Page:The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, Volume 15.djvu/402

394 love, and would not play. Tisdall is a pretty fellow, as you say, and when I come back to Ireland with nothing, he will condole with me with abundance of secret pleasure. I believe I told you what he wrote to me, "That I have saved England and he Ireland:" but I can bear that. I have learned to hear and see, and say nothing. I was to see the duchess of Hamilton to day, and met Blith of Ireland just going out of her house into his coach. I asked her how she came to receive young fellows. It seems he had a ball in the duke of Hamilton's house when the duke died; and the duchess got an advertisement put in the Postboy, reflecting on the ball, because the Marlborough daughters were there; and Blith came to beg the duchess's pardon, and clear himself. He is a sad dog. Night, dear MD.

5. Lady Masham has miscarried; but is almost well again. I have paid many visits to day. I met Blith at the duke of Ormond's; and he begged me to carry him to the duchess of Hamilton, to beg her pardon again. I did on purpose to see how the blunderbuss behaved himself; but I begged the duchess to use him mercifully, for she is the devil of a teaser. The good of it is, she ought to beg his pardon, for he meant no harm; yet she would not allow him to put in an advertisement to clear himself from hers, though hers was all a lie. He appealed to me, and I gravely gave it against him. I was at court to day, and the foreign ministers have got a trick of employing me to speak for them to lord treasurer and lord Bolingbroke; which I do when the case is reasonable. The college need not fear; I will not be their governor. I dined with sir Thomas Hanmer and his duchess. The duke of Ormond was there, but we parted