THE END OF BUCKINGHAM. 35 



he would be at ease ; this proved otherwise, for a mortification came 

 on the lower parts, and rapidly descended, so that it had occasioned 

 death. 



As soon as I had arrived, I sent to York for one Dr. Waler,forI found 

 him here in a most miserable condition ; he desired me to stay with 

 him, which I willingly obeyed. I confess it make my heart ache to 

 see the Duke of Buckingham in so pitiful a state and in so bad a con- 

 dition ; and what made it worse he was not at all sensible of it, for he 

 thought that in a day or two he should be well, and when we minded 

 him of his condition, he said it was not so as we apprehended. The 

 doctors told me his case was desperate, and though he enjoyed the free 

 exercise of his senses, that in a day or two at most it would kill him ; 

 but they durst not tell him of it ; so they put a hard part upon me to 

 pronounce death to him, which I saw approaching so fast, that I thought 

 it was high time for him to think of another world, for it was impossible 

 for him to continue long in this ; so I sent for a very worthy gentleman, 

 Mr. Gibson, a neighbour* of His Grace's, who lives but a mile from this 

 place, to be an assistant in this work ; so we jointly represented his 

 condition to him, who I saw was at first very uneasy ; but I think we 

 should not have discharged the duty of honest men, or I of a faithful 

 kinsman, if we had suffered him to go out of this world without desiring 

 him to prepare for death, and to look into his conscience. 



Mr. Gibson asked him if he had made a will, or if he would declare 

 who was to be his heir, but to the first he answered that he had made 

 none, and to the last whoever was named, he always answered, " No." 

 I then said, that since he would do nothing in his wordly affairs, I 

 desired he might die like a Christian ; and since he called himself of the 

 Church of England, the parson was ready here to administer the Sacra- 

 ment to him, which he said he would take ; so accordingly I gave orders 

 for it, and two other honest gentlemen received with him — Mr. Gibson 

 and Colonel Liston, an old servant of His Grace's. At first he called 

 out three or four times, for he thought that the ceremony looked as if 

 death was near, which for the strength of his noble parts (they not yet 

 being affected) he could not easily believe ; for all this time he was not 

 willing to take death to him, but in a few minutes after he became 

 calm and received the Sacrament with all the decency imaginable, 

 and in an hour afterwards he lost his speech, and continued so till 

 eleven at night, when he died. Mr. Brian Fairfax and Mr. Gibson have 

 been witnesses of my proceedings since my being here ; I hope they 

 will give an account of it. I thought in honour I could not leave him 

 in this condition being so nearly related to him, especially His Grace 

 being in such a retired corner, where there was nobody till I sent for 



* John Gibson, of Welburn Hall, the chief magistrate of the neigh- 

 bourhood. 



