Page:Cassell's Illustrated History of England vol 4.djvu/256

242 was first made page to the prince of Denmark, then groom of the bedchamber to the duke of Gloucester, and finally an officer in the army, and aide-de-camp to Marlborough himself, who, however, seems to have thought him a very poor creature.

After all this it may be imagined what was the denunciation of Abigail Hill for base ingratitude by the infuriated duchess. It was in vain that the poor niece pleaded that she had done nothing to prejudice the queen against the duchess; the incensed lady now pursued the inquiry into her rival's proceedings with indefatigable zeal, and she speedily came upon still more astounding circumstances. She found that Abigail Hill was, in reality, no longer Abigail Hill; that she had for a whole year been privately married to Mr. Masham, groom of the bedchamber to the prince of Denmark, and that the queen herself had honoured this secret marriage by her presence at Dr. Arbuthnot's lodgings, at which time Anne, the duchess now remembered, had called for a round sum from the privy purse. In short, the duchess herself tells us that, in less than a week after the inquiries, she discovered that her cousin "was become an absolute favourite." What was still more alarming, when she upbraided Mrs. Masham with these things, she received a letter from her, written in so splendid a style, that she was sure only Harley could have composed it. Though she was no doubt mistaken in this, for Mrs. Masham wrote far more elegantly than either Harley or the duchess, yet it seemed to open up to the duchess's imagination the wider and more appalling ramifications of the plot. Harley, in fact, was in league with Mrs. Masham, and through her was operating on the queen so as to utterly overthrow the influence with Anne of the duchess, the duke, and all the whigs. Mrs. Masham, the duchess discovered, was in the habit of going continually to the queen when the prince was asleep, and was generally two hours every day in private with her, and that, beyond all dispute, "Mr. Harley's correspondence and interest at court was by means of this woman."

The alarmed duchess wrote to the duke to inform him of these ominous discoveries, and the great general could return her no better answer than to speak to Mrs. Masham about her interviews with the queen, as he said she must be grateful; as if the great courtier as well as general was not well aware how little gratitude or any other restraint avails where the alluring countenance of a sovereign is concerned. It was a mere catching at straws by the drowning. For some time the queen seemed divided betwixt the old affection for the duchess and the new one for Mrs. Masham; but the duchess certainly did her best, by annoying the queen with her angry and insolent letters, to alienate the royal mind from her. Anne, with all her indolence and good nature, and the old propensity inherent in her family for favouritism, had yet a spirit of stubborn resentment in her when once moved. And the duchess had wounded the queen unpardonably in her self-love, when she was not aware of it. Anne had overheard her railing at her to Mrs. Masham, and expressing an utter loathing and hatred of her person. This was before she knew that Abigail was in the queen's favour. Not only, however, did the duchess contrive, amidst all her violence and insolence, to importune the queen for a restoration to her old affection, and for the dismissal of Mrs. Masham, but she employed lord Godolphin on the same errand. Anne still professed all her wonted regard for her dear Mrs. Freeman, but every day Mrs. Masham took deeper hold on the queen's fancy, and the duchess felt that she was fast losing that hold. The writer of the "Other side of the Question," supposed to be Ralph, the historian, who was employed to answer the duchess's "Account of her Conduct," says, "The grand inference your grace draws is, that you were betrayed, but the inferences of the world are such as these:—That the queen was a captive and you her gaoler; that she was neither mistress of her power nor free to express her inclinations; that she was so far overawed by a length of oppression, as to dread the very approach of her tormentress; that she was forced to unbosom herself by stealth; and that she durst not enter upon a contest with your grace, even to set herself free from your unsupportable tyranny, a situation so terrible that no private person would, for any consideration, submit to it, and consequently, what a sovereign might justly endeavour, at almost any rate, to be delivered from."

This was true enough, but it may still be doubted whether Anne would have had sufficient firmness in the end to break with the Marlboroughs, had she not been kept up to it by the acts of Harley. Through the medium of his rising cousin, Mrs. Masham, he had frequent interviews with the queen, without the knowledge of the ever-watchful duchess, who, whatever her pride and her temper, was a formidable antagonist on account of her abilities. She had been the making of her own husband, for, as she did not hesitate to say, had she not cleared the way for him, his military talents would have had no opportunity to display themselves, and now she was all eyes, ears, and vigilance to regain her lost influence, and damage the enemies, who, with equal subtlety, were operating against her. In these labours they had a zealous coadjutor in the duke's brother, admiral Churchill, who was a red-hot tory, and though not intending to injure his own family did this by doing all in his power to overthrow the whigs. Marlborough, who cared nothing for parties, except as they contributed to his power and gain, was quite ready to abandon the whigs himself, if he could make sure of Harley and Mrs. Masham. But as he could not trust them, and as they meant to get rid of him and his wife, there was nothing for it but still endeavouring to win back the queen's good will. For this purpose Marlborough entreated his angry wife to be calm and politic; but calmness was not in the duchess's nature. She continued to annoy the queen by her interviews and letters, which were full of hard thrusts at the Masham; and Anne continued to protest all her ancient regard for Mrs. Freeman, though more and more determined never to come under the yoke any more.

At this crisis an unlucky incident for the cunning Harley occurred. He had in his office one William Greg, a clerk who was detected in a treasonable correspondence with Chamillart, the French minister. He was arrested and thrown into the Old Bailey. The whigs hoped to be able to implicate Harley himself in this secret correspondence. There had just been an attempt to get lord Godolphin dismissed from his office, and he, lord Marlborough his