Page:A biographical dictionary of eminent Scotsmen, vol 3.djvu/321

Rh castle took no notice of his letter till he was under the necessity of writing to him upon another subject, two months afterwards, and then in the most cold and formal manner imaginable. Of any reply from Pelham and Scroope we have not found a vestige, and would fondly hope that courtiers as they were, they had so much grace remaining as to be unable to put pen to paper upon a business so disgraceful.

To a mind so pure and so gentle as was that of president Forbes, this ingratitude on the part of the government must have been exceedingly painful; but we do not believe that it was the only or the principal thing that weighed down his spirit. To the morality of courts and the gratitude of courtiers he was in theory at least no stranger, and as a prudent and practical man, must have been in some measure prepared to grapple with them ; but for the base duplicity and the ingratitude of his friends and neighbours, many of whom had betrayed his confidence in the grossest manner, he could scarcely be prepared, and they must have affected him deeply. These, while they wrung his heart with the most pungent feelings of sorrow, furnished to the ignorant, the suspicious, and the envious, fruitful topics of detraction and misrepresentation, against which, he must hare been aware, the best intentions and the most upright actions have too often been found to afford no protection. The care of the highlands had been imposed upon him for many years, he had been a father and a friend to almost every principal family they contained, and with few exceptions, these families had in return made the strongest professions of loyalty to the government, and of friendship and affection to himself. This they had done too, with such apparent sincerity, as induced him to report them perfectly loyal, at the very moment they were signing associations, purchasing arms, and ready to appear in the field against the government How must he have felt to see the very men he had saved from total destruction, procured them the favourable notice of the government, and even high and honourable situations, rushing, from mistaken views of their own or their country's interests, upon the ruin of both! It was this, we have no doubt, gave the secret but incurable wound, which, though he continued to perform the duties of his station with inflexible firmness, and with imperturbable patience, brought him by slow degrees to an untimely grave.

Though the lord president continued to discharge his office with his usual fidelity and diligence, and though he uttered no complaints, it had long been matter of grief to his friends to observe his health rapidly declining, and in the month of November, it was judged necessary to send for his son from England, who arrived only in time to receive his last advice and blessing. He died on the 10th day of December, 1747, in the sixty-second year of his age. The same day he died, the following memorandum was made by his son: "My father entered into the everlasting life of God, trusting, hoping, and believing through the blood of Christ, eternal life and happiness. When I first saw my father upon the bed of death, his blessing and prayer to me was 'My dear John, you have just come in time to see me die. May the great God of heaven and earth bless and preserve you! You have come to a very poor fortune; partly through my own extravagance, and partly through the oppression of power. I am sure you will forgive me, because what I did was with a good intention. I know you to be an honest hearted lad. Andrew Mitchell loves you affectionately; he will advise you, and do what he can for you. I depend upon Scroope, too, which you may let him know. I will advise you never to think of coming into parliament. I left some notes with the two William Forbeses in case I had not seen you. They are two affectionate lads, and will be able to help you in some affairs better than you would have done