^ •*^\?' \A. A> 0/J^ <$>■ * e « 4 O ^^ ... \^^^ / ,,. ^-^ '••■' / MEMOIRS THE LIFE SIR WALTER RALEGH, WITH SOME ACCOUNT THE PERIOD IN WHICH HE LIVED. BY MRS. A. T. THOMSON, AUTHOR or MEMOIRS OF THE COURT OF HENRY THE EIOHTH. V ^ 1 U ., , PHILADELPHIA: " PUBLISHED BY GIHON & SMITH, NO. 23 SOUTH EIGHTH ST. 181G. / ,2.2. x>- ADVERTISEMENT. In submitting to the Public a Life of Sir Walter Ralegh, some brief explanation may be deemed ex- pedient, of the reasons which induced the Author to consider such a work necessary, when the valuable labors of Oldys, Cayley, and Birch, are still in ex- istence. Independent qf the circumstances, that the efforts of these justly-prized biographers have been far too great- ly actuated by an indiscriminate partiality for the character of Ralegh, it may be alleged, that the narra- tives of the two first of these authors are encumbered with authentic, but heavy documents and dissertations, interspersed within the body of their respective works, rendering them fatiguing ; and, in the case of Oldys, almost revolting to the general reader. The concise compilation of Birch, admirable as far as it goes, is, on the other hand, too limited and cursory a sketch of the life and actions of Ralegh, to afford that satisfac- tory picture of his mind, and disposition, which biog- raphy is intended to furnish. Endeavoring to steer between these extremes, the Author of the Memoirs, now presented to the Public, entertains a well-grounded hope, that if her attempt to compose a full, and yet connected, narrative of Ra- legh's life be considered inefficient, the additional docu- ments which she has been enabled to supply will re- deem it from being wholly useless. In the Appendix IV ADVERTISEMENT. to this work, she presents to the Public fifteen original Letters, now for the first time printed, from the collec- tion in the State Paper Office. These, whilst they throw but little new light upon the participation of Sir Walter Ralegh in certain public affairs, are valuable, as confirming, in a manner satisfactory to the inquirer afler historical truth, the impressions previously con- ceived of the share which he took in the political transactions of his times. For permission to peruse and transcribe these inter- esting papers, the Author has to express her grateful acknowledgments to the Right Honorable Robert Peel, whose Uberality in this instance is as gratifying to the lovers of English literature, from the zeal for its in- terests which it evinces in that distinguished Statesman, as it is eminently beneficial to the humble, but earnest laborer in pursuit of historical knowledge. The Author has also considerable pleasure in ex- pressing her obligations to Robert Lemon, Esq., Deputy Keeper of the State Papers, for the polite and prompt assistance which he afforded to her, enabhng her to reap the full benefit of the privilege conferred by Mr. Peel. 3 Hinde Street, Manchester Square, April 15, 1830. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Birth and Origin of Ralegh :— His Education and Choice of a Pro- fession :— His Services in France and the Low Countries :— Man- time Enterprises J— His Services in Ireland: — His Return to Court:— Characters with whom he had to deal.— Expeditions to Newfoundland— To Virginia.- Proofs of Favor from the Queen. —Ralegh's Occupations in Peace:— His Patronage of Hakluyt and Herriot.— Charge of Deism against Ralegh from various Wnters. 1552 to 1586 Page 9 CHAPTER n. Favor of Ralegh commented upon by Tarleton.— Further Under- takines of Ralegh.— Virginia.— Tobacco.— The Spanish Invasion, f —Lord Howard of Effingham— Ralegh's Share in repelling the \ Armada :— His Visit to Ireland.— Spenser.— Ralegh's Unpopularity with the Clergy.- Dr. Godwin.— Udall.— the Brown ists.— The Jesuits.— Father Parsons.— Ralegh's Marriage :— His Disgrace at Court: — His Voyage to Guiana. — Services in the Atlantic with Essex. 38 CHAPTER HI. The Island Voyage. — Mortifications sustained by Ralegh : — Failure of the Expedition.— State of Affairs at Home.— Decline, and sub- sequent Ruin of Essex:— 'fhe Share which Ralegh had in that AfTair '^'^ CHAPTER IV. Accession of James.- Intrigues against Tlalegh.— Mediation of the Earl (^ Northumberland.— Character of Cecil :— Of James :— His First Interview with Ralegh.— Causes of Ralegh's Disgrace.— Acts of Oppression on the Part of James.— Memorial Addressed by Ralegh to the King.— Reason assigned by James for his Dis- like to Ralegh.— State of Foreign Affairs.- Particulars of the Con- spiracy, commonly called "Ralegh's Plot."— Arabella Stuart— Brook— Cobham— Grey.— Examinations of Cobham and Ralegh : —Their Committal to the Tower.- Ralegh's attempt at Suicide : —His Trial.— Character of Coke.— The Trial and Fate of the other Conspirators.— Observations upon the Degree of Blame to be attached to Ralegh 130 A3 CONTENTS. CHAPTER V. Trial of Ralegh.— Character of Sir Edward Coke.— Affair of the Lady Arabella. — Conduct and Sentence of the Prisoners 161 CHAPTER VI. Estimate of Ralegh's Property: — His Estates and Occupations in Ireland. — Ralegh's Companions in Prison: — His Schemes with respect to Guiana. — Death of Cecil and of Prince Henry. — Ra- legh's Release from the Tower. 191 CHAPTER VII. Ralegh's Designs with regard to Guiana : — His last Voyage thither : — Its unfortunate Issue. — His Return: — Apprehension — Trial — Death. — Account of his Literary Works, and Character. .... 213 APPENDIX. Note A. Notices relative to the Fotatoe, by Dr. A. T. Thomson, Page 269 Note B. Notices relative to Tobacco, by Dr. A. T. Thomson, 269 Note C. Letter from Sir Robert Cecil from the Tower at Dartmouth, 2lBt September, 1592, 280 Note D. Letter from Ralegh toCobham, 281 Note E. Letter from Ralegh to Cobham, written during the last Progress made by Queen Elizabeth, 282 Note F. Letter from Lord Grey to King James, 282 Note G. Postscript to a Letter from Ralegh to Cobham 283 Note H. Letter from the Lieutenant of the Tower to Cecyll. Signed John Peyton 283 CONTENTS. Vli Note I. Sir W. Wade to Cecil. "Endorsed to me" in Cecil's hand writing. 284 Note K. From Sir W. Waad to Lord Cecyll, 284 Note O. Endorsed in Cecil's hand-writing. "My Letter to my Lord Grey," 284 Note P. Letter from Hen. Cobham addressed to the Ryght Ho. my very Good Lord the Erie of Nottingham, Lord High Admiral, the Erie of Suffolk, Lord Chamberlain^ y" the lord Cisell, His Ma'tie's principall Secretarie 285 Letter from George Brooke toCecyle 285 Note Q. Notice relative to a Letter from Wade to Cecil, 285 Note R. Letter of Sir W. Ralegh to King James 1 285 Note S. To the Queen's most excellent Maiestie, 286 Note U. Document signed. Addressed to Cecil. Endorsed, in Cecil's hand-writing "The Judgment of Sir W. Ralegh's case," .. 287 Note Y. From Q. Elizth. to her Vice Roy in Ireland 1582. By the Queene 287 LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. CHAPTER I. Birth and Origin of Ralegh : — His Education and Choice of a Profession s — His Services in France and the Low Countries : — Maritime Enter- prises ; — His Services in Ireland : — His Return to Court : — Characters with whom he had to deal. — Expeditions to Newfoundland— to Vir- ginia. — Proofs of Favor from the Q.ueen. — Ralegh's Occupations in Peace : — His Patronage of Hakluyt and Herriot.— Charge of Deism against Ralegh from various Writers. 1552 TO 1586. The county of Devon was renowned, in the time of Queen Elizabeth, for the valor of its inhabitants in naval services ; and it is stiU honored as the birth-place of three celebrated navigators, Sir Francis Drake, Sir John Haw- kins, and Sir Walter Ralegh. Ralegh was born in the year 1552, at Hayes, a farm rented by his father, situated in the parish of Budely, near that part of the eastern coast of Devonshire where the Otter discharges itself into the British Channel. To the scene of his childhood, Ralegh, in common with many men who have afterwards encountered the cares of a public career, retained an indelible attachment. It is pleas- ing to find him, at a subsequent period of his life, when ambition appears to have engrossed him, endeavoring, though without success, to possess the humble residence of his youth. The patrimonial estate was Fardel, in the parish of Cornwood, near Plymouth ; and Smalridge, near Axminster, is said to have belonged to his ancestors, in the time of Henry the Eighth, but to have been sold, from the prodigality of its owners.* The family of Ralegh at the time of his birth was greatly reduced in circumstances, and in the fiill experience of ♦OWy8.p.5. -^j 10 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. those privations which attend poverty, encumbered with rank. No title, except that of knighthood, had, indeed, as yet given false splendor to a name which boasted an an- cient connexion with Robert of Gloucester, a natural son of Henry the First ; but the name of Ralegh had been one of some importance, and of great antiquity. Varying in its orthography from Rale, or Ralega, to Ralegh, Raw- leigh, or Raleigh, this designation had been affixed to seve- ral villages and tovrais in Somersetshire, Devonshire, and Essex ; and his ancestors settled in Devonshire before the Norman conquest.* Allied by marriage to the earls of Devon, and related to various families of their own name in Somersetshire and Warwickshire, the ancestors of Ra- legh had suffered a gradual decrease in their landed pos- sessions; so that Fardel alone, of all their estates, remained as the inheritance of Walter Ralegh, the father of him who was destined again to raise his family to distinction. Some memorials of ancient grandeur were still however preserved from the devastations of time or misfortune ; and Sir Walter received, as an heir-loom, a target, which had been suspended in a chapel at Smalridge consecrated to Saint Leonard, by one of his forefathers, in gratitude for deliverance from the Gaulsf ; and the records of this en- dowment are stated to have been aft;erwards presented to Sir Walter Ralegh by a priest of Axminster.J That the origin and early piety of this ancient race were little known in the days of Elizabeth, until the feme of their celebrated descendant called them forth from obscurity, is evident from the anecdote which Lord Bacon relates, in illustration of the popular error which assigned to Ralegh the term " Jack, or upstart." Queen Elizabeth was one day playing upon the virginals, whilst Lord Oxford and other admiring courtiers stood by : it happened that the ledge before the jacks had been taken away ; upon observ- ing which the two noblemen smiled, and, when questioned by the queen regarding the cause of their mirth, gave as the reason, " that they were amused to see that when jacks went up heads wentdown."^ The Queen, notwithstanding this sarcastic allusion, had not, however, in receiving Ra- legh into her favor, departed from her usual rule of never *Cayley, p. 2. t Prince's Worthies of Devonshire, p. 530. JCayley. § Bacon's Apoththegms, No. 183. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 11 admitting " a mechanic or new man into her confidence* ; " and Ralegh had, afterwards, the credit, by his deeds, of directing the investigation of antiquaries to the details of his lineage. These, as points of curious inquiry, demand some attention ; but are of subordinate interest in the his- tory of one whose very poverty and obscurity became the origin of liis fortunes, by being the stimulus to his industry. That Ralegh naturally, and even commendably, prized the advantages of an honorable descent, may be inferred by the solicitude afterwards displayed by his relative Hooker to define, in his dedication to him of the Chroni- cles of Ireland, the claims to distinction which their com- mon ancestry possessed ; since Hooker enjoyed the patron- age and friendship of his kinsman, and sought in his wri- tings to do him honor ; but there is no reason to suppose that he rested his hopes of greatness upon any basis less solid than that of his own merit and exertions. With the inconveniences of a reduced inheritance, the father of Sir Walter Ralegh experienced those attendant upon repeated marriages, and numerous offspring. By his first wife he had two sons, the elder of whom, George, became the pos- sessor, after his death, of Fardel ; which afterwards de- volved, successively, to his two brothers, the younger of whom, Carew, sold his patrimonial property, and it passed for ever from the family of Ralegh. The mother of Ralegh, and the third wife of his father, was the daughter of Sir Philip Champernon of Modbury, and the widow of Otho Gilbert, a gentleman of large property, residing at Comp- ton, in Devon. Three children, Carew, Walter, and Mar- garet Ralegh, were the result of this last union ; after which the father of Sir Walter resided entirely at Hayes, where the younger branches of the family were reared. It is singular that no trace is preserved, either in the let- ters, or by the conversation of Ralegh, of the mode and place of his earliest education. That species of biography which, by describing the pro- gress of intellect, affords the most important assistance, and, oftentimes, encouragement, to the young and aspiring, appears to have been little enjoyed or understood by our ancestors. It was thought much to preserve the name of the college, or' even of the university only, where a cele- ♦ Naunton's Fragmenta Regalia, 4to. p. 28. 12 LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. brated individual received his last chance of tuition : "und the history of his previous early years, in which the bias of the character is generally determined, has scarcely ever been transmitted to us, even by those who have been mi- nute and faithful annalists of the events of mature life. Respecting the portion of instruction which fell to Ralegh's lot, it is merely known, that at sixteen he was sent to Ox- ford, and was entered as a commoner both at Oriel College and at Christ-Church, in compliance with a custom not un- usual in former times, and, probably, intended to secure the privilege of aspiring to a fellowship at one or other of these colleges.* During a residence in the University of three years, he devoted himself with success to the study of philosophy and of letters ; and, though he left Oxford without a degree, yet, he acquired a higher honor in obtaining the good opinion of !^acon, who Siere foretold his ftiture eminence.! In the choice of a profession Ralegh appears to have been divided, for some time, between the bar and the camp. That he actually entered at any of our inns of court is, however, doubtful ; and the prevalent opinion, that he was at one time a student of the Middle Temple, arose either from his display of legal acuteness on his subsequent trial, or from a temporary residence within the walls of that es- tablishment. Queen Elizabeth, with a view, perhaps, to the intellectual culture of her young courtiers, commended our inns of court, and was accustomed to say, " that they fitted young men for the future :" hence it is probable that^ in those days of mental slavery, all who aspired to her fa- vor were reported to have pursued the course which she approved ; and that Ralegh was not unwilling, during her reign, to enjoy the credit of having been thus prepared for public life. He is, however, affirmed by one who knew him well, to have been trained, " not part, but wholly gentle- man, wholly soldier ;" and there appears to have been but little time allowed for any other plans of study, since, from the statement of Hooker, he spent in France " good part of his youth in wars and martial services."}; In the circumstances of his relations Ralegh found inducements to a military career : his maternal uncle, Henry Champer- • Puller's Church History, lib. 4. and 5. fol. 104. \ Oldys, p. 5. t Ralegh's Ghost, 4to. p. 15. and Hooker, Epist. Ded. See Oldys, 9. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 13 noH, being an officer of some note in our armies.* At the request of tliis kinsman, RalegJi enlisted into a troop of gentlemen volunteers under Champernon's command, who purposed leading them into France, in order to assist the Protestant princes engaged in the civil wars of that coun- try. This adventurous band went forth on horseback, bearing on their colors tlie motto, " Finem del mihi virtus" They were sanctioned by the permission of Elizabeth, who had shown her approbation of the cause by accommodating the Queen of Navarre with a sum of money, upon the deposit of certain jewels in the English treasury.f It is doubtful in what service, or with what success, the troop were distinguished in France; but it appears that they were well received by the Queen of Navarre and the Pro- testant princes, and that they remained six years in their employment It i.s conjectured tliat, unless on some casual leave of absence in England, Ralegh must have witnessed the mas- sacre of Saint Bartholomew in 1572, and shared in the dangers of the untbrtunate Hugonots. Perhaps, from his participation in the horrors of this scene, he imbi^jed that aversion to religious intolerance which afterwards charac- terized him as a senator, and which was then far less prevalent, even among philosophical and intelligent men, that it has happily proved to be in the present day. What- ever may have been Ralegh's situation on this momentous occasion, no actual traces of its impression on his mind re- main, however, in his writings, nor have been transmitted by his biographers; a circumstance which may seem to imply his absence from the massacre, since he has alluded to many of his services in his works. It is scarcely proba- ble that allusions to such an exhibition of human ven- geance in its most appalling form would have been omitted by one who, in his History of the World, has frequently drawn a parallel between the scenes which he narrates, and those with which he was identified by hi&own experi- ence. In that monument of his genius and industry, he refers to his presence at the battle of Moncontour, in Poitou, and extols Count Lodovic of Nassau, brother to the Prince of Orange, who made the retreat on that occasion, with such * Wood, Atben. Oxoniensist, voL i. col. 435. t Camden, p. 117. . B 14 LIFE OF SIR WALTEU RALEGH. resolution and prudence that he saved one half of the Pro- testant army, then broken and disbanded : — " of which," says Ralegh, " myself was an eye-witness, and was one of them that had cause to thank him for it."* It is a fact equally certain, and much more important, that in these tumultuous scenes, Ralegh, then only in his eighteenth year, collected and stored up a portion of those facts and observations with which he afterwards enriched his Histo- ry of the World; a work to which the soldier and the scholar, the courtier and the moralist, may repair both for instruction and delight. In 1575 he returned to England for a few years, but soon resumed his military career, under Sir John Norris, in the Netherlands. Here he was, in all probability, engaged in the battle of Rimenant, in which Don John of Austria, then governor of the Netherlands for Philip the Second of ■trja Spain, was defeated; a disgrace which that com>- ■ mander only survived two months. An enterprise of a new description now engaged the energetic mind of Ralegh. Various circumstances con- spired tp direct his attention to the progress of maritime discovery ; a subject on which the imaginations of the ar- dent, and the speculations of the busy, were then actively engaged. During the two last centuries, a spirit of daring adventure had been encouraged by the splendid examples of Vasco di Gama and of Columbus, and by the merito- rious, though less fortunate, exertions of Magellan, who lost his life before his undertaking was completed. Spain and Portugal, mutually jealous to obtain the earliest knowledge of the shortest passage to the valuable posses- sions of India, vied with one another in endeavoring to promote, throughout their respective dominions, a thirst tor maritime glory. England had borne her part in the emulous contention for colonial superiority, and, in common with her continental rivals, had, latterly, turned her at- tention towards the north-east coast of America. In the reign of Henry the Seventh, the island of Newfoundland was discovered by a Venetian merchant, Sebastian Cabot, who took the command of an English squadron. To extend our knowledge of this territory, and to obtain a more se- cure and acknowledged possession of it than had, hitherto, * Hist, of the World, book v. chapter ii. sect. 8. edit- Lond. 1687. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 15 been effected, became, in the reign of Elizabeth, the ob- ject of general solicitude. It was the fortunate lot of Ralegh, not only to possess an enterprising and resolute spirit, but to be connected with those who had the will and the power to encourage his rising genius. His relations on both sides were eminent ; and his mother was, at a later period, authorized to make a boast, rare in those days, of being the parent of five loiights. Of these, three were the sons of her form.er mar- riage, — Sir John, Sir Humphrey, and Sir Adrian Gilbert.* Sir John Gilbert was sherift' and Gustos Rotulorum of the county of Devon, and was a kind of oracle in those parts, as well as a libeml country gentleman, and benefactor to the poor. Sir Adrian was scarcely less estimable, and be- came more famous than his pacific brother, for a patent which he took out for the investigation of the north-west passage. With this patent, and under his auspices, the celebrated John Davis discovered the straits which bear his name. But the most admirable, although the most un- fortunate, of the three brothers, was the distinguished marmer. Sir Humphrey Gilbert.f This good and brave man, although a second son, yet received from his father a very ample fortune ; but it was from his mother's judicious care that he derived the still greater advantage of an ex- cellent education, at Eton first, and afterwards at Oxford. Since this lady was, also, the mother of Ralegh, and had, by both her husbands, the credit of giving heroes to the world, it is not extravagant to conclude that she must her- self have been a woman of merit, and that the energetic character of her children might, in a great measure, be attributed to her nurture and example. Like Walter Ralegh, his half-brother. Sir Humphrey, after quitting college, had some intention of studying at one of the inns of court, although his favorite pursuits^had been cosmography and navigationf : but being introduced to Queen Elizabeth by his aunt, Mrs. Katherine Ashley, one of her majesty's waiting-women, he made so rapid a progress in her favor, as soon to be preferred to a very im- portant command in Ireland. Here, like Ralegh, he passed * Note in Biographia Britaiinica, Life of Sir H. Gilbert. t There was in the reign of Henry the Seventh a famous navigator of the same name, whose maps are still preserved in Whitehall.' t Biographia, note from Hooker's Dedication. 16 LirE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. some years in an arduous and bloody service, until he had attained his tliirty-third year ; when returning to England, he resolved to add to the glory of his name and country by some important and difficult enterprise, the spirit of which he doubtless imbibed from the examples of tlie other great navigators of the times. Sir Humphrey was thirteen years older than Ralegli, and may be supposed to have possessed a very considerable influence over his mind. — Their characters were, indeed, in many points similar ; their views and pursuits were the same : both were entliusiastic, aspiring, patriotic ; and both were imfortunate. The device which the elder brother adopted early in his career might have been used, also, by liis successor in the paths of fame : it represented Maitj and Mercury joined by a cross, with this motto, — Quid non 1 alluding to the power which is acquired by a strong determination to unite pursuits the most dissimilar, and to conquer difficulties. Successful in the field, and bold and impressive in the House of Commons, in which he sat as representative for Plymoutli, Sir Humphrey, about tlie period when Ralegh had made his first essay in military operations, began to revolve in his mind the practicability of mtiking out a north-west voyage to the East Indies. The existence of such a passa^ge was first discovered by liim by means of his mathematical knowledge, and a scientific and perspicu- ous treatise written in support of his arguments;* but he was destined never to enjoy the honor of executing the project which he had conceived : it was, however, com- pleted after his death, as we have seen, by his brotlier, Adrian Gilbert. , (.^Q Deferring for a time the commencement of tliis ini- ■ portant scheme, Sir Humphrey obtained permission of the queen to plant and inhabit certain parts of North America, which were not occupied by any of her allies.^ In this undertaking, which was professedly for the exten- sion of the Christian faitli, he was joined by Ralegli, from motives probably mingled, ambition, desire of gain, and ardor for distinction, being, perhaps, his first inducements. For this and similar expeditions, not courage only, but capital, was required. Elizabeth, at the beginning of her Hakliivts Vnv. iii i>. 11. t Bir''h. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 17 reign, possessed seventeen ships of war only, and the rest of the British navy, which effected afterwards such glorious achievements, was composed either of ships supplied by Bristol, Barnstaple, or other commercial towns, of vessels hired by the queen, or furnished by the company of mer- chant adventurers, by the city of London, or even by pri- vate individuals.* The share which Ralegh had in the risk or profits of his first voyage to Newfoundland, was, probably, confined to his personal participation in its dan- gers ; for, at this early period, he had little to venture in any enterprise. He joined his kinsman with several other gentlemen, but circumstances were adverse to their success. Many who had promised to assist them with men and ships failed in their engagements. They set out with two sail only ; one of which, after various perils, was lost in an unfortunate engagement with the Spaniards; and Raleigh, after encountering dangers which would have disheartened a man of a less sanguine temperament, re- turned to England, not to relax into inaction, but to point his exertions towards other objects. He soon found em- ployment for his active temperament in a school of military science, similar to that in which his brother-in-law had been already trained. The situation of England, with respect to neighboring countries, afforded to her young, half-civilized, and warlike nobility, a constant and yet varied school of mili- tary science, the favorite study as well of a barbarous as of a corrupt age. France, the Netherlands, and especially Ire- land, gave continual occupation to her armies, and prevented the courtiers who thronged around the queen from becoming exclusively the indolent minions of her vanity. The Irishry, as they were vulgarly called, were with difiiculty kept even in the semblance of subjection ; and disturbances, succeeded by actual rebellion, were the incessant results of the attempts which Elizabeth made to introduce, by force, the reformed religion into the sister kingdom. In- deed, being, as Camden describes them, " an uncivill peo- ple, and the more prone to superstition," it required a far greater military force than the parsimonious expenditure of the queen allowed, to prevent the frequent recurrence of such broils during the whole of her reign. New troubles had now arisen ; and a plot, commenced in 1570, at the instigation of Philip the Second, m order to place the natu- • Campbell's British Admirals, vol. i. n. HI. B2 18 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. ral son of Pope Gregory tlie Thirteenth on the throne of Ireland, was revivea under a more threatening aspect. The invaders, composed partly of Spaniards, partly of Ital- ians, landed under the command of an officer named San Joseph, at Smerwich, in Kerry, where they erected a fort, to which they gave the imposmg designation, " Del Oro."* It was at this crisis that Ralegh obtained a commission, under Lord Grey of Wilton, then Lord Deputy of Ireland, a nobleman of considerable abilities, sullied, unhappily, by cruelty. The principal services in which Ralegh joined, were performed under the command of Thomas, earl of Ormond, Governor of Munster, whom he assisted in quell- ing the rebellion in that province. The conduct of the yoimg soldier, although commended for valor, was yet dis- graced by a degree of barbarity scarcely to be excused in earlier times than those in which he lived. Having sur- prised the rebels at Rakele, he observed one of the prison- ers laden with withies. To the inquiry what he meant to have done with these, the undaunted reply was given, " To have hung up the English churls." Ralegh, unmoved by the hardihood of the unfortunate man, caused him to be in- stantly strangled witli his own withies, and ordered his companions to be treated in a similar manner.f This con- duct, which presents not the only charge of cruelty with which the memory ^f Ralegh has been taxed, appears, however, to have been approved by the Lord Deputy, who, like the other English commanders of the period, regarded the Irish rather as a race of wild and noxious animals that ought to be exterminated, than as human beings, subjects of the same monarch, children of one heavenly Father, and creatures capable of being reclaimed from error and turbu- lence by mild and just, yet vigilant, measures. The dis- position evinced by Ralegh towards this wretched people proves how frequently scenes of bloodshed obliterate, for a time, virtuous dipositions and the convictions of philosophi- cal reasoning. Ralegh was, indeed, brought by adversity and reflection to see the folly, the guilt, and the shame of those pursuits, however skilfully conducted, which en- croach upon tlie happiness of our fellow-men. Stripping away the false colors in which the prejudices of education * Rapin, vol. vii. p. 404. Gordon's Hist. Ireland, vol. i. p.^373. t Birch's Life of Ilalelpth, from Hooker'? Hiippleineni cf Ihr fhronicle of Ireland, in Holinslied. fol H>7. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 19 and the ardor of youth had once arrayed the mighty con- querors of the earth, Ralegli has left his testimony to the great truth, that we shall one day cast off our false notions of glory, separated from virtue, as pernicious and grovel- ling delusions. "And as certainly," says he, "as fame hath often been dangerous to the living, so is it to the dead of no use at all, because separate from knowledge : which were it otherwise, and the extreme ill bargain of buying this lasting discourse understood by them which are dissolved, they themselves would then rather have wished to have stolen out of the world without noise, than to be put in mind that they have purchased the report of their actions in the world by rapine, oppression, and cruelty, — by giving in spoil the innocent and laboring soul to the idle and indolent, and by having emptied the cities of the world of their ancient in- habitants, and filled them again with so many and so variable sorts of sorrows."* Such were the sentiments of Ralegh, when in confinement, old age, and sorrow, he awoke to the feelings of nature, and yielded to the dictates of reason. Meanwhile, the season of his youth was occupied in furthering those designs which, in his later days, he justly execrated and contemned. His zeal in the queen's service was rewarded by an appointment to command in the siege of Del Oro. By this post the Spanish vessels were enabled readily to bring supplies to the insurgents, and it was con- sequently of the utmost importance. It soon fell before the assaults of the English, who, under the command of Admi- ral Winter, invaded it by sea, and, by land, under that of Lord Grey, while Ralegh fought with great valor in the trenches. Such was the barbarous policy of the Lord Deputy that, although the garrison surrendered, yet the greater part were slaughtered ; and to Ralegh, j^ g and to another officer who first entered within the jqkW castle, the execution of the iniquitous task was intrusted. Unwearied with this terrible service, Ralegh remained at Cork during the winter, and occupied this season of re- pose from military toils, in watching the most conspicuous individuals amongst the rebels, and in harassing those whoso wealth rendered them desirable prizes to the Eng- lish government. Cruel, indeed, were the dissensions of * Hist, of the World Conclusion. 20 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. that period, when tlie fear of Ralegh's unrelenting and destructive hand impelled the Lord Barry to burn his cas- tle at Barrymore rather tlian leave it in the possession of his bloodthirsty and rapacious enemies. Among the peril- ous services in which Ralegh was engaged, the seizure of Lord Roche, a powerftil insurgent nobleman, may be con- sidered as a remarkable instance of his valor and address. To dispel the formidable confederacy in which Roche was engaged, he offered to bring him, with his family, before the Earl of Omiond, at Cork. This design appeared im- practicable, from the numerous partisans of the rebel chief- tain, scouring the country in bajids, or infesting it in am- buscades. But Ralegh stole a night march, with great secrecy and alacrity ; and partly by manoeuvre, partly by force, effected an entrance into the very halls of tlie enemy. Here he was tempted, by the proffered hospitality of the Irish nobleman, to waive the purpose of his visit He par- took, indeed, of an entertaimnent, but when it was con- cluded, avowed his resolution to oblige his host to return with him as a prisoner. Lord Roche, finding resistance useless, consented to accompany liim, declaring that he w^ould proVe himself innocent of tlie charges brought against him. He found, however, that the young Eng- lishman was resolved on carrying him to Cork by night, notwithstanding the natural perUs of tlie road, and those which were prepared for tliem by the vigilant and active Irish rebels. Regardless of tliese sources of danger, Ralegh and his prisoners went forth, sheltered by the obscurity of the night from the attacks of the rebels, but exposed to fatal accidents from the rocks and hills, which, in a country scarcely civilized, presented incessant obstacles to a safe journey. Many of his soldiers were severely hurt, and one of them killed by repeated falls ; but Ralegh forgot his troubles when he presented to the Lord Ormond, on the following day, his important prizes. The most satisfactory result of tlie afiair was, that Lord Roche was honorably acquitted, and that he afterwards conducted himself as a faitliful subject* On the departure of Lord Ormond for England, Ralegh was intrusted witli the government of Munster, in con- junction witli two other oliicers.t In this situation he con- tinued until the spring of tlie year 1582, when, upon the • Oldys, 48. t Spenser'B View of the State of Ireland. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 2j subjugation of tlie prmcipal rebels, lie returned to Eng-lond ; desirous, probably, to walk in tlm sunshine of that court, the splendor of whicli, independent of any substantial ad- vantages, attracted an ardent and ambitious mind. Ralegh was now in his tliirtietii year. Few persons have entered public life with advantages of mind and person equal to those which he possessed. Few sovereigns have known better how to prize both mental and external attributes than the vain but discerning Elizabeth. The features of Sir Walter Ralegh are said to have been moulded with tlie ut- most symmetry, and the outline of manly beauty to have pervaded tlie whole countenance. He had a noble and ca- pacious tbrehead, an eye beammg witii intelligence, soften- ed with the shadows of profound thought. Such at least is the impression conveyed by the most favorable portraits of this gitled man : these difler, however, greatly, and one may almost imagine to trace the changes that mark tlie gra- dations from youthful ardor to the cares of matiu^ity, from the cares of his maturity to the sorrows, perplexities, and infirmities of his old age. The person of Ralegh was ad- mirably proportioned, and dignified, his height being nearly six feet.* Thus he united every attribute of grace with Btrengtli, and doubtless with expression : for it is impossible tliat such a mind as his should not have imparted a power of fascination, of which even an ordinary countenance is susceptible when illuminated with genius, and consequently with sensibility. TJiese natural advantages were import- ant circumstances in tlie eyes of Elizabeth, who frequently selected the objects of her regard from trivial motives, but retained them in her favor only as she found tlieir talents justify her choice. To tlie attractions of a noble figure Ralegh studied to combine those of a graceful and splendid attire. Many of his garments were adorned with jewels, according to the richest fashions of the day, and his armor was so costly and curious, tliat it was preserved, for its ra- rity, in the Tower. In one of his portraits he is repre- sented in this armor which was of silver richly ornamented, and his sword and belt studded with diamonds, rubies, and pearls. In another, he chose to be depicted in a white satin pinked vest, surrounded with a bit)wn doublet, flow- ered, and embroidered with pearls ; and on his head a little ♦ Oldys, 145. ' 22 LIFE OF SIR WALTER R ALKG II. black feather, witli a larjre ruby and pearl drop to confine the loop in place of a button.* These, it may be said, were no extraordinary proofs of costly expenditure in dress, in days when it was the boast of Villiers duke of Buckinsj- hani, to be " yoked and manacled" in ropes of pearl, and to carry on his cloak and suit alone, diamonds to the value of eighty thousand pounds : but the duke was rather a cour- tier than a statesman, and was little else ; whilst Ralegh, as a man of science, of letters, and of martial reputation, might have been supposed wortliy of deriving reputation from higher sources witliout tlie necessity of descending to the trivial competitions of dress. It is not to be supposed that any of the fair sex could be insensible to this trait of character in the accomplished Ralegh ; and abundant proofs have shown, that tlie wise and wary Elizabeth prized these adventitious attributes as highly as the weakest and vainest of her attendants. She received therefore, with compla- cency and surprise, the adroit flattery of Ralegh, who, meeting the queen near a marshy spot, threw off the mag- nificent mantle which he wore, and cast it on the ground. This anecdote, wliich is generally related of their first meeting, if not true, is at least characteristic. He soon received encouragement even from the pen of tiie queen. He is related to have written upon a window, wliich she could not fail to pass, this line : " Fain would I climb, but yet fear I to fall ;" which received from the hand of Eliza- beth this reply, " If thy heart fail thee, climb not at all."t To her masculine shrewdness, the queen united some sen- timents of romance which would have accorded with a gentler nature. She commended poetry, especially when addressed to herself, altliough she allowed tlie illustrious Spenser to languish in poverty. Ralegh, like many men of genius, in youtJi expended the exuberance of a power- ful mind in verses which add but little honor to his great name, except as they show the versatility of his talents, and the enthusiasm of his sentiments. Early in life he wrote commendatory stanzas to Gascoigne's " Steel Glass" dated from the Temple: the "Silent Lover," and the " Excuse" followed at intervals ; but the only masterly ♦ Oldys, H3. Note in Ibid. fVom a MS. in Ilarleian. B. H. 90. c. 7. fol. 6?2. t Fuller's Worthie* of Devon, UPR OF BlRWAI/rEU UAI.ECFI. 23 poem " The Farewell" and most of liis admirable prose works, were not composed till tlie beginning of the seven- teenth century. But though tlic graces and accomplislmients of Ralegh might amuse the fancy of Elizabeth, they could not win her confidence, which was never thoughtlessly nor indis- criminately bestowed. She soon became sensible of the acuteness of his understanding, in the progress of a dis- pute which was argued between him and Lord Grey, in presence of the council. The grounds of this quarrel have not transpired, and have been variously represented ; but the merits of Ralegh's cause may be implied, from his gain- ing a decision in ins favor against tlie veteran soldier and statesman. This circumstance made a great impression upon the public, who probably expected a different result : but merit, at courts, without patronage, resembles a line plant in an ungenial soil. Yet were there some generous spirits who prized Ralegh's attainments, and sought to make others prize them also ; such was Sir Philip Sidney, the first Eng- lish commoner that ever received the ofter of a foreign crown. But that he was calculated to ascend tlie throne of Poland was scarcely more honorable to him, than the distinction accorded unanimously by his contemporaries, as the pattern of English gentlemen ; the soldier perfected into a hero by Christian principles, which men in those times, and indeed in latter days, have strangely thought incompatible with warlike pursuits. -More favored by the circumstances of his birth than Ra- legh, so far as advancement at court was concerned, Sid- ney had received an education somewhat similar to tliat of his friend, had passed through the same scenes, and had participated in the same interests. There was, however, a wide discrepancy between their fortunes, and tiie apparent chance wiiich each possessed of being numbered among the fortunate and great of their nation. The father of Sidney, the early companion of Edward VI., and succes- sively the trusted servant of Queen Mary and of Elizabeth, had means of promoting the elevation of his son, of which tlic remote situation, and reduced estate, of Ralegh's fa- ther, prohibited the expectation. Brought up from his cradle to anticipate the patronage of sovereigns, and re- ceiving his very Christian name from Philip of Spain, 34 I.IKK OF Bill WALTER UALECH. young Sidney was sent, after college, to perfect his educn- lion by intercourse with foreign nations ; but witli difficulty escaped the horrors of the massacre of St. Bartlioloniow, by taking refuge in tlic liouse of Sir Francis Walsinghani, then our ambassador at the court of Cliarles IX. It is not improbable, that during this eventful visit to France, his intimacy with Ralegh was formed, a tie which was never relinquished until annihilated by the early death of Sidney. Entering thus into life with such unequal prospects of success, these highly-gifted youths were, however, en- dowed severally witli a proportion of intellectual iwwer, which made the balance even. Much may be allowed for the necessity for arduous exertion, which in the one case might reasonably be supposed to have stimulated a mind capable naturally of strong efforts. But the talents of Sir Philip Sidney were rather elegant than powerful, and the character of his mind that of generous enthusiasm rather than of determined perseverance. He was formed, indeed, more for the ornament and the idol than tor tlie benefit of society, and was more the hero of romance than the bene- factor of his country. Nurtured, also, in the bosom of prosperity, and having "his fortunes created by his father, Sidney had not the patience to brook those irritations, nor the art to conceal those natural emotions which are gene- rally suppressed at courts. His romance of tlie Arcadia was composed, as it is well known, in a season of retirement, occasioned by an affront given to his jealous notions of honor. That very composition, unduly extolled in his owji time and too greatly depreciated in ours, bespeaks a mind more replete with poetical associations tlian strong in origi- nal genius, or polished by sedulous culture. Endowed, however, with enough of Ralegh's spirit and utlaininoiits to prize and to comprehend him ; and display- ing an exemption from the meaner passions, and a degree of disinterestedness which rendered him, in a moral point of view, far superior to his friend ; Sidney jwssesscd means and opportunities of assisting his young associate in his progress to fame ; and he is supposed to have generously availed himself of them by introducing him to tlie Earl of Leicester, uncle, on the maternal side, to Sidney.* The • Sir Ilniiry Siiliipy murried Mary, eldest daughter of John Dudley Diiku u( IVorlhiiiiilxTland. UKR OF Silt WAI.rr.K ItAI.WJII. *25 j>ersonal credit of Sidnoy was nt tliis time great with Eliz- abeth, but his influence tlu-ou'>'li "1" Amy Ilohsurt, his wife, was .so gLMK-rally buliuved, tliat a tiiiivorsnl sciiRiitidii of horror attended tht; )iruachiiig of her fuiicrnl s«?riiioii ut Oxford, by one of Leicester's chHp- Inins, who, instead of saying as he intended, "this lady so pitifully killed," slip[>cd out the word " murdered," a mistake which ronfirmed the general opinion, ami that her fulling tlown the stairs of Cuninor llall " without hurting of her hood," was not accidcntnl.— See Osborne's Trail. Memoirs ofQnrcn Klizabcth. vol. ISS. note. This lady, Amy Uobsart, was th(! duughlor of Sir John R^llsart, and was a great heiress. Her death happened in J-'JOO, at a period when he was thought likely to aspire tct (»f Kli/alieth in so jjreat a degree as her conduct towards him seemed to imply. Her infatuation for him was devoid of tliat delicate :uid contidiiiij attachment which alone can give stability to such ties. This was ajv parent atler his death, when, with an avidity natural to lier coarse mind, she seized upon a portion of his goods, which were oflered to public sale, in order to repay herself for some debt due to her from the deceased nobleman.J While to the world she appeared wholly devoted to Lei- cester, it is probable tliat tlic earl, who knew the female character well, may have been conscious of tlie insecurity of his station in her regard, and of the hoUowness of that affection which followed him not to the tomb. This secret perception rendered him peculiarly sensible to the dread of rivalship. When Ralegh first appeared at court, the gleams of royal Itivor were sonietitnes supposed to fall abundantly uiion tlic avowed enemy of Leicester, Hunstlon, carl of Sussex, a stout English peer, whose influence over Elizabeth showed how often the same character may be acted ujMin by qualities totally opposite : ti)r Sussex was lionest, and therefore fearless, proud of his relationship to the queen, and of his descent from a long lino of illustrious Fitzwalters ; and on tliat account more acceptable to the f»eople than Leicester, whose lineage recalled the recol- oction of the Dudley, the detested agent of Henry the Seventh. Too unguarded for a courtier, and too unbend- ing for a favorite, Sussex felt all his life tlic ascendency of Buint. " I never," says Naunton, " saw letters more seeming religious timii Ilia." * Nnuiiton's Regalia, p. 14. t The tliplomatic corps ought to lie niurli indcbto'I to him, as having iK't-n the lirst to assume, wlien antbaFsndor in the Low Countries, l\\e high sounding title of" E.\ccllency." — Biovrnpliia, note. I Notd in Hume, 8vo. vol. v p 317. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 27 I,eicc6tor, and oil his death-beil, bade his fricnda beware of " the Gipsy ;" a name which he had given to the carl, and then cstecineJ to be one of peculiar opprobrium* : so equally poised, indeed, was the apparent influence which Leicester and Sussex were supposed to iwsscss at court, that the introduction of Ralcsrh to the especial notice of the queen has been attributed to both these noblemen. It was not, however, long, before Leicester began to dread his advances, and determined to oppose his career by the introduction of a new rival. This was Rt>bert Dcveroux, carl of I'lssex, a man far inferior to Ralegh in natural abili- ties, and m cultivation of mind ; but gitlcd with disposi- tions far too generous and noble lor tl\c part which he liad to perform in lite. Various circumstiinccs conspired to estab- lish Essex as the idol of the people, and of his sovereign ; and Ralegh found it, jxirhaps,- difficult to forgive tlic suc- cess which frustrated his own rise to greatnesa Yet, whilst tJic prosperity of Ralegh was less dazzling, it was more secure than that of tiie unfortunate Essex. Sincere and well-intentioned, yet vain, presumptuous, and scIP- willed, the faults of filssex operated chiefly to his own in- jury, and even his virtues appeared to add to the dangers by which he was surrounded. Ilis popularity was greater than that of any British nobleman of his time, and was the source of much ill-will towards him, on the part of many of his equals ; Ralegh, on the other hand, eitJier avoided public applause, as dangerous, or disregarded it as unim- portant. " Seek not to be Essex, shun to be Ralegli," was tiie wise counsel of the elder Ix)rd Burleigh to his son; thus designating those persons as representing the two ex- tremes of popularity and of public aversion. Yet Essex and Ralegh botii died ujxjn a scaflbld : so difficult is it to steer clear of the quicksands on which despotism hurries its victims. In 1583, Ralegh was employed by Queen Elizabeth to attend Simier, the agent of the Duke of Anjou, in his ad- dresses to i']lizabeth,on his return to R-ance ; and afterwards to attend the duke to Antwerp.f The Queen accompanied her foreign suitor as far as Canterbury, and commanded certain of her nobility to continue their attendance uiwn the Duke, until they reached the Netlierlands.} It haa • IVaunton, |). 15. tCayley, i p. 43. J Camden's Eliz. 212. 28 LIFK OF SIR WALTJER RALEGH. been asserted, m the famous work entitled Leicester's Commonwealth, tliat the Earl, to revenge himself on Si- mier for tlie discovery of his jnarriaafe lo Queen Elizabetli, employed pirates to sink tlie Frenchman and his compan- ions at sea, but Uiat tliey were prevented by some English vessels. If Uiis assertion were true, Ilalegh must have sluu-etl in the perils tlms prepared for Simier.* Dissatisfied, jirobably witJi tJie routine of a courtier's life, and aware tluit his real credit was best to be proiuotcd by exertion, Ralegh soon evinced impatience to be again in actfon; luid resolved to make a second voyage to JNcw- foundland, in conjunction wiUi Sir Humphrey Gilbert, in which his personal services should be employed. With tliis intention, he built a ship of two hundred tons ; named it tlie Bark Ralegh; equipped it for thevoyage, in whicii he purposeil acting as vico-admiral ; Sir Humphrey being tlie general of the expedition. Tliis respected commander was, in fact, tJie very soul of the undertaJdng, wliich, by liis credit alone, received contributions of ships, n\en, jmd money, from new adventurers in tlie voyage to Newfouiid- land. Encoura^^ed by the assistance of his friends, Sir Humphrey was assureil silso of the Queen's regard, by her presenting him, as a token of her approbation, with a small anchor of beaten gold, witli a large pearl at tlie pealt, an ornament which he wore ever afterwards at his breast. In the patent which Her Majesty harl granted to him for the discovery of foreign parts, a clause was inserted, by which it was rendered voitl if, at tlie end of si.x years, no new possession were gained.f It was tlierefore of import:uice, tliat no unnecessary delay should impede the departure of Sir Humphrey and his associates for those remote regions, wiiich they fondly hoped to add to the British colonies. Tiie tleet assembled, uixin tliis occasion, consisted of live sail, and tlie united ollicers and crews lunounted to two hundred and sixty men. Among tliese were artificers of every kind, besides miners and gold refiners; nor were they, according to the account of Captain Hayes, of all tlic commajiders tlie only one who returned from Newfuuiid- land to relate the s»ul disasters of this fatal voyage, desti- tute of "Alusike in good variety: not omitting the least toyes, as Morris dancers, hobby-horse, and day-like con- ♦ ("Hiivl. yesr UW>. t "if'S ="'• Oil'fft. LIFE OF SIR WAM ER RALEGH. 29 ceits, to delight the savage people, -whom we intended to winnc by all fair means possible."* The Bark Ralegh, which was the largest vessel of tlie expedition, set sail from Plymouth on the 11th of June, 1583, but had not been many days at sea, before it , cqo was discovered that a contagious fever had seized the whole crew ; and Ralegh, with its captain and crew, were obliged to return to harbor. Providence appears, however, in this event, to have aflbrded peculiar protection to the ship, and to its commander. Ralegh had indeed the mortification of leaving Sir Humphrey Gilbert to finish the enterprise without him. That gallant officer reached Newfoundland, of which, by the usual form of digging up a turf, and receiving it with a hazel wand, he took posses- sion, in right of the discovery made by Cabot : planted the first British colony there, discovered a silver mine, divided some portion of the lands among his followers, and began his voyage home, in the joyful expectation of further en- couragement from Queen Elizabeth.f But this brave man was destined never to return to his native country. The ship in which he had stored the silver ore, which he de- signed to show as a specimen, was lost ; and, before he had passed the Azores, tempestuous weather and terrible seas sank the spirits of the sailors, who, in the true spirit of the superstitious fears to which they are prone, reported that they had heard strange voices in the night, scaring them from the helm. Even the principal officers were alarmed for the safety of Sir Humphrey, who had imprudently chosen to sail in the Squirrel, a small frigate. In vain did his friends entreat him to change his vessel, and to come on board the Hinde, the largest ship of the squadron. The honor of the dauntless Sir Gilbert had, unhappily, been touched by the imputation of cowardice, a report false, as it was cruel. He persisted therefore in remaining at his post, saying, " I will not desert my little company, with whom I have passed so many storms and perils ;" nor would lie remain on board the Hinde, except for a short time, for the purpose of a convivial meeting with the offi- cers, their last interview ; and they parted, agreeing that all the captains should give orders to hang out lights at * Hakluyt, iii. 149. t Hakluyt'g Voyages, folio 159 ; also Camden, Eliz. 402. . C2 30 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. niglit. Meanwhile tlie dangers tJiickeiicd; the oldest mariners declared tlint tJiey Imd never witnessed such seas : the winds ciiansfing incessjuitly, the waves, in the simple lajiguaerislied. ♦ See Mr. Edwnrd Hayes' nairativp, Hakluyt, vol. iii. H3 to 159. t Note in Bioginpljin. J Note in Oldys. p. ihJ. LIFK OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 31 The details of the voyaofo were bron<;lit home by the captain of the Iliiule, wliicli readied En"^land in safety; but Ralegh, though grieved at the loss ot his friend and associate, lost no time in forniinor schemes for a fresh un- dertaking ; and, in consequence of a representation which lie laid before the Queen and council, he obtained letters patent, empowering him to "discover such remote, heathen, and barbarous lands as were not actually possessed by any Christian, nor inhabited by any Christian people." So in- distinct were the notions which even the most cultivated minds, in this country, at that time, entertained of geogra- phy, that, in this and in some other patents of that period, there was neither mention of any particular part of the globe, nor of any latitude or longitude fixed for tlie planta- tion proposed.* That the entire merit of tliis project is due to Ralegh, is a matter of considerable doubt, in conjunction with Sir Humphrey Gilbert, he has the meritof being the first Eng- lish adventurer that took out men as settlers to foreign re- gions ; but it has been su])posed, with some appearance ofi probability, that Sir Humphrey's first expedition was di- rected to that particular territory which received the name of Virginia. For, in the house of Ralegh Gilbert, the son of the untbrtunate general, was a picture conjectured to have been intended for Sir Humphrey, holding in one hand a general's staff", and resting the other upon a globe, with the word Virginia inscribed on it, whilst the noted golden anchor is seen suspended from his dress.f It has been also surmised, that the name of Virginia was applied to that country some years previous to the enterprise for which Ralegh obtained letters patent. It is evident tliat the plan had been a considerable time in agitation, from the promptitude with which Ralegh began it; a degree of dispatch which it would have been scarcely possible to have adopted, in a novel and undigested scheme. It is said that the favorite studios of Ralegh's youtli, were the discoveries of Columbus, and the histories of the conquests of Pizarro, Fernando Cortes, and of otlier Span- ish adventurers in the reign of Charles V.f With this pe- culiar direction of his ideas and hopes, it might almost * Anderson's History orConnnerce, vol. ii. p. 158. t See note, Oldys, answered in Biographia, art. Gilbcil J Oldys, 22. 32 LIFE OF SIU WALTER RALEGH. liave been expected, that ho would have sought a personal particiiHition in those exertions which his enthusiastic tem- per might consider as certain to lead to glory. But the recent deatli of his relation, and tlie variety of his civil oc- cupations, together witli his present want of experience in navigation, account for his intrusting his arduous specula- tions in otlicr hands. TJic project was eminently successful. Ralegh had as- certained from pilots and otlier seamen who had sailed in Spanish vessels to Mexico, that, on returning, as tliey usually did, by tlie Ilavannah and tlie Gulf of Florida, a continued coast on tlie nortli-wcst had been observed : and, a-e tiiiia wtus rewardtHJ by kniojithood, a dis- tinition which Khzabetii prized so liiiifldy, that when im- portuned to raise one of lier courtiers from a kni<:;lit to a baron, siio deckired tliat slu; " tliouijlit iiim above it already."! l^icli prizes and important captures were car- ried liome in trium])h by his privateers ; and liad Rak>nt in a portion of the land forfeited in Cork and Watertord, durinjj the rebellion recently suppressed in Munster. This estate, e.xtendinjj over twelve thousand acres, was ])ianted by Raleafh ; but not being- (itted for his own residence, was sold to Richard IJoyle, at^erwards I'larl of Cork. 'J'hus Ralejjh, like most of Elizabeth's favorites, was rewardiul without the sli. 8i. 34 LIFE OF SIR VVALTEIi RALEGH. general studies, so as to become one of the most elegant and powerful writers, one of the most philosophical and diliii;ent historians of liis country. To readinnf, Riilegh assigned four hours only ; to sleep, five ; allowing the re- mainder of his day to business ; reserving, liowever, two hours for rela.xation and discourse, being aware how salu- tary, if not essential to tiie mind, is tliat recreation wliicli refreshes witliout enervating the intellectual system. In this systematic arrajigement, he found time to cultivate the fine arts. In nuisic lie was a proficient ; ajid to painting he showed his partiality by a liberal jmtronage.* In ora- tory Ralegli also excelled ; so tJiat neitlier the originality of Ills ideas, nor tlie depth of liis knowledge, were con- cealed by a tame or imperfect mode of convcjing tlieni to otJicrs. To extend to all, tlie advantages which he himself enjoyed, was a favorite scheme of this great man ; and with a view to promote tlie circulation of knowledge, he set up on office of address, to which the industrious and curious might apply for hiformation of every species. Of this institution little has transpired, except a passagt iVom the pen of tlie celebrated Eveljii. In a letter to the Earl of Clarendon, he remarks upon " tliat long-dried fountain of communication, which Montaigne first proposed. Sir Walter Ralegh put in practice, and Mr. Ileartlib endeavored to revive." The plan suggested by ]\Iontaigne was, to have an office of inquiry in every town, in which persons might register the kinds of information whicli tliey wislied to jxissess, and their terms for obtaining it. Consistent witli such labors as tliese was the laudable determination evinced by Ralegh to encourage and exalt those persons of merit whose station or circumstajices precluded their rising, unassisted, to distinction. He sup- ported Morgues, an eminent French painter, during his residence in England for the purpose of making majis and drawings of Florida. He was the friend and coadjutor of Ricliard Hakluyt In tliis industrious compiler Ralegh, in- deed, found one of those indefatigable enthusiasts who, like the astonishing Leland, seem born to perpetuate the la- bors, and to transmit to jx)sterity tlie lame, of otliers. It is a well-known fact, tliat he once rode two hundred miles * Oldy'8 Life of Ralegh, p. 48. MPE OF SIR WALTER RALEOft. 35 to tjain from an oyc-\vilness the particulars of an inifortu- nafe expedition to Newfoundland, in the time of Henry the Eighth ; an account of which he has published in his collection of voyages. It was the incessant endeavor of Hakluyt, not only to preserve the histories of recent voyages, but to rescue our naval antiquities from the dilapidations of time : nor could the prospect of rising in the clerical pro- fession, of which he was a member, induce him to desert his favorite topic for those more closely connected with his spiritual vocation. He spared neither labor nor expense in pursuit of that knowledge which he desired to withdraw from oblivion ; rescued from destruction, and transcribed many ancient manuscripts of patents, privileges, and let- ters ; consulted many libraries, and culled information from every source, both oral and written, which he could possi- bly discover. In tliese erudite investigations Ralegh, in many in- stances, became a liberal and effective assistant. He lent his aid to Hakluyt, to enable hun to publisli his collection of English voyages. Hakluyt, in gratitude, dedicated to Ralegh several of those works, the important value of which consists in their being compiled from letters and other authentic sources, not to mention the constant com- munication which their collector maintained with mari- ners in all quarters. From the last untbrtunate voyage to Newfoundland, Hakluyt, who had some intention of join- ing it, was, like Ralegh, providentially preserved. In or- der to give his sanction, and a greater degree of credit, to the collection of English voyages, Ralegh appointed Hak- luyt one of the corporation of counsellors, to whom, in 1588, he assigned his patent for the prosecution of the North Amei"ican discoveries.* These mutual services were of great benefit to the progress of maritime investi- gations, and redounded to the honor of both. The adven- turers in perilous enterprise knew that their daring ex- ploits might be raised into importance, and rescued from obscurity^ by the efforts of so faithful and learned a pre- server of their transactions as Hakluyt ; and thus the de- sire for discovery received a fresh stimulus. Hakluyt was rewarded in the manner which he best loved, and had a river and a promontory in Greenland named after him, ♦ niog. nrt. Ilakliiyt. 3G' LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. which are still called by his name. Hakluyt was in good circumstances, and required rather the countenance and assistance of Ralegh than pecuniary aid. In Thomas Ilor- riot, a man of obscure birtli and humble fortunes, Ralegh found, however, an object to whom his bounty wns impor- tant. Hcrriot was the centre of a little circle of mathe- maticians, ingenious, but at that tune speculative men, whose pursuits had, at no very remote period, been not unfrcqucntly confounded with necromancy.* To persons of scientitic pursuits, tJie protection of some liberal patron was, therefore, in those days, peculiarly advantageous. Ralegh received Herriot into his house, paid him a yearly pension, and was instructed by him in tJie science which he professed, and which, at tliat time, was not considered as the essential basis of a liberal education, but which was ])robably, in a great measure, the foundation of Ralegh's acquirements and science. At a subsequent period, Ralegh promoted tiie interests of his tutor, by introducing him to Henry Earl of Nortlumiberland, who, from his love for mathematics, acquired the name of ^enry the Wizardf ; and when that accomplished nobleman was confined in tiie Tower lor life, upon suspicion of being concerned in the gunjiowder treason, Herriot shared his imprisonment, in company 'with two other mathematicians, Warner and Hues. These men had a table at the Earl's charge, and were called his Magi.J Herriot was the inventor of the way of notation, since universally used in algebra, and of many improvements in that science, the honor of which was for many years attributed to Des Cartes. Ralegh availed himself of his learning and assiduity, in employing him to settle the colony at Virginia, whither he sent him in 1584, tmdcr Sir Richard Greenville, with instructions to draw up and publish a topography of the country, which was pul)lishod in 1588-5 it has been supjwsed that Herriot implanted in the minds of both his patrons principles of deism ; and the cruel disorder, a cancer of the lip, of which he died, was imputed, by the churchmen of the day, to a judgment of Providence. It is not difficult to defend both Ralegh and liis master from this charge. Herriot is said • See iMonteil des Francaisdes divers Etats, loin, premier, p. 17. t Fuller's VVdrtliies.—Colliiis's Peerage, ii. p. 433. } Wood, vol. i. p. 459. § Biograpliia. I.trP. op SIR WALTER RALEGH. 37 to have doubted the autlieiitioity of the Mosaic account of the creation, and to Iiave rcjinted many parts of the Old Testament. From tliis incredulity, which has, even in more enlightoncd day--^, been unhappily observed in learned and pious men, he was inferred to be a Deist* : yet he diligently endeavored to instil the ^loctrines of Christianity mto the minds of tli^ natives of Virginia; and it is far more common for those who profess relio^ious faith to Bwerve from their tenets in practice, tlian it is for those who broach sentiments of infidelity to perform actions worthy of Christian motives. We cannot be far wrong, if we allow to those who seek to promote the cause of Reli- gion, some personal knowledge of her benignant influence. With regard to Ralegh, innumerable passages in his works; his advice to his son, his splendid conclusion to his History of the World, and many other parts of that pro- duction, show a mind chastened and elevated by devotional feelings. It must, however, be granted, that these were the sentiments of his declining age, and it is possible that, in youth, his mind may have been less settled in points of faith. The slightest acknowledgment of a doubt, or even the shadow of an innovation upon the pale of orthodoxy, was, in those days, sufficient to affix a mark of reproach which it was difficult to remove. " Ralegli was the first," remarks a writer of the age, " tliat ventured to tack about, and to sail aloof from the beaten track of the schools ; and who, uj)on tiie discovery of so apparent an error as the tor- rid zone, intended to proceed in an inquisition after more solid truths ; till the mediation of some, whose hardihood in hammering slirines for this superannuated study, pos- sessed Queen Elizabeth that such doctrine was against Go;irs Marriaso.— His Disgrace at Court. — Ilia Voyage to Guiana.— Services in tlie Atlantic with Essex. IWfi '^"*' ^"^^*^^ wliicli Ralcijh at this time enjoyed at court soon became tlie subject of {general remark, and was oven noticed upon tlie stage, in siicii plain and oHensive terms, that Tarleton, the most pojjular actor of tlie ilay, when playin. 1,1 FE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 47 Deputy, as his secretary. Descended, like Ralogli, from an ancient and lumdrablo family, and allied to many of the Eufflisli nobility from iiis rolntionslii]) to the Spcnsers of NortiiamptonKliire, but born of inili<>cnt ])aronts, En^numd Spenser had been far surpassed by Ralepli in the proij^ress to worldly attainments and honors. Wliilst llalej;jh was cherished and flattered at court, Spenser was deprived of the benefits of royal favor by Lord Burleijrli, who, wiien Elizabetii ordered the poet to receive a hundred jiounds, inquired on what account, and beinpf intiirmed that it was as an encouragement to poetical genius, remonstrated witii his sovereign mistress for her prodigality in thus rewarding "a song." " Give him, then, what is reason," said Eliza- beth, and the poet went for some time unrewarded.* It was not, however, long before Spenser proved the sound- ness of his understanding by completing his View of the State of Ireland, in which, under the name of Irena-us, he vindicates his patron, liOrd (>rey, from the arguments of Eudo.xus. This production, which he intended to have been followed by a work on tiic antiquities of Ireland, was not published until 1633, when the writer was no longer alive to enjoy tlie fame which it deservedly received. I le was, however, consoled for this delay, and ior tiu^ death of liis first patron, Sir Philip Sidney, by the giil of three thousand acres of land in Cork, once belonging- to the Earl of Des- mond, and forfeited by his rebellion to the crown. Here he lived in tlie castle of Kilcolman, formerly the abode of the Desmonds, seated upon a fine lake, and connnanding a, view which presented the varied beauties of mountain and forest scenery, through which the river Mulla wandered.i- In this romantic residence Si)enscr composed that great poem, whicii, if it delights and fills the imagination, com- mands also from the judgment the tribute of dispassionate approbation. Restrained by the necessity of ofiering in- cense to tlie power and vanity of Elizabeth, the untortu- nate Spenser has shown that even in tlie most sequestered • Until ho addressod this well-known romonstranco to the queen : — " 1 was promised on a time To have reason lor my rliime ; From that time nntil this season I received nor rhimo nor reason." Upon rereivinc those lines, the queen, it is said, ordered the payment of (he hundred pounds tirst |)romised. t See Smith's Hist of Cork, vol. i. p 55-3113. Also vol. ii. p. 'JCO— 2CJ. 48 LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. retreats worldly desires intrude. But the queen, although constituting the heroine of the piece, and represented, ac- cording to a modern writer, as " sending fortli the moral virtueaillustrated under tlie character of diflercnt knights,"* proved, that siie merited not the praise, by her neglect of the autiior. Ralegh, on arriving at the retired dwelling of Spenser, found iiim poor, and almost in obscurity. Al- ready had he tasted of the poet's true portion in the mise- ries of rejected love ; but Rosalinde, or Rosa Lynde, the supposed idol of the bard, had, it may be presumed, been forgotten in the happiness of a subsequent marriage, Ra- legh, although more tbrtunate than his friend, had also ex- perienced vicissitude; lor the source of that displeasure which Elizabetli shortly afterwards evinced towards him, had probably already become obvious to his own mind. The mood in which he visited Spenser was evidently of a melancholy character. Spenser, in his pas^toral entitled "Colin Clout's come home again,"' describes in Ralegh the shepherd of the ocean, a hopeless mourner for the lost favor of " Cyntliia, the lady of the sea," otlierwise the queen. " His sons was all of lamentable lay, " Of great unkinilness, and of usage hard." The imagination would fain linger upon the probable conversation of these two great men, so congenial in feel- ings, so devoted to the same mistress. Fame ; alike so fa- vored, yet so unfortunate in pursuing her tracks. Poetry, the luxury of minds undebased by worldly ambition, occu- pied a great portion of the meditations in which these gift- ed friends indulged ; Spenser was persuaded by Ralegh to repair to the English court, in order to present to the queen three books of his poem ; and Ralegh was probably at this time preparing tlie verses, which he afterwards wrote on the " Faery Qxiecn.'"] They travelled together to Eng- land, and passing the Isle of Lundy, landed in Cornwall, at Saint Michael's Mount, and proceeded to London. Here Ralegh, in vain, endeavored to procure for his friend those substantial advantages, which might enable him to pursue his literary career unshackled by the anxieties of penury. Spenser, although possessed of eminent talents as a politi- cian, and of extensive information in Irish affairs, failed in * Lord Lyttletoii. t I'iiB Rritannica, art Spenser. Lin: Of r-m xv.\i.ii-ii kai.kuh 4j> ilia ellbrts to perform llio laak imposed on liim, of laying- down a plan for subduing and reforming tliat. country iii two years. In dejection and noglect lie returned to Ire- land, which he letl some years afterwards, in order to pub- lish his poem. During his absence from Kilcolman, his property was plundered by tlie rebels under Lord Tyrone, and his house, containing one of his children, was burned to the groimd. This calamity broke his heart Reduced to a state of extreme misery and dependence, he yet re- tained somewhat of that delicacy of feeling, whicli is, or ought to be, inherent in poets; and when, in declinmg health, he received twenty pieces of gold from the Earl of Essex, he returned them, saying " he had no time to spend." Upon his remains, as so otlen happens to men of genius, were lavished the honors which had been withheld from himself He was buried in Westminster Abbey, according to his own wish, near Chaucer ; and his obsequies were at- tended by poets and other distinguished men of his time, whilst complimentary verses were throvvn into his grave. That Ralegh cheered the last sorrowful days of his friend by his bounty is not specified, nor is he loiown to have shared in the fruitless homage olFered to his memory. His euA'ied rival, Essex, provided the funeral of the jwet ; and the accomplished Countess of Dorset erected his monu- ment. During some time after Ralegh's return to England, he appears to have enjoyed the peculiar favor of the queen. For his services against the Armada, she rewarded him with an augmentation of his office of licenses ; and, for the assistance which he had afforded to Don Antonio, he was repaid by the gift of a gold chain from Elizabeth. lit the exercise of his license for vending wines, he was not restricted in increasing the number of vintners in any part of the kingdom. Hence a dispute arose between him and the university of Cambridge ; the heads of which es- poused the cause of a vintner whom they had formerly ap- pointed, not only in opposition to a man named Keymere, licensed by Ralegh, but to his personal hindrance and dan- ger in the occupations of his business. Such, indeed, were the oppressions in which that learned body occasionally in- dulged, that notwithstanding repeated and temperate re- raonBtrances, they finally imprisoned the man for follo\ving E 50 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. a calling which had been lawfully permitted to him. Tlie intelligence of this proceeding having reached lialegh, he was resolved to use more determined measures lluui those which he had hitiierto adopted ; and, aildressing the Vice- Chancellor and Masters of Colleges, he wrote to them in these words : — " As I reverence the place of wliich you are tlie governors, so will I not willingly tiike any disgrace or wrong from you ;" subscribing himself " their friend, aa they shall give cause." This epistle produced an humble and explanatory reply from the Vico-Chancellor, represent- ing that they hail enjoyed the disputed privilege lor more than two hundred years ; that they had not neglected any quiet means to procure his permission for their continuance of tlie office : but tliat he had used such severe language, lliat they had entertained but little hopes of conciliating one who must have understood how to receive and to re- turn tlie language of courtesy : " bemg by birtli a gentle- man, by education trained up to Uie knowledge of good let- ters ; instructed with the liberal disposition of an univer- sity, the fountain and nursery of all humanity ; and further, by God's good blessing, advanced in court, from which tlie very name of courtesy is drawn." To this flattering lan- guage Ralegh was, probably, not insensible ; for, in tlio course of a few montlis, the altercation was terminated through the mediation of the Lord Treasurer Burleigh, who was at tliat time Chancellor of Cambridge.* Encouraged by tlie testimonies of approbation which he aad received from tlie Queen, and availing himself of a temporary cessation of hostilities witli Spain, Ralegh now prepared to execute a design, which he had formed for abolishing tlie power of that nation in tlie West Indies. With this intention, he collected, chiefly at his own ex- irm pense, tliirteen vessels, with which he determined ' ■ to raise a certain and permanent renown. Aided by two of the Queen's men-of-war, and authorized to as- sume the title of General of tlie Fleet, he set sail from tlie west of England. Scarcely had he commenced his voyage, hefore he was overtaken by Sir Martin Frobislier, witli orders from tlie Queen, who wisely dreaded tlie absence of one of her bravest defenders, whilst danger still threat- ened the country. But Ralegh, conceiving that his honor * Oldys, V LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 61 was pledged to proceed, pursued his course, although al- most hopeless of enijapiiifr with the Sjmnish fleet, having received iiitinuition that it would not sail tliat year. Dis- couraged still further by a storm off* (^ape Finisterrc, and finding his provisions run short, ho divided his fleet be- tween Frobisiier and Sir Joiin liurgh, witii orders, which were diligently obeyed, that one party should terrify the Spaniards on their own coast, whilst tiic other should re- main at the Azores, to intercept tlie Caracques on their voyage from the West Indies. Tiiis arrangement pro- duced the capture of the Madre de Dios, the largest prize that had ever been brouglit to the English shores. Tlie Queen, who had contributed so scantily to the expenses of this adventure, engrossed, nevertheless, a considerable share of its profits, which were estimated at five hundred thousand pounds. The jewels and the valuables fell chiefly to the lot of the sailors, so that Hawkins, who had joined Ralegh in the speculation, gained, as well as his associate, a diminished jwrtion of the prize.* I'his was the only occasion, if we except the services against the Spanish Armada, in wiiicli Ralegh co-operated with Sir Martin Frobisiier. That brave and indefatigable man, the associate of Drake, in the successful expedition to the West Indies, died lour years after his joint service with Ralegh, in consequence of a wound received at the siege of Brest ; the injury was not of a dangerous charac- ter, but an ignorant or careless surgeon, after extracting a ball which had entered, omitted to clear out the wadding. Thus perislied one of the most meritorious, although not one of the most amiable, of our naval heroes. During a period of fifteen years, Frobisiier had, in the early part of his career, cherislied tiie project, which he afterwards at- tempted, of finding a north-west passage to China. For the supplies of ships and money, he vainly solicited several English merchants, a class of men, who are unjustly de- scribed by tlie indignant Hakluyt, as never regarding vir- tue " witliout sure, cert^iiii, and present gains."! Happily lor Frobisher, Elizabetii listened to his schemes, thus securing to herself the fame of being the first sovereign by wlioni the project of, a north-west passage to China was publicly and perseveringly encouraged. ♦ niii h, Ji t Hakluyt, vol, 3. p. Ca 52 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. It is a relief to find Ralegh for several years after this enterprise devoting himself to the civil interests of his country ; and shining in the council and the senate, wi?h a calmer and more benignant lustre than that wliich at- tended his warlike exploits. As a politician, his leading principles of action seem to have been, religions toleration, determinetl opposition to amity with Spain, and hatred of her encroachments. For the display of these opinions, he incurred odium, persecution, and death. It is probable that in the tunnoil of worldly business, and in a court, where it is difficult to " hold fast one's integrity," he may, in some instances, have forgotten the great ends which he appeared especially qualified to pursue ; and mingled xvith elevated designs, motives of envy and ambition. But on a general retrospect of his character, he appears to hsPve been a public-spirited and loyal subject to Queen Elizabeth ; and yet an enlightened and liberal defender of the rights and interests of his country. To the established church, Ralegh was frequently adverse ; and from. his conduct in various instances, obnoxious. His first offence was an en- croachment upon their temporalities. In his anxiety to obtain a certain manor, he is asserted to have traduced to the Queen, Godwin, Bishop of Bath and Wells, an aged prelate, the father of Dr. Francis Godwin, who wrote the " Catalogue of English Bishops." But although not en- tirely free from blame in this affair, Ralegh escaped the censures of Dr. Francis Godwin, who, in revising his work in the succeeding reign, makes no comments upon the conduct of Sir Walter, but rather regrets that his father should have sought to monopolize livings, to the duties of which his infirmities precluded him from attending.* The accusation against Ralegh, which was thus, in some degree, nullified, was adduced by Sir John Harring- ton, in his work entitled a Brief View of the Church of England, which was intended to serve as a continuation of Godwin's Catalogue of Bishops. It was written during the reign of James the First, in the time of Ralegh's sub- sequent confinement; and was addressed to Henry, Prince of Wales, rather as a story told in his Highness's pi-esence and hearing, than as a grave narration of established facts. * Oldyp. p. 5P. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. "53 Yet Harrington relates tlie circumstance as an anecdote generally known; find annexes to it several particulars whicli are extremely discreditable to Ralegh. It is ob- servable, however, that lie alludes to him not by name, but only as a chief favorite of that time, who, being unable to get the manor of Ban well from the bishop, took advantage of an unsuitable and unseasonable marriage made by tlie aged prelate, to incense the Queen's mind against him. Persecuted and alarmed. Dr. Godwin was, eventually, con- strained to surrender, for the term of a hundred years, an- other manor belonging to him, in order to save that which llalegh coveted. The relator of this tale affirms, that he had Himself carried many angry messages on the subject from the Q,ueen to the bishop, wliich were, in one instance, de- livered to hun through the Earl of Leicester ; that favorite at first espousing the cause of the old man, but eventually concurring with Ralegh, " like Pilate and Herod to condemn Christ."* Such is the story, and such are the irregular, yet not contemptible, grounds upon which it rests. This charge was not the only one which the able and discern- ing but time-serving Harrington has brought against Ralegh in his works, although rendering him justice in his familiar letters. The protection which Ralegh afforded to Udall was an- other cause of offence to the clergy. Udall, although regularly educated as a minister of the establishegl church, had yet joined the Non-conformists ; and had distinguished himself both for his zeal and eloquence, but still more for his " DeTTionstration of Discipline ;" a work reflecting upon the church, but construed by the harsh yet fawning spirit of the age, into a libel on the Queen's majesty. Upon this ground he was indicted, was brought to the bar in fetters, and there tried upon the depositions of witnesses, no viva voce testimony being allowed: neither washe permitted to reply, the defence which he might have prepared, being rejected unheard, as libellous. The unhappy man was found guilty of publishing the book, but remained half a year in prison, without receiving his sentence: when, continuing firm in his tenets, he was brought before the Lord Keeper Puckering, to receive judgment of death. * Harrington's Brief View, 110, 111. E2 54 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. Immediately after the sentence, a reprieve was sent him from the Queen, at the instance of Ralegh, who advised him to improve this interval of mercy by addressing a let- ter to Elizabeth, explaining the true purport of his writings. Some hopes of liberty were tlius afforded to Udall, but his release was deferred from time to time, until he died in prison, having rejected the humane offer of a free passage to Guinea, upon condition that he should revisit England no more. It was in reference to the mediation of Ralegh on this and other occasions, that Elizabeth said to him, "When, Sir Walter, will you cease to be a beggar 1" " When your gracious Majesty ceases to be a benefactor," was the adroit and courteous reply. 1592 Consistent with his horror of persecution were the efforts which Ralegh made in parliament, to prevent the expulsion of the Brownists, and other sectari- ans, from this country, upon the score of religious opinions. The Brownists owed their origin and name to one Robert Brown, who afterwards carried his heretical tenets to Zea- land, the hot-bed of extravagant and speculative modes of faith. Although in orders, and aflerwards preferred to the rectory of Northampton, yet Brown held that the " church- government was anti-christian ; her sacraments clogged with superstition ; that the Liturgy had a mixture of po- pery and paganism in it, and that the Mission of the clergy was no better than that of Baal's priests in the Old Testa- ment."* For the unhesitating display of these opinions, which, unwarranted as they were, had been best answered by that spirit of forbearance which " suffers long," Brown incur- red unwonted persecution, which placed a violent and mis- chievous sectarian almost on the footing of a martyr ; he could boast that he had been confined in thirty-two prisons, in many of which he could not see his hand at noon-day ; and, although upon his promise of conforming to the estab- lished church, he was permitted to enjoy one of its bene- fices, yet he died in Northampton jail, whither he was sent for strildng a constable. His opinions, which were derived from those of the Donatists, occasioned, for a time, violent controversies, and his followers gave considerable annoy- ance to the church, so late as the reign of Charles the First. At length, after being associated in public proclamations * Hiripiapln-) LIFE OF SIR WALTKR UALEGII. 55 with Anabaptists and Atheists, the Bro^vnists, furious and obnoxious as they were, were softened into Congregational- ists, or Independents, holding a middle course between Presbyterianisni and Brownism.* It was in reference partly to these schismatics that an act was passed for the purpose of " retaining her Majesty's ser- vants in due obedience, specifying further, that any person above sixteen years of age who refused, during the space of a month, to attend public worship, should be committed to prison ; and, if persisting for three months in such deter- mination, be banished the realm under pain of death, if de- tected in returning.f To the enactment of this law, very little opposition was made by the compliant commons then met ; but Ralegh opposed it upon reasons, which have ever been deemed the most conclusive in favor of religious tole- ration : these, he grounded upon the injustice of punish- ment, when the offence consists in those thoughts and cherished notions, which are hidden within the inmost re- cesses of the heart, and of which our fellow-men cannot, on that account, be competent judges. Such were the sen- timents which he expressed upon this occasion : — " In my conceit, the Brownists are worthy to be rooted out of a commonwealth ; but what danger may grow to ourselves if this law pass, were fit to be considered. For it is to be feared that men not guilty will be included in it ; and that law is hard, that taketh life, and sendeth into banishment ; where men's intentions shall be judged by a jury,J and they shall be judges what another means. But the law, which is against a fact, is but just ; and punish the fact as severely as you will. If two or three thousand Brownists meet at the sea, at whose charge shall they be transported, and where shall they be sent ] I am sorry for it, but I am afraid there are near twenty thousand of them in England, and when they are gone, M^ho shall maintain their wives and children ]"§ Such humane and judicious suggestions as these appear to have had their due weight with the House. ''■•* See note in explanation of their tenets. Biog. art. Brown. t Hume, reign Elizabeth, year J501. t Recusants were to be tried by civil .judges at assizes, in preference to ecclesiastical courts. (Strype's Annals, vol. iv. p. 2(i4.) An enact- ment which Hume attributes to the desire of the clergy to remove the odium from themselves. See note, reign Eliz. § Oldv!?, 6P, from T'nrns^hpnd> Hi?t.- rollrrtlons 56 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. A committee was appointed to revise the bill, and among the list Ralegh's name appears : many amendments and additions were consequently adopted.* Although in withstanding so arbitrary and rigid a law as this, Ralegh espoused the cause of the Catholics, as well as that of the Dissenters, his display of liberality, added to his avowed enmity to the Spanish court, drew upon him tlie satire of Fatlier Parsons, who, imder tlie title of a " Lover of his Country" inveiglied bitterly in a libellous publica- tion against some of the most eminent public characters of the time. Ralegh became an object of his invectives, and the cry of Atheist, tliat established watch-word of cal- umny, was raised against him. He was even stated to have formed a school of Atheism, in which the Old and New Testament were derided, and a spirit of blasphemy infused into the minds of the scholars. But the enemies of Ralegh had, in this instance, a deeper source of hatred towards him tlian mere party rancor. He had been the avowed patron of every measure which conduced to diffuse information, and to promote tolerance and free inquiry. By no class of persons were proceedings soch as these so much dreaded and discountenanced, as by tlie Jesuits, a learned but de- signing sect, who, by the weakness and ignorance of others, found their own power strengtliened, and tlie influence of their superstitions extended. Among tliese, the first that established himself in England was Parsons, the son of a blacksmith of Somersetshire ; once a zealous Protestant, and an eminent tutor of O.xford, where he was the first to introduce Protestant autliors into tlie library of Baliol Col- lege. But, becoming bursar of his college, he exercised such a notorious system of peculation, that, upon an in- quiry being made into his conduct, he found it convenient to resign his I'ellowship. He afterwards travelled on the Continent, and becoming acquainted with the order of the Jesuits, his restless and intriguing temper of mind inclined him to enter eagerly into tlie spirit of that sect. In process of time, he rose to the dignity of Chief Peni- tentiary ; and was appointed to superintend the English seminary at Rome, whence he was sent into England by the Pope, witli instructions to establish his order, to expel Queen Elizabeth, and subvert the Protestant religion. • Oldys, 6!», UPE OF SIR WAL'l'EU UALEGIJ. 57 Fur such a design, Parsons was admirably qualified, his character being a compound of duplicity and boldness, of enterprise and of caution. In conjunctioii with one Fa- ther Campion, he divided lOngland into three parts, each of which was vigilantly, but with the utmost secrecy, watched by one or other of tlie associated emissaries. Campion remained in the north, while Parsons, who usu- ally continued near London, introduced into Cambridge a young priest as a nobleman. By these agents the minds of tlie people were allured, inflamed, or intimidated, as op- portunity offered, until the apprehension of Campion dis- concerted all their measures, and drove Parsons into Nor- mandy. Tliere ho remained ; and having, before his depar- ture from England, given birth to the noted libel belore referred to, containing chiefly appalling, and in some in^ stances, incredible relations of the Earl of Leicester's atroci- ties ; he publisiied, under the name of Doleman, a " Con- ference between a Gentleman, a Lawyer, and a Scholar," concerning the Succession to the Crown of England, dedi- cating it to tlie Earl of Essex, then the rising favorite.* This production was designed to reflect upon the govern- ment, and to subvert the authority of Queen Elizabeth. At her death, the exertions of this reverend father were directed to a fruitless endeavor to prevent the succession of James the First to the tln-one.f It was in tiic preceding year, that Ralegh, in -irno conjunction with many other eminent persons, had aided in inflictmg a deep wound upon the power of the Jesuits, by advising tlie Queen to issue a proclamation for the suppression of the Jesuitical seminaries, of which va- rious branches, from the original institution by Philip the Second at Valladolid, had been established in England.^ The share which Ralegh had in this proceeding was never forgiven by tiie advocates of Spain, nor by those who, upon the plea of religion, as they called it, wished to see this * See this curious, and certainly ingenious and pointed work, written, like the preceding one, by the same author, with the spirit of a demon. Ed. 11)41. Printed first without a name. t Biog. Britan. art. Parsons. t The establishment of Jesuitical seminaries in tliis country was found impractic.ihle until after tlio year J5t)>2; although Loyola, wlio founded the order in 15.11, had signified to Cardinal Pole his desire of feeing it introduced into Enph-nd Note in Piog. from Tartc'S Histo^ of Riigland. 68 LIFE OF SIR WALTKIl RALKGII. country in some respects constituted like that nation. Happily for Entrland, the jxiwer of the Jesuits, an euijine of frisjhtful ascendency in all countries where it has been y>erniitted, was thus, from tJie decision and wistloni of Elizabeth's councils, precluded from tlie exercise of its in- siuuatinij, but oppressive operations ; but, unfortunately for Kalejjh, the various insinuations tiirown out aoainst liim were aidetl in their etlect by an event which happened alnnit this time, and which for a season aftected his fortunes and his tranipiillity. rrouioted by Elizabeth to be one of tJie Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber. Ralofjli, who hati neither the habits nor the soul of an idler, was constrained to come into very frequent comnuuiication with the ladies of tlie bed-cliam- ber, but, in gfeueral, witJiout pnxlucinff many prcx>fs of amity on either side : indeed he was ot\en heard to say, that his fair associates "were like witciies,\vlio could do no gtxxl, but might do liarm."* This remark was remem- bered with bitter exultation, when it was discovered tiiat there existed between lliilesjh anil the beautiful daufrhter of Sir Nicholas Throoinorton, an intimacy which would, had it happened in tliese days, have blasted for ever the reputation of the lady, who was also one of Elizabeth's per- sonal attendants. This conduct was the more inexcusable in Raleoh, because the object of his addresses was unpro- tected by a fatlier's care, Sir iXicholas 'I'hrooniorton havinpf died in 1570,t suddenly, and not without some suspicions of his havinjr been ix)isoned by the Earl of Leicester, in wlu>se house he was at supper when he was attacked by a complaint which provetl fatal. Sir Nicholas had ever been an object of dislike to that unprincipled nobleman, partly from his early adherence to the Somerset faction, and more innnediately from a close alliance witJi tiie elder Cecil. The Earl pretended, however, jireat friendship towards him, and affectintr to be sunnnoned to the royal presence on the sudden return of the Queen to lii>ndon, bade Sir Nicholas take his seat^ and l)e served as he had been. The jjuesi, it is said, obeyed tlie Hatterini;' conmiand, and par- tot>k of a siilad, to whicii he afterwards, on his death-bed. imputed the disease whicij killed liim, but respecting tlie * Bacon's A iMplit lie-ins, New and Old, 395. t rRmdeii's Aiinnl!i. p. IW, year 15T0. LIPI) OF SIR WALTKR RAl,Kinorton family were not prosperous, Sir Nicholas, althouifji de- scended fmm an ancient tiimily, and allied by his mother to the house of Vaulx, and pertbrminorary writt'r.s. t Fuller's Worthies of Warwickshire. J Camden. § Camden, p. 130. || Oldys, 145. IT See his InstriirtionB to his son, and to Posterity, in Ralegh's Uc- mains, diioderimo, 1GU4, p. )^0. CO LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. ties of which her subsequent history does best vouch, auJ which tlie events of a calamitous life drew forth, were singularly adapted to the part which was in life allotted to her. tShe was capable of a devotion to her husband be- yond the power of absence, persecution, and the ruin of all her temporal prosperity, on his account, to diminish. She had activity and resolution which well became the wife of a hero. Slie had disinterestedness wortlay of the name of Ralegli. In her exertions for those who were dear to her, / she evinced the judgment and steadiness of a man ; in lier constancy and disregard of personal comforts and consider- ations, the single-lieartedness and tenderness of a woman's nature. Iler deviation from the delicacy of the feminine character was not, in her own times, viewed with the un- relenting, yet wholesome, severity with which the world visits it 111 the present day. By her family Ralegh seems to have been forgiven, since we afterwards find her brother. Sir Artiiur Throgmorton, associated with hun in his mari- time enterprises.* By Queen Elizabeth, it is to be feared, the sin was visited, more as a scandal to her court, and an offence to her own paramount charms, than as a dereliction from morality. Soon after the exposure of their fault, Ra- legh was united to her in marriage, an union pre-eminent- ly marked by vicissitudes, but cheered by their uninter- rupted affection. On every important occurrence of his life, we find Ralegh addressing her as tlie confidential re- pository of his joys and afflictions ; sometimes in the lan- guage of affectionate consolation in their common bereave- ments, always in that of regard, implicit trust, and respect. For some time, however, during the early days of their | married life, their mutual attachment seemed to bring only separation and sorrow. The erring young lady was dismissed from the court, to the contagion of which she probably owed her disgrace ; and Ralegh was imprisoned for sonic months, as it appears from a letter addressed by Sir Robert Cecil to Sir Arthur Gorges, in the Tower.f Whilst tlius confined, he one day, sitting at his window, perceived by a collection of boats and royal barges, near Blaclcfriars' Bridge, that the Queen was passing. It was soon intimated to him that she was visiting the Lieutenant of the Ordnance, Sir George Carew, in whose custody he * Oldys, p 103. t Birch, 2728. LIFE OF SIR WALTER KALEGH. 61 was pining away hours of obscurity and inaction. Having- gazed and sighed a long tune, Ralegh, either envying the gay and the free, who passed in busy succession by him, or hoping to make ian impression upon the vam heart of the Queen, resolved to disguise himself, flW to get into a boat, to see Her Majesty, declaring that if he were prevented, " it would break his heart." But Sir George Carew would not permit so audacious an attempt; and Ralegh strug- gling to be free, a battle ensued between them, which might have proved fatal to one of the parties, had not a timely mediator intervened, who, according to his own ac- count, " played the stickler" between them." This occur- rence was, however, conveyed to Lord Burleigh,! and probably wrought somewhat upon the Queen, to whom Ralegh, in common with other favored courtiers, professed that extravagant species of devotion with which few women, except Elizabeth, would have been flattered. What was the duration of Ralegh's imprisonment does not appear; but it is evident, from a letter of Sir Robert Cecil's, writ- ten at Dartmouth, in 1592, and preserved in the State Paper Office, that, even when engaged in public business, Ralegh was attended by a " keeper," and that he felt all the inconveniences and disgrace of a state criminal. By this letter, now for the first time printed (in the Appen- dix,) Cecil speaks of Ralegh's " brutish oflence ;" yet it ap- pears, from the pains taken to investigate some matters which are unexplained, that there were other and deeper sources of offence to the Queen than the intrigue with her attendant ; and, from the tenor of tlie epistle, there is con- siderable reason to conclude that the Queen's displeasure had some reference to Ralegh's appropriation of certain prizes, which Cecil, with other commissioners, was ap- pointed to superintend. See Appendix C. It was before Ralegh was sentenced to a temporary du- rance, that he had, in the House of Commons (in 1592), displayed his allegiance to the Queen, in a manner appa- rently highly satisfactory to licr, and advantageous to him- self Elizabeth, impoverished by the wars with Spain, had * "Stickler," according to Sir Walter Scott, a kind of second, who, with a long stick, kept the combatants in a duel at proper distances until the combat began. tSee Birch, 272=' it' 62 UPE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH, demanded, ratlier than requested, subsidies from her par- liament. Ralegh entered zealously into her views, and suggested a plan for paying the subsidies ; but he strenu- ously opposed a survey of the wealth u\. p. 22. 72 LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH metalliferous ; and the medicinal plants of Guiana consti- tuting its most valuable produce.* The credulity, or rather, as it has been considered by the world, the falsehood of Ralegh, may be extenuated by the fact, tliat he was neither the first traveller nor the last that extolled the treasures of Guiana upon his personal ob- servation. In 1541, Philip de Hutten, a German knight, had described the houses of a certain town there which he had visited " to shine as if they had been overlaid with gold." It has since been conjectured, that he may have mistaken talc for gold, an error which may also have been committed by Ralegh, f Sul)sequently to Ralegh's first expedition in 1609, Robert Harcourt, of Stanton Harcourt, again investigated Guiana, with a design of planting it, and with a patent from James I. to that effect. This gen- tleman, both from his own observation, and from intelli- gence afforded him by the inhabitants of Trinidad, con- firmed, in most particulars, the account of Ralegh, and evinced a degree of faith scarcely less than that displayed by his predecessor, in the existence of remote treasures within the bosom of Guiana ; he extolled, in high terms, Ralegh's narrative, which he calls an " effectual and faith- ful account;" praising, at the same time, the hardihood with which Ralegh had pursued an enterprise which was only to be frustrated by grievous and unforeseen acci- dents.|: This tribute, proceeding from a rival navigator, and so sliortly after the first voyage to Guiana, might be consider- ed as affording material evidence in favor of Ralegh's vera- city, were it borne out by the investigations of later times. But the notions of Guiana which prevailed in Ralegh's day, have, by modem research, been proved to resemble the wildest and most improbable dreams of romance. By many, even intelligent persons, of the 16th and 17th centuries, the story of the Lake Panama, tlie sands of which were said to be of gold, was not discredited, and a belief was en- tertained in the existence of the fabulous city of Manoa, or El Dorado, near the river Oronooko. The popular desig- nation of the country was indeed, "El Dorado," or in some * Malte Brun's Geography, vol. v. part 2. p. 555. t Malte Biiin, vol. v. part 2. p. 563. I Harleiari Miscellany, vol. iii. p. 174. lAVE OF SIK WALTER KAl.KUH. 73 jiarts, the country of the Amazons ; Guiana being a name ;i[}p!icyiiiiH, witli tlio aid of not)/, advancod to liiiii l)y the Lord Treasurer, and a new ship, the very liull of which stoml itw owner, Sir Robert Cee.il, KM)/.* KeyniiH, on his retnrn, pid)lisl\ed an account of further discoveries, and dedicated the work to Rak'j;)i.f The v<»yarreafly to reuistate Ralejjfh in tlie tiivor of JOlizuheth, who justly testified iier approbation of exerliouH which tended to improve nautical skill, to ex- inw. lend llie Ilritish power, and to increase the contents of her treasury. CHAPTER III. Tho Islnnil VoynRO !— Mortifirntioiis HiiKtniiiod Ity Rnlfigli:— Fniliire of till" HxiHNliUon. — Stnto oC AH'iiirs lit Iloiiu'. — IVclinc niul siibtioqiicn Uiiiii of lOutiux : — Thu ii^liiiio wliidi Ualcgli litui in that Alluir. irq- The Bicprc of Cadiz, justly called by Lord Clar- ' cndon " Essex fortunatest picce,^" was shortly fol- lowed by an enterprise siiiiilnr in its object and arraufje- nienf, but fiir less brilliant in the success of its operations. Of tiiis expedition, which, from the nature of its destina- tion, was called the Island Voyajje, Rjileijh would probably have had the conunand, had not the superior influeupo of Kssex intervened. The (iueen was now entirely recon- ciled to iiiiu who had explored (Iiiiana, and assisted in the reduction of (.^adiz ; and, alfluni;fh she continued for some tiim^ to suspend Raleijh from his jxist as ca])tain of the fjuard, she suffered him, early in the sprin eveninjT, and was permit tinl entrance into her privy cbaniber, w^tJi tlu^ adviuita^c of holdiu most approvrd and (-xixTioncc?!! naviil olfic^or that Fjliy.al)(>lh coidd appoint. J01fm;,rliam wii.s ill, ani. Such wax the situation, and such may liave been tlie sentini(;nts, (»f Kaleirji on s(!einj^ IOs,m(!x pro- motOfl to a principal post; whilst In;, far mon; advanced in luiowlediff, as well as in years, was re<)nired U) play a«uh- ordinafn |ijirt (o a man in mental capacity frreatly his in- ferior. ]''rom these fijelin^s, secrcit, hut doubtless strong, it is prol)able that nnich of Jlalcjffh'H Huhseiiuent avcM'sion to the unfortunate Ehscx proccodod ; and it is ulao proha hie, t hat Hydin-y I'njK.Trt, vol ii. 'Jl, i!7. 4J. ■14. 51. 76 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. from this irritating source, and from a consciousness of in- feriority on the part of the Earl, some of the disasters, and many of the annoyances of their common undertaking, arose. Essex ^was, however, at this time intoxicated with suc- cess; and well has he been described as having been " drawn into the fatal circle" of a public career, for which he was by nature but indifferently calculated. This island voyage was, indeed, the beginning of his decline in pyblic estimation, and consequently in the confidence of his royal mistress, who was ever attentive to the indications of popu- lar opinion.* The purpose of Queen Elizabeth, in this her last under- taking against the Spaniards, was to destroy their fleet at FeiTol, or any of their vessels containing treasures from the West Indies ; and to conquer and garrison the Azore islands, that of Terceira, the most important, although not the largest, being especially marked out as an object of attack.! The fleet was divided into three squadrons, commanded by Essex, X.ord Thomas Howard, and, lastly, Ralegh. Un- der Essex, Sir Charles Blount, afterwards Lord Momitjoy, commanded the land forces, an appointment which gave great offence to Sir Francis Vere, who was marshal of the army. It appears, also, that Ralegli had a concern in some quarrel with Vtjre ; for Essex, on arriving at Wey- mouth, deemed it expedient to insist upon the two knights shaking hands, an act of reconciliation which was per- formed, according to Sir Francis Vere, " the more will- ingly, because there had nothing passed between us to blemish reputation."t Between De Vere arid Ralegh there was, however, a great degree of enmity ; a circumstance which the former, in his commentaries, attribstcs to envy of the notice taken of him by the Earl of Essex. It was arranged that Ralegh should take precedence of De Vere by sea ; and tliat De Vere, in his capacity as marshal, should have the prece- dence by land. 5 It was an odditional cause of mortifica- tion to Ralegh in this voyage, that the principal officers were mostly either his personal foes, or, what amounted nearly to the same, the jwculiar friends of Essex. Even * Parallel between Kisffx and Riickp. ^. t Oldys, iii. J Cnmilrn, v 471 f Wtng Frittan Art Vi'Tf. LIFE OF SIR WAJ-TER RALEGH. * 77 Sir Charles Blount, recently the rival of the Earl, was now his sworn ally, becoming afterwards, indeed, his rela- tion, by his scandalous marriage with Penelope Devereux, the sister of the Earl, and even at the time of her union witli Mountjoy the wife of Lord Rich. Trifling and hasty disputes become to generous minds, in some cases, induce- ments to good-will and motives to good actions. Such was the nature of Essex, that he could not only forgive but cherish those who manfully and honorably opposed him. It was still fresh in the memory of the people, that Blount had excited the jealousy of the Earl by wearing round his arm a queen of chess enamelled, which had been given him by Elizabeth, as a reward for his success in the tilt- yard. Some unguarded expressions, implying tiiat " every fool had now Iiis favor," were repeated from Essex to Blount, who immediately challenged him. They fought in Marybone Park, and Essex was wounded in the thigh. The affair came to the ears of the Queen, who swore her hereditary oath (by God's death) that she "would have some one take Essex down, and teach lilm manners."* This discipline restored peace, and the rivals became friends.f Sir George Carew was appointed lieutenant of the ordnance, and Sir Christopher Blount chief colonel. These men were principally adherents or friends of Essex, and were joined by his partisan, and subsequently fellow- sufferer, the Earl of Southampton, and by various other noblemen and knights, all \yith " their feathers waving and gay clothes," a vanity peculiar to the Engli^i in war, ac- cording to the opinion of Camden. The important charge of victualling the forces having been assigned to Ralegh, he undertook to find provisions during three months for 6,000 men, at the rate of nine-pence per diem. Bridewell, Winchester House, and Durham House, were given to him as magazines. Ralegli protesting tliat he should be a loser by this agreement, it was reniarked, that " few peo- ple were of that opinion except himself"]: After the fleet had been two days at sea, directions were given to each squadron to proceed severally to Ferrol and to the Groyne (Corunna), in order to surprise a portion of the Spanish fleet in their liarbors, and to intercept other of its squad- rons, on their passage from India, at the Azores. By this * Camden, p. 552. t Naunton'a Ucgalia Fraginenta, p. 19. 1 Collins'B Sydney Papers, vol. ii. .17—14 G2 78 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. - plan the English expcctetl to gain the sole sovereigfnly of the wetui ; and Essox o-nvo ovit o^x^nly, tJiat ho intended citlier to doteat tJie Sptiish floot. or to sncritice himself for his country. Scarcely wore the squadrons forty leagues from Plynioutli, when a tempest assjiiletl them. A thick mist envelopeil every object ; and the thunder was only surpassed in horror by the aofitated waves, upon wliich the vessels roile jxiwerless. This warfare of tlie elements lasted four days, and completely subtlned the courage of the stoutest hearts, so tJiat all were rejoiced to liail the friendly harlx^r of Plymouth, and of other towns on that cotist. The sliip of Lord Howard of Effinghajn, the High Admiral, was shattered, and the sailors were so intimidated, that some of tJiem, to the disgroce of Englishmen, with- drew to their peaceful homes on sliore.* At>er some re- cruiting, the fleet again s*.^t s;iil, but were asjain detained R whole month by weatlier in tlie Downis, ancl their provi- sions all spent- At that time there were no meajis of quickly replenishing such diminished stores. It became necessary to disbjind all the land forces, to send away maiiy of tlie smaller ships, ajid to abandon nil thoughts of coing either to Ferrol or tlio Croyne. The chief officers tlien deliberated as to the propriety of proceeding to the Azores, and were all in favor of that undertaking except Vere, who maintained the har.ard, and jxisitive dishonor, of such an enterprise. Ujmn this dilemma, Essex and Ralegh hastened to tlie Queen, whi\ afler listening to the extrata- fant scheme of Essex, to attack the Spanish fleet at all azards, left it to her commanders to determine their own course. After tlie two officers hatl returned to Plymouth, the armament was at length put to sea again, but was again sepaniteil when within sight of Sixiin ; and the cross-yartl of Ralegh's ship Iving broken, he was lefl l)ehind the rest. In tliis situation, he in vain endeavort^l to assist the de- signs of Essex, by sending a piimace after liim with the information that the Spanish fleet had letl Ferrol tor the Azores. Meanwhile Essex and his comjninions had re- solved to siil directly for the Azores, having seen the im- practicability of attempting to fire the Spjuiiartls in tiieir own haurbor.t Ralegh had endeavored to take the same * Csindon t Cwiiidon, |> -tTS HFK OF SIK WALTER RALEGH. 7^ course, but, lmvinn. Before quitting Flores, Ralegh, with several companions, ventured to ramble into the island, enjoying probably the freshness and delicious change which tbat beautiful island, deriving its name from its flowers, aftbrded to the mind, after a long voyage on the inclement ocean. Whilst thus indulging, and availing himself of the opportunity of allow- ing his mariners to get supplies of water, Ralegh was hastily sunmioned to follow Essex to Fayall, whither that commander, impatient of delay, had sailed before this ap- prizal. On their arrival at Fayall, they cast anchor near the principal town, Hocta, but nowhere descried Essex, or any part of his squadron. Delighted Avith the aspect and im- portance of the town, Ralegh called together a council of the officers, to determine whether they should attack it, or wait until the arrival of tlieir chief, it was determined to delay proceedings for a tew days, a i)lan wiiich was pur- sued" until the fourth day, wlien, Essex not appearing, Ralegh resolved to take in water, guarding his ships for that purpose, though without any expectation of aimoyance from the enemy's forts. In this idea he was, howevet-, mistaken; and, meeting with undoubted signs of resistance from the Spanish garrison, the iiigli spirit of Ralegh, and 80 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. the eagerness of his sailors, would not pennit hun to recede in his undertaking. With two hundred and sixty men, therefore, he resolved to attack a force double that number ; and, placing his ordnance as near the shore as possible, he rowed into a species of harbor which was guarded by high rocks. In the course of this exploit, the courage of !&,- legh's crew failing under a heavy fire, he reproached them in vehement language, ordering his own barge to be rowed down full upon the rocks, and bidding tliose who were not panic-struck to follow him. Upon this tliere was an instant revival of hope and of valor ; and Ralegh, landing among fire and shot, was followed by many officers of distinction to the narrow entrance, having, as it seemed, about him a spell which secured liim firom danger and intimidated the enemy. The Spaniards, see- ing his force thicken, retreated to the woods ; and Ralegh, recruited from the Netherland squadron, was soon able to prepare the town to receive Essex on his arrival.* On the following day that commander, who had been tracking the ocean in search of the Spanish fleet, came to Fayall. Sir Gilly Merrick, one of his creatures, who had opposed the storming of tlie town, represented to him that Ralegh had merely seized an opportunity of signalizing hmiself with- out tlie co-operation of his colleague. This account was eagerly received and believed by Essex, who had long suspected ill-will on the part of Ralegh towards himself; yet he disdained to take an ungenerous advantage of his authority to oppress one so much his superior in age and experience. He rejected, therefore, the counsels of some of his officers to put Ralegh to death, and of others to cashier him ; altliough the latter punishment was infficted on some of his companions. Ralegh was, however, smn- moned to appear before tlie commander-m-chief, and se- verely reprimanded by him for having broken tlie disci- pline of war, and landed his troops without being authorized by the command of the general. This act of insubordina- tion had, he observed, been forbidden under pain of deatli. To this address Ralegh replied by affirming, tliat the three principal commanders, of whom he was one, were exempts ed from this prohibition, which he had only been induced to infringe from tlie necessity of taking in water. He ♦ Oldys, p. 117. LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. 81 was then exhorted by Lord Thomas Howard to acknow- ledge his error, an injunction with which he complied; and after which, he, and the captains who had been cash- iered, were received into favor. Essex appeared to be so far reconciled to Ralegh, that he consented to rest in the temporary residence in which Ralegh had taken up his abode in the town. Ralegh also invited hun to supper ; a request with which Essex, who is said to have preferred the society and conversation of his rival to that of many others whom he appeared to favor, seemed evidently disposed to comply. Upon being apprized of this arrangement, Sir Christopher Blount remarked, that " he thought my lord would not sup at all ■* an observation which called forth from Ralegh the remark, that " as for Sir Christopher's owni appetite, he might, Avhen he was invi^f d, disable it at pleasure ; but if the Eai-1 would stay, he should be glad of his company."* By the mediation of Lord Thomas Howard, who, in the most becoming manner, acted as umpire between them, the generous Essex and his comrade were, however, effectually reconciled for the present time, notwithstanding the endeavors of base spirits to sever them. From Fayall, Essex and his squadron sailed for Gratiosa, which submitted itself to tlie English arms. On landing at tliis island, the generous yet imprudent temper of Essex displayed itself, in his declining to face the enemy's forts with a greater proportion of arms and armor than the' poor sailors who rowed his barge to shore ;t and here he again experienced that ill fortune which his warm admirer Camden attributed to the evil influence of his horoscope, but which may here be ascribed to a deficiency in caution, and a too great facility m following the advice of others. For some reasons, of little moment, he tarried not long enough at Gratiosa to look out for the Spanish fleet, gen- erally returning at this season from the Indies. He sailed to St. Michael's, and had the mortification of learning, that about an hour or two afterwards those very ships had; touched at Gratiosa.J After many vain attempts to return to Gratiosa, and to attack the enemy, the fleet set sail for England, meeting on their passage with heavy storms, which in the mean- * Oldys, 122. \ Ibid. J Camden, p. 47 82 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. time annihilated a Spanish armament, which was in prepa- ration to sail against England from the Ferrol ; Heaven thus seeming to interpose its aid where the strength of man was ineffectual to destroy. By the total loss of the Spanish fleet, a great slaughter between tlie two nations was tlius prevented ; and the English warriors, after some distress, came safely to their native shores. Ralegh was in great necessity for water, and, whilst suffering from that greatest of all deficiencies, beheld the Earl of Essex at a distance, deprived in a recent storm of every compan- ion vessel, except two little barks. This vicissitude to him who had but lately left England, followed by a numerous fleet, appeared to an eye-witness* almost typical of the varying destiny by which the eventful tenor of the* Earl's life was, in no ordinary degree, chequered. Dn his return to the court, tlie impatient indignation of the Queen, and the murmurs of the people, a waited him ; and Sir Francis Vere, formerly his warm partisan, and still attached to him, could with some difficulty assuage the anger of Eliza- beth, balancing her interests as a sovereign with her pri- vate inclinations.! The island voyage, comprising a scheme so admirably concerted, that it might have almost wholly annihilated the Spanish navy, was totally unsuccessful, as far as the public mterests were concerned ; some prizes were obtain- ed by Ralegh, and much plunder by Essex J ; yet the result of this expedition was injurious to the reputation of each of these gallant commanders. The people were unanunous in their censures of Ralegh, whose usual unpopularity was increased by the circumstances of his variance with Essex, although his exploits were generally more commended than those of the Earl. Essex, on the other hand, tlie idol of the lower classes, was blamed by intelligent persons for his violence and raslmess, and was thought to have acted with injustice towards Ralegh, in exposing so experienced and approved a navigator to public inquiry into his con- duct. J Confidence between these two individuals had long been suspended by a very slender thread of regard : it had been shaken in the Cadiz expedition, in which Ralegh felt * Sir Arthur Gorges. OUlys, 125. t Note from Vcre's Commentaries in Biog. * | Camden, p. 475, § Sydney Papers, vol. ii. p. 68. 74. LIPP, OF HIR WAI.'ir.U ItAI.RGir. 83 that lie had boon unduly kept back fioin services of dis- tinction ; and the events of the recent enterprise had con- firmed these impressions. This state of feeling between the two parties was discreditable to both, and to Essex fa- tally injurious. On Jiis part, this rivalship was maintained with a spirit of honor, which was nobly displayed in the atiair of Flores, when asked to put Ralegh upon his trial : " That," he replied, " would I do, were he my friend." But Ralejjh possessed not a disposition so generous as tliat of his unfortunate enemy ; and aided by others more subtle tiian himself, if he did not accelerate the ruin of the im- prudent Essex, he lent no benevolent aid to arrest the pro- gress of his destruction. Whilst distrust on the one hand, and dislike on the other, rankled in the minds of both par- ties, a close observer of each individual gave this accoimt of the deportment of Sir Walter towards the Earl : — " Sir Walter Ilalegh's carriage to my Lord of Essex, is with tlie cunningest respect, and deepest humility, that ever I saw or have trowed."* But no machinations on the part of Ralegh, could liave ruined Essex had he retained the friendship of the Lord Treasurer Burleigh, the guardian and adviser of his youth. This veteran statesman, who is said to have controlled tlio court at pleasure for thirty years, was now in tiie decline of life, but in the full vigor of his faculties, and in the height of his influence. Designated by Queen I]lizabeth with the name of " her spirit," from the celerity with which he dispatched public business, Burleigh was unable to allot any portion of his time to his own private recreations; serving a mistress, who was scarcely induced by any a|)ol- ogy less than a last illness to give up the closest attendance on the part of her ministers, and executing her commands with a degree of zeal and regularity proportionate to the demands made upon those requisite qualities. Yet, whilst permitting himself only one indulgence, that of building great houses, which he called " his vanity," the lord treasurer had found leisure carefully to superintend the education of Essex, and even to write him counsels con- cerning the nature of true nobility, to which there is a Latin reply extant, from the Earl, showing how well he * Ciylcy, p. 283., frnni Hircb's Momoirs of Quocn F.liznbetli, vol. ii. p. 10. 84 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. had profited by the care of his guardian.* Notwithstanding these early obligations, dissensions and Jealousies liad arisen between k)th tlie Cecils and Lord Essex, Ralegh acting a conspicuous part in the management of tliat ma- chinery of which these court cabals wore composed. It had been tlie lot of Burleigh, to live to see his chil- dren's children to the thiitl generation.! 1' ^^'"s his still happier fate to behold those children not only walking in tlie shadow of his greatness, but pursuing the same course which had raised him to eminence. Of his two sons, tlie elder succeeded him in his title and estates ; the younger, bred up to business, inherited his application, his integrity, and, m some measure, his talents, but he displayed not tJiat scope of mind which had enabled the elder Burleigh to comprehend the true interests of his nation, to extend the views of Elizabeth, and to direct tliem to useful and glo- rious ends. Robert Cecil, afterwards the first Peer created by Eliza- beth's successor, was, at this periotl of Ralegh's life, his close ally ; and, witli some variations, -tlie opponent, and as Essex conceived, the rival of tliat impetuous Earl. The original cause of this aversion on tlie part of Essex, was his disgust at what he considered to be tlie low and dis- honorable machinations of Cecil, who has been aptly de- scribed as a courtier from tlie cradle. The immediate source of their mutual ill-will was tlie appointment of Sir Rol)ort Cecil to the office of secretary of state, during the absence of Essex at Cadiz. Previous to his departure, the earl hud entreated the queen to bestow that place upon Sir Thomas Bodley, recently ambassador at the Hague, and the munificent founder of tliat library which bears his name at Oxford ; a fabric which drew from the pedantic James the First the exclamation, that, " were he not a king, he would be a University man ; were he a prisoner, he would wish no other prison tlian tliat library, and to be chained together with so many good authors." But Bodley, although on eminent man, and one of a family who had suffered greatly tor the Protestant cause, was judged by the queen to be less adapted for the management of afliiira tlian Cecil, who had imbibed notions of state policy in his * Ellis's Original Letters, vol. ii. p. 77. and 181. t Ellis, 'ill series, vol. iii. p. 190. LIFE OP SIR WALTEn RALEGH. 85 very infency. Elizabeth was, also, disgusted by the ex- travagant invectives of Essex against Cecil, and by his ill- timed and ill-judging panegyric of his friend. Tlie place was, accordingly, bestowed upon Cecil.* During tiie interval which elapsed between the expedi- tion to Cadiz and the island voyage, Ralegh, from what motive docs not appear, endeavored to tranquillize the fre- quent dissensions which arose between the belligerent fac- tions ; and, on one occasion, prevailed so far as to bring liiem together at the house of the secretary, where they all three dined.f For the diligence with which Ralegh pursued this endeavor at reconciliation, various reasons were assigned by the watchful observers about the court, wlio appear, from the documents extant, to have made the office of investigating into the concerns of others the busi- ness of their lives. By some it was thought, that Ralegh wished to avail himself of the joint interest of Cecil and Essex, in order to obtain the post of vice-chamberlain, for which he applied ; and this conjecture seems probable, from the circumstance that ho proffered to Essex a third part of the profits derived from prizes in the island voyage, to assist in the payment of the earl's debts, for the import- ant consideration of his influence. Whatever may liave been the immediate spring of his actions, these debasing intrigues had their effect in sullying the purity of Ralegh's integrity, and in subjecting his fine genius to tlie profana- tion of selfishness and duplicity. It is a matter of specu- lation, whether continuetl manoeuvres, and the habit of deception, are not calculated to debase and weaken the mind more than the commission of one actual crime ; for we are reluctant to allow the necessity of repentance for a series of daily, and apparentl}' trifling faults, and arc, there- fore, led on to a dangerous rei)etition. Meanwhile, Ralegh was assiduous in courting the friendship of the Lord 1'reas- urer Burleigh, not merely from regard for the virtues, or respect for the talents, of that gri;at man, but from the pitiful desire that somctiiing migiit be effected in his favor before Sir Robert Cecil went to France, us an ambassador to Henry the Fourth. It was, indeed, at the time reported, that botb Rulegh and the younger Cecil ardently desired * Camden, 1596. t Rowland Wliite's Letters in Sydney Papers, vol. ii. p. 37—44. n 86 I.TFR OF SIR WALTER R A LEO If. to bo madR Barons, and had, says Rowland White, "a purpose to bo called unto it, allhon;inisli invasion, and at Cadiz. l']ssex had resented tho elevation of liOrd Howard to the title of earl, which, added to liis ollice of lord chamberlain, pave him precedency. Rut ]']lizabeth soothed tlie vanity of her favorite, by hestow- inp upon him the dipuity of lord marshal, which, by a .statute of the reipn of Henry the Eiphth, enabled all of the rank of earl who had that dipnity to take precedency be- fore their peers of the same depree.J , I-Q-' Raleph was now apain actively enpaped in the military services of Iiis country. Reports which pre- vailed respecting the approach of a Spanish ileetapain drew him into Cornwall, to assist in the preparations of defence * Sydney Pnpor.o, vol. ii. 120. t Ibiii. p. 21.— An observation which she afterwards applied to tliis very Sir Robert Sidney, t Cnnidcn, p. 470. § Camden. LIFE OP Sm WALTER IIAI.ICGII. 87 in tliat county. — Shortly aflcrwnnls ho was ordcrod hy tiio privy-council to {riv(> his opinion of the idliiirH ol' Ireland, and .sonx; nunor.s jirevtiih^l oC hin htiin^ ii])pointcd lord deputy in Ihiit country; but, to the a(;c(!|)taii(!i; of tliiH ollice, Ra!ex, by wisiiing that '' Otis Uobert might be the last of this iiaine Earl ot'Esstw, who affected to be Robert first of tJuit name, King of England." To these harangues, Essex, witli a cheerful voice, and composed majnier, replied, by asserting his innocence of any other intention than that of prostrating himself at the feet of the (ine(>n, and dcndaring to her the dangers which threatened his coimtry. lie protested that his fidelity to his sovereign and to his coimtry was untainted. f Ralegh, with forty of the (Queen's giiard, was present during the trial, and in the course of its |)rogress was called ii|wn to give his tnidence nMative to the conference held with (iorges. He d(>pose .'in t ''iiMiiIi'ii, |i, ."iU LIFE oi' Sill vvai,ti;k kai.wjii. 103 ever was; vvishiiiflf lie would ypecd to court for the preven- tion of it ; tlmt for his t)wu share in the transaction, he al- leged lie " wished Gorges to refuse tlieir conipiiny, or else lie would be undone.*" This testimony was confirmed by Crorges, tlien in court ; and was answered by lOssex only witli tliis observation, that it was totally diflerent to what Gorges had mentioned to hun, on returning to Essex House. Tiiese particulars constituted the sole evidence which Ra- legh was required to give ; and it may be hence naturally asked, why his name was so mixed up with this allair by the partisans of Essex ! It appears, however, from a tract not usually referred to by our historituis, that Essex, in his examination before the trial, in order to give a color of jus- tice to hisproceedmgs, aflirmed that he pursued the violent measures to which lie had recourse chiefly to defeat the machinations of Rnlegh, and of his partisan liord Cobham, against his own honor and safety. He asserted, that wlien he was desired, on the seventh of February, to attend the council, he had declined because he was apprized tliat Ra- legh and Cobham hod ])repared au ambuscade of mus- keteers upon the water, to murder him as he passed.f This pretext, supported only by the assertions of a man infuriated to desperation, is deprived of every shade of justice by the fact that Essex practised against the life of Ralegh, by means of liis ogeiits, a circumstance which was admitted by Sir Christoither ]?lount, one of the Earl's adherents, when put ujKin his trial ; and from this confession, backed by the testimony of Sir Eerdiiiand (Joiges, whom Blount sought to persuade into the bUxKly deed, no (h)ubt remained but that Ulount had aimed at the person of Ralegh, from a boat tour deadly shots.]; On the other hand, it was generally su|)posed Ralegh was the individual who first ai)pri/.ed the government of the conspiracy, the particulars of which had been imparted to him from Gorges, who, doubtless, proved treacherous to his own i)arty, and deceived them as to what had passed between him and Ralegh in the conference ; and who, tor that reason, combined with suspicions of further machinations against Essex, was never forgiven by tlie ♦ Oldys, p. 139. t OUlys, p. 137. Hiograpliia, fnun J,orid. " LIFE OF SIR WAX/l'ER UALEGH. Ill She joined, indeed, in her former amusements, but it was with a faltering step, and with faint attempts at forced cheerfulness. VVlien, after a short absence, Harrington . was summoned to her presence, she inquired if lie had seen Tyrone ? On his reply, that he had seen him with the lord deputy, she smote her bosom, and said, " Oh now it mindetli me that you were one who saw this man else- wiiere," — the connexion between Harrington and Essex being thus recalled to her. And when Harrington, think- ing to revive in her Majesty the old remembrance of his pleasantries, which had often amused her, read some verses, she told him, in the language of a breaking heart, " that she was passed all relish for fooleries." But during the short space of time that she survived Essex, the wretched Queen, condemned to pay the usual tax of royalty, was constrained to sustain the weariness of ceremonial with a wounded spirit, and to support the cares of business, when all enjoyment of her' sovereignty was at an end. In the summer of this year she made her last ,^rv| progress, in which Ralegh accompanied her to Dover, and probably to Hampshire. Whilst the Queen was at Dover, the siege of Ostend, by the Archduke Al- bert, alarmed Henry the Fourth for his own frontiers, and brought him to Calais to provide for the safety of his do- minions. When Elizabeth heard of his arrival there, she dispatclied Sir Thomas Edmonds to make her formal con- gratulations and inquiries respecting his health. In return for this compliment, Henry sent over the celebrated Rosni, Due de Sully, one of the most experienced statesmen and profound politicians of the day. It was the fortune of Ra- legh, with Cobham and Sir Robert Sydney and others, to receive this celebrated man on his landing" at Dover ; a cir- cumstance which is mentioned by Sully in his Memoirs of the Reign of Henry the Fourth.* It is to be regretted that no observations on the part of Ralegh, on meeting a man so justly renowned, have come to light ; since, per- haps, there is no subject of contemplation, in human affairs, more interesting than the sentiments with which great men regard each other upon tlieir first interview. Whilst the Queen pursued her course into Hampshire, the Mar- shal Biron was also deputed by Henry the Fourth to make * Sully's Memoirs, vol. v. p 60. 112 LU'E OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. an embassy into England ; and reacliing London on the 5th of September, he proceeded with a magnificent retinue of three or four liundred persons to the neighborhood of Bas- ing, the seat of the Marquis of Winchester, to whom the Queen was then paying one of those burdensome and sometimes ruinous visits with which it was, in those times, customary for our English monarchs to honor their sub- jects. Biron took up his abode at the Vine, a seat of Lord Sandys, furnished with seven-score beds from the neigh- boring gentry, and with furniture from the Queen's palace for the foreign guests. The festival which here took place is said to have been one of tlie most continued and sump- tuous entertainments ever given on a royal progress.* Among ten persons whom the Queen, contrary to her usual proceeding, knighted at one time, was Carew, that younger brother of Sir Walter Ralegh,t who afterwards sold liis patrimonial estates of Widdycombe, Ralegh, and Fardel ; and, removing from his native county, became the ancestor of the Raleghs of Wiltshire, who flourished long after the reign of Elizabeth. J Sir Carew was favored, in several instances, by Queen Elizabeth, and held the office of steward of her manor of Gillingliam in Gloucester- shire. 5 Two inferences are deducible from tlie circumstance of his being knighted at Basing. First, we are led to surmise that Ralegh was probably present upon such an occasion, and that he participated in the festivities given in honor of Biron ; and, secondly, we are brought to a still more certain conclusion that Ralegh's favor, in the estimation of Elizabeth, had in no degree suffered from liis recent sliare j/^Q, in the cabals against Essex. During tlie month of October in this year parliament met, the last^in Elizabeth's reign, and the first of which there is a list ex- tant of the members. II Sir Walter and his brother botli served in this parliament ; the one for Cornwall, the other for Foway in that county. Sir Walter on this occasion made- a very creditable and conspicuous figure in the House of Commons ; in his speech against the act to pro- mote tlie sowing of hemp. It was his opinion that the * Nicholl's Progresses of Queen Elizabeth, vol. ii. p. 6. t Ibid. t Note in Oldys, p. 139. § Ibid il Oldys, p 13!t, fiom Ti)\viisliciid's Historical Ccl lections. LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. 113 penalties enforced by this statute, in some instances, re- tarded the progress of agriculture ; in others, that it obliged those to plow who were scarcely able to furnish the seed-corn to sow the land. " I do not," said he, " like this constraining of men to manure the ground at our wills ; but rather let every man use his ground for that which it is most fit for, and therein use his own discretion. For where the law provides that every man must plow the third of his land, I know divers poor people have done so to avoid the penalty of the statute, when their abilities have been so poor that they have not been able to buy seed-corn to sow it ; nay, they have been fain to hire others to plow it, which if it had been unplowed, would have been good pasture for beasts, or might have been con- verted to otlier good uses." The bill was afterwards thrown out by a majority of a hundred and sixty-two to a hundred and three.* Ralegh next spoke in favor of the subsidy ; a question on which he was opposed by Bacon, who contended in favor of collecting the demand of three hundred thousand pounds from the poor as well as the rich ; a measure which was adopted, and which was afterwards acknowledged by Ralegh to be necessary to make up the sum. In his Prerogative of Parliaments, he informs us, liowever, that his solicitude to tax the better sort only, was suggested by the Queen herself, who " desired much to save the common people ;" and that he did so by her command.f The subject of monopolies was next discussed ; and in this the personal interests of Ralegh were peculiarly con- cerned. This theme of discussion related to a practice which had not first originated with Elizabeth ; but it had been carried to a greater extent by her than by her prede- cessors, for a reason creditable to her subjects, but preju- dicial to tlieir comforts. The great achievements which the age had witnessed were so numerous among the Eng- lisli, that Elizabeth was unable to reward her subjects in a manner adequate to their merits, except by granting pat- ents for monopolies, which were sold to those persons who desired to trade in any particular article. J The con- sequences of these grants may readily be conceived, — -the * Oldys, p. 139. fi-om Townshend's Historical Collections, t Ralegh's Prerogative of Parliaments. J Hume. K2 114 LIFE OF SIK WALTER EALEGH. immense and unfair prices imposed upon the public, to the great deterioration of trade, and the odium justly incurred by those who were tlie instruments and gainers in this species of oppression. Every possible commodity for the purposes of luxury, or the means of amusement, and even the necessaries of life, were under the control of these patentees, wlio were armed with powers from government to enforce tlicir privileges, and to le\'y fines upon those vvliom they charged with interfering in their patent. Not only was an immoderate and arbitrary price thus affixed to every article, but industry and competition were precluded, ill-will promoted, and liberty curtailed; many of the pat- entees having the power to enter any place, where they imagined that goods, which they had licenses for selling, were secreted.* It may be mentioned as an additional evil of this extraordinary system, that whilst commerce was diminished and tlie number of vexatious statutes and limitations multiplied ; whilst the middling classes were shackled and tlie poor oppressed, the spirit thus engendered among the nobility was paltry and debasing ; avarice was cherished ; and a disregard to the interests of our fellow- men necessarily associated with notions of selfish aggran- dizement When Ralegh, with other of the monopolists, appeared in the debate on this question, he defended himself with considerable spirit and eloquence against any peculiar censure attaching to his own conduct, and affirmed his willingness to give up his patent in case of tlie rest being also repealed.! H^ explained the nature of his patent, wliich was chiefly for tin, and which he affirmed had bene- fited the poor miners by raising their weekly earnings from two to four shillings. He informed the house that it was the same as that which the dukes of Cornwall had hitherto been allowed to exercise. He inveighed in strong terms against otlier monopolies, especially against that possessed by Sir Henry Neville for the transportation of ordnance, by which even the Spaniards were provided with instru- ments for our destruction. It was remarked that a long and profound silence followed this speech. It is painful to deteriorate from the merit of Ralegh in the sacrifice which he proposed ; but he was probably aware of the * Hume, reign of Elizabeth, 8vo. edition, p. 324. t Birch, p. 46. LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. 115 Queen's intention with respect to monopolies. The most jx)pular act of her reign was her ready acquiescence to the opinions and wishes of lier parliament, in this instance ; her repeal of some of the most grievous of the licenses, and the gracious manner in which the proposition was prof- fered : and never was gratitude expressed in a more ful- some, obsequious, and almost profane manner, than on this occasion.* Besides the proceedings which have been enu- merated, Ralegh voted also for the repeal of a statute of tillage, enacted in time of dearth, and for other bills of local or of passing importance. During the period of his life which embraced the last ten years of Elizabeth's reign, Ralegh devoted considera- ble attention to the concerns of Cornwall, and found lei- sure, notwitlistanding the pressure of public business, to study its antiquities and to cherish its interests. He pro- cured tlie restoration of seventeen manors in that county to their ancient tenure, which was disputed at Nisi Prius, although it had subsisted for three centuries. The tenants had deputed Richard Carew of Anthony, one of the deputy- lieutenants of Cornwall, to present a petition to Lord Bur- leigh, entreating the continuance of their ancient privi- leges ; and this remonstrance was seconded by Ralegh, who, whilst residing in the west of England, wrote earn- estly in behalf of tlie supplicants. He also prevented the imposition of an ancient tax upon the curing of fish, im- posed in the time of Henry the Second, and now revived by some interested persons, who, under pretence of serving the crown, sought to obtain patents to prevent the salting and drying of fish without licenses. The destruction of this branch of commerce, and the oppression of the poor Corniili trader, formerly heavily burdened with fines to the ancient earls of Cornwall, were the consequences of this dishonorable attempt to enrich private individuals at the expense of the community.f Ralegh applied the whole force of his interests, and the strength of his arguments, to prevent a result so injurious to the prosperity of Corn- wall, of which he was then lieutenant. His next exertions related to the reduction of tlie taxes upon the manufacture of tin ; and in this matter, which was disputed before the council, he was equally successful ; joining personally in • Hume, 8vo. p. 328. f OWys, pp. 128, 189. 116 LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. the discussion, in which he attempted to restore the privi- lege of pre-emption, founded in the reign of Edward the First. The exercise of this privilege was afterwards vested in Ralegh, as the person most qualified to regulate it judi- ciously and impartially.* For the zeal with which he promoted these regulations, Ralegh obtained the encomiums of Richard Carew, one of the numerous branches of the ancient family of that name, and better known as the au- thor of a " Survey of Cornwall ;" — a work which he dedi- cated to Ralegh, with a flattering, but apparently well- merited address. In this composition, Ralegh is assured, that whilst he exercises an extensive command, both civil and military, over the people of Cornwall, he possesses a far greater interest in "their hearts and loves" by his kindness. " Your ears and mouth have ever been open to hear and deliver our grievances ; and your feet and hands ready to go and work their redress ; and that, not only as a magistrate of yourself, but also, very often, as a suitor and solicitor to others of the highest place.f" Such was the language in which the benevolent labors of Ralegh for the lower classes of Cornwall were eulogized. Happy had it been for him, if his views had been henceforward limited to philanthropic endeavors to promote the local benefit of his countrymen, or in the advancement of scien- tific and literary knowledge. In conducting the concerns over which his situation of lord warden of the stannaries, and other occasional offices, required him to preside, Ralegh found considerable assist- ance from his antiquarian researches, which afterwards became highly important, and which were extended by him to the study of history. The study of antiquities, and of all pursuits connected with history, .was then much in vogue ; and considerable opportunities were afforded for the most intricate and im- portant researches, from the dispersion of many valuable tracts from the .monasteries but recently dissolved, and from the visitations of our universities and colleges.f Stim- ulated by these inducements, a society of antiquarians had been formed in 1572, under the auspices of Archbishop Parker, the patron of the revival of the Saxon language. To this learned association Ralegh belonged, until the * Oldys, pp. 128, 129. flbid- f Biographia Britannica, art. Cotton. LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. 117 illiberal and impolitic jealousy of tlie government crushed in their commencement the exertions which, if freely ex- ercised at so advantageous a period, might have proved liighly beneficial to our national literature; and would, perhaps, have illuminated many of those obscure points of our history, concerning which, conjecture and disputation will never, in all probability, be at rest. In vain, however, had the Society petitioned Queen Elizabeth to be incorpo- rated into a society or academy for the study of antiquities. Devoted to the colleges of Oxford and Cambridge, that princess desired not to run the risk of interfermg with those important institutions ; and her example was not only fol- lowed by her successor, but umbrage taken at the frequent meetings of the antiquarians, to whom the suspicious temper of the government attached sinister aiid dangerous motives. Under these unfavorable circumstances, the Society was dissolved ;* but its important objects were pursued sedu- lously, although with far less facility, by individuals. In- deed if we affix to the reign of James the First any distinct literary era, it would probably be that of antiquarian lore ; and if we recall the names of Verstegan, Camden, Speed, Cotton, Selden, Bacon, Ralegh, and of many other eminent persons, we shall acknowledge, that, although the efforts of the antiquaries may have been circumscribed, their en- thusiasm in the cause was not, perhaps, diminished by op- position. At the time of Ralegh's association in this infant and oppressed society, the meetings were held in the apart- ments of the garter king at arms (supposed to have been Sir William Dethewick), at Derby House, which is now appropriated to the Herald's Office.f Among the names of tlie early members were those not only of the retired and humble laborers in the pursuit of knowledge, but of the great, the wealthy, and the warlike. The elder Bur- leigh, Sir Philip Sydney, and the Herberts, Eai^ of Pem- broke, were thus brought into contact with the indefatiga- ble Stow, Spelman, Camden, Cotton, Hooker, and Selden. * Until a more favorable era, as far as royal indulgence was con- cerned, but a far lees advantageous one for the researches into those memorials, many of which had been dilapidated, and some altogether destroyed, in the civil wars. It was revived in 1707, and in 1751 incor- porated by George the Second. t Oldys, p. 130. 118 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. With some of these eminent men, Ralegh maintained an intimacy, creditable and advantageous to himself; to others lie afforded the assistance which liis abundant means ena- bled liiiH, at this time, to afford : from several he obtained, in the progress of his own works, those aids which the learned and curious can alone supply. Among those to whom the learned were principally indebted for the stores of information which his own dili- gence and liberality enabled him to dispense, was Sir Robert Cotton, whose name, as long as our national library exists, will never be forgotten ; nor should it ever be re- membered except with gratitude. To him Ralegh, in the latter part of his days, whilst in prison, applied for some of those valuable corner-stones of knowledge upon which a fabric of extensive interest and importance might se- curely be reared. Sir Robert Cotton bore the same rela- tion to Ralegh, and to many others, as that in which the mineralogist, who tries and discovers the vein of ore, stands to liim who raises the precious metal from the earth, and displays it in the most pleasing form to an admiring world. Consulted as an oracle by the learned men of his time, he Jiad supplied manuscript materials for the histories of Cam- den, Hayward,* Speed, Bacon, Selden, as well as for that afterwards published by Ralegh.f Employed from the early age of eighteen in the collection of manuscripts, few persons had more to bestow than Sir Robert Cotton ; and wiiat was next in importance, none had a greater disposi- tion to render his accumulated treasures useful to others. There were subjects upon which it was not in tliose days deemed sufficient for historical writers to trust to the re- ports of others : and it was not uncommon for antiquaries to make long, and, in the absence of regular travelling accommodations, tedious journeys, to any particular spot which thev desired to commemorate. It was about the time wheir Ralegh's name is first associated with the So- ciety of Antiquaries, that the excursion of Camden and of Cotton to Carlisle was undertaken, and a part of the Picts' wall, still preserved at Connington, brouglit away for tlie inspection of the curious. So great was tlie fame of Sir Robert Cotton's collection, that no work of importance was commenced without referruig to that compendium of chart- * See Hayward's Life of Edward VI. t Biograpliia Britannica. LIFE OP SIR WALTER RALEGH. 119 ers, records, and other documents. Wedded to his manu- scripts, and in tlie peaceful prosecution of literary studies, he long; survived tlie less happy Ralegh ; so that all access to his stores of learning was, during Ralegh's life, requested as a personal favor. After eflecting as much, in the ser- vice of historical truth, as it appears possible, in the short span of life, to accomplish, Sir Robert left his inestimable library to his family, with such a security in his will against the chance of its being sold or dispersed, that posterity should have the benefit of referring to it as a collection.* Wliilst Ralegh thus enriched his works with contribu- tions from Sir Robert Cotton, he had the credit of afiording aid to his relative John Hooker in tlie compilation of his " Records of Devon. f" This industrious antiquary, the assistant of Holinshcd in his great work, the Chronicles of Britain, was the uncle of Richard Hooker, author of the justly celebrated work on Ecclesiastical Polity. These ingenious and learned men were remotely related to Ra- legh, and were both born in Devonshire, which Camden describes as a "countrey fruitfuU of noble wits." J Hooker dedicated his Supplement to the Chronicles of Ireland, in Holinshed, to Ralegh : and in that address to his relative and patron he has testified his gratitude for the benefits conferred, and his respect for the talents possessed, by that valuable friend. The assistance afforded to Hooker by Ralegh proves liow considerable a proficiency he must have attained in antiquarian researches ; and he appears to have had a col- lection of manuscripts, — the learned Selden applying to * This collection consists in MSS. in loose skins, or bound np in vol- umes, sometimes many upon different subjects in one cover. They came into the possession of Sir Robert (Cotton, sometimes by legacy, sometimes by purchase ; and were collected at visitations, upon the dissolution ot' the monasteries. The Cotton library was much augmented by his sons. Sir 'I'homas and Sir John Cotton, and remained in the family residence, in Westminster, near the House of Commons. In the reign of William HI. an act ofparliament was passed for securing it in the family of the Cottons; but Cotton House was afterwards bought from the great-grand- son of Sir Robert, by Ciuecn Anne, and was made a repository both for the Cottonian and the Royal Library. Some yi>ars afterwards, it was removed to a house near Westminster Abbey belonging to the crown; where a fire breaking out in 1731, one hundred and eleven books were lost, burnt, or wholly defaced, and ninety-nine rendered imperfect. It was afterwards removed to the dormitory of Westminster School, and since to the British Museum. Note in Biog. art. Cotton. t A work which has never been printed. Oldys, p 5. I Camden, p. 514. 120 LIFE OP sm WAT.TER RAT.EGir. liim for the loan of some from his librarj'.* Tlio acquaint- ance with this indefatigable man, which must, in all prob- ability, either liave preceded, or have been the consequence of an application of this nature from Sclden, was an advan- tajre to any person interested in such pursuits, which may scarcely be expected to occur again : for Selden, — endowed as he was with almost unparalleled energy, with an admi- rable foundation of learning, and living, as he did, when literary men mingled but little in the gaieties and pleas- ures of the world, and seldom quitted their retirements ex- cept when some urgent question of politics or religion called them forth, — had the good fortune, like Sir Robert Cotton, to reap the benefit of those monastic wrecks, which none but the learned knew how to prize ; and which therefore became, at a moderate expense of every thing but time, their property. Hence he tbund materials for liis work on the Dominion of the Kings of England over the Narrow Seas, chiefly from the monastic recordsf ; and happily conciliated the displeasure of James I. towards him on account of some former works, by settling a dis- puted right to the fisheries on our coasts, to which the Dutch had lately set claim.J Partly by these means, also, Scldon was enabled to collect the valuable library which he Icrt, with an earnest injunction to his executors to dis- tribute it among themselves, rather than expose it to pub- lic sale. In consequence of his further remark, that it would suit some public library, or college, they considered it, however, right to remove it to some chambers in the King's Bench \Valk; but no house being provided for it by that Society, — in that instance displaying neither learn- ing nor wisdom, — it was placed in rooms added purposely to tlie Bodleian Library, with a Latin inscription in the apartment, denoting the gratitude and respect of those who received the munificent gift. Thus, within a very short space of time, were three valuable collections, which, if once dispersed, could never have been replaced, conferred ujjon public institutions. In being contemporary with Bodley, Selden, and Cotton, Ralogh in all probability enjoyed not only the benefit of these collections, but, what is in all cases more important, ♦ Oldys, p. 130. t Preface to Tanner's Nolitia, p. 57. \ This work was published 1630, long afler being written, and wag dedicated to Charles 1. King. I i.n K or r^iu WAi.Ti',!; It M.icii j:;ii tiini ntUieir counselB and conversations, 'i'lie niintl almost f ickens to Icarn with certainly to what extent his comrnu- nicatioiis witli these great men proceeded : but there are, nniiappily, no traces of any thinf>- more than the facts that he exchanged with thein mutual good offices. Contrary to that which commonly occurs with learned men, Selden, obscure in his mode of writing, and apt to crowd his works with an oppressive and perplexing weight of learned matter, had, in his conversation, according to Ixinl Clarendon, " the best faculty of making hard things easy."* By the same admirable judge, " he was accoimted a person whom no character can flatter ; so conversant with I'ooks that you would have thought his whole life passed i;i roaduig; yet his humanity was such, that you would have tiiought him bred in courts."f Yet Selden, like Ra- higli, was subjected to representations of a far different nature ; and whilst he was sometimes accused of being harsh in his nature and manners, he was not only reproba- ted by the clergy, and prosecuted by the desire of King .fames (or a work controvei-ting the divine right of tithes, but was suspected by some persona of infidelity, or, in the fashionable language of that day, Hobbism ; a charge from which he has been strenuously defended by Raxler, upon the authority of Sir Matthew Halc.| The circumstance of Ralegh's supplying Selden with Itooks, leads to the conclusion that Selden, in return, may liavi^ afforded some assistance to Ralegh in his historical works. The work on the Prerogative of Parliaments, which he dedicated to King James, was the first which he published requiring hi.storicai accuracy ; but it is uncertain at what time he began, or whether he was actually the author of an "Introduction to a Breviary of the History of England, with the Reign of William I., entitled the Con- queror," and published in 1693, from the MSS. of Arch- bishop Sancroll, by Dr. Moore, afterwards Bishop of Ely. By one of the biographers of Ralegh the authenticity of this piece is "doubted ^ ; but its resemblance in style to the usual composition of his writings appears to afford some internal evidence of its being his production. It has been also conjectured, that this was one of the works which em- ployed his latter daysjl ; but upon this subject, since many • Clnrcndon's Cliaractors. Reliquia; WottonitB, p. t Biog. Brit. t Ibid. § Cayley, vol. ii. p. 188. 138. If Ibid. p. 18G. 122 m'K OF (^IR VVALTEU RAI,t:(!H years ohipstHl betwoon his death and tlio piiblieatioii, the {freatest possible uncertainty restis. Mojiy ot" his works remained lon^ in miuuiscript; tor in the ptM-iotl of tl»o civil wars, circunistimceB were untuvi>rabK' to tl»e reception of his works in j)«rticuhir, luul to tlie publication jjenerally ot" literary prcxhictions. SSuch, however, was tlie wortli ia which Riilen place in Jonson's youth and in Raloirli's middle age; tor Jonson was twenty-two years younper than Ila- le<,'h, and was scarcely arrived at the zenith of his fame when the unfortunate Ralefrh was in the d(!cline lM)tii of his natural existence and of liis fortunes. It is well known that Jonson, althoupfh a nitin of orij^inally jrocxl family, was reduced by the imprisonment of his father in the reiprn of Queen Mary, and by the second marriafje of his mother with a bricklayer, to work in that craft for his subsistence. For this purpose he was taken from St. John's ('ollofre, Cttiribridf^e, whither he was sent atler reccnvinj,' at West- minster school the instructions of the celebrated, and no less virtuous, Camden. Reduced to this condition, in ♦ Urferred to hy Fuller. "Many," Boys he, " were the wit romliiili'H betweciK! Hen Joniion and Sliiiki^HiXiart?. I bi^hold them like a Siiiiiiixli crcat cnllcon and an KncliKh man of war. MaHter .loriMoii, like ilix l°Mrnir-r, wnK limit Tar higher in learnini;, Holid, hut hIow in IiIh pi'ifoini .-inc eH. Hhakespoare, like the Intler, leMser in hulk, hut lighter in miliric rould turn with all tides, tark Hliout. and lake adv;nifri(je of all wirnN hy the qiiicknoiia nr lii;< wit and invi Mlion " Fuller vrd ii n ilTi t Jonion 124 LIFE OF ^IR WALTER KALEGH- which the aspirations of an intelligent mind and tlxe en- joyments of imagination may be presumed to have added a species of tantalizing torture to tlie mortifications of low pursuits and the privations of penury, Jonson is stilted to have been selected by Ralegh as the tutor of his son Wal- ter, witli the cJiarge of accompanying him in his travels abroad. It wotild be agreeable to the partial biogrnphers of Ralegh if tliis fact could be accredited. That he had discernment to perceive, and liberality to prize merit in an humble, and, to a man of classical education, degrading station, would be a consideration both creditable to Inni and gratifying to all who 4vish well to liis memory. Tlie statement is, however, widely at variance with truth. It has been accompanied by the assertion that it was Camden wlio recommended Jonson to Ralegh.* That this wa.s the origin of their acquaintance may be true; but that it could not have been with the view of Jonson's undertaking tlie tuition of young Ralegh is obvious, from the fact that at this period of Johnson's life tlie supposed object of his in- structions was not in existence, — his birtli happening in the year 1595, when Jonson was serving as a vohniteor in Fianders.t The anecdotes, too lightly admitted as authentic, of the young student's contempt tor his master, and of his sending the poet, when intoxicated, in a basket to Sir Walter, are refuted by this simple remembrance of certain dates ; and happily, both for the tutor and for the pupil, no such dis- grace seems to have befallen tlie one, nor sucli example to have disgusted the other of the parties. From all that can be gathered on this subject, it may be inferred that no cordial intimacy nor bond of gratitude sul>- sisted between Ralegh and Ben Jonson. The j)oet is said to have admired the talents of his eminent contempo- rary, but to have distrusted his sincerity.J He is even as- serted to liave remarked, that Sir Walter Ralegh " es- teemed more fame than conscience. J" Perhaps tliere are few men, wlio, like Ben Jonson, see closely into the darkest passions and into tlie most liidden motives of human nature, and who yet are able to divest their minds of sus- picion, and their hearts of that contamination which pro- • GifTord, p. t t Ihid. p. x. \ tbid p xi f Tliid. p. rxxu LIFE OF SIR WALTER KALEGH. 125 ceeds from a long contemplation of vice, sufficiently, to render a just tribute of approbation to the virtues of others. It is probable, also, that party feelings may have influer^ced Jonson's opinion of llalegh ; for whilst tlie latter was dis- graced, and eventually deprived both of liberty and life, by James the First, Jonson was the peculiar favorite of that monarch as a dramatist, and was consequently disposed to view political questions much in the same point of view as tlie sovereign whom he served. His sentiments with respect to Ralegh must not, tlicrefore, be allowed to influ- ence us without some caution : otherwise, as a Contempora- ry, and as an associate in the far-famed meetings at the Mermaid, Jonson must be allowed to have had ample means of forming an estimate of Ralegh's character. He was besides employed in assisting Ralegh in the compilation of the History of the World, to the frontispiece of which he wrote some good lines.* Jonson, like many great writers of the time, had an excellent library, col- lected, by degrees, from his own scanty means, and con- taining more scarce and valuable books than any otlier private collection in the kingdom. Selden, in referring to a book possessed by Jonson, has not omitted to indulge in that which is to generous minds a gratification — the op- portunity to eulogize both his friend the dramatist, and his library ;t . commending not only his talents as a poet, but that " special worth in literature, accurate judgment, and performance known only to the few who are truly able to know him." Among these, Ralegh, it is obvious, was so fortunate as to benefit largely from the acquirements of Jonson, although he may not have shared in the affection and good opinion of that remarkable, and, in a peculiar line, almost unrivalled genius. It were endless to enumerate the illustrious men of this period with whom Ralegh, in all probability, was per- sonally acquainted. That little of his correspondence has been preserved, except where it related to his public con- cerns, is a circumstance to be seriously regretted, f The man who could boast of intimate communication with Shakspeare, Beaumont, and Jonson, must, witliout relation *Giffbrd, note xi. t Ibid. p. 147, note, t See some letters in the Appendix, collected from the State Paper Of- fice, and now first published. L2 126 LIFE OF SIR WALTEK RALEGH. to his own natural or acquired talents, have merited well the care of his surviving relatives and executors to his slightest epistolary comjwsitions : but when we consider how valuable and how interesting would have been, not tlie remarks as relating only to otiiors, but as conveying the sentiments of the relater, we are tempted to revile at the supiiieness or carelessness of those to whom the papers of Sir Walter Ralegh were committetl. Perliaps it may be observed, and with some appearance of justice, that his life was so chequered with incidents, so occupied with tlie active business of life, that he may have had little inclina- tion, and found little leisure, to enter into the engrossing occujxition of communicating his thoughts on literary sub- jects to otlicrs. To this, those wlio have perused the few of Ralegh's letters still extant may reply, that they display ail ease and fluency vvhicli can only be acquired by habit: they are, in fact, specimens of tlie most perfect mode of expression, whetlier tlicy relate to tlie emotions of tlie ui- niost soul, its cares, its tenderness, or its hopes, or whether they comprise simple narrative and expliuiation. In all his works Ralegh describes that in which he was at any time peculiarly concerned witli a distinctness, animation, and force of language in which few of our English writers have excelled him. Tliat which he carried to such per- fection, he probably indulged in as a recreation. He has left us, of his familiar corres{U)ndence, enough only to e..x- cite a strong desire for more abundant means of judging of his excellence in tiiis line. The season was now nearly at an end for Ralegh's tran- quil enjoyment of social or literary conversation, or for study undisturbed by corroding anxieties. In the begin- ning of tliis year, the Queen, who was now in her seven- tieth year, betrayed more plainly tliose symptoms of decay which had been obvious to her attendants since the deatli of Essex. By determined temperance, both in abstaining from wine, and in lier diet, she had hitherto preserved un- injured tlie vigor of a constitution which seemed tbniied by nature to encounter tlie caros ;uid risks of myalty. Slie was wont to say, "that temperance was the noblest part of physic;" an admirable sentiment, but wliich. with the pre- judice of one who hail o\c'r been accustomed loan obsequi- ous conipliunoo with hvr opinions, she rariird sro iar as to reject nil nid ->f medicine wliru sickucs.* .nlii,»lly asailed hlFB OF SIR WALTER RALEGU. 127 her. Perhaps she may have been aware tliat the sufferings of a mind diseased constituted her only specific complaint, and that her malady had passed the influence of human ministration. She had now recourse to those aids wliich, if sincerely resorted to, arc never ineffectual in any season of life. She frequented divine service, and had prayers read in her presence more frequently than ever ; quitting Westminster also for Richmond, to enjoy quiet of body, and religious repose. Yet the unhappy closing days of her ex- istence were embittered not only by those regrets for Es- sex, which died only when she herself expired, but by the intrigues of her courtiers with Jier presumed successor, James the Sixth, and by the neglect to which her acute- ness and experience could not remain insensible. Once, when in a state of irritation, she exclaimed in the bitter- ness of her heart, " They have yoked my neck ; I have none in whom I may trust; my estate is turned upside down!*" — a complaint which was wrung from her, by the advice of some of her courtiers to send for James even be- fore her days were ended. Elizabeth was, however, avenged for this desertion and ingratitude by the regrets of those who knew her best, when they became competent judges of the prince to whom they paid such sedulous and indelicate attentions ; and when, too late, it was discovered how great a prize had been lost when she ceased to sway tlie sceptre.f Meanwhile, Cecil and most of her approved lUid veteran counsellors wore in secret correspondence with James, exalting his merits in his own eyes, — a very un- necessary labor, — and seeking to depreciate the merits of their expiring sovereign.| Even her godson, Sir John Har- rington, thought it not unseemly to lavish his ingenuity upon a new-year's gift, presented by him to James at Christmas, in the year 1602, consisting of a dark lantern made of four metals, with a crown of pure gold on the top, and within a silver shield, to give reflection to the light, on one side of which was the sun, the moon, and seven stars ; the whole explained by the inscription, borrowed, with no very scrupulous taste, from the words of the poor thief who was crucified with our Lord and Savior, — " Lord, remem- ♦ Camden, p. 5A5. t NugEB Antiqiisc, vol i. Sfc I,ptli'r fioinSir R, Cecil to . J Camden. Osborn 128 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. ber me when I come into thy kingdom ! *" But Harring- ton, although favored by James, learned afterwards to bless the Queen's memory ,1 and to compare her address, practi- cal wisdom, and clear understanding, with the awkward conceit^ prejudice, and mixture of learauig and folly, which characterized her successor. Whilst the Queen declined daily, ambitious persons of every denomination flocked into Scotland, both by sea and land, to pay their adorations to the nortliern luminary who w-as soon to enlighten this nether hemisphere. Even Cecil, who had been as prompt as any of his contemporaries in endeavoring to secure his own footing with James, thought it not beneath him to deceive his royal mistress with a contemptible falsehood, when surprised one day by the ar- rival of a packet from Scotland whilst he was riding with Her Majesty upon Blackheath. Elizabeth, inquiring from whence the dispatch came, and hearing that it was from Scotland, stopped her coach, and desired that it might be delivered. Cecil, pretending to be equally anxious, called for a knife to cut the string ; but when it was opened, as- sured the Queen that it consisted of old musty parclunents, which it would trouble Her Highness to endure. There were seasons when Elizabeth's acuteness would have detect- ed this subterfuge, and when her pride would not have sub- mitted to this imposition ; but her spirits were broken, and her mind, during her later years, had been entirely sub- jected to the dominion of Cecil. The messenger was dis- missed, that tlie packet might be purified before being ad- mitted to the royal presence ; and the minister enjoyed the self-gratulation of having outwitted the monarch, whom he afterwards described as " more than a man, and (in troth) sometimes less than a woman.|" Such was tlie address of Cecil, that, whilst cajoling Elizabeth, he conciliated James ; and although, like Ralegh and Harrington, he was, to use the words of the latter, " nearly lost upon the coast of Es- sex," he contrived to avoid all the evils which accrued to Ralegh fi-om the death of the unfortunate Earl. To what ex- tent he contributed to the mischief which afterwards en- sued to those who co-operated with liim in that affair, will appear, as fer as history has enlightened us on the subject. ♦ NugtB AntiqutB, p. 326. t Ibid. p. 355. } Nugro Antiqiitp, 345. Letter from Cecil to Harrington. LIFE or SIR WALTKK KALEGil. 129 Meanwhile, he contrived to adopt that policy bj' which his own preservation was secured. Cecil had all the narrow- ness of an ambitious statesman ; liis father, with equal dis- cretion, would have pursued a more upright course in se- curing the same ends, than his artful and able son deemed it expedient to adopt. But all necessity for subterfuge, as far as Elizabeth was concerned, was shortly to be at an end ; and those, who for motives of private interest, or of public opinion, desired to see James upon her throne, were soon gratified by the ful- filment of their wishes. In the beginning of JVIarcli, a heaviness, with a frowardness common in old age, an in- difference to food, and a dislike to any subject but that which excited religious reflections, intimated that her days were fast hastening to a close. In this extremity, her faithful servant, the Lord Howard of Effingham, sliared her confidence to the last, and continued in his assiduous attendance on her. To him, and to the Archbishop of Canterbury, she chiefly addressed her conversation ; and to the latter she named, as her successor, James of Scotland. This WJH a point which had long been insisted upon by Cecil, who was emboldened, by tiie absence of all compe- tition in the Queen's favor, to tell her that " too many years had been already lapsed, and the people's quiet hazarded by her delay in not fixing upon one certain suc- cessor.*" Thus urged on all hands, the Queen, in her last moments, declared, "that her throne had been the throne of kings, and that her kinsman the king of Scots should succeed her.f" Her thoughts were then wholly fixed in prayer, and her last words declared that her mind " was wholly fixed on God, nor did it wander from him." Immediately after her death, the neighborhood of the metropolis was almost de- serted by the higher classes ; the great families of the north hastened to their country-seats to proffer their hospiUility to the king on liis journey ; whilst those who had not the means of showing him in this manner their loyalty and de- votion, repaired to York, there to await the arrival of James the First of England. •Osborne's Memoirs of Queen Elizabeth. Sec liin Worits, 1683; p yje. t Camden, p. 385 130 LIFE OF SIR WALTER RALEGH. CHAPTER IV. Accession of Jninos. — Inti'ii;!!)^^ nKiiiiist Ralegh. — Mediation of tlio Earl of Northumberland. — Charncter of Cecil : — Of James. — His lirst Inter- view with Rulefih. — Canses of KaleKirs disgrace. — Act.s of oppression on the part of James. — Memorial addressed by Kalegh to the King. — Reason assigned by James for his dislike to Ralegh. — State of foreign atniirs. — Particulars of the Conspiracy, commonly called " Ralegh's Plot." — Arabella Stnart — Brook — Cobham — tJrey. — Examinations of Cobham and Kalcgh :— Their committal to the Tower.— Rali^gh's at- tempt at suicide :— His trial. — Character of Coke. — TlieTriol and Fato of the otiier Conspirators.— Observations ui>on the degree of blunie to be attached to Ralegh. Sir Rooer Aston, nmny years the inesscnfjcr between Rliznbetli and James tlie Si.xtli of Scotland, on coming to liOndon to desire tliat all things should be made ready for tlie reception of James, after his accession to the tlirone of England, addressed the Council in tliesc words: — "Even, my Lords, like a poor man wandering forty years in a wild(M"nes8 and barren soil, am I now arrivccFat the liuul of promise." Such were the ])revailing sentiments of the Scots; but, with respect to Kalegh, the case was essentially diiierent, and sudden was the vicissitude which befell him on the accession of Janu^s to the throne. Busy machinations had been lor some time at work previous to the death of Elizabeth. Already had Cecil, in a corre- spondence which still remains in witness of his duplicity,* justified himself in tlie sight of James tor all past events in which he had borne a part. The arts of the minister were seconded by the powerful interest of Sir George Hume, atlerwards Earl of Dunbar, whose influence over James was sufiicient to induce him to jMirdon in Cecil his concern in the death of Essex, a crime which he never forgave in Ralegh.t This endeavor on the part of Cecil to extricate liimsclf from blame, by casting imputations upon his former friend and associate, was, indeed, controverted by Henry Percy, the accomplished Earl of Northumberland, the intimate friend of Ralegh, and brother to Sir Charles Percy, who was among tiioso who were fortunate enough to bear the first news of * In the llatneld collection. t Wcldon's Court and Cliaructer of James I,, p. 10, 11. LIFK OF SIR WAr.TEU UAI,F.(!H. 131 Elizahoth's death to .Tainos.* Uiiliai)pily, llio improysions on the Ki)ion the tirm and uniform partisan of the yci)ttish succession, and that the enemies of Essex had been opposed to that natural, and evidently unalterable, arranoenient. After showino- that Essex had " worn the crown of En^rland in his lunirt for many years," and was, therefore, little disposed to place it on the head of James, the Earl proceeded to discuss the loyalty of Ralejjh, and of Cobiuim, under whose names were comprehended a numerous party. Witlv reijard to Cobham, he declared his inability to express an opinion ; and he discarded the subject of that nobleman's intentions as comparatively unimjx)rtjint, or as interwoven with tho.se of Ralej]^h, by whom Cobham was g^enerally supposed to be wholly yuidcd in all his concerns. Of the latter, he sjwke, however, with a degree of confidence, not rendered suspi- cious by any vehement panegyric, and established by an acquaintance of sixteen years. " I must needs ailirm," said this manly supiwrter of the calumniated and oppress(;d, "Ralegh's late allowance of your right; and although I know iiim insolent, extremely heated, and a man that de- sires to seem to be able to sway all men's timcies, all men's courses, and a man that out of himself, when your time shall come, will never be able to do you nuu'h good nor harm, yet I nnist needs confess what 1 know, that there is excellent good parts of nature in him ; a man whose love is disadvantageous to mc in some sort, which I cherish rather out of constancy than policy, and one whom I wisii your Majesty not to lose, because I would not that one hair of a man's head should be against you, tliat might bo for you.-|-" But the generous advocate of Ralegh was, even at this very time, himself endangered by the arts of Cecil, on whose friendship he placed a fallacious reliance, the good offices of the secretary not being extended to save him from fifteen years of impriBoninent in the Tower, and a * Birch's Memoirs of P. Ilonry. Ed. 1T50. p. 25. t Miss Aikin's Memoirs uf James I., vol. i. p. .'i8., Horn the Hatfield Collection ; and Wilson's I