defer until the rendering of myself unto your honour's sight and service. Of Rome in short, this is my

opinion, or rather indeed, my most assured knowledge. That her delights on earth are sweet, and her judgments in heaven heavy."

*

About the year 1596, being then 28 years of sage he returned to England. The elegance of his person and manners, the accomplishments of his mind, and the ample fund of political information he had obtained during his travels, recommended him to the notice of the most eminent of his countrymen, and almost immediately after his return, procured him the appointment of Secretary to the Earl of Essex, then in the zenith of his power. With this unfortunate nobleman he continued until his arrest and commitment to the tower, upon the charge of treason which cost him his life: when fearing to be involved in the impending fate of his patron, he secretly left the kingdom and retired into Italy. This happened in the year 1599.

During his second residence abroad, he passed the greater portion of his time at Florence, and it was in that city he composed his principal work, which was not however printed until several years after his death. This work is entitled, "The state of Christendom, or a most exact and curious discovery of many secret passages and hidden mysteries of the times." His chief aim in this composition, was to obtain favour with Queen Elizabeth, and facilitate his return home; why it was not published does not appear. Of the state of Florence at this time he had previously given the following account in one of his letters to Lord Zouch.“ I

live here in a paradise inhabited by devils. Venice hath scarce heard of those vices which are here practiced. My best commodity is the conversation of certain gentlemen, and their vulgar very pure and correct; so that here we have good means to learn to speak well and to do ill."

During his residence at Florence the following adventure happened to him, and laid the foundation of his future fortune.

The zeal which Queen Elizabeth, and her presumed successor the king of Scotland, had shewn for the reformed religion, procured them the hatred and enmity of all violent Catholics, and many plans were devised to destroy both one and the other by assassination. In the instance of the queen this was deemed a lawful and praiseworthy deed, she having been formally excommunicated by the Pope in 1576. In 1602 Ferdinand, Grand Duke of Florence, had discovered by intercepted letters, a design of this nature upon the life of the Scottish king. Having consulted with his secretary Vietta respecting the best means of conveying this information to the party threatened, he advised him to dispatch Sir Henry Wotton, who was his personal friend, to Scotland. Accordingly, charged with letters from the Duke, and with antidotes, he took his depar ture in the garb, and with the assumed name of an Italian; found the king at Stirling, and immediately procured admission to his presence by means of Bernard Lindsay his chamberlain.

"When Octavio Baldi," for that was his assumed name, came to the presence-chamber door, he was requested to lay aside his long rapier which Italian like he then wore, and being entered the chamber, he found

there with the king three or four Scotch lords standing distant in several corners of the chamber, at the sight of whom he made a stand; which the king observing, bade him be bold and deliver his message; for he would undertake for the secrecy of all that were present. Then did Octavio Baldi deliver his letters and his message to the king in Italian; which when the king had graciously received, after a little pause, Octavio Baldi steps to the table, and whispers to the king, in his own language, that he was an Englishman, beseeching him for a more private conference with his majesty, and that he might be concealed during his stay in that nation; which was promised, and really performed by the King during all his abode there which was about three months; all which time was spent with much pleasantness to the King, and with as much to Octavio Baldi himself, as that country could afford; from which he departed as true an Italian as he came thither.'

Upon the accession of James to the English crown he returned home, and was immediately afterwards introduced to the king, at his especial desire, by his elder brother Lord Wotton. James received him with open arms, hailed him as his friend by the name of Octavio Baldi, and conferred upon him the order of knighthood.

James, whatever may be said of the weakness of his general character, shewed no want of discernment in his selection of political agents. He very justly appreciated the talents and acquirements of Sir Henry Wotton, proposed to employ him as a resident at some foreign court, and offered him his choice of France, Spain, or Venice. This was highly honourable to

* Walton's Life of Wotton.

S

both parties, Wotton with characteristic prudence selccted Venice, as the state best suited to his previous habits and acquirements, and as being better adapted by its comparative rank, to the scantiness of his private fortune. He was immediately nominated embassador to the republic, with a handsome allowance for his present necessities, and a liberal maintenance during his future residence.

He embarked on this his first political mission in 1604, and in his journey to Venice committed an act of incautious witticism, which several years after had nearly lost him the confidence of his royal master. Being at the city of Ausburg in Germany, where from previous residence he had acquired many friends, and passing the day in conviviality with one of them named Christopher Flecamore, he was requested by him to insert some motto in his Album, (a blank paper book, preserved for such uses, according to a national custom) as a memorial of their friendship. Sir Henry took the pen, and hastily wrote the following definition of his newly acquired office of an embassador.-" Legatus est vir bonus perigrè missus ad mentiendum reipublicæ causa." This sentence when converted into English becomes a pun,-an ambassador is an honest man sert to lie abroad for the good of his country,—and as an English pun Sir Henry Wotton doubtless wished it to be applied; it is, however, no pun in the language in which he wrote it. Eight years afterwards, Jasper Scioppius, a papist, and a controversial writer of that day, having obtained a knowledge of this incident, produced the sentence in one of his publications, as a principle of state professed by King James, and pro-' mulgated by Sir Henry Wotton his embassador at

Venice. The discovery made more noise than it deserved, and, as it was industriously propagated at Venice, the embassador was called to account for it.

Whether or not this circumstance produced his recal, does not appear; it is certain that he was in England in 1611, about the time that the publication of Scioppius made its appearance, and his vindication addressed in elegant latin to Mark Welser, governor of Ausburg, his personal friend, is dated at London, December 2d, 1612. This composition which was carefully circulated, and contained a simple statement of the facts, together with some merited abuse of Scioppius, seemed to produce the desired purpose of exposing the malicious design of his adversary. Sir Henry Wotton deemed it requisite to address himself more pointedly to his royal master, and soothed his irritated mind by a separate and apparently satisfactory apology.

Sir Henry Wotton remained at home until 1614. We are furnished in the Reliquiæ with a series of his letters written during this interval, to his nephew by marriage and by adoption, Sir Edmund Bacon; from which what relates to himself personally shall be extracted.

Under date of November 16th, 1613, he writes, "It may please you, Sir, to understand, that the king, when he was last at Hampton, called me to him, and there acquainted me with a general purpose that he had to put me again to some use. Since which time, the French embassador, having at an audience of some length, besought his majesty, I know not whether voluntarily, or set on by some of our own, to disen

cumber himself of frequent accesses, by the choice of