XXI. OFFICIAL EXTRACT OF THE ROYAL LETTER ORDAINING THE At Holyrudhous the 20th day of Marche the year of God 1630, the quhilk day, in presence of the Lords of Exchequer, sittand in full number, compeirit personallie Archibald Lord Naper, and producit his Majestie's letter underwritten, direct to the Lord Viscount Dupline, Chancellor, and the Earles, Lords, and utheris Commissioners of Exchequer, and desireit the samyn to be registrat in the buiks of our Soverane Lord's Exchequer, quhairof the tenour followes : Charles R. Right trustie and right weilbeloveit Cousins and Counsalours, Right trustie and weilbeloveit Counsalours, Trustie and weilbeloveit, We greet you weill: Whairas some informations have been given Us, concerning the Lord Naper, Our Deputy Treasurer, Our pleasour is, that if any accuser sall appear against him in the articles given in to Us, that you hear and try the accusationes, and thaireftir send up the tryal, togither with himself and his accusers, to the effect he may answer unto Us, and receave Our determination from our owin mouth; and in meane tyme that he have the full exercise of his place, according to his patent, and be payit of all money is due unto him, befoir any officiar of Exchequer inferior to him be payit of any in tyme to come; and that you cause intimat Our pleasour heiranent to the Receavers, Clerks, Collectours, and Takismen; and registrat these presents in the buiks of Exchequer; for doing whereof these sal be unto you a sufficient warrand. Given at Our Court at Whytehall the 29th of November, 1629 yeares. Quhilk letter above written being produceit, and read, the Lords of Ex in Montrose's camp, immediately after the battle of Tippermuir, by Stewart of Ardvoirlich. We shall find from a letter of Menteith's to Charles I. in 1639, that he had been again taken into royal favour; and that he was the first to apprise the King of the loyalty of Montrose, while yet with the Covenanting party. chequer ordayneit the samyn to be registrat as said is. Extractum de Libris Actorum Saccarii per me Dominum Johannem Hamiltoun de Magdalenis Militem Clericus Rotolorum Reg. ac Consilii S. N. D. Regis, sub meis signo et subscriptione manualibus. It is worthy of notice that Lord Napier sought and found his best protection, against this storm of most unprincipled faction, in personal interviews with the King, and in a reference, of this attempt to destroy him, to his Majesty's personal investigation of its dishonesty. No one was better acquainted with the real dispositions and upright intentions of the unfortunate monarch than this nobleman, who had known him from his boyhood. At this period, which was the dawn of those troubles in which the now youthful Montrose was fated to be so conspicuous, Charles I. was greatly abused by the most distinguished councillors of that nation from whence the ominous cloud arose. Lord Napier indulges in no hyperbolical statement, but records his literal meaning and knowledge, which he verifies by examples, when he says, that 'for bryberie at both hands, (that is, all parties,) concussion of the people, and abusing the King, no age can parallel' that which his Autograph Relation illustrates. And thereby,' he adds, the judicious may perceave the former setled maner of government shaken by frequent innovations intertained and practised; factions in Court and State afoot; accusations, calumnies, and aspersions ordinary; and, which wes worse, - J. HAMILTON. Clk. Reg.' finding their own prejudice (interest) that way, - combinations; and hopes given thereby of great service to the King, without any performance, but, be the contrare, his Majestie's just and gratious inclination. abused by misinformations, his eares blocked up and so straitly beleagered as truth could not approach them; and all for their own profit, and prejudice of the King and State; the presence of honest men, who would not comply with them in their oblique courses, so hateful as they could not endure it; and so bold, in consideration of the strength of there leagues, as they did not stick to falsify the King's hand, surreptitiously to steal his Majestie's superscriptions, and to frame letters contrary to his meaning, and many other things of this kind.' It must be kept in mind that this was privately recorded before the great storm had arisen, or those events had occurred from which the genius of Clarendon derived its immortality. This unprincipled conduct of some of the highest rank and position in Scotland, ceased not, but increased and became interwoven with public transactions, and produced and reared. that monstrous birth, the Covenant of Scotland, of whose real merits, as we shall find in the sequel, this same nobleman XXII. ARCHIBALD FIRST LORD NAPIER TO WILLIAM SEVENTH EARL RIGHT HONORABILL-My occassions will not permitt me to attend your Lordship this day, And therefoir I intreat you by these to remember to get those Letters Signed by his Majestie, And if your Lordship have any dout of my performance, I am content to subscryve presently a demission, to be deposited in the hands of an indifferent man, till I be secured, and my discharge be past the Seales. I am the more earnest becaus I am to send a man to Scotland about some bissines, which concernes me much, whom I have stayed this eight dayes upon these Letters to be signed by his Majestie; and till I send word, and gif power to some of my frends to receave security for me, and sie conditions performed, there is no body will medle in it. I am confident of fair dealing from your Lordship, and for me I will still remayne an honest man and your Lordship's faithfull and affectionate Servant, [no date] To the Right Honorabill the Earle of Mortoun, NAPER. XXIII. ARCHIBALD FIRST LORD NAPIER TO WILLIAM SEVENTH RIGHT HONORABILL-By the King his warrand concerning me, your Lordship may find his pleasour, and that his Majestie is still had to retract his first opinion, in conjunction with his illustrious pupil, Montrose. Such were the difficulties with which the character of Charles I. had to contend; and viewed through so false a medium it has been mistaken and distorted. himself, gratious and just, qualities, as they are in themselves excellent, so, I am confident will never be eclipsed by your Lordship's proceedings. If your Lordship's furtherance were a mater of favour, I might be bashfull to be a suter, having never deserved; but it being a mater of justice and right, and withall your Lordship sufficiently warranted, it wer an injurie to refuse it. I will therfoir intreat your Lordship to gif order to pay such moneys as ar due to me, to my brother Mr Robert Naper, to whom I have given power to gif discharges; which I hope your Lordship will do, altho I know ther be some men interested in your affection who have done me wrong, and therfoir cannot forgive me, who will labor to disuade your Lordship. But I trust as much in your generous disposition and wisdome as I am persuaded your Lordsip may well gif them your affection, but yet will keep your reason to yourself to do that which is just and right. By which your Lordship shall not only do an act worthy of yourself, but also oblish me, as much as if it were a mater of meer favour, to remayne Your Lordship's humble Servant, King Street, 17 Nov. 1630. NAPER. To the Right Honorabill, My very good Lord the Earle of Mortoun, Lord High Thesaurar of Scotland, &c., These. XXIV. ARCHIBALD FIRST LORD NAPIER TO WILLIAM SEVENTH EARL MY NOBLE LORD-I pray yow pardon me that I am not to wayt upon your Lordship since yee came hither, as is my dutie. The true caus is, and do me the fawour to give it non uther, I have bene a litle sick these eight days, and am advysed for my health to keep my chalmer a day or two longer, which being past I will then attend your Lordship, not out of fear, or flattery, nor policy of court, but out of that true respect your vertue and noblenes of mynd doth justly merit at all men's hands that have any portion themselves. And if these be the proof of bad advyse, and bye respects, which have transported some of great place and quality from courses of honor and honesty too, in my particulers, I shall then ever remayne Your Lordship's humble Servant, King Street, 11 December 1630. NAPER. 1 1 These letters to the Earl of Morton, whom Napier appears to have esteemed very highly, are from the originals preserved in the Morton archives. This Earl had succeeded Marr as High Treasurer in the month of April 1630. Lord Napier's view of his good dispositions is justified by his whole conduct. When the civil war broke out he retired to Orkney, and died on the 7th of August 1648, in the 66th year of his age, his end being hastened, it is said, by distress of mind at the fate of Charles I. His youngest daughter, Lady Isobel Douglas, after having been married to the first Earl of Roxburgh, became the wife of Montrose's son, the second Marquis. It is curious and interesting to observe how the family history of most of the dramatis personæ, in this opening scene of the Troubles, connects with the tragedy of Montrose. The Treasurer Marr's eldest grand-daughter, Lady Elizabeth Erskine, became the niece of Montrose by marriage with the second Lord Napier, and was the devoted enthusiast who incurred the no small risk of secretly obtaining and embalming his heart. The Earl of Monteith was the father of that Lord Kilpont whom Stewart of Ardvoirloch so basely assassinated in the camp of Montrose. Traquair and his son sold Montrose at Philiphaugh. The gouty and testy old Chancellor Kinnoul, of whom Lord Napier records this characteristic, that at the council board 'his manner wes to interrupt all men when he wes disposed to speake, and the King too,' was the predecessor of that Kinnoul who perished of fatigue and hunger in the wilds of Assynt, when Montrose's solitary companion in that hopeless flight. |