LIFE OF ARCHBISHOP SHARP. 127 



the Lord President about the Ripon election, 

 than he could about York. 



*' I have done (says he) what I can to secure 

 the election of Mr. Jennings and Mr. Aislabie, 

 (where I think I may and ought to concern my- 

 self,) and I hope they will be chosen there in case 

 of a new parliament, without any opposition." 



And here it was that Mr. Sharp, his eldest 

 son, did afterwards, upon his recommendation, 

 establish an interest that preserved him in par- 

 liament as long as the Archbishop lived : which 

 remark is here subjoined to the foregoing quo- 

 tation out of his letter, to obviate an objection 

 that might possibly be made to the firmness to 

 his principle about elections, as if he could 

 suffer himself to recede from it where the in- 

 terest of his own family was immediately con- 

 cerned. And had he really done so in favour 

 of his own son (who was withal a very deserving- 

 gentleman,) the peculiar circumstances of such 

 a case would have made it allowable ; but this 

 really was not his motive to recommend to that 

 borough, as appears from the forementioned 

 letter to the Duke of Leeds in 1695, antece- 

 dently to any views for Mr. Sharp, wherein he 

 declares that, in his judgement, he ought to 

 concerti himself in that particular borough. So 

 that the favour he did his son in recommending 

 him to that town, was none other than he had 



