He came into England with instructions, authorizing him to accommodate all differences between Her Majesty and the States; but having first advised with the confederate lords, he assured the ministry he had powers to hear their proposals, but none to conclude: and having represented to his masters what had been told him by the adverse party, he prevailed with them to revoke his powers.

He found the interest of those who withstood the court, would exactly fall in with the designs of the States, which were to carry on the war as they could, at our expense, and to see themselves at the head of a treaty of peace, whenever they were disposed to apply to France, or to receive overtures from thence.[69] [Footnote 68: P.Fitzgerald says "gentleman." [W.S.J.]] [Footnote 69: Erasmus Lewis, in the letter already cited, refers to Buys, and gives the opinion of the gentlemen who had read the "History," on this matter, as follows: "They think the transactions with Mr.Buys might have been represented in a more advantageous light, and more to the honour of that administration; and, undoubtedly they would have been so by your pen, had you been master of all the facts." And yet the facts as related by Swift in this and the last book of this "History" are substantially the facts as disclosed in Bolingbroke's Political Correspondence.

[T.S.]] The Emperor, upon many powerful reasons, was utterly averse from all counsels which aimed at putting an end to the war, without delivering him the whole dominion of Spain; nay, the Elector of Hanover himself, although presumptive heir to the crown of England, and obliged by all sorts of ties to cultivate Her Majesty's friendship, was so far deceived by misrepresentations from hence, that he seemed to suffer Monsieur Bothmar, his envoy here, to print and publish a Memorial in English, directly disapproving all Her Majesty's proceedings; which Memorial, as appeareth by the style and manner of it, was all drawn up, or at least digested, by some party pen on this side of the water.[70] [Footnote 70: See Swift's "Some Free Thoughts upon the Present State of Affairs," and the note on p.

410 of vol.v.of present edition.

[T.S.]] Cautious writers, in order to avoid offence or danger, and to preserve the respect even[71] due to foreign princes, do usually charge the wrong steps in a court altogether upon the persons employed; but I should have taken a securer method, and have been wholly silent in this point, if I had not then conceived some hope, that his Electoral Highness might possibly have been a stranger[72] to the Memorial of his resident: for, first, the manner of delivering it to the secretary of state was out of all form, and almost as extraordinary as the thing itself.