tersigned by Lord Townshend, to fix the Great Seal to them; five of the instruments were,— 1st, the treaty entered into by the Kings of England, France, and Prussia; 2nd, the first separate article; 3rd, the second separate article; 4th, a third separate article; 5th, a secret article. The other five instruments were duplicates of the same to be executed by the King of France. I returned back word by the messenger, that I was coming to town, and would there do what was necessary.

8th.-Wednesday, at night, I came to town. The Duke of Somerset came to me, and I asked him, when he was in the Regency, and the King abroad, as had happened in King William's time, and the King made a treaty abroad, whether this were communicated to the Regency or Council here? or whether, upon the King's warrant from beyond the sea, the Great Seal was affixed to them here? He said, it was always the custom, on the King's warrant, for the Chancellor to affix the Great Seal. The next day, Mr. Delafaye told me this was always the custom, and that it would be absurd to lay them before the Regency, because the King had agreed and signed them already. I therefore put the Great Seal to them, September 9th, in the evening.

9th. In the morning, the Duke of Newcastle came to me, and showed me a letter from Lord Townshend, that the King and people there were very apprehensive that the Spaniards were about to strike a blow against us, and that they intended to seize our merchants' effects, and therefore desired that he would speak to me, and such other of the King's ministers as he and Sir Robert Walpole should think fit, to consider how to be ready against such an occasion. He suggested that it would be proper to have fifteen or sixteen men-of-war ready, with bombs, boats, &c. &c., so that if we had our merchants' goods seized, immediately to go and demand, and in case of refusal, to compel restitution; to do as had been done in Wingfield's case in Portugal; and on this he desired me, after the Regency was over, to dine at Sir Robert Walpole's: and accordingly there dined there with Sir Robert Walpole, the Duke of Newcastle, Earl of Berkeley, Earl Godolphin, myself, and Mr. Delafaye. The occasion of this, the apprehension of Lord Townshend, that it appeared plainly that the Emperor was at the bottom of all this management of Spain; that when the Emperor and Spain made their private treaty, the Emperor proposed to us to accede to that treaty, which

the King refused, it being made without his participation; and, in truth, it was so, guaranteeing an unknown succession to the House of Austria. The Emperor, at the same time, offered his mediation to make up all differences between the King and Spain. The King thanked him, but told him he knew of no differences but such as, considering the friendship then between them, might be terminated among themselves, without the intervention of any other Prince. Some short time after, the Queen of Spain let Mr. Stanhope, our envoy there, know that the King of Spain expected that Gibraltar and Minorca should be delivered up; and the like was repeated in another interview between him and the King and the Queen of Spain. He then asked whether, if this were not done, the friendship between them was to be determined? They said, No, but hoped that the King, considering the advantages he had by trade and otherwise from Spain, would make no scruple of it. A little after he was gone from the King and Queen, the Secretary of State, the Marquis de Grimaldi, let him know by letter, that whatever friendship the King and Queen had exhibited to Great Britain, it was still to be taken with the condition that Gibraltar was restored. Some time after, Stanhope went to Court, to

The

desire an explanation of this letter, and when it was they expected the restoration ? Queen said presto, bien tôt bien vite. Stanhope said that was impossible, it could not be done till the Parliament met, which could not be held during the King's absence. She replied, that the King might go over on purpose to hold the Parliament, that the Parliament would be all for it. He told her, that she would find herself deceived in such information, and that his orders were, to declare positively that the King of England thought those places were secured to him by treaty, and that neither he nor the Parliament would give them up. This, we afterwards found, was set on foot by the Emperor, who had prevailed over the passion of the Queen of Spain, on her disappointment in France, and on promise to marry Don Carlos to one of his daughters. Things running thus so high, occasioned the speculations of Lord Townshend in his letter. But this morning, the Duke of Newcastle received a letter from Mr. Stanhope, wherein the Queen of Spain expressed herself now in another manner, and that she did not mean that the restitution should be done instantly, but hoped the King, in friendship, would find out some way to restore it to the throne of Spain. That he told her it was im

But,

possible ever to hope England would give up Gibraltar, at least not without some satisfaction she asked what satisfaction? he said he had no orders to offer any such thing, or any instruction about it; but possibly, if they would offer the free cutting of logwood in the bay of Campeachy, some advantages for the South Sea Company in point of trade, the continuance of the Assciento, it might be considered of. We all now present thought that Mr. Stanhope had gone too far. however, it appeared that Spain began now to explain away those demands, which might possibly arise from the apprehension of their inability to go into a war with England and France. However, we all were of opinion, that there should not be any present preparation made of any ships, because that would alarm our own people here at home too much; that it was very probable this would blow over, but that if it did not, and if any seizure should be made of our merchants' ships, the Earl of Berkley said he would engage to have fifteen men-of-war well manned immediately, when there should be occasion: and we were of opinion that on any act of hostility commenced by Spain, we should immediately, without more ado, make reprisals.