. The same management has been used by several Historians (and not to descend into a _detail_ of the rest) by _Sallust_ himself, a Writer of the first Rank and Quality: And why Sir _W. T._ should not practise it, is certainly a Mystery. If then the Matter of Fact be true (nor dares _de Cros_ deny it) where's the Imposture? If the Truth that is told does no ways reflect upon the Reputation of the Party concerned (as he himself owns it) where's the Injury, where's the Affront?

Indeed as a famous _Grecian_ Philosopher is reported thus to have express'd himself in relation to his Thoughts of Humane Life, That it was much better not to have been born than to live at all: So in relation to the Monastick State, one may say without breach of Charity, that it is (at least as the Sentiments of the World run now) far preferable not to have been a Monk, than sometimes to have been one: For though 'tis no scandal to wear a Cowl, I am sure there's no Credit got by wearing it. In all such large Societies, the number _des miserables, d'une basse naissance, gens inutiles, sans honneur & sans reputation_, are ten to one in comparison of the _tres celebres par la Santeté de leur moeurs, d'un merite extraordinaire_, &c. And so much in answer to Monsieur _de Cros's Princes_ and _Kings_, _Cardinals_ and _Popes_.

_I will not here tell you_, says Monsieur _de Cros_, p. 21. _how I came to be engaged in this Life in my younger Days_. Truly that is somewhat hard. _Neither will I tell you the Reasons why I quitted it._ This is the hardest of all: For though we may allow Monsieur _de Cros_ to have gone into a Convent for little or no reason at all; yet 'tis a very severe Case if a Man of his Kidney had not several good Reasons to leave it: His Youth excuses the former; but he was certainly at Years of Discretion, when he abdicated the Monk, and set up the Lay-man. But let us comfort our selves. The Memoirs will be printed, and then we shall know all.

However though Monsieur _de Cros_ at this present Writing would not acquaint his Noble Lord with the Reasons of his Change; yet he is so far complaisant as to satisfie him that _it was not for a Petticoat: Ce ne fut pas au moins pour une juppe_, p. 21. And then he gives an admirable Reason for what he says. _I passed several Years without having any Inclinations to a Petticoat_. A pretty Argument; and therefore a Petticoat was not the cause of his Change. But as the Schoolmen say, _Quod primum in intentione, ultimum in executione_: And so in the present Case, a Petticoat might be the first thing in Monsieur _de Cros_'s Intention, though it happened to be the last in Execution. _Nay it appeared to the World_, p. 22. _that I was very irresolute and difficult in my Choice_. And who can blame him for it. The Matrimonial Vow is infinitely a greater Curb than the Monastick. A man if he can make Friends with the Pope may get himself absolved from the latter; or in case of Necessity, may turn his own Pope, as Monsieur _de Cros_ did: But a Wife is not to be discarded at that easie rate. 'Tis not the old Gentleman with the Cross-Keys and Triple-Crown, but with the Scythe and Hour-glass that can free a Man from his Spouse, and set him at liberty.