BOOK I, THE COL LECTOR OF became himself a salient instance. Bred a Whig, and during his early years acting commonly with the Whigs, his party ties were gradually relaxed. By temper and LEIAN MSS. mental constitution he was always inclined to moderate measures. As the party waxed fiercer and fiercer, and as its policy came to be more and more obviously the weapon of its hatreds, HARLEY soon lay open to the reproach of being a trimmer. The growing breach became evident enough in the course of the debates on the treason of Sir HIS SPEECH John FENWICK, in November, 1696. He then argued, with force and earnestness, that atrocity in a crime is no justification or excuse for violence and unscrupulousness in a prosecutor. Some of his applications of that sound doctrine are very questionable. But it is to his honour that he preached moderation with consistency. He did not bend it to the exigencies of the party he was approaching, any more than to those of the party from which he was gradually withdrawing himself. ON THE OF FENWICK. he Meanwhile he had signalised his powers in another way. By long study he had acquired a considerable knowledge of parliamentary law and precedent. He had taken his full share in the work of committees. In February, 1701, was proposed for the Speakership, in opposition to Sir Thomas LITTLETON. He had a large body of supporters, nor were they found exclusively in the Tory ranks. The King sent for LITTLETON, and told him that he thought it would be for the public service that he should give way to the choice of Mr. HARLEY in his stead. But the election was carried by a majority of only four votes. 'It is a great encouragement to his party,' wrote ToWNSHEND to WALPOLE, who was then in the country, and no small mortification to the Whigs.' HARLEY retained the Speaker ship until the third session of the first Parliament of Queen BOOK I. ANNE. Chap. V. THE COLLECTOR OF THE HAR LEIAN MSS. HARLEY AND THE ACT Or Whatever may have been the 'mortification of the Whigs' at his elevation, it is certain that at this time HARLEY laboured zealously for the establishment of the Protestant succession to the throne. In the preparation, facilitating, and passing of that measure he took so influential a part 1701. that, afterwards, he was able to say, in the face of his opponents, when they were most numerous and most embittered, I had the largest hand in settling the succession of the House of Hanover.' The assertion met with no denial. It is evident, too, that the qualities for which he was already reviled by extreme partisans on both sides were-in their measure-real qualifications, both for the office of Speaker and for the special task of that day. The party leaders who were then most eagerly followed were men bent on crushing their adversaries as well as conquering them. It was inevitable that by such men HARLEY's moderation towards opponents should be regarded as more cajolery. And of that unhappy quality he was destined, at a later day, to acquire but too much. March. THE SECRE TARYSHIP OF STATE, 1704. Register, On the 27th of April, 1704, Mr. Speaker HARLEY WAS sworn of the Privy Council. On the 18th of May he received the seals as one of the Principal Secretaries of State. Priry Council He had scarcely entered on the duties of his office before Anne, vol. ii, he was busied with precautionary measures in Scotland p. 102. against an anticipated Jacobite insurrection, as well as with a large share of the foreign correspondence. But just at that busy time he found means to begin-though he could not then complete-an act of charity which is memorable. both on the recipient's account and on the score of some BOOK I, THE COL LECTOR OF LEIAN MSS. HARLEY'S PROTECTION OF DE FOE, 1704. De Foe, well-known political consequences which eventually grew thereout. person At the time when HARLEY became a member of the GODOLPHIN administration Daniel DE FOE lay in Newgate, under a conviction for seditious libel, committed in the publication of his famous tract, The Shortest Way with the Dissenters. The new Secretary sent a confidential to the prison with instructions to visit DE FOE, and to ask him, in the Minister's name, 'What can I do for you?' DE FOE's characteristic reply must be given in his own words: In return for this kind and generous message I immediately took pen and ink, and writ the story of the blind man in the Gospel, to whom our blessed Lord put the question, "What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?" who-as if he had made it strange that such a question should be asked, or as if he had said, "Lord, dost thou see that I am blind, and yet ask me what thou shalt do for me?"-my answer is plain in my misery, "Lord that I may receive my sight." I needed not to make the application.' . DE FOE then adds :-" From this time, as I learned afterHonour and wards, this noble person made it his business to have my Justice, p. 11. case represented to Her Majesty, and methods taken for my deliverance.' But the bigots who had caused a malicious prosecution succeeded in delaying the successful issue of the Secretary's efforts during four months. With HARLEY the sufferer had had no previous acquaintance. The one designation under which he ever afterwards spoke of him was my first benefactor.' And the gratitude was lifelong. In part, HARLEY owed his new office to the personal credit which he had won with the Queen during his 1 Chap. V. THE HAR to Harley; 1704. Speakership; and in part, also, to the friendship of MARL- BOOK I, BOROUGH. On receiving the news of his appointment the THE COL Duke wrote to him, from the Camp :- I am sensible of the LECTOR OF advantage I shall reap by it, in having so good a friend LEIAN MSS. near Her Majesty's person to present in the truest light my Marlborough faithful endeavours for her service.' But their intercourse, 13 June, if it ever attained to true cordiality at all, was cordial for a very short time. Brief confidence was followed by long distrust. HARLEY strove to strengthen himself by the use of channels of Court influence which were utterly inimical to the MARLBOROUGH connection. His efforts to make himself independent of that connection did not, however, lessen the prodigality of his assurances of friendship and fidelity. His political position thus became that of a man who was exposed to the attacks of many bitter enemies among the statesmen with whom he had begun his career, without being able to rely upon any hearty support from those with whom he now shared the conduct of affairs. He might count, indeed, on assailants from the ranks both of the extreme Whigs and the extreme Tories, whilst from most of his own colleagues of the intermediate party he would have to meet the greater danger of a lukewarm defence. In such a position the attack was not likely to be long waited for. Easiness of nature, and a tendency to alternate fits of close application with fits of indolence, always characterised him. And those qualities had an incidental consequence which opened to his opponents a tempting opportunity. HARLEY was habitually less careful of official papers than it behoved a Secretary of State to be.* He was also at all times prone to place a premature and undue confidence in *See the details in Lords' Report on Gregg's case; reprinted in State Trials, vol. xiv, cols. 1378 seqq. BOOK I, Chap. V. THE COL his dependants. In 1707, William GREGG, one of the clerks in his office, abused his confidence by secretly copying some letters of the highest importance and by selling the LEIAN MSS. copies to the Court of France. LECTOR OF THE CRIME GREGG, AND THE USE BY HARLEY'S ENEMIES. Appendix to to Gregg's Trial, &c., in State Trials, vol. xii, The treachery was discovered by the Secretary himself, and such steps were taken to lessen the mischief as the case admitted. Much excitement naturally followed upon the publicity of the crime. The least scrupulous of HARLEY'S enemies conceived a hope that the traitor who had served the public enemy for a bribe might also be tempted to ruin. his master for another and greater bribe. Means were found to convey to GREGG strong assurances of a certain escape, and of a wealthy exile, if he would but declare that he had copied the despatches, and forwarded the transcripts, by the Secretary's direction. Pending the attempt, they circulated throughout the country a report that such a declaration had actually been made, and that the Secretary was to be impeached. But the clerk, instead of betraying his master, exposed his temptors. His first emphatic declaration of HARLEY's innocence was repeated immediately before his death in these words: answer it before the judgment seat of Christ, the gentleman aforesaid [i. e. HARLEY] was not privy to my writing to pp. 694 seqq. France, neither directly nor indirectly.' FROM OF As I shall HARLEY himself, and also his nearest friends, were wont to speak of this affair as one that had brought his life into real peril. It is certain that the incident and its consequences helped materially to make his continuance in office. impossible. But he struggled hard. Meanwhile, the dissensions in the Ministry were daily DISMISSED increasing. They became so bitter as to lead to personal altercations at the Council Board, even when the Queen herself was present. On one such occasion (February, FICE. Feb., 1708. |