And thus it is visible, continues Monsieur de Cros p. 16. that the King, a little after the Peace of Nimeguen neglected him. If making Offers to him of a Secretary's Place immediately after his Arrival, be the Sign of Neglect, all this is certainly true; and seldom employ'd him. 'Tis not as Sir W. T. would make the World believe, the Love of Retirement, and his Indisposition of Body, that made him throw up his Employs; for never Man more passionately desir'd to have his Share in the Publick Administrations than he. Well, 'tis no Miracle however to see a Man who is perfectly so unacquainted with his own Humour to be a Stranger to all the rest of Mankind. The Author of the Memoirs was at this time prevailed with by the King to have a Part in a New Constitution of Council; and after almost two years unsuccesful Endeavours at some Union, or at least some Allay of the Heats and Distempers between the King and his Parliaments, took up a Resolution of having no more to do with affairs of State; and accordingly sent his Son in 1680. to acquaint his Majesty with it. Whether he has departed from these Resolutions since, he leaves it to the World to judge.
After Monsieur de Cros has throughly chafed himself by assigning, as he pretends, the true Reason why Sir W. T. was discarded the Court, namely, the King's being dissatisfied with his Services, and Sir W. T's endeavouring all that in him lay to frustrate the King's Commands, contained in a Dispatch which our Letter-writer left with him at the Hague, as he was going to Nimeguen by his Majesty's Order, to conclude a Peace Don't expect, says he p. 17. My Lord, that I should here acquaint you with the true Cause of so extraordinary a Resolution, which according to Sir W. T. entirely changed the Fate of Christendom. I should do him too great a Pleasure if I should reveal so important a Secret, and several other Intrigues, in which some Persons, both of the late and this Reign in England, are nearly concerned. But two or three Pages above, Monsieur de Cros spoke in another Tone, je lui fair ai le plaisir de le mieux instruire, p. 9. but now the Weather-Glass is alter'd with him, so that, for all I can discover, we must e'en tarry till his Remarks, or his Memoirs are printed, and till then blunder in the Dark. 'Tis true, he is pleased to give a very pleasant reason why he is by no means for opening his Raree-show at present, which the Reader may take in his own Words; I doubt not, cries he, p. 18. but Sir W. T. passionately desires it; he knows well enough that a full Discovery of these Practises would incense the Parliament against the Advisers of them; and 'tis their Ruin he wishes at the Bottom of his Heart. And a little lower, Besides, I would not at this critical Conjuncture, when K. William labours with so much Zeal and Glory to procure the Repose of Christendom, and the Happiness of his own Subjects, revive those Animosities and Quarrels which have already occasioned but too many Convulsions in England, and might be a great obstacle to that Union, which is so necessary towards the happy Execution of the Designs of this great Monarch. Most Authors have their le Fort and le Foible; but this Discourse of Monsieur de Cros is altogether made up of Foibles. For him to imagine that the great Senate of England has nothing else to do but to read his Books and be directed by them, is such a horrid piece of Vanity that nothing can parallel. No, Monsieur de Cros may safely print his Book, and yet for all that K. William with his Confederates may re conquer Flanders, the Parliament supply the King with Money, and not so much as one single Courtier be sent to Grass. And this is so certain a Truth, that he needs not be in a moment's pain about it; for if his Memoirs are no more regarded in England than his Letter has been, he can injure no man living by them, but, (as we have already told him) himself and his Bookseller.
Well, at last, (Heaven be prais'd) we are come to the Merits of the Cause; and now it appears that the true and real Cause why Monsieur de Cros has all along so vehemently declaimed against Sir W. T. proceeded not from his giving a wrong Relation of State-Affairs, from his disturbing the Sacred Ashes of King Charles the Second, from his neglecting to execute his Master's Orders, from his inexcusable Ingratitude to his Protector and Patron, or, in fine, from his Pride, his Opiniatreté, or any crime of that Nature. 'Tis a Thing of a nearer Relation, and of a deeper Concern. He had injuriously attacked the Reputation of Monsieur de Cros, and now he must expect to be severely handled for it.
At this time, says our incensed Statesman, p. 19. there arrived from England one de Cros, as Sir W. T. has express'd it, I shall not, my Lord, make any stop at this term of Contempt, One de Cross; tho to his great Commendation be it spoken, he has almost spent a whole Page about it before he has done, 'tis in Relation to my self an Expression of the blackest Malice. From thence he takes the Hint to be speak himself to his Reader, telling him that the late King of England did him the Honour to treat him with more Respect and Civility, both in his Pass-ports, his Letters, and the Commissions he entrusted him with. He says 'twas fort Cavalierement, in plain English, impudently done to speak after that saucy manner, of a Man that was born of a tolerable good Family, that had been honour'd near twenty years with several Employments, and whom a great Prince and a King did not disdain to take for a Counsellor of State. There is a certain Figure in Rhetorick (I have forgot the Name of it) which the Grammarians tell us we are guilty of committing, when we pretend to pass over those very things which we design to enumerate; and this I find has been very serviceable all along to Monsieur de Cros; he won't make any stop at those words, no, not he; he won't rake into the Particulars of Sir William's Life, no not he, but all the while does it; and to say the truth, there's nothing in the whole Rhetorick that he copies with so good a Grace. Well, let all Authors for the future, as they hope to avoid Sir W. T's sad Destiny, whatever they do, be sure to mind their Heraldry; for they may see what a terrible Adversary he has drawn upon himself by making a small mistake in that ancient and honourable Science.
The Author of the Memoirs, p. 325. giving a short account of Monsieur de Cros and his Character, was so ill advised as to throw out these Words: He had formerly been a French Monk, and some time since had left his Frock for a Petticoat. And now 'tis worth the while to observe what judicious Remarques our furious Letter-Writer has made upon them. This is a fine reproach, says he, p. 20. to come out of the Mouth of a Protestant Ambassador, one that belonged to a Monarch who stiles himself Defender of the Faith; and in short, one that so loudly declared at Nimeguen that he'd have nothing to do with the Pope's Nuncio. A very hard Case this, that Sir W. T. shall not have the liberty to acquaint the World that Monsieur de Cros had been a Monk, because, forsooth, his Master was Defender of the Faith: Nor to take notice that he had exchanged his Frock for a Petticoat, because he would not shake hands with the Pope's Nuncio at Nimeguen. This is a strange sort of reasoning, but not very terrible. But perhaps the Apology that follows may make some amends for the whipp'd Cream above. I don't know, my Lord, whether it is a scandalous thing to be a Monk, this I am certain of, that it is infinitely less scandalous to have been one. Sir W. T. will never contradict Monsieur de Cros upon this Article, nor did he say in his Memoirs that 'tis scandalous to be a Monk: But Monsieur de Cros, who values himself much upon his Politics, seeing he was unable to carry on the War much longer at his own Expence, was resolved to fight his Battles with the whole Body of the Regular Ecclesiastics; and therefore making it a Cloister Quarrel, indicts him upon a Scandalum Monachorum. But to proceed, I make no doubt, continues he, but that among the Monks as well as among the rest of Mankind, one may find sad wretched Fellows, (Speak softly lest any of the Brothers of the Surcingle hear thee) of mean, base Parentage, (Prethee for your old Acquaintance sake, not so loud) of infamous, irregular Lives (nay, now you have undone yourself with them for ever) Drones, good for nothing, (I find he'll never have done with this Chapter) without Honour, Good Manners, or Reputation. And yet not a quarter of an hour agoe it was no scandal to be in such blessed Company. Sir W. T. without Question looked upon me to be one of this number. This is more than he knew; but however since he has positively asserted it, Sir W. T. will not contradict him. But then, says our Furioso, turning the Tables, p. 21. there are also to be found among them Persons illustrious for the Sanctity of their Manners, Men of extraordinary Merit, and of the highest Quality, Sons of Princes and of Crown'd Heads, nay, Kings themselves, and Sovereign Pontiffs. He is now thinking to cajole the Monks after he had so plentifully bespatter'd them before: And must fain let the World see how dexterously he can blow Satyr and Panegyrick with the very same Breath. But if this sort of Life is not reckoned now a days, as it has been heretofore, so certain a Character of an honest good Man does Sir W. T. imagine he dishonours me, when he says that for a Petticoat I have abandoned a Profession which he himself looks upon to be so contemptible. If Sir W. T. has not dishonoured Monsieur de Cros, why all this Fury, this Heat and Indignation? All that the Author of the Memoirs said was very harmless. As an Historian he was obliged to give a short Account of those persons, whose Actions he there recounts. Mr. de Cros happening to be a Man very remarkable towards the conclusion of the Treaty of Nimeguen, Sir W. T. acquaints the World with part of his History, and in particular says he had been formerly a Monk. Nor does Monsieur de Cros deny it, and yet for all that fansies himself abominably injured. What! because he reported him to have been of that Profession of Life which has bred so many learned Men, furnished the Almanack with so many Saints, Thrones with so many Kings; nay, and the Pontifical Chair with one third of her Popes?——But some people I see are never well, full nor fasting.
Mr. Dryden, I remember, amongst several other judicious Remarks that so frequently occur in his Essay upon Dramatick Poetry, has this of the famous Johnson, which in my Opinion (and I think I have not lost all my Taste in my Old Age) is admirable. Ben, says he, never introduces any Person upon the Stage, but first of all informs his Reader of his Character, and by that means bespeaks his attention. As for instance if a La fool is to be brought in, he makes a Foot-boy till True wit, that one Monsieur La-fool is coming to pay him a Visit; and before he makes his appearance, True-wit lets his Friends know, and consequently, by them, the Audience, what sort of a Gentleman La-fool is, and what are his best Qualities. By this ingenious Piece of Conduct the Poet takes care to please his Spectators, who it may be are at first as uneasie to see a strange Face upon the Stage, as in Company at the Tavern, till they are better acquainted with his Dispositions; and then his Conversation is always more edifying. The same management has been used by several Historians (and not to descend into a detail of the rest) by Sallust himself, a Writer of the first Rank and Quality: And why Sir W. T. should not practise it, is certainly a Mystery. If then the Matter of Fact be true (nor dares de Cros deny it) where's the Imposture? If the Truth that is told does no ways reflect upon the Reputation of the Party concerned (as he himself owns it) where's the Injury, where's the Affront?
Indeed as a famous Grecian Philosopher is reported thus to have express'd himself in relation to his Thoughts of Humane Life, That it was much better not to have been born than to live at all: So in relation to the Monastick State, one may say without breach of Charity, that it is (at least as the Sentiments of the World run now) far preferable not to have been a Monk, than sometimes to have been one: For though 'tis no scandal to wear a Cowl, I am sure there's no Credit got by wearing it. In all such large Societies, the number des miserables, d'une basse naissance, gens inutiles, sans honneur & sans reputation, are ten to one in comparison of the tres celebres par la Santeté de leur mœurs, d'un merite extraordinaire, &c. And so much in answer to Monsieur de Cros's Princes and Kings, Cardinals and Popes.
I will not here tell you, says Monsieur de Cros, p. 21. how I came to be engaged in this Life in my younger Days. Truly that is somewhat hard. Neither will I tell you the Reasons why I quitted it. This is the hardest of all: For though we may allow Monsieur de Cros to have gone into a Convent for little or no reason at all; yet 'tis a very severe Case if a Man of his Kidney had not several good Reasons to leave it: His Youth excuses the former; but he was certainly at Years of Discretion, when he abdicated the Monk, and set up the Lay-man. But let us comfort our selves. The Memoirs will be printed, and then we shall know all.
However though Monsieur de Cros at this present Writing would not acquaint his Noble Lord with the Reasons of his Change; yet he is so far complaisant as to satisfie him that it was not for a Petticoat: Ce ne fut pas au moins pour une juppe, p. 21. And then he gives an admirable Reason for what he says. I passed several Years without having any Inclinations to a Petticoat. A pretty Argument; and therefore a Petticoat was not the cause of his Change. But as the Schoolmen say, Quod primum in intentione, ultimum in executione: And so in the present Case, a Petticoat might be the first thing in Monsieur de Cros's Intention, though it happened to be the last in Execution. Nay it appeared to the World, p. 22. that I was very irresolute and difficult in my Choice. And who can blame him for it. The Matrimonial Vow is infinitely a greater Curb than the Monastick. A man if he can make Friends with the Pope may get himself absolved from the latter; or in case of Necessity, may turn his own Pope, as Monsieur de Cros did: But a Wife is not to be discarded at that easie rate. 'Tis not the old Gentleman with the Cross-Keys and Triple-Crown, but with the Scythe and Hour-glass that can free a Man from his Spouse, and set him at liberty.
I had too much Advantage on my side, p. 22. to change the Frock for the Petticoat I have chose, not to do it. Well this plain Consession makes amends for all. What was pretended a little before, viz. That some Years were passed before I had any Inclinations to a Petticoat, was spoke by the Politician: But here the true, the sincere, the undebauched Monk speaks, who owns he would have taken up a Petticoat much sooner, but only was looking sharp out all this while for one that was well fringed with Advantages. And now as there are abundance of Husbands in the World, who as soon as their Wives happen to be mentioned in Company, cannot forbear to enlarge upon their several Perfections and Vertues; so it fares with Monsieur de Cros, for now he is got into his Petticoat, he will never have done. 'Tis a Petticoat, continues he, d'une étoffe d' Ecosse, of Scotch Cloth, which has been of far greater Ornament and Service to the Crown of England, than even Sir W. T. himself. Since his Petticoat has done such rare Exploits, by my Consent let Monsieur de Cros write a Panegyrick upon it. But by the bye this is a very figurative way of Writing; and therefore, though I don't understand it, I hope there may be some meaning in the bottom. If he does not know so much already, p. 26. the History of the last Transactions in England and Scotland will better inform him. Here we are referr'd again to a Hans en Kelder of a History, which when it will be mid-wifed into the World the Lord knows. But I wonder extremely why he wou'd condescend so low to compare his useful Petticoat to Sir W. T. as why in another place p. 8. he tells us that the Dutch Minister who forwarded the Triple-League, surpassed Sir W. T. in Prudence. A very sorry Complement this, both to his serviceable Petticoat and to his prudent Dutch Minister, if as he pretends, p. 62. Sir W. T. was taken abroad pour dupe, for a Cully.