Page:Notes and Queries - Series 12 - Volume 10.djvu/347

 12 s.x. APRIL 15, 1922.] NOTES AND QUERIES. 281 LONDON, APRIL 15, 1922. CONTENTS. No. 209. NOTES : Sir Samuel Morland and Cromwell. 281' Gloucester Journal.' 1722-1922. 283 Whitefoord of that Ilk or of Miltoun. 285 Judge Jeffreys and Shakespeare : Lady Ivy- Early Fire-engines Racing Stable Terms, 286 Method of Signalling, 287. ' QUERIES : Carlings, 287 Byron Query The Cloptons of Suffolk William Prodhome " Old Nick " John Hoppner's Grave Sprusen's Island Temple Fortune. 288 Murders in Italy Franklin ' Peter Simple ' : Naval Slang Loftus James Atkinson. M.D.. 289 Robert Burdett Peter Ducasse Buried Wine McWhea The Width of Cheapside Stevenson's ' Virginibus Puerisque ' Lance Calkin Captain Skinner, 290. REPLIES : General Nicholson's Birthplace, 290 Mothering Sunday " Once aboard the lugger," 292 The " Hand and Pen " " Southam Cyder," 293 The Stepney Manor Lord- ship The Montfort Families Sermon at Paul's Cross, 294 The " Woe Waters " of Wharram General Cyrus Trapaud The "Chalybeate" Brighton Pilate's Wife Bretel Sir Thomas Phillipps. 295 Oldmixon ' La Santa Parentela ' Descendants of Richard Penderell The Rev. George Sack- ville Cotter Watts Phillips, Dramatist, Novelist and Artist, 296 The Countess Guiccioli's ' Recollections of Lord Byron ' Rhymed History of England Henry Ellis Boates Henry Furnesse (Furnese), 297 Story by E. A. Poe wanted Authors wanted, 298. NOTES ON BOOKS: 'The Problem of Style '' Place- names of the Orange Free State ' ' Acts of the Privy Council of England ' (1613-1614) ' Bacon and Shakespeare.' Notices to Correspondents. SIR SAMUEL MORLAND AND CROMWELL. I THINK it will be as well to complete the story of the Westenhanger plot against Charles II. by explaining a muddled account given by the eighteenth- century historian Eachard. Eachard's version has misled many writers and has had the effect of dis- crediting what, after all, is a very simple narrative. Eachard says : Cromwell was not unacquainted with the design and motion of the King and his friends and found means to counterplot them in all their projects, and, from the time that the three Royal brothers had settled themselves at Bruges, he entered upon darker designs than ever. Particularly with the joint conspiracy of his old friend Secretary Thurloe and Sir Richard Willis was formed an execrable contrivance that at one blow should ruin and in a manner extirpate the Royal family. This was to send over proper messengers to Flanders with plausible letters, to invite his Majesty to come over in a single ship, with only the Dukes of York and Gloucester, his brothers, and a very few more, to a certain port in Sussex, upon an appointed fixed day, where they were promised to be received and supported by five hundred foot at the first landing and two thousand horse within one day after. It was likewise determined by this cabinet council that Sir Richard himself should contrive and manage these letters of invitation, in which the matter was to be urged to his Majesty as the most hope- ful, if not certain, plot for his Restoration ; though, at the same time, the real design and resolution was to shoot all the three brothers dead at their first landing. The whole matter, being thus formed by this triumvirate in Thurloe's own office, was un- expectedly overheard by Mr. Samuel Morland, the present under-secretary to Thurloe, who all the while counterfeited himself to be fast asleep upon a desk, not far off in that office. Eachard goes on to add that Morland's French wife (Suzanne de Boissay) had brought over her husband to Charles II. 's interest, and that Morland at once repaired to the Tower, in order to see Major Thomas Henshaw, imprisoned there ; and, finally, adds the incredible tale that Mr. Morland being in a publick station and altogether unsuspected to the Keepers of the Tower, and likewise pretending to perform some service for his master, Cromwell, found an easy opportunity for Mr. Henshaw, in company tvith the warder himself [of all things in the world] to go over and give the King such an account of the matter, as might secure him from future danger. And, to defray their expenses, he gave each of them a hundred broad pieces of gold. All this was managed with the utmost privacy by Henshaw, without the least suspicion by the warder, and at such a nice juncture of time, that the King and his brothers had a very narrow escape. Of course this tale reduces all to utter nonsense, and it only remains to add that Eachard also sets out a letter, purporting to be by Samuel Morland, retracting all his charges against Sir Richard Willys. This letter was obviously a forgery. What can be said of the eighteenth- century historians who printed such contradictory stories as this ? Fortunately, there are two other writers who clear the matter up. There is an account of this incident in the ' Memoirs ' of Dr. James Welwood (ed. 1700, pp. 110-111), physician to William III., who knew Morland. The passage is equally well known, but I will repeat it before giving an explanation of it by Welwood, which has not hitherto been known. In his ' Memoirs ' Welwood says : At another time, the protector coming late at night to Thurloe's office and beginning to give him directions about something of great im- portance and secrecy, he took notice that Mr. Morland, one of the clerks, afterwards Sir Samuel